Georgia official: Trump call to 'find' votes was a threat

3 years ago 213

ATLANTA – Donald Trump was threatening Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger erstwhile helium asked him to help “find” capable votes to overturn his nonaccomplishment successful Georgia to Democratic President Joe Biden, Raffensperger writes successful a caller book.

The book, “Integrity Counts,” was released Tuesday. In it, Raffensperger depicts a antheral who defied unit from Trump to change predetermination results, but besides reveals a nationalist authoritative settling governmental scores arsenic helium seeks to past a hostile Republican superior situation and triumph reelection successful 2022.

An technologist who grew affluent earlier moving for office, Raffensperger recounts successful his publication the conflict successful Georgia that followed Biden's constrictive victory, including decease threats texted to his wife, an brushwood with men who helium says whitethorn person been staking retired his suburban Atlanta home, and being escorted retired of the Georgia capitol connected Jan. 6 arsenic a fistful of right-wing protesters entered the gathering connected the aforesaid time galore much protesters stormed the U.S. Capitol.

The publication climaxes with the telephone call, which was recorded and past fixed to aggregate quality organizations. Raffensperger — known arsenic a blimpish Republican earlier Trump targeted him — writes that helium perceived Trump arsenic threatening him aggregate times during the telephone call.

“I felt past — and inactive judge contiguous — that this was a threat," Raffensperger writes. “Others evidently thought so, too, due to the fact that immoderate of Trump’s much extremist followers person responded arsenic if it was their work to transportation retired this threat.”

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is investigating imaginable attempts to improperly power Georgia's 2020 election. Raffensperger said successful an interrogation with The Associated Press that Willis' investigators person talked to immoderate employees successful his office, but that helium hasn't been interviewed.

“They’ve talked to immoderate of our folks here. We sent each the documents and she tin present bargain the publication online,” Raffensperger said of Willis.

Jeff DiSantis, a spokesperson for Willis, said the probe is ongoing.

“Any applicable accusation is portion of the investigation, whether it’s a book, grounds successful a legislature committee oregon accusation we stitchery ourselves," helium said.

Spokespersons for Trump didn't instantly respond to emails and a telephone telephone seeking remark Monday.

Raffensperger takes purpose astatine Republicans who person attacked him, arguing they are damaging the GOP.

“When you devour your young and you spell aft radical successful your ain enactment who are loyal, accepted Republicans, you are destroying our aboriginal arsenic a party,” Raffensperger writes.

He blames a decision that wounded Trump's ego, writing, “You judge successful your bosom that you did a bully job, and if you ne'er deficiency aforesaid doubt, it indispensable beryllium doubly debilitating — and confusing. Instead of accepting defeat, you look for scapegoats, displacement blame, oregon question alternate theories.”

Raffensperger said the publication is meant to laic retired the facts debunking claims that Georgia's predetermination results were fraudulent. “I knew we had the facts and I knew implicit clip the information would beryllium revealed and believed," helium writes.

The writer besides repeatedly takes purpose astatine salient Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams, who has argued that the authorities obstructs voting. Raffensperger argues that Abrams shirked her “distinct work to debar slandering our electoral system” erstwhile she acknowledged but refused to concede her constrictive 2018 gubernatorial nonaccomplishment to Republican Brian Kemp.

Raffensperger writes that “the corrosive effects of specified lies are spreading still,” and argues that Abrams and different Democrats stock “an all-too-bipartisan willingness to undermine the integrity of our democracy."

Abrams has repeatedly rejected Raffensperger's comparison, saying her complaints were implicit voters whom Republicans removed from the rolls. Few Georgia Democrats contiguous quality that Kemp is the morganatic politician and nary person resorted to violence.

The publication checks immoderate different boxes for a Raffensperger reelection run. He defends astatine magnitude a ineligible colony that acceptable standards for however mail-in ballot signatures were verified. Many Republicans claimed without impervious that the alteration allowed fraudulent absentee ballots.

Raffensperger besides takes shots astatine U.S. Rep. Jody Hice, a Trump-endorsed hostile successful Georgia's 2022 Republican superior for caput of state, saying Hice showed small involvement successful predetermination medication earlier 2020.

“Ironically, Hice accepted the results of his ain race, which helium won, but objected to the results of the statesmanlike race,” Raffensperger writes. “Same voters. Same ballots. One, presumably, was honest. The different was 'faulty and fraudulent.' He’s a double-minded person. How tin you clasp 2 opposing views astatine 1 time?”

Raffensperger besides insists that predetermination fraud is not systemic, writing, “Our elections are some fairer and much unafraid than they person been astatine immoderate constituent successful our history."

But helium does deliberation voters request to take officials with much integrity, arsenic conveyed by the book's title.

“If we don't person radical of the highest quality tally for elective office, we volition proceed to combat disinformation, misinformation and outright deception, and the extremity effect volition beryllium an erosion of nationalist trust," Raffensperger writes. "We request the radical who clasp nationalist bureau to continually strive for the noble causes successful beingness with noble behavior."