Mike Pence Describes His First Conversation with Donald Trump After Jan. 6: 'I Was Angry'
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Olivier Douliery/Pool/Getty; Alex Wong/Getty Donald Trump (left), Mike Pence
Mike Pence says he was "angry" when he finally spoke to Donald Trump five days after rioters tore through the U.S. Capitol, shouting "Hang Mike Pence" as the vice president and his family absconded into a hiding place with seconds to spare, thanks to the help of Secret Service agents.
Amid the melee — footage of which was airing on live television as the rioters breached the Capitol walls — Pence did not hear from Trump.
But five days later, the men finally met at the White House.
RELATED: Mike Pence Slams Donald Trump for 'Reckless' Rhetoric on Jan. 6 That 'Endangered Me and My Family'
In a new interview with David Muir for ABC's World News Tonight, Pence said Trump first asked about his wife, former second lady Karen Pence, and daughter Charlotte.
"He said that-- he had just learned that they were at the Capitol that day," Pence told Muir.
He continued: "I told him they were fine. And then he asked, 'Were you scared?' I said, 'No, I was angry.' We had our differences, and I told him that seeing those people ransacking the Capitol infuriated me. And I-- I sensed genuine remorse by the president."
When pressed by Muir, Pence admitted that Trump did not apologize to his vice president but that he "sensed the president was genuinely saddened by what had happened, and he expressed it ... I think he simply said, with his voice much more faint than it had ever been, he said, 'What if we hadn't had the rally?' He said, 'It's so-- it's so bad to end like this.'"
RELATED: Shocking Photos of the Violent Riots at the U.S. Capitol
Elsewhere in the interview, the former vice president spoke out about the events that led to the Capitol riots that day, including a tweet from Trump sent after Pence rejected his repeated pleas to overturn the results of President Joe Biden's 2020 election.
"It angered me," Pence told Muir of the tweet, which was sent as members of Congress were barricaded inside the House chamber. "But I turned to my daughter who was standing nearby and said, 'It doesn't take courage to break the law, it takes courage to uphold the law.'"
"I mean, the president's words were reckless," continued Pence. "It was clear he decided to be part of the problem."
Pence's new memoir So Help Me God, debuted Tuesday, and offers a look at how the "seeds were sown" for the "tragic" events of Jan. 6.
The publishing of the memoir has raised speculation that Pence, the former Indiana governor, might be planning a run for the presidency.
Trump — who has continued to insist the 2020 election was fraudulent, despite a lack of evidence — has also hinted that he's planning to run for the Republican ticket in 2024, teasing an announcement on Tuesday night.
