by Dave Williams | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – While special prosecutor Nathan Wade’s romantic relationship with Fulton County District Attorney was “bad timing,” Wade said he doesn’t believe it is responsible for delaying the election interference case against former President Donald Trump.
“I’m very proud of the things we were able to accomplish under my leadership,” Wade told CNN Wednesday during an interview with the network’s Kaitlan Collins. “I would never have done anything I thought would jeopardize that hard work.”
Wade stepped down from the case in April after Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Willis could continue prosecuting Trump for allegedly attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia only if Wade discontinued his role as special prosecutor. He resigned within several hours of the ruling.
Wade blamed Trump’s defense team for using Wade’s relationship with Willis to delay the case.
“It’s an interesting trial strategy to attempt to defend your client by attacking the prosecutors involved,” he said.
After a Fulton grand jury indicted Trump and 18 co-defendants last August, Willis was hoping to bring the case to trial by this summer. But the legal wrangling over a defense motion to remove Willis from the case because of her relationship with Wade has dragged on for months, making it a virtual certainty that the case won’t go to trial until after voters decide whether to reelect President Joe Biden or put Trump back in the White House.
In the latest development, the Georgia Court of Appeals put the case on hold last week pending the outcome of Trump’s appeal of McAfee’s ruling allowing Willis to remain.
On Wednesday, Wade said he believes the case could go forward after the November election even if Trump wins and becomes president again in January.
“I don’t believe it looks good to the rest of the world, but I don’t think there’s anything that would prevent that from happening,” he said.
At one point, the interview was interrupted when Collins pressed Wade for details on when his relationship with Willis began and ended. He started to answer, but took off his microphone and stepped away to talk with an aide. When he returned, he referred her question to previous testimony in court hearings on the case rather than answer directly.
Wade said he and Willis remain friends and keep in close contact. However, with him no longer on the case, he said they talk about other matters, including the death threats the two continue to receive.
