‘As American as Apple Pie’
Georgia Prosecutor Nathan Wade defended his workplace romance with District Attorney Fani Willis in his first interview since stepping down from Donald Trump’s election interference case.
May 6 2024, Published 2:00 p.m. ET
Georgia Prosecutor Nathan Wade has spoken out for the first time since he stepped down from Donald Trump‘s election interference case, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Wade took himself off the case in March after an Atlanta judge said that his romantic relationship with his boss, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, created an “appearance of impropriety.” The judge ruled that the matter could only move forward upon the removal of either Willis or Wade.
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Willis hired Wade as a special prosecutor in November 2021. He was brought on to lead the investigation that resulted in the indictment against the former president and more than a dozen others for allegedly unlawfully conspiring to change the 2020 election outcome while participating in a criminal enterprise.
The timeline of the romance between Willis and Wade became a matter of debate in the courtroom. The couple insisted it began in 2022, but Trump and his co-defendants argued that evidence showed it started before Wade was brought on the case.
Wade defended the relationship while speaking to ABC News on Sunday, calling workplace romances “as American as apple pie.”
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Wade stepped down from the case in March after the judge ruled that either he or Willis must be removed for the matter to continue.
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“It happens to everyone. But it happened to the two of us,” he said.
When asked by Interviewer Linsey Davis if he regretted getting romantically involved with Willis, Wade responded, “I regret that that private matter became the focal point of this very important prosecution,” adding, “This is a very important case.”
“I hate that my personal life has begun to overshadow the true issues in the case,” he continued.
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Trump and his co-defendants moved to have Willis removed from the case in January, arguing that her relationship with Wade created a conflict of interest.
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Davis then wondered whether the couple had considered “pausing” the romance until the case was over “if democracy is on the line.”
“Absolutely, I’ll concede that that could have been an approach,” Wade answered. “But there again, when you are in the middle of it, these feelings are developing and you get to a point to where the feelings are so strong that you know, you start to want to do things that really are none of the public’s concern.”
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Despite the delay brought on by the workplace relationship, Wade said that he predicted a “day of reckoning” was coming in the case and that a jury would “do the right thing.”
Trump and his co-defendants filed a motion to disqualify Willis from the case in January, arguing that she benefited from a “personal, romantic relationship” with the special prosecutor, creating a conflict of interest.
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Trump is charged along with more than a dozen others with allegedly unlawfully conspiring to change the 2020 election outcome while participating in a criminal enterprise.
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Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee said that while there was not enough evidence to prove a conflict of interest, the couple derailed the case by failing to keep records of how they split personal financial expenses during their time prosecuting the matter.
Following Wade’s decision to step down, Trump wrote in a post on his platform Truth Social that the special prosecutor had “resigned in disgrace,” and doubled down on his claims that the case was part of a bid to harm his presidential campaign.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, and a trial date has not yet been set.
