Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday refused President Donald Trump‘s demand that he try to block confirmation by Congress of Joe Biden‘s election as the next president of the United States.
Pence said in a letter that he did not believe, as Trump has claimed, that a vice president has the unilateral power to reject Electoral College votes for a candidate.
His dramatic break from Trump came minutes before the vice president began presiding over a joint session of Congress, which is meeting to declare Biden the victor.
“It is my considered judgement that my oath to support and defend the Constitution constrains me from claiming unilateral authority to determine which electoral votes should be counted and which should not,” Pence said in a three-page letter addressed to “Dear Colleague.”
“Given the controversy surrounding this year’s election, some approach this year’s quadrennial tradition with great expectation, and others with dismissive disdain,” Pence wrote.
“Some believe that as Vice President, I should be able to accept or reject electoral votes unilaterally. Others believe that electoral votes should never be challenged in a Joint Session of Congress. After a careful study of our Constitution, our laws, and our history, I believe neither view is correct.”
US Vice President Mike Pence presides over a joint session of Congress to count the electoral votes for President at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, January 6, 2021.
Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images
As Pence released his statement, Trump was speaking at a rally outside of the White House, where he reiterated his call that the vice president undo Biden’s election. Trump and his allies claim, without evidence, that he and Pence lost to Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris because of widespread ballot fraud in a handful of states that gave Biden his margin of victory.
“Mike Pence, I hope you’re gonna stand up for the good of our Constitution and for the good of our country, and if you’re not I’m gonna be very disappointed in you, I will tell you right now,” Trump said at the rally.
“I’m not hearing good stories.”
Multiple courts have rejected Trump’s claims of fraud and election irregularities.
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on the vice president’s letter.
Shortly after Pence gaveled in the joint session of Congress, several Republicans objected to Arizona’s Electoral College results in Biden’s favor, triggering a period of debate.
GOP lawmakers are expected to object to the election results of several other states, but those efforts are also expected to merely delay the confirmation that Biden won the presidency, not block it.
This is breaking news. Check back for updates.
