Meadows may have committed perjury
Izzy Einstein and Moe Smith, the legendary prohibition agents, raided illegal speakeasies a century ago, often using ruses and costumes to finagle their way inside to order drinks. Izzy would surreptitiously pour his drink down a funnel hidden in his vest. A hose led to a bottle for preserving evidence. He would announce he had “bad news.” You’ve just been raided.
There was more bad news for Mark Meadows and Donald Trump last week in Meadows’ hearing transcript.
But wait! There’s more. Ryan Goodman of Just Security observes in a thread that Meadows got involved in coordinating the fake electors scheme because he “would get yelled at” if he didn’t.
“By whom?” the judge asked Meadows.
“By the president of the United States,” Meadows replied, implicating both Trump’s knowledge of the scheme and active participation in it. It’s also a Hatch Act violation for a president, says Goodman.
Meadows also admitted involving Cleta Mitchell in Georgia to help the campaign.
“Note how these admissions also contradict Meadows’ attempt to claim he was trying to ‘land the plane’ to move toward the transfer of power to Biden,” Goodman told CNN. “Helping set up the false electors as a backup plan is NOT landing the plane.”
Right down the funnel
Special prosecutor “Jack Smith may need to consider possible perjury charges,” Goodman adds. “The entire house of cards – falsely claiming all his conduct was pursuant to government duties – fell apart under cross examination.”
In a court filing, Fulton Country District Attorney Fani Willis wrote that “after insisting that he did not play ‘any role’ in the coordination of slates of ‘fake electors’ throughout several states, the defendant was forced to acknowledge under cross-examination that he had in fact given direction to a campaign official in this regard.”
In a footnote, Willis adds, “The Court has ample basis not to credit some or all of the defendant’s testimony.”
Trump may not, but Meadows may have needed a few drinks after his last week.