The saga of Rudy Giuliani and Donald Trump’s ongoing fallout following the failed MAGA coup continues. Last week, the <em>Washington Post</em> reported that Trump was refusing to pay Giuliani’s rumored $20,000 per day legal fees because the insurrection backfired (in a lethal way), and Trump was looking for someone to blame for his place in history as the only U.S. president to be impeached twice. Then the member of Trump’s so-called “Elite Strike Force” (that failed to overturn the election because, well, there were no grounds to overturn the election) was apparently still set to be an attorney for Trump’s second impeachment trial, but now, those plans have been scrapped.
What gives? ABC News’ Chief White House Correspondent Jon Karl reports that Rudy directly told him that he will not be part of Trump’s defense team. According to Karl on Twitter, the given reason is “Because I gave an earlier speech [at the January 6 Trump rally], I am a witness and therefore unable to participate in court or Senate chamber.” Yep, Rudy is talking around the fact that he delivered “trial by combat” remarks (and later claimed they were a Game of Thrones reference) onstage at that rally.
Rudy Giuliani now says he won’t on the Trump impeachment defense team. “Because I gave an earlier speech [at the January 6 Trump rally], I am a witness and therefore unable to participate in court or Senate chamber,” he tells me.
— Jonathan Karl (@jonkarl) January 18, 2021
This, of course, looks a little sketchy, not necessarily because of the word “witness” but because Rudy isn’t known for telling the whole story. Rudy may have bowed out because he isn’t getting paid, or he could actually be downplaying his situation by claiming to be a “witness.” In fact, Rudy was busted (on failed MAGA coup day) leaving a voicemail for the wrong senator in an attempt to slow down the electoral college vote. So, Rudy could actually be a lot more than a “witness,” and the words “subject,” “co-conspirator,” and “accomplice” are popping up in speculation on Twitter.
"witness"
WE are witnesses. WE watched Giuliani tell the crowd to use "trial by combat"
HE is one of the catalysts for the "combat" in which people died. It's all on tape.https://t.co/QCOe8vHtD9
— Kathy NJ (@ecclesias) January 18, 2021
Rudy is being generous calling himself a “witness.” More like “subject.” https://t.co/dGNMGlZf48
— Elie Honig (@eliehonig) January 18, 2021
#TrumpsNaziAdministrationWillPayForTheirCrimes
Giuliani is a soon to be charged co-conspirator not a witness…
— Brick 7 (@Brick715) January 18, 2021
“Because I gave an earlier speech [at the January 6 rally before the Capitol riot], I am a WITNESS and therefore unable to participate in court or Senate chamber.”
– @RudyGiuliani.You spelled ACCOMPLICE wrong, Rudy.
— John Pavlovitz (@johnpavlovitz) January 18, 2021
In terms of Rudy Giuliani being a "witness," I'd go one further than "subject" and say he will be a "defendant": https://t.co/qTguzQkc9I
— LaurenBaratzLogsted (@LaurenBaratzL) January 18, 2021
"witness"
WE are witnesses. WE watched Giuliani tell the crowd to use "trial by combat"
HE is one of the catalysts for the "combat" in which people died. It's all on tape.https://t.co/QCOe8vHtD9
— Kathy NJ (@ecclesias) January 18, 2021
Rudy is more than a witness. He was inciter. Mr. “trial by combat”.
— Barbara Malmet (@B52Malmet) January 18, 2021
Regardless of the reason, it sure looks like Rudy won’t be representing Trump, which is a shame from an entertainment standpoint. There shall be no Total Landscaping replay, no goo-oozing, and no passing gas in public (although Rudy might still pull that one off elsewhere). Also, it’s fair to remember that Rudy has been Geraldo’d because Trump reportedly won’t even take his calls, so perhaps he’ll attempt to turn on Trump to save himself. Or he might be planning to implicate himself while crossing fingers for a Trump pardon, which might be inevitable.
No matter what, Rudy’s been the subject of disbarment complaints, so he might not be anyone’s attorney in the future. Maybe he should brush up on his acting skills? The world might be here for a followup to Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, at least for a giggle.
Source: https://uproxx.com/viral/rudy-giuliani-witness-trump-impeachment-trial/