The discussion “had nothing to do with” the possible tweet, said a person familiar with the matter, although he did not specify whether the issue of January 6 ratification in Congress arose. The two men followed separate paths for the holiday.
On Wednesday night, while on vacation to Florida, Trump retweeted a call from one of his Pence supporters to refuse to ratify the results of the Electoral College on January 6 – a prospect that captured his imagination, though remain completely impossible.
Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, was with Trump on board Air Force One before the president sent the tweet. Giuliani will join Trump on his property in Mar-a-Lago for the holidays, where men are expected to discuss their electoral efforts.
Trump told people recently that Pence is not doing enough to fight for him when his presidency ends, and recently became interested in Pence’s traditional role during certification. As president of the Senate, Pence presides over the proceedings.
Sources say Trump in recent days brought the matter to the vice president and was “confused” as to why Pence cannot overturn the results of the January 6 election.
Pence and White House advisers tried to explain to him that his role is more formal and that he cannot unilaterally reject the electoral college votes.
Traditionally, the vice president presides over the certification of the electoral vote, although it is not mandatory. In 1969, then Vice President Hubert Humphrey did not preside over the process, as he had just lost the presidential election to Richard Nixon. The Senate pro tempore president presided in his place.
A source close to Pence said it was not seen as a good fit for Republican Senator Chuck Grassley – the current president pro tempore – to be there instead of Pence on January 6.
On Tuesday, Pence spoke to a group of young conservatives in Florida, but did not speak directly about his future role. Instead, he told the crowd that, as the White House continues to contest the election, they “will continue to fight until all legal votes are counted” and “all illegal votes are eliminated”.
“Stay in the fight for electoral integrity. Stay in the fight to defend everything we’ve done,” he said.
Earlier this week, Pence joined a meeting between Trump and a sizeable group of House conservatives, where the remote effort to overturn the January election results was discussed.
The discussion focused on Trump’s baseless allegations and conspiracies that the election was stolen from him, participants said, and lawmakers emerged confident that there would be a contingent of House and Senate Republicans who would join the effort and promote a marathon debate. on the 6th of January, which would end on the 7th of January.
The Republican leading the effort, Alabama deputy Mo Brooks, said Pence attended “different parts” of the meeting.
“I believe we have several senators, and the question is not whether, but how many,” said Brooks, something that would challenge the wishes of Republican Senate leaders who are eager to move forward and are asking senators not to participate, as this it could force them to cast a politically toxic vote against Trump.
Brooks told CNN on Monday night that they would try to challenge the election in at least six battle states, saying he needs to coordinate “up to 72” five-minute speeches that Republican lawmakers would give that day.
“This is a significant task,” he said.
The effort is bound to fail, but it would create a spectacle that Republican leaders in the Senate want to avoid. And if a deputy and a senator contest the results of six states, it would take at least 12 hours of debate, in addition to voting time for each of the motions, potentially extending the fight until the next day.