Giuliani Admits to Making False Statements

Facts

• In response to a lawsuit against him, Rudy Giuliani — who was once former Pres. Trump’s lawyer — in a filing Tuesday conceded he made false statements accusing two Georgia election workers of counting extra votes to rig the 2020 presidential election.¹
• Ruby Freeman and Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, who were vote counters at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, filed suit against Giuliani in December 2021, accusing him of defaming them.²
• Although Giuliani made the concession, the filing said he wouldn’t admit to the “truth of the allegations” against him from the plaintiffs.³
• Freeman and Moss say that because Giuliani and Trump continued to make claims against them — despite these claims being debunked by Georgia election officials — they became targets for conspiracy theorists.⁴
• In the filing, Giuliani also denied mishandling or destroying evidence, saying that the Dept. of Justice returned his devices with files corrupted or erased.⁴

Sources: ¹USA Today, ²Associated Press, ³Reuters, and ⁴Guardian.

Narratives

• Pro-Trump narrative, as provided by Daily Mail. Giuliani hasn’t done anything wrong, and this filing was made just to move the case along — hopefully leading to a dismissal. Giuliani had a First Amendment right to make the claims he made, and even if they were false, the plaintiffs are going to have to prove that his words hurt them, which will put the onus on the plaintiffs to show clear-cut evidence.
• Democratic narrative, as provided by The Washington Post. Giuliani can spin this filing any way he wants, but the facts show that his and Trump’s comments were always dubious and now he’s joining the list of Trump allies who are finally deciding to stop defending the indefensible. The defamatory statements against Freeman and Moss caused real-world harm, and Giuliani must be held fully accountable.