In case you missed it, Nevada U.S. Senate candidate Adam Laxalt on Friday testified in federal court, highlighting his 2018 efforts “bombarding” indicted Rudy Giuliani associate Lev Parnas for campaign contributions that federal prosecutors allege constituted illegal “straw” donations.
No stranger to the courtroom, Laxalt launched failed legal efforts to advance Trump’s “Big Lie” and overturn the 2020 election, and Laxalt has already floated preemptive 2022 election legal challenges ahead of his eventual loss next year.
Read the coverage on Laxalt’s Friday testimony:
Nevada Independent: Smith: In trial testimony, Laxalt recalls too little to resolve his Lev-and-Igor story
- “If Adam Laxalt imagined his testimony on Friday in New York federal court would lift the cloud of controversy hanging over his connection to shadowy defendants charged with violating campaign finance laws, then the U.S. Senate candidate is likely to be disappointed.”
- “Glib one moment, vague the next, at times Laxalt’s memory lapses were painfully acute. He hasn’t been accused of a crime, but I’m guessing Laxalt wishes he could amend some of the statements he made during a methodical cross-examination by Parnas defense attorney Joseph Bondy.”
- “Laxalt tried to dismiss Parnas […] Yet, Laxalt testified that as Election Day approached, he badgered Parnas on a daily basis for last-minute contributions.”
Nevada Current: Laxalt takes stand, denies role in cannabis licensing scheme
- “Republican U.S. Senate candidate and former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt testified Friday he doesn’t remember if he told the FBI he had dinner with Lev Parnas, Rudy Giuliani’s former colleague and a defendant in a federal corruption case in the Southern District of New York. Parnas is charged with making illegal campaign contributions.”
New York Daily News: Ex-Nevada AG admits badgering ‘clownish’ Lev Parnas for donations
- “Nevada’s Trump-boosting former attorney general admitted in court Friday that he hounded Lev Parnas for campaign contributions in 2018 despite considering the onetime Rudy Giuliani associate a ‘clownish’ political nobody.”
- “Adam Laxalt […] detailed his repeated outreach to Parnas on the stand at Parnas’s Manhattan Federal Court trial for funneling tens of thousands of dollars in Russian cash to U.S. politicians.‘(I was) really kind of bombarding him, “Are you going to come through? Are you going to support my campaign or not?”’ Laxalt testified.”
Courthouse News Service: Former Nevada AG testifies to chasing ‘clownish’ Giuliani crony Lev Parnas for donations
- “Pressed by the defense during cross-examination Friday morning, former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt testified to having badgered Lev Parnas on a daily basis for last-minute campaign donations in 2018, even though the Republican candidate had considered the Ukrainian fundraiser to be a novice ‘clownish guy with a gold chain’ and ‘a Brooklyn guy with a Florida home.’”
Associated Press: Witness: Giuliani associate never delivered campaign funds
- “Former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt testified at a trial Friday, describing how his enthusiastic pursuit of big contributions from a Rudy Giuliani associate he met at a Trump hotel during his 2018 run for governor ended with a $10,000 check he had to reject.”
- “Adam Laxalt, 43, now a 2022 candidate for U.S. Senate, was repeatedly shown text messages he exchanged with Florida businessman Lev Parnas as he followed up with what he thought was a well connected man who could possibly raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for his campaign.”
Politico: Nevada Senate hopeful Laxalt testifies at campaign finance trial
- “A candidate Republicans hope will help them retake control of the U.S. Senate next fall, former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt, was in the unwelcome position Friday of testifying as a prosecution witness at a trial of two men accused of funneling more than $100,000 in Russian money into U.S. political campaigns.”
- “Laxalt spent about two hours on the witness stand in federal court in Manhattan detailing the intense scramble for cash in the closing weeks of his race for Nevada governor in 2018.”
- “Laxalt said Parnas eventually pledged $10,000 and said he’d raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the campaign, but the money was slow to arrive, so Laxalt called again and again. ‘I’m basically repeatedly reaching out to everyone who pledged to donate,’ Laxalt said, adding that he was ‘really bombarding’ Parnas.”
New York Times: Testimony at Lev Parnas Trial Offers Peek at His Place in Trump’s Orbit
- “The interactions between Mr. Laxalt, who is currently running for a U.S. Senate seat in Nevada, and Mr. Parnas also provided a glimpse into the life of a political candidate eager to keep money flowing to his campaign.”
- “The text exchanges continued for weeks. A pattern emerged, in which Mr. Laxalt asked Mr. Parnas about donations, and Mr. Parnas provided responses that were short on commitment.”
- “At times, the two exchanged comments about the campaign of Ron DeSantis, a good friend of Mr. Laxalt’s whom Mr. Parnas was also supporting as he ran for governor of Florida. As the election neared, Mr. Laxalt kept inquiring about money. Mr. Parnas said he would bring Mr. Giuliani to Nevada to barnstorm on Mr. Laxalt’s behalf. Mr. Parnas also asked Mr. Laxalt whether he would like help in arranging a robocall.”
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Published: Oct 18, 2021