Former judge who advised Pence critiques his rejection of special counsel’s subpoena – By Robert Legare (CBS News) / Feb 18, 2023
Washington —When former Vice President Mike Pence was subpoenaed by special counsel Jack Smith, who is investigating any involvement by former President Donald Trump in the events surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, he soon announced his opposition to testifying. He called the subpoena “unconstitutional,” arguing that under the Constitution, “the executive branch cannot summon officials in the legislative branch into a court in any other place.”
As vice president, Pence was a member of the executive branch during the Trump administration but also held the unique role of president of the Senate and presided over the joint session of Congress that certified the 2020 Electoral College votes. On the basis of the responsibilities related to the election, he is invoking the Constitution’s Speech or Debate clause, which protects members of Congress from being questioned about their legislative actions by other branches of the federal government. Pence’s legal team plans to argue that he should not have to testify, in part because of the duty he fulfilled on Jan. 6, 2021.
“On the day of January 6, I was acting as president of the Senate, presiding over a joint session described in the Constitution itself. So I believe that that Speech and Debate clause of the Constitution actually prohibits the executive branch from compelling me to appear in a court, as the Constitution says, or in any other place,” Pence said this week in Iowa, “We’ll stand on that principle and we’ll take that case as far as it needs to go, if it needs be to the Supreme Court of the United States.”
