Former Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday he cannot defend “what is alleged” in the federal indictment against former President Donald Trump over classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, but he also pledged to clean house at the Department of Justice.
Mr. Pence, a 2024 GOP presidential candidate, reacted to the charges by saying, “No one is above the law.”
“This indictment contains serious charges. I cannot defend what is alleged,” he told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “Creating an opportunity where highly classified material could have fallen into the wrong hands, even inadvertently, that jeopardizes our national security, it puts at risk the men and women of our armed forces.”
“The former president has a right to make his case in court,” Mr. Pence said.
At the same time, he said, the American people have lost confidence in the Department of Justice over its decision not to charge former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over her use of a private email server and the “hailstorm” of investigations into the Trump administration over alleged connections to Russia.
“Tens of millions of Americans have a sense of a two-tiered system of justice, and I think it cries out for new leadership,” Mr. Pence said.
He said one of the first things he would do as president is “clean house” at the Justice Department and bring in people who are respected on both sides of the aisle.
Mr. Trump said he is not guilty at his arraignment on Tuesday.
Mr. Pence significantly trails his former boss in early GOP primary polling, attracting single-digit support, while Mr. Trump routinely grabs more than half of the Republican electorate and leads his nearest rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, by double digits.
Mr. Pence is among a series of GOP candidates walking a fine line on Mr. Trump and his legal troubles. Many are not condoning Mr. Trump’s alleged behavior as they seek an edge in the primary race, though they also don’t want to risk alienating the former president’s ardent base.
“I’m not hoping for anybody else to fail. I’m hoping to prevail on the basis of 20 years of experience,” Mr. Pence said. “ I think our country needs new leadership. And I think this is no time for on-the-job training for anybody.”
“I know all the members of the Senate,” he said. “I know governors around the country. I’ve been a governor. I’ve been a vice president.”
Mr. Pence is championing the agenda items he accomplished with Mr. Trump but criticized the former president for putting him and others in danger on Jan. 6, 2021, when a pro-Trump mob pressed Mr. Pence to thwart the certification of electoral votes at the U.S. Capitol.
Some conservatives hailed Mr. Pence for refusing to accede to Mr. Trump’s demands in the wake of the 2020 election, while Democratic opponents say he did the bare minimum in certifying the election and is too extreme on issues such as abortion.
Mr. Pence on Wednesday hammered Mr. Biden over his economic stewardship, pointing to a 16.2% increase in inflation since the current administration took office.
“We just got to get back to a commitment to fiscal solvency and reform,” Mr. Pence said. “People are hurting with the rising cost of living, the American people want to see leadership in Washington, D.C.”
Mr. Pence said the U.S. also faces mounting risks abroad.
“I’m running for president of the United States because I think this country is in a lot of trouble. The Biden administration’s weakened America at home and abroad. We have war raging in Eastern Europe, provocations in the Asia Pacific,” Mr. Pence said. “We need new leadership in the United States to get us back to the policies that had this country growing, had this country secure, had the world more peaceful.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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