Rudy Giuliani struggled to answer basic questions at his attorney misconduct hearing

• Rudy Giuliani appeared as a witness in his lawyer misconduct listening to Monday.

• Opposing counsel grew more and more pissed off as Giuliani didn’t reply easy questions, veered off target, and aired nonsense allegations of voter fraud.

• “I am asking you what time it’s, and also you’re telling me learn how to make a watch,” the lawyer advised Giuliani at one level.

Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani appeared Monday as the primary witness in his personal lawyer misconduct listening to, however the proceedings rapidly grew combative because the opposing counsel dinged Giuliani for failing to reply easy questions and ceaselessly meandering off target.

The ethics case, introduced by the Washington, DC Bar’s Workplace of Disciplinary Counsel, zeroes in on Giuliani’s effort to overturn the 2020 election leads to Pennsylvania when he was then-President Donald Trump’s private lawyer. Particularly, the ODC alleges that the previous New York mayor filed a “frivolous” lawsuit looking for to nullify Pennsylvania’s presidential election outcomes, even though there was “no factual or authorized foundation” for Giuliani’s claims of widespread voter fraud.

By submitting the lawsuit, the ODC mentioned, Giuliani violated the Pennsylvania Guidelines of Skilled Conduct and “engaged in conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice.”

On Monday, disciplinary counsel Hamilton Fox mentioned in his opening arguments that Giuliani “weaponized his legislation license” in an effort to undermine the Structure.

“Mr. Giuliani was chargeable for submitting a frivolous motion asking a courtroom in Pennsylvania to disclaim tens of millions of individuals the best to vote,” Fox mentioned in the course of the digital listening to.

Fox grew more and more pissed off with Giuliani because the proceedings went on. At one level, he was making an attempt to get extra particulars from Giuliani about his function in litigating the Pennsylvania case, however the former mayor repeatedly veered off target and began airing nonsense allegations of voter fraud in different states.

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“Mr. Giuliani, I’m looking for out what your function was in writing — in drafting — the preliminary criticism in Pennsylvania,” Fox mentioned. “I am asking you what time it’s, and also you’re telling me learn how to make a watch.”

“Nicely, you realize, I actually do assume you need to let me reply the query, so I can get the context during which I used to be working,” Giuliani mentioned. “So you do not create the misunderstanding that every one my time and a spotlight was given to at least one matter when that was not the case.”

Later within the proceedings, Giuliani was once more reminded that he was there to reply questions as a witness when he began opining on a 5-2 Pennsylvania Supreme Court docket ruling about voting procedures within the state.

“I recall this very, very clearly,” Giuliani mentioned of the ruling. “This can be a very debatable opinion.”

Fox ignored Giuliani and identified that the ruling held that election observers “be permitted to stay within the room the place the ballots are being counted.”

“So you’d agree that my place is cheap, because it was the identical place as … the dissenters,” Giuliani mentioned. “It was hardly —”

Fox then interjected, saying, “Mr. Giuliani, I ask the questions.”

Robert Bernius, a retired lawyer who presided over the hearings, additionally tried a number of instances to rein Giuliani in.

“Mr. Giuliani, I perceive your frustration, however this isn’t the purpose at which you need to argue your claims,” he mentioned. “Simply reply the questions. Thanks.”

Earlier within the day, Bernius interrupted one other long-winded rant from Giuliani to remind him that he was testifying as a “witness.”

The previous mayor then mentioned that he had been “persecuted for 3 or extra years” and that his actions had been taken out of context.

“You have been a trial lawyer for a very long time, and also you perceive how the method works,” Bernius mentioned. “The method is regularized.”

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