In New Book, Mike Pence Describes How 'Seeds Were Sown' for Jan. 6 Riots: 'It Was a New Low'

Joshua Roberts/Getty Images Mike Pence

Former Vice President Mike Pence is opening up about the moments that led to the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, writing in his forthcoming book that then-President Donald Trump's decision to put Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell in charge of his legal strategy helped sow the seeds to that "tragic day."

Pence's memoir, So Help Me God, publishes on Nov. 15. In a new excerpt of the book published by Axios, Pence writes that a briefing held days before the riots "quickly turned into a contentious back-and-forth between the campaign lawyers and a growing group of outside attorneys led by Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell, an attorney who had represented General Mike Flynn."

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Pence writes that Trump's campaign lawyers offered "a sober and somewhat pessimistic report on the state of election challenges," but the "outside cast of characters" — including Giuliani and Powell — "went on the attack."

"Giuliani told the president over the speakerphone, 'Your lawyers are not telling you the truth, Mr. President,'" Pence writes. "Even in an office well acquainted with rough-and-tumble debates, it was a new low …. [and] went downhill from there."

Pence continues: "In the end, that day the president made the fateful decision to put Giuliani and Sidney Powell in charge of the legal strategy … The seeds were being sown for a tragic day in January."

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MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani speaking at a news conference on Nov. 19, 2020

Giuliani and Powell — both of whom have spread bizarre conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and have been sued for billions of dollars by a voting technology company — would go on to represent Trump during an unsuccessful push to overturn the election.

Trump's campaign later distanced itself from Powell. Giuliani, meanwhile, has stayed in the public eye — appearing on The Masked Singer earlier this year and publicly claiming a grocery store worker slapped him so hard it felt like he had been shot, despite surveillance footage showing otherwise.

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Since leaving the White House in the shadow of the January insurrection, Pence has made moves that suggest he might be planning a run for the presidency. That includes his new book, as well as recent public appearances in which he says he is "thinking about the future."

Even with Trump's repeated pleas, Pence refused to overturn the results of the election won by Joe Biden in 2020, publishing a statement hours before the deadly riot on Jan. 6, 2021, in which explained he had no authority to do so.

Despite Pence not having the ability to overturn the results, the move angered Trump, who took to Twitter to say Pence "didn't have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution."

Within hours, Trump's supporters — who had been in Washington, D.C. to see the former president speak at a "Stop the Steal" rally — breached the Capitol building, feeding on the anger and chanted about wanting to "hang" Pence, forcing the vice president and at least some of his entourage to be moved to an undisclosed location.

Trump later said the chants about hanging Pence were "common sense" because "the people were very angry."

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Pence ultimately did affirm the results for Biden that day, once lawmakers were able to reenter the building after the mob was cleared. The former vice president has since called Jan. 6 "a dark day in the history of the United States Capitol."

Trump, meanwhile, has continued insisting he won the election and criticizing his former running mate for failing to overturn the results.

"Mike and I had a great relationship except for the very important factor that took place at the end," Trump told the Examiner in his earlier interview. "I haven't spoken to him in a long time."