A group called The 65 Project has filed a complaint with the State Bar of Texas seeking the disbarment of the state’s Republican Senator Ted Cruz because of his involvement in attempts to undercut Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory. Besides his public advocacy on behalf of lies about the election, Cruz was also involved as a lawyer in litigation challenging the outcome.
Cruz, for instance, agreed to represent Pennsylvania Republicans in a push to disqualify almost all absentee ballots from the 2020 presidential race in Pennsylvania, an initiative the Pennsylvania state Supreme Court refused to back, although those behind the case pushed onward to the U.S. Supreme Court. After the state Supreme Court loss, Cruz referred to that court as “a partisan, Democratic court that has issued multiple decisions that were just on their face contrary to law” — so he showed no apparent remorse for getting involved with the brazenly anti-democratic case. Cruz also agreed to handle legal representation for then-President Trump in a case in which a coalition led in part by the Texas state Attorney General was hoping to block the 2020 presidential election results from four states Biden won. Trump, obviously, supported that initiative, which the U.S. Supreme Court rejected.
The Select Committee has subpoenaed Representatives Kevin McCarthy, Scott Perry, Jim Jordan, Andy Biggs, and Mo Brooks for deposition testimony as part of the committee’s investigation into the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol and its causes.
— January 6th Committee (@January6thCmte) May 12, 2022
“Mr. Cruz played a leading role in the effort to overturn the 2020 elections. And while the same can be said about several other elected officials, Mr. Cruz’s involvement was manifestly different,” the complaint against Cruz from The 65 Project reads. “He chose to take on the role of lawyer and agreed to represent Mr. Trump and Pennsylvania Republicans in litigation before the U.S. Supreme Court… In doing so, Mr. Cruz moved beyond his position as a United States senator and sought to use more than his Twitter account and media appearances to support Mr. Trump’s anti-democratic mission.” Cruz, the document adds, “knew that the allegations he was echoing had already been reviewed and rejected by courts… And he knew that claims of voter fraud or the election being stolen were false.”
The decision in the Republican National Committee’s lawsuit against the Select Committee is important for the rule of law.
The Court clearly reaffirmed the importance of the Select Committee’s work and knocked down arguments aimed at delaying our investigation.
— January 6th Committee (@January6thCmte) May 3, 2022
Cruz went on to help lead the effort in Congress to block the certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 victory. Even after a mob of Trump supporters attacked the Capitol, Cruz stuck by his ambition to vote against certifying certain electoral votes Biden won. Cruz pushed in the lead-up to Congressional deliberations over certifying the outcome for a so-called audit of what went on during the election — which is ridiculous. At that point, there had already been numerous, well-documented examinations of the security of the presidential election process around the United States. Georgia had already counted its presidential election votes three times almost a month before January 6. Authorities in every single state had signed off on the results from their respective jurisdictions — the process can’t move forward, it seems, unless they do. Meanwhile, The 65 Project aims to target lawyers — not just Cruz — who were involved with the sprawling post-election litigation targeting the outcome.
New via NY Times: Justice Dept has asked Jan. 6 committee for transcripts of interviews it is conducting, which have included discussions with associates of Trump
— Hugo Lowell (@hugolowell) May 17, 2022
Notably, the Texas Bar has already brought litigation over that Texas-led lawsuit challenging the 2020 results in four states. Litigation from the Texas state bar targets Brent Webster, who was involved in bringing the 2020 lawsuit and is a top deputy to the Texas Attorney General. Webster’s “allegations were not supported by any charge, indictment, judicial finding and/or credible or admissible evidence, and failed to disclose to the Court that some of his representations and allegations had already been adjudicated and/or dismissed in a court of law,” a bar lawsuit says.
"Mr. Cruz moved beyond his position as a United States senator and sought to use more than his Twitter account and media appearances to support Mr. Trump’s anti-democratic mission.”https://t.co/HX2ABZ5MVP
— The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) May 19, 2022
