Mark Meadows, one time chief of staff to former President Donald Trump, called Tuesday for his indictment in Fulton County, Georgia, to be moved to a federal court.
The former GOP lawmaker from North Carolina was one of 18 other Trump allies, along with the former president himself, who was charged Monday night for allegedly conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia.
"Mr. Meadows is entitled to remove this action to federal court because the charges against him plausibly give rise to a federal defense based on his role at all relevant times as the White House Chief of Staff to the President of the United States," Meadows' attorneys wrote.
He is facing two counts handed down by a grand jury at the behest of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' office: alleged racketeering and his supposed solicitation of an official to violate their oath of office.
The Tuesday filing by Meadows' legal team denied that he had any involvement in Trump's controversial 2021 phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger at the center of the investigation.
During the call, of which audio was leaked, Trump says that he wants Raffensperger "to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have because we won the state."
"Nothing Mr. Meadows is alleged in the indictment to have done is criminal per se: arranging Oval Office meetings, contacting state officials on the President's behalf, visiting a state government building, and setting up a phone call for the President," the filing read. "One would expect a Chief of Staff to the President of the United States to do these sorts of things."
Meadows also claimed he had legal immunity under the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution, which establishes that federal law takes precedence over state ones.
The former chief of staff previously testified before the grand jury investigating the case, according to a report by The New York Times in June.
Luca Cacciatore ✉
Luca Cacciatore, a Newsmax general assignment writer, is based in Arlington, Virginia, reporting on news and politics.
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