The Georgia grand jury forewoman who could indict Donald Trump laughed and said she wanted to subpoena him “kinda” just for a chance to swear him in — on a bizarre media tour that’s already giving prosecutors a headache.
In just one of her many interviews about a normally veiled trial, foreman Emily Kohrs told MSNBC why she wanted to hear from Trump in person.
“I wanted to hear from the former president, but honestly I wanted to subpoena the former president because I had to swear everyone in,” she said. “And so I thought it would be really cool to have 60 seconds with President Trump where I look at him and say, ‘Solemnly swear,’ and I can swear him in,” she continued.
She said she “kinda thought this would be a great moment,” and smiled.
There are now concerns that their media tour could jeopardize possible indictments against Trump and his MAGA allies.
Emily Kohrs, a foreman of the Atlanta-based grand jury investigating former President Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election, was on a media tour and offered hints about possible indictments
“I wanted to hear from the former president, but honestly I wanted to subpoena the former president because I had to swear everyone in,” she said. “And so I thought it would be really cool to have 60 seconds with President Trump where I look at him and say, ‘Solemnly swear,’ and I can swear him in,” she continued
Former federal prosecutor Elie Hoing said the Anderson Cooper Kohr interviews were a “terrible idea” and a “nightmare” for prosecutors.
“Mark my words, Donald Trump’s team will make a motion, if there is an indictment, to dismiss those charges on the basis of grand jury inappropriateness,” he added.
‘She’s not supposed to talk about anything.’
Attorneys for witnesses who have appeared before the grand jury, which may recommend indictments are already preparing to move to attempt to have charges overturned based on her public statements.
Kohrs also spoke to CNN about the nature of the possible charges.
Fulton County Prosecutor Fani Willis has investigated conduct related to efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election, including the former president’s infamous phone call to Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, urging him to only “11,780 votes to be found”.
“Can you imagine doing this for eight months and not coming out with a whole list of recommended charges,” Kohrs told CNN. “It’s not a short list. It is not.’
“There may be some names on this list that you didn’t expect. But the big name that everyone keeps asking me about — I don’t think you’ll be shocked,” she said — in comments that seemed to hint at possible charges against Trump himself.
She also said in a later interview with the network that the charges could top a dozen.
“I think so. That’s probably a good guess,’ she said.
Former President Donald Trump has blasted the interviews, calling the proceedings “kangaroo court.”
Trump again called Georgia Foreign Minister Brad Raffensperger, whom he asked to “find 11,780 votes,” a “perfect” call
Trump on Wednesday publicized the case as a “ridiculous” case, which he described as a “strongly political follow-up to the greatest witch hunt of all time.”
“Now you have an extremely energetic young woman who is (understand yourself!) the ‘pre-person’ of the racist prosecutor’s special grand jury, walking around and doing a media tour that incredibly reveals the inner workings and minds of the grand jury . This is not JUSTICE, this is an illegal Kangaroo Court. Atlanta leads the nation in murder and other violent crimes. All I’ve done is TWO PERFECT PHONE CALLS!!!’
That was a reference to his call to the state’s top election official, in which he said, “I just want to find 11,780 votes, that’s one more than us,” amid a recount and battle over election results in a state campaigning for Joe Biden decided .
He has also used the term to refer to his phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy seeking an investigation into Hunter Biden. It was part of his first impeachment trial in the Senate.
Former Assistant US Attorney Elie Honig called the media tour on CNN “a prosecutor’s nightmare.” He said it was a “terrible idea” and speculated prosecutors “cinched”.
The TV hits came after Kohrs said “one or more witnesses” will be charged, first reported by the New York Times
“It’s not a short list,” said foreman Emily Kohrs, adding that the jury appended eight pages of the statute code “which we quoted at various points in the report.”
Following the release of part of the report last week, Kohrs says there are still seven sections that remain sealed with indictment recommendations.
These sections are silent on important details, including who the panel believes committed perjury and what other specific charges should be pursued. But it is the first time the grand jury’s recommendations for criminal charges related to the case have been released. And it’s a reminder of the deepening legal challenges the former president faces as he ramps up his third bid for the White House amid multiple legal investigations.
Former President Donald Trump recently called for “full exoneration” after the report’s partial release, although that was not the case and portions related to recommended charges are still classified.
Rudy Giuliani, attorney for former President Donald J. Trump and former mayor of New York City, testified in the Georgia grand jury investigation into Trump’s election interference attempts
Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C. said, “I am confident that I have testified openly and honestly” before Georgia’s special jury about possible interference in the election
Trump is also under investigation by the US Department of Justice for storing classified documents at his Florida estate.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has said since the investigation began two years ago that she was interested in a Jan. 2, 2021 phone call in which Trump suggested to Raffensperger he could “find” the votes needed to to reverse its loss the state.
“All I want to do is this: I just want to find 11,780 votes, that’s one more than we have,” Trump said during the call. “Because we won the state.”
Trump has repeatedly said his conversation with Raffensperger was “perfect” and that he is “very confident” he will not be charged.
In fact, he claimed on his social media platform Truth Social that the release gave him “total exoneration,” although that was not the case and portions related to recommended charges are still classified.
The grand jury that asked Willis to assist in her investigation met in May and presented its report to Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney on December 15. The panel has no power to bring charges. Instead, his report includes recommendations for Willis, who will ultimately decide whether to bring one or more indictments to a regular grand jury.
Over the course of about seven months, the special grand jurors heard 75 witnesses, including Trump allies, including former New York Mayor and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani and US Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. High-ranking Georgian officials such as Raffensperger and Kemp also appeared before the panel.
Graham recently told reporters that he has not been contacted by authorities regarding his testimony. “I am confident that I have spoken openly and honestly,” he said.
McBurney wrote in his decision that it was inappropriate to release the full report now because it was important to protect the due process rights of those for whom the grand jury had recommended indictments.