Trump Defends 'Perfect' Call With Georgia Secretary of State Amid Inquiry
Former President Donald Trump speaks at a Save America rally on Saturday to support Republican candidates running for state and federal offices in Ohio in Youngstown. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)
By Jay Clemons | Monday, 19 September 2022 07:37 PM EDT
Former President Donald Trump has again defended his January 2021 discussion with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, which came approximately two months after the 2020 presidential election, reiterating that his conduct when speaking to Raffensperger made for "an absolutely PERFECT phone call."
In a Save America post on Monday, Trump said that Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis has been "spending almost all of her waking hours, which aren't many, on attempting to prosecute a very popular president, Donald J. Trump" and that she is "basing her potential claims on trying to find a tiny word or phrase (that isn't there) during an absolutely PERFECT phone call, concerning widespread Election Fraud in Georgia."
In 2021, Willis launched an investigation of whether the former president or his associates were involved in attempting to change the outcome of the 2020 election.
According to reports, Willis asserts that her team has uncovered credible allegations of serious crimes from the investigation, but would not specify any potential charges.
Willis has already subpoenaed a number of political figures in connection with this investigation, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani.
Last year, The New York Times released the full text and audio of then-President Trump's call with Raffensperger.
Here are two notable excerpts from the lengthy call:
Excerpt 1
"We're going to have an accurate number over the next two days with certified accountants, but an accurate number will be given, but it's in the 50s of thousands, and that's people that went to vote, and they were told they can't vote because they've already been voted for, and it's a very sad thing. They walked out complaining, but the number's large. We'll have it for you, but it's very, it's much more than the number of 11,779. That's the current margin, is only 11,779.
"Brad, I think, I think you agree with that, right? That's something I think everyone — at least that's a number that everyone agrees on. But that's the difference in the votes, but we've had hundreds of thousands of ballots that we're able to actually, we'll get you a pretty accurate number. You don't need much of a number, because the number that in theory I lost by, the margin would be 11,779."
Excerpt #2
"They, they beat me in the — as you know, every single state, we won every state. We won every statehouse in the country. We held the Senate, which is shocking to people, although we'll see what happens tomorrow or in a few days. And we won the House, but we won every single statehouse, and we won Congress, which was supposed to lose 15 seats, and they gained I think 16 or 17 or something. I think there's now a difference of five.
"There was supposed to be a difference of substantially more. But politicians in every state, but politicians in Georgia, have given affidavits, and are going to — that, that there was no way they beat me in the — in the election, that the people came out — in fact, they were expecting to lose. And then, they ended up winning by a lot because of the coattails, and they said there's no way, that they've done many polls prior to the election.
"There was no way that they won. Ballots were dropped in massive numbers, and we're trying to get to those numbers, and we will have them. They'll take a period of time certified. But, but, but they're massive numbers and far greater than the 11,779."