Former Vice President Mike Pence rejected allegations made by former President Donald Trump and others that the FBI instigated the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.
Pence – who was trapped inside the Capitol as mobs ransacked the complex while some chanted about hanging him – pointed to no evidence the bureau was involved.
“I have seen the FBI director repeatedly assure the American people that the FBI was not the instigator of the riots that occurred on January 6,” Pence said on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
“Frankly, I’m very grateful for the FBI’s efforts to bring to justice nearly a thousand people who ransacked our Capitol and committed violence against police officers that day,” he added, calling for the perpetrators to be held accountable.
During a recent rally in Sioux Center, Iowa, Trump said, “There’s Antifa and there’s the FBI — there’s a lot of other people there also leading the charge.”
At another rally in the Hawkeye State, Trump describe those charged over riots as “hostages.”
Some rioters chanted about hanging Mike Pence while storming the Capitol. AP
Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy described the three-year anniversary of the riots as “Trap Day.” He then denounced what he called a series of truths about January 6, 2021.
Top law enforcement officials, including FBI Director Christopher Wray have vehemently denied accusations that the FBI orchestrated the riots.
While condemning the violence of January 6, 2021, Pence at the same time warned President Biden that he thinks talking too much about the riots will be counterproductive in the 2024 election.
Mike Pence rejected claims that the FBI had a significant role in inciting the riots. AP
“I understand why President Biden wants to focus his campaign on the last three years. The record for this administration has weakened America at home,” Pence said.
“I didn’t think the election would be decided on that tragic day three years ago. I think it will be decided on the failed policies of the Biden administration that have emboldened the enemies of freedom around the world, unleashed the worst inflation, [and] which created the worst crisis at our border in American history.”
Biden marked the three-year anniversary of the Capitol riots with an impassioned speech near Valley Forge, the site of the Revolutionary War, in which he warned ominously of the continuing threat to democracy.
FBI officials have vehemently denied allegations that they orchestrated the riots. AP
Pence went on to express confidence that the GOP primary process will give “his party a fresh start and give us new leadership in the election and beyond.”
He declined to issue a confirmation — for now.
“I really appreciate Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, and frankly Chris Christie have been friends over the years. And I don’t put a lot of stock in the endorsement,” Pence said, leaving the door open to endorsing someone in the future.
The former VP did not mention Trump or Ramaswamy, whom Pence mocked during several GOP debates.
Vivek Ramaswamy has been one of the most vocal promulgators of allegations that the FBI intervened in the Capitol riots. Reuters
The former vice president’s relationship with Trump soured after his refusal to heed pressure from the 45th president and his allies to deny the 2020 election.
Trump, who is favored to win this year’s GOP nomination, appears intent on choosing someone other than Pence to be his running mate should he lock up the party.
Pence recently embarked on a trip to Sderot, Israel, where he visited the genocide committed by Hamas on the Jewish state.
“It is incredible to see the resilience of the people and families who lost their loved ones as hostages. But one understands their impatience,” Pence reflected on the trip.
The former vice president ran for the GOP primary in the 2024 cycle, before dropping out last October.
Iowa is set to hold its first contest of the cycle with its caucuses on Jan. 15.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
