Trump to Pence on Jan. 6: 'You'll Go Down as a Wimp'

A new book by ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl has new details about an exchange between President Trump and Vice President Pence on the morning of the Capitol riot in 2021. The book—Retribution: Donald Trump and the Campaign that Changed America—says an angry Trump called Pence after learning that his vice president would not try to block the certification of Joe Biden as the election winner.

• "You'll go down as a wimp," Trump said, according to a note Pence scrawled on his day planner.
• At other points, Trump said, "If you do that, I made a big mistake five years ago," and "You listen to the wrong people."

• Karl tweeted an image of the Pence notes, adding that special counsel Jack Smith planned to use them at trial had his case against Trump gone to trial.
• "I said we both [took] an oath to support + defend the Constitution," Pence responded to Trump, according to his notes. "It doesn't take courage to break the law. It takes courage to uphold the law."
• That Trump referred to Pence as a "wimp" during their final phone call has been previously reported, but the newly revealed notes provide the full line and more context.