The top state Senate official overseeing Arizona’s sham “audit” has continued to make misleading statements about the project, according to another set of emails we obtained in our investigation. #FOIAFriday
americanoversight.org/document/arizo…
In an email to a reporter last month, Sen. President Karen Fann claimed "President Trump nor Mr. Giuliani did not push for the audit and they have not offered any financial or other assistance to the senate."
"I have not spoken with them since December which was well before any discussion about an audit."
In fact, according to other emails we obtained as well as public reporting, discussion of an audit had started during the same time range in which Fann claimed to have been in contact with Trump and Giuliani.
americanoversight.org/arizona-senate…
On Dec. 28, 2020, Fann wrote to a constituent claiming that she had been in contact with Rudy Giuliani and that she had his and Trump's support.
Two weeks earlier, on Dec. 15, the Arizona Senate subpoenaed Maricopa's voting machines and ballots.
azcentral.com/story/opinion/…
And a week before that, on Dec. 7, Fann had written to another constituent, saying: “We have asked for a forensic audit on the dominion machines for Maricopa County” [screenshot] documentcloud.org/documents/2079…
What else was happening that week? On Dec. 4, Fann received an email from OAN reporter Christina Bobb — who has been fundraising for the audit — passing along election fraud disinformation from Giuliani. documentcloud.org/documents/2079…
And on Dec. 2, Fann wrote that she had a “private 2 hour meeting with Giuliani and the Trump legal team yesterday morning here at the Senate.”
documentcloud.org/documents/2079…
Why does this matter? The Arizona Senate officials running the “audit” have kept the process cloaked in secrecy and have fought against releasing basic information to the public.
Despite their attempts to rewrite history, the records we’ve obtained suggest that “audit” officials were not looking for a real investigation of the election, but rather, they wanted to prop up Trump’s “big lie” of a stolen election.
We’re continuing to investigate the sham “audit” in Arizona’s Maricopa County. Learn more here:
americanoversight.org/investigation/…
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