'Pure insanity': Justice Dept. rebuffed Trump bid to overturn election
The Peninsula
WASHINGTON - Former President Donald Trump pressed the Justice Department during his waning weeks in office to join his failed effort to overturn his election defeat based on his false claims of voting fraud, but its leaders refused, with one decrying the "pure insanity" of the claims, documents released on Tuesday showed.
The records, obtained by the House of Representatives Oversight and Reform Committee, provided new insight into the actions of the Republican former president in trying to enlist the department to act on his claims. The documents showed a series of overtures made by Trump, then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and an outside private attorney, Kurt Olsen. The department ultimately did not join the effort and numerous courts rejected lawsuits seeking to overturn election results in various states.More Related News