Pence calls Trump tweet on January 6 ‘reckless’

By CNN Newsource

Published November 13, 2022 6:29 PM

By Gregory Clary, CNN

Former Vice President Mike Pence said former President Donald Trump’s words on social media during the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol were “reckless” and criticized Trump for being “part of the problem” that day.

Pence was asked on ABC News about Trump’s tweet during the attack that said Pence didn’t have the “courage” to unilaterally overturn the results.

“It angered me,” Pence told ABC’s David Muir after a long pause. “But I turned to my daughter, who was standing nearby. And I said, ‘It doesn’t take courage to break the law, it takes courage to uphold the law.’ The president’s words were reckless. It was clear he decided to be part of the problem,” the former vice president continued.

In the Trump White House, Pence was fiercely loyal in public through the constant controversies that defined the administration, but in the wake of the January 6 riot — in which Trump supporters chanted to hang the then-vice president — he has occasionally criticized his former boss, most notably in February, when he publicly denounced Trump’s election lies.

Pence is set to participate in a CNN town hall on Wednesday, the day after the release of his forthcoming autobiography “So Help Me God.” The town hall, moderated by CNN Anchor and Chief Washington Correspondent Jake Tapper, will take place in New York City and is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET.

This is a breaking story and will be updated.