The Daily Fuckup

Former Vice President Mike Pence said he will fight a subpoena from special counsel Jack Smith in the federal investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Pence said on Feb. 15, 2023, that he would challenge the demand on constitutional grounds, including the Speech or Debate Clause, and would pursue the case all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/f7078fb20d0bf2097e28b1198f989a77?utm_source=openai))

Smith was appointed special counsel on Nov. 18, 2022, to oversee the Justice Department’s election-interference investigation and a separate classified-documents probe. The subpoena to Pence was reported in early February and is part of the election case, which centers on efforts to stop or delay the certification of the 2020 vote. ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/gallery/appointment-special-counsel?utm_source=openai))

Pence was vice president on Jan. 6, 2021, when he presided over the joint session of Congress that counted the Electoral College vote. Trump and his allies had pressed him to block or delay the certification, a demand Pence rejected. His expected fight over the subpoena adds a new courtroom front to the same constitutional clash that defined the final days of Trump’s presidency. ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/opa/speech/attorney-general-merrick-b-garland-delivers-remarks-appointment-special-counsel?utm_source=openai))

The subpoena itself is only one piece of a wider dispute over what evidence prosecutors can compel from former senior officials. For now, the key fact is simple: Pence says he will not comply quietly, and the question of whether he must testify remains unresolved. ([apnews.com](https://apnews.com/article/f7078fb20d0bf2097e28b1198f989a77?utm_source=openai))