The "Great Unraveling" continues.

Want To Go A Little Deeper?
If you’re way into the immunity arguments, a few additional notes:

1. The appeals court does seem interested in addressing whether the immunity argument can be appealed now or whether it is premature. If the appeal is premature, the appeals court lacks jurisdiction to hear it and the case gets kicked back to Chutkan. If I were a betting man, I wouldn’t put my money on that happening, but it’s worth keeping an eye on this argument. I wouldn’t be surprised to see it be among the first questions asked of Trump’s lawyers.
2. If the appeals court determines it has jurisdiction, then it must decide if there is presidential immunity from prosecution.
3. If the appeals court determines there is such a thing as presidential immunity in the criminal context, then it must articulate a standard for qualifying for that immunity.
4. Once it articulates that standard, then the appeals court must determine if Trump meets the standard.
5. Finally, if Trump loses on all the above, he has a last-ditch double jeopardy argument that since the Senate acquitted him in the second impeachment, he can’t be prosecuted again for the same underlying conduct.

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/morning-memo/dc-circuit-appeals-immunity-trump

If the appeals court has no jurisdiction then the trial is back on schedule.

 

"You can't fool all of the people all of the time, but you can fool some of the people some of the time, and.................................................



it's just enough to make a good living!"


--W.C. Fields, making a humorous twist on the famous Lincoln quote.

 

Welcome to the new normal of Trumpery.

Police are investigating a swatting incident at the New York home of the judge set to hear closing arguments later Thursday morning in the business fraud trial of former President Donald Trump.

An email making a threat to the home of Judge Arthur Engoron was sent to a Long Island newspaper, Nassau County Police told CNBC.

The newspaper called cops at 5:30 a.m. to relay the threat, police said.

Officers who responded to Engoron’s home did not find a threat to the judge at the residence.
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/11/police-at-trump-fraud-trial-judge-home-after-bomb-threat.html

If you are an officer of the court involved in a Trump case you can expect to have your world turned upside down by the mob.

 

I was thinking more along the lines of:

"There's a sucker born every minute"

"Never give a sucker an even break"

In football, you run the same play until they stop you.

 

I don't know squat about football. Most sports bore me, except ice skating, high diving and wing-suit flying.

 

Trump ordered to pay New York Times, three reporters nearly $400,000 in legal costs over dismissed lawsuit

A New York judge on Friday ordered Donald Trump to pay The New York Times and three of its reporters nearly $400,000 to cover their legal costs for a lawsuit filed by the former president that was dismissed last year.

Trump sued The Times and the reporters over a 2018 investigation into his finances and taxes that was based in part on confidential tax records. The resulting series of articles won a Pulitzer Prize, the most prestigious award in American journalism, in the category of explanatory reporting.

Among those articles was one titled, “Trump Engaged in Suspect Tax Schemes as He Reaped Riches from His Father.”

Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha, in a statement to CNBC, said that the order for legal costs issued in Manhattan Supreme Court “shows that the state’s newly amended anti-SLAPP statute can be a powerful force for protecting press freedom.”
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/12/trump-ordered-to-pay-new-york-times-reporters-over-lawsuit.html

It is staggering to realize how many law suits Trump has been involved in that he's lost.

 

Former Trump Aide Scaramucci Says He Will Campaign for Biden Against Trump in 2024

Former Donald Trump White House official Anthony Scaramucci will be campaigning for President Joe Biden in the next presidential election if comes down to him and his old boss representing both major parties.

Scaramucci infamously lasted less than two weeks as White House director of communications after he made negative comments about other administration officials that ran in the press.

On Sunday's CNN Newsroom with Jim Acosta, Scaramucci said his blip-on-the-radar time in the Trump administration is not enough to hold his loyalty in the 2024 presidential election.
https://themessenger.com/politics/anthony-scaramucci-campaigning-for-biden-2024

Another defection from an insider.

 

Appeals court rejects X challenge to special counsel secret demand for Trump Twitter data

A federal appeals court on Tuesday denied X Corp.’s latest challenge to a nondisclosure order it received as part of special counsel Jack Smith’s search warrant for former President Donald Trump’s Twitter account.

Smith first served X, formerly known as Twitter, with a search warrant for Trump’s account data in January 2023, part of a criminal investigation into Trump’s attempt to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.

At the same time, Smith obtained a nondisclosure order barring X from disclosing the search warrant to Trump or anyone else.

In granting Smith’s request to keep the warrant a secret, a federal district court said it was reasonable to believe disclosure of the request would “result in destruction of or tampering with evidence, intimidation of potential witnesses, and serious jeopardy to the investigation.”

X initially refused to comply with the warrant, and the district court in Washington, D.C., held the company in contempt and fined it $350,000. X ultimately turned over the data Smith was seeking.
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/16/app...-to-secret-demand-for-trump-twitter-data.html

 

Trump loses appeal of fraud trial gag order at top New York court

The top court in New York State on Tuesday rejected an appeal by former President Donald Trump of a gag order imposed on him in his civil business fraud trial.

The New York Court of Appeals dismissed Trump’s challenge to the order “upon the ground that no substantial constitutional question is directly involved.”

The court also dismissed Trump’s motion to stay the gag order “as academic,” likely because the trial is over.

The gag order barred Trump from making public statements about the staff of Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron.

Trump’s lawyers challenged the order as being unduly restrictive on his right to free speech.
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/16/trump-loses-gag-order-appeal-at-top-new-york-court.html

I'm sure all the winning will start any time now.

 

Agitated Trump says 'I would love it' after judge threatens to boot him from E. Jean Carroll defamation trial

The judge presiding over E. Jean Carroll's damages trial in New York federal court on Wednesday warned former President Donald Trump that he might bar him from the courtroom for grousing loudly and animatedly to his lawyer during Carroll's testimony about how he repeatedly defamed her.

"Mr. Trump has the right to be present here. That right can be forfeited, and it can be forfeited if he is disruptive and if he disregards court orders," U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan told Trump and his attorney after the jury had left the courtroom. "Mr. Trump, I hope I don’t have to consider excluding you from the trial. I understand you are very eager for me to do that," the judge said.

"I would love it. I would love it," Trump responded.

"I know you would because you just can’t control yourself in this circumstance. You just can't," the judge shot back before an exasperated Trump threw his hands in the air.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/do...l-donald-trump-expected-attendance-rcna134221

Put Kaplan on the list of people earmarked for retribution should Don get re-elected.

 

DOJ seeks 6-month sentence for former Trump aide Peter Navarro
“The Defendant chose allegiance to former President Donald Trump over the rule of law,” argued Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Aloi.

Prosecutors say Peter Navarro — a former trade adviser to Donald Trump — should go to jail for six months and pay a $200,000 fine for defying a subpoena from the House Jan. 6 select committee.

“The Defendant chose allegiance to former President Donald Trump over the rule of law,” argued Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Aloi in a 20-page sentencing memo submitted Thursday night.
https://www.politico.com/news/2024/...-for-former-trump-aide-peter-navarro-00136544

Navarro is close to becoming the latest person in Trump's orbit to serve time in jail. I know this has become commonplace among those associated with Trump but let it sink in a moment.

 

Rudy G Tries Dodging $148M Defamation Judgment With Bankruptcy

With fewer than $10 million in assets and more than $150 million in liabilities, Rudy Giuliani is in a world of hurt. He was a prime candidate for bankruptcy, but the fight is just beginning over what effect the bankruptcy will have, especially on his single biggest liability: the $148 million defamation judgment won against him by Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss.

In a series of developments last week, Freeman and Moss tried to get the bankruptcy court to limit Giuliani’s ability to fight the judgment. Giuliani wants the bankruptcy stay (which freezes the debtor’s affairs in place) lifted so that he can continue to challenge their judgment in court. Not fair, argued Freeman and Moss. Lifting the stay as to Giuliani would let him use the Chapter 11 filing as a sword to defeat their claim while hiding behind the shield it provides to prevent them from collecting on their judgment against him.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/morni...ging-148m-defamation-judgment-with-bankruptcy

Rudy is ruined. Financially and morally.

 

New Hampshire win masks weakness for Trump with moderates, independents

Jan 23 (Reuters) - Donald Trump's victory in the New Hampshire Republican primary on Tuesday masks weakness with independents and moderate voters that could be a warning sign for his likely general election matchup against Democrat Joe Biden, exit poll data and analysts suggest.
The former president's status as the runaway frontrunner to clinch his party's presidential nomination got a boost from his win against his only remaining rival, his former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. Still, he was only projected to win around half the votes.
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/ne...trump-with-moderates-independents-2024-01-24/

Moderates, independents, and those who have obtained degrees in higher education.

 

Navarro Sentenced To 4 Months In Prison For Refusing To Comply With Jan 6 Subpoena

Former White House adviser Peter Navarro was sentenced to four months in prison Thursday for criminal contempt of Congress after he defied subpoenas for testimony from the House Jan. 6 select committee when it was investigating the attack on the Capitol in 2022, according to Politico and AP reporters in the room.

US District Judge Amit Mehta appeared not to buy arguments from Navarro’s lawyers that the former Trump aide had accepted responsibility for his actions during Thursdays sentencing hearing. As recently as last week, Navarro referred to the contempt case brought against him as “political prosecution.”
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/...on-for-refusing-to-comply-with-jan-6-subpoena

There are 4 House Repubs who also refused to comply with subpoenas. They should all be going to jail.

 

Lawyer Bob Costello who has thugs as clients got screwed by Giuliani for 1.4 million and Bannon for almost half a million.
You all deserve each other Bob.

'Steve Bannon Admits Bank Account May Have Evidence of Fraud'

snip:

'The conspiracy-spewing right-wing political agitator had the gall to stiff his lawyer, former federal prosecutor Robert “Bob” Costello, who stuck by him for years. Specifically, Costello was Bannon’s lawyer on a number of cases, including when he faced criminal charges for pocketing donor funds intended for a privately funded border wall between the United States and Mexico. So it was only a matter of time before the law firm of Davidoff Hutcher and Citron came knocking with a lawsuit, one that quickly resulted in a judge ordering Bannon to hand over the overdue $480,487.

But now, that miserly mistake is coming back to haunt him.

Bannon has asked a New York state judge to block Costello’s law firm from perusing through his bank statements and reviewing his assets, a request that has required Bannon to awkwardly concede that his personal finances likely have evidence that could bolster the Manhattan District Attorney’s case against him.'

cont:
https://dnyuz.com/2024/01/26/steve-bannon-admits-bank-account-may-have-evidence-of-fraud/

 

Jury Determines Trump Must Pay $83 Million In Damages For Defaming E. Jean Carroll

After deliberating for less than three hours, the jury in the E. Jean Carroll civil trial against Donald Trump has determined that the former president must pay the writer $83.3 million in damages for defaming her in 2019 when she came forward accusing him of sexually assaulting her in the 1990s.

Broken down, the jury determined Trump must pay $11 million in compensatory damages for a reputation repair program, $7.3 million in compensatory damages outside of the reputation program and $65 million in punitive damages.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/...million-in-damages-for-defaming-e-jean-caroll

It will no doubt be appealed. What case involving Trump isn't. But in the end his wallet will be lighter no matter what. I don't think fleecing the rubes is going to be enough to cover this.

Nice to see some accountability for despicable behavior.

 

In order to appeal this verdict Trump will have to put up a fully collateralized bond in the amount of 83.3 million.

 

Hmmmmmmm. The verdict in the NY fraud case may have implications for that seeing as AG James is asking for $370M and he may have to sell some properties to come up with the cash. Not to mention the Trump Org. essentially being shut down in NY.

 

Trump Owes Giuliani For Legal Work, Rudy Suggests In Bankruptcy Filing

Rudy Giuliani opened up his finances to a bankruptcy court — and the world — for examination on Friday, revealing that among his assets are three New York Yankees World Series rings, dozens of watches, and a potential claim against Donald Trump.

Giuliani listed a “possible claim for unpaid legal fees against Donald J. Trump” in a schedule cataloguing his finances.

The former New York City mayor has represented Trump in several of his legal imbroglios and on various other unsavory missions. In 2019, Trump tasked Giuliani with digging up (or manufacturing) dirt on the Bidens; in 2020, Giuliani spearheaded Trump’s legal efforts to stay in power after having lost the election.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/...legal-work-rudy-suggests-in-bankruptcy-filing

Don demanded absolute loyalty from Rudy and got it. Rudy's reward, getting stiffed.

 

Here's another reason MAGAists are dangerous. Intolerance of dissent from Trumpian orthodoxy, thereby trying to do the nation's business.

Lankford Gets The MAGA Treatment For Defying Trump And Legislating

Amid apparent infighting in the Oklahoma Republican Party, a resolution was passed over the weekend to formally condemn Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), who has caught the ire of Donald Trump supporters for working on the bipartisan immigration bill that Trump had asked congressional Republicans to spike.

There appear to be bigger tensions within the Oklahoma GOP ranks that have left some current and former members of the state Republican Party calling that condemnation vote — which accused Lankford of “playing fast and loose with Democrats” on border policy they say is antithetical to the state party’s platform — illegitimate. But the move to punish Lankford, legitimate or not, signals that GOP activists are taking Trump’s cue, and repercussions may be coming down the pike for any Republican who dares to defy the former president in his attempt to torpedo the legislation.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/where...a-treatment-for-defying-trump-and-legislating

 

Trump’s PACs Spent Roughly $50 Million on Legal Expenses in 2023

Donald J. Trump piled up legal expenses in 2023 as he was indicted four times, spending approximately $50 million in donor money on legal bills and investigation-related expenses last year, according to two people briefed on the figure.

It is a staggering sum. His lone remaining rival in the 2024 Republican primary, Nikki Haley, raised roughly the same amount of money across all her committees in the last year as Mr. Trump’s political accounts spent paying the bills stemming from his various legal defenses, including lawyers for witnesses.

The exact figure spent on legal bills will be reported on Wednesday in new filings to the Federal Election Commission. But even those totals can be imprecise depending on how certain expense items are categorized by those doing the paperwork.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/30/us/politics/trump-legal-fees.html

But wait, there's more.

In addition, Mr. Trump has been directing 10 percent of donations raised online to Save America, meaning 10 cents of every dollar he has received from supporters is going to a PAC that chiefly funds his lawyers.

What a grifter.

 

"Particularly troubling": Ex-US attorney alarmed over Judge Cannon's "oddly scheduled" docs meeting

The timing of Judge Aileen Cannon's Wednesday closed-door meeting with special counsel Jack Smith raises a red flag in Donald Trump's Florida classified documents case, signaling the Trump's appointee's potential bias toward the former president, ex-federal prosecutor Joyce Vance argues. The meeting — which Trump and his legal team were prohibited from attending — to discuss which classified materials will be shared with the defense is a standard procedure for such cases. But it being "oddly scheduled" indicates Cannon is delaying the case's pretrial procedures, Vance said.

“One of the biggest objections to Judge Cannon’s handling of the case has been the exceptional amount of delay she has indulged Trump with in what should have been a fairly straightforward case,” the former U.S. attorney wrote in the Monday edition of her Substack newsletter, pointing to the case's Classified Information Procedures Act proceedings. Section 4 of the act allows Smith to argue for the exclusion of classified information from the case or its replacement with unclassified summaries, but requires the special counsel to first get permission from Cannon. "I anticipated a CIPA ruling ahead of the holidays. … But here we are at the end of January, with the hearing itself still weeks away," Vance writes.
https://www.salon.com/2024/01/30/pa...ed-over-cannons-oddly-scheduled-docs-meeting/

More evidence Cannon is in the tank for Don.

 

Weisselberg Poised To Plead Guilty To Perjury In NY Civil Fraud Case

I know the web of Trump legal entanglements is hard to keep track of, but this is a salient development in a very live case where a judgment is soon expected that could force Trump to disgorge millions of dollars and bar him from the New York real estate biz.

Longtime Trump Org CFO Allen Weisselberg is in talks with the Manhattan DA’s office to plead guilty to committing perjury during his testimony in the civil fraud trial brought by state Attorney General Letitia James, the NYT is reporting. I should emphasize that the plea deal isn’t final yet, and the NYT report is based on unnamed sources.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/morni...lead-guilty-to-perjury-in-ny-civil-fraud-case

Big Al is flipping. Only the best people.

 

Judge postpones Trump D.C. election trial pending appeal

A judge on Friday indefinitely postponed the election interference criminal trial of former President Donald Trump, which was scheduled to start March 4 in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.

The postponement is the result of a pending appeal from Trump challenging the right of the U.S. Department of Justice to charge him in the case, where he is accused of illegally trying to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.

Trump says he has presidential immunity from prosecution because the alleged crimes relate to actions he took while still in the White House.

That appeal has yet to be decided by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/02/judge-postpones-trump-dc-election-trial-pending-appeal.html

The feckless buffoon continues to have success manipulating delayed justice.

 

No immunity for Don.