Rusty Bowers, Witness on a Central Charge of Trump Indictment, Speaks Out | FRONTLINE

I now welcome Rusty Bowers a distinguished legislator from Arizona speaker Bowers thank you for being with us today you're the speaker this is a loyal lifelong Republican he's a conservative who fought to get Trump reelected Arizona house Speaker Rusty Bowers come on up here rusty bow is just a compelling person it's hard to talk to him and not believe him and the stories that he told about his Direct Communications with the president um were just so indicative and so powerful that he was kind of an obvious choice frankly for somebody that America needed to hear

from directly after the election you received a phone call from president Trump and Rudy Giuliani in which they discussed the result of the presidential election in Arizona uh if you would tell us about that call M the president initially laid out the broad claim of fraud across the country it named different States including my own um what was the ask during this call uh he was making these allegations of fraud but he had something or a couple things uh that they wanted you to do what were those he said well we have heard by an

official high up in the Republican uh legislature that there is a legal Theory or a legal ability in Arizona that you can remove the um the electors of President Biden and replace them well for them to say to me yeah we just want you to throw out those electors and put in trumps I'm thinking have I gone to another planet I mean it's like what I'm not going to do that I mean I wanted him to win okay so what I'm not going to cheat I'm not going to cheat to win what's what's that I

flat flat out said you're asking me to break my oath I swore an oath I'm not going to break it period not going to break it I said well if you're talking this I got to have the proof I said Rudy do you have the names of the dead people who voted he goes yes and do you have the name of the 200,000 illegals who voted in our election yes I said I want those names and the President says Rudy give the man what he wants give him what he wants he says yeah we've got

him Mr President I'll get him to him in the criminal indictment Jack Smith saw the call as evidence of a crime the defendant and co-conspirator one asked the Arizona House speaker to use the legislature to circumvent the process by which legitimate elect would be ascertained if you are calling a state official and you're asking them to nullify lawful votes and to replace them with unlawful votes that is squarely within Federal statutes regulating election conspiracy not long after the call Rudy Giuliani himself arrived in Arizona uh did you meet with Mr Giuliani and his associates while

they were in Phoenix yes I did Sir there was a row of people and Giuliani and Jen Ellis I recognized them and I sat down on the opposite side and I just said did you bring me the proof and he said what I said do you remember our phone call when you said you were going to bring me the proof and he said oh yeah I said did you bring it and he turned to Jenna Ellis and he says do you have the proof and she said yeah well can we see it she leans over

and fumbles through her briefcase and says oh no I don't have it here it must be at the hotel room in this meeting or at any other later time did anyone provide you with evidence of election fraud sufficient to affect the outcome of the presidential election in Arizona no one provided me ever such [Music] evidence Giuliani was kind of frustrated with us all and he said you know we we' got a lot of theories we just don't have the evidence and I when I he heard him say that I I said did he just say

what I thought he said and they all looked at me like the same thing on their mind like whoa you know that yeah he just said that that was like a rockets red glare moment like wow that's you got to be kidding this is like a this is the clown show they're they're out hunting they're trying to find something and and they're wanting us to participate in this and and he says that holy moly we can't do this stuff you know it's like Rudy Giuliani refused to answer questions from the committee about his conversations with

Bowers Trump attorney Jenna Ellis also refused for the January 6 committee that meeting with Bowers was a bombshell revelation we have a lot of theories but we don't have any evidence that shows that none of this had to do with evidence or reality right this is all about just making stuff up in order to justify keeping Trump in power the phrase Giuliani uttered would become iconic and Giuliani a central figure in Trump's indictment listed as co-conspirator number one co-conspirator 1 responded with words to the effect of we don't have the evidence but we have lots

of theories it shows Rudy Giuliani admitting that there's no evidence for the theories they have that these are just talking points not backed with any fact and that's exactly the theory of the government during the conversation did he bring up the fact that you shared a a similar party he would say aren't we all Republicans here I I would think we would get a better reception I mean I would think you would listen a little more open to my suggestions that we're all Republicans for someone to ask me to deny my oath and just let

the courts figure it out or let somebody else punt it to someone else is not something I will do what you have to understand here is that Rusty Bowers this guy who who worked for Trump wanted Trump to be reelected in Arizona worked for for Trump's re-election is given a choice he can choose between his oath of the Constitution or president Trump and he stays loyal to the Constitution that is in effect what the choice that he's given even in the past when there have been serious Rusty Bowers speaks with a moral and legal Clarity

that's very necessary to understand we choose to follow the outcome of the will of the [Music] people it's my oath and and I hope that I'll never break that I know I'm not you know I'm not perfect I'm certainly not a perfect witness but I am a witness and uh I had my say and I wasn't trying to flower it up wasn't trying to be anything other than just rusty Rusty Bowers is now a key witness on a central charge of the indictment the defendant and his co-conspirators executed a strategy to use knowing deceit in

the targeted states to impair obstruct and defeat the federal government function in their filings Trump's lawyers have argued he is immune from prosecution because he was doing his job as president when he worked to change the election results the indictment is based entirely on alleged actions within the heartland of President Trump's official duties or at the very least within the Outer Perimeter of His official duties the former president has a motion claiming that he is uh immune from Criminal process with regard to these charges which involve His official acts as president of the United States

as president Trump is absolutely immune from Criminal prosecution for such acts the court should dismiss the indictment Donald Trump's legal team suggesting that even a president who had a political rival assassinated could still be immune from Criminal prosecution the federal judge presiding over the case has already rejected Trump's immunity claims saying a president is not entitled to a lifelong get out of jail free pass the questions being raised right now regarding presidential immunity are absolutely key to the very Foundation the very philosophical Foundation of this Republic because if you take an oath of office in

the United States of America you're swearing an oath to our system of government and so if a president is not subject to that system of government if he's not subject to that code of laws we don't have quite the Republic that we thought we had an appeals court is now considering the question of immun [Music] whatever the decision both sides could appeal to the United States Supreme Court