Eastman Lacked Basis for Validity Claim, Pence Counsel Says (1)

Trump attorney John Eastman’s theories that the vice president could force the issue of competing slates of electors in a presidential election back to the state lacked legal or historical basis, counsel for former Vice President Mike Pence told a California judge Wednesday.

Gregory F. Jacob, then Pence’s chief counsel, said he researched the US Constitution and discussed with the Senate parliamentarian whether there was anything in the legislative history of the Electoral Count Act or in law that supported Eastman’s argument that the vice president could assert authority over election certification and delay the vote count.

“Our unequivocal ...