The Jan. 6 committee tied former President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Rudolph W. Giuliani to the false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, including testimony that Mr. Giuliani was “inebriated” on election night.
Rep. Liz Cheney, vice chairwoman of the committee, introduced the claims by previewing testimony that Mr. Trump sought advice from Mr. Giuliani, who was allegedly intoxicated.
“You will also hear testimony that President Trump rejected the advice of his campaign experts on election night and instead followed the course recommended by an apparently inebriated Rudy Giuliani [to] claim he won,” Ms. Cheney said.
In a video deposition, former Trump campaign spokesman Jason Miller confirmed that he believed Mr. Giuliani was inebriated at the White House, but he did not know the extent of what he was telling Mr. Trump while in that state.
“The mayor was definitely intoxicated, but I did not know his level of intoxication when he spoke with President Trump,” Mr. Miller said.
Ms. Cheney blamed Mr. Trump’s spreading of his stolen election claims to have led to millions of Americans believing a lie and landing hundreds of his supporters in jail on charges stemming from the riot on Jan. 6, 2021.
Monday’s high-profile hearing is zeroing in on Mr. Trump’s claims that the election was stolen.
Former Fox News editor Chris Stirewalt testified over his decision to call Arizona for President Biden — a move that struck a nerve for the former president and his team.
Former Trump campaign manager William Stepien was scheduled to appear in person, but was absent due to his wife going into labor on Monday morning.
Video clips of Mr. Stepien were shown instead of having him appear. He said that he urged Mr. Trump on election night not to declare victory, but Mr. Trump rejected his advice.
The committee’s hearing is the first of several this week and next week, as the Democrat-led panel unveils its findings in its investigation into the 2021 Capitol riot.
• Mica Soellner can be reached at msoellner@washingtontimes.com.
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