Newly unveiled text messages shed light on how two key congressional allies of former President Donald Trump initially went along with the president’s bid to challenge the 2020 election but then quickly became skeptical of the endeavor.
More than 100 text messages Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah and Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas sent to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows between November 2020 and January 2021 obtained by the Jan. 6 committee were published by CNN and verified by a source to the Washington Examiner.
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The text messages demonstrate that Lee and Roy were scrambling to get confirmation about allegations of election fraud and fight on behalf of Trump, the source said. But as they began scrutinizing the allegations closely, many of the claims started to fall apart, and they were unable to validate the accusations, the source explained.
Here are some of the highlights from the leaked text messages:
Mike Lee
Immediately after news outlets began declaring Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 election, Lee began texting Meadows, encouraging the president to exhaust legal remedies “while cooperating with the transition process.”
“This doesn’t have to come down to a binary choice between (1) an immediate concession, and (2) a destruction of the credibility of the election process,” he texted on Nov. 7, 2020.
Later that day, he also encouraged the White House to take up lawyer Sidney Powell’s requests to see the president. Powell would become famous for her efforts to support Trump’s bid to overthrow the 2020 election. She has been accused of promoting a number of election-related conspiracies, and many of her election fraud claims were never substantiated.
Lee then told Meadows that Powell visited a few Republican senators to strategize about ways to challenge the election results. A few weeks later, however, he began expressing misgivings about Powell and called for Trump to disassociate from her after the RNC press conference.
“I’m worried about the Powell press conference,” he texted on Nov. 19, 2020. “The potential defamation liability for the president is significant here … For the campaign and for the president personally … Unless Powell can back up everything she said, which I kind of doubt she can.”
At one point, Lee suggested the Trump team consider the research lawyer John Eastman conducted on the election. The Jan. 6 committee has been scrutinizing Eastman, who compiled memos outlining ways to overturn the 2020 election. Lee later suggested some states could appoint alternative electors in states Biden won to help propel Trump to a second term.
“If a very small handful of states were to have their legislatures appoint alternative slates of delegates, there could be a path,” Lee said on Dec. 8, 2020. Meadows replied, “I am working on that as of yesterday.”
As time went on, Lee became increasingly doubtful about the chances of legally upending the election. By Jan. 3, 2021, he appeared to express “grave concerns” about Sens. Josh Hawley’s and Ted Cruz’s public assertions they would vote against certifying the election when the time came on Jan. 6, 2021.
Noting that “the states in question” were unlikely to certify Trump’s electors, he declared in the absence of those states reversing course, “this effort is destined not only to fail, but to hurt DJT in the process.”
“I don’t think the president is grasping the distinction between what we can do and what he would like us to do. Nor do I think he’s grasping the distinction between what certain members are saying that sound like they could help him, but would really hurt him. He’s got a very real opportunity for a win in 2024. That opportunity could be harmed in multiple ways this effort,” he texted on Jan. 3, 2021.
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Chip Roy
Shortly after the 2020 election, Roy emphasized the need for a manual recount in states before the certification of the election was to take place. He also began pressing for evidence of voter fraud early on in his discussions with Meadows.
“If you’re still in the game… dude, we need ammo. We need fraud examples. We need it this weekend,” Roy texted Meadows on Nov. 7, 2020. The congressman reportedly has a tendency to use ellipses in his private messages.
Two days later, he cautioned Meadows about Trump’s rhetoric on the election and called on him to refrain from conspiracy-laced talking points.
“We must urge the President to tone down the rhetoric, and approach the legal challenge firmly, intelligently and effectively without resorting to throwing wild desperate haymakers, or whipping his base into a conspiracy frenzy,” he texted.
Despite his concerns about the rhetoric, Roy continued to inquire about possible fraud in the election for several more weeks, pressing Meadows for a “controlled message” and more substance. By New Year’s Eve, Roy had soured on the venture.
“The President should call everyone off. It’s the only path. If we substitute the will of states through electors with a vote by Congress every 4 years… we have destroyed the electoral college… Respectfully,” he texted Meadows on Dec. 31, 2020.
“If POTUS allows this to occur… we’re driving a stake in the heart of the federal republic…,” he reportedly texted the following day.
When the Jan. 6 riot on Capitol Hill happened, Roy was blunt: “This is a sh**show,” he said and then added, “Fix this now.” Meadows responded, “We are.”
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Response to the leaked text messages
Roy’s spokesperson told the Washington Examiner, “The messages speak for themselves.”
A spokesperson for Lee referred the Washington Examiner to the senator’s remarks on Jan. 6, 2021, and defended the text messages. “They tell the story of a U.S. senator fulfilling his duty to Utah and the American people by following the Constitution.”
