- Mike Pence said Trump’s possible arrest is “not what the American people want to see.”
- The former vice president made the comments during an interview on ABC’s “This Week.”
- He also argued that the New York investigation is a “politically charged lawsuit.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence, a potential 2024 presidential candidate, has said Donald Trump’s impending indictment is “just not what the American people want to see”.
“I am surprised at the idea of indicting a former president of the United States, at a time when there is a crime wave in New York,” Pence said. ABC’s “This Week” in an on-site interview that aired on Sunday. “The fact that the Manhattan District Attorney thinks indicting President Trump is his top priority, I think tells you everything you need to know about the radical left in this country.”
The potential indictment, which could be made public as early as next week after a final witness is called on Monday, stems from a silent payment of $130,000 made to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Trump’s personal attorney at the time, Michael Cohen, said Trump ordered him to pay Stormy Daniels to stop him from speaking publicly about an alleged affair with the presidential candidate before the 2016 election.
—This Week (@ThisWeekABC) March 18, 2023
Pence called the investigation a “politically charged prosecution.”
After speculating that the indictment could come as soon as Tuesday, Trump on Saturday called on his supporters to protest and “take back our nation” in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. His defense team said this speculation was based solely on “news reports” and that the district attorney’s office made no official announcement.
“WE CANNOT ALLOW THIS ANY MORE,” Trump wrote on Saturday. “THEY ARE KILLING OUR NATION WHILE WE SIT AND WATCH. WE MUST SAVE AMERICA! PROTEST, PROTEST, PROTEST!!!”
While airing “This Week” on Sunday, host Jonathan Karl raised concerns about Trump’s remarks — which echoed his comments before the deadly Capitol Riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
“The American people have a constitutional right to assemble peacefully,” Pence replied. “I believe people understand that if they express this, if it happens on Tuesday, they have to do it peacefully and in a legal way.”
He continued: “The violence that happened on January 6th … the violence that happened in cities across this country in the summer of 2020 was a disgrace. The American people will not tolerate it and those who engage in this kind of violence must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
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