There’s no honor among thieves and even less honor among seditionists and insurrectionists and those who investigate them. Rudy Giuliani was all set to go in front of the January 6 Committee, but he bailed out at the last minute because they wouldn’t allow him to record the session. Giuliani fears a perjury trap and if anybody should, it is he. The Guardian:
The move by Giuliani to cancel his appearance after the panel declined his request to record the interview means it may not secure documents and testimony from a central figure in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election in time for public hearings in June.
Giuliani was expected to have revealed his contacts with Republican members of Congress and other matters not covered by executive privilege or attorney-client privilege as part of a cooperation deal that his lawyer had been negotiating for months, the sources said. […]
The former attorney to the president had also indicated to the select committee that he was prepared to turn over materials about Trump’s schemes to return himself to office on January 6 that House investigators had outlined in a subpoena issued earlier this year.
But, as the Guardian first reported in February, Giuliani told the panel he would only appear for an interview if it was not pursuant to that subpoena – in part because he considered the investigation illegal – and does not have to violate any claims of privilege.
The select committee has conceded that Giuliani cannot violate privilege, the sources said, making a deal attractive to Giuliani, who can avoid being held in contempt of Congress by providing information the panel could not otherwise get – while also not giving up Trump.
But that delicate arrangement appeared to fall apart on Thursday, after Giuliani also asked to record the interview to ensure he might not be caught in a perjury trap in a potential subsequent investigation, according to another source close to Giuliani.
The no-show by Giuliani could also presage the breakdown of the entire cooperation deal, the source said, and Giuliani is expected to wait for the panel’s response to decide next steps. Giuliani may reschedule the interview if the impasse is resolved.
“Giuliani is an important witness to the conspiracy to overthrow the government and he remains under subpoena,” a spokesperson for the select committee said. “If he refuses to comply, the committee will consider all enforcement options.”
I see this as a very bad sign and I think that it is going to be like pulling teeth to get Giuliani in front of the Committee. What we are about to see here, I fear, is a master class in How To Run Out The Clock. He’s not going to show up anywhere. He’s got too many answers. He will have to be held in contempt and that entire process begun. And he is hoping like crazy to run out the clock.
In other words, they weren’t going to let him lie about his activities. Which is the only way he can escape the consequences of his actions.