According to US media, former US vice president Mike Pence said on Saturday that former US president Donald Trump would be “held accountable” for his part in the 2021 assault on the US Capitol.
The comments are probably going to widen the gulf between the former running mates, who have been at odds ever since Pence declined to support Trump’s plans to annul the results of the 2020 election and retain power.
“President Trump was wrong,” Pence said in a speech at the annual Gridiron Dinner in Washington, a white-tie gala put on by journalists that draws top politicians.
“I had no right to overturn the election. And his reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day. And I know that history will hold Donald Trump accountable,” Pence was quoted as saying by multiple media outlets.
Pence was forced to look for safety after some of the throngs of people who rushed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021 demanded that he be hanged.
Pence suggested he might challenge Trump for the Republican nomination after Trump announced his plan to run for re-election in the 2024 elections.
Pence originally tried to make fun of the Gridiron Dinner because it is typically a lighthearted affair with musical performances and skits.
“I will wholeheartedly, unreservedly support the Republican nominee for president in 2024 — if it’s me,” he said.
Near the end of his speech, Pence said there was one issue he would not joke about.
“The American people have a right to know what took place at the Capitol on January 6th,” he said, according to The Washington Post newspaper.
“But make no mistake about it, what happened that day was a disgrace, and it mocks decency to portray it in any other way.”
Pence’s sharp remarks aimed at Trump were unexpected at the gala.
“Was at the dinner and can confirm @Mike_Pence definitely caught the room by surprise–lots of dropped jaws,” tweeted Maryam Mujica, a former State Department official.
