Mark Meadows, former President Donald Trump’s final White House Chief of Staff, testified in a Georgia federal court Monday that the actions for which he’s been indicted in the Georgia 2020 election case were all part of his duties as Chief of Staff.
Summary
Mark Meadows, former President Donald Trump’s final White House Chief of Staff, testified in a Georgia federal court Monday that the actions for which he’s been indicted in the Georgia 2020 election case were all part of his duties as Chief of Staff.
- The former North Carolina congressman spent nearly four hours on the stand and was questioned by his attorney and cross-examined by prosecutors. Meadows testified that he didn’t believe he did anything “outside my scope as chief of staff.”
- Meadows took the stand during a court hearing on his bid to move his trial from a Georgia state court to the federal District Court of Northern Georgia.
- To switch his case to federal court, Meadows needs to successfully convince the judge the actions for which he’s been indicted were undertaken “under color of such office” and as such were plausibly defensible as part of his job.
- Meadows attorney George Terwiliger argued the bar is “extremely low” for federal officers to move a state indictment to federal court. State law would still apply, but the potential federal jury pool is larger than the pool in Democrat-heavy Atlanta. Presiding federal judge Steve Jones did not issue an immediate ruling.
- Some of the other co-defendants have tried to move their cases to federal court, so if Meadows is successful, it could set a precedent for others, including Trump. Judge Jones acknowledged the case “might set precedent for future cases” given the case’s unique nature.
- Whether Meadows is successful or not, the efforts by him and other defendants like ex-DOJ official Jeffrey Clark to move the case to federal court could end up delaying a trial. The removal question would need to be completely litigated, including with any potential appeals, before a trial could begin.
- Meadows is one of Trump’s 18 co-defendants in the sprawling Georgia 2020 election case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. All 19 defendants surrendered and had their mugshots taken at the Fulton County Jail last week, and their arraignments are set for September 6.
- The New York Times noted that despite Meadows’ insistence that his actions fell under the purview of his job as Chief of Staff, “he also appeared unsure of himself at times, saying often that he could not recall details of events in late 2020 and early 2021. ‘My wife will tell you sometimes that I forget to take out the trash,’” Meadows said to the judge.
- The first of Trump and Meadows’ co-defendants entered a plea on Monday, according to Axios. Ray Smith, a Georgia-based attorney, waived his arraignment and entered a plea of not guilty to 12 charges, including racketeering, criminal solicitiation and making false statements.
- NBC News reported Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger was ordered to testify as a witness for the DA’s office. Meadows was indicted in part for arranging and joining a Jan. 2, 2021 call where Trump pressured Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to overturn his defeat in the state.
- The Wall Street Journal reported “Willis’s case has already become procedurally complicated, in part because of Meadows’s request for removal” and those of four other defendants. A hearing on co-defendant Jeffrey Clark’s removal motion is set for Sept. 18. Two other defendants, former Trump legal advisors Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesebro, have asserted their right to a speedy trial.
- Breitbart noted “Meadows’ five-hour-long testimony shocked the legal community because it opened him to cross-examination by Georgia prosecutors.”
- “One by one, Meadows’ attorney George Terwilliger listed the activities highlighted in the Fulton County grand jury’s indictment against him – including a visit to a Cobb County voting facility and the scheduling of a call with Georgia election officials to discuss disputed ballots,” the New York Post reported. “For more than an hour, the former White House official insisted that his actions all fell under the purview of his federal role and therefore Willis’ case against him should be heard in federal court.”
Return to Freespoke 
© Dominic Moore, 2023
