Georgia prosecutor says Trump is not being prosecuted for lying — but for lying to the government

Fulton County prosecutor Donald Wakeford pushed back on Donald Trump’s argument that his false claims were protected under the First Amendment, saying that his lies furthered a criminal conspiracy.

“He’s never been prosecuted for lying,” Wakeford said. “He’s been prosecuted for lying to the government.”

Trump’s attorneys are arguing that his false speech is protected by the First Amendment, Wakeford said.

“That’s not what the indictment says,” Wakeford argued. “It’s not just that he lied over and over and over again, as counsel for the defendant points out by listing all of the instances in the indictment.”

Instead, the Indictment alleges that “each of those was employed as part of criminal activity with criminal intentions.”

“In the end, no matter how much we hear about the noble protections afforded by the First Amendment, all of this is an effort to get your honor not to look at the basic fact that this speech, this expression, all this activity, is employed as part of a pattern of criminal conduct,” Wakeford said.