The Fulton County, Georgia case against Donald Trump is moving forward at an accelerating clip.

Yet, yesterday Donald Trump announced another run for the White House. It was unenthusiastic. And it was full of Trump’s litany of lies. Some people at the Mar a Largo ballroom tried to leave before his speech was over, but they were blocked at the door. Some media had the sound of the proceedings turned off. They had other more important stories. Even Trump’s pal-advisor, Sean Hannity tuned it later in Trump’s talk.

If Trump were to look north about 700 miles to Fulton County, Georgia, and then read some of the articles in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about an investigation into his meddling in Georgia’s 2020 presidential election, he might think of taking up residence in his Scottish golf course.

The Brookings Institute has just published a very detailed analysis and reporting of the Fulton County Trump Investigation. It’s subtitled “An Analysis of the Reported Facts and Applicable Law.” You can down load the report for free at the previous link. It’s a massive report of more than 304 pages.

The investigation is a serious examination of the blatant election interference that Trump instigated in 2020 – 2021. The authors of the report start off by saying:

In so doing, (Fani) Willis became one of the first prosecutors in the country to take decisive action
in response to the allegations of Trump’s election wrongdoing. And she has remained ahead of the
curve ever since. That includes the district attorney marching forward and securing voluntary
testimony, assembling sufficient evidence to secure the launch of a special grand jury, issuing at
least 16 target letters to individuals central to the investigation, and compiling an impressive record
of winning the first of a flurry of legal battles that are to be expected whenever Trump and those
in his orbit become the focus of a prosecutor. She has indicated that she hopes to conclude her
special grand jury by the end of the year.

Eisen, N., et.al., Fulton County, Georgia’s Trump Investigation, New York,:Brookings, 2022, p. 3.

In another post, I will share with you some of the lengthy time-line that these researchers pieced together based on public documents and reporting. It’s a staggering real-time indictment of more than two dozen Trump allies and supporters.

Conclusion of the report

The researchers who wrote the Brookings report of the Fulton County Investigation of Trump’s election interference conclude:

We conclude that Trump’s post-election conduct in Georgia leaves him at substantial risk of possible state charges predicated on multiple crimes. These charges potentially include: criminal solicitation to commit election fraud; intentional interference with performance of election duties; conspiracy to commit election fraud; criminal solicitation; and state Racketeer Influenced and
Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act violations.

Our conclusions are based entirely on publicly available reporting and evidence, including the recording of Trump’s call to Raffensperger, the false electoral certificates the purported Trump electors issued to Congress and the National
Archives, first-hand congressional testimony that Trump and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows tried to influence the Georgia election, and the voluminous relevant evidence introduced into the public record by the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol (the “January 6 Committee”).

Our view is anchored by a close reading of the relevant portions of Georgia’s legal code, an unpacking of the extant case law defining the stated crimes, and a searching examination of the main likely defenses. The latter pose some serious questions but (based upon what is currently known of the facts) appear to be unavailing.

Eisen, N., et.al., Fulton County, Georgia’s Trump Investigation, New York,:Brookings, 2022, p. 3-4.

Follow the Investigation in the AJC

The AJC has followed the Fulton County investigation into Trump’s election interference. A good review of the Brooking report was written by Tamar Hallerman and Bill Rankin. Both of these reporters have written many articles on the Fulton County investigation. Hallerman is a senior investigative reporter and one of the authors I follow to find out about the Fulton County investigation.

In the next few days, I’ll report further on the Brookings report.