It is also immaterial what was in Trump’s head regarding the outcome of the election when he participated in the audacious scheme to falsify alternate slates of electors and get them to Congress to gum up the certification of the election. “President Trump and his campaign were directly involved in advancing and coordinating the plot to replace legitimate Biden electors with fake electors not chosen by the voters,” Rep. Adam B. Schiff, a member of the select committee, said at Tuesday’s hearing. The evidence provided by witnesses at the hearing backed that up. Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers testified that Trump and his lawyers repeatedly asked him to remove legitimate electors for Biden and substitute them with an illegitimate Trump slate. That testimony was supported by additional video testimony from Trump allies including White House and campaign aides and Ronna McDaniel, chair of the Republican National Committee.
What they all described is the equivalent of submitting a fake verdict form in a judicial proceeding. Whether one truly believed their preferred candidate won the election or that the official verdict was flawed is simply no defense.
It is no wonder that three prominent lawyers associated with Trump refused to participate, which witnesses also attested to Tuesday. Even if the lawyers were confident that Trump thought he won and could prove his state of mind in court, it would surely not have cured their misgivings about the illicit methods chosen. Nor should it. Trump’s state of mind in that regard is irrelevant.
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