Former President Donald Trump is pushing back on a report saying his former White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, took an immunity deal from special counsel Jack Smith and repeatedly told Mr. Trump in late 2020 that his claims of election fraud were baseless.
The revelation, reported by ABC News citing anonymous sources, marked a major break between the former top aide and Mr. Trump, who is the 2024 GOP presidential front-runner and continues to say the last election was stolen from him.
“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. Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Mr. Meadows, a former congressman from North Carolina, was a trusted Trump loyalist in the period following the 2020 election and had an inside look at the goings-on in the White House.
He has been indicted with Mr. Trump and 17 others in an election subversion case in Georgia. The ABC News report pertains to a federal case sought by Mr. Smith alleging that Mr. Trump conspired against the U.S. and its people to try to overturn President Biden’s win.
Mr. Smith and Mr. Meadows declined to comment to ABC News for its report, which highlights the contrast between what Mr. Meadows told investigators behind closed doors and his book, which said “allies in the liberal media” ignored “actual evidence of fraud, right there in plain sight for anyone to access and analyze.”
Mr. Trump highlighted the book and cast doubt on the veracity of the report before suggesting Mr. Meadows might have flipped under duress. He said prosecutors likely threatened his former top aide with jail time and financial and reputational ruin.
“Some people would make that deal, but they are weaklings and cowards, and so bad for the future our Failing Nation,” Mr. Trump wrote. “I don’t think that Mark Meadows is one of them, but who really knows?”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.