Trump at Georgia rally says he hopes Pence ‘comes through for us’ 

President Trump on Monday said he hoped Vice President Pence “comes through for us” as he discussed efforts to overturn the presidential election results, hinting at Pence’s role overseeing the certification of the Electoral College vote count on Wednesday.

“I hope that Mike Pence comes through for us, I have to tell you. I hope that our great vice president, our great vice president comes through for us. He’s a great guy,” Trump told a crowd of supporters at a rally in Dalton, Ga.

“Of course, if he doesn’t come through, I won’t like him quite as much,” Trump continued. “Nah, Mike is a great guy. He’s a wonderful man and a smart man and a man that I like a lot.” 

Trump did not articulate what he wants Pence to do. The president’s remarks came during a prolonged commentary on the election, which he insisted that he won “in a landslide” and claimed the election was “rigged” against him.  

“But he’s going to have a lot to say about it and you know one thing with him, you’re going to get straight shots. He’s going to call it straight,” Trump said.

President Trump: “I hope Mike Pence comes through for us, I have to tell you. I hope that our great Vice President, our great Vice President, comes through for us. He’s a great guy. Of course, if he doesn’t come through, I won’t like him quite as much.” pic.twitter.com/1eYA5bva7M

— The Hill (@thehill) January 5, 2021

Pence, as president of the Senate, is expected to oversee the certification of the Electoral College results showing President-elect Joe Biden’s win before a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. The role of the vice president is ceremonial, and Pence does not have the power to reject the results or otherwise affect the outcome.

A federal judge in Texas last week dismissed a long shot bid by Republican lawmakers that sought to give Pence the legal authority to effectively overturn the election results. 

Still, a number of Republicans in the Senate and House have sided with Trump and said they plan to challenge the Electoral College results Wednesday, indicating that the confirmation of the results showing Biden’s win will be delayed.

Those include Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R), one of two vulnerable GOP senators for whom Trump was stumping on Monday evening in Georgia.

Pence’s chief of staff Marc Short said in a statement over the weekend that the vice president “welcomes the efforts of members of the House and Senate to use the authority they have under the law to raise objections and bring forward evidence before the Congress and the American people on January 6th.”

Several Republicans have, conversely, rebuked the GOP efforts to overturn the election results.

Trump has claimed repeatedly that there was coordinated electoral fraud since Biden was projected the winner of the White House race. His campaign and other Republicans have failed to produce evidence to back up his claims, however, and most of their lawsuits have been rejected.

Pence has called for every “legal vote” to be counted but not has echoed Trump’s wilder claims about widespread fraud.