Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has filed what some observers are calling a desperate plea to prevent an appeals court from hearing arguments to disqualify her from former President Donald Trump’s trial over allegations of perjury and misconduct.
Attorneys representing Trump have asked a district appeals court to reconsider a previous ruling by Judge Scott McAfee, which allowed Willis to continue overseeing the case even if she dismissed Nathan Wade, the prosecutor with whom she had a private personal relationship that likely began before his hiring for the case. Trump’s legal team has cited a speech Willis delivered in January, describing it as evidence that her politicization of the case extends beyond the hiring of Wade and demonstrates further bias, according to reports.
In January, Willis spoke at the Big Bethel AME Church to commemorate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. During her address, she criticized Republicans like Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), whom she accused of inciting racist attacks against her. Willis dismissed suggestions that her execution of duties should disqualify her, stating to the congregation, “You can’t expect black women to be perfect.”
“Dear God, I do not want to be like those that attacked me. I never want to be a Marjorie Taylor Greene who has never met me, but has allowed her spirit to be filled with hate,” she said at the time. “How does this woman, who has the honor of being a leader in my state, how is it that she has not reached out to me?”
