- Donald Trump attempted to block former Vice President Mike Pence from testifying before a grand jury about Trump’s alleged involvement in the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
- Trump’s legal team also attempted to block senior aides from testifying before the grand jury, but the appeal was rejected.
- Trump continues to deny any wrongdoing in all investigations.
Former President Donald Trump moved Monday to block former Vice President Mike Pence from testifying before a grand jury about Trump’s alleged involvement in the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Trump, who was arrested and arraigned last week after a Manhattan grand jury issued an indictment on a separate case, faces several criminal investigations. One such investigation is examining the former president’s alleged involvement in the riot, during which his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol building in an attempt to prevent Congress from certifying Joe Biden as president. Trump continues to deny any wrongdoing in all investigations.
Trump already attempted to block Pence from testifying earlier in the grand jury’s investigation on grounds that Pence’s testimony might violate executive privilege, but Boasberg ruled that Pence could be required to testify. On Monday, Trump’s legal team appealed the judge’s ruling.
A spokesperson for Pence announced last week that the former vice president, who served under Trump, wouldn’t appeal the order issued by Boasberg. Despite Pence’s cooperation, Trump’s legal team is attempting to block his potential testimony.
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“The DOJ is continuously stepping far outside the standard norms in attempting to destroy the long accepted, long held, Constitutionally based standards of attorney-client privilege and executive privilege,” a Trump spokesperson told Newsweek on Monday.
“The Special Counsel is conducting a witch-hunt where the government has sought to violate every Constitutional norm, including the safeguards that protect a President’s ability to confer with his Vice President on matters of the security of the United States.”
A similar move was recently taken when Trump’s legal team attempted to block senior aides under the former president from testifying before the January 6 grand jury. The aides expected to appear before the grand jury include former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino, former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and former national security adviser Robert O’Brien.
The appeal was rejected by a federal appeals court, meaning that Trump was handed a legal loss just hours before he was arrested in New York City on 34 charges of falsifying business records in the first degree for his alleged role in hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016.
Dave Aronberg, a state attorney for Palm Beach County, Florida, told Newsweek that the aides could have insider knowledge on Trump’s alleged involvement with the January 6 attack, and they possibly could possess knowledge of the then-president’s communications. Pence likely poses a similar risk to the former president in the investigation.
“There is neither factual nor legal basis or substance to any case against President Trump. The deranged Democrats and their comrades in the mainstream media are corrupting the legal process and weaponizing the justice system in order to manipulate and influence an election in which President Trump is dominating all across the board,” the Trump spokesperson told Newsweek.
In late February, Smith subpoenaed Trump’s daughter Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner. Legal experts interpreted the move as Smith approaching the end of the probe, which could result in another indictment against Trump.
Newsweek reached out to a spokesperson for Pence via email for comment.
