Five takeaways from Smith’s report on the case for Trump’s 2020 election

In repeated conversations, day after day, Trump asked his vice president to use his ministerial position as president of the Senate to change the outcome of the election by not certifying the results, Smith’s report said.

Pence refused, and on one occasion Trump told him that “hundreds of thousands” of people would “hate him head over heels” if he didn’t budge.

The public pressure campaign on his deputy continued. In the speech, Trump said he hoped Pence would do it, but if he didn’t, “I’m not going to like him as much.”

Just before he left the White House to give a speech at the Ellipse before the attack on the Capitol, Trump made one last phone call to Pence, according to Smith. When the vice president told him during the call that he didn’t have the authority to carry out Trump’s wishes, Trump told staff to reinsert into his speech some language he had drafted earlier targeting Pence.

Moments after the speech, Trump supporters roamed the halls of the Capitol chanting “hang Mike Pence” and looking for him in the offices.