Source: Spencer Platt / Getty
UPDATED: 3:30 p.m. ET, August 30, 2023
Originally published April 28, 2021
The consequences of showing blind loyalty to former President Donald Trump continue to reveal themselves in the most amazing of ways for Rudy Giuliani.
The man just keeps taking L’s.
On Wednesday, a federal judge ruled that Giuliani is liable for defaming two Black election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, “Shaye” Moss.
The two women became a target of conservatives after Trump and his allies, including Giuliani, ginned up conspiracy theories that the women mishandled ballots during the 2020 election.
According to Politico, the ruling by Judge Beryl A. Howell said that Giuliani violated her orders to preserve and produce relevant evidence to Freeman and Moss.
This ultimately led to a “default” judgment against Giuliani.
Judge Howell also ordered Giuliani to pay the two women “punitive” damages for failing to fulfill his obligations. A trial to determine the amount of damages will be set for later this year or early 2024, according to the judge. Damages could range anywhere from thousands to millions of dollars.
“Just as taking shortcuts to win an election carries risks — even potential criminal liability — bypassing the discovery process carries serious sanctions,” Judge Howell wrote.
To that end, it’s been quite a rough year for the lawyer formerly known as “America’s Mayor” who was previously hired to defend Trump in the aftermath of the 2020 election and espoused debunked conspiracy theories about non-existent election fraud that helped fuel the anti-government sentiment responsible for the Capitol riots. Specifically, Giuliani made unverified claims about Democrats rigging the election with malfunctioning voting machines.
Since being named last year as a part of the Fulton County district attorney’s investigation into election interference, Giuliani has been the recipient of a seemingly neverending string of losses.
In July, a court filing revealed Giuliani made false statements about two Black election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea Arshaye “Shaye” Moss. Giuliani admitted that “such actionable factual statements” he made about Freeman and Moss “were false” but is still trying to have their lawsuit against him dismissed by claiming he is protected by the First Amendment, USA Today reported.
The court filing came less than a week after Giuliani was ordered to appear before a Georgia grand jury in Fulton County.
The order followed Giuliani skipping a hearing where he was expected to argue against testifying before a grand jury days earlier, the Washington Post reported.
Weeks before being ordered to testify before the Georgia grand jury, a disciplinary panel recommended Giuliani’s disbarment stemming from his “frivolous” and “destructive” defense of “the big lie” that President Joe Biden didn’t legitimately win the 2020 election.
“[Giuliani] claimed massive election fraud but had no evidence of it,” the Board on Professional Responsibility, part of the D.C. Bar, wrote in its recommendation. “By prosecuting that destructive case Mr. Giuliani, a sworn officer of the Court, forfeited his right to practice law.”
Former Mayor of New York Rudy Giuliani arrives during a ceremony at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum commemorating the 20th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2021, in New York City. | Source: Pool / Getty
Aside from the latest trouble Giuliani has found himself in, separate investigators previously inquired for two years into whether he had any illegal dealings lobbying Ukraine officials in 2019 for information regarding Trump’s adversaries including Biden and his son, Hunter Biden. The feds were also looking into whether Giuliani attempted to undermine the former ambassador to Ukraine, Marie L. Yovanovitch.
Prosecutors eventually charged his Ukrainian associates, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, in 2019.
Yet and still, instances like finally admitting he made false claims about the 2020 election only draw further attention to Giuliani’s steady public fall from grace, much of which was already very apparent to Black communities who were privy to his inner workings after five decades of languishing in the political spotlight.
At the height of his praise, Giuliani was heralded for helping to take down New York City’s mafia bosses in the ’80s and then successfully won his bid for mayor in the 1990s. After the September 11 attacks, Giuliani was considered “America’s Mayor,” only to morph into an obstructer of democracy as one of the main lie-spreaders around Trump’s loss in the 2020 presidential election.
From spreading racist conspiracy theories to upholding harmful policies like stop-and-frisk in New York City, Giuliani is seemingly headed toward a different hall of fame amid desperate and disingenuous attempts at revisionist histories to save him from his continued, spiraling downfall.
Keep reading to see Rudy Giuliani’s journey of spectacular Ls.
The post A Journey Of Ls: Rudy Giuliani’s ‘Big Lie’ Consequences For Defending Trump Keep Mounting appeared first on NewsOne.
A Journey Of Ls: Rudy Giuliani’s ‘Big Lie’ Consequences For Defending Trump Keep Mounting was originally published on newsone.com
1. Rudy Giuliani turns himself in at Fulton County Sheriff’s Office
Source:Getty
On August 24, Rudy Giuliani surrendered to authorities and had a mugshot taken at the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office. He was indicted on charges related to attempting to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia. He faces 13 felony counts, which include making false statements and soliciting a public officer to violate their oath.
2. Activist holding a placard indict Rudy Giuliani. Activists…
Source:Getty
In August 2022, Giuliani was named in Georgia’s investigation into election interference in the state during the 2020 presidential election. He was given notice to appear before a grand jury in Atlanta, the New York Times reported at the time.
3. D.C. Bar moves to permanently ban Giuliani from practicing law
Source:Getty
In June 2022, the District of Columbia Bar’s disciplinary branch made public a recent filing of charges against Giuliani reportedly stemming from his role in supporting lawsuits by the Trump campaign. As reported by the Associated Press, the move comes after New York and the District suspended his license to practice law.
The office of disciplinary counsel petitioned for a formal disciplinary hearing process, outlining the actions Giuliani took as counsel for the Trump campaign after the 2020 election. While the alleged improper action concerns conduct in Pennsylvania, the District of Columbia Bar maintains such action violated its standards.
4. Rudy Giuliani and son banned from Fox News
That the cable network won’t even have Giuliani — and his son, Andrew — speaks volumes, and much more clearly than his slurred words address at a Sept. 11 dinner where he unsuccessfully tried to distance himself from accused pedophile Prince Andrew.
Politico broke the news that the Giuliani boys actually learned of their Fox News fate the night before Sept. 11, which may have explained the former New York City Mayor’s apparent intoxication in what could have been an effort to numb the pain of having the right-wing network turn on him.
5. September 2021 – Video Shows ‘Drunk’ Rudy Giuliani Slurring Words In 9/11 Speech Weeks After Saying He’s ‘Not An Alcoholic’
A viral video of a speech Rudy Giuliani gave during a dinner commemorating the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks suggests he may have had too much to drink or even be drunk — very drunk, in fact.
6. July 2021 – The D.C. Court of Appeals suspends Giuliani’s law license in Washington
Source:Getty
Citing court records, CNN reported that the “appeals court in DC said Giuliani would be suspended from working as an attorney in the city ‘pending outcome’ of his situation in New York.”
7. June 2021 – New York State Suspends Giuliani’s Law License
Source:Getty
The New York Supreme Court wrote in a decision to suspend Guilini’s law license that his willing participation in spreading lies and disinformation about the 2020 election “immediately threatens the public interest and warrants interim suspension from the practice of law, pending further proceedings before the Attorney Grievance Committee (sometimes AGC or Committee).”
It was a damning condemnation and suggests that Giuliani’s legal career is all but over for the 77-year-old.
8. April 2021 – Feds Execute Search Warrant
Source:Getty
Federal investigators raided the New York apartment of president Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani early Wednesday as part of a probe into his dealings in Ukraine.
9. Jan. 2021 – Inciting The Jan. 6 Capitol Attack
Source:Getty
Rudy Giuliani, personal lawyer to U.S. President Donald Trump, speaks during a “Save America Rally” near the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021.
10. Jan. 2021- Sued By Dominion Voting Systems
Source:Getty
Dominion voting systems sued Giuliani for false election claims he continued to disseminate during the 2020 presidential election.
11. Dec. 2020 – Erratic Michigan House Oversight Committee Meeting
Source:Getty
Rudy Giuliani served as legal representation during an appearance before the Michigan House Oversight Committee where he called on numerous witnesses who repeated false, damaging and racist claims regarding the 2020 presidential election. Giuliani filed several motions which eventually was rejected by the Supreme Court.
12. Nov. 2020 – RNC Presser With Hair Dye
Source:Getty
Giuliani participated in an embarrassing news conference at the Republican National Committee regarding the frivolous lawsuits around the 2020 presidential election.
13. Oct. 2020 – Appearance in Borat Film
Source:Getty
Giuliani was duped in the follow up to Sacha Baron Cohen’s 2006 “Borat” film, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.” In a disturbing scene Giuliani can be seen reaching into his pants and apparently touching his genitals while reclining on a bed in the presence of an actor portraying Borat’s daughter who poses as a journalist.