January 6 Committee: Mike Pence Showed Courage

The House Select January 6 Committee wrapped up another hearing Thursday afternoon. The focus was former vice president Mike Pence’s defense of the Constitution in facing down President Trump’s attempted coup. The proceedings illustrated Pence’s heroism as the president willfully provoked anger at the vice president among Trump supporters who had been deluded by “stop the steal” — including violent mobs who stormed the Capitol as Pence convened with Congress, some baying for Pence’s blood even as the mob forcibly besieged security forces.

The hearing featured two witnesses: J. Michael Luttig, the distinguished former federal appellate judge, and Greg Jacob, an impressive lawyer who served as Vice President Pence’s chief counsel. Guided by committee questioning, they took aim at John Eastman, the former Chapman Law School dean who was Trump’s private counsel and constitutional law guru in the aftermath of the election. It was Eastman who developed the far-fetched theory that Pence could control the outcome of the election — or at least give Trump a chance to swipe an election he had lost.

About the Author

Andrew C. McCarthy

Andrew C. McCarthy is a senior fellow at National Review Institute, an NR contributing editor, and author of Ball of Collusion: The Plot to Rig an Election and Destroy a Presidency.

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The House Select January 6 Committee wrapped up another hearing Thursday afternoon. The focus was former vice president Mike Pence’s defense of the Constitution in facing down President Trump’s attempted coup. The proceedings illustrated Pence’s heroism as the president willfully provoked anger at the vice president among Trump supporters who had been deluded by “stop the steal” — including violent mobs who stormed the Capitol as Pence convened with Congress, some baying for Pence’s blood even as the mob forcibly besieged security forces.

The hearing featured two witnesses: J. Michael Luttig, the distinguished former federal appellate judge, and Greg Jacob, an impressive lawyer who served as Vice President Pence’s chief counsel. Guided by committee questioning, they took aim at John Eastman, the former Chapman Law School dean who was Trump’s private counsel and constitutional law guru in the aftermath of the election. It was Eastman who developed the far-fetched theory that Pence could control the outcome of the election — or at least give Trump a chance to swipe an election he had lost.

About the Author

Andrew C. McCarthy

Andrew C. McCarthy is a senior fellow at National Review Institute, an NR contributing editor, and author of Ball of Collusion: The Plot to Rig an Election and Destroy a Presidency.