My1sttoday: President Trump at Georgia rally on Monday said he hoped Vice President Pence “comes through for us” as he discussed efforts to overturn the presidential election results, hinting at Pence’s role overseeing the certification of the Electoral College vote count on Wednesday.
“I hope that Mike Pence comes through for us, I have to tell you. I hope that our great vice president, our great vice president comes through for us. He’s a great guy,” Trump told a crowd of supporters at a rally in Dalton, Ga.
“Of course, if he doesn’t come through, I won’t like him quite as much,” Trump continued. “Nah, Mike is a great guy. He’s a wonderful man and a smart man and a man that I like a lot.”
Trump did not articulate what he wants Pence to do. The president’s remarks came during a prolonged commentary on the election, which he insisted that he won “in a landslide” and claimed the election was “rigged” against him.
“But he’s going to have a lot to say about it and you know one thing with him, you’re going to get straight shots. He’s going to call it straight,” Trump said.
Pence, as president of the Senate, is expected to oversee the certification of the Electoral College results showing President-elect Joe Biden’s win before a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. The role of the vice president is ceremonial, and Pence does not have the power to reject the results or otherwise affect the outcome.
A federal judge in Texas last week dismissed a long shot bid by Republican lawmakers that sought to give Pence the legal authority to effectively overturn the election results.