Trump defends threats to “hang” Pence

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Former Vice President Mike Pence said Thursday Jan 7, 2021 that he wasn’t sure that he and former President Donald Trump would ever see “eye to eye” over what happened on Jan. 6

Former President Trump — in a taped interview with Jonathan Karl of ABC News that was shared with Axios — defended, quite extensively, supporters who threatened to “hang” former Vice President Mike Pence.

Why it matters: Well, it is unprecedented for a former president to openly say it was OK to threaten the life of his vice president.

  • Oh, the two men are on track to run against each other for the GOP nomination in 2024. 

Jonathan Karl: “Were you worried about him during that siege? Were you worried about his safety?”

  • Trump: “No, I thought he was well-protected, and I had heard that he was in good shape. No. Because I had heard he was in very good shape. But, but, no, I think — “

Karl: “Because you heard those chants — that was terrible. I mean — “

  • Trump: “He could have — well, the people were very angry.”

Karl: “They were saying ‘hang Mike Pence.’”

  • Trump: “Because it’s common sense, Jon. It’s common sense that you’re supposed to protect. How can you — if you know a vote is fraudulent, right? — how can you pass on a fraudulent vote to Congress? How can you do that? And I’m telling you: 50/50, it’s right down the middle for the top constitutional scholars when I speak to them. Anybody I spoke to — almost all of them at least pretty much agree, and some very much agree with me — because he’s passing on a vote that he knows is fraudulent. How can you pass a vote that you know is fraudulent? Now, when I spoke to him, I really talked about all of the fraudulent things that happened during the election. I didn’t talk about the main point, which is the legislatures did not approve — five states. The legislatures did not approve all of those changes that made the difference between a very easy win for me in the states, or a loss that was very close, because the losses were all very close.”

AXIOS EXCLUSIVE

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