Donald Trump made no effort to obscure his plan: in desperation, the outgoing president demanded that Vice President Mike Pence unilaterally reject election results and hand Trump power he did not earn.

Yesterday afternoon, the Indiana Republican issued a written statement explaining that he simply could not do what Trump wanted him to do -- because the law would not allow it. Hours later, after the president's mob was removed from the Capitol and lawmakers certified President-elect Joe Biden's victory, Pence again broke with Trump's line.