Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has only recently been added to President Donald Trump's legal team, and he wasted no time injecting himself into the fray.
On Friday, Trump said Giuliani, who upended the previous White House defense this week by saying the president knew about his personal lawyer's payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels, was "a great guy but he just started a day ago" and said the 73-year-old was still "learning the subject matter."
Giuliani released a statement Friday afternoon "intended to clarify the views I expressed over the past few days."
Here is his statement in full:
"This is intended to clarify the views I expressed over the past few days.
These are my views:
First:
There is no campaign violation. The payment was made to resolve a personal and false allegation in order to protect the President’s family. It would have been done in any event, whether he was a candidate or not.
Second:
My references to timing were not describing my understanding of the President’s knowledge, but instead, my understanding of these matters.
Third:
It is undisputed that the President’s dismissal of former Director Comey – an inferior executive officer – was clearly within his Article II power. Recent revelations about former Director Comey further confirm the wisdom of the President’s decision, which was plainly in the best interests of our nation."
