6 times Donald Trump’s phone calls landed him in hot water
Donald Trump can 'do a lot with a telephone'
Making just calls is the obvious choice in the realm of possibilities with a telephone. However, for Donald Trump, it's far from that simple. Surprisingly, this is not a public opinion but the former President's own declaration that uncovers the extent of his phone-related activities. "I got a thing called a telephone. You can do a lot with a telephone. You can do a lot," the leading Republican presidential candidate told a rally crowd in Nevada on December 17, recalling his one term in the White House. His infamous phone calls, made during his presidency and immediately after the 2020 election won by President Joe Biden, have since landed him in quite a few legal quagmires. As his campaign to enter the Oval Office for a second time in 2024 gains momentum, let us look at six phone calls Trump made that have landed him in trouble.
November 2020: Call to two Michigan canvassers to refrain from certifying votes
In a call recording from November 17, 2020, obtained by The Detroit News, Trump, along with RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, allegedly pressured two Wayne County canvassers in Michigan not to sign the 2020 election certification. The leading GOP contender told the Republican canvassers Monica Palmer and William Hartmann, "We've got to fight for our country. We can't let these people take our country away from us." Trump also told them they would look "terrible" if they signed the documents.
January 2021: Trumps asks Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to 'find' votes
Despite national media projecting Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election, Trump was far from conceding. On January 2, 2021, Trump made a notorious phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, pressuring him to "find" enough votes to overturn the election result. According to the full transcript of the audio call obtained by CNN, the former President was joined by then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and several lawyers. "I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have. Because we won the state," Trump told Raffensperger. The phone call resulted in criminal charges against the former President.
December 2020: Phone call to Georgia House Speaker David Ralston
In December 2020, Trump called up Georgia House Speaker David Ralston, a Republican, forcing him to convene a special legislative session to overturn Biden's victory in the state. The call recording, which lasted about 10 minutes, was first reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The Fulton County special grand jury heard the recording where Trump asked the speaker who could stop him from calling the session, to which Ralston replied, "A federal judge, that's who."
November 2020: Call to Nevada GOP leader Michael McDonald
The details of Trump's involvement in the Nevada Republican Party's plan to submit a fake electoral certificate to Congress in 2020 were initially disclosed in transcripts from a closed-door testimony on the January 6 attacks, as per an Associated Press report from December 2022. The former President and his allies directly called Nevada's GOP leader, Michael McDonald, on November 4, 2020. On the call involving then-chief of staff Meadows, personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani (who recently lost his defamation trial against two Georgia election workers), and Eric Trump, the ex-Prez said, "They want full attack mode." Following the phone call, McDonald and five other GOP members signed certificates falsely stating Trump won in the state.
July 2019: Phone call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Trump apparently started his futile effort to ensure his 2020 victory long before the election. On July 25, 2019, he called Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after blocking a Congress-approved $400 million military aid package and pressured Ukraine to conduct investigations against his political rivals, including Biden. "I would like you to do us a favor, though," said Trump in the 30-minute phone call, according to a CNBC report. The call, he said, was an innocent, "perfect" call; however, it led to his first impeachment by the House of Representatives in January 2020.
December 2023: Trump's call to a former Mar-a-Lago employee
A former employee of Trump at his luxury resort Mar-a-Lago, now serving as a witness for special counsel Jack Smith's federal indictment, was contacted by Trump in December, according to CNN. The former President reportedly asked him why he was leaving after working for two decades. The call was made three months after the FBI seized classified documents from the luxury residence. The employee is a crucial witness, having personally handled classified documents and been privy to incriminating conversations between Trump and his two co-defendants.
