Georgia Trump trial: Mike Pence reportedly on witness list in election interference case
Former Vice President Mike Pence gives remarks at the Calvin Coolidge Foundation’s conference at the Library of Congress on February 16, 2023 in Washington, DC. During his remarks, Pence spoke on a range of topics including the Department of Justices
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. - The prosecution in Fulton County's indictment of former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants for allegedly attempting to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia has reportedly named former Vice President Mike Pence as one of the witnesses who could possibly testify at the trial.
CNN reports that multiple sources familiar with the witness list submitted to the court by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her office say it includes "upward of 150 names Among them is Pence."
In Washington earlier in 2023, Pence fought a subpoena by special counsel Jack Smith demanding he testify before a grand jury, arguing that, because he was serving on Jan. 6 as president of the Senate, he was protected under the Constitution’s "speech or debate" clause from being forced to testify. That provision is intended to protect members of Congress from questioning about official legislative acts.
Pence eventually complied when a judge refused to block his appearance, but said he wouldn’t be forced to answer questions related to his role as Senate president.
Witness lists for the future trial of Trump and his co-defendants have not been made public, but the Fulton County District Attorney's Office did name Republican Party Chair Ronna McDaniel and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones as witnesses for the trial of lawyers Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro before both defendants took plea deals.
A spokesperson for Pence did not respond to CNN's request to comment on the Georgia indictment.
A Fulton County grand jury in August indicted Trump and 18 others, accusing them of participating in a wide-ranging scheme to illegally try to keep the Republican in power after he lost the presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden. Four of the defendants - Powell, Chesebro, Jenna Ellis, and Scott Hall, have pleaded guilty after reaching deals with prosecutors, and the rest have all pleaded not guilty.
Willis has filed a motion to schedule the start of the trial for Aug. 5. Willis wrote that the proposed trial date balances potential delays from Trump’s other criminal trials and the speedy trial rights of the other defendants.
It is up to Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who’s presiding over the case, to set the trial date.
Will allies testify against Donald Trump?
Jenna Ellis, another former ally of former President Donald Trump has taken a plea deal in the Georgia election subversion case. She pleaded guilty to a felony charge for her part in the effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. Ellis is the fourth co-defendant to strike a deal with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Now the question remains, will they testify against their old ally?
On Friday, Trump’s lead Georgia lawyer, Steve Sadow, who has been publicly silent since he took over the case in August, went to court to argue that the First Amendment should protect the former president and other co-defendants.
"You find that it violates free speech, freedom of petitioning and all the expressions that the First Amendment is designed to protect, and therefore the indictment needs to be dismissed," he said.
Sadow and other lawyers for the defendants also argued that the so-called "fake electors" were not fake and that the Electoral Count Act allows an alternative group of electors to meet if certain deadlines have not been met, but prosecutors are fighting back against it.
"They were representing themselves as the actual electors certified by the governor, duly elected and qualified, and they were never that," one of the prosecutors said.
So far, no decision has been made on whether the charges will be dropped. Judge McAfee will make that decision in the weeks ahead.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.