Maggie Haberman Reports ‘Bizarre’ Scene After Trump Bodyman Got Intense Grilling About Jan. 6
New York Times correspondent and CNN analyst Maggie Haberman’s sources said a “bizarre” scene in court Thursday came after an ex-Trump aide underwent intense grilling about his conversations with ex-President Donald Trump on Jan. 6.
Several news outlets reported a dramatic scene in a federal courtroom where Jan. 6 suspect Federico Klein was about to be found guilty on seven felony counts. Klein’s attorney Stanley Woodward Jr. was late for the appearance for a very intriguing reason: he was held up by “intense” questioning of another client — Will Russell, Trump’s body man while he was in office and on January 6.
According to Haberman’s sources, the delay was caused by the nature of the questioning:
On Thursday, Mr. Russell was asked a series of questions about his interactions with Mr. Trump before the former president’s departure from the White House, according to a person familiar with the appearance. More than once, Mr. Russell got up and left the proceedings to consult with Mr. Woodward after prosecutors asked questions related to his discussions with Mr. Trump, the person familiar with the appearance said.
The problems began when Mr. Russell’s appearance before the grand jury ran long, causing Mr. Woodward to be late for the reading of a bench trial verdict for one of his Capitol riot clients in front of Judge McFadden. The client, Federico Klein, who served as an official in the State Department during Mr. Trump’s administration, was ultimately found guilty of seven felonies, including assaulting the police and obstruction of an official proceeding before Congress.
But before Judge McFadden issued the verdict, he quizzed Mr. Woodward about why he was delayed. When the judge learned that it was because of the grand jury, he sent court officials to summon Mr. Windom, who works for the special counsel, Jack Smith.
That scene was followed by a secret sidebar between Judge Trevor McFadden, Woodward, and Thomas Windom — the prosecutor who had been questioning Russell.
“Before the bizarre post grand jury exchange, Trump aide Will Russell was asked one question after another about Trump’s mindset in his final days in office, per a person familiar w the testimony,” Haberman wrote on Twitter.
The target letter that sent Trump into a spiral this week reportedly mentions three statutes related to election interference, but the scene Haberman describes and other developments offer the intriguing possibility that Smith’s team is considering actions directly related to the Capitol riot.
