Rudy Giuliani will not be on President Donald Trump’s impeachment defense team.
The President’s personal attorney said his own involvement in the “Stop the Steal” rally that turned into a mob — Giuliani demanded “trial by combat!” shortly before Trump spoke on that fateful Jan. 6 morning — made him a witness to the offense being charged.
“Because I gave an earlier speech [at the rally], I am a witness and therefore unable to participate in court or in the Senate chamber,” Giuliani told ABC News on Sunday night.
But the statement from Giuliani came just a day after he told ABC News that he would be working on Trump’s impeachment defense — and that he’d prove that the election had been fraudulent, as well.
“They basically claimed that anytime [Trump] says voter fraud, voter fraud — or I do, or anybody else — we’re inciting to violence; that those words are fighting words because it’s totally untrue,” Giuliani told the network Saturday. “Well, if you can prove that it’s true, or at least true enough so it’s a legitimate viewpoint, then they are no longer fighting words.”
Giuliani and Trump met Saturday night at the White House, The New York Times reported.
With Giuliani out of the picture, it’s still not clear who is on the President’s defense team.
Hogan Gidley, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign, tweeted just past midnight on Sunday that no decision had yet been made. The White House did not immediately respond to TPM’s request for comment Monday.
Statement On President Trump’s Impeachment Defense Team:
President Trump has not yet made a determination as to which lawyer or law firm will represent him for the disgraceful attack on our Constitution and democracy, known as the “impeachment hoax.” We will keep you informed.
— J. Hogan Gidley (@JHoganGidley) January 17, 2021
Trump’s impeachment last week for inciting the insurrectionary mob that attacked the Capitol building included the votes of 10 Republicans in favor of charging the President.
