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DA subpoenas Trump Org controller as Manhattan prosecutors ramp up investigation.
Yet another top Trump Organization executive has reportedly been subpoenaed by the office of Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, Jr.
"As prosecutors ramp up their investigation of Donald J. Trump and his family business, the Manhattan district attorney's office has subpoenaed a senior finance executive at Mr. Trump's company to testify before a state grand jury, according to people with knowledge of the matter," The New York Times reported Friday.
"The executive, Jeffrey McConney, has long served as the Trump Organization's controller, making him one of a handful of high-ranking executives to oversee the company's finances."
Prosecutors have reportedly been focused on trying to get Trump Org Chief Financial Officer Alan Weisselberg to "flip" and turn state's evidence.
Mr. Vance's office has mounted an aggressive effort to gain Mr. Weisselberg's cooperation against Mr. Trump and the Trump Organization, people with knowledge of that effort have said.
When seeking to turn an insider into a cooperating witness, prosecutors often seek leverage over the person, including any evidence of past wrongdoing, and then typically offer leniency in exchange for testimony or assistance," the newspaper explained.
McConney has worked at the company for decades.
"The subpoena of Mr. McConney, who has worked at the company for nearly 35 years, suggests that the examination of Mr. Weisselberg's conduct has reached a new phase, with the grand jury hearing evidence about him," the newspaper noted.
"Under state law, witnesses such as Mr. McConney who appear before the grand jury are granted immunity on the subject of their testimony. They cannot exercise their Fifth Amendment right to refuse to answer questions on the grounds that they might incriminate themselves. (If they lie, they still can be prosecuted for perjury.)"
Top 5 reasons Don McGahn's testimony on Trump obstruction of justice is important.
Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner on Friday offered his analysis of the obstruction of justice investigation into former President Donald Trump.
"The top five reasons why Don McGahn's testimony before Congress today was actually pretty important," Kirshner said.
"Number five; Is the substance of what Don McGahn had to say. We know what he had to say because it was reported that he would be testifying about the public portions of the Mueller report," he explained. "What did Don McGahn have to say? Well, he said Donald Trump directed him to fire Bob Mueller to fire the man who was investigating Donald Trump for possible criminal activity."
"Why is the substance of that testimony important? Well, because it actually provides both things you need to convict somebody — to convict Donald Trump of obstructing justice — a criminal act and a guilty state of mind," he said.
"Number four; It's not hearsay," he said. "That's not just something recorded in the Mueller report, that is a first-hand, sworn account, under oath. That is a transcript of Don McGahn that can be used in a court of law in any number of ways, so that is important."
"Number three; The information was related by Don McGahn, former White House counsel who — regardless of what you think of his politics — is generally regarded as a truth teller. So it's coming from a credible source," he said.
"Reason number two; why Don McGahn's congressional testimony today was important: because Bill Barr can't spin it," he said. "He can't lie about it, he can't cover it up, the way he spun, lied about, and covered up what was in the Mueller report."
"And the number one reason why today's congressional testimony by Don McGahn about Donald Trump's obstruction of justice is important, is because Congress will be able to use it to make a criminal referral of Donald Trump to the Department of Justice," Kirschner said.
Ex-prosecutor tells Merrick Garland indicting Trump might be difficult — 'but it's also the right thing'.
Former federal prosecutor Elie Honig referred to Don McGahn's testimony to the Judiciary Committee as proof of the most flagrant obstruction of justice in the entirety of special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia report.
Honig said that McGahn had the good sense to avoid former President Donald Trump and hope that his demand to obstruct justice would just blow over. It didn't, however, and that's what McGahn made clear to Mueller and to the committee when he testified.
"Eventually, Trump said, I need you to lie about it and make a false document about it.
I don't care how strongly you want to defend Donald Trump, no president has to power to instruct someone to create a false document," Honig said, referring to Attorney General Merrick Garland's overly broad concept of executive privilege.
McGahn's testimony in which he revealed Trump told him to "deny this" and say something that is false.
"Yeah. It's the coverup," said Honig. "Donald Trump is telling his White House counsel, I need to you make up a fake story.
That's why I'm looking down the street at the Justice Department. It's taken Congress two years to get McGahan's testimony. It's a lot of people's fault, but now the only entity that can do anything about this is the Justice Department."
He noted that another thing that happened today is that Attorney General Merrick Garland said that no one should be treated any better or worse under the law simply because of who they are. I
"Does that principle apply to Donald Trump? That's my question to Merrick Garland," said Honig.
He went on to say that it was clear McGahn's testimony was consistent with what he told Mueller and that it's over. Congress has done everything it can do once it recommended to the DOJ that charges be filed.
"I think Jerry Nadler got slow-played," said Honig. "It doesn't mean it's over. Merrick Garland has a job to do. I understand it's a difficult thing, but sometimes as a prosecutor, you have to do difficult things if they're also the right thing."
Top Mueller lawyer urges Biden and Garland to 'rethink' their 'overly broad' protections of Donald Trump
Robert Mueller's top prosecutor, Andrew Weissmann, explained that one of the main things learned from Don McGahn's testimony, released Wednesday, is that he didn't lie and he didn't try to cover up for Donald Trump. What came out of it that he thinks is important, is that it confirms that Trump was obstructing justice.
One thing that Weissmann said is that the Judiciary Committee couldn't ask anything outside of what was already included in the Mueller report. It was something that Weissmann said he thinks should be reexamined by the Justice Department because it doesn't exactly make sense.
"Well, I think it is important to first note what we didn't learn because it is important to note that what Don McGahan testified to was that the report was accurate," said Weissmann.
"In other words, all of the skirmishing by the president and his allies about this being a witch hunt and that this was staffed by Democrats, all of that is for nought when you have the president's former counsel under oath confirming everything in the report that he says.
I think it is really important. It is important to note what he said was that the president wanted him to fire the special counsel just like what President Nixon did in Watergate, and he declined to do that, and that the president wanted him to lie about it, as you noted."
The other piece of it is that McGahn made it clear that one of the reasons he refused Trump's order to lie, was he was concerned he'd be nailed for making false statements.
"So, there's a reason for those crimes to be prosecuted and for there to be a deterrent effect, even up to and including the White House counsel," Weissmann explained.
"And then I think the final point is really what Congressman [Eric] Swalwell is talking about, which is systemic issues, and I do think it is really important to look at this in terms of what can be done about it. I think one of the troublesome aspects of the testimony was how limited it was.
You know, the congressmen were only allowed to ask questions about the report and what we had asked Don McGann, but that's because of what I think was a really -- an overly broad interpretation of executive privilege. I think it is really incumbent upon this attorney general and the president of the United States to really rethink that in light of the last four years and whether they really want to abide by that kind of unitary executive policy given what we've seen in the last four years."
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Subject: Re: Trump Criminal/Civil Investigations Move Forward- Sat Jun 12, 2021 7:46 pm
6-11-2021
'Trump was an unabated crime wave': ex-prosecutor lists the atrocities.
Donald Trump has legal exposure for a "crime wave" committed while serving as president of the United State, a former federal prosecutor explained on Friday. "Donald Trump was an unabated crime wave as president."
"Even before he became president he committed campaign finance violations with Michael Cohen, for which Michael Cohen went to prison," he reminded.
"He took office he could tick through the felony crimes that we can prove based on the information that has been publicly reported alone, whether it's the bribery and extortion of President Zelenskiy, the ten counts of obstruction of justice meticulously documented by Bob mMueller in volume 2 of the Trump-Russia report for which Bob Mueller famously testified Donald Trump could be prosecuted upon leaving office."
"There's something we often forget about which is obstructing congressional proceedings," he continued. "Remember, Donald Trump instructed all of his executive branch officials, do not comply with lawfully issued congressional subpoenas. And that's very different from saying let's go in and assert executive privilege and fight it legitimately."
"There are so many other offenses. There are countless, avoidable COVID deaths that could be pursued by the states.
Then, of course, there is inciting the insurrection. We saw it with our own eyes," he reminded.
"If he is not held accountable then what we are doing is we are encouraging tomorrow's version of Donald Trump," he warned. "We have to prosecute today's version of Donald Trump to send the message that we will not tolerate a run away criminal president."
Experts in the legal and journalism world are weighing in on the news that the Trump Organization "will be criminally charged" and "will have faced criminal chargesm as soon as next week.
"An indictment of the Trump Organization could mark the first criminal charges to emerge from an investigation by the Manhattan district attorney into Donald J. Trump and his business dealings," The Times reports.
"The Manhattan district attorney's office has informed Donald J. Trump's lawyers that it is considering criminal charges against his family business, the Trump Organization, in connection with fringe benefits the company awarded a top executive, according to several people with knowledge of the matter."
Bloomberg Opinion columnist Tim O'Brien calls it a "possible crime-a-thon."
DA pursuing ‘surgically driven case’ to take down the Trump’s business: Trump University prosecutor.
Friday, following reports that the Trump Organization could be "criminally charged" as soon as next week, Tristan Snell, the former New York prosecutor who helped lead the investigation into Trump University, suggested that the case was very targeted and likely to succeed.
"The big point that needs to be made here is, this is round one. The first inning or whatever sports metaphor you want to use, this is just the beginning," said Snell.
"This is not the main event, not event close to the main event. They'll be bringing, I believe, a surgically driven case here. They know they can win and get indictments on Trump Organization, probably on a number of these individuals."
"I think that obviously [CFO Allen] Weisselberg is probably the main target, and then from there they're going to do everything else," added Snell.
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Subject: Re: Trump Criminal/Civil Investigations Move Forward- Sun Jun 27, 2021 3:24 pm
There could be multiple rounds of indictments against the Trump Organization and top executives, a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times journalist explained on Saturday.
Journalist Susanne Craig, who won a Pulitzer for her bombshell 2018 report on Donald Trump's wealth, was interviewed by Alex Witt.
"Some new signs this weekend that Donald Trump's business could be facing great legal jeopardy," Witt reported.
"Multiple people familiar with the matter tell NBC News the Trump Organization could be hit with criminal charges by the Manhattan District Attorney as soon as next week. This would be against the company, not Mr. Trump himself. In a statement, a lawyer for the company said, 'the corporate office will plead not guilty and we will make an immediate motion to dismiss the case.'"
"I'm curious, what this could mean for [Trump Org CFO Allen] Weisselberg?"
"It could mean a lot both for Weisselberg and the Trump Organization," Craig replied.
"If you start with Allen Weisselberg, he has been an individual that the Manhattan D.A. has been hoping to get to cooperate and that hasn't happened. Charges up the ante on that," she explained.
"That could still happen, there could get cooperation from him with a reduced charge or additional charges layered onto this. I think you will see superseding or subsequent charges in summer, both against Allen Weisselberg and the Trump Organization and others," Craig predicted. "But for the Trump Organization, this is very serious, criminal charges are — could be crippling to a firm."
"I mean, I can't imagine we are not going to see additional charges and additional issues come up all summer leading towards something big in the fall," Craig said. Second round of indictments aimed at Trump Org execs expected in the fall.
((((This is a death blow to trumps upcoming proceedings.. It's a hard eyeopening for trump/ very very serious- didn't know All until this 5min video-
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Subject: Re: Trump Criminal/Civil Investigations Move Forward- Mon Jun 28, 2021 6:55 am
Manhattan DA’s office gives Trump until Monday afternoon deadline to show criminal charges aren’t warranted.
The office of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., according to the Washington Post, has notified attorneys for former President Donald Trump that they have until this Monday afternoon, June 28, to make any arguments as to why the Trump Organization should not face criminal charges in connection with its financial activities.
This information, journalists Shayna Jacobs, Josh Dawsey and David A. Fahrenthold report in the Post, comes from two sources who are "familiar with the matter" and spoke on condition of anonymity.
According to the Post reporters, "That deadline is a strong signal that Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. (D) and New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) — now working together, after each has spent more than two years investigating Trump's business — are considering criminal charges against the company as an entity. Earlier this year, Vance convened a grand jury in Manhattan to consider indictments in the investigation. No entity or individual has been charged in the investigations thus far, and it remains possible that no charges will be filed."
Under New York State law, prosecutors can file criminal charges against companies as well as individuals. This means that Vance's office could decide to file criminal charges against the Trump Organization itself or someone who is part of the company, including Donald Trump or the Trump Organization's chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg.
Jacobs, Dawsey and Fahrenthold note, "Prosecutors have shown interest in whether Trump's company used misleading valuations of its properties to deceive lenders and taxing authorities, and in whether taxes were paid on fringe benefits for company executives, according to court documents and people familiar with the investigations….
Last Thursday, lawyers working for Trump personally and for the Trump Organization met virtually with prosecutors to make the case that charges were not warranted. Meetings like these are common in financial investigations, allowing defense attorneys a chance to present evidence before prosecutors make a decision on whether to seek charges."
According to the Post reporters, "People familiar with the probe confirmed to the Washington Post that prosecutors were looking at charging the Trump Organization as an entity, as well as Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg, following Weisselberg's refusal to assist in the investigation."
Criminal indictments officially filed against Allen Weisselberg by Manhattan district attorney.
The Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance has officially filed indictments of Trump Organization CEO Allen Weisselberg and the Trump Organization. The indictments were filed late Wednesday and the documents are in the system and will be public Thursday.
The charges are believed to be tax-related and Weisselberg is expected to turn himself in early in the morning, said Washington Post reporter David Fahrenthold.
"The indictments against the Trump Organization and its CFO, Allen Weisselberg, will remain sealed until Thursday afternoon, leaving the specific charges against them unclear. Earlier Wednesday, people familiar with the case said the charges were related to allegations of unpaid taxes on benefits for Trump Organization executives," said the report.
Weisselberg out in Scotland: First indication that indictment affects Trump Organization operations.
Allen Weisselberg, the indicted Trump Organization executive, was removed today as a director of Donald Trump's golf resort in Aberdeen, Scotland, public records show. The move is the first to indicate how the indictment is affecting operations of the Trump Organization.
His removal comes as Scottish lawmakers and Avaaz, a global do-gooder organization, are pushing for an "unexplained wealth" inquiry into how Trump got the money to buy and refurbish both of his money-losing Scottish golf courses.
A 2018 British law lets investigators examine company and personal financial records to determine sources of money and riches that they deem suspicious. It's been called the McMafia law.
Trump's Aberdeen course lost nearly $1.5 million (£1.1 million) in 2019, up slightly from 2018. The property has lost money for seven years in a row.
The course also has an interest-free loan from the Trump Organization of $61.1 million (£44.4 million), disclosure documents show. Manipulating interest expenses is a common tax avoidance technique that can justify criminal charges of tax fraud unless executed with extreme care.
There are only two ways Weisselberg could be removed as a director of the Trump International Golf Club Scotland, Ltd. Weisselberg could have done so on his own. In that case, his lawyers may have advised him to do so for reasons not yet clear.
The other way would have been on orders from Donald Trump and executed through his sons Don Jr. and Eric, who remain as the only directors. That, too, may indicate a criminal defense strategic move. Since Weisselberg remains on the Trump Organization payroll it almost certainly does not suggest a split between the interests of Weisselberg and his boss.
The move suggests that Trump may be trying to make sure only he and his family members exercise any legal control over the Trump Organization.
Removing Weisselberg would not block or limit any Scottish inquiry or the investigation by the New York County district attorney's special grand jury, which on July 1 indicted Weisselberg and the Trump Organization.
The New York indictment detailed a calculated 15-year scheme using two sets of books to cheat the federal, state, and city governments out of more than $800,000 of taxes.
Weisselberg and the Trump Organization face 15 counts of grand larceny, tax fraud, and conspiracy. Weisselberg could get 15 years on conviction, but he also could get probation without even home confinement. None of the crimes Weisselberg is charged with come with a mandatory prison sentence upon conviction.
Weisselberg plead not guilty when brought in handcuffs before a state judge in Manhattan. The judge released the 73-year-old chief financial officer of the Trump Organization on his own recognizance.
The 25-page indictment is the first in what I'm sure will be multiple cases as prosecutors try to persuade insiders that they will be better off turning state's evidence than sticking with Trump.
Those who agree to help prosecutors early on get the best deals, often involving no prison time. Those who hold out may face prison even if they eventually cooperate.
The indictment signals that prosecutors have solid evidence against tax cheats in the Trump Organization as well as anyone who took part in manipulating business records cold should they choose to seek their indictment.
As I read it, the indictment hints at future charges against Trump's two oldest sons, Ivanka Trump and Weisselberg's son Barry, who runs the ice rink and carousel in Central Park for Trump.
Mayor Bill de Blasio is trying to cancel that lucrative contract and another Trump has for a municipal golf course.
Ivana was a Trump Organization vice president when she was paid more than $700,000 in consulting fees, which may be a disguised gift subject to tax.
Barry Weisselberg got a free apartment near Central Park, a car, and other perks on which his ex-wife has said no taxes were paid. Jennifer Weisselberg is cooperating with prosecutors, supplying them with extensive financial documents.
Donald Trump and his lawyers have tried to minimize the criminal charges while not disputing that Weisselberg received $1.7 million in noncash compensation that was never reported to tax authorities as required by law.
I critiqued Trump's cavalier attitude in this earlier column.
The United Kingdom requires private companies, like the Trump Organization, to make more disclosures than American law requires, including total revenue (called "turnover") and profits, fees paid to directors, dividends paid to owners, and loans outstanding.
In America, only companies with publicly traded stock or bonds must make such disclosures. As Donald Trump's personal property, the Trump Organization and its more than 500 affiliated enterprises are not required to make similar public disclosures in America.
DOJ orders Treasury to turn over Trump’s tax returns to congressional investigators.
The Department of Justice has told the Department of Treasury that it must turn over Donald Trump's tax returns to the House Ways and Means Committee.
The Democratic-led committee had requested the documents more than two years ago, and the Justice Department's office of legal counsel determined that Congress has a broad right to receive tax information for a legitimate legislative purpose -- and Justice Department attorneys found the request met that standard.
The U.S. Supreme Court last year ruled that Trump's tax returns and other financial documents must be turned over to Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. as part of his office's criminal probe of the Trump Organization.
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Subject: Re: Trump Criminal/Civil Investigations Move Forward- Sat Aug 07, 2021 4:59 pm
8-7-2021
The final person to lead the Department of Justice during Donald Trump's administration has testified about efforts to overturn the election, The New York Times reported Saturday afternoon.
"Jeffrey A. Rosen, who was acting attorney general during the Trump administration, has told the Justice Department watchdog and Congressional investigators that one of his deputies tried to help former President Donald J. Trump subvert the results of the 2020 election," the newspaper reported, citing "a person familiar with the interviews."
Rosen testified before DOJ's inspector general on Friday and gave closed-door testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Saturday.
"The investigations were opened following a New York Times article that detailed efforts by Jeffrey Clark, the acting head of the Justice Department's civil division, to push top leaders to falsely and publicly assert that ongoing election fraud investigations cast doubt on the Electoral College results.
That prompted Mr. Trump to consider ousting Mr. Rosen and installing Mr. Clark at the top of the department to carry out that plan," The Times reported.
"Mr. Rosen has emerged as a key witness in multiple investigations that focus on Mr. Trump's efforts to undermine the results of the election. He has publicly stated that the Justice Department did not find enough fraud to impact the outcome of the election."
Former acting AG Jeffrey Rosen reached out to the DOJ IG to cooperate with his inquiry & gave the IG’s investigators hours of testimony. He met w.Senate Judiciary today. He’s sharing his account ASAP in case anyone sues to prevent him from doing so
Judge signs off on new money laundering probe into Trump’s Scottish golf resorts.
A judge in Scotland this week signed off on efforts to use a new anti-money laundering law to investigate former President Donald Trump's golf properties in the country.
The judge's approval of the "McMafia Law" probe represents "a significant hurdle" for legal efforts to scrutinize the financing of Trump's resorts, according to the Scotsman.
"Avaaz, a US-based non-profit activism organization, petitioned Scotland's highest court after (members of the Scottish Parliament) rejected calls to pursue an Unexplained Wealth Order against the former US president's Scottish firms," the newspaper reports.
"Its petition to the court stated that there are 'no reasonable grounds' to suspect that known sources of lawfully obtained income would have been sufficient to bankroll Mr Trump's acquisition of his Scottish properties."
"Unexplained Wealth Orders" allow authorities to target suspected corrupt foreign officials who have potentially laundered stolen money through the UK, according to the Scotsman.
If the suspected officials can't prove a legitimate source for their wealth, authorities can seize the properties in question.
The Scottish judge, Lord Sandison, "has given the green light for Avaaz to seek a judicial review, a development which will reignite the debate over how Mr Trump acquired his Scottish resorts during a decade-long spending spree," the Scotsman reported.
"Since incorporating his first Scottish company 16 years ago, none of Mr Trump's companies have turned a profit, and consequently, have yet to pay a penny in corporation tax," the newspaper reports, before citing the recent indictment of Allen Weisselberg, CFO of the Trump Organization, on tax-fraud charges.
Following Weisselberg's indictment, he stepped down as director of Trump International Golf Club Scotland — but he is still listed as a person with "significant control" over Golf Recreation Scotland, the parent company for Trump's Turnberry resort.
Top legal analysts shoot down idea that Trump didn't commit crimes -- and demand a federal investigation.
Two Washington, DC insiders on Friday made a strong argument that Donald Trump needs to be investigated for crimes committed while he was attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Former Deputy Attorney General Donald Ayer served under Republican Presidents George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan. Former Obama "ethics czar" Norm Eisen also served as special impeachment counsel during Trump's first impeachment trial.
"We believe that the full scope of Trump's conduct must be investigated by federal authorities, for the same reasons and in the same way they usually investigate credible evidence of major wrongdoing," they wrote.
"We take exception to those who say there is 'little reason' to open an investigation. Trump's statements like 'I just want to find 11,780 votes' (made to the Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger) and 'just say the election was corrupt and leave the rest to me' (made to Trump's own acting attorney general) suggest Trump knew that he had lost and was openly procuring fraud."
The two dismantled those trying to defend Trump's "Big Lie" about election fraud.
"There was no reasonable basis for him or anyone to genuinely believe he had won.
Any notion that Trump was articulating an honest but misguided belief is belied by his long record of lies.
And claims that the criminal statutes for election fraud and related offenses don't fit here are wrong.
The Justice Department regularly prosecutes public officials for asking election officials to do things like 'adding ballots to increase the vote totals for certain candidates,' which is what Trump allegedly asked for here," they explained.
"The decision on whether to prosecute Trump federally is in good hands with the attorney general and his professional staff. Their rigorous review process, along with Garland's long record of making sober judgments under the law, separate from politics and parochial concerns, can be trusted to redeem the national interest and secure public trust," Ayer and Eisen wrote.
Donald Trump could be charged with multiple crimes over his attempts to overturn his loss in the state of Georgia, report says.
Alia Shoaib and John L. Dorman 8 hours ago Former President Donald Trump.
Donald Trump could be charged with crimes over Georgia election interference, a new report says. The report says Trump and his allies pressured Georgia officials to overturn his loss in the state.
Trump is facing several probes in relation to his postelection conduct in Georgia.
Former President Donald Trump could be charged with multiple crimes over election interference in Georgia, a new analysis says.
The report by the Brookings Institution, a leading think tank in Washington, DC, analyzed publicly available evidence which showed that Trump and his allies attempted to pressure Georgia officials to "change the lawful outcome of the election."
A key piece of evidence is the now-infamous call made by Trump to Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on January 3, where the former president told him to- "find 11,780 votes" to overturn now-President Joe Biden's victory in the state.
"There's no way I lost Georgia," Trump repeatedly said throughout the call. "There's no way. We won by hundreds of thousands of votes."
Those assertions were false, as Biden won the state by nearly 12,000 votes, becoming the first Democratic presidential nominee to carry the longtime Republican stronghold since 1992.
The report added that Trump publicly pressured and personally contacted several other Republican officials in Georgia to ask for their help in overturning his electoral loss in the state, including Gov. Brian Kemp and Attorney General Chris Carr.
Trump reportedly placed direct calls to the officials in December to urge them to go along with "his increasingly desperate plans to decertify his loss."
"We conclude that Trump's postelection conduct in Georgia leaves him at substantial risk of possible state charges predicated on multiple crimes, " the report said. "These charges potentially include criminal solicitation to commit election fraud; intentional interference with performance of election duties; - conspiracy to commit election fraud; criminal solicitation; and state RICO violations."
The report also added that criminal liability could extend to some Trump allies, including his former personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani.
Giuliani appeared before committees in the Georgia Capitol with the intent of convincing state lawmakers to "take extraordinary action to reverse Biden's win," the report notes.
In February, Raffensperger's office opened a probe into Trump's efforts to overturn his loss in the state.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis also launched a criminal investigation into Trump's conduct related to the election.
The Brookings Institution report analyzed these probes and suggests the crimes that Trump could be charged with, along with his legal defenses.
The report suggests that Trump would likely claim immunity, arguing that he cannot be prosecuted for actions taken while he was in office.
Former presidents enjoy a measure of immunity for actions taken that "fall within the scope of their lawful duties as a federal official," according to the report.
However, in this case, Trump's actions were "well outside the scope of his official duties," the report noted.
For months, Trump has continued to promote debunked claims that the 2020 election was fraudulent, speaking of ballots coming from ceilings and pushing for forensic vote audits in closely-contested states like Arizona and Wisconsin.
The former president is currently facing several criminal probes over his conduct while in office, as well as his personal finances.
‘Pretty much the ball game’: Trump just lost any chance of being able to claim executive privilege.
Joe Biden will not invoke executive privilege on behalf of former president Donald Trump when the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack requests documents.
Trump is claiming that his status as a former president allows him to retain executive privilege rights, which is wrong.
The ability to invoke executive privilege rests only with the current president, and is well-defined.
Top national security expert and attorney Bradley Moss quickly weighed in, saying - "this would pretty much be the ball game on that issue," meaning there's nearly no chance Trump will get that protection, barring "intervention" from the Library of Congress's Archivist.
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