A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
I’ll Never Let Go, Jack!
John Eastman emailed Rudy Giuliani on Inauguration Day 2021 proposing that they file more election lawsuits to try to delegitimize the results of Georgia’s Jan. 5 Senate runoffs won by Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock. The email was obtained by the New York Times.
- Eastman’s email indicated that unlike with the presidential election, the proposal was less about undoing the runoff results and more about saving face after his voter fraud conspiracy theories were shown to be, uh, bullshit. “A lot of us have now staked our reputations on the claims of election fraud, and this would be a way to gather proof,” Eastman wrote.
- Eastman also asked Giuliani to help him collect the $270,000 he claimed the Trump campaign owed him for his coup services. Trump had predictably bilked Eastman out of those legal bills, and it’s not clear how helpful Giuliani could’ve been given that he too got stiffed by his client.
Another Top Trump WH Lawyer Subpoenaed In DOJ’s Jan. 6 Probe
Patrick Philbin, the former White House deputy counsel who worked under White House counsel Pat Cipollone, has been subpoenaed for testimony and records in the Justice Department’s investigation into the Capitol attack, according to CNN and the New York Times.
- Cipollone has similarly been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury investigating the insurrection.
- Both Philbin and Cipollone have also spoken to the House Jan. 6 Committee.
GOPers Realize They Might’ve Done Fucked Up With War On Abortion
Several Republican senators who spoke to HuffPost on Wednesday admitted to seeing some major red flags after voters in ruby-red Kansas voted overwhelmingly to preserve abortion rights in their state’s constitution the day before.
- “It’s definitely a wake-up call for us,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said.
- “Kansas, which is a pretty red state―it’s hard to find the words. I think people should look at it,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said.
Alex Jones Gets Accidentally Busted By Own Lawyers
The ongoing trial in the Sandy Hook families’ defamation suit against Alex Jones has been nothing but a disaster for the far-right conspiracy monger so far, and said disaster took the funniest possible turn on Wednesday.
- That’s when a lawyer representing the families dropped a nuclear bombshell: Jones’ very competent attorneys had mistakenly sent years worth of content on his phone to the families’ legal team, proving definitively that Jones had lied under oath when he claimed he didn’t have any texts related to Sandy Hook.
- Now the House Jan. 6 Committee is ready to pounce on this golden opportunity, according to Rolling Stone: The panel began to prepare a request to the Sandy Hook families’ lawyer for the tranche of messages “within minutes” (in Rolling Stone’s words) of the lawyer revealing the texts.
Biden Still Testing Positive For COVID
White House physician Kevin O’Connor reported on Wednesday that Biden’s COVID-19 test came up positive again earlier in the morning, and that he’s still experiencing an occasional cough “but less frequently than yesterday.” Otherwise, the President continues to feel well, according to O’Connor.
Must Read
“How Klamath Falls Pride Pushed Back Against Bundys & Local Bigots–And Won” – Left Coast Right Watch
“Here’s how abortion rights supporters won in conservative Kansas.” – The New York Times
Indiana Congresswoman Dies In Crash
Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN), 58, was killed with three other people in a car crash in Elkhart County, Indiana on Wednesday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) confirmed. Two of the three other victims who died in the collision were Walorski’s staffers.
Pelosi Wraps Up Taiwan Trip Amid China’s Rage
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) on Wednesday concluded her trip with a delegation of fellow House members to Taiwan that had drawn fury from the Chinese government. Pelosi and her delegation arrived on Tuesday in the face of China’s threats of retaliation as “an unequivocal statement that America stands with Taiwan, our democratic partner, as it defends itself and its freedom,” the Democratic leader wrote in a Washington Post op-ed explaining her reasons for the controversial visit.
Giuliani Likely To Dodge Charges In Ukraine Lobbying Probe
Prosecutors’ and the FBI’s criminal investigation into ex-Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani for illegal foreign lobbying isn’t likely to lead to federal charges against him, according to the New York Times and NBC News.
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