Court Battles

Giuliani jokes about $148M defamation verdict, asking Newsmax anchor for money

Rudy Giuliani lamented the $148 million defamation verdict levied against him Friday evening, after a judge ruled that he targeted and harassed a pair of Georgia election workers.

The former New York City mayor and member of the Trump legal team joked about the prospects of paying the hefty fee.

“You got any money you can loan me, Greg?” Giuliani joked in a Newsmax interview with Greg Kelly on Friday.

“How can you not be so sad for the country?” Giuliani continued. “Here I am in the District of Columbia. The first time I came here, I had goosebumps. I’m gonna leave here thinking that this District of Columbia is a fascist court.”


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It’s unclear if or how Giuliani will be able to cover the ruling, as he has notoriously struggled to pay legal fees in cases surrounding the 2020 election. He has put property up for sale and met with former President Trump multiple times requesting money.

The plaintiffs, mother and daughter Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, said they plan to collect.

“I want people to understand this: money will never solve all my problems,” Freeman said as she left the courthouse.

Giuliani also attacked District Judge Beryl Howell, who presided over the case, claiming she was biased against him.

“I knew when she was assigned to the case, we were dead,” he said in the Newsmax interview.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) filed an ethics complaint against Howell this week, the latest of a group of complaints filed against notable judges prosecuting Trump and his allies. 

Stefanik claimed Howell committed misconduct by giving a speech which included her political opinions by calling the Jan. 6 Capitol riots a “troubling moment” for the country.

“Judge Howell’s speech is plainly inappropriate, consisting of partisan statements, election interference and improper extrajudicial statements while criminal cases are pending — all barred by Canon 2B,” Stefanik wrote, referencing a judicial ethics guide.