Transcripts For MSNBCW Prosecuting 20240703 : vimarsana.com

MSNBCW Prosecuting July 3, 2024

Special Prosecuting Donald Trump on this pivotal and and the looming trials of the former president , current candidate, and defendant, donald trump. Im ari muller and tonight our aim is to go beyond even the many important day the headlines and takes a wider look at the stakes in Criminal Justice priorities for these unprecedented cases. To do that, i am joined by doj veteran Former Mueller prosecutor and msnbc legal analyst, to see him right there back at work, Andrew Weissmann. Burning off his expertise and legal analysis in his msnbc podcast with mary mccord whos also with us tonight. That is right here on your screen, Prosecuting Donald Trump. Before we get in any further, i want to actually give a question to you that i think is on peoples minds in all fairness, which is can defendant trump get a fair trial with these primaries approach . Great question. I would broaden the question out. I would say can the government and the defendant get a fair trial . I would say the answer to that is yes, thats put a lot of pressure on the judge in the d. C. , case the florida, Case The Manhattan case, whats remarkable is that were talking about three separate criminal cases and potentially forth case. But both sides are entitled to a fair trial. You have the defendant now talking a lot about the truth and his use of it. But also the judge needs to be able to do is make sure that a jury is going to turn all of that noise off and is going to try to make sure that the jury knows whats going on in the courtroom and makes a decision based on that. I like the way you put that we can get almost overly positive for nostalgic about this is someone who works but youre reminding everyone, yes, everyone deserves a fair trial. And i think we can all agree, in a non partisan basis, tuning out the noise and whatever is out there and focusing on acts and evidence, by the, way that leads to an acquittal, if that leads to mistrial, its the system. But look at the evidence. The hard part in a case like this where its so prominent and ive had to deal with this is the juror who is less than candid who tries to most people are sitting and wondering and a high profile matter, thats the biggest concern that the government is going to have and the judge is going to have making sure that theyve tweeted out these people. Because we want to completely neutral dispassionate jury. A good example of that is in the manafort case. The one juror who have to child spoke said she was a maga republican, she had a red maga hat. And i love this. She said i left my hat in the car. That was just a great symbolic way of saying i have an oath of office and i did my job. She voted to convict. She had a very cute line afterwards. She said let me give some advice to President Trump who is it present at the time. Paul manafort should not be pardoned. And she acted out of principle. That is what you are looking for, somebody who is if the government is not prove its case is going to say, you know what . Not guilty. Theyre not prove the case Beyond A Reasonable Doubt and they have the gonna do with the judge instructs. Thats so well put and fascinating. You talked about someone who shared the former president s 2016 campaign. Not. Nobody ballots turned to these trials investigations from three prosecutors and four probes, at least in your day, Hush Money Scheme that weve been following. Special counsel smith both overseeing the classified documents probe and the probe into the coup, and there is what everyone has been talking about lee recently, georgias d. A. Reconvening a grand jury in that long running into election interference probe. This is on president. I examined in fort jurisdictions that occurred before, during and after his presidency. The trials for at least some of these indictments will likely occur as trump is trying to win the presidency again during the campaign as were just discussing. And by election day, there may be at least one jury that has reached its verdict. If convicted and if the Republican Party were to stand by the unprecedented prospect of running a convict as its nominee, then the voting public will decide how much that is a factor for their choices president of november 2024. We are living through these unprecedented times. And its a challenge for prosecutors as well, with the most highprofile defendant in history. And the realities of an external voting calendar. Lets bring it congresswoman zoloft karen from california, member the january Six Committee. Andrew . Congresswoman, thank you so much for joining us tonight. Happy to be here. So one of the people whos gone a lot of attention recently with the New York Times running a front page story as mr. Chesebro. I know that you as part of the january Six Committee deposed him or interviewed him as part of that committee and you were present for that. He seems to be well every but hes focused on mr. Eastman, he seems to be quite a strong participant in the fake elector Scheme Writing three different memos. I guess i want to start with since you are somebody who sat there and listened to him, what were your impressions for the substance of his testimony his, demeanor, what did you make of him . Well, i think hes a trooper lever. He wrote actually four memos, three that the committee had and one that we didnt outlining really the plot to overturn the election. You know, i dont know the man but he certainly was focused on overturning the election and i think my believe is he will be held criminally to account for that. So one of the things that you mention was this idea that the roads separate memos but the committee only had three of them. What is the reason for that . Is it because it was privileged, that somebody didnt turn over what they shouldve turned over to the committee . Because that memo that is referred to in the indictments, the New York Times seems to have been able to obtain it just recently, it seems to be pretty devastating if the reporting is cracked where mr. Chesebro really lays out this scheme as you mentioned to overturn the election, if that was the real goal of the fake electors scheme. How did the committee not have it . And i dont mean that because it didnt do the job, i mean in terms of what happened at in terms of not being turned over to you . Well i dont know the answer, i dont believe it was any kind of privilege log, but we werent provided the memo. The other memos were similar but not as direct as the memo we did not receive. And i think its quite damning. This was an intentional effort to create fake electors and to overturn the election. To have the Vice President recognize them on january 6th instead of the real electors or to somehow send them back to the states when no stated asked for that. Its part and parcel of This Multi Faceted plots essentially a coup. One of the things that is come up lately is sort of a defense do sure that this was only seeking a pause in some way as if thats somehow a mini coup is better than a full coup. I was wondering what your take was on the side iitate is just a pause that is being sought. You have such deep experience in terms of being a congresswoman but also before that in terms of Law Enforcement. Whats your take on that defense . I think its ridiculous. For one thing, i understand Vice President pences publicly said it was not even true, he was asked to reject. And certainly that was even after the riot there were calls into the senate asking them to reject, to send it back to the states, that the states wanted them back. Thats overturning the election. To say that we are not gonna count the votes on january 6th as the Electoral Count act in the u. S. Constitution provides is overturning the election. You know, these people are grasping for straws. Congresswoman, given everything thats happening, want to show a key part of some of the testimony your committee gathered. Lets take a look. In the days leading up to the six, we had conversations about potentially obstructing justice or defrauding the Electoral Count. I heard the former president say things so the effect of, i dont care if they have weapons are not here to her. Im the effing president , taking up to the capital now. It jolted the nation. We read that it jolted the doj. Im curious what we know now as many are waiting on even a possibility of a fourth indictment potentially a georgia, what you think the history should say about this committee. We mentioned your watergate experience. With no disrespect to the committee or congress, as andrew knows, well the Justice Department doesnt care much about what members of committees conclude, surmise or think even if its a coequal branch. Doj supposed to caroline about evidence if, it turns out to be leaked video, could be voluminous testimony like we just saw, could be independent reporting. It seems to me, im curious what you say, that ultimately the Special Counsel determined the, meticulous work this committee did, not his conclusions per se, were relevant if not determinative . Id say so. If you read the indictment, its basically the committee report. They did not indict on the Incitement Referral that we made and i think thats probably smart. Its complicated and if you want to get a conviction in a very clean manner, the other statutes are easier. But as Mitch Mcconnell said after the impeachment, practically and morally trump was responsible for the riot and although he did not vote to impeach because trump is no longer in office, he did point out that trump should be held accountable either under the civil law or criminal law. Thats whats happening here. Congressman, one of the things that the committee did when you are done with your work was turned over so much information to the public, not just doj but so everyone could see it along with your report which is really commendable so everybody can see the data for themselves. I did have a question, because there are certain transcripts and im not much of a nerd that i focus on this stuff. There were certain transcripts that were not turned over publicly. For instance, to senior people who worked for brad raffensperger, that wasnt made public. I think judge luttigs transcript was not made public as well. I want if you could tell us what that was, why certain transcripts were not made public . We had about four terabytes of data that is available under the gpo. Honestly, it was a mad scramble to get this report done in the closing days of december with members hunkered down in washington personally doing the editing. We did have a couple of Law Enforcement sensitive matters that we sent for review to both the white house and also dhs urging them to decide how the archives should handle these materials. And that was something we thought was prudent. I dont know that theres ever been another committee that has provided the information that this one did. Ordinarily, there will be footnotes but you never have the information that is footnoted. We put out virtually everything we had. We never coordinated with the department of justice because that wasnt our rule. We are a separate branch. But we gave everything out i believe to the public. Of course the department of justice cant rely on our transcripts. They have to do their own investigation and their own interviews and the like. But i think well laid at the evidence that was very important for them to reach their conclusions. Really stunning to hear that from the. On a serious no, he described the indictments partially the blueprint from the report is striking in your silverstone. On a lighter note congresswoman, we learned that tonight of the four or five people in the world who have tracked which the many transcripts were publicly released or not, one of them is here, so i just dont think a lot of people in the weeds like that. Congressman, good to see. Good to be seen and thanks for letting me participate. Absolutely, appreciate your time. Coming up, well be joined by andrews cohost on this Prosecuting Donald Trump caucus, thats mary mccord for a large portion of tonights events. Were excited to have everyone. Were also gonna discuss the Criminal Intent issues and the socalled Seinfeld Costanza defense. The big show. A lot coming up with all eyes on all the probes including georgia. Well be right back. Now you can enjoy the best eggs in so many delicious ways. Egglands best. The farmfresh taste you love. Plus, superior nutrition. Only egglands best. vo in three seconds, pam will decide. Only egglands best. pam im moving closer to the grandkids wait. I got to sell the house vo dont wait, just sell directly to opendoor. Easy as pie. pam piece of cake. vo whichever. Get your Competitve Offer at opendoor. Com. Some people just know what road to take. Those are the people who know to choose allstate. The service road is faster. Gps turn left. Not happening. He knows better than any gps. And hed point you in allstates direction. Go all the way down the road, past the big gray warehouse. Gps take the next exit. Youre not from around here, so you dont know the back roads. I dont want to be late for the party. Im gonna save us five minutes. Some people just know what road to take. Gps youre on the fastest route. Those are the people who know safe drivers save 40 with allstate. vo in three seconds, this couple will share a perfect moment. Those a woman people who know safis that . Oh wow 0 but we got to sell our houses vo dont worry. Sell and buy in one move when you start with opendoor. woman yes vo close in a matter of days. Start with an all cash offer at opendoor Dot Com Wayfair has nice prices, so you can have nice things. Um kelly . We have champagne taste. On a hard seltzer budget. Wayfairs got just what you need what. Yall this is nice. Salad plates . Kelly clarkson . Im fancy now i have always wanted statement lighting. Get nice things at nice prices at wayfair wayfair, youve got just what i need nice footwork. Man, youre lucky, watching live sports never used to be this easy. Now you can stream all your games like its nothing. Yes [ cheers ] yeah woho running up and down that field looks tough. Its a pitch. Get way more into what youre into defendant donald trump is when you stream on the xfinity 10g network. Accused of deliberately committing election crimes. Indeed the word knowingly is used 36 times in that indictment describing Criminal Intent, pushing the conspiracy of election lies. It was fueled by lies. Lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing the Bedrock Function of the u. S. Government. The indictment lays out that evidence to show that trump knew his claims were false. When trump found out pence was not gonna go ahead with the certification, he says youre too honest. If youre on the other side of that statement he said, you would be a liar. And during a Military Meeting with his military advisers, he was told the presidencys over, hesaid the idea, right its too late for us. Were gonna give that to the next guy. Also he secretly told others that when sydney powell was pushing her conspiracies about why trump really won, he called her crazy. How trump knew he lost, the preview of what might come in star witness testimony at trial. He was looking like, can you believe i lost to this effing guy. The president says i think it couldve been pompeo, but he says words to the effect of, yeah we lost, well let that go to the next guy, meaning president biden. So he had said something to the effect of, i dont want people to know we lost mark. This is embarrassing. Figured out, we need to figure it out, i dont want people to know that we lost. So thats all pretty damning, and again thats from inside the team. Weve heard this defense that while trump doubly the election was stolen from him. This has been kicking around not so much about legal experts who noted the doj doesnt even have to prove that trump knew he lost, although they have that evidence is a told, is not any kind of legal requirement, its a variant of what this signed fathers calls the costanza defense. So whats on your mind. Jerry, just remember, its not a lie if you believe it. Which is technically true. What trump did or did not believe is not the point. You can believe that the bank has your money and you might even pass Ally Detector Test or not because of your own confusion about which bank you bank with where you put your money. That will not be a defense to robbing a bank or committing a conspiracy, for example conspire with other people to do so. A federal judge made a Point Take A Look at the recent evidence from this january six rioter. This was after he stormed the capitol. This is a photo that many people to, just telling himself he, was climbing a trial that he still to that day believe the election was stolen. Costanza. The judge found guilty and he said even if the defendant generally believed the election was stolen, that does not change the fact that he acted corruptly with consciousness of wrongdoing. Belief that your actions ultimately see the greater good does not negate consciousness of wrongdoing. In other words, if you want to get really legal with, it you have to get all the way from an incinerated defense, we are much more trouble, the fact you are mistaken and acting on your mistaken believe wrongly, doesnt help you. So if you break into the bank or the capitol you might have you just own justification. People have a lot of justifications for what they do in life. But he also know if you clashed with the police are sneak packed past the barricade, or go up to the bank safe, or attacked the teller or any number of hypotheticals, in doing so as a saint individual in the real world, you are clearly exhibiting that wrongdoing. That corrupt intent, thats a standard under the law. The judge also wrote that the Prosecuting Donald Trump<\/a> on this pivotal and and the looming trials of the former president , current candidate, and defendant, donald trump. Im ari muller and tonight our aim is to go beyond even the many important day the headlines and takes a wider look at the stakes in Criminal Justice<\/a> priorities for these unprecedented cases. To do that, i am joined by doj veteran Former Mueller<\/a> prosecutor and msnbc legal analyst, to see him right there back at work, Andrew Weissmann<\/a>. Burning off his expertise and legal analysis in his msnbc podcast with mary mccord whos also with us tonight. That is right here on your screen, Prosecuting Donald Trump<\/a>. Before we get in any further, i want to actually give a question to you that i think is on peoples minds in all fairness, which is can defendant trump get a fair trial with these primaries approach . Great question. I would broaden the question out. I would say can the government and the defendant get a fair trial . I would say the answer to that is yes, thats put a lot of pressure on the judge in the d. C. , case the florida, Case The Manhattan<\/a> case, whats remarkable is that were talking about three separate criminal cases and potentially forth case. But both sides are entitled to a fair trial. You have the defendant now talking a lot about the truth and his use of it. But also the judge needs to be able to do is make sure that a jury is going to turn all of that noise off and is going to try to make sure that the jury knows whats going on in the courtroom and makes a decision based on that. I like the way you put that we can get almost overly positive for nostalgic about this is someone who works but youre reminding everyone, yes, everyone deserves a fair trial. And i think we can all agree, in a non partisan basis, tuning out the noise and whatever is out there and focusing on acts and evidence, by the, way that leads to an acquittal, if that leads to mistrial, its the system. But look at the evidence. The hard part in a case like this where its so prominent and ive had to deal with this is the juror who is less than candid who tries to most people are sitting and wondering and a high profile matter, thats the biggest concern that the government is going to have and the judge is going to have making sure that theyve tweeted out these people. Because we want to completely neutral dispassionate jury. A good example of that is in the manafort case. The one juror who have to child spoke said she was a maga republican, she had a red maga hat. And i love this. She said i left my hat in the car. That was just a great symbolic way of saying i have an oath of office and i did my job. She voted to convict. She had a very cute line afterwards. She said let me give some advice to President Trump<\/a> who is it present at the time. Paul manafort should not be pardoned. And she acted out of principle. That is what you are looking for, somebody who is if the government is not prove its case is going to say, you know what . Not guilty. Theyre not prove the case Beyond A Reasonable Doubt<\/a> and they have the gonna do with the judge instructs. Thats so well put and fascinating. You talked about someone who shared the former president s 2016 campaign. Not. Nobody ballots turned to these trials investigations from three prosecutors and four probes, at least in your day, Hush Money Scheme<\/a> that weve been following. Special counsel smith both overseeing the classified documents probe and the probe into the coup, and there is what everyone has been talking about lee recently, georgias d. A. Reconvening a grand jury in that long running into election interference probe. This is on president. I examined in fort jurisdictions that occurred before, during and after his presidency. The trials for at least some of these indictments will likely occur as trump is trying to win the presidency again during the campaign as were just discussing. And by election day, there may be at least one jury that has reached its verdict. If convicted and if the Republican Party<\/a> were to stand by the unprecedented prospect of running a convict as its nominee, then the voting public will decide how much that is a factor for their choices president of november 2024. We are living through these unprecedented times. And its a challenge for prosecutors as well, with the most highprofile defendant in history. And the realities of an external voting calendar. Lets bring it congresswoman zoloft karen from california, member the january Six Committee<\/a>. Andrew . Congresswoman, thank you so much for joining us tonight. Happy to be here. So one of the people whos gone a lot of attention recently with the New York Times<\/a> running a front page story as mr. Chesebro. I know that you as part of the january Six Committee<\/a> deposed him or interviewed him as part of that committee and you were present for that. He seems to be well every but hes focused on mr. Eastman, he seems to be quite a strong participant in the fake elector Scheme Writing<\/a> three different memos. I guess i want to start with since you are somebody who sat there and listened to him, what were your impressions for the substance of his testimony his, demeanor, what did you make of him . Well, i think hes a trooper lever. He wrote actually four memos, three that the committee had and one that we didnt outlining really the plot to overturn the election. You know, i dont know the man but he certainly was focused on overturning the election and i think my believe is he will be held criminally to account for that. So one of the things that you mention was this idea that the roads separate memos but the committee only had three of them. What is the reason for that . Is it because it was privileged, that somebody didnt turn over what they shouldve turned over to the committee . Because that memo that is referred to in the indictments, the New York Times<\/a> seems to have been able to obtain it just recently, it seems to be pretty devastating if the reporting is cracked where mr. Chesebro really lays out this scheme as you mentioned to overturn the election, if that was the real goal of the fake electors scheme. How did the committee not have it . And i dont mean that because it didnt do the job, i mean in terms of what happened at in terms of not being turned over to you . Well i dont know the answer, i dont believe it was any kind of privilege log, but we werent provided the memo. The other memos were similar but not as direct as the memo we did not receive. And i think its quite damning. This was an intentional effort to create fake electors and to overturn the election. To have the Vice President<\/a> recognize them on january 6th instead of the real electors or to somehow send them back to the states when no stated asked for that. Its part and parcel of This Multi Faceted<\/a> plots essentially a coup. One of the things that is come up lately is sort of a defense do sure that this was only seeking a pause in some way as if thats somehow a mini coup is better than a full coup. I was wondering what your take was on the side iitate is just a pause that is being sought. You have such deep experience in terms of being a congresswoman but also before that in terms of Law Enforcement<\/a>. Whats your take on that defense . I think its ridiculous. For one thing, i understand Vice President<\/a> pences publicly said it was not even true, he was asked to reject. And certainly that was even after the riot there were calls into the senate asking them to reject, to send it back to the states, that the states wanted them back. Thats overturning the election. To say that we are not gonna count the votes on january 6th as the Electoral Count<\/a> act in the u. S. Constitution provides is overturning the election. You know, these people are grasping for straws. Congresswoman, given everything thats happening, want to show a key part of some of the testimony your committee gathered. Lets take a look. In the days leading up to the six, we had conversations about potentially obstructing justice or defrauding the Electoral Count<\/a>. I heard the former president say things so the effect of, i dont care if they have weapons are not here to her. Im the effing president , taking up to the capital now. It jolted the nation. We read that it jolted the doj. Im curious what we know now as many are waiting on even a possibility of a fourth indictment potentially a georgia, what you think the history should say about this committee. We mentioned your watergate experience. With no disrespect to the committee or congress, as andrew knows, well the Justice Department<\/a> doesnt care much about what members of committees conclude, surmise or think even if its a coequal branch. Doj supposed to caroline about evidence if, it turns out to be leaked video, could be voluminous testimony like we just saw, could be independent reporting. It seems to me, im curious what you say, that ultimately the Special Counsel<\/a> determined the, meticulous work this committee did, not his conclusions per se, were relevant if not determinative . Id say so. If you read the indictment, its basically the committee report. They did not indict on the Incitement Referral<\/a> that we made and i think thats probably smart. Its complicated and if you want to get a conviction in a very clean manner, the other statutes are easier. But as Mitch Mcconnell<\/a> said after the impeachment, practically and morally trump was responsible for the riot and although he did not vote to impeach because trump is no longer in office, he did point out that trump should be held accountable either under the civil law or criminal law. Thats whats happening here. Congressman, one of the things that the committee did when you are done with your work was turned over so much information to the public, not just doj but so everyone could see it along with your report which is really commendable so everybody can see the data for themselves. I did have a question, because there are certain transcripts and im not much of a nerd that i focus on this stuff. There were certain transcripts that were not turned over publicly. For instance, to senior people who worked for brad raffensperger, that wasnt made public. I think judge luttigs transcript was not made public as well. I want if you could tell us what that was, why certain transcripts were not made public . We had about four terabytes of data that is available under the gpo. Honestly, it was a mad scramble to get this report done in the closing days of december with members hunkered down in washington personally doing the editing. We did have a couple of Law Enforcement<\/a> sensitive matters that we sent for review to both the white house and also dhs urging them to decide how the archives should handle these materials. And that was something we thought was prudent. I dont know that theres ever been another committee that has provided the information that this one did. Ordinarily, there will be footnotes but you never have the information that is footnoted. We put out virtually everything we had. We never coordinated with the department of justice because that wasnt our rule. We are a separate branch. But we gave everything out i believe to the public. Of course the department of justice cant rely on our transcripts. They have to do their own investigation and their own interviews and the like. But i think well laid at the evidence that was very important for them to reach their conclusions. Really stunning to hear that from the. On a serious no, he described the indictments partially the blueprint from the report is striking in your silverstone. On a lighter note congresswoman, we learned that tonight of the four or five people in the world who have tracked which the many transcripts were publicly released or not, one of them is here, so i just dont think a lot of people in the weeds like that. Congressman, good to see. Good to be seen and thanks for letting me participate. Absolutely, appreciate your time. Coming up, well be joined by andrews cohost on this Prosecuting Donald Trump<\/a> caucus, thats mary mccord for a large portion of tonights events. Were excited to have everyone. Were also gonna discuss the Criminal Intent<\/a> issues and the socalled Seinfeld Costanza<\/a> defense. The big show. A lot coming up with all eyes on all the probes including georgia. Well be right back. Now you can enjoy the best eggs in so many delicious ways. Egglands best. The farmfresh taste you love. Plus, superior nutrition. Only egglands best. vo in three seconds, pam will decide. Only egglands best. pam im moving closer to the grandkids wait. I got to sell the house vo dont wait, just sell directly to opendoor. Easy as pie. pam piece of cake. vo whichever. Get your Competitve Offer<\/a> at opendoor. Com. Some people just know what road to take. Those are the people who know to choose allstate. The service road is faster. Gps turn left. Not happening. He knows better than any gps. And hed point you in allstates direction. Go all the way down the road, past the big gray warehouse. Gps take the next exit. Youre not from around here, so you dont know the back roads. I dont want to be late for the party. Im gonna save us five minutes. Some people just know what road to take. Gps youre on the fastest route. Those are the people who know safe drivers save 40 with allstate. vo in three seconds, this couple will share a perfect moment. Those a woman people who know safis that . Oh wow 0 but we got to sell our houses vo dont worry. Sell and buy in one move when you start with opendoor. woman yes vo close in a matter of days. Start with an all cash offer at opendoor Dot Com Wayfair<\/a> has nice prices, so you can have nice things. Um kelly . We have champagne taste. On a hard seltzer budget. Wayfairs got just what you need what. Yall this is nice. Salad plates . Kelly clarkson . Im fancy now i have always wanted statement lighting. Get nice things at nice prices at wayfair wayfair, youve got just what i need nice footwork. Man, youre lucky, watching live sports never used to be this easy. Now you can stream all your games like its nothing. Yes [ cheers ] yeah woho running up and down that field looks tough. Its a pitch. Get way more into what youre into defendant donald trump is when you stream on the xfinity 10g network. Accused of deliberately committing election crimes. Indeed the word knowingly is used 36 times in that indictment describing Criminal Intent<\/a>, pushing the conspiracy of election lies. It was fueled by lies. Lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing the Bedrock Function<\/a> of the u. S. Government. The indictment lays out that evidence to show that trump knew his claims were false. When trump found out pence was not gonna go ahead with the certification, he says youre too honest. If youre on the other side of that statement he said, you would be a liar. And during a Military Meeting<\/a> with his military advisers, he was told the presidencys over, hesaid the idea, right its too late for us. Were gonna give that to the next guy. Also he secretly told others that when sydney powell was pushing her conspiracies about why trump really won, he called her crazy. How trump knew he lost, the preview of what might come in star witness testimony at trial. He was looking like, can you believe i lost to this effing guy. The president says i think it couldve been pompeo, but he says words to the effect of, yeah we lost, well let that go to the next guy, meaning president biden. So he had said something to the effect of, i dont want people to know we lost mark. This is embarrassing. Figured out, we need to figure it out, i dont want people to know that we lost. So thats all pretty damning, and again thats from inside the team. Weve heard this defense that while trump doubly the election was stolen from him. This has been kicking around not so much about legal experts who noted the doj doesnt even have to prove that trump knew he lost, although they have that evidence is a told, is not any kind of legal requirement, its a variant of what this signed fathers calls the costanza defense. So whats on your mind. Jerry, just remember, its not a lie if you believe it. Which is technically true. What trump did or did not believe is not the point. You can believe that the bank has your money and you might even pass Ally Detector Test<\/a> or not because of your own confusion about which bank you bank with where you put your money. That will not be a defense to robbing a bank or committing a conspiracy, for example conspire with other people to do so. A federal judge made a Point Take A Look<\/a> at the recent evidence from this january six rioter. This was after he stormed the capitol. This is a photo that many people to, just telling himself he, was climbing a trial that he still to that day believe the election was stolen. Costanza. The judge found guilty and he said even if the defendant generally believed the election was stolen, that does not change the fact that he acted corruptly with consciousness of wrongdoing. Belief that your actions ultimately see the greater good does not negate consciousness of wrongdoing. In other words, if you want to get really legal with, it you have to get all the way from an incinerated defense, we are much more trouble, the fact you are mistaken and acting on your mistaken believe wrongly, doesnt help you. So if you break into the bank or the capitol you might have you just own justification. People have a lot of justifications for what they do in life. But he also know if you clashed with the police are sneak packed past the barricade, or go up to the bank safe, or attacked the teller or any number of hypotheticals, in doing so as a saint individual in the real world, you are clearly exhibiting that wrongdoing. That corrupt intent, thats a standard under the law. The judge also wrote that the First Amendment<\/a> doesnt give anyone the right to obstruct or impede congress. If we were gonna be lighthearted we would say the . But of course from seinfeld to do to how serious these issues are, we also have to take a step back and remember there are real people committing real crimes with this kind of crap. And people around the former President Trump<\/a> are trying to mainline this to make you believe something that is false. Which is kind of the thing these days. When we come back, mary mccord and Andrew Weissmann<\/a> are here. Well be right back. The coach. The manager. And the snack dad. All using chase to keep up with their finances. The coach helps save goals here, because she saved for soccer camp there. Anddd check this out. The manager deposited a check. Magic. And the snack dad . Hes getting paid back. Orange slicesss. Because this team all has chase. Smart bankers. Convenient tools. One bank with the power of both. Chase. Make more of whats yours. Oh what a good time we will have you can make it happen yeah oh now, try new Dietary Supplements<\/a> from voltaren for healthy joints. This is a bombas performance sock. For such a small item it performs big in so many ways. Big on comfort. Big on durability. Big on breathability. Bombas gives you big comfort for all your athletic pursuits. Just between us, you know whats better than mopping . Anything ugh. Well, i switched to swiffer wetjet, and its awesome. Its an allinone, that absorbs dirt and grime deep inside. And it helps prevent streaks and haze. Wetjet is so worth it. Love it, or your money back. [ sunny by powder room starts playing ] sunny thank you for the Sunshine Bouquet Sunny<\/a> thank you for the love you brought my way sunny one so true, i love you you know i got two home runs. You got two jacks. And then my grand slam. I signed a ball for you. Okay. And it says papa i love you. Why did you do that . Because youve taught me everything about baseball. Oh hunny bunny, thats so sweet. Group Singing<\/a> for Kids Birthday<\/a> toooo youuuuu sean i wish for the amazing new iphone 15 pro jason sean do you mean this one the one with titanium . sean no way i can trade this busted up thing for one. jason maybe stealing wishes from the birthday boy is not your best plan switch to verizon and trade in any iphone and get the new iphone 15 pro on them. sean what . jason yup, and on an amazing network. sean and i dont have to ruin anymore Birthday Parties<\/a> jason yeah, that ship has sailed. Lets go get you the iphone. Here we go, come on hon. vo trade in any iphone in any condition for a new iphone 15 pro on us. Only on verizon. Welcome back. Im Andrew Weissmann<\/a>. And im ari melber and joining us right now is mary mccord, the former acting assistant Attorney General<\/a> and the cohost with Andrew Weissmann<\/a> of msnbcs podcast Prosecuting Donald Trump<\/a>. Welcome. Good to be here. We just went into it. What is the Criminal Intent<\/a> here for donald trump as a coconspirator. All criminal charges almost all, require them to have some knowledge. Really issues liability. But thats very different than saying he had a firm belief that the election was stolen as some sort of get out of jail free card. There are lots of things in this indictment that he engaged in, conduct that he engaged in that went well beyond what you are legally allowed to do when you firmly believe you did not lose the election. Lets stick with the bank example. Lets say you firmly believe that the bank is evil or that its federal deposits are the fruits of an evil American Government<\/a> and regime. Lets say you pass a light tech to test and you have that firm belief that its illegitimate. Would that be an intent defense against knowingly going into the bank to steal the funds . And might be a not guilty by reason of insanity defense, but not intent for what youve done. You dont have the right to go take it just because you think the bank is evil. It could even have it more simple example. Lets say you think the bank miscalculated the interest on your savings account, and so its not even at the banks, evil it just wrong, and youve asked them for it, and they disagreed with you, but you firmly believe your math is right and your mouth is wrong, you just dont get to go hold up the back. Thats exactly what were talking about here. Even if mr. Trump did believe and i think there is abundant evidence to show that he could not have reasonably believed that there was six fraud significant enough to change the outcome. But even if he did, that does mean you can orchestrate a scheme of fake electors, send their ballots to the Vice President<\/a> to have recounted. It doesnt mean that you can put really unlawful pressure on State Officials<\/a> including either threatening criminal prosecution like he did with respect to Secretary Of State<\/a> brad raffensperger. Its so funny because in our podcast sitting here thinking, youre not in your pajamas, were not drinking cups of coffee. Here we are in grownup close, suits. My analogy to this, you go to court. You go to court. You think there is an issue, and you go to court in the court says i dont really care if you think you were wrong you think you really want. Guess what . Thats what it means to be in a system with the rule of law. You can make your arguments, you can appeal them, you can do all you want, but the judge says you lost. Or 65 judges say lost. So you are done. It doesnt matter if you happen to think the judge is wrong in the 65 judges were wrong, there actually is an answer and you heard. So to me i dont really care if he says i believe with you by the way, factually its kind of the worlds factual defense to go down that road because i dont think there is a jury that is ever going to be unanimously concluded thats true. Theres just too much in the indictment. And the indictment takes pains in every single section to talk about how many people, his own advisers, his own department of justice, State Officials<\/a>, Election Officials<\/a> told him over and over and over there was no such evidence. And it and then every section ends with and then mr. Trump or the defendant went out and said why . When i was just told otherwise. He was set up for nicely that way. I think you both give us a very clear understanding listed some of the shortcomings of that type of defense. The other thing we heard recently from defense trumps defense lawyer john lauro something that and you would say at the fbi, no back sees. Where john lauro basically makes it sound like you could issue an illegal order or purse pursue it wasnt aspirational, it wasnt completed maybe took it back. Well first of all, theres not a lot of things that donald trump took back in public. But second i would like both of you to ex responder what were about to hear and how that fits with the conspiracy case. Take a listen. He asked mr. Pence to pause the voting for ten days. He asked him in an aspirational way. Lets just pause the voting. There was an effort to get alternate electors. This is the first time that the First Amendment<\/a> has been criminalized. But he is being indicted for ultimately is following legal advice. What he didnt do is send in the tanks. Okay, theres three things going on there. First time no back sees. Every time a charge is nate, this something or say, i really wasnt would have sex with that underneath underage teenager, that this Undercover Officer<\/a> lured me into agreeing to do. That was just fantasy. I wasnt really going to do it. Same thing. In those conspiracies, it was just all we were just talking. I was just joking around about the coup. I raised it to the Vice President<\/a> , and he knew i was joking. Everybody knew. That kind of idea that it is in kuwait, that it didnt come to fruition, except that it pretty much did come to fruition. This notion of a conspiracies oftentimes when people say we really working to do it. It doesnt work here, does more care factually, and something the laws that the deal with in many of the situations. And you had a flavor of this is the First Amendment<\/a> case. The criminalization of the First Amendment<\/a> protected speech. Weve been hearing that from john lauro as well as mr. Trump and many also of trumps base supporters. This is something that jack smith dealt with and he makes clear at the beginning of it out mr. Trump has the right First Amendment<\/a> right to speak. Even as the first right amendment to lie. About what he thinks about the Election Results<\/a> show. What he doesnt have the right to do is based on conduct that is based on a fraud. And fraught always involve some type of expression. Thats the very heart of fraud. You have engaged in conduct, hear a conspiracy, multiple conspiracies based on a fraud, based on lies. So there is a distinction between speech was he is entitled to do and conduct that is something clear in the indictment. For the Talking Points<\/a> for trump and his supporters, it makes for a quick clip and makes like what the judge has done is unlawful. And not what mr. Lauro alluded to was that he had advice of counsel. He says when your coconspirator is a lawyer, you dont get to rely on the coconspirators voice as a defense. Here we know from the Unindicted Coconspirators<\/a> who have been identified that most of those, all but possibly one were acting as lawyers. Thats the thing one. Thing too is you cant just go cherrypick around when all of your lawyers are telling you theres no significant fraud and, his fraudulent elector scheme wont work. You cant just trying out new lawyers hunting at lawyers into if i want to agree with. Two quick points. What, my reaction is if he raises religious follow the vice of my counsels maralago. You are such a law abide or the want to hear what your lawyer will saying you want to follow that. The maralago case is going to consist of lawyers saying you cannot, you cannot, you cannot. And he obstructed justice twice and he kept documents that he was told he couldnt keep. He actually lied to his lawyer as part of the obstruction scheme. Thats 0. 1. The other Defense Du Jour<\/a> where theyre trying things and out, i think theres something more nefarious going on. We think about the dominion case and the other case, these are really cases the deal with this alliance between the rightwing media and donald trump. This is a way to not just speak to the maga base but to give some Veneer Respectability<\/a> to real possible defense to speak to the wall street journal editorial board, to the national review. See if something will play so the you can sort of triage between the maga base and some respectable outlets to see if you can get that sort of alliance going. The problem they have is that none of this works. None of this is a respectable argument. Really striking for both of you. Heres what were gonna do. Mary and andrew are both gonna stay, well be right back with a stress test for democracy. Ah morning. The golden hour of cold and flu symptoms. Im feeling better. Cough . Congestion . All in one and done with new Mucinex Kickstart<\/a>. Aaaaah ah hated that. Headache . Better. Ah fever . Body pain . Better now. Aaaaah new Mucinex Kickstart<\/a> gives all in one and done relief with a morning jolt of instant cooling sensation. Its not cold and flu season. Its comeback season. Shelves. Shelves smart enough to see, sense, react, restock. So Caramel Swirl<\/a> is always there for the taking. Why give your family just any eggs when they can enjoy the best . Egglands best. The only eggs with more fresh and delicious taste. Plus, superior nutrition. Which is now more important than ever. Only egglands best. Pano ai chooses tmobile for business for 5g solutions. Because tmobile helps pano ai innovate, so they can stop the spread of wildfires. Nows the time to see what americas largest 5g network can do for your business. Charmin ultra soft has so much cushiony softness, its hard for your family to remember they can use less. Sweet pillows of softness this is soft holy charmin oh excuse me roll it back, everybody sorry sorry sorry charmin ultra soft is now even softer, so youll want more but its so absorbent, you can use less. So its always worth it. Now, what did we learned about using less . Youve got to, roll it back everybody enjoy the go with charmin. Tourists tourists that turn into scientists. Tourists taking photos that are analyzed by ai. So researchers can help life underwater flourish. Age is just a number, and mines unlisted. Try boost\u00ae high protein with 20 grams of protein for Muscle Health<\/a> versus 16 grams in ensure\u00ae high protein. Boost\u00ae high protein. Now available in cinnabon\u00ae bakeryinspired flavor. Learn more at boost. Com tv now available in cinnabon\u00ae bakeryinspired flavor. man that looks really high. woman it is high. Whenever you are ready. man are there any snakes . woman nope. man are you sure . Here we go vo its time to push your limits. man okay. woman youre doing great man oh, is that a buffalo . woman babe, thats a cow. vo the allnew Subaru Crosstrek<\/a> wilderness. Adventure on the edge. Frustrated by skin tags . Dr. Scholls has the breakthrough youve been waiting for. The first fdacleared athome skin tag remover clinically proven to remove skin tags safely in as little as one treatment. Welcome back to Prosecuting Donald Trump<\/a>. Andrew weissmann are here along with podcast cohost mary mccord. For the first time in history we, are looking in this indictment of a former president. Not once, not twice but three times of questions about whether it could become for in georgia. Special counsel smith of course has the conspiracy to fraud the United States<\/a> and other charges. With the Backdrop Trump<\/a> is looking to run for office but theyre serious democracy questions here which, is something liz cheney discussed last year about how trump roles in how weather that can consist coexist of a constitutional margin. The president who is attempting to unravel the foundations of our constitutional republic. We have to choose because republicans cannot both be loyal to donald trump and loyal to the constitution. With that in mind we are all here but we are also joined by ruth benghiat, professor at nyu, author of strongmen, mussolini to the president. Welcome to the discussion. Thank you. We talk so much about law and even if it wasnt a we are in a society even wasnt a table of lawyers that is steeped in law. Youve written up beyond that lens, there are issues that what is a political process that is dogged by people would undermine the law or democracy itself . Layers are really important now that autocrats come to power through elections a lot of the time. You have to have lawyers and other bureaucrats working really hard to undermine and subvert Democratic Institutions<\/a> in processes. Then if they get to power you have lawyers involved along with their other collaborators in states and exception, states of emergency, writing the laws the ekin justify all the crimes you have, so everybody whos a fan of democracy, is defending carl schmidt, who developed, the states of exception. So what happened today states of emergency are used by autocrats today. For example, if youre having an election, because again today you dont ban elections, you keep them going. You declare a State Of Emergency<\/a> so that not as many people can vote or you preemptively justify having dissidents thrown into jail just while the election is going on. And so the law is weaponized and used. Its like dosed out, the repression, and thats how they maintain themselves in power while seeming to claim that they have a semblance of democracy. I just find that so interesting given how much people are focused on eastman and chesebro and their memos and what was going on there. And this idea that in order for history for people like donald trump to subvert democracy that they need to have that sort of legal facade of legitimacy. Is that how you were thinking about this . Yes, and the other thing with the coups, for everything my mantra think airy i, said this to you before, its becoming more more relevant. For every thug you see bashing ahead in an insurrection, there are people in suits who have prepared the way with legal theories, other theories, order in military uniforms, but often today, trump couldnt get the military to play, so we had a civilian army. But there are always people behind the scenes who have prepared it and then are in place if its successful to kind of be the bureaucracy of repression. And that mary, the intersection with the candidates status is relevant because although there has been zero evidence that ive seen publicly that jack smith of the Justice Department<\/a> has targeted donald trump because he was running again. Having said that, it is a concern that you want to make sure that it doesnt happen. You wouldnt want a candidate targeted because he went out of his way the charge shows the. He got all this news and when you look at [inaudible] seven months go by new stark any indictments. Theres actually something that he did play himself a, he declared himself earlier with it and a candid in american history, because he thought that would help make his argument that he might claim that the prosecution was targeting him. If you look at this hypothetical miranda numbers, you just say the same seven months had trump declared his candidacy in a typical window, and then when he did around a 16 campaign, it wouldve been much later. But that backup. Wouldve been much later, takes a minute to observe. Thats at the same seven months that smith took, if he took the normal, time will remain december for the first indictment and, middle of the Primaries Fabric<\/a> for the second. Doj rules, and other reasons why you wouldnt even get a charge. So mary, my question to you, one of our legal experts is twofold. One, donald trump blame himself for not understand when he thought he was gaming the system is actually inviting a Special Counsel<\/a> . And to, where do we go in the future whatever happens with this case now that the American Public<\/a> feels habituated to this level of investigation, Special Counsel<\/a>, as the mueller one. They had valuable predicates but we dont want to live in a cycle of this of investigations . Theres no question we have more Special Counsel<\/a> last year s than ever seen historically. Its been basically guided by particularly the Attorney General<\/a> Merrick Garland<\/a> wanted to maintain the independents, a very tight of independents that ruth hasnt acknowledged doesnt happen in other autocratic countries. So soon as donald trump declared his presidency, even though there was a wellknown open investigation going on into donald trump, and in fact the maralago Search Warrant<\/a> had already been issued, the Attorney General<\/a> felt that he just had to in order to support this important principle of the independents of the department of justice from the Political Part<\/a> of the executive branch, meaning the white house, the presidency, he felt compelled to do that. Now whether trump knew that that was was gonna happen i dont know. The evidence says he doesnt. No but one thing he wouldnt necessarily know is what Merrick Garland<\/a> is like as a prosecutor versus what jack smith is like as a prosecutor. Remember when jack was appointed everybody said, what does this mean is this gonna slow things down . And for those of us who knew jack smith who, we said slow things down . Garland would be iota, and respectable and why us you dont know . Iota is a figure in star wars. Jack smith would be someone with a lightsaber. Skywalker, i feel like a, vader if you dont. One thing jack smiths critics and allies agree izzy wieldss lightsaber moves. Quickly definitely moves quickly. This is quite similar the podcasts. Again, if he was thinking this was somehow, mr. Trump think this was somehow gonna make it go away, he thought very wrong. But what it did give him his disability it didnt stop him, it didnt give him the ability to say this was all politically motivated, but it certainly didnt stop him, and of course thats the whole spiel right now. That this is a political opponent, a declared candidate, his likely opponent in 2024 using the department of justice to go after him because hes the leading republican candidate right now for the nomination. I want to just say how successful their Information Warfare<\/a> has been. Were not prepared as a democracy to understand fully the effects of the assault of propaganda, highly skilled propaganda as are others around him. It is worked for them. Not only 70 of americans, theres new poll 70 of americans think he won the election. One out of six americans in a new cbs news poll think that all of these indictments and investigations are just a way to punish him and keep him out of the white house. So this is working for them. When trumps lawyer, when all of a sudden they say why is he spending so much time on tv instead of preparing the defense, i was like, well this is his job. Information war for is the job. Thats why theyre so many arguments, were probably gonna run into a brick wall in court. I want to get all those angles covered. Ruth benghiat thank you for joining the conversation, mary mccord. And we will be right back. and you realize youre in love. Steve . With a laundry detergent. gain flings. Seriously good scent. Trelegy for copd. Birds flyin high, you know how i feel. Breeze driftin on. [coughing]. By, you know how i feel. If youre tired of staring down your copd,. Its a new dawn, its a new day. Stop settling. And im feelin good. Start a new day with trelegy. No oncedaily Copd Medicine<\/a> has the power to treat copd in as many ways as trelegy. With three medicines in one inhaler, trelegy makes breathing easier for a full 24 hours, improves lung function, and helps prevent future flareups. Trelegy wont replace a Rescue Inhaler<\/a> for sudden breathing problems. Tell your doctor if you have a Heart Condition<\/a> or high Blood Pressure<\/a> before taking it. Do not take trelegy more than prescribed. Trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. Call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. Take a stand, and start a new day with trelegy. Ask your doctor about oncedaily trelegy, and save at trelegy. Com Liberty Mutual<\/a> customized my Car Insurance<\/a> and i saved hundreds. With the money i saved, i started a dog walking business. I was a bit nervous at first but then i figured its just walking, right . [dog barks] oh. No its just a bunny calm down taco. Sit duchess. Stop sesame no no. Archie walter dont, no, ahhhh. Ahhhhh youre lucky youre so cute. Only pay for what you need. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Liberty. Welcome back. I appreciate the time doing this special with Andrew Weissmann<\/a>, Prosecuting Donald Trump<\/a> which is partly inspired by the podcast he is doing with mary mccord. It has been a complete honor to be doing this with the great mary mccord especially at a time like this. This is not just unprecedented but its just such a serious moment for our country so its to have time to talk to someone whos so strong on these issues. And the pod, we have something from the pod. Lets hear it. Lets play a little bit of the podcast with andrew and mary. This couldnt be more historic and important matter for the country. The former president solicited a crime of violence against his own Vice President<\/a>. This section of the indictment spells out a Crystal Clear<\/a> the role of violence in the whole entire scheme. I think there is no way im gods green earth that donald trump isnt sentenced to jail time. Those are a couple of clips from the podcast with Andrew Weissmann<\/a> and mary mccord. You can use your phone and scan the code. This is one of the fastest ways to do, reopen your phone camera, scan the code just like a restaurant with a menu and it will take you to Prosecuting Donald Trump<\/a>. And i can tell you nobody asked me to say this, is to the experts we call on all the time, we think its a very worthwhile podcast. We do encourage you to check it out. Also say as always. If you just want to keep logged into msnbc, that is also perfectly fine. Indeed right now coming up, we have the newest episode of one of our other special series rainn wilson and the geography of bliss. Mlb chooses tmobile for business for 5g solutions. To not only enhance the fan experience, but to advance how the game is played. Nows the time to see what americas largest 5g network can do for your business. To help prevent bleeding gums. Try saying Hello Gumwash<\/a> with parodontax active gum health. It kills 99 plaque bacteria. And forms an antibacterial shield. Try parodontax active gum health mouthwash. janet so much space . That open kitchen tanya oooh definitely the one ethan but how can you sell your house when were stuck on a Space Station<\/a> for months . . . brian no guys, opendoor gives you the flexibility to sell and buy on your timeline. janet nice intercom flightdeck, see you at the house warming. Oh then you take me by the hand i feel better again oh i feel better now pano ai chooses tmobile for business for 5g solutions. Because tmobile helps pano ai innovate, so they can stop the spread of wildfires. Nows the time to see what americas largest 5g network can do for your business. Meet the future. A chef. A designer. And, ooh, an engineer. All learning to save and spend their money with chase. The chefs cooking up firsts with her new debit card. Hungry . Uhuh. The designers eyeing sequins. Uh no plaid. While mom is eyeing his spending. Nice. And the engineer . Shes taking control with her own account for college. Three futures, all with chase. Freedom for kids. Control for parents. One bank for both. Chase. Make more of whats yours. Loving this pay bump on our allowance. Wonder where mom and dad got the extra money . Maybe they won the lottery . Maybe they inherited a fortune . Maybe buried treasure . Maybe it fell off a truck . Or maybe they switched to Xfinity Mobile<\/a> the fastest mobile service. Save hundreds a year over tmobile, at t and verizon. Now i can buy that electric scooter. Im starting a Private Equity Fund<\/a> that specializes in midcap. You do you. I am ali velshi in for switch to Xfinity Mobile<\/a> today. Alicia menendez. Welcome for a special addition of those she. American forces will be back tomorrow. This weekend, the white house is preparing for what now seems inevitable, a government shutdown,","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"archive.org","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","width":"800","height":"600","url":"\/\/ia803400.us.archive.org\/28\/items\/MSNBCW_20230924_020000_Prosecuting_Donald_Trump\/MSNBCW_20230924_020000_Prosecuting_Donald_Trump.thumbs\/MSNBCW_20230924_020000_Prosecuting_Donald_Trump_000001.jpg"}},"autauthor":{"@type":"Organization"},"author":{"sameAs":"archive.org","name":"archive.org"}}],"coverageEndTime":"20240703T12:35:10+00:00"}

© 2025 Vimarsana