On Saturday, CNN host Michael Smerconish confronted John Eastman, who had been a lawyer for former President Donald Trump in one of his election-related lawsuits, asking about the incitement of protesters who invaded the Capitol on January 6, which led to five deaths.
In the tense exchange, Eastman, who spoke at the “Save America” rally on January 6, told Smerconish that there was no connection between the protesters he addressed and the protesters who invaded the Capitol.
Smerconish asked about the language that Eastman and Rudy Giuliani, another of Trump’s lawyers, used during the rally, and about his responsibility in attacking the protesters on Capitol Hill. He played a clip of Eastman saying to the rally attendees, “This is bigger than President Trump. It is the very essence of our republican form of government and it must be done, and anyone who is not willing to stand up does not deserve be in the office. “Eastman insisted seconds before Vice President Mike Pence” left state legislatures[s] investigate this so that we can get to the bottom of “whether the elections were certified illegally.
Smerconish, after confirming that one of the people Eastman was referring to in the video was Pence, showed a clip of protesters shouting “Hang Mike Pence”. The host asked if there was any connection between his words and those chanted on the Capitol. Eastman denied responsibility, in part because he noted the distance between the rally and the Capitol, although protesters could, of course, watch the rally speeches on their cell phones.
“That was three kilometers away. To make that causal connection, you have to show that any of these people had something to do with hearing my statement from three kilometers away, in front of the ellipse, but I will not let you understand outside What was said … just before the statement you now read and then played? Was it that Pence would have been asked by legislatures just to delay procedures long enough that those legislatures could determine whether their illegally certified voters should remain That’s what we were talking about. So don’t take it out of context to give the impression that I was saying something that I wasn’t saying, “Eastman replied.
Smerconish asked if those who invaded the Capitol understood what he meant about voters. “The people who invaded the Capitol were not within earshot of what I said. Yes, it was understood by … people at the White House mall,” said Eastman before trying to explain his position on voters again.
Eastman asked that those who invaded the Capitol be brought to justice. “What happened at the Capitol was a scam, and everyone involved in the violation of that Capitol should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” he said. “It should not apply to people who have peacefully expressed their views that something was unstable and wrong with this election, and we must get to the bottom of that.”
Eastman concluded by emphasizing the importance of fair elections and ensuring that state laws are not violated. To this, Smerconish replied, “As my parents raised me: time and place, time and place, and that was not the role of Congress on January 6th.”
At the beginning of the interview, the CNN presenter asked whether Eastman or other speakers at the rally knew that those present would invade the Capitol. Eastman said the protesters were not part of the foray that was taking place at the Capitol, which had already started even before the speeches at the ellipse in front of the White House had concluded, “he said.
When Smerconish pointed out that the two were moving away from each other, Eastman asked for evidence from the protesters who joined the rebellion and accused the host of presuming. The host rephrased his question to be more comprehensive, and Eastman said the militias and Antifa were organizing themselves without the knowledge of those involved in the demonstration.
“What we learn from The Washington Post just two days ago there was a paramilitary group, as well as Antifa groups, that were organizing [storming the Capitol] three to four days ahead of time. We were not aware of that, “he said.
Although some conspiracy theorists share the idea that Antifa members posing as Trump supporters were actually those who invaded the Capitol, the FBI said on January 8 that it had no evidence of this. When asked about members of Antifa who had been arrested in connection with the riots, Eastman appeared to refer to a leftist activist who was arrested in connection with the riots.
CNN political analyst Sophia A. Nelson criticized Smerconish for having Eastman on the show in a tweet. She called the lawyer “a traitor. A liar. A Trumpthuglican”, the latter a suitcase from the words Trump, thug and republican.
It is wrong to give platform to Trump liars @smerconish and who blames the seditious mutiny in #Antifa or #Blacklivesmatter is promoting the #Big lie John Eastman is a traitor. A liar. A Trumpthuglican !!! This man is lying and burning gas on LIVE TV @CNN
– Sophia A. Nelson (@IAmSophiaNelson) January 23, 2021
Eastman, a visiting professor at the University of Colorado Boulder, was recently excused “from functions related to outreach and speaking as a representative of the Benson Center for the Study of Western Civilization”. Getting him to perform these functions can be “disturbing and harm the interests of campus and the Benson Center,” according to a college statement.
Newsweek contacted the Claremont Institute, a conservative group of which Eastman is a member, for comment.
Samuel Corum / Getty