ATLANTA (AP) – A federal judge said Monday that U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham must testify before a special grand jury in Atlanta investigating whether then-President Donald Trump and his allies broke any laws while trying to overturn lar his narrow defeat in the 2020 general election. in the state.
Lawyers for Graham, RS.C., had argued that his position as a United States senator gave him immunity from having to appear before the court of inquiry and asked the judge to quash his subpoena. But U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May wrote in an order Monday that immunities related to his role as a senator do not protect him from having to testify. Graham’s subpoena calls for him to appear before a special grand jury on Aug. 23, but he is expected to appeal the judge’s ruling.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis opened the investigation last year, and a special grand jury with subpoena power was convened in May at her request. Last month, he filed motions to compel the testimony of seven Trump advisers and associates.
Prosecutors have indicated they want to question Graham about phone calls they say he made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and his staff in the weeks after Trump’s election loss to Democrat Joe Biden.
Graham had argued that a provision of the Constitution provides absolute protection against a senator being questioned about legislative acts. But the judge found that there are “considerable areas of potential grand jury investigation” that fall outside the reach of that provision. The judge also rejected Graham’s argument that the principle of “sovereign immunity” protects a senator from being subpoenaed by a state prosecutor.
Graham also argued that Willis, a Democrat, had failed to demonstrate the extraordinary circumstances necessary to compel the testimony of a senior official. But the judge disagreed, finding that Willis has shown “extraordinary circumstances and a special need” for Graham’s testimony on matters related to an alleged attempt to influence or disrupt the Georgia election.
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May, the judge, last month rejected a similar attempt by U.S. Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., to avoid testifying before the special grand jury. Former New York mayor and Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani had argued that he could not travel to Atlanta to testify because of health problems, but Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney, who oversees the special grand jury, ordered him to appear on Wednesday.
A spokesman for Graham, Kevin Bishop, said Monday that the senator had no comment, but referred to what Graham said when asked about the investigation last week. During a news conference in Columbia, SC, Graham said, “We’re going to take it as far as we need to” when asked about his efforts to fight his subpoena.
“I was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and I had to vote to certify an election,” Graham told reporters. “This is ridiculous. We need to stop this weaponization of the law. So I’m going to use the courts. We’re going to go as far as it takes and do whatever it takes to make sure that people like me can do their jobs without fear that some prosecutor in the county come after you.
In calls made shortly after the 2020 general election, Graham “questioned Secretary Raffensperger and his staff about reexamining certain absentee ballots cast in Georgia to explore the possibility of a more favorable result for former President Donald Trump Willis wrote in a petition.
Graham also “referred to allegations of widespread voter fraud in the November 2020 election in Georgia, consistent with public statements made by known Trump campaign affiliates,” he wrote.
Republican and Democratic state election officials across the country, courts and even Trump’s attorney general found there was no evidence of any voter fraud sufficient to affect the outcome of his loss in the 2020 presidential election.
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Associated Press writer Meg Kinnard in Columbia, SC contributed reporting.