Former Vice President Mike Pence on Sunday appeared to deny a report that he faced pressure from Donald Trump to push the governor of Arizona for evidence that would back up the then-president’s false claims of election fraud in 2020.
Multiple sources told The Washington Post in an article published Saturday that Trump, 77, had repeatedly requested Pence “call [then-Gov. Doug] Ducey and prod him” — and that the VP held several conversations with the Republican governor but declined to follow the instructions to pressure him.
Pence, in an interview on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” confirmed that he “did check in” with Ducey and other governors whose states were “reviewing their election results” at the time, but said, “there was no pressure involved.”
“I was calling to get an update… I got updates on that, passed that along, and it was no more, no less than that,” he told moderator Margaret Brennan of the call.
Brennan followed up with Pence about the Washington Post’s reporting that Trump had pressured him to prod Ducey.
“No, I don’t remember any pressure,” Pence replied. “Look … things came to a head at the end, Margaret, I’ve spoken about very openly and the president and I continue to have a strong difference.”
“I’ll always believe that by God’s grace, I did my duty under the Constitution that day in presiding over a joint session of Congress in the aftermath of the mayhem and the rioting,” Pence added, referencing the Jan. 6, 2021 US Capitol riot. “But in the days of November and December, this was an orderly process.”
Pence famously broke with Trump and refused to decertify the 2020 election results on Jan. 6, 2021, contending that he lacked the constitutional authority to do so as VP.
Trump lost Arizona in a narrow 49.06% to 49.36% vote.
The former president has disputed his electoral defeat and peddled heavily disputed claims that the 2020 election was “stolen” from him or “rigged” against him.
In the aftermath of the election, Trump and his allies sought to challenge his defeat. That is now subject to an investigation by Special Counsel Jack Smith, who charged Trump on 37-counts last month for allegedly hoarding a bevy of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort after leaving office.
Pence testified before a federal grand jury aiding Smith’s inquiry earlier this year.
The former vice president declined to state whether the Ducey phone call came up during that testimony.
Trump has also weathered scrutiny from a Fulton County investigation regarding a phone call he made to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, asking to “find 11,780” votes, the number needed to overturn his loss.
A spokesperson for Ducey argued it is “time to move on” following to The Washington Post report.
“Governor Ducey defended the results of Arizona’s 2020 election, he certified the election, and he made it clear that the certification provided a trigger for credible complaints backed by evidence to be brought forward. None were ever brought forward,” the spokesperson said, per ABC.
