Sen. Lindsey Graham has revealed that he will not be complying with a subpoena issued by a grand jury in Georgia that aims to investigate former United States President Donald Trump's alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 elections.
In a statement, attorneys for Graham, Bart Daniel and Matt Austin, said that the senator plans to go to court, challenge the grand jury's order, and expects to win the legal battle. They added that Graham was "well within his rights to discuss with state officials the processes and procedures around administering elections.
Lindsey Graham Subpoena
The situation comes as the grand jury also subpoenaed members of Trump's former legal team, including his personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani. The grand jury was selected in May to consider evidence in a probe launched after the former president was recorded in a Jan. 2, 2021, phone call pressuring Georgia's secretary of state to overturn the state's election results based on his claims of voter fraud.
Daniel and Austin said that Graham was being called "simply a witness" in what they called a "fishing expedition." They added that any information from an interview or deposition with the senator would immediately be shared with the Jan. 6 committee, as per Reuters.
In an interview on Wednesday, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who convened the grand jury probe, said that more subpoenas for additional Trump associates should be expected and declined to rule out a subpoena for the former president himself.
When Willis was asked whether that would also include Trump family members or former White House officials, she said, "We'll just have to see where the investigation leads us," while calling the situation a "very serious" matter. "We're going to do our due diligence in making sure that we look at all aspects of the case," she added.
According to Yahoo News, furthermore, Willis dismissed Graham's lawyers' allegation that the investigation was motivated by politics, arguing that the senator "doesn't understand the seriousness of what we're doing."
Affiliation With Trump
Willis said that she is investigating a post-election phone call that Graham made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in November of 2020. The latter previously said that the senator pressed him about whether he had the authority and power to reject certain absentee ballots, which he interpreted as a suggestion to toss out legally cast votes.
The subpoena against Graham said that he made at least two telephone calls to Raffensperger and his staff. It noted that during the calls the senator questioned them about re-examining certain absentee ballots cast in the state in order to explore the possibility of a more favorable outcome for the former president.
Graham allegedly made a reference to allegations of widespread voter fraud in the November 2020 elections in Georgia. The remarks are consistent with public statements made by known affiliates of the Trump campaign.
Deputy District Attorney Jeff DiSantis said, "Should witnesses choose to challenge an order that they testify before the Special Purpose Grand Jury, the District Attorney will respond in the appropriate court to compel their appearance," CNN reported.
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