Rudy Giuliani, former personal lawyer to ex-President Donald Trump, said that he has no regrets after being hit with a massive financial penalty related to his post-2020 presidential election activities.
A Washington, D.C., jury ordered Giuliani to pay Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss $148 million at the conclusion of a defamation lawsuit on Friday. Giuliani was previously found liable for defaming the women, who are mother and daughter, by falsely claiming that they committed election fraud while counting 2020 ballots in Fulton County.
Giuliani vowed to file an appeal and told reporters, "I don't regret a damn thing" after leaving the courthouse. He also bemoaned the "absurdity" of the amount that Freeman and Moss were awarded, while claiming that he was not allowed to "offer" any evidence in his defense.
"The absurdity of the number merely underscores the absurdity of the entire proceeding, where I've not been allowed to offer one single piece of evidence in defense," said Giuliani.
"I am quite confident, when this case gets before a fair tribunal, it will be reversed so quickly it will make your head spin," he continued. "And the absurd number that just came in will help that, actually."
Newsweek reached out for comment to Giuliani's defense attorney, Joe Sibley, via email on Friday.
Giuliani did seemingly indicate that he regretted at least one aspect of the case, answering "of course" after a reporter asked if he had "any regrets" about "the comments" Freeman and Moss received following his accusations.
The former New York City mayor described the threats and harassment that Freeman and Moss endured as "abominable" and "deplorable," while insisting that he had "nothing to do with" it.
"Well, of course," Giuliani said, when pressed on having regrets. "The comments they received, I had nothing to do with. Those comments are abominable, they're deplorable. No defense to it, but I receive comments like that every day ... This is a terrible part of our political system."
"My comments had no connection at all," he continued. "There's no way to say that my comments [are] connected to that, but that's gonna be part of what we get to litigate in a fair court."
Giuliani was then driven away from the courthouse in a limo, while Freeman and Moss spoke to reporters and celebrated the verdict.
"Today is a good day," said Freeman. "A jury stood witness to what Rudy Giuliani did to me and my daughter, and held him accountable."
"We still have work to do," she added. "Rudy Giuliani was not the only one who spread lies about us. And others must be held accountable, too."
The total jury award was substantially more than the $15.5 million to $43 million in defamation damages sought by Freeman and Moss. The final number includes payments to each of the women for defamation and emotional distress, in addition to an award for punitive damages.
If the verdict stands, it will represent an extreme financial burden for Giuliani, who has already been grappling with significant money problems this year. During the trial, his attorney Sibley told the jury that the damages "would be the end of Mr. Giuliani," calling them the "equivalent of the death penalty."
Update 12/15/23, 6:25 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with further information.
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Aila Slisco is a Newsweek night reporter based in New York. Her focus is on reporting national politics, where she ... Read more
