The Fulton County District Attorney is taking an aggressive, hands-on approach to her office's investigation into Donald Trump, personally selecting members of a special grand jury and sitting in on questioning while preparing to wage legal war against all but certain challenges.
When asked about the selection of a special grand jury that began hearing testimony last week, he said he felt great. I specialize in trial lawyers. Picking a diverse jury is my trial strategy. I don't want all of them. I don't want people of the same race. I don't want people under the age of 30.
She said that putting a mix of people on there would keep them honest. The jury looks like it's from a different part of the country. That is a good start. Fulton County is in good hands because of the group that takes the responsibility seriously.
On Friday, the day after Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger testified before the grand jury and just days before the U.S. House begins televised hearings, she spoke freely in her office.
An optimistic timetable that could lead to a decision on indicting the former president by this fall was offered by the interviewer. She didn't worry about the expected challenges from Trump's lawyers and Republican state legislators.
She denied that there could be challenges to her subpoenas. People don't want to come to our party.
She offered her most full-throated defense yet of her decision to take on the Trump case, which has generated criticism from both Trump loyalists and some community leaders in Fulton County who are concerned that it is a diversion from more pressing issues. An elected Democrat who last year took office as the first Black woman to head the district attorney's office, said the investigation was an essential part of a broader national effort to defend the sanctity of voting rights.
I didn't pick this. She didn't want Donald Trump to be on her plate. As she took office last year, she found out that Raffensperger was sitting in his home in Fulton County when Trump called him and urged him to vote. She said her father was dragged to the polls because she was a bitty girl.
She said that voting is an inherent right. I understand how important it is for a person to have an issue with their right to vote. I understand the significance.
While those comments seem to echo the voting rights messaging of many in her party, she is a far cry from the prosecutors who have taken office in many other big cities. She has a reputation as a tough prosecutor who has no compunction about bringing controversial indictments that have roiled her community. A racketeering case against Black teachers accused of cheating on students' test scores was one of the charges against her.
John Floyd is an expert on Georgia's expansive racketeering law who has helped guide her on previous cases. The jury could see a whole story if they were allowed to see the broad reach of the racketeering law.
It is a law that could allow Willis to bring a much broader conspiracy case that goes well beyond the former president's phone call to Raffensperger. GOP state lawmakers who took part in the effort to name an alternative slate of Georgia electors pledged to Trump despite Joe Biden's narrow victory in the state.
The threats of legal challenges are already being run into by the man. The alternative state of electors pledged to Trump during a closed-door meeting at the state Capitol in December of 2020 and some Republican state legislators were recently notified to expect subpoenas.
Yahoo News reported on May 26 that the GOP leaders of the General Assembly have hired an outside counsel to question the authority of the subpoenas. During the interview, he said they would deal with that as well.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney is presiding over the grand jury. She will get a "material witness" warrant if she succeeds in getting legislators to comply with her subpoena. She said it was "just what you do." They have been arrested before for ignoring my subpoena. You don't think you'll have to do it. But I'm going to do it.
A spokesman for Georgia House Speaker David Ralston said that they had no comment on the matter. The office of the Georgia Senate president didn't reply.
The authority of the state prosecutor to investigate or charge the president is expected to be challenged by Trump's legal team. It is widely expected that Trump's lawyers will file to remove the case to federal court, arguing that he is immune from state prosecution for his actions as president. The case would be moved to state court to argue that pressuring a state official to find more votes in an effort to overturn a fair election is not presidential duty. There's no guarantee.
Norm Eisen said that this may be one of the hardest legal issues in the case. Trump's attempt to overthrow the election is far away from any official responsibility. Even if she doesn't win that fight, she can still prosecute it in federal court. She told Yahoo News that she would hire a special prosecutor if needed.
She is confident that she can finish the investigation and make a decision on an indictment by the fall. She thinks the special grand jury could be done in 90 days. I don't think that everything will be perfect, that's just not the way life works. It might take a little longer.
A recommendation on an indictment will be made by the special grand jury at that time. If she decides to charge the ex-president and any conspirators, she will bring the case to a special grand jury.
Does the election affect her decision about charging Trump? She said that it wasn't at all. It isn't helping me at all. She won't bring an indictment once early voting begins in Georgia. She says she has time before and after that.
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