Trump grand juror gives smiling, laughing media tour about possible indictments
Emily Kohrs, the foreperson of the special Fulton County (Ga.) grand jury investigating alleged illegal meddling in the 2020 election, gave gleeful interviews to CNN and MSNBC that left some legal observers scratching their heads.
The two cable networks that have granted the forewoman of a special grand jury as part of the Georgia criminal probe into former President Trump are the same networks that are panning her media blitz.
Emily Kohrs made national headlines this week for offering insight into jury deliberations and whether it recommended charges against Trump and other Republicans in their role in attempting to reverse the Peach State's 2020 election results.
Clips from her sit-downs with CNN and NBC quickly went viral, particularly for her bizarre enthusiasm and giggly demeanor, something even Trump foes fear could aid his defense team's effort to dismiss the case entirely.
Emily Kohrs, the foreperson on Georgia's special grand jury investigating former President Donald Trump, has baffled onlookers with laughing and bizarre behavior during a media blitz. (Screenshot/CNN/CNNThisMorning)
Shortly after her interview with CNN's Kate Bolduan on Tuesday, her colleagues Anderson Cooper and Elie Honig reacted in astonishment.
"First of all, why this person is talking on TV, I do not understand," a shocked Cooper said. "She's clearly enjoying herself. But, I mean, is this responsible? She was the foreperson of this grand jury!"
"This is a horrible idea," said Honig, a CNN legal analyst. "And I guarantee you that prosecutors are wincing, watching her go on this-"
"I was wincing just watching her eagerness to like, you know, hint at stuff," Cooper exclaimed. "There’s no reason for her to be out talking."
"No. It’s a prosecutor’s nightmare," Honig told Cooper. "Mark my words, Donald Trump’s team is going to make a motion if there’s an indictment to dismiss that indictment based on grand jury impropriety."
CNN political analyst Maggie Haberman offered a similar sentiment on "CNN This Morning."
"If I’m the prosecutor, I’m not sure that I want this media tour taking place because I’m confident that Donald Trump’s lawyers are going to use this, just based on what I was hearing last night from people, to try to argue that this is prejudicial in terms of what she is saying," said Haberman, a New York Times correspondent.
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CNN contributor Alyssa Farah Griffin roasted Kohrs on "The View," saying her co-host Joy Behar "could have held her glee better and come off more impartial than this lady" and how Kohrs "comes out of central casting" of how Republicans see a "crazy Trump Derangement Syndrome liberal."
On MSNBC, "Morning Joe" host Joe Scarborough was heard saying "Oh, God" as his wife and colleague Mika Brzezinski offered a recap of all the interviews Kohrs gave, including NBC News.
"Seriously," Scarborough said in disbelief.
Georgia grand jury foreperson Emily Kohrs talks about indictments in election probe to NBC. (NBC/Screenshot)
"Morning Joe" co-host Willie Geist acknowledged Kohrs' media tour is "not great," how she "said somethings she probably shouldn't have said" and how she gave Trump "a whole bunch of ammunition."
MSNBC columnist and former prosecutor Barbara McQuade wrote Thursday that she was "mortified" about Kohr's "reckless" media tour.
TRUMP GRAND JURY FOREPERSON EMILY KOHRS LAUGHS, JOKES THROUGH STRANGE MEDIA TOUR ON CNN, NBC NEWS
"A blabbing grand jury threatens to upend the whole enterprise. At some point, impropriety by a grand jury could be grounds for a claim of violation of the due process rights of the accused," McQuade told readers. "And a successful claim could taint anything that occurred afterward, requiring dismissal of any indictments and a complete do-over, so long as the statute of limitations has not yet run."
MSNBC shared the column on Twitter, tweeting, "Loose lips sink ships — and can surely do the same for investigations. Emily Kohrs' media tour is reckless."
In all her appearances, the 30-year-old Kohrs appeared to strongly hint that Trump was among those recommended for criminal charges – the grand jury she was on did not have indictment powers. On television, her grins and coy behavior were odd enough that even left-wing MSNBC host Lawrence O'Donnell, after playing clips of her NBC interview, felt compelled to say she was not a seasoned media professional.
"I thought it would be really cool to get sixty seconds with President Trump of me looking at him, and being like, ‘Do you solemnly swear—' and me getting to swear him in. I just thought that would be an awesome moment," Kohrs excitedly told NBC News.
While on CNN, Kohrs revealed multiple people would be recommended for indictments and chuckled. "It’s not a short list," she quipped. In one remark that drew particular criticism, she said she would be disappointed if no charges resulted from the grand jury's investigation, saying there was "too much of my time" and others spent on the matter.
Georgia grand jury foreperson Emily Kohrs discusses Trump case with CNN. (CNN/screenshot)
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Declining to answer if Trump was on the list, she smirked and held back a giggle. "Especially If they’ve been following the investigation, I can’t see it being a shocker," she said about the indictments.
On NBC News and CNN, she spoke in terms of there not being "plot twists," at times smiling like she knew she was giving tantalizing remarks.
Fox News' Nikolas Lanum and Kristine Parks contributed to this report.