New information shows that near the end of 2020 a White House lawyer warned against former President Donald Trump signing a sworn statement verifying facts his team knew were likely false.
Former White House lawyer Eric Herschmann emailed members of Trump’s inner circle on Dec. 31, warning that a lawsuit that was planned to be filed in federal court that challenged the results of the 2020 election in Georgia might not be “sustainable upon detailed scrutiny.” He echoed similar concerns aired by conservative attorney John Eastman.
“I will review now. I didn’t send John edits, I explained that I was concerned about the President signing a verification about facts that may not be sustainable upon detailed scrutiny,” Herschmann wrote in a Dec. 31 email to outside attorney Cleta Mitchell, which were obtained by Axios
“I think that we should limit specific factual ‘number’ allegations to those that are necessary i.e., those allegations that demonstrate that the decision is outcome determinative,” he added.
A source told Axios that the Jan. 6 committee is aware of the Herschmann email. The panel officially subpoenaed Trump for testimony Friday, after voting to do so last week.
Earlier this week, U.S. District Judge David Carter revealed that Trump signed a court verification that he was aware had inaccurate data. Carter cited an email exchange in which Eastman warned Trump had “since been made aware that some of the allegations (and evidence proffered by the experts) has been inaccurate.”
“On December 4, 2020, President Trump and his attorneys alleged in a Georgia state court action that Fulton County improperly counted a number of votes including 10,315 deceased people, 2,560 felons, and 2,423 unregistered voters,” Carter wrote. “President Trump and his attorneys then decided to contest the state court proceeding in federal court, and discussed incorporating by reference the voter fraud numbers alleged in the state petition.”
The document continued, “On December 30, 2020, Dr. Eastman relayed ‘concerns’ from President Trump’s team ‘about including specific numbers in the paragraph dealing with felons, deceased, moved, etc.’ The attorneys continued to discuss the President’s resistance to signing ‘when specific numbers were included.’”
However, after that suit was filed in state court, emails from Eastman and now Herschmann revealed that Trump’s inner circle learned that claim was dubious. Trump’s team then moved the lawsuit to federal court and made the same assertion, knowing it was false, according to Carter.
“As Dr. Eastman explained the next day: ‘Although the President signed a verification for [the state court filing] back on Dec. 1, he has since been made aware that some of the allegations (and evidence proffered by the experts) has been inaccurate. For him to sign a new verification with that knowledge (and incorporation by reference) would not be accurate.’ President Trump and his attorneys ultimately filed the complaint with the same inaccurate numbers without rectifying, clarifying, or otherwise changing them,” Carter wrote.
“But, by his attorneys’ own admissions, the information provided to him was that the alleged voter fraud numbers were inaccurate,” Carter wrote. “President Trump, moreover, signed a verification swearing under oath that the incorporated, inaccurate numbers ‘are true and correct’ or ‘believed to be true and correct’ to the best of his knowledge and belief.”
The lawsuit was rejected by a federal judge shortly after it was filed.
Trump responded to Carter when the news broke of the judge’s remarks, bashing him as a “partisan” judge.
“Who’s this Clinton appointed ‘judge,’ David Carter, who keeps saying, and sending to all, very nasty, wrong, and ill informed statements about me on rulings, or a case (whatever!), currently going on in California, that I know nothing about — nor am I represented,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
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