The Biggest Loser

JohnInCarolina

http://twitter.com/Bencjacobs/status/1725937951824093319?s=20

JohnInCarolina

http://twitter.com/Acyn/status/1725994653772571103?s=20

lousubcap

And still the acolytes won't abandon ship.  Once you have been taken to the cleaners and know that, it is quite difficult to admit you have been "had" by a professional con man/grifter.  We are on a very disturbing trajectory for 2024.

I'm concerned that conviction and potential jail time will not make enough of a difference.  F' me. 

CHEETO makes Nixon look like a saint!

HeavyG

https://twitter.com/DavidCayJ/status/1725173528939380824?s=20

Seems about right.

JohnInCarolina

http://twitter.com/RadioFreeTom/status/1726087911538348208?s=20

lousubcap

My albeit simple solution to this whole trick sack that looks like the 2024 Presidential election:

The country needs a solid alternative to CHEETO.  Biden is not that person.  Enter Joe Manchin as the Democratic candidate.  He wins. CHEETO rots in prison and we all sleep better.  Wishful thinking and musings on a Monday evening.

lousubcap

From Politico:

"On Monday a three-judge panel heard arguments in DONALD TRUMP’s appeal of District Judge TANYA CHUTKAN’s gag order in the D.C. election subversion case.

The session went on much longer than scheduled and both sides struggled to answer questions at the heart of their opposition’s arguments in the case. (You can listen to the full audio of the hearing at this link.)

While it might seem like a technical legal fight over a single administrative issue in one of the many Trump cases, the battle over the gag order is about something much bigger.

In his filings objecting to the order, Trump repeatedly emphasized his status as a presidential candidate.

“The Supreme Court has ‘never allowed the government to prohibit candidates from communicating relevant information to voters during an election,’” Trump’s lawyers wrote in the first line of their appeal of the order. “Accordingly, no court has ever imposed a gag order on the political speech of a candidate for public office, let alone the leading candidate for President of the United States — until now.”

In other words: I’m running for president, so gag order rules can’t apply to me.

At oral arguments about the gag order, Chutkan repeatedly emphasized Trump’s status as “a criminal defendant.”

“He is facing four felony charges. He is under the supervision of the criminal justice system,” she said. “He does not have the right to say and do exactly as he pleases. … No other criminal defendant would be allowed to do so and I am not going to permit it in this case.”

In other words: Nobody forced you to run for president so gag orders apply to you as much as any criminal defendant.

The presidential race is entering a phase where courtroom legal strategy is becoming more intertwined with campaign political strategy.

Trump has been enormously successful at using his status as a criminal defendant as a sword in his campaign: Vote for me — I’m a victim of the Biden Deep State!

Now he’s using his status as a presidential candidate as a shield in the courtroom: You can’t gag me — I’m running for president!

The gag order fight is one of the first big tests of this strategy, and it might work. We can expect many collisions between the campaign and the courtrooms over the next months — over scheduling, witnesses, jury selection, allegations against the Biden administration, other First Amendment claims, etc.— and pretty soon the dynamic may define the 2024 presidential election.

Those skirmishes, however, will be nothing compared to what might happen if Trump is convicted and then elected president."

Botch

Just a reminder:
 

18 U.S. Code Chapter 101:

Records and Reports

$2071 Concealment, removal, or mutilation generally

(b) Whoever, having the custody of any such record, proceeding, map, book, document, paper, or other thing, willfully and unlawfully conceals, removes, mutilates, obliterates, falsifies, or destroys the same, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years. or both; and shall forfeit his office and be disqualified from holding any office under the United States.

lousubcap

"Former Trump Organization controller Jeff McConney admitted he overvalued Trump’s penthouse by over $100 million because he relied on an incorrect representation by a Trump Organization broker. McConney said he felt “proud” of what he did and that “numbers don’t fully represent what these assets are worth.” McConney said he “felt comfortable” with his contributions to Trump’s statements of financial conditions, which are the center of the case. The trial continues. Peter Charalambous, Aaron Katersky, Olivia Rubin, and Lucien Bruggerman report for ABC News. 

Former President Donald Trump was understood to have the “final review of every net-worth statement” until he left for the White House in 2017, according to key defense witness McConney. McConney’s handwriting is on several financial statement drafts, showing he added cautionary notes and revised language prior to what one handwritten note said up top, “DJT TO GET FINAL REVIEW.”Trump had denied involvement in preparing these annual net-worth statements, and before cross-examination, McConney had testified the statements were reviewed by himself and then-CFO Allen Weisselberg, failing to mention Trump. The notes and McConney’s testimony provide serious doubts over Trump’s primary defense which places blame with his accountants. Laura Italiono reports for Business Insider. "

JohnInCarolina

http://twitter.com/YVindman/status/1727146956517220769?s=20

JohnInCarolina

lousubcap

CHEETO should be thankful he's not in jail given his rants and actions regarding 91 felony counts in four different jurisdictions.  But the above is the only play in his playbook. 

It's all to continue to fund the coffers to cover his legal bills.  The grifter never misses an opportunity to transmit his drivel. 

CHEETO makes Nixon look like a saint.  I loathe CHEETO. 

lousubcap

"Former Vice President Mike Pence offered details to the special counsel team of how then-President Donald Trump surrounded himself with “crank” attorneys,” shared “un-American” theories, and nearly pushed the country into a “constitutional crisis,” sources familiar with Pence’s account to investigators have said. According to the sources, one of Pence’s notes obtained by Special Counsel Jack Smith’s team shows that days before Pence was set to preside over Congress certifying the election results on Jan. 6, 2021, he momentarily decided that he would skip the proceedings altogether, writing in the note that there were “too many questions” and it would otherwise be “too hurtful to my friend.” But he ultimately concluded he had a duty to show up. Pence told investigators that he “clearly and repeatedly” emphasized to Trump that rejecting electoral votes for Biden would violate the Constitution. Pence could take the stand against Trump should the interference case proceed to trial, as investigators are reportedly keen for Pence to swear under oath the post-election stories he included in his book published last year. Katherine Faulders, Mike Levine, and Alexander Mallin report for ABC News."

HeavyG

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/status/1730065038050795945?s=20

lousubcap

An attorney for former President Donald Trump told special counsel Jack Smith’s team that she “very clearly” warned Trump it would be a “crime” if he failed to comply with the subpoena for classified documents, and that she explained to Trump that a subpoena from the Justice Department was “different from” the preceding demand to return documents Trump took from the White House. Attorney Jennifer Little told investigators Trump “absolutely” understood her warning and her advice that a subpoena from the Department was “different from” the preceding demand to return documents Trump took from the White House, all of which was explained to Trump at a meeting with Trump and another attorney at Mar-a-Lago. The indictment filed against Trump in Florida claims he did not comply with the subpoena and “caused a false certification to be submitted to the FBI,” which claimed Trump filed all classified documents. Trump and his co-defendants have pleaded not guilty in the case. Katherine Faulders, Mike Levine, and Alexander Mallin report for ABC News.

JohnInCarolina

http://twitter.com/MattGertz/status/1730560099138097291?s=20

lousubcap

Former President Donald Trump’s gag order which prevented him and his attorney from making public statements  about the staff of the New York judge overseeing his ongoing civil trial was reinstated yesterday by an appeals court. Trump’s business fraud trial which also addresses other allegations including insurance fraud and falsifying business records continues. Ella Lee reports for The Hill.

Trump unleashed a torrent of warnings and grievances on his platform Truth Social in the past two days, where he called on the government to “come down hard” on MSNBC and “make them pay” for its critical reporting of Republicans, and also warned that his indictments have opened a “very big and dangerous Pandora’s Box,” following his recent indications that he will prosecute his enemies if elected. Trump also accused writer E. Jean Carroll of fabricating sexual assault allegations against him despite being found liable twice for defamation over similar comments. He also posted a series of targeted attacks at the wife of New York Judge Arthur Engoron – who is sitting on his ongoing civil fraud trial – and claimed she has made social media posts on X criticizing Trump and his family. Zachary Basu reports for Axios. On Thursday, a spokesperson for the state court system said Judge Engoron’s wife does not have an X account and “has sent no social media posts regarding the former president. They are not hers.” Lauren del Valle reporting for CNN.

HeavyG

https://twitter.com/NashIsHereForIt/status/1730572502236110914?s=20

JohnInCarolina

http://twitter.com/patriottakes/status/1730619066413465974?s=20

lousubcap

Glad Santos is gone.  Took long enough.  The ethics committee investigation was the tipping point.  

Hopefully CHEETO being found guilty of any of the numerous felony charges will achieve the same, although I really doubt it. 

CHEETO makes Nixon look like a saint. 

HeavyG

The ironic thing is that Santos is probably not the most corrupt Congress Critter in the building.

fishlessman

.

HeavyG said:

The ironic thing is that Santos is probably not the most corrupt Congress Critter in the building.

he is not too good at lying like the rest of them

Botch

HeavyG said:

The ironic thing is that Santos is probably not the most corrupt Congress Critter in the building.

He wasn't booted for corruption.  He was booted for pissing off wealthy repub donors.  

JohnInCarolina

HeavyG said:

The ironic thing is that Santos is probably not the most corrupt Congress Critter in the building.

Matt Gaetz unzips…

JohnInCarolina

lousubcap

I've got Karl's latest book on my Xmas wish list.  I'll see if anyone takes for action. 

lousubcap

And this from Politico today-

WHAT WILL SCOTUS DO? — The Trump trials can be confusing. With so much procedural action occurring across so many cases in so many jurisdictions, it’s often difficult to know when something truly important has happened.

It’s worth pausing and highlighting those hinge moments in these complicated cases when they arise.

Last night’s opinion by Judge TANYA CHUTKAN, who ruled that DONALD TRUMP is not immune from criminal prosecution, is one of those crucial turning points.

First, recall that Trump’s general strategy across these cases is twofold:

1. Argue that he’s immune from any post-presidential accountability for his actions as president.
   
2. Delay the proceedings until he wins the 2024 election and then dismisses the cases.

Chutkan delivered a massive blow to the first part of this strategy. But what happens next at the appeals and Supreme Court level with respect to her decision could determine the fate of strategy No. 2.

Chutkan’s opinion is the first by a federal court to hold what probably seems obvious to most: A former president is not immune from criminal prosecution for crimes committed while serving as president.

This was no technical legal matter but a sweeping opinion written in language that leaned on the most sacred historical touchstones of American history: the founding ideals about the role of a king versus a president, the Federalist Papers and GEORGE WASHINGTON. And the opinion was studded with pointed quotes about the nature of tyranny and the rule of law. (For example, from Justice FELIX FRANKFURTER: “If one man can be allowed to determine for himself what is law, every man can. That means first chaos, then tyranny.”)

Here’s Chutkan’s already much-quoted summary of her decision:

“Whatever immunities a sitting President may enjoy, the United States has only one Chief Executive at a time, and that position does not confer a lifelong ‘get-out-of-jail-free’ pass. Former Presidents enjoy no special conditions on their federal criminal liability. Defendant may be subject to federal investigation, indictment, prosecution, conviction, and punishment for any criminal acts undertaken while in office.”

dbCooper

lousubcap said:

And this from Politico today-

WHAT WILL SCOTUS DO? — The Trump trials can be confusing. With so much procedural action occurring across so many cases in so many jurisdictions, it’s often difficult to know when something truly important has happened.

It’s worth pausing and highlighting those hinge moments in these complicated cases when they arise.

Last night’s opinion by Judge TANYA CHUTKAN, who ruled that DONALD TRUMP is not immune from criminal prosecution, is one of those crucial turning points.

First, recall that Trump’s general strategy across these cases is twofold:

1. Argue that he’s immune from any post-presidential accountability for his actions as president.
   
2. Delay the proceedings until he wins the 2024 election and then dismisses the cases.

Chutkan delivered a massive blow to the first part of this strategy. But what happens next at the appeals and Supreme Court level with respect to her decision could determine the fate of strategy No. 2.

Chutkan’s opinion is the first by a federal court to hold what probably seems obvious to most: A former president is not immune from criminal prosecution for crimes committed while serving as president.

This was no technical legal matter but a sweeping opinion written in language that leaned on the most sacred historical touchstones of American history: the founding ideals about the role of a king versus a president, the Federalist Papers and GEORGE WASHINGTON. And the opinion was studded with pointed quotes about the nature of tyranny and the rule of law. (For example, from Justice FELIX FRANKFURTER: “If one man can be allowed to determine for himself what is law, every man can. That means first chaos, then tyranny.”)

Here’s Chutkan’s already much-quoted summary of her decision:

“Whatever immunities a sitting President may enjoy, the United States has only one Chief Executive at a time, and that position does not confer a lifelong ‘get-out-of-jail-free’ pass. Former Presidents enjoy no special conditions on their federal criminal liability. Defendant may be subject to federal investigation, indictment, prosecution, conviction, and punishment for any criminal acts undertaken while in office.”

I read this as Judge Chutkan following originalist doctrine.  If that is accurate, my hope is the appeal reaches SCOTUS sooner rather than later.  The seven that still have some semblance of ethics, plus the two ultra originals, should give her a 9-0 affirmation.

JohnInCarolina

lousubcap

Don't know what Robert De Niro said but I am quite sure it was at least an order of magnitude more founded than CHEETO's standard play.  The pattern is not to attempt to debate the issue(s) since that would be a totally lost cause but to discredit the source.  CHEETO has no ability to creatively think and challenge anything on his own. CHEETO is too shallow for that.  CHEETO is a bonafide LOSER and with small hands.

CHEETO is scared sh!tless as quoted by John Kelly, the chief of staff from 2017 to 2019, told The Washington Post in June 2023. 

In case you have missed it, I loathe CHEETO.

CHEETO makes Nixon look like a saint.