Trump PAC paid law firm representing fake elector suspect Boris Epshteyn
Donald Trump’s political committee paid $50,000 to an Arizona law firm that represents Boris Epshteyn, an alleged fake elector in the 2020 election and legal adviser to the former president, according to campaign finance documents.
Save America PAC gave the Phoenix law firm Tully Bailey LLP two payments ― $40,000 and $10,000 ― for “legal consulting” in May, according to the committee’s Federal Election Commission filing. The payments first were reported by NBC News.
It’s not clear whether the payments from Trump’s leadership PAC were directly related to Epshteyn, who is a target of Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes' criminal case alleging a plot to subvert the result of the 2020 presidential election. Epshteyn was indicted in April and is accused of taking part in a scheme to send fake pro-Trump electors to the U.S. Capitol, despite the fact President Joe Biden won Arizona. Epshteyn pleaded not guilty to the charges last month.
The payments from Save America PAC come as lawyer Mike Bailey, the former U.S. attorney for the District of Arizona, represented Epshteyn during his arraignment in the fake electors case.
Bailey did not respond to a request for comment, and Epshteyn did not comment.
Who is Boris Epshteyn?
Biden’s campaign blasted the payments in a press call on Wednesday morning.
“Trump attempted to overthrow the 2020 election, and this news makes it clear Trump is doing everything he can to make sure he can regain power for himself,” Arizona Democratic Party Chair Yolanda Bejarano said during the Biden-hosted press call.
The Trump campaign did not comment.
For years, Epshteyn has falsely claimed that Trump won the 2020 election and was part of the former president’s scheme to hold onto power after he lost his reelection bid to Biden.
Epshteyn also had run-ins with the law in Arizona. He was accused of sexually assaulting two women at the Bottled Blonde bar in Scottsdale in 2021.
Roy Herrera, an Arizona elections lawyer who works with the Biden campaign, said there were unanswered questions about the nature of the payments.
“We really need to know, ultimately, from the campaign finance reports and from the PAC and the attorneys, what are they paying for? Is it for the defense of these defendants in Arizona or not?” Herrera said.
The Federal Election Commission has rules about whether candidates may use campaign funds to cover legal expenses for themselves and their staff, but leadership PACs are not covered by the same rules in the commission’s view. The gray area around leadership PACs ― committees that are directly or indirectly established, maintained or controlled by a candidate but are not affiliated with a candidate’s authorized campaign committee ― has been criticized by watchdog groups such as the Campaign Legal Center.
Dem Party chair sticks with Biden despite debate performance
After criticizing Trump for using his leadership PAC to make payments to the Arizona law firm, Democrats who spoke with journalists on Wednesday faced questions about whether Biden would stay in the presidential race.
Bejarano also brushed off questions on the call about whether Biden will end his reelection campaign, saying the chatter is “speculation” and there is “too much at stake” in November to focus on Biden’s widely panned debate performance.
Bejarano had not spoken with Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris in the days after the debate, she added, but has been in touch with their team.
“President Biden has done a fantastic job as president leading the administration,” Bejarano said. “We’re not gonna let a 90-minute debate performance define the last three-and-a-half years … We’re behind our president and we have an election to win. There’s too much at stake.”
Arizona fake electors case: Rudy Giuliani taunts prosecutors; Boris Epshteyn asks for delay