DENIAL: Mark Meadows’ attorney says he’s not pleading guilty

The widespread rumor is that former Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows is pleading guilty to some lesser criminal charges, ratting out his former boss, and taking partial immunity.

His attorney has directly denied at least part of this.

Meadows, who was White House Chief of Staff to Donald Trump, reportedly met directly with Special Prosecutor Jack Smith.

The latest leakage from those close to the investigation is that he’s spilled his guts in return for partial immunity (it’s not detailed but that would presumably be in relation to any roles he had in attempts to overturn the 2020 election), and that Trump is in trouble.

His attorney, George Terwilliger, is specifically denying that Meadows will plead guilty to anything at all. However, he didn’t choose to address whether Meadows sought immunity in return for his testimony.

He also didn’t address whether Meadows’ testimony is damning enough to be a major catalyst for the next stage of the investigation — a Grand Jury vote on whether to indict. Meadows was certainly close enough to the epicenter of all things Trump to know many of the most damaging secrets, if he’s willing to tell. The Independent reports:

“A source who was briefed on the agreement claimed that the alleged agreement will involve the ex-chief of staff entering pleas of guilty to unspecified federal crimes but an attorney for Mr Meadows, George Terwilliger, denied that to The Independent. Mr Terwilliger said that the idea that his client would enter any guilty pleas was “complete bulls***” but did not address the matter of immunity in a brief telephone conversation with this reporter.”

Terwilliger’s previous comments on the matter have been similarly terse.

On Tuesday, when it was first reported that Meadows had testified, he refused to confirm whether his client had testified “before the Grand Jury or in any other proceeding,” but did affirm that his client “maintained a commitment to tell the truth where he has a legal obligation to do so,”  (which is an incredibly low bar, really), according to the New York Times.

As for Trump, he’s clearly concerned about what Meadows might be sharing with investigators.

He’s reportedly been quizzing those in his orbit about what his former Chief of Staff is doing, and his allies have been questioning why Meadows’ role, if any, in the investigations has been such a quiet one.

Stephanie Bazzle

Steph Bazzle is a news writer who covers politics and theocracy, always aiming for a world free from extremism and authoritarianism. Follow Steph on Twitter @imjustasteph. Sign up for all of her stories to be delivered to your inbox here: