Former Vice-President Mike Pence is calling on Attorney General Merrick Garland to publicly explain why Special Counsel Jack Smith brought charges against Donald Trump for hoarding classified documents at his resort in Florida.
“Today, I’m calling on the attorney general to stand before the American people and explain why this was necessary in his words,” Pence said at a GOP convention in Greensboro, North Carolina, according to The Hill. “Attorney General Merrick Garland, stop hiding behind the special counsel and stand before the American people and explain why this indictment went forward.”
Trump faces 37 counts on seven charges, including making false statements, conspiracy to obstruct and willful retention of national defense information, in connection with his mishandling of classified documents that were recovered last year at his Mar-a-Lago resort.
The indictment said Trump had documents with information about the U.S. nuclear program and potential domestic vulnerabilities in the event of an attack.
Trump also took steps to try to block federal investigators from recovering the documents, including discussing with his lawyers the possibility of lying to investigators, even after he was issued a subpoena.
“Our laws that protect national defense information are critical to the safety and security of the United States, and they must be enforced,” Smith said at a press conference. “We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everybody.”
