Christina Bobb

Christina Bobb
Bobb in 2022
Born
Christina Gabrielle Bobb

(1982-11-04) November 4, 1982 (age 42)
Michigan, U.S.
Education
Military career
Service / branchUnited States Marine Corps
Years of service2009–2012

Christina Bobb (born November 4, 1982)[1] is an American lawyer, television personality and Republican Party official. She gained prominence for her television promotion of president Donald Trump and involvement in attempts to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election, and promotion of the false allegation that the election had been stolen from Trump by fraud. She was involved in the FBI investigation into Donald Trump's handling of government documents. Prior to working as a Trump attorney, she was an executive secretary for the Department of Homeland Security and in 2020 became an anchor at One America News Network, a far-right, pro-Trump cable channel. The Republican National Committee named Bobb to lead its election integrity program in March 2024. Bobb and seventeen other Arizona Republicans and Trump associates were indicted in April 2024 for their alleged involvement in the Trump fake electors plot to subvert the 2020 presidential election.

Early life and education

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Bobb was born in Michigan as the younger of two girls. She attended high school in Phoenix, Arizona, graduating early to attend the University of Arizona.[2] She was a member of the UA Wildcats soccer team in 2000 and 2001 as a reserve goalkeeper, before transferring to Texas Christian University.[1][2] She played goalkeeper for TCU's Horned Frogs in 2002.[3]

According to her Department of Homeland Security (DHS) biography, Bobb was admitted to the State Bar of California in 2008 after studying at the California Western School of Law,[4][2][5] and earned a master's degree in national security law from Georgetown University Law Center[4] prior to serving in the United States Marine Corps as a judge advocate.[4][5]

Career

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Bobb's official Marine Corps portrait photograph

Bobb completed officer candidate school in August 2009 and was commissioned in the U.S. Marine Corps as a second lieutenant. She then completed The Basic School in May 2010 and then went on to the Naval Justice School.[6] She subsequently served as a judge advocate, where among other duties, she provided legal advice to military commanders in Afghanistan's Helmand Province. Bobb left the Marine Corps two years later.[7]

In 2014, Bobb ran for Congress as an independent in California's 53rd district. She came in last among the eight candidates in the blanket primary, with just 929 out of 88,953 votes.[2][5] According to the Federal Election Commission, Bobb filed no paperwork with it, which is required if a candidate spends or raises over $5,000 in campaign activity.[2]

In 2018, Bobb started working as an executive secretary for the DHS.[2][5] According to her former boss Miles Taylor, Bobb clashed with DHS officials by weighing in on issues such as counterterrorism, which were viewed as repeated efforts to exceed her mandate.[2] Some DHS officials expressed concern about trusting Bobb with certain types of classified information due to her being "mega MAGA".[2][5]

One America News Network

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In June 2020, Bobb was hired by One America News Network (OANN), a far-right, pro-Trump cable channel that is known for promoting falsehoods and conspiracy theories. She first covered the White House and then hosted Weekly Briefing with Christina Bobb, a weekend political talk show.[2]

The New York Times reported that Bobb "emerged as one of [Trump's] truest of true believers, embracing conspiracy theories with a fervor that has at times seemed over the top even to her colleagues." Trump himself believed Bobb was too flattering of him during some interviews.[7]

After the 2020 presidential election, Bobb promoted Trump's baseless allegations of election fraud and volunteered for Trump's legal team while also reporting for OANN.[2] Rudy Giuliani said in an October 2021 deposition that Bobb had to run stories she developed past the Trump campaign so that they "didn't violate any of our rules or whatever".[8][2]

On OANN, Bobb promoted the Republican 2021 Maricopa County presidential ballot audit that sought to find evidence of election fraud against Trump. Arizona Republicans granted OANN exclusive rights to livestream the proceedings. Bobb hosted a February 2021 program named "The Arizona Election Heist" which contained numerous false or dubious allegations of election fraud. Bobb and OANN colleague Chanel Rion co-founded a nonprofit organization that raised $605,000 to support the audit. The organization also provided volunteers for the audit effort, which ultimately found no evidence of fraud.[9][10][11]

In August 2021, Bobb and Rion were named in a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems against OANN for promoting false claims that the company had engaged in election fraud.[12] According to the company's complaint, Bobb joined Rion in "falsely accusing Dominion of rigging the election and stealing it from Trump" while "simultaneously and covertly moonlighting as a Trump campaign advisor".[2] Some of Bobb's on-air segments were also referenced in a similar lawsuit filed by Smartmatic against OANN.[13]

In March 2022, Bobb announced she would be leaving OANN to work for Trump's Save America political action committee.[2] Since May 2022 she has covered Trump rallies for the pro-Trump Right Side Broadcasting Network.[14]

Involvement in attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election

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Main article: Trump fake electors plot

Bobb was present in the Willard Hotel "command center" where top Trump associates worked to prevent Joe Biden's election from being certified on January 6, 2021.[15][16] The Washington Post reported in January 2022 that Bobb worked with Rudy Giuliani and other Trump campaign officials in December 2020 to execute a plan for Republicans in seven states to create fraudulent certificates of ascertainment to falsely assert Trump had been reelected.[17][18]

In July 2022, Politico acquired an email that Bobb sent on December 13, 2020, to several Trump attorneys and allies, the day before electors met across the country to certify their states' election results. It discussed how the Trump campaign director of election day operations Mike Roman had spoken with teams in seven states Biden had won who were focused on the effort to appoint false electors. Roman reported developments to Bobb, who then relayed them to recipients that included Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, Boris Epshteyn and one-time Trump attorneys Joe diGenova and his wife Victoria Toensing. Bobb discussed difficulties false electors were having in gaining access to state buildings where they could convene. She alleged that "Democrats are voting by Zoom" and that "Dems getting a police escort to cast ballots" by 200 Michigan state police officers.[19]

By March 2023, prosecutors for the Georgia election racketeering prosecution that later indicted Trump, Giuliani, Ellis, Roman and fifteen others sought to interview Bobb, but her attorney John Lauro indicated she would decline.[20]

On April 24, 2024, Bobb and seventeen others were indicted on nine felony counts each of fraud, forgery and conspiracy in connection with the 2020 Arizona fake electors plot that attempted to reverse Trump's 2020 presidential election loss in Arizona.[21][22][23] On May 21, 2024, Bobb and 10 others pled not guilty after being arraigned in Maricopa County Superior Court.[24][25] However, Bobb was among five of these eleven defendants who appeared virtually rather than in-person.[24]

Trump's handling of classified documents

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Main article: FBI investigation into Donald Trump's handling of government documents

On May 11, 2022, the DOJ subpoenaed Trump for "any and all documents or writings in the custody or control of Donald J. Trump and/or the Office of Donald J. Trump bearing classification markings".[26]

Investigators from the DOJ and the FBI met with Trump's attorneys at Mar-a-Lago on June 3 about the classified material that was subpoenaed on May 11. During this meeting, Bobb, who was Trump's custodian of records, gave the DOJ a signed declaration that had been drafted by Evan Corcoran, attesting that all classified material had been returned.[27] As it turned out, the declaration had been drafted by Corcoran and handed to Bobb, who insisted on adding caveats because she had not done the search herself.[28] Two months later, after the falsehood came to light, The New York Times reported that the signed declaration possibly indicated that Trump's legal team had not been forthright with federal investigators about the material.[29] As of September 16, 2022, investigators had not decided whether to pursue a criminal inquiry against Bobb and Corcoran.[30]

In October 2022, multiple news agencies reported that Bobb was speaking with federal investigators in connection to the Mar-a-Lago probe.[31][32][33] According to Bobb, Corcoran told her that he had conducted a thorough search of Mar-a-Lago before asking her to certify that all of the requested records had been returned.[34]

In February 2023, Bobb testified before a grand jury in connection with the investigation.[34][35]

Republican National Committee

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The Republican National Committee voted to name Trump loyalists Michael Whatley and Lara Trump to lead the organization on March 8, 2024. After dozens of employees were quickly discharged, Bobb was named senior counsel for election integrity on March 12.[36][37] The Washington Post reported after Bobb's April 2024 indictment that she was not likely to leave her RNC position, but rather her indictment "solidifies her identity as a dedicated Trump loyalist who fiercely fought to reverse his loss in the politically competitive state and potentially elevates her role within the RNC to help him win in November."[38]

Weeks before the 2024 election, Bobb said during a podcast that she believed the political left was "evil" and "demonic" and sought to "normalize pedophilia." She continued, "I think there's a lot of weird, weird things going on behind the scenes that we probably can't see," adding, "I hope they all break the surface so that we just get this cleansing in our nation and we can clean out the filth."[39]

Bibliography

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  • Stealing Your Vote: The Inside Story of the 2020 Election and What It Means for 2024. Skyhorse Publishing. 2023. ISBN 9781510776692.[40][36]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Player Bio: Christina Bobb :: Women's Soccer". University of Arizona Athletics. April 18, 2013. Archived from the original on September 24, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Abdollah, Tami (August 31, 2022). "How Trump lawyer Christina Bobb, an ex-OAN host, took spotlight in Mar-a-Lago case". USA Today. Archived from the original on August 31, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  3. ^ "Christina Bobb - Women's Soccer". TCU Athletics. Archived from the original on March 14, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c "Christina Bobb | Homeland Security". www.dhs.gov. Archived from the original on September 3, 2023. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d e Ankel, Sophia (September 10, 2022). "Meet Christina Bobb — former OAN presenter, 2020 election denier, and Trump's latest attorney to face legal trouble". Business Insider. Archived from the original on September 30, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  6. ^ "Bobb is a JAG officer at Quantico". Ahwatukee Foothills News. June 22, 2010. Archived from the original on November 5, 2020. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Thrush, Glenn; Haberman, Maggie; Schmidt, Michael S. (October 11, 2022). "She Went Out on a Limb for Trump. Now She's Under Justice Dept. Scrutiny". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 28, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
  8. ^ Baragona, Justin (October 4, 2021). "Giuliani Claims Trump Campaign Had Veto Power Over OAN Reporter's Stories". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  9. ^ MacDonald-Evoy, Jerod (June 7, 2022). "OAN correspondents' organization supplied volunteers for the Arizona "audit"". Arizona Mirror. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
  10. ^ Duda, Jeremy (February 23, 2021). "OANN report on Maricopa County election riddled with falsehoods". Arizona Mirror. Archived from the original on March 14, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  11. ^ Mimms, Sarah (May 18, 2021). "Pro-Trump OAN Reporters Are Blatantly Raising Money For A Bogus Election "Audit" In Arizona". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on July 28, 2021. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  12. ^ Pruitt-Young, Sharon (August 10, 2021). "The 2020 Election is Back in Court, as Dominion Sues Conservative Media Outlets". NPR. Archived from the original on December 30, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  13. ^ Holmes, Kristen; Strauss, Daniel; Cohen, Marshall (March 13, 2024). "RNC to add new lawyers focusing on claims of election fraud – including one key figure from 2020 challenges | CNN Politics". CNN. Archived from the original on April 6, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  14. ^ Rosalind S. Helderman; Josh Dawsey; Carol D. Leonnig; Perry Stein (September 30, 2022). "Trump's legal team divided over how to handle Mar-a-Lago case". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on May 17, 2023. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  15. ^ Alemany, Jacqueline; Brown, Emma; Hamburger, Tom; Swaine, Jon (October 23, 2021). "Ahead of Jan. 6, Willard hotel in downtown D.C. was a Trump team 'command center' for effort to deny Biden the presidency". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  16. ^ Suebsaeng, Asawin; Tani, Maxwell; Stein, Sam (November 24, 2020). "An OAN Host Has Been Helping Rudy With Trump's Legal Efforts". The Daily Beast. Archived from the original on January 7, 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
  17. ^ Reinhard, Beth; Gardner, Amy; Dawsey, Josh; Brown, Emma; Helderman, Rosalind S. (January 20, 2022). "As Giuliani coordinated plan for Trump electoral votes in states Biden won, some electors balked". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 21, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  18. ^ Cohen, Marshall; Cohen, Zachary; Merica, Dan (January 20, 2022). "Trump campaign officials, led by Rudy Giuliani, oversaw fake electors plot in 7 states". CNN. Archived from the original on January 20, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  19. ^ Woodruff Swan, Betsy (July 21, 2022). "Top Trump lawyers briefed in detail on alternate elector plot on Dec. 13, 2020". Politico. Archived from the original on July 25, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
  20. ^ Will Steakin; Katherine Faulders; Olivia Rubin (March 20, 2023). "Fulton County prosecutors probing election now seek to question Trump attorney, sources say". ABC News. Archived from the original on March 4, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  21. ^ "Trump allies Meadows, Giuliani among 18 indicted in Arizona election interference case". CBC News. April 24, 2024. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
  22. ^ Leingang, Rachel (April 24, 2024). "Arizona grand jury indicts Trump allies including Rudy Giuliani over 2020 fake elector scheme". The Guardian. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  23. ^ Schutsky, Wayne (April 26, 2024). "Meadows, Giuliani, 11 'fake electors' from 2020 are among those indicted in Arizona". NPR. Retrieved April 30, 2024.
  24. ^ a b Marquez, Alexandra; Tabet, Alex (May 21, 2024). "Trump allies plead not guilty in Arizona 'fake electors' case". NBC News. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  25. ^ Heuer, Mike (May 21, 2024). "Giuliani, 10 others plead not guilty to felony election charges in Arizona". UPI. Retrieved May 21, 2024.
  26. ^ Cheney, Kyle (August 31, 2022). "Days before Mar-a-Lago subpoena, Trump lawyer claimed she scoured his office, closets and drawers". Politico. Archived from the original on August 31, 2022. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  27. ^ Lowell, Hugo (September 1, 2022). "Two Trump lawyers could be witnesses or targets in FBI investigation". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on August 28, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  28. ^ Lowell, Hugo (October 10, 2022). "Trump lawyer told to certify Mar-a-Lago document search she did not conduct". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on July 19, 2023. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  29. ^ Luke, Broadwater; Katie, Benner; Haberman, Maggie (August 26, 2022). "Inside the 20-Month Fight to Get Trump to Return Presidential Material". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  30. ^ Haberman, Maggie; Thrush, Glenn (September 16, 2022). "Trump's Team of Lawyers Marked by Infighting and Possible Legal Troubles of Its Own". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 29, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
  31. ^ "Trump lawyer Christina Bobb speaks to federal investigators in Mar-a-Lago case". NBC News. October 10, 2022. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  32. ^ Lowell, Hugo (October 10, 2022). "Trump lawyer told to certify Mar-a-Lago document search she did not conduct". The Guardian. Washington. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  33. ^ Collins, Kaitlan (October 10, 2022). "Trump lawyer Christina Bobb spoke with federal investigators, source says". CNN. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
  34. ^ a b Barber, C. Ryan; Leary, Alex (February 11, 2023). "Trump Lawyers Appeared Before Grand Jury as Part of Classified-Documents Probe". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on March 10, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  35. ^ Perez, Evan; Holmes, Kristen (February 11, 2023). "Second Trump attorney met with Mar-A-Lago probe grand jury in recent weeks | CNN Politics". CNN. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved September 2, 2023.
  36. ^ a b Michael Scherer; Josh Dawsey; Marianne LeVine (March 12, 2024). "Trump takes control of the RNC with mass layoffs, restructuring". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on March 12, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
  37. ^ Cameron, Chris (March 14, 2014). "New R.N.C. Chair Declares 'a United Front' With Trump After Sweeping Changes". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 26, 2024. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  38. ^ Amy Gardner; Yvonne Wingett Sanchez (April 26, 2024). "Arizona defendant Christina Bobb plays key role on RNC election integrity team". The Washington Post.
  39. ^ Shuham, Matt (October 17, 2024). "GOP's 'Election Integrity' Lawyer Says U.S. Needs 'Cleansing'". HuffPost.
  40. ^ "RNC Hires Election-Denying Ex-Trump Lawyer For 'Election Integrity' Post". HuffPost. March 13, 2024. Archived from the original on April 7, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
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