Trump asks judge to block Pence subpoena in DOJ probe: reports
Former President Trump is asking a federal judge to block a subpoena for his former vice president, Mike Pence, to testify before a grand jury that is investigating Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election, according to multiple reports.
Trump’s lawyers cite executive privilege over Pence’s testimony in the motion to have the subpoena blocked that was first reported by CNN, which cited unidentified sources. The move by Trump’s team was expected, but showcases the motivation to keep those that were closest to the former president from testifying in criminal investigations into his actions.
Jack Smith, the special counsel that is overseeing the Department of Justice’s criminal probes of Trump, is looking into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his handling of classified information. The grand jury is seeking documents and testimony from Pence regarding the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection, but Smith has already faced difficulty getting Pence to cooperate with the subpoena, with the former vice president vowing to fight it last month.
“I’m going to fight the Biden DOJ’s subpoena for me to appear before the grand jury because I believe it’s unconstitutional, and it’s unprecedented,” Pence told reporters after an event in Iowa.
The resistance from Trump and Pence comes as the federal investigations into the former president, who has launched his campaign for the White House in 2024, show signs of ramping up. Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner were subpoenaed by the grand jury last month, The New York Times noted in its reporting. The Times also confirmed Trump's attempt to block Pence's testimony, citing a person briefed on the matter.
The subpoenas of Pence, Ivanka Trump and Kushner outline the grand jury’s desire to draw information from those that were closest to Trump on the day of the Capitol riots: Pence, who faced enormous pressure from former President Trump to block the certification of the 2020 election; Ivanka Trump, who was in the Oval Office with her father that day; and Kushner, who was also at the White House that day.