Former Vice President Mike Pence has been subpoenaed by the special counsel investigating former President Donald Trump.
The subpoena from special counsel Jack Smith requests documents related to Trump’s efforts to remain in office after the 2020 election, as reported by ABC News. These efforts are believed to be a contributing factor to the events at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, according to the counsel’s claims.
Smith was appointed to lead the investigation in November. He is also conducting a separate investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents.
Recent reports indicated that the Justice Department wanted to question Pence concerning the same subjects the special counsel is investigating.
Pence and his team initially discussed the possibility of performing a voluntary interview, but the talks did not progress, as The New York Times reported.
The subpoena suggests that the investigation has taken on increased urgency. Pence could also invoke claims of executive privilege regarding the information the counsel seeks. Invoking these claims could result in a legal battle that has no clear precedent to this point.
Currently, there have been no indications whether the counsel will also question Pence regarding the classified documents. It is unclear whether Pence could offer information relevant to that case.
After conducting a search of its own last month, Pence’s team informed the Justice Department that classified documents had been found at his Indiana home. The National Archives and FBI were notified, and Pence voluntarily surrendered the documents, according to CNN. That batch included about a dozen documents.
The FBI searched Pence’s residence for additional classified documents on Friday. One document with classified markings was discovered, according to reporting by CNN. The nature and origin of that document were not immediately make clear.
The FBI will also conduct a search of the former vice president’s office in Washington, D.C., CNN reported. The timing of that search has not yet been indicated.