In the wake of House Democrats and a handful of RINO Republicans voting in favor of impeaching President Donald Trump for a second time in his first and only term in office, the focus in Trump's camp is now on who will lead his impeachment legal defense when the ordeal is transferred to the U.S. Senate for trial
Early reports have suggested that his personal attorney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani will likely be on the team, but the latest reports have suggested that a lawyer by the name of John Eastman, who joined Giuliani on stage prior to the tragic events that unfolded on January 6 at the U.S. Capitol, could be hired to join the defense team.
Reuters has the story:
President Donald Trump may hire a law professor who spoke at his rally before the riot at the U.S. Capitol to help defend him in an impeachment trial over a charge that he incited the violence, according to two people familiar with the matter.
John Eastman, who joined Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani on stage at the Jan. 6 rally, is being considered for a role on Trump's defense team, the people said.
Giuliani, 76, who told the crowd they should engage in "trial by combat," may lead the impeachment defense, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing a source. Giuliani has not responded to requests for comment.
Eastman, 60, who made unsubstantiated claims of election fraud at the rally, would neither confirm nor deny whether he will represent Trump, citing attorney-client privilege.
Asked whether he would be willing, Eastman said: "If the President of the United States asked me to consider helping him, I would certainly give it consideration."
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Eastman and has declined to comment on Giuliani.
The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday made Trump the first U.S. president to be impeached twice, charging him with inciting an insurrection as lawmakers sought to certify President-elect Joe Biden's victory in the Nov. 3 election.
A former clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Eastman represented Trump last month in unsuccessful challenges to the election.
At the rally, Eastman, who until Wednesday was a professor at Chapman University in California, spoke about "secret folders" of ballots used to defraud the election before Trump took the stage and repeated the discredited claim that the election was stolen from him.
Faculty members and students, among others, subsequently called for Chapman to fire Eastman. In a statement on Wednesday, the university president said an agreement had been reached under which Eastman would immediately retire from Chapman.
Eastman told Reuters he did not believe he did anything wrong. He does not think Trump has culpability, either. "None, whatsoever," he said.
Eastman came under fire last summer for an op-ed he wrote in Newsweek that questioned whether Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was eligible to serve because her parents were not U.S. citizens or permanent residents.
Newsweek later apologized for publishing the piece.
Trump may have a tough time retaining legal talent. He has had trouble hiring lawyers since former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, and the widespread condemnation of the violence at the Capitol and pressure from anti-Trump groups may discourage others from signing up.
Trump was impeached by the Democratic-led House in 2019 on charges that he pressured Ukraine's president to announce an investigation of his rival Biden, but was acquitted by the Republican-led Senate in February 2020.
Giuliani's own pressure on Ukraine helped lead to Trump's impeachment trial.
White House counsel Pat Cipollone, who helped lead the defense effort during the impeachment over Ukraine, is not expected to participate in the latest effort, according to one person familiar with the matter. Cipollone will leave his post on Jan. 20, when Biden becomes president.
Jay Sekulow, another personal lawyer for Trump who played a role during the first impeachment, also is not expected to be involved.
Only time will tell what the outcome of a Senate impeachment trial for a president who will have been out of office by then will mean for Trump and the country, but it's clear that they're taking the matter seriously, regardless.
With any luck and with the truth on their side, many Trump supporters and Republicans believe that Trump will be vindicated.
via thefederalistpapers
Trump Could Appoint Lawyer Who Spoke At Rally For His Impeachment Legal Team
