(NewsNation) — The indictment filed against Donald Trump revealed new evidence that was not detailed in the final report of the House’s Jan. 6 Committee.
The report lists several conversations between Trump and Vice President Mike Pence in which Trump attempted to pressure Pence to delay certification of the 2020 election or reject the presidential electors.
In one call, on Jan. 1, 2021, Trump told Pence, “You’re too honest,” according to the indictment. Pence responded: “You know I don’t think I have the authority to change the outcome.”
Marc Short, the former chief of staff for Pence, told NewsNation that the pressure “really ratcheted up between Christmas and January 6.”
“The pressure campaign picked up because I think some nefarious voices told the president that the vice president can be his saving grace here in ways that … were misleading,” Short said. “I don’t think we ever expected it would get to the point that it did, and I don’t think any of us anticipated the violence that occurred on Jan. 6. And so our role was really to advise him (Pence) to make sure he was best informed for his conversations with the president.”
“Our country is more important than one man. Our Constitution is more important than any one man’s career. On January 6th, Former President Trump demanded that I choose between him and the Constitution. I chose the Constitution and I always will.”
As your president, I will not yield an inch in defending America, our people, or our values, and I promise you: I will do so in a way consistent with my oath to the Constitution and the character and decency of the American people. We will restore a threshold of integrity and civility in public life so we can bring real solutions to the challenges plaguing our nation.”
Part of Mike Pence’s statement following Trump’s Indictment
The Associated Press contributed to this report.