Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti said Mike Pence must testify about his conversations with Trump or face prosecution because they are not covered by the privilege.
Video:
Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti says so @Acosta Pence wonders why he would testify about his conversations with Trump: “If it wasn’t for Jim, I think he would be back in court. “Moral Victory.” pic.twitter.com/CmI7pDWrIs
— Sarah Reese Jones (@PoliticusSarah) April 23, 2023
Mariotti spoke to CNN’s Jim Acosta when asked if he thought Mike Pence would ‘spill the tea’ on Jack Smith.
i think so. If it hadn’t been for him, I think Jim would have ended up back in court. I think it bears witness now. I think the question is. How does he testify? what does he say And one of the things he said publicly, Jim was trying to show that Trump did things when he got bad legal advice, right, basically Trump was being advised. You know, I don’t know, and you know. Take a legal action and you know that legal action is followed.
But honestly, the advice he was getting from people like John Eastman was not what I would call advice. That was all. I wouldn’t describe it as bad legal advice. In fact, I think Jack Smith is investigating whether that’s a crime and Pence’s counsel said that you know the law he interpreted has nothing to do with you. So you know, I think you know he can try to have it both ways. It will be interesting to see if his personal testimony under oath matches his public testimony and the news coverage he tries to woo the Republican base. “
Earlier in the same interview, Mariotti discussed how Mike Pence’s privilege is narrow, saying, “But you know, it’s interpreted very narrowly. That’s what he’s been doing with the scripts he writes. You know how he can carry out those duties as Senate President in 1/6, and not resort to an unrelated crime. Let’s say you know, but you know that Trump has been threatening or pressuring him to overturn the election.
Mike Pence doesn’t really have a choice. He would have to tell Jack Smith what he had refrained from telling any other investigation. Pence is about to speak, and what he says is the potential that Donald Trump could be impeached for attempting to overthrow the United States government.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a member of the White House Press Pool and Congressional Correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a bachelor’s degree in political science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform activities.
Awards and professional memberships
Member of the Association of Professional Journalists and the American Political Science Association
