Judge Rules Whether Trump Tried to Obstruct Congress on Jan. 6
Judge Rules Trump ‘Likely’ Tried to Obstruct Congress on Jan. 6
In a preliminary ruling, a California Federal Judge announced that former President Donald Trump, “more likely than not,” illegally attempted to obstruct Congress from investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 protest and breach of the Capitol.
On Monday, US District Judge David Carter ordered Trump’s attorney, Dr. John Eastman, to turn over more than 100 emails to the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 event.
Trump claims the House Select Committee is a hyper-partisan “sideshow to distract America from MASSIVE failures by Biden and the Democrats.”
Judge Carter’s ruling noted: “Based on the evidence, the Court finds it more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021.”
The ruling also noted Trump’s efforts to have then-Vice President Mike Pence refuse to certify the electoral count in several contested states.
In reference to a reported memo Trump wrote to Pence regarding refusing to certify election results, Carter wrote:
“This may have been the first time members of President Trump’s team transformed a legal interpretation of the Electoral Count Act into a day-by-day plan of action. The draft memo pushed a strategy that knowingly violated the Electoral Count Act, and Dr. Eastman’s later memos closely track its analysis and proposal.”
Judge Carter also wrote that “the memo is both intimately related to and clearly advanced the plan to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021. Because the memo likely furthered the crimes of obstruction of an official proceeding and conspiracy to defraud the United States, it is subject to the crime-fraud exception”.
According to The New York Post, the court did not determine whether or not the former president “likely engaged in common law fraud.”
The Jan. 6 Select Committee has accused Trump of “criminal conspiracy” and claims that Eastman was the “architect” of a disinformation campaign.
The New York Post reports that Pence’s legal counsel Greg Jacob emailed Trump’s attorney, John Eastman, on Jan. 6, “Thanks to your bulls–t, we are now under siege…”
Eastman reportedly replied: “The ‘siege’ is because YOU and your boss did not do what was necessary to allow this to be aired in a public way so the American people can see for themselves what happened.”
The Select Committee, comprised of members appointed by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, claims that Trump broke the law “by interfering with the election certification process, disseminating false information about election fraud, and pressuring” officials to overturn the election results.
Trump representatives did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment, but a response is expected soon on Trump’s Save America PAC platform.
Scroll down to leave a comment and share your thoughts.