Trump Told Pence ‘You’re Too Honest’ in Pressure Campaign, but Legal Strategy May Backfire, Former Attorney Says

Special counsel Jack Smith’s decision to include evidence of former President Donald Trump pressuring then-Vice President Mike Pence in the pared-down indictment may pose legal challenges, according to former Trump attorney Tim Parlatore. Speaking with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on Wednesday, Parlatore suggested that Smith’s approach, particularly in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity, could backfire.

At the heart of the issue is how Smith has positioned Pence’s role in Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. Parlatore pointed out that Smith seems to have shifted his legal argument regarding Pence’s capacity, from his earlier court filings to now, in an attempt to avoid the immunity protections typically granted to presidents for official acts.

“The Supreme Court ruled he has immunity for official acts, but not necessarily for private acts,” Blitzer explained. “This document makes the case that these were all private acts on his part.” Blitzer then referenced a specific moment from the filing where Trump allegedly berated Pence, saying, “‘Hundreds of thousands of people are going to hate your guts and ‘people are going to think you’re stupid’” and adding, “‘You’re too honest.'”

When asked about the significance of this pressure campaign on Pence and Trump’s state of mind, Parlatore responded with skepticism about how much of the evidence would hold up in court. “Well, this is obviously — it’s a document written by prosecutors, so we’ll see how much of this actually comes out at trial. And I think that’s kind of a problem,” Parlatore noted.

Parlatore further criticized Smith’s approach, arguing that the special counsel is attempting to manipulate Pence’s dual role as both Trump’s running mate and the president of the Senate to shift Trump’s actions away from his duties as president and into the realm of campaign activities. “It wasn’t that long ago that Jack Smith was in the D.C. courthouse, saying, in an effort to force Mike Pence to testify, that no, he was not acting in his capacity as president of the Senate, because that would have provided him the privilege to not testify,” Parlatore explained.

Now, according to Parlatore, Smith is pivoting in the opposite direction, portraying Pence’s role as central to the electoral process. “So back then he said he wasn’t the president of the Senate to get exactly the quote that you just read to me there, and now he’s turned around and gone the other way,” Parlatore concluded. “So I think he’s going to have some legal issues with that.” This legal inconsistency, Parlatore argued, could present significant challenges for Smith’s case as it progresses to trial.