“The View” co-host Joy Behar believes former Vice President Mike Pence does not deserve a special “hero” status for refusing to try to throw out the 2020 presidential election results.
During a segment on Friday, Behar said, “Come on, where was Mike Pence when Trump called Zelenskyy to interfere in the election? Where was he during the impeachment process? He was not there.”
“I mean, it’s just disgraceful. We’re on to all of them. Don’t try and fool us. And if he was just doing his job and he became a hero, then we’re heroes ’cause we’re just doing our job,” she insisted.
Watch the video below:
"The View" co-host @JoyVBehar shoots down the notion that former VP Mike Pence is a "hero" for certifying the 2020 election:
— The Recount (@therecount) June 17, 2022
"If he was just doing his job and he became a hero, then we're heroes. Because we're just doing our job." pic.twitter.com/BSQlw8q8TZ
Based on testimony from witnesses in the House Jan. 6 committee hearings, it is clear that Pence’s advisers knew he did not have the authority to overturn the election.
Trump was reportedly told that it was not legal for Pence to try to throw out President Joe Biden’s victory.
In that sense, yes, Pence was doing his job, and normally just presiding over the certification of an election would not be seen as anything special.
But this wasn’t a normal situation.
The tensions were high in Jan. 2021, and Pence’s aides were concerned that going against Trump could put the vice president’s safety at risk.
Aside from the physical safety risks, Pence was also likely facing the death of his political career no matter what road he took. If he followed Trump’s wishes and the effort failed, he could have been tarred as a seditious vice president and possibly put himself at risk of facing charges.
And by bucking the president, he was likely to anger thousands if not millions of Republican voters and derail any possible efforts to seek future office.
His decision to reject Trump’s wishes led some angry supporters of the former president rampaging through the Capitol to chant, “Hang Mike Pence.”
According to the Jan. 6 committee, rioters came within 40 feet of Pence at one point. As the panel’s chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), said, “Mike Pence’s courage put him in tremendous danger. When Mike Pence made it clear that he wouldn’t give in to Donald Trump’s scheme, Donald Trump turned the mob on him.”
Despite the danger he was in, Pence refused to leave the Capitol because, as his general counsel, Greg Jacob, told the committee, “The vice president did not want to take any chance that the world would see the Vice President of the United States fleeing the United States Capitol.”
So yes, you could say that in the basic sense, Pence only did his job and followed through on his pledge to uphold the Constitution of the United States.
But his actions were far more heroic that day than sitting in a comfy chair and sharing your opinions on a talk show.