Graham Takes Another Step to Avoid Georgia Election Probe, This Time SCOTUS

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has launched a new effort to avoid testifying in a probe on efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to block an order to testify.

Graham filed an emergency request to the Court on Friday, one day after a panel from the 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals unanimously rejected his effort to block a subpoena from a Georgia grand jury. Prosecutors are hoping to question the Republican senator about a phone call he made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger weeks after the 2020 election, when he allegedly asked about rejecting some of the state's absentee ballots to help former President Donald Trump reverse his loss.

Friday's Supreme Court request was filed with conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, who is responsible for overseeing the 11th Circuit, possibly increasing the likelihood that the request will be granted or referred to the full court for consideration. The three appeals court judges who ruled against Graham on Thursday included one judge appointed by former President Bill Clinton and two judges appointed by Trump.

Graham's office argued in a statement that leaving the lower court's ruling in place would "significantly impact the ability of senators to gather information in connection with doing their job," including "certifying a contested presidential election."

The Georgia investigation was launched following Trump's post-election phone call with Raffensperger, when the former president asked the Republican election official to "find" the more than 11,000 votes needed to defeat President Joe Biden. A recording of the taped call and a transcript were released by The Washington Post on January 5, 2021.

Graham's Supreme Court request prompted some of his critics on social media to suggest that his attempts to avoid testifying could indicate that he is "afraid" of the grand jury or is "hiding" something.

"You know, Lindsey Graham could just go and testify," tweeted tech journalist Ed Bott. "The fact he is fighting this so hard is really ... interesting. He's a former prosecutor, you know. So he understands what happens when someone is forced to tell the truth, perjure themselves, or take the Fifth."

"What is he hiding and who is paying for this?" tweeted musician Matraca Berg.

"No one should be afraid of anything as much as Lindsay Graham is afraid to testify under oath about Trump's crimes," Democratic strategist Jesse Ferguson tweeted.

"For a person that claims he did nothing wrong, Lindsey Graham really, really does not want to testify under oath," tweeted the account of the Poli Alert blog.

"Maybe Graham should ask Trump to make a call to the SCOTUS clerk and see if he can rustle up five votes for this," Steven Mazie, Supreme Court correspondent for The Economist, jokingly tweeted.

Graham has denied any wrongdoing in his call with Raffensperger. He is being represented in the Supreme Court by Don McGahn, Trump's former White House counsel.

In late August, shortly after the grand jury secured testimony from former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, legal analyst Glenn Kirschner told Newsweek that he believed Graham would ultimately testify despite his legal maneuvering.

"He'll keep playing this delay game—but at the end of the day, he will run out of rope," Kirschner said. "He will lose. He will go into the grand jury. And then I'm quite sure his lawyers will advise him to plead the fifth."

Newsweek reached out to Graham's office for comment.

Update 10/21/22, 7:17 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information and background.