Pence testifies for more than five hours before a grand jury in the investigation into the assault on the Capitol

2023-04-28 17:54:21

The former Vice President of the United States, Mike Pencetestified this Thursday before a grand jury in charge of the investigation against the former president Donald Trump for the assault on the Capitol that took place on January 6, 2021.

This is the first time in modern history that a vice president of the United States has had to appear in connection with an investigation into the former head of state of the country under the same administration.

The hearing has been extended more than five hoursas revealed by sources close to the matter to the CNN television network.

Trump’s “number two” appearance came a day after the Washington District Court of Appeals ruled that the former president could not prevent Pence from testifying.

The former president had tried to avoid Pence’s statement by claiming that the events of that day are covered by “executive privilege,” the right of presidents to maintain confidential communications.

On January 6, 2021, some 10,000 people -most of them Trump supporters- marched towards the Capitol and some 800 stormed the building while the Democrat’s victory was certified. Joe Biden in the presidential elections of November 2020. There were five deaths and about 140 injured agents.

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Pence’s testimony comes when Trump has already made public his candidacy for the Republican primaries that must choose a candidate for the presidential elections scheduled for 2024, so his statements could have an impact on the future electoral campaign.

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Generally, Pence has been reluctant to speak about this matter under oath, although he has indicated on previous occasions that he refused to follow the instructions of the New York magnate during those days and that he preferred to comply with the Constitution.

The Justice Department already subpoenaed Pence in January to hear his testimony, which is of great interest given that he is the only witness to the conversations he had with Trump before the assault.