Former United States Vice President Mike Pence said he is "not yet convinced" that Donald Trump's actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Hill riot were criminal despite an indictment against the Republican businessman.
In a statement on Sunday, Pence said that he was hoping that the situation does not come to that point. He said that he had heard a deep concern regarding the law's unequal treatment. Pence added that one indictment against the former president would only contribute to that sense of unease among the American people.
Mike Pence on Donald Trump's Jan. 6 Actions
The former vice president noted that he would rather see the issues and the judgment about Trump's actions during the Capitol Hill riot be left to the American people to decide during the upcoming primaries.
Pence's statements come as he faced pressure from Trump on Jan. 6, 2021, who ordered him to block the certification of the results of the 2020 elections. As to CNN, he said that the former president's actions were reckless, adding that he believes history would make his former boss accountable for his actions.
Dana Bash, the host of CNN's "State of the Union," asked Pence about a recent radio interview where the former president spoke of his "passionate" supporters and how they could react to this potential imprisonment. The former vice president said that it was a topic that was dangerous to even talk about.
The former vice president said that the rhetoric from his former boss doesn't worry him because he has confidence in the American people. He noted that nearly everyone in his movement is the kind of American who love the country, are patriotic, are law-and-order people, and are those who have never done anything criminal.
Despite being reminded that he was once the subject of calls for his hanging, Pence maintained his position. He said that the people who rallied behind their cause in 2016 and 2020 are the nation's most God-fearing, law-abiding, patriotic people.
The situation comes after Trump said last week that Special Counsel Jack Smith notified him in a letter that he was the subject of an investigation by a Wasghinton-based grand jury. It was examining the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot and alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, according to NBC News.
Criminal Investigations
The supposed letter mentions three federal statutes related to the deprivation of rights, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and tampering with a witness. The former president also recently indirectly warned the special counsel that it would be "very dangerous" to send him to prison.
Bash also questioned Pence if the latter believes that the Department of Justice should charge Trump if it finds evidence that the former president committed a crime related to the Capitol siege. But the former vice president only answered by saying that his former boss' actions at the time were inappropriate, said Yahoo News.
The former vice president said that criminal charges have everything to do with intent and the former president's state of mind during the Capitol Hill riot.
