Donald Trump has lashed out at his former chief of staff Mark Meadows after it emerged that he has reportedly been granted immunity in exchange for cooperating with prosecutors in the federal criminal case charging the former president over his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
“I don’t think Mark Meadows would lie about the Rigged and Stollen 2020 Presidential Election merely for getting IMMUNITY against Prosecution (PERSECUTION!) by Deranged Prosecutor, Jack Smith,” the former president wrote on Truth Social late on Tuesday night.
“BUT, when you really think about it, after being hounded like a dog for three years, told you’ll be going to jail for the rest of your life, your money and your family will be forever gone, and we’re not at all interested in exposing those that did the RIGGING — If you say BAD THINGS about that terrible “MONSTER,” DONALD J. TRUMP, we won’t put you in prison, you can keep your family and your wealth, and, perhaps, if you can make up some really horrible “STUFF” a out him, we may very well erect a statue of you in the middle of our decaying and now very violent Capital, Washington, D.C.
“Some people would make that deal, but they are weaklings and cowards, and so bad for the future our Failing Nation. I don’t think that Mark Meadows is one of them, but who really knows? MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
In a follow-up post, he added: “Mark Meadows NEVER told me that allegations of significant fraud (about the RIGGED Election!) were baseless. He certainly didn’t say that in his book!”
Mr Meadows, the ex-North Carolina congressman who served as Mr Trump’s White House chief of staff during his last year in office, allegedly told prosecutors that he personally warned Mr Trump that claims of fraud tainting the 2020 election had no basis in reality.
According to ABC News, Mr Meadows admitted that the then-president had been “dishonest” with the American public when he began floating the outrageous allegations in the wake of his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden during one of several sessions with prosecutors — including sworn testimony before a federal grand jury.
The former top White House aide reportedly told prosecutors: “Obviously we didn’t win”.
Mr Meadows’ admissions that Mr Trump had lost the election and his concession that the loss was not tainted by fraud contradicts much of what he has recounted about that time period in his book, The Chief’s Chief.
White House chief of staff Mark Meadows speaks with reporters outside the White House— (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
He has also repeatedly parroted the ex-president’s baseless claims in interviews with right-wing media outlets.
But Mr Meadows has taken a different tack in his sessions with Mr Smith’s office, as well as during a session before a grand jury during which he gave evidence under a grant of immunity.
The Independent first reported that Mr Meadows had reached an agreement to be granted immunity with Mr Smith’s office in June, just days before Mr Trump was first indicted by a South Florida federal grand jury on charges that he unlawfully retained national defence information and conspired to obstruct a federal probe into how hundreds of documents with classified markings ended up at his Palm Beach, Florida beach club long after his presidency — and his authorisation to possess such documents — had come to a close.
