Atlanta prosecutor Nathan Wade was questioned for more than six hours at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday over a workplace romance with Fulton County prosecutor Fani Willis that threatened to block a criminal case against former President Donald Trump.
Mr. Wade withdrew from the case after his affair with Mr. Willis came to light, but last month he appeared for a recorded interview after being subpoenaed by the House Judiciary Committee.
Mr. Wade, a former special prosecutor who commanded a hefty $250 an hour in Mr. Willis's office, refused to answer questions from reporters when entering and exiting committee rooms, leading to a barrage of inquiries. At one point, he even stopped to answer the phone.
Prior to Wade's court appearance, Willis, in a surprising letter, warned his ex-Wade not to discuss privileged or confidential information that could interfere with the Georgia case. She sent a similar letter to committee staff.
When the Post asked Wade during a break whether he embraced the Fifth Amendment, the prosecutor, former Georgia Democratic Gov. Roy Burns, said incredulously, “What crime was committed here? “Is that so?” he answered.
“We testified, we cooperated, and it's over,” Burns told reporters as the embattled former special counsel smiled and trotted with Wade to the elevator before the doors closed. he said.
Wade and his lawyers evaded a subpoena from the Republican-led committee for nearly six days before he contacted U.S. marshals and agreed to appear in a private meeting, the case said. A person familiar with the matter told The Post.
Justice Department spokesman Russell Dye said many federal, state and local officials involved in Trump's criminal prosecution have agreed to testify voluntarily, making Wade's avoidance “highly unusual.” There is.
“The Judiciary Committee has filed more than 100 subpoenas this Congress, and in most cases we have been able to do so without controversy or the need to use federal marshals,” Dye said last month. Ta.
Lawyers for Mike Roman, one of Trump's 14 co-defendants in the case, first disclosed Wade's collusion with Willis in a court filing in January. The incident led to several months of revelations and subsequent court hearings.
Mr. Willis hired Mr. Wade on November 1, 2021, the day before Mr. Wade filed for divorce from his wife, and the special counsel subsequently filed a lawsuit against him for legal action in the RICO Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) case. He went on to earn more than $1,000.
Both Willis and Wade denied that they were romantically involved at the time Wade's divorce proceedings began or that their relationship posed a conflict of interest.
The couple also spent thousands of dollars on luxury trips to the Caribbean and Central America in 2022 and 2023, but claimed they split the costs 50-50.
Wade ultimately testified that he and Willis were involved. “Around March” 2022, since the Trump lawsuit began, and their affair ended in June or July of 2023.
As the case muddied through a series of hearings, witnesses gave contradictory accounts of how the romance began.
Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ultimately ruled that Willis could continue the lawsuit as long as his ex-girlfriend was removed.
Trump's lawyers appealed the ruling to the Georgia Court of Appeals, which postponed the trial date until at least next year.
The Peach State extortion case is one of four criminal indictments launched in the year before Mr. Trump comfortably clinched the 2024 Republican nomination, with Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan The charges are all “politically motivated,” according to the publication.
Mr. Jordan (R-Ohio) cited at least two meetings Mr. Wade had at the White House, including one with members of the General Counsel's Office in the presidential residence, as evidence of Biden administration interference. pointed out.
Wade is unlike Manhattan Borough Attorney Alvin Bragg, who sued Trump for allegedly falsifying payments to Trump's lawyers to keep him quiet about a decade-long affair with porn star Stormy Daniels. , refused a voluntary hearing to the Judiciary Committee.
In May, a Manhattan jury found the 45th president guilty of 34 counts of felony business fraud.
Special Counsel Jack Smith has filed two other federal charges against Trump in Washington, D.C. and South Florida, respectively, on charges that the former president tried to overturn the 2020 election and mishandled classified documents after leaving office. brought charges.
Questions over presidential immunity stalled the D.C. case until the Supreme Court ruled on the issue in July.
Mr. Smith has since filed a superseding indictment that excludes charges for any official acts committed by President Trump while in office, which he now believes are completely immune from prosecution. It is being
U.S. District Judge Eileen Cannon ruled that Smith's appointment as special counsel was unconstitutional because it circumvented Congressional approval, and dismissed the Florida charges.
