Trump says Pence ‘didn’t have the courage’ after VP says he can’t change electoral vote
President Donald Trump said Wednesday afternoon Vice President Mike Pence “didn’t have the courage” in his decision to not overturn the election results.
Trump’s tweet Wednesday afternoon came about an hour after Pence’s statement in which he refused orders from Trump to block President-elect Joe Biden’s confirmation as president during the Electoral College vote certification process.
“Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify,” Trump tweeted. “USA demands the truth!”
Pence wrote in his letter it would be “unethical” for him to decide who wins the presidency.
“I do not believe that the founders of our country intended to invest the vice president with unilateral authority to decide which electoral votes should be counted during the joint session of Congress, and no vice president in American history has ever asserted such authority.”
“It is my considered judgment that my oath to support and defend the Constitution constrains me from claiming unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not,” the vice president later said.
The Constitution does not allow the vice president to overturn election results.
Trump has repeatedly pressured the vice president to intervene in the Electoral College process, including during a speech in front of thousands of supporters Wednesday.
“Mike Pence is going to have to come through for us, because if he doesn’t, that will be a sad day for our country, because you have sworn to uphold the Constitution,” he said.
Tuesday, Trump inaccurately tweeted, “the Vice President has the power to reject fraudulently chosen electors.” Trump also said during a rally Monday in Georgia, “If (Pence) doesn’t come through, I won’t like him quite as much.”
Pence did not name Trump in the letter. He mentioned he had concerns about the integrity of the election, but said “the presidency belongs to the American people, and to them alone.”
“The American people chose the American president, and have every right under the law to demand free and fair elections and a full investigation of electoral misconduct,” Pence stated. “As presiding officer, I will do my duty to ensure that these concerns receive a fair and open hearing in the Congress of the United States. Objections will be heard, evidence will be presented, and the elected representatives of the American people will make their decision.”
This story was originally published January 6, 2021 at 1:43 PM with the headline "Trump says Pence ‘didn’t have the courage’ after VP says he can’t change electoral vote."