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Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s troubles deepened Friday when he was fired from WABC radio for trying to use show to discuss the lie that the 2020 presidential election was lost to Donald Trump due to election fraud.
John KatsimatidisNew York billionaire, Republican donor and owner of WABC, told the New York Times: “We will not talk about the fallacies of the elections in November 2020. We warned him once. We warned him twice. And I got a text from him last night, and I got a text from him this morning that he refuses not to talk about it.
“So he left me no choice. I removed it.”
Giuliani said he was fired.
In a lengthy statement, the former mayor said: “I am learning from leaks new York The times I was fired by John Katsimatidis and WABC because I refused to comply with their overbroad directive that said word for word that I was “prohibited from engaging in conversations related to the 2020 presidential election.”
A copy of a letter from Katsimatidis to Giuliani, dated May 9 and obtained by the Guardian, said Giuliani was “prohibited from engaging in conversations related to the 2020 presidential election on your programs broadcast on WABC… and otherwise in your capacity as station agent.
“These specific topics include, but are not limited to, the legitimacy of election results, allegations of fraud committed by election workers, and your personal lawsuits related to those allegations.”
Alleging a “clear violation of free speech,” Giuliani said he would look further into the social media situation Friday night.
But he continued, saying WABC’s move came “at a very suspicious time, just months before the 2024 election and just as John and WABC continue to be pressured by Dominion Voting Systems and the Biden regime’s lawyers.”
Dominion Voting Systems, a manufacturer of voting machines, reached $787.5 million settlement with Fox News for broadcasting lies about election fraud. That too sued Giuliani and Sidney Powell, another attorney who worked on Trump’s attempt to nullify the 2020 election.
Now 79, Giuliani was a tough New York City prosecutor before becoming mayor and serving from 1993 to 2001, emerging as a national figure after leading the city through the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008.
Long close to Trump, who it is reported helped him through a personal crisis after a failed presidential bid, Giuliani emerged as a staunch supporter when Trump won the White House in 2016.
Giuliani didn’t win the prize of becoming secretary of state, but he worked on Trump’s behalf on issues including the attempt to extract political dirt from Ukraine, which sparked Trump’s first impeachment.
In 2020, Giuliani worked to try to overturn Joe Biden’s defeat of Trump in the election, only to suffer a series of courtroom defeats and assembly public disturbances.
Giuliani denies wrongdoing, but his pro-Trump efforts have led to impeachment proceedings; criminal charges in two changing states, Georgia and Arizona; and a defeat in a defamation suit that left him owing $148 million to two Georgia election officials he alleged engaged in election fraud.
Giuliani submitted for bankruptcy in New York last December. Notes shown debts up to 500 million dollars.
Earlier this week, a legal filing on behalf of Giuliani said the accountants “do not appear[ed] interested’ in working with him to meet the requirements of the bankruptcy case.
His spokesman, Ted Goodman, said at the time: “While it is true that the permanent political class in Washington is using all of its power and influence to bully and scare people into not protecting Americans who are willing to stand up and oppose accepted narrative, Mayor Giuliani will be properly represented when it comes to his accounting and finances.”
Tuesday’s filing said the former mayor, who made millions from consulting work after leaving office in 2001, “currently receives Social Security and hosts a radio show and podcast.”
“These are his only sources of income,” it said.
Katsimatidis told the Times that at the end of his WABC show on ThursdayGiuliani tried to talk about the 2020 election, but was cut off by station staff.
“Look, I like this guy as a person, but you can’t do that,” Katsimatidis told the newspaper. “You can’t cross the line. My point is that no one really knows [about the 2020 result] but we had made a company policy. It’s over, life goes on.”
In his statement, Giuliani accused Catsimatidis of “telling reporters that I was informed in advance of these restrictions, which is patently false.
“How can you believe this after I have been a regular commentator on the 2020 election for three and a half years and have been talking about the Georgia case off and on since the verdict in December. Other WABC anchors and anchors questioned me on these topics.
“Apparently I was never informed of such a policy, and even if there was one, it has been violated so often that it cannot be taken seriously.”
In his letter to Giuliani, Catsimatidis said, “WABC stands for honesty and integrity. You have already signed documents as part of your legal proceedings admitting that the statements you made about the Georgia election were defamatory in and of themselves.
“Now, once again, you are stating that there was fraud. You can’t do that on our air. This is a clear condition of your continued relationship with WABC. We do not condone these actions and do not wish to be subject to the ramifications of your behavior under any circumstances.
Katsimatidis finished, “I asked you to join me for lunch or dinner next week and you declined.”
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