Page:CTRL0000034600 - Transcribed Interview of Richard Peter Donoghue, (Oct. 1, 2021).pdf/79

79 attached to the email that he sends you and Mr. Rosen. And that letter is a draft letter that you and Mr. Rosen and he, Mr. Clark, would sign to the Governor, the Speaker of the House, and the president pro tempore of the Georgia legislature, essentially asking them to stand down and not certify the results of their election. How did that request strike you, and what did you do about it?

It struck me as very strange and somewhat alarming. And, as I said, I had to read it more than once to make sure I understood what he was proposing here. It was completely inconsistent with the Department's role, generally. And it was inconsistent with what our investigations, to date, had revealed. And so I think I made my views known in the email response I sent to him.

Yeah, which we'll get to. To be clear, he asks that—a version of this letter be sent to each relevant State. So was his request to send this letter, drafted for Georgia, not just to Georgia officials but to officials in other States where there had been allegations of election fraud?

Yes. That was my understanding of his proposal.

All right. He writes that he put it together quickly—"it" being the letter—but other messages suggest that it may have been drafted by Ken Klukowski. Do you know Ken Klukowski and what his role may have been within the Department's Civil Division at that time?

No. I don't.

Okay. Did you know whether or not Mr. Clark was talking to anyone else in the Department about this letter or other election issues?

No. I had no reason to think that.

All right. So you respond, Mr. Donoghue. We get to your response, which is tab 11. You drafted a pretty comprehensive, specific response reflecting your