WASHINGTON: A federal judge ruled on Monday that former US president Donald Trump “more likely than not” engaged in criminal conduct with his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
Judge David Carter leveled the explosive accusation in a ruling dealing with subpoenas issued by the congressional committee investigating the Jan 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters.
The ruling comes amid US media reports that Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner is expected to appear voluntarily for a virtual deposition before the committee this week.
“Based on the evidence, the court finds it more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress,” Carter said in a blistering 44-page ruling. The committee had sought documents from John Eastman, a conservative lawyer who provided legal advice to Trump in the wake of his November 2020 election loss to Democrat Joe Biden.
Carter, a Clinton appointee who serves on a US District Court in California, rejected Eastman’s attempt to block handing over emails to the committee from his account at Chapman University, the California school where he was a law professor.
Eastman notably authored memos providing dubious legal arguments for how then-vice president Mike Pence could swing the election to Trump when Congress met on January 6 to certify the results of the vote.
In his ruling, Carter noted that Trump had repeatedly urged Pence to throw out Electoral College votes from contested states and had done so in a fiery speech to his supporters shortly before the storming of Congress.
Pence resisted the pressure, and Biden was certified the winner by Congress after the Capitol was cleared of rampaging Trump supporters. “Because President Trump likely knew that the plan to disrupt the electoral count was wrongful, his mindset exceeds the threshold for acting ‘corruptly,’” the judge said.
He added that Trump likely knew his allegations of election fraud were baseless, and therefore that the plot was unlawful.
The judge’s ruling may increase pressure on Attorney General Merrick Garland to bring charges against the 75-year-old Trump over the Capitol riot, which left at least five people dead and 140 police officers injured.
Garland has declined to reveal whether Trump is the target of any Justice Department investigation but has said the probe will continue “until we hold everyone accountable who committed criminal acts with respect to January 6.” More than 775 people have been arrested in connection with the Capitol attack. Some 280 have been charged with obstructing an official proceeding.
Published in Dawn, March 30th, 2022
