ISLAMABAD/ WASHINGTON: Former US vice-president Mike Pence said on Saturday that history would hold former president Donald Trump “accountable” for his role in the 2021 attack on the US Capitol.
The remarks from Pence were likely to widen the rift between the to, who had been at loggerheads after Pence refused to go along with Trump to overturn the 2020 election results.
Speaking at the annual Gridiron Dinner arranged by journalists in Washington, Pence said that (president) Trump was wrong.
He said that he had no right to overturn the election as Trump’s reckless words endangered his family and everyone at the Capitol that day. He said that he knows that history will hold Donald Trump accountable.
Trump supporters storm US Capitol
Thousands of Trump supporters, who stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, demanded Pence to be hanged, forcing him to seek a safe location.
Trump has already announced his intention to seek a new term as president in 2024 elections. Pence indicated that he may challenge Trump for the Republican candidature.
The Gridiron Dinner is usually a light-hearted event with skits and musical entertainment, and Pence initially sought to poke fun.
He said that he would wholeheartedly and unreservedly support the Republican nominee for president in 2024 if it was him. At the end of his speech, Pence said that there was one issue he would not joke about.
He said that the American people have the right to know what took place at the Capitol on January 6. He added that make no mistake about it, what happened that day was a disgrace, and it mocks decency to portray it in any other way. Pence’s blunt remarks aimed at Trump were unexpected at the gala.
