Exclusive: Federal prosecutors looking at 2020 fake elector certifications, deputy attorney general

[swag]

Source: CNN

Federal prosecutors are reviewing fake Electoral College certifications that declared former President Donald Trump the winner of states that he lost, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco told CNN on Tuesday.

"We've received those referrals. Our prosecutors are looking at those and I can't say anything more on ongoing investigations," Monaco said in an exclusive interview.

The fake certificates falsely declaring Trump's victory were sent to the National Archives by Trump's allies in mid-December 2020. They have attracted public scrutiny amid the House's January 6 investigation into the pressure campaign that sought to reverse Trump's electoral defeat.

Monaco did not go into detail about what else prosecutors are looking at from the partisan attempt to subvert the 2020 vote count. She said that, more broadly, the Justice Department was "going to follow the facts and the law, wherever they lead, to address conduct of any kind and at any level that is part of an assault on our democracy."



Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/25/politics/fake-trump-electoral-certificates-justice-department/index.html

[LonePirate]

1. Don't these fake certificates constitute voter fraud which Repubs are always screaming about now?

Seems like the call is definitely coming from inside the house with this one.

[lark]

2. It's worse than that, I'd think it's fraud and seditious conspiracy.

Of course, I am not an attorney so could have this wrong?

[FarPoint]

6. Ohhhhh this makes an

entirely NEW Chapter of voter fraud in my opinion....

[Progressive Jones]

19. Election Fraud. Officials were involved. Voter fraud is voting for your dead spouse, etc. nt

[msfiddlestix]

3. hmm.

not sure if this is current or old information. (?) I understand CNN is reporting it out today, but what I'm not clear on is how long the DOJ has been reviewing the fake certificates.

And the other aspect of the same question/issue is (my interpretation) that it appears any potential federal crime on this scale is to be reviewed only when referrals are made by some other entity outside of the DOJ. In this case, presumably these referrals were sent to the DOJ by the Jan 6 committee.

Is that how the DOJ works? Just asking, cuz I was too poor to go to law school. Civics class in High School didn't go into criminal proceedings, rules of evidence etc.

[Slammer]

10. unknown

There's no way of knowing how long the DOJ has been looking at it, based on current reporting. DOJ rarely comments upon ongoing investigations, even to tell us when they started.

We do know from recent reporting that the National Archives own investigative team has been looking at it as a fraud case from the time that they received the fake documents. So that would have been back to whenever Rudy's scheme got rolling. I'm sure that's been in the media multiple times but I don't remember off the top of my head.

[msfiddlestix]

14. thanks for the reminders

I'd forgotten about the National Archives own investigation... which reminds me of how I found it surprising that the NA even had an investigative team to sort that stuff out. Maybe the referrals came from numerous sources including the NA.

At the end of the day, our country is not equipped to respond to domestic security threats of our elections in real time.

How does a country maintain their democracy by democratic means, if it is unable to withstand this level of threat to it's very existence in real time, I believe is the bottom line question no one is able to answer.

Probably because there is no answer other than keep hope alive. keep the faith. etc.

Jan 6 insurrection/coup attempt revealed far more weakness than I could have ever imagined in our country.

[gab13by13]

20. Yes there is a way of knowing,

DOJ just told us. No they haven't been investigating this.

[wyn borkins]

4. Seditious Conspiracy

My sense screams (to me, at least) something way-past (simple) voting errors and/or outright voter fraud and into a seditious conspiracy effectuated directly by both IQ45 and his allies in a concerted effort to change the outcome of what was a free and fair election.

[calimary]

5. We knew he's a cheater. But I don't think anybody expected him to try to cheat THIS badly!

[wyn borkins]

8. Actually, When Given Even The Tiniest Bit-Of-Thought

His entire life has been a 'cheat-on-humanity' (!)

[modrepub]

7. I'd Bet The Statute of Limitations

will run out before anything actually happens. Like this was over a year ago and it's just now getting brought up.

Major stink piles like these have politicians and higher law enforcement officials passing the buck. MI could have have prosecuted but passed it onto DOJ. DOJ will look at it, and look at it, and look at it, and hope the administration changes so they can drop it.

I highly doubt anything will come of this. It's what expect normal mortals to do, hope something else comes along before they have to do anything unpleasant.

[Slammer]

11. statute of limitations

The fake slate of electors were sent through the Archives through the mail. That's mail fraud which has a ten year statute of limitations.

Other federal fraud typically has a five year statute of limitations.

This will also be fraud in each of the states where it happened under their laws. But I'm not going to look up each of those until it becomes more of an issue.

[bucolic_frolic]

12. What's unpleasant about it? Republican criminals could well wind up in jail! /nt

[gab13by13]

22. Nothing unpleasant,

we can all have hope that justice is coming for the traitors.

Remember also, these fake electors are not unwashed Magats, they are fancy dancy GQPers who will squeal when faced with 5 to 10 years in jail.

I still believe that Rudy is not the top of the food chain, there are people above him.

[twodogsbarking]

9. I'm still not sure they got it right in 2016, or maybe even 2000.

[monkeyman1]

13. what's to think about ? they signed the damn thing's !

[gab13by13]

15. See how this is done MM?

This is an example of DOJ doing something, doing an investigation. Sure, they got a referral from the Michigan AG and the New Mexico AG, but they took on the referral.

Do we need to know every detail of their investigation, of course we don't, all we need to know is that DOJ is investigating fake electors.

Now, on to the next investigation.

[MineralMan]

16. Yes, of course.

Do you suppose you influenced them?

I'm surprised they didn't notify you earlier today.

[gab13by13]

17. C'mon man,

DOJ leaked an investigation. Everybody and everything is inter-related, of course I influenced it.

Congress asked DOJ to investigate this, the Michigan and New Mexico AG's asked DOJ to investigate this, and praise the Lord, praise Allah, praise Buddha, it is investigating fake electors.

[MineralMan]

31. LOL!

You called me out. Here I am.

[gab13by13]

18. All joking aside,

Fantastic news from DOJ. We should all have reason to be encouraged that justice is coming for the traitors.

Go get em Garland.

[ffr]

21. And chance we can most these investigations into sedition in the open along any quicker?

If at all?

FFS! We need to clean house at the DOJ! WTF is going on with our justice department. It's like we hear about stuff, and yet the stuff we need to hear about ain't nothing happening on until I suppose we're all marching in the streets for equal justice under the law!!!

[gab13by13]

23. We still have time,

I have hope that those 770 White House documents are going to have notes linking Trump to the coup. He fought like hell to keep those documents secret. I just love it that Liz Cheney is scrutinizing every inch of those documents. Not saying that she is the top dog on the committee, I'm just saying that she is focused on taking down the people who took her down. She is coming after them with a vengeance, she has nothing to lose.

[BumRushDaShow]

27. If there are plans to have a grand jury for indictments

which would then lead to a trial, they can't put that stuff out in public.

What might be "public" (to a degree) is what is going on with the Jan. 6 Committee - particularly any public testimony (and reponsive documents received upon request and/or subpoena)... outside of what might need to be used by DOJ for any future prosecution, and in that case, some of it might (or probably will) have to be redacted.

[bucolic_frolic]

24. They tried to create an alternative reality of fake everything

ballots, electors, elections, medicines, their own fake journalists ... etc.

Twisting reality to suit their own agenda

[C Moon]

25. All flights to Moscow are booked solid.

[FakeNoose]

29. 👍

Somebody should put Tucker Carlson on there. We could do a GoFundMe to cover his plane fare.

[BumRushDaShow]

26. "fake certificates...were sent to the National Archives"

That right there was a federal offense. It's one think creating one and waving it around at the media for red meat coverage and consumption, and another actually sending that in.

18 U.S. Code § 1001 - Statements or entries generally

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, whoever, in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of the United States, knowingly and willfully—

(1) falsifies, conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact;

(2) makes any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation; or

(3) makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry;

shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years or, if the offense involves international or domestic terrorism (as defined in section 2331), imprisoned not more than 8 years, or both. If the matter relates to an offense under chapter 109A, 109B, 110, or 117, or section 1591, then the term of imprisonment imposed under this section shall be not more than 8 years.

(snip)

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1001

[gab13by13]

28. They also sent them to Congress, another count.

[BumRushDaShow]

30. The states were supposed to send out 6 copies

that went to various entities so am not sure how many of the fake ones were sent and to whom except that the National Archives acknowledged receipt of their copies.

I had found the website of an organization who has been closely following it and had FOI'd those docs sent to NARA and have them online here - https://www.americanoversight.org/american-oversight-obtains-seven-phony-certificates-of-pro-trump-electors