"β[t]he defendant is not above the law," and that"[h]e is subject to the federal criminal laws like more than 330 million other Americans, including Members of Congress, federal judges, and everyday citizens." INCLUDING MEMBERS OF CONGRESS π‘
Schumer should demand that Menendez step down. If heβs found innocent he could run again for his senate seat. Turing a blind eye to these accusations of corruption is allowing for the public to give up on both parties. I am so disappointed with our democratic lack of leadership.
So much here to dissemble, yet you make it so clear. I still feel that we are two years behind and this creates one of the most critical but complex years of American History. I hear the distant chants from the the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, βthe whole world is watching...the whole world is watching..β
Yes, all true. But as Robert Hubbell of Todayβs Edition has repeatedly made clear, while the court activity may test us, the challenge we have so far and may continue to have in 2024 is at the ballot box.
We must do everything in our power to see that he does not win. Chesebro and Powell along with others might help. Mitt Romney has put his life on the line with threats from Trump supporters. Letβs do all we can to continue to make the case that Trump is not (and never was presidentially competent).
Thank you so much John. Mitt Romney is honorable - Trump does not have an honorable shred to his personality; he has absolutely NO core and no moral fiber. Sorry, I wasn't going to go on a rant tonight. Trump's followers looked at him as someone who was financially successful: that myth has pretty much been displayed for what it is during his fraud trial. They won't have a lot to say about him when he is penniless (sadly, their values surround wealth). We need to be safe. So we cannot openly put up yard signs or wear bumper stickers in MAGA areas. But encourage everyone to vote Blue π
I sometimes wonder if getting rid of McCarthy as House Speaker was part of the Freedom Caucusβ plan all along. With no House Speaker there will be no vote on funding the government. Not funding the government has been the goal of these extremists. By voting against any and every candidate for House Speaker they can effectively reach their goal of a government shut down.
That said, If the government shuts down will we even be able to get to the ballot box in 2024.
Only the federal government would (might) shut down. But voting occurs at the state and local levels, even for national-level offices. I don't see why a federal govt shutdown would preclude voting in 2024 although I agree, for a presidential outcome, it does require Electoral College and both houses of Congress, jointly, to formally ratify the vote results. I cannot imagine that the Republican House of Representatives would shut down the federal government for 12 months or longer. That would be a great way to bleed off a massive number of Republican voters whose lives and livelihoods are being destroyed. Surely even those Republicans can't be that stupid (with the exception of a short list within the "Freedom" Caucus whose goal is to destroy the federal government).
I think we must recognize that every Republican member of the House and Senate who voted against impeachment, starting with the first wherein he tried to get Zelensky to dig up dirt on Biden, has been in some maddening way an enabler of Donald J. Trump.
Until and if we get to the time when House members are not taking direction from DJT, we cannot feel free from the trauma, chaos, threats to individuals or our democracy. Every day, in every way Donald J. Trump shows us that he is dedicated to only one thing - his remaining out of jail and keeping his ego in tact. Do we see hope in the slow but growing number of his colleagues flipping? Can we get and maintain a trial date to convict him before elections?
We must not depend on that but it would feel better. In the meantime it is all hands on deck to get out the vote and turn him and a lot of elected House members out to pasture. (Better yet, lock them up!!)
I don't think Ivanka Trump will risk her comfortable life with her husband and children to save "daddy," nor do I think she will need to sit down and think about it. She is accustomed to a particular lifestyle, and she won't give it up for anyone, including TFG.
Actually sheβs given up much - if not all - that was of value to her. βShe is not a New York resident.β I think her New York socialite life was of utmost importance to her and itβs been lost to her because of daddy. No more Met Gala, no more galas, period. At some level even she has to acknowledge that daddy is to blame for her exile to Florida or wherever. Even the income from two billion canβt make up for her ostracism.
Is Florida the only state? Also, I doubt that Palm Beach qualifies as "exile." There is quite a lively social scene there. The Trumps and Kushners don't stay in one place, either. New York might not be much fun these days, but owning a private jet makes life less inconvenient.
Nauta may be an idiot, but he is probably just broke and can't afford his own attorney. You know darned well that trump told him it is this attorney for free or his own attorney on his own nickel. Easy decision, unless it lands him in prison, which I am in hopes it will to send a message to others who are willing to break laws for people like trump. At least there is nothing else to capture our attention like Gym Jordan's slip and fall in his attempt to become the next Speaker of the House. Seems none of the people he and his pals attempted to scare into voting for him were willing to have him at any price. Oh, I saw the stats on Gym Jordan's 14 yrs in Congress: 0 bills with his name on them & $2.5 million salary. Looks like Ohioans aren't getting their monies worth out of Gym. carry on
Great lines, Bill McGuire. A Dem should run against Jordan and use them: βJim Jordan: 14 years in Congress. 2.5m in salary. Zero bills passed. Ohioans, are you getting your moneyβs-worth?β
How does Gym have a $2.5 million salary? He is a useless pos. What on earth justifies this amount of money? That is one of the biggest problems in politics. Dollar signs in the eyes of politicians instead of actually wanting to do good for their constituents. Money and power corrupt the weak. Gym Jordan is a great example.
That's still too much for someone who doesn't do their job. Jordan is a loudmouth bully, who has pledged loyalty to trump instead of his country. That's what the taxpayers are paying for.
Oh, I see. And how many millions were you paid in salary over the years? Really, your point is what? All of them are paid the same. Jordan just happens to be a really crappy Congressman, so instead of questioning his salary, why not ask Ohio voters just why they thought this do-nothing bully deserved to be a member of the House of Representatives for 12 years?
The point is using his salary in conjunction with his βdo-nothingβ for Ohioans is a great way of asking Ohio voters if itβs worth continuing to have him represent them in Congress.
Like Ruthie posted above a democrat should run against Jordan and pose the question to Ohio voters: βJim Jordan: 14 years in Congress. 2.5m in salary. Zero bills passed. Ohioans, are you getting your moneyβs-worth?β
But he is a Loser, Bill. What could be better for Trump's valet to go down with the boss. The Maga crowd would make him St. Nauta- Keeper of the Faith. His financial future is set.
I like that you sign your posts with "We're in this together." Ordinarily, it gives me an urge to pause and consider myself as part of a readership, an audience, and, more generally, as a citizen. This time, we get the stark contrast [edit: with] your description of Trump's alleged co-conspirators and even his daughter, Ivanka, as being in an "everyone for themselves" situation. We're in this together indeed. I can only hope.
I like to read all of your inputs. Very interesting and heart felt. It is certainly one of the must do's in the morning, so that they day looks much better, and I'm not alone.
In the GA RICO case, who is the next Defendant to flip before the Wagons start rolling west? Possibly, JENNA, whose attorney fees are not being paid & her world is collapsing.
Meadows; good possibility to be next. Not a major player, lots of inside info to bargain if he does it early; 64 yrs old...
Eastman; good possibility. Major Player; info; lots to lose...But I think he's too important, so might be too early to consider.
Giuliani; Nope, to close to Trump
Clark; He might be the next; he's scared; he knows some things, but he was not part of the inner conspiracy group. He might want to cut a pre-pre deal with Smith.
Shafer, Still, Latham; I lump them together as fake electors. I don't think they have enough to trade; I think the AG will want to make an example of them as soldiers for Trump.
Hall, Hampton; Bad actors in Raffensberger's org. I think. One of them could roll over early on to strengthen Raffensberger position; they didn't do their duty.
Cheeley; not trustworthy, already perjured himself. Not one of the early ones in my guess at this.
Lee, Floyd, Kutti; No advantage to the AG to let them plead, they were after the fact intimidators.
So Who is next? I think it will be Meadows, just because Jenna is not important enough.
Probably completely wrong, what do I know? But there it is for your contemplation pleasure.
I think Meadows is up to his earlobes in this. Read Cassidy Hutchinson's book. His behavior throughout his time as Chief was very, very strange for a person in that job....there is no way he didn't know anything - it is his job to know everything, his refusal to help the new administration transition..and all that paper burning....what Chief spends his last weeks in the office blocking the smooth transition so he can build his own fires? Actions speak louder than words. But, if he can save himself he will. One of the weirder events in her book was the business about how Cassidy (Meadows kept telling her to be his eyes and ears) was going to Florida after the election to work for Trump. It was decided before the coup and then the job offer disappeared after the coup. It really bothered me. He told her, "the Boss doesn't trust you." Meadows decided to leave congress to move in as Chief at the exact same time the country shut down for COVID. In many cases he was going home early, leaving a 23 year old assistant to handle things, taking the night off and was conveniently unavailable the night of Dec 18 when all hell broke loose. She told him he shouldn't go to the War Room the night before J6. His big concern was that Trump not go down to the capital (I presume that was because he wasn't invited). He was there only for the campaign. He clearly did nothing Chiefs do most likely because Trump did little actual work - CEO style). If Trump's coup had succeeded, Meadows might have been running the country by default, not just the White House staff. He slipped up when he went down to Georgia and was on the phone call, leaving his fingerprints on the pressure game. I was very surprised he wasn't one of the named conspirators in the DC case. Then there is the bit about his prioritizing declassification of papers during his last hours in government. And driving the requests there himself? Then of course there is this: https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/25/politics/mark-meadows-texts-2319/index.html
I think he might. He will not want to be left standing alone with Trump. In a classic Republican move, he will do it while the world and the House is in crisis or during the holidays when nobody is paying a lot of attention.
Also, at this point, the odds of avoiding big dollar penalties, jail, house arrest, etc is getting less likely. Maybe those probation deals were designed to wet his whistle. It wonder if he has considered he might become Trump's cell mate....that would be a new kind of hell for Meadows.
That was a valuable Link Martha, thank you. Meadows sent 2,319 Text messages between Election Day, November 2020 all the way to the Inauguration -1/20/21.
I am interested in the Texts that weer NOT produced to the J6 Select Committee.
Bruce, you maybe correct on all points but, Jenna Ellis knows the 'Trump Campaign' RICO Racket facts. It cannot be 'America's Mayor' because his hair dye may melt down his face on the stand. As Joyce pointed out, the Pre-Trial Motion deadline is coming up fast. Time to plea.
I would like to chime in (Bryan, I think you are probably correct that it will be Jenna), but just to make the bet, I'll say Jeffrey Clark. Boy, is he a number. So I think Jenna and Jeffrey are vying for the hot seat at the plea deal table tonight. Stay tuned I guess. But in my view, Jeffrey Clark is the biggest jerk in the entire group of co-conspirators in the Georgia case as well as the #4 unindicted co-conspirator in Washington DC. Fanni Willis and Jack Smith could put him away for a long time because he is an alleged traitor. But he might be a useful idiot for them. I think I should win the bet just for mentioning that I think both Jack Smith and Fani Willis view Jeffrey Clark as a useful idiot.
PS Christine: I donβt know if this is accurate, but New York Times and several other publications have listed Jeffrey Clark as the #4. I think you can pull it up online for the NYT on August 3, 2023. But donβt forget that fanny. Willis has 30 on named co-conspirators, and Jim Jordan very well could be on that list. I donβt know why that hyper inflated egoist would want to be speaker of the house where heβs created the biggest Gong Show in history. He should simply be lawyering up for the future. I think heβs pretty well done. Cooked. Fani Willis has an outstanding track record. I would not want to be on her list. Iβm just saying, and Iβm just projecting because nobody knows who those 30 names are. Itβs just momentous to try to keep track so I donβt. But I think I recall Matt Gates, trotting over to trumps office to get a waiver or a pardon or something for himself and his buddies. Perhaps Jim Jordan wanted a pardon as well for stopping the certification, or putting false electors in, and I donβt know if he was involved in the Georgia mess.
I think someone had access to the actual conversations I knew i#4 was Jeffrey Clark. I read the conversation and it was badder than bad. Badder than Leroy Brown. Or perhaps just really really stupid which is the same thing because he was an attorney with the DOJ. I donβt know if heβs on some status that gives him a salary. While heβs waiting for the Georgia trial? So thatβs why (no matter how irksome it is), we have to say allegedly, and thatβs everyone is in a send until theyβre proven guilty in a court of law,. I donβt know what we have to say when they plea deal guilty. And he wanted to be Attorney General, and he thought it was OK, according to published conversation, that the military could take over our country. And thatβs why I said he was the biggest jerk in the room. Not that Jim Jordan isnβt a big jerk. Thereβs just nothing mutually exclusive about these behaviors. Itβs both/and. My question about Jeffrey Clarkβs suggestion that the military take over our country would be βand how did Trump respond to that?β Did Trump think that was a good idea?? Did he want to use the military folks he disparaged and called losers? The guy making the suggestion that the then-president use the military to take over our country was not a private attorney. He was an insider in the government - an attorney at the department of justice. And he was going around his bosses to speak to the president to pose this nonsense to someone we can only say has the IQ of a village idiot but with the sense of self importance of Julius Caesar. So someone(s) have decided Jeffrey Clark is the #4. On August 3, 2023 the New York Times updated their conjecture and included that number four was a β justice department official who worked on civil matters.β When one reads the use of military conversation, it suggests a coup, and that adds the nuances, but Iβm sure Jack Smith is waaaaaay ahead of the curve on this guy. The irony is nearly indescribable. Trump considered Jeffrey Clark for his attorney general should they turn over the government (with no other reason, except Trump, wanted to stay in power), and then he disparages Jack Smith, who has had a stellar career in the DOJ and is defending the tenets of our government.
Valere, I do not know the odds on Jeff Clark but, you may be correct. Regardless, tfg is "straining the loyalty of onetime allies" per CNBC on 8/22 because tfg has "refused to assist with legal bills".
Jenna Ellis was mocked when the RICO indictment first came down for her projection that she "continues to honor & praise Him". Fani W wants evidence on the Orange Blobs' campaign felonies.
Here is my prediction: βhisβ tactics will first include delay, delay and delay. If the trials do eventually take place, and a judgment goes against him, he will appeal. The appeals will get caught up in the legal system for years, and will not all be resolved before βhisβ demise. That will lead to no justice during βhisβ (or my) lifetime. βHisβ guilt or innocence will be left to be read in history books.
I share your skepticism Cathy. Weβve lived with a rigged legal system benefiting the privileged for decades. If Walt Nauta ends up doing more time than Donald Trump, that will be my litmus test for whether or not anything has really changed. Is this a watershed moment for the integrity of the judicial branch? Yes. Yes it is.
Well, as I posted above we must work to see justice served at the ballot box. In the meantime, Iβd like to think that since Trump seems to want to have his trial in the press it doesnβt seem impossible to watch as he and the House Republicans make our case pretty darn clear with all the chaotic nonsense.
Donβt forget, Cathy, AG Letitia James is bringing the βTrump Empireβ down in New York State. Fani Willis has also been very fast to respond and push for timely trials. We The People haven a right to a speedy trial! I donβt disagree with you (I am now 74) about seeing justice done, but I know his business life is kaput. That is very satisfying to me, as a Native New Yorker, watching for decades as that slime stole from us taxpayers. I hope he rots in jail, but am not sure I will see that.
Hi Elisabeth, Trump's business life is everything to him. He had no respect for the office of the presidency and used it for his self-benefit. Now that his business life is 'kaput,' he will be as well.
Hi Bruce, The blame game works in the press - but not in court against Letisha James, Jack Harris and Fani Willis. Trump is a master at substituting the conflct: when he was asked a direct question by reporters about how 'court went,' he responded with: "This was never supposed to happen. And I'm leading in the polls against Joe Biden by a lot." [Please note: Trump has 91 indictments and Joe Biden, who according to Trump is losing in the polls wears tennis shoes and has done a fabulous job as president]. Are we supposed to believe that people actually prefer indictments to great diplomacy even in tennis shoes? But....regarding off-track response that 'This that wasn't supposed to happen' 'this' actually DID happen and it has been because of a preponderance of evidence. The polls Trump is 'leading in' have questionable methodologies: WaPo recently admitted the poll Trump led in was faulty and they called it an 'outlier.' Hella. I'm still trying to understand how an entire poll can be an 'outlier' unless it was in a group of polls (it was not). Anyway, liars figure but figures don't lie. We'll get there despite don-Don's bleating. We need to whomp him in the voting booths in 2024. I hope we can use Dominion again. Poetic justice.
Hi Valere, Whomp is such a great word! Yes, we must whomp that chomp. Denial is not a river in Egypt, despite dumps assertions to the contraryβ¦.He is such a shitty βreality showβ I am hoping after the 91 indictments are shown to be TRUE, he will finally pay the price. All the doubt in our justice system is not unwarranted, but everyday and every analyses of the real trouble that slime is in, does give me hope he will pay.
Every exposure in court means he is paying. He is paying by losing sleep with every guilty plea deal in Georgia. And Jack Smith can use those to whomp him in Washington DC. We need to whomp him and whomp him and whomp him, to show him what a legal whomp feels like. Some of us have spent our adult lives and careers working to safeguard our own votes and those of our fellow citizens and he tried to take them from us. A man without honor.
Cathy, I agree, but I didn't think of evasion by death (by natural causes), which would be very acceptable to keep him out of the White House.
I have a few small bets with friends ($1.00) that chump will never see a day in prison--excepting gag order violation bail revocations--which would normally be in a jail, not a prison; however, jail would be doubtful due to the Secret Service detail.
So not a day of incarceration, just maybe an ankle device with confinement to his hotel or Bedminster?
Nope, Gus! He will be in confinement at Langley with high security in a specially built house. He will no longer own 'his hotel' or Bedminster. His empire is loaded with debt; he keeps it rolling by over-valued loans and those have been exposed by Letishia James. Because the loans were gained by fraud, they can be 'called in.' He has no resources to pay them. He will not do business in NYC. There will be not hotel. I'm not sure about Bedminister, but I guess since we are all out betting tonight, I will be a nickel that he will not have cushy home confinement.
Iβd be fine with a cage built in a dilapidated high school gymnasium. Picture Hannibal Lecter and a Secret Service detail with the agent who draws the short straw bringing Trump a bag of fava beans every morning for breakfast.
Tutone, makes me shudder too! She is a vile creature, that Ivanka and her husband is a corrupt bastard. I wonβt even comment on the two βadult sonsβ as they are described in the press. They all make me vomit!
For me all this Trump legal circus year after year and especially now shows just how fragile our freedom is. Do we really have freedom? And what if we get caught up in the legal system and canβt compete with the rich who get caught up?
The rich and powerful using elite educated (and corrupt) lawyers to craft society to operate in their favor - this is what I am seeing from the Oval to the SC to the economy to basic civil rights. Maybe this is why Trump and the GOP have so much disdain for society because they know our view of it has all been wrong - fake/manipulated. Trump, Leonard Leo, Harlan Crow et al twisting society and laughing all the way to their private clubs.
Pretty unsettling to see the curtain pulled back and view just how society really works. That Disney view for all this time has really just been a puppet show - a show that truly could be over 11/24.
Agree with all you say, Lloyd, except it's my belief that there will always be corruption waiting in the wings even if we get rid of those we see as corrupt on 11/24.
Weβve all heard/ read the quote: βPower tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.β
But an article in βThe Smithsonianβ magazine showed the results of a study regarding people in positions of power that it wasnβt about power alone: β β¦..the study found, power doesnβt corrupt; it heightens pre-existing ethical tendencies.β
This says a lot about the βbadβ behavior we are seeing of GOP members in the House. Their βpre-existing ethical tendenciesβ are on full display.
Tfg is really busy dancing the judicial four or five step. Lord knows when all his legal trials and tribulations will be over and done with. As for daddyβs little girl, i really hope she has to testify. Somehow it would serve both of them right.
Whew! Will it ever end ? Joyce, do you see anyway DJT will ever pay for all the harm he has done to our country? I know that he is innocent until proven guilty, but, I am getting very tired of the havoc he continues to cause. He is a loser, a grifter, a liar, bully, a facist,an autocrat --- Now I can go to sleep. Thank you for listening! π
Money (and lots of it), power, white skin and political connections. This all adds up to βsorry society, no accountability for me, but for you ββ like yesterdayβ
Oh sorry, I forgot to add in lawyers with the moral and ethical standards of the Mafia.
Itβs appalling to me how the legal system works for the rich vs the rest of us.
Indeed Lynell, and as don-Don's mentor, Roy Cohn used to say: 'Don't tel me what the law is, tell me who the judge is.' It was likely frustrating to don-Don when he learned the names of four of the five trial judges he is facing or has faced are: Judges Engoran, Chutkan, Kaplan and McAffee. Cheers don-Don - Roy Cohn's course won't work this time.
Did ya hear the one about the three lawyers...? I agree Lloyd. One of my lawyer friends (former friends) finds this all so amusing that he even votes for Trump, just to continue the show.
I keep wondering if trumps calls to shut the government down with the intent to shut down the court cases against him couldn't be seen as obstruction of justice?
"β[t]he defendant is not above the law," and that"[h]e is subject to the federal criminal laws like more than 330 million other Americans, including Members of Congress, federal judges, and everyday citizens." INCLUDING MEMBERS OF CONGRESS π‘
Schumer should demand that Menendez step down. If heβs found innocent he could run again for his senate seat. Turing a blind eye to these accusations of corruption is allowing for the public to give up on both parties. I am so disappointed with our democratic lack of leadership.
Amen.
So TRUE !! Thanks for your comment !!
So much here to dissemble, yet you make it so clear. I still feel that we are two years behind and this creates one of the most critical but complex years of American History. I hear the distant chants from the the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, βthe whole world is watching...the whole world is watching..β
Yes, all true. But as Robert Hubbell of Todayβs Edition has repeatedly made clear, while the court activity may test us, the challenge we have so far and may continue to have in 2024 is at the ballot box.
We must do everything in our power to see that he does not win. Chesebro and Powell along with others might help. Mitt Romney has put his life on the line with threats from Trump supporters. Letβs do all we can to continue to make the case that Trump is not (and never was presidentially competent).
Thank you so much John. Mitt Romney is honorable - Trump does not have an honorable shred to his personality; he has absolutely NO core and no moral fiber. Sorry, I wasn't going to go on a rant tonight. Trump's followers looked at him as someone who was financially successful: that myth has pretty much been displayed for what it is during his fraud trial. They won't have a lot to say about him when he is penniless (sadly, their values surround wealth). We need to be safe. So we cannot openly put up yard signs or wear bumper stickers in MAGA areas. But encourage everyone to vote Blue π
That is if we ever get to the ballot box.
I sometimes wonder if getting rid of McCarthy as House Speaker was part of the Freedom Caucusβ plan all along. With no House Speaker there will be no vote on funding the government. Not funding the government has been the goal of these extremists. By voting against any and every candidate for House Speaker they can effectively reach their goal of a government shut down.
That said, If the government shuts down will we even be able to get to the ballot box in 2024.
Only the federal government would (might) shut down. But voting occurs at the state and local levels, even for national-level offices. I don't see why a federal govt shutdown would preclude voting in 2024 although I agree, for a presidential outcome, it does require Electoral College and both houses of Congress, jointly, to formally ratify the vote results. I cannot imagine that the Republican House of Representatives would shut down the federal government for 12 months or longer. That would be a great way to bleed off a massive number of Republican voters whose lives and livelihoods are being destroyed. Surely even those Republicans can't be that stupid (with the exception of a short list within the "Freedom" Caucus whose goal is to destroy the federal government).
I think we must recognize that every Republican member of the House and Senate who voted against impeachment, starting with the first wherein he tried to get Zelensky to dig up dirt on Biden, has been in some maddening way an enabler of Donald J. Trump.
Until and if we get to the time when House members are not taking direction from DJT, we cannot feel free from the trauma, chaos, threats to individuals or our democracy. Every day, in every way Donald J. Trump shows us that he is dedicated to only one thing - his remaining out of jail and keeping his ego in tact. Do we see hope in the slow but growing number of his colleagues flipping? Can we get and maintain a trial date to convict him before elections?
We must not depend on that but it would feel better. In the meantime it is all hands on deck to get out the vote and turn him and a lot of elected House members out to pasture. (Better yet, lock them up!!)
!! YES !!
disassemble, no?
I don't think any immediate member of the Trump family will risk potential prison time for any other member. This should be very interesting.
More to the point, Ivanka won't risk losing her kids by possibly going to prison for her father.
It's possible that Jack Smith has future business with more than several members
of Congress, considering he
included 'Members of Congress' in his rebuttal to
Trump. I've only seen "no one
is above the law" stated before. From his lips to God's
ear.
How sweet that would be π.
I don't think Ivanka Trump will risk her comfortable life with her husband and children to save "daddy," nor do I think she will need to sit down and think about it. She is accustomed to a particular lifestyle, and she won't give it up for anyone, including TFG.
Looking out for number one is in their DNA no matter who gets tossed under the bus.
As Roy Scheider said in Jaws, βYouβre gonna need a bigger bus.β Have I got that right?
Actually sheβs given up much - if not all - that was of value to her. βShe is not a New York resident.β I think her New York socialite life was of utmost importance to her and itβs been lost to her because of daddy. No more Met Gala, no more galas, period. At some level even she has to acknowledge that daddy is to blame for her exile to Florida or wherever. Even the income from two billion canβt make up for her ostracism.
Is Florida the only state? Also, I doubt that Palm Beach qualifies as "exile." There is quite a lively social scene there. The Trumps and Kushners don't stay in one place, either. New York might not be much fun these days, but owning a private jet makes life less inconvenient.
Nauta may be an idiot, but he is probably just broke and can't afford his own attorney. You know darned well that trump told him it is this attorney for free or his own attorney on his own nickel. Easy decision, unless it lands him in prison, which I am in hopes it will to send a message to others who are willing to break laws for people like trump. At least there is nothing else to capture our attention like Gym Jordan's slip and fall in his attempt to become the next Speaker of the House. Seems none of the people he and his pals attempted to scare into voting for him were willing to have him at any price. Oh, I saw the stats on Gym Jordan's 14 yrs in Congress: 0 bills with his name on them & $2.5 million salary. Looks like Ohioans aren't getting their monies worth out of Gym. carry on
Great lines, Bill McGuire. A Dem should run against Jordan and use them: βJim Jordan: 14 years in Congress. 2.5m in salary. Zero bills passed. Ohioans, are you getting your moneyβs-worth?β
yes, his only accomplishment has been that of a wrestler and thatβs it. Nada. Zippity doo dah. Zilch.
A 'rassler who obviously got thrown on his head a few times too many.
How does Gym have a $2.5 million salary? He is a useless pos. What on earth justifies this amount of money? That is one of the biggest problems in politics. Dollar signs in the eyes of politicians instead of actually wanting to do good for their constituents. Money and power corrupt the weak. Gym Jordan is a great example.
He doesn't. He gets a congressional salary, which is $174k a year.
That's still too much for someone who doesn't do their job. Jordan is a loudmouth bully, who has pledged loyalty to trump instead of his country. That's what the taxpayers are paying for.
14 x $175000=$ 2.45 million
Oh, I see. And how many millions were you paid in salary over the years? Really, your point is what? All of them are paid the same. Jordan just happens to be a really crappy Congressman, so instead of questioning his salary, why not ask Ohio voters just why they thought this do-nothing bully deserved to be a member of the House of Representatives for 12 years?
The point is using his salary in conjunction with his βdo-nothingβ for Ohioans is a great way of asking Ohio voters if itβs worth continuing to have him represent them in Congress.
Like Ruthie posted above a democrat should run against Jordan and pose the question to Ohio voters: βJim Jordan: 14 years in Congress. 2.5m in salary. Zero bills passed. Ohioans, are you getting your moneyβs-worth?β
Or. God forbid, is the alternative GOP congressional pick even worse than Jordan? Considering that it's Ohio, it's quite likely.
Gerrymandering.
It's actually 16 years (2007-present) so $2.784 million. I don't know when or how much change there may have been in House salaries since 2007.
Nauta is an idiot. That is why he is sticking with his 'Trump funded attorney.'
But he is a Loser, Bill. What could be better for Trump's valet to go down with the boss. The Maga crowd would make him St. Nauta- Keeper of the Faith. His financial future is set.
But, but, but... Trump will say Nauta's a "warrior."
Seems to me that he might be better off with a public defender who would at least try to look out for his best interests.
I like that you sign your posts with "We're in this together." Ordinarily, it gives me an urge to pause and consider myself as part of a readership, an audience, and, more generally, as a citizen. This time, we get the stark contrast [edit: with] your description of Trump's alleged co-conspirators and even his daughter, Ivanka, as being in an "everyone for themselves" situation. We're in this together indeed. I can only hope.
I like to read all of your inputs. Very interesting and heart felt. It is certainly one of the must do's in the morning, so that they day looks much better, and I'm not alone.
In the GA RICO case, who is the next Defendant to flip before the Wagons start rolling west? Possibly, JENNA, whose attorney fees are not being paid & her world is collapsing.
Let me see:
Meadows; good possibility to be next. Not a major player, lots of inside info to bargain if he does it early; 64 yrs old...
Eastman; good possibility. Major Player; info; lots to lose...But I think he's too important, so might be too early to consider.
Giuliani; Nope, to close to Trump
Clark; He might be the next; he's scared; he knows some things, but he was not part of the inner conspiracy group. He might want to cut a pre-pre deal with Smith.
Shafer, Still, Latham; I lump them together as fake electors. I don't think they have enough to trade; I think the AG will want to make an example of them as soldiers for Trump.
Hall, Hampton; Bad actors in Raffensberger's org. I think. One of them could roll over early on to strengthen Raffensberger position; they didn't do their duty.
Cheeley; not trustworthy, already perjured himself. Not one of the early ones in my guess at this.
Lee, Floyd, Kutti; No advantage to the AG to let them plead, they were after the fact intimidators.
So Who is next? I think it will be Meadows, just because Jenna is not important enough.
Probably completely wrong, what do I know? But there it is for your contemplation pleasure.
I think Meadows is up to his earlobes in this. Read Cassidy Hutchinson's book. His behavior throughout his time as Chief was very, very strange for a person in that job....there is no way he didn't know anything - it is his job to know everything, his refusal to help the new administration transition..and all that paper burning....what Chief spends his last weeks in the office blocking the smooth transition so he can build his own fires? Actions speak louder than words. But, if he can save himself he will. One of the weirder events in her book was the business about how Cassidy (Meadows kept telling her to be his eyes and ears) was going to Florida after the election to work for Trump. It was decided before the coup and then the job offer disappeared after the coup. It really bothered me. He told her, "the Boss doesn't trust you." Meadows decided to leave congress to move in as Chief at the exact same time the country shut down for COVID. In many cases he was going home early, leaving a 23 year old assistant to handle things, taking the night off and was conveniently unavailable the night of Dec 18 when all hell broke loose. She told him he shouldn't go to the War Room the night before J6. His big concern was that Trump not go down to the capital (I presume that was because he wasn't invited). He was there only for the campaign. He clearly did nothing Chiefs do most likely because Trump did little actual work - CEO style). If Trump's coup had succeeded, Meadows might have been running the country by default, not just the White House staff. He slipped up when he went down to Georgia and was on the phone call, leaving his fingerprints on the pressure game. I was very surprised he wasn't one of the named conspirators in the DC case. Then there is the bit about his prioritizing declassification of papers during his last hours in government. And driving the requests there himself? Then of course there is this: https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/25/politics/mark-meadows-texts-2319/index.html
Quite compelling, Martha. But, make your call! Will he roll next?
I think he might. He will not want to be left standing alone with Trump. In a classic Republican move, he will do it while the world and the House is in crisis or during the holidays when nobody is paying a lot of attention.
Also, at this point, the odds of avoiding big dollar penalties, jail, house arrest, etc is getting less likely. Maybe those probation deals were designed to wet his whistle. It wonder if he has considered he might become Trump's cell mate....that would be a new kind of hell for Meadows.
Bwahahahahaha I can see it! OMG
That was a valuable Link Martha, thank you. Meadows sent 2,319 Text messages between Election Day, November 2020 all the way to the Inauguration -1/20/21.
I am interested in the Texts that weer NOT produced to the J6 Select Committee.
Bruce, you maybe correct on all points but, Jenna Ellis knows the 'Trump Campaign' RICO Racket facts. It cannot be 'America's Mayor' because his hair dye may melt down his face on the stand. As Joyce pointed out, the Pre-Trial Motion deadline is coming up fast. Time to plea.
on va voir
I would like to chime in (Bryan, I think you are probably correct that it will be Jenna), but just to make the bet, I'll say Jeffrey Clark. Boy, is he a number. So I think Jenna and Jeffrey are vying for the hot seat at the plea deal table tonight. Stay tuned I guess. But in my view, Jeffrey Clark is the biggest jerk in the entire group of co-conspirators in the Georgia case as well as the #4 unindicted co-conspirator in Washington DC. Fanni Willis and Jack Smith could put him away for a long time because he is an alleged traitor. But he might be a useful idiot for them. I think I should win the bet just for mentioning that I think both Jack Smith and Fani Willis view Jeffrey Clark as a useful idiot.
Wonder if #4 could be Jim Jordan or some one in
Congress?
PS Christine: I donβt know if this is accurate, but New York Times and several other publications have listed Jeffrey Clark as the #4. I think you can pull it up online for the NYT on August 3, 2023. But donβt forget that fanny. Willis has 30 on named co-conspirators, and Jim Jordan very well could be on that list. I donβt know why that hyper inflated egoist would want to be speaker of the house where heβs created the biggest Gong Show in history. He should simply be lawyering up for the future. I think heβs pretty well done. Cooked. Fani Willis has an outstanding track record. I would not want to be on her list. Iβm just saying, and Iβm just projecting because nobody knows who those 30 names are. Itβs just momentous to try to keep track so I donβt. But I think I recall Matt Gates, trotting over to trumps office to get a waiver or a pardon or something for himself and his buddies. Perhaps Jim Jordan wanted a pardon as well for stopping the certification, or putting false electors in, and I donβt know if he was involved in the Georgia mess.
I think someone had access to the actual conversations I knew i#4 was Jeffrey Clark. I read the conversation and it was badder than bad. Badder than Leroy Brown. Or perhaps just really really stupid which is the same thing because he was an attorney with the DOJ. I donβt know if heβs on some status that gives him a salary. While heβs waiting for the Georgia trial? So thatβs why (no matter how irksome it is), we have to say allegedly, and thatβs everyone is in a send until theyβre proven guilty in a court of law,. I donβt know what we have to say when they plea deal guilty. And he wanted to be Attorney General, and he thought it was OK, according to published conversation, that the military could take over our country. And thatβs why I said he was the biggest jerk in the room. Not that Jim Jordan isnβt a big jerk. Thereβs just nothing mutually exclusive about these behaviors. Itβs both/and. My question about Jeffrey Clarkβs suggestion that the military take over our country would be βand how did Trump respond to that?β Did Trump think that was a good idea?? Did he want to use the military folks he disparaged and called losers? The guy making the suggestion that the then-president use the military to take over our country was not a private attorney. He was an insider in the government - an attorney at the department of justice. And he was going around his bosses to speak to the president to pose this nonsense to someone we can only say has the IQ of a village idiot but with the sense of self importance of Julius Caesar. So someone(s) have decided Jeffrey Clark is the #4. On August 3, 2023 the New York Times updated their conjecture and included that number four was a β justice department official who worked on civil matters.β When one reads the use of military conversation, it suggests a coup, and that adds the nuances, but Iβm sure Jack Smith is waaaaaay ahead of the curve on this guy. The irony is nearly indescribable. Trump considered Jeffrey Clark for his attorney general should they turn over the government (with no other reason, except Trump, wanted to stay in power), and then he disparages Jack Smith, who has had a stellar career in the DOJ and is defending the tenets of our government.
Someone who makes those kinds of contextures has said #4 is Jeffrey Clark because of a conversation he was part of. Allegedly.
Valere, I do not know the odds on Jeff Clark but, you may be correct. Regardless, tfg is "straining the loyalty of onetime allies" per CNBC on 8/22 because tfg has "refused to assist with legal bills".
Jenna Ellis was mocked when the RICO indictment first came down for her projection that she "continues to honor & praise Him". Fani W wants evidence on the Orange Blobs' campaign felonies.
Yes. Agree. Jeffrey Clark has big trouble with Jack Smith. Iβm just a little impatient for that gong show participant to hit the big time.
Jenna's so obvious you can't get odds on that bet.
Someone was going to make bingo cards.
Here is my prediction: βhisβ tactics will first include delay, delay and delay. If the trials do eventually take place, and a judgment goes against him, he will appeal. The appeals will get caught up in the legal system for years, and will not all be resolved before βhisβ demise. That will lead to no justice during βhisβ (or my) lifetime. βHisβ guilt or innocence will be left to be read in history books.
We the people will never see justice served.
*I sincerely hope Iβm wrong
I share your skepticism Cathy. Weβve lived with a rigged legal system benefiting the privileged for decades. If Walt Nauta ends up doing more time than Donald Trump, that will be my litmus test for whether or not anything has really changed. Is this a watershed moment for the integrity of the judicial branch? Yes. Yes it is.
Well, as I posted above we must work to see justice served at the ballot box. In the meantime, Iβd like to think that since Trump seems to want to have his trial in the press it doesnβt seem impossible to watch as he and the House Republicans make our case pretty darn clear with all the chaotic nonsense.
Exactly John D. Cooper.
Donβt forget, Cathy, AG Letitia James is bringing the βTrump Empireβ down in New York State. Fani Willis has also been very fast to respond and push for timely trials. We The People haven a right to a speedy trial! I donβt disagree with you (I am now 74) about seeing justice done, but I know his business life is kaput. That is very satisfying to me, as a Native New Yorker, watching for decades as that slime stole from us taxpayers. I hope he rots in jail, but am not sure I will see that.
Hi Elisabeth, Trump's business life is everything to him. He had no respect for the office of the presidency and used it for his self-benefit. Now that his business life is 'kaput,' he will be as well.
Dear Valere, but he has someone to blame. Isn't that all he needs?
Hi Bruce, The blame game works in the press - but not in court against Letisha James, Jack Harris and Fani Willis. Trump is a master at substituting the conflct: when he was asked a direct question by reporters about how 'court went,' he responded with: "This was never supposed to happen. And I'm leading in the polls against Joe Biden by a lot." [Please note: Trump has 91 indictments and Joe Biden, who according to Trump is losing in the polls wears tennis shoes and has done a fabulous job as president]. Are we supposed to believe that people actually prefer indictments to great diplomacy even in tennis shoes? But....regarding off-track response that 'This that wasn't supposed to happen' 'this' actually DID happen and it has been because of a preponderance of evidence. The polls Trump is 'leading in' have questionable methodologies: WaPo recently admitted the poll Trump led in was faulty and they called it an 'outlier.' Hella. I'm still trying to understand how an entire poll can be an 'outlier' unless it was in a group of polls (it was not). Anyway, liars figure but figures don't lie. We'll get there despite don-Don's bleating. We need to whomp him in the voting booths in 2024. I hope we can use Dominion again. Poetic justice.
The final and definitive poll will taken in November 2024. These other 'polls' will be forgotten like leftover newspaper put into the recycling bin.
Or torn into strips for my catβs litter boxesβ¦β¦
Hi Valere, Whomp is such a great word! Yes, we must whomp that chomp. Denial is not a river in Egypt, despite dumps assertions to the contraryβ¦.He is such a shitty βreality showβ I am hoping after the 91 indictments are shown to be TRUE, he will finally pay the price. All the doubt in our justice system is not unwarranted, but everyday and every analyses of the real trouble that slime is in, does give me hope he will pay.
Every exposure in court means he is paying. He is paying by losing sleep with every guilty plea deal in Georgia. And Jack Smith can use those to whomp him in Washington DC. We need to whomp him and whomp him and whomp him, to show him what a legal whomp feels like. Some of us have spent our adult lives and careers working to safeguard our own votes and those of our fellow citizens and he tried to take them from us. A man without honor.
Yeah, I agree, but the he referred to the sick he, not the public figure he, if that makes a difference.
Cathy, I agree, but I didn't think of evasion by death (by natural causes), which would be very acceptable to keep him out of the White House.
I have a few small bets with friends ($1.00) that chump will never see a day in prison--excepting gag order violation bail revocations--which would normally be in a jail, not a prison; however, jail would be doubtful due to the Secret Service detail.
So not a day of incarceration, just maybe an ankle device with confinement to his hotel or Bedminster?
Thanks for your comment.
Nope, Gus! He will be in confinement at Langley with high security in a specially built house. He will no longer own 'his hotel' or Bedminster. His empire is loaded with debt; he keeps it rolling by over-valued loans and those have been exposed by Letishia James. Because the loans were gained by fraud, they can be 'called in.' He has no resources to pay them. He will not do business in NYC. There will be not hotel. I'm not sure about Bedminister, but I guess since we are all out betting tonight, I will be a nickel that he will not have cushy home confinement.
Iβd be fine with a cage built in a dilapidated high school gymnasium. Picture Hannibal Lecter and a Secret Service detail with the agent who draws the short straw bringing Trump a bag of fava beans every morning for breakfast.
TFGβs extended family members who are not convicted may still seek the limelight down the line and that really makes me shutter.
Tutone, makes me shudder too! She is a vile creature, that Ivanka and her husband is a corrupt bastard. I wonβt even comment on the two βadult sonsβ as they are described in the press. They all make me vomit!
I could handle demise before trial.
My "much better half" says the same. You must be right, Cathy!
Not sure what everybody elseβs opinions are.
For me all this Trump legal circus year after year and especially now shows just how fragile our freedom is. Do we really have freedom? And what if we get caught up in the legal system and canβt compete with the rich who get caught up?
The rich and powerful using elite educated (and corrupt) lawyers to craft society to operate in their favor - this is what I am seeing from the Oval to the SC to the economy to basic civil rights. Maybe this is why Trump and the GOP have so much disdain for society because they know our view of it has all been wrong - fake/manipulated. Trump, Leonard Leo, Harlan Crow et al twisting society and laughing all the way to their private clubs.
Pretty unsettling to see the curtain pulled back and view just how society really works. That Disney view for all this time has really just been a puppet show - a show that truly could be over 11/24.
Vote Blue
Agree with all you say, Lloyd, except it's my belief that there will always be corruption waiting in the wings even if we get rid of those we see as corrupt on 11/24.
Voting Blue.
Thereβs always a choice to be made.
Weβve all heard/ read the quote: βPower tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.β
But an article in βThe Smithsonianβ magazine showed the results of a study regarding people in positions of power that it wasnβt about power alone: β β¦..the study found, power doesnβt corrupt; it heightens pre-existing ethical tendencies.β
This says a lot about the βbadβ behavior we are seeing of GOP members in the House. Their βpre-existing ethical tendenciesβ are on full display.
Karma to Ivanka. She is the poster child for nepotism.
Prayers and peace for the rest of the world.
Tfg is really busy dancing the judicial four or five step. Lord knows when all his legal trials and tribulations will be over and done with. As for daddyβs little girl, i really hope she has to testify. Somehow it would serve both of them right.
Whew! Will it ever end ? Joyce, do you see anyway DJT will ever pay for all the harm he has done to our country? I know that he is innocent until proven guilty, but, I am getting very tired of the havoc he continues to cause. He is a loser, a grifter, a liar, bully, a facist,an autocrat --- Now I can go to sleep. Thank you for listening! π
The malaise Trump has inflicted on this country will take decades to heal. Isnβt Steve Bannon proud?
Bannon is another piece of work whom I would love to see brought to justice.
Money (and lots of it), power, white skin and political connections. This all adds up to βsorry society, no accountability for me, but for you ββ like yesterdayβ
Oh sorry, I forgot to add in lawyers with the moral and ethical standards of the Mafia.
Itβs appalling to me how the legal system works for the rich vs the rest of us.
I heard a lawyer once say his job was not to see that justice is done; his job was to win.
Indeed Lynell, and as don-Don's mentor, Roy Cohn used to say: 'Don't tel me what the law is, tell me who the judge is.' It was likely frustrating to don-Don when he learned the names of four of the five trial judges he is facing or has faced are: Judges Engoran, Chutkan, Kaplan and McAffee. Cheers don-Don - Roy Cohn's course won't work this time.
Perfect, Valere!
Did ya hear the one about the three lawyers...? I agree Lloyd. One of my lawyer friends (former friends) finds this all so amusing that he even votes for Trump, just to continue the show.
Karma ~ βIvanka Trump may well have to choose between Daddy and perjury,β
I keep wondering if trumps calls to shut the government down with the intent to shut down the court cases against him couldn't be seen as obstruction of justice?