Former Pence aide: Testifying to Jan. 6 panel could set "very risky precedent"
Marc Short, then-chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence, outside the White House on Nov. 19, 2019. Photo: Zach Gibson/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Former Vice President Mike Pence testifying to the congressional panel investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot could set a “very risky precedent," Pence’s former chief of staff told CBS News on Friday.
Driving the news: The select committee is weighing whether to have Pence testify at a future hearing. Its decision could have implications for President Biden and Democrats if Republicans regain control of Congress, said Marc Short, Pence’s former chief of staff.
What he’s saying: "If you're going to begin having former vice presidents come under subpoena to testify, there is a former vice president who sits in the Oval Office today, and I'm sure when Republicans take control of Congress in November they'll be those who want to have investigations into the Biden family's discussions in Ukraine, what Hunter Biden was doing," Short said in the interview.
- "Do you want a precedent where all of a sudden you're allowed to bring former vice presidents to talk about what they were doing when they were vice president into Congress to talk about their conversations with the president of the United States?" Short said. "I think it's a very risky precedent."
Why it matters: Adam Kinzinger (R-Illinois) said this week the committee is still weighing whether to have Pence and former President Trump testify before the body, MSNBC reported.