Page:Final Report of the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol.pdf/418

 answering the Select Committee's questions about these and other topics. When Giuliani was asked during his Select Committee deposition whether he remembered discussing DOJ issuing a letter like Clark's, Giuliani refused to answer because it implicated attorney-client privilege with President Trump, but when asked if he recalled ever recommending that Clark be given election-related responsibilities at DOJ, Giuliani said, "I do recall saying to people that somebody should be put in charge of the Justice Department who isn't frightened of what's going to be done to their reputation, because the Justice Department was filled with people like that." And the investigation has also revealed that Clark and John Eastman were in communication throughout this period.

One person who had worked with Eastman and others in his circle was a lawyer installed to work with Clark at the Department of Justice in mid-December—the final weeks of the Trump administration—named Ken Klukowski. Klukowski was a Trump administration political appointee serving as a senior counsel under Clark in DOJ's Civil Division. After serving as a lawyer in the Office and Management and Budget (OMB) for more than a year and volunteering as a lawyer for the Trump Campaign after election day, Klukowski only joined the Department when the administration's personnel staff "expedite[d]" his appointment because the White House's Presidential Personnel Office "want[ed] him in soon."

On the morning of December 28th, Clark asked Klukowski to draft the Georgia letter for him. Clark dictated the substantive key points of the letter to Klukowski and told him exactly what to include. After several meetings with Clark throughout the day to update him on progress, Klukowski turned in his assignment and gave the letter to Clark, which Clark sent along to Acting Attorney General Rosen and Acting Deputy Attorney General Donoghue, as described above.

Donoghue quickly responded to Clark's email, stating "there is no chance that I would sign this letter or anything remotely like this." The plan set forth by Clark was "not even within the realm of possibility." Donoghue warned that if they sent Clark's letter, it "would be a grave step for the Department to take and it could have tremendous Constitutional, political and social ramifications for the country." Contrary to President Trump's and Clark's wild claims about the election, Donoghue stressed that DOJ's ongoing investigations related to matters of such a "small scale that they simply would not impact the outcome of the Presidential Election." Clark's assertion to the contrary was baseless.

Donoghue and Rosen reaffirmed their strong opposition to the draft letter in a "contentious" meeting with Clark on December 28th. "What you are doing is nothing less than the United States Justice Department