Special counsel asks judge to compel Mike Pence to obey subpoena and testify

Dept. of Justice Special Counsel Jack Smith has been forced to ask a federal judge to compel Mike Pence to obey a lawful subpoena and testify before a grand jury investigating Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

“The motion to compel Pence’s testimony — filed in secret to Chief Judge Beryl Howell in recent days — came after lawyers for former President Donald Trump asserted executive privilege in response to Pence’s subpoena,” CBS News reports. “The latest filing also comes after Pence has signaled he would oppose a subpoena from Smith’s office.”

Separately, CBS News’ Robert Costa reports two people familiar with the Special Counsel’s filing “say the chief judge has also made a common move during a grand-jury investigation: issuing a court instruction for secrecy, or ‘gag order,’ in recent days. That means all those involved with the probe in any capacity cannot comment on it.”