WASHINGTON — A conservative lawyer who was an architect of a plan to keep former President Donald J. Trump in office warned in late December 2020 that if Mr. Trump falsely swore to the courts that he had specific evidence of voter fraud in Georgia, both the president and his lawyers could face prosecution.
“I have no doubt that an aggressive DA or US Atty someplace will go after both the president and his lawyers once all the dust settles on this,” the lawyer, John Eastman, wrote on Dec. 31, 2020, to fellow members of the Trump legal team.
The warning came at a time when some members of Mr. Trump’s legal team were pushing for him to sign a verification document swearing under oath that information in a Georgia lawsuit he filed challenging the results of the 2020 election was true, even though his lawyers were aware the specific allegations were false.
But Mr. Trump ultimately did sign a new verification, which a federal judge in California has said could be evidence of a crime.
He did so only after his lawyers added a caveat to the suit, telling the court that the voter fraud figures they used were to be relied upon “only to the extent” that “such information has been provided” to Mr. Trump’s legal team. The suit also stated that such data was subject to “amendment” or “adjustment.”
Mr. Eastman’s warning about the risks of potential prosecution was contained among eight emails a federal judge in California recently ordered released to the House committee investigating the...
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