WASHINGTON — The House committee investigating the 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol will hear from former Vice President Mike Pence’s top lawyer and a former federal judge on Thursday as it focuses on then-President Donald Trump’s pressure on Pence to block the the congressional certification of Joe Biden’s presidential election.
Greg Jacobs, who was Pence’s chief counsel, and Michael Luttig, a former federal appeals court judge who also gave legal advice to the vice president, will testify in person Thursday. Both told Pence he had no legal authority to block or delay Jan. 6 congressional certification as Trump was demanding.
The panel will also show video excerpts from closed-door testimony by, among others, Marc Short, the vice president’s chief of staff, who was with him at the Capitol on Jan. 6, according to a person familiar with the committee’s plan who asked not to be identified.
The committee will probe the plan to have Pence reject some electors from swing states and open the door to substitutes that back Trump, the person said.
Excerpts of testimony by a pair of White House lawyers, Pat Cipollone and Eric Herschmann, may also be aired.
