I see positively no profit to Pence in pardoning Trump. Like you, I don't think that's going to happen. When he was pressed by the President himself to contest the electoral college votes, in his 3 page letter to Congress Pence took a stand to carry out the duties of his post exactly as prescribed. He ended that letter with a pledge, "So Help Me God." As a self professed Christian, carrying out his oath of office is his one and only choice.MeDotOrg wrote: ↑Sat Jan 09, 2021 7:36 amI just don't see what Pence gets from pardoning Trump. Yes, Trump would be protected from Federal charges, but not only can he be charged by other jurisdictions for what happened in D.C., he going to face SDNY and the state of New York, not to mention his unidicted co-conspirator status in the Michael Cohen/Stormy Daniels hush money case. Given all that will come out in these trials, not to mention a Justice Department that is not run by Trump loyalists, the mountain of damage will leave him with a decimated base in 2024, if he is not a convicted felon. Trump made sure that the bridges were burned between Pence and his base with his comments after Pence told the President he couldn't throw out the results of the election.
I think Pence is going to keep his head down and get out of Dodge.
In other words, in the face of strong pressure and manipulation by his superior, Pence took a stand lived out his allegiance to his oath to country and to his God. Period. Then he did exactly what he pledged to do.
According to some reports, it was Pence who called up the Nat'l Guard. Did he? There are conflicting reports on that and we won't know until the evidence is collected and a timeline established, and I have to wonder if the American public will ever lay eyes on that--which I believe we should in order to maintain transparency but is that a given?
If he did call up the Guard, there is another example of his making good on his oath in the face of an unstable, dishonorable, dishonest, unpredictable and derelict President. A President who in fact, put not only Pence's life in jeopardy but if I understand it correctly, he put in jeopardy, the line of succession to the Presidency. Right?
What does he have to gain by pardoning said President? I can't see anything at all. Were he to do that, I think he would be branded a hypocrite forever and all time. Plus it sounds like he's royally ticked at Trump for the position he placed him in. Not to mention putting his very life on the line in Trump's final discard of Pence.
I ask you, how bad does it get, right? He claimed that Pence didn't have the courage to do what Trump wanted. From where I sit, Pence exercised enormous courage as evidenced by his actions.
So yes, I agree that he will keep his head down and let the wheels turn toward impeachment unless he sees good reason to invoke the 25th Amendment and would that even fly given that so many staff are jumping ship? I have no blessed idea.
Impeachment really does seem to be the one best route to take. The timing really sucks but I am sure that's how Trump intended it to be.
