The New York State Bar Association has launched a historic inquiry to expel Rudy Giuliani from its membership over his role in inciting the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol last week, the organization said in a statement Monday.
In the statement, the Bar Association said it has received hundreds of complaints about President Donald Trump’s personal attorney and former New York mayor and cited cites Giuliani’s speech to a group of thousands of Trump supporters outside the White House before they headed for the Capitol, where he repeated baseless claims that election fraud is to blame for Trump’s loss.
“Let’s have trial by combat,” Giuliani told a crowd of Trump supporters before they stormed the U.S. Capitol.
The Bar president, Scott Karson, “has launched an inquiry pursuant to the Association’s bylaws to determine whether Mr. Giuliani should be removed from the membership rolls of the Association,” the group said in the statement.
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The bylaws of the Bar Association prevent membership for anyone who advocates the overthrow of the United States government or of any state or locality by force or illegal means.
“Mr. Giuliani’s words quite clearly were intended to encourage Trump supporters unhappy with the election’s outcome to take matters into their own hands,” the association said in its statement. “Their subsequent attack on the Capitol was nothing short of an attempted coup, intended to prevent the peaceful transition of power.”
“This decision is historic for NYSBA, and we have not made it lightly,” the group said. “We cannot stand idly by and allow those intent on rending the fabric of our democracy to go unchecked.”
Giuliani declined a request for comment.
