Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis shot back at critics and said she was “so tired” of “idiots” trying to humiliate her for prosecuting former President Donald Trump in a state case alleging election interference in 2020.
“I live the experience of a Black woman who is attacked and oversexualized,” Willis told a church congregation in Marietta, Georgia, on Thursday. “See, I’m so tired of hearing these idiots call my name as ‘fanny’ in a way to attempt to humiliate me because, like silly schoolboys, the name reminds them of a woman’s rear, of her behind.”
The district attorney’s investigation led to an indictment last year of Trump and 18 co-defendants in a sweeping racketeering case accusing the group of conspired to change the 2020 presidential vote count in the state.
Trump and his allies, especially co-defendant Rudy Giuliani, have continued to attack Willis while maintaining their innocence. At times, they have called her derogatory names. Giuliani called her a “ho” during a right-wing event last week, and both he and Trump have pronounced Willis’ name as “Fanny” during events. Her name is pronounced “FAH-nee.”
“Fani the ho,” Giuliani said at a Christian nationalist conference in Michigan. “I could drop the ‘ho’ part if she’d just quit and go away.”
John Bazemore/Associated Press
“Fanny, like your ass,” Trump remarked during a rally in Ohio earlier this year.
Willis has been outspoken about her frustrations as she seeks to prosecute Trump and his co-defendants. The case was jeopardized earlier this year after one of the defendant’s attorneys accused her of an improper relationship with Nathan Wade, a lawyer she hired to lead the prosecutorial team. Those lawyers said the romance warranted Willis’ disqualification, but a judge ruled she could continue in her role as long as Wade stepped aside.
He did so in March, saying he was proud of his work but would leave “in the interest of democracy” and to see the case move forward.
The Georgia Court of Appeals, however, agreed to reconsider that decision and stayed the prosecution against Trump and several other defendants while it hears oral arguments. The hearing is set for Oct. 4, which all but guarantees the case will not be tried before the Nov. 5 election.
On Thursday, Willis told the congregation to not concern itself with insults directed at her as she vowed to hold all accountable if they break the law, with “no exceptions.”
“I promise you, I don’t concern myself with them. I am too busy working 15-hour days trying to use every talent God gave me to fulfill my God-given purpose.”