ATLANTA — Former president Donald Trump and several allies charged in the Georgia election interference case asked the presiding judge to let them appeal his ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis (D) to stay on the case.
Georgia
Trump seeks to appeal judge’s order keeping Fani Willis on Georgia case
The certificate, if approved, would allow defendants to appeal McAfee’s order before the Georgia Court of Appeals.
On Friday, McAfee ruled that Trump and the others had “failed to meet their burden” in proving that Willis’s romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade and allegations that she was financially enriched by trips the two took together were enough of a “conflict of interest” to remove her from the case. However, McAfee also found a “significant appearance of impropriety” and said either Willis and her office or Wade had to leave the case. Wade resigned later Friday.
In their Monday motion, Trump and the others argued that Wade’s resignation was “insufficient to cure the appearance of impropriety the Court has determined exists.”
“The Court found that District Attorney Willis’ actions had created an appearance of impropriety and an ‘odor of mendacity’ that lingers in this case, as well as the continuing possibility that ‘an outsider could reasonably think that District Attorney Willis is not exercising her independent professional judgment totally free of any compromising influences,’” the defense motion stated, quoting McAfee’s ruling.
“Defendants believe that the relevant case law requires dismissal of the case, or at the very least, the disqualification of the District Attorney and her entire office under the facts that exist here,” the motion added.
Trump and others had also argued that Willis should be disqualified because of comments she made in a Jan. 14 speech at a historic Black church in Atlanta where she suggested that the criticism of her and Wade was racially motivated.
McAfee ruled Friday that defendants had not proven that Willis’s comments had tainted the potential jury pool, partly because it was too early to know. He also said case law on forensic misconduct by prosecutors was too vague to determine whether Willis’s remarks met that standard. But the judge was deeply critical of Willis’s speech, describing it as “legally improper.”
Trump and the others pointed to McAfee’s opinion about the speech as they argued that a higher court should review his ruling.
“Whether District Attorney Willis and her Office are permitted to continue representing the State of Georgia in prosecuting the Defendants in this action is of the utmost importance to this case, and ensuring the appellate courts have the opportunity to weigh in on these matters pre-trial is paramount,” the defense motion stated.
The defense motion was initially filed by attorneys for eight co-defendants who originally sought to disqualify Willis, including Trump, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, former Trump campaign aides Mike Roman and Harrison Floyd, former Trump campaign attorney Robert Cheeley, former Georgia Republican Party chair David Shafer and Trump Georgia elector Cathleen Latham. Former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark joined the motion a short time later, a delay caused by a “paperwork mistake,” according to his lawyer Harry MacDougald.
A spokesman for Willis declined to comment.
Steve Sadow, an attorney for Trump, said in a statement that McAfee’s ruling on Willis “is ripe for pretrial appellate review.”
McAfee has given no hints about whether he will grant defendants the right to appeal his ruling on Willis. In a separate order last week dismissing six counts of the original 41-count indictment, the judge included language informing prosecutors he would approve an appeal if they requested one. No such language was included in Friday’s order on Willis — an omission that surprised some involved in the case.
Defendants had 10 days from last Friday to seek a certificate of review. There is no timetable for McAfee as he considers whether to allow an appeal to move forward. If McAfee grants a review, Trump and others would have another 10 days to file their case before the state Court of Appeals, which then has 45 days to determine whether to take the case. If the appellate court declines to take the case, Trump and the other could ask the Georgia Supreme Court to hear it.
Georgia
Georgia Tech Athletics Receives a Pair of $10 Million Gifts
THE FLATS – Two generous, anonymous families have each given $10 million gifts to support Georgia Tech athletics’ Full Steam Ahead initiative and the Yellow Jackets’ football program, Tech vice president and director of athletics Ryan Alpert has announced.
“We’re incredibly grateful to these two generous families for their investments in Georgia Tech athletics and a championship-level football program,” Alpert said. “Led by these families, their relentless investments in our mission and their belief in our upward trajectory, support of Georgia Tech athletics and Tech football are at unprecedented levels.”
With these transformative gifts, Georgia Tech athletics is well on to set a new fundraising record in the 2026 fiscal year, as donor participation is up 21% in just six months since the fiscal year began on July 1.
Additionally, in just 14 months since the public launch of Full Steam Ahead in October 2024, Tech athletics has received nearly $90 million in new commitments to the initiative. In total, nearly $400 million has been raised towards Full Steam Ahead’s $500 million goal, which is a part of the Institute-wide Transforming Tomorrow campaign.
Georgia Tech continues to display its commitment to fielding nationally prominent, championship-level athletics programs. Notably, Tech athletics has committed to making more than $150 million in investments to its football program over the next several years, which includes the opening of the Fanning Student-Athlete Performance Center in the spring (a state-of-the-art facility that will benefit Georgia Tech’s full body of 300-plus student-athletes), a renovation of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field that will be completed prior to the 2027 season, a continued pledge to provide maximum revenue sharing to student-athletes and significant new resources devoted to expand and enhance staff.
To fulfill these commitments, enhanced engagement and support from the Georgia Tech community is vital.
“We still have progress to make to achieve our goal of consistently competing for championships at the highest levels of intercollegiate athletics,” Alpert continued. “Never in the history of college athletics has success been so closely tied to resources, and now is the time to seize the opportunity to take advantage of the great momentum and energy that we’re experiencing on The Flats.
“Every member of the White and Gold community can play a part. We urge fans to get in the game. Whether it be through gifts to the A-T Fund, purchasing tickets and merchandise, corporate sponsorships – every manner of support is vital to the success of Tech athletics.”
For more information and to make a year-end gift to the A-T Fund, visit atfund.org.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
Fourth Quarter
Less than two weeks remain for the Georgia Tech community to take advantage of the A-T Fund’s year-end Fourth Quarter Initiative, which gives supporters the opportunity to receive four A-T Fund priority points for every $100 donated to the Athletic Scholarship Fund through Dec. 31. The Athletic Scholarship Fund provides direct support for student-athletic scholarships and is one of the A-T Fund’s highest annual priorities, as it helps bridge the gap between endowment returns and scholarship costs.
Fourth Quarter gifts to the Athletic Scholarship Fund will provide donors with four A-T Fund priority points per $100 donated, which is double the two points normally allotted per $100 given. A-T Fund priority points are used to allocate benefits such as seat locations and parking for Georgia Tech athletics home events, as well as access to tickets for away games and postseason events, including ACC and NCAA Championships, bowl games and the College Football Playoff. To contribute to the Fourth Quarter Initiative and begin collecting four A-T Fund priority points for every $100 donated, click HERE. For more information, visit atfund.org/4th-quarter.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on X, Facebook, Instagram and at www.ramblinwreck.com.
Georgia
DA Fani Willis appears before Georgia Senate panel
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis testifies before a Georgia State Senate committee in Atlanta as she ends her year-long legal fight over a subpoena and defends her actions in the Trump election interference case.
Posted
Georgia
One of Georgia Tech’s best, Haynes King readies for Yellow Jackets finale
A day after receiving ACC honors, Tech’s senior quarterback refocuses on BYU and the bowl game.
Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King (center) and his family react during a senior night event prior to his final home game Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, against Pittsburgh at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta. (Hyosub Shin AJC)
As Haynes King’s time in Atlanta and as a member of the Georgia Tech football program wanes, the inimitable quarterback is soaking in the last few days with teammates while basking in the glow of winning a pair of individual ACC awards.
King was presented two trophies Tuesday — one for being named the ACC player of the year and the other for being named the ACC offensive player of the year — during halftime of Tech’s basketball win over Marist at McCamish Pavilion. The senior was joined by Tech coach Brent Key, Tech athletic director Ryan Alpert, Tech President Angel Cabrera and the ACC’s senior vice president for football, Michael Strickland.
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