‘Illegal and Unconstitutional’: Cheney Rips Vance Saying As VP He Would Have Followed Trump’s Plan to Overturn 2020 Election

Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY), once the chair of the House GOP Conference, tore into JD Vance on Tuesday for saying as vice president he would have essentially followed former President Donald Trump’s plan in 2020 to overturn the election results and retain power, which then Vice President Mike Pence refused to do.

Vance, currently the junior senator from Ohio, was on the All-In podcast on Monday and was asked if he would have certified the 2020 presidential election results. When pushed to answer, Vance said he “would have asked the states to submit alternative slates of electors and ask the country to have a debate.”

The clip quickly went viral as Vance effectively said he would not have certified the election and would have asked states to replace the electors won by Joe Biden with electors for Donald Trump, the crux of the so-called “fake elector” scheme. Multiple state officials including in Michigan, Arizona, Nevada, and Georgia have charged the so-called “fake electors” with varying degrees of crimes for their involvement in the fraudulent scheme.

Cheney joined a chorus of critics in slamming Vance for his answer on certifying the election and noted that Vance is saying he would have done exactly the opposite of what Pence did, which ensured the constitutional transfer of power.

“Let’s be clear: This is illegal and unconstitutional. The American people had voted. The courts had ruled. The Electoral College had met and voted. The Governor in every state had certified the results and sent a legal slate of electors to the Congress to be counted. The Vice President has no constitutional authority to tell states to submit alternative slates of electors because his candidate lost. That is tyranny,” Cheney wrote, adding:

Our institutions held on Jan 6 because Mike Pence refused to violate his oath to the Constitution. Trump picked JD Vance because Vance will do whatever Trump wants, including violating the Constitution. They are both far too dangerous to serve. It’s our duty to stop them.

CNN anchor Jim Sciutto reacted to Vance’s comment, saying, “The normalization within the GOP of Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election, which – remember – was rejected by both Democratic and Republican election officials, is remarkable and deeply concerning for this year’s vote.”

Legal analyst Norm Eisen added, “Vance is saying that he would have willingly entered a criminal conspiracy. If he would’ve done it then, he’ll do it if he takes power. Believe him.”

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