Pennsylvania Lawmaker Played Key Role in Trump's Plot to Oust Acting Attorney General
Source: New York Times
WASHINGTON When Representative Scott Perry joined his colleagues in a monthslong campaign to undermine the results of the presidential election, promoting Stop the Steal events and supporting an attempt to overturn millions of legally cast votes, he often took a back seat to higher-profile loyalists in President Donald J. Trumps orbit. But Mr. Perry, an outspoken Pennsylvania Republican, played a significant role in the crisis that played out at the top of the Justice Department this month, when Mr. Trump considered firing the acting attorney general and backed down only after top department officials threatened to resign en masse.
It was Mr. Perry, a member of the hard-line Freedom Caucus, who first made Mr. Trump aware that a relatively obscure Justice Department official, Jeffrey Clark, the acting chief of the civil division, was sympathetic to Mr. Trumps view that the election had been stolen, according to former administration officials who spoke with Mr. Clark and Mr. Trump. Mr. Perry introduced the president to Mr. Clark, whose openness to conspiracy theories about election fraud presented Mr. Trump with a welcome change from the acting attorney general, Jeffrey A. Rosen, who stood by the results of the election and had repeatedly resisted the presidents efforts to undo them.
Mr. Perrys previously unreported role, and the quiet discussions between Mr. Trump and Mr. Clark that followed, underlined how much the former president was willing to use the government to subvert the election, turning to more junior and relatively unknown figures for help as ranking Republicans and cabinet members rebuffed him. Mr. Perrys involvement is also likely to heighten scrutiny of House Republicans who continue to advance Mr. Trumps false and thoroughly debunked claims of election fraud, even after President Bidens inauguration this week and as Congress prepares for an impeachment trial that will examine whether such talk incited the Capitol riot.
It is unclear when Mr. Perry, who represents the Harrisburg area, met Mr. Clark, a Philadelphia native, or how well they knew each another before the introduction to Mr. Trump. Former Trump administration officials said that it was only in late December that Mr. Clark told Mr. Rosen about the introduction brokered by Mr. Perry, who was among the scores of people feeding Mr. Trump false hope that he had won the election.But it is highly unlikely that Mr. Trump would have known Mr. Clark otherwise.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/23/us/politics/scott-perry-trump-justice-department-election.html
Expel him and his conspirators and charge them with sedition. No more "well it was hyperbole" or "it's just boys being boys" or it was "first amendment".
Claire Oh Nette
(2,636 posts)all 147 congressmen and senators.
every.sngle.one.
LeftInTX
(25,364 posts)TEB
(12,857 posts)I hope hes gone over this
Cracklin Charlie
(12,904 posts)A conspiracy.
By definition, not a spontaneous event.
dalton99a
(81,513 posts)DeminPennswoods
(15,286 posts)Perry, a Republican from York County, connected President Donald J. Trump with a Justice Department official to try to remove the acting U.S. attorney general from his post and pressure Georgia lawmakers to overturn results of the 2020 presidential contest, according to the New York Times.
Perry's retired military (Army) and the former head of the PA National Guard. He should be recalled and court-martialed. If AG Shapiro can find a way under his state jurisdiction to charge/indict Perry, won't be surprised if he does so. This goes a lot further than just voting to reject the state's electors.
BumRushDaShow
(129,062 posts)Link to tweet
TEXT
@JoshShapiroPA
Representative Perry ought to familiarize himself with Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of our Constitution.
There must be consequences for this conduct.
Representative Scott Perry first made President Donald J. Trump aware that a relatively obscure Justice Department official was sympathetic to Mr. Trumps view that the election had been stolen.
Pennsylvania Lawmaker Played Key Role in Trumps Plot to Oust Acting Attorney General
The congressmans involvement underlined how far the former president was willing to go to overturn the election, and Democratic lawmakers have begun calling for investigations into those efforts.
nytimes.com
9:06 PM · Jan 23, 2021