According to the Washington Examiner, it appears that Pence wants no part of the efforts to raise objections to the Electoral College votes on that day, as he has requested that the judge throw out the case entirely.
Pence, who is being represented by a number of attorneys from the U.S. Justice Department, left many Trump supporters on social media confused as to why he would make such a legal move, sparking a number of conspiracy theories.
His lawyers explained in a 14-page response to the suit why they want it dropped.
“To the extent any of these particular plaintiffs have a judicially cognizable claim, it would be against the Senate and the House of Representatives,” the filing reads. “After all, it is the role prescribed for the Senate and the House of Representatives in the Electoral Count Act to which plaintiffs object, not any actions that Vice President Pence has taken.”
“Specifically, plaintiffs object to the Senate and the House of Representatives asserting a role for themselves in determining which electoral votes may be counted – a role that these plaintiffs assert is constitutionally vested in the Vice President,” the response added.
“A suit to establish that the Vice President has discretion over the count, filed against the Vice President, is a walking legal contradiction,” the filing indicated.
In other words, anyone who was counting on Pence to intervene at the last minute and choose pro-Trump electors in a given state in hopes to overturn the election should probably focus on something else at this point, as it doesn’t look like he will have any interest in doing so.
However, the latest reports indicate that possibly 140 Republican lawmakers have agreed to join the objection strategy on January 6, with at least one Republican in the Senate, Sen. Josh Hawley, joining the team. That means Republicans will have the representation to debate the electoral results for a given state.
Whether that means anything, in the end, is an entirely different story, but the bottom line is that they’re going to try, as it is their legal, Constitutional right to do so.
via thefederalistpapers
VP Pence Asks Judge To Toss Out Lawsuit Filed Against Him By Louie Gohmert
