Source: Giuliani met for hours with Jan. 6 panel
WASHINGTON — Rudy Giuliani, who as a lawyer for then-President Donald Trump pushed bogus legal challenges to the 2020 election, met for hours with the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, a person familiar with the interview said Saturday.
The interview with Giuliani took place virtually and lasted for much of the day on Friday, according to the person, who spoke to Associated Press on condition of anonymity. A spokesperson for the committee declined to comment.
The former New York mayor is seen as a critical aide for the committee, which has interviewed nearly 1,000 witnesses, including family members of Trump and advisers in his inner circle. The panel plans hearings in June.
In January, the committee subpoenaed Giuliani and other members of the Trump legal team who sought to overturn election results in battleground states through lawsuits that made unsupported claims of vast election fraud. Trump’s attorney general, William Barr, has said there were no widespread irregularities that could have affected the outcome of the race won by President Joe Biden. Judges across the country have dismissed the allegations.
At the time of the subpoena, the committee said it was seeking records and an interview with Giuliani, and that it wanted information about Giuliani’s reported encouragement of Trump to direct the seizure of voting machines and his efforts to persuade state legislators to take steps to overturn the election results.
Giuliani also spoke at the rally in front of the White House that preceded the insurrection.
CNN first reported Friday’s interview with Giuliani.