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ABC News: Mike Pence subpoenaed after months of negotiations

Mike Pence
Posted at 6:26 PM, Feb 09, 2023
and last updated 2023-02-09 20:49:09-05

WASHINGTON — A special counsel overseeing probes regarding former President Donald Trump are giving former vice president Mike Pence a subpoena, multiple sources tell ABC News.

ABC reports the subpoena follows months of negotiations between federal prosecutors and Pence's legal team.

Last month, Pence's attorney said documents with classified markings were discovered in Pence's Carmel home.

RELATED: Pence: 'Mistakes were made' in classified records handling

It is unknown what information the subpoena is seeking.

Jack Smith, who was named special counsel in November by Attorney General Merrick Garland, has been tasked with overseeing investigations into Trump’s attempts to subvert his defeat, his actions leading up to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol and his possession of top-secret government documents at his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago.

Federal prosecutors have been especially focused on a scheme by Trump allies to elevate fake presidential electors in key battleground states won by Biden as a way to subvert the vote, issuing subpoenas to multiple state Republican party chairs.

Federal prosecutors have brought multiple Trump administration officials before the grand jury for questioning, including former Trump White House counsel Pat Cipollone and Pence’s own former chief of staff, Marc Short.

In a sign of the expanding nature of the investigation, election officials in multiple states whose results were disputed by Trump have received subpoenas asking for communications with or involving Trump and his campaign aides.

A House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack recommended that the Justice Department bring criminal charges against Trump and associates who helped him launch a pressure campaign to try to overturn his 2020 election loss.

A spokesperson for Pence did not respond to a request for comment by ABC News. The special counsel's office also declined to comment.

A spokesperson for Trump also did not immediately respond.