Author: Dave

Cohen v. Trump – Oct 24

by Dave

Michael Cohen will testify for the prosecution of Donald Trump in the civil case on the overvaluation of properties in New York State. I think at this point there is hardly anything that Trump’s defense team doesn’t know. Trump’s Chief Financial Officer, Allen Weisselberg, has already testified that properties were overvalued, followed by an outside appraiser who corroborated this, and provided his involvement in the process.

What Cohen will bring to the table today, is testimony that Donald Trump met with Allen Weisselberg and gave his approval. That connection is essential. The defense will likely attack Michael Cohen’s credibility. Cohen officially surrendered to the FBI on August 21, 2018. That afternoon, Cohen pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges: five counts of tax evasion, one count of making false statements to a financial institution, one count of willfully causing an unlawful corporate contribution, and one count of making an excessive campaign contribution at the request of a candidate (Trump) for the “principal purpose of influencing [the] election”. (Wikipedia, see link at bottom)

Donald Trump is expected to attend. I am sure his defense team wishes he would not. He has been warned to be quiet in the courtroom, and is restricted on what he can say about court employees outside of court. What is motivating Trump, is that he wants to be in front of the cameras and tell his followers that the charges are baseless.

All this political rhetoric is wearing thin. The court already ruled in a summary judgement that there was overvaluation of properties. So, Trump will be found guilty. He will lose control of valuable properties in NY State, and pay millions in fines. Michael Cohen is there to fill in some of the gaps of who was responsible.

So, today’s question is can Trump control himself? If there is an outburst, will the judge jail him, at least for a day? Will his followers continue to buy his story that his is just a witch hunt? We shall see.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Wikipedia Michael Cohen

Trump’s Court Cases

by Dave

There are 4 criminal and 2 civil court cases in which Donald Trump has been charged. I found Wikipedia is doing an excellent job of providing updates on these cases, so I provided Wikipedia links to all the criminal cases in the webpage to the right of this blog.

I will rely on Wikipedia to keep up with events. With each ruling against Trump in the pre-trial phase or during the trial, Trump’s legal team files appeals. These appeals have not stopped or seriously delayed these cases from moving forward.

In addition to the news of the day, there is a lot of commentary. I do not need to add to this, except to say I have faith in the judicial system, and the defendants have abundant resources to defend themselves.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Then along came Bob…

by Dave

The Republicans were accusing the Biden administration of unequal justice, and their narrative I’m sure was convincing to some. And then Democratic Senator Bob Menendez was indicted, along with his wife Nadine, and three New Jersey businessmen from New Jersey on a years-long bribery scheme. The charges alleges that Bob Menendez used his position as Senator to pressure US Department of Agriculture to protect a monopoly to Wael Hana by Egypt in exchange for money. These are very serious criminal charges.

This is why I like the no nonsense attitude of Christopher Wray of the FBI and AG Merrick Garland. The term “law and order” is used too flippantly. What I feel, is with effective law enforcement of all crimes, then trust in our institutions is strengthen. At least it should.

“The FBI has made investigating public corruption a top priority since our founding — nothing has changed. The alleged conduct in this conspiracy damages the public’s faith in our system of government and brings undue scorn to the honest and dedicated public servants who carry out their duties on a daily basis. To those inclined to use the status of their public office for personal benefit, or those willing to provide bribes in an attempt to gain influence from a public official, the FBI will ensure that you face the consequences in the criminal justice system for your underhanded dealings.”

The above was stated by FBI Assistant Director in Charge, Jack Smith. Every honest Senator or Congressional representative suffers when others can be bought out with gold bars.

See link: Senator Robert Menendez, His Wife, And Three New Jersey Businessmen Charged With Bribery Offenses

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the FBI and DOJ have been “weaponized” against conservatives. He said that, if elected, he’d fire FBI Director Chris Wray on day one in May 27, 2023. Well, then along came Bob …

FBI Director Christopher Wray is a life long Republican and a member of the conservative Federalist Society. But, he has adhered to the Justice Department’s core principle of equal justice for all. There are huge challenges ahead in criminal enforcement, with increasing cybercrimes, supported or accepted by the regimes of North Korea, Russia, Iran and China. We face enormous challenges in illegal drug trafficking. The same tactics of search warrants and the use of informants will be critical in arresting groups involved in these activities.

I have listen the FBI Director testify in Congressional hearings. Republicans seemed to hate the idea that Donald Trump’s home in Florida was subject to a legal search warrant. They did not object to the use of search warrant for Bob Menendez and his wife. I liked Wray’s responses.

With Biden, you will have a good director in charge of the FBI, and a president who lets the FBI investigate crime, regardless of political party. With Trump or DeSantis, it will be the end to equal justice.

It’s not law and order. It’s investigation and criminal prosecution for all that break the law, then comes respect for the integrity of our institutions.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Israel’s Revenge

by Dave

Netanyahu said it best, as this is Israel’s 9/11. I hope they handle it better. George Bush was right in many ways. We had to harden our defenses at home. And we had to go after terrorism abroad. These were right responses. But the nearly 20 years (2001 to 2021) of fighting the Taliban yielded little. We did not want Afghanistan to be a haven for terrorism. Noble causes sometimes do not end like we want.

We really have to detach emotions, and the desire for easy solutions to get an appropriate response. We are a nation of enormous power, when we chose correctly. But, when we act high and mighty to the rest of the world, and join with Israel in their brutal revenge, we lose our own integrity and independence.

Josh Paul is a State Department official who resigned yesterday over our military response to the attack by Hamas. He had served in the State Department for 11 years. As reported in CNN today:

“Let me be clear,” Paul wrote. “Hamas’ attack on Israel was not just a monstrosity; it was a monstrosity of monstrosities. I also believe that potential escalations by Iran-linked groups such as Hezbollah, or by Iran itself, would be a further cynical exploitation of the existing tragedy. But I believe to the core of my soul that the response Israel is taking, and with it the American support both for that response, and for the status quo of the occupation, will only lead to more and deeper suffering for both the Israeli and the Palestinian people – and is not in the long term American interest.”

Paul goes on:

Decades of the same approach have shown that security for peace leads to neither security, nor to peace. The fact is, blind support for one side is destructive in the long term to the interests of the people on both sides.

Link: State Department official resigns over Biden administration’s handling of Israel-Hamas conflict

Stay tuned,

Dave

NY State Fraud Civil Case – The Drama Continues

by Dave

The trial continues, inside and outside the court house. Donald Trump was in court on November 17, even though he is not required. It’s because he is seriously worried about the financial harm to the Trump business. The loss of ownership rights in his New York State properties has been put on hold right now, pending the outcome of the trial. His legal team is very aware that any error made by the judge will be the basis for an appeal. The heat is on.

What drove Trump to return to court, was testimony from outside appraiser Doug Larson and Donna Kidder, Trump’s business accountant. This is a non-jury trial, so it is impossible to say that the manipulated valuations are all too complicated or no one quite remembers. The Trump team would like the judge to believe that exaggerated estimates were given to them by outside appraisers. Larson emphatically state on the stand that just the opposite happened, the inflated estimates came from the Trump organization, namely the Trump controller, Jeffery McConney.

On November 16, It has been reported that Allen Weisselberg’s testimony was cut short, partially through the prosecution’s questioning, possibly because his testimony was contradicting emails not yet part of the record. This raised the speculation of perjury, which is criminal and could send Weisselberg back to prison. Prosecutors now can recall Weisselberg, later in the trial. I think this will help the prosecution.

To me, this is a classic case of cheating. On paper, the fraud started from outside auditors, but this was all a cover-up. Inside the Trump organization, Trump’s accountant Donna Kidder testified that the cheating began with CFO Allen Weisselberg instructing her to assume full occupancy in his Park Avenue and Wall Street holdings.

Link Forbes: Trump’s Longtime CFO Lied, Under Oath, About Trump Tower Penthouse

Note that Forbes requires a subscription after accessing the fourth article. You might try clearing cookies to get around this.

MSNBC Link: Weisselberg’s testimony abruptly ended last week, raising questions

AP News Link: Trump returns to his civil fraud trial, hears an employee and an appraiser testify against him

I’ve seen this kind of intimidation before. Usually, companies have internal safeguards to stop the most egregious forms of fraud. Trump public statements confirm he wanted the highest possible valuations he could get because it would make it easier to get bank and insurers approval.

This is were the idea that no harm was done, really falls apart. It is something everyone who has financed anything knows that the more assets and income one can show, the more likely the banks are offering low interest loans. One restraint is that the banks and insurers can do their own assessments. The second back stop to over valuations are the rules and laws of the state governing fraud.

This is not a federal case, but I am certain the IRS will investigate violations of tax laws. For lending purposes, assets which are overvalued are beneficial, but not for capital gains on federal IRS tax rules.

Michael Cohen’s turn to give damning testimony has been postposed due to illness. I am certain that Cohen’s testimony will further the dots, which go from Trump to Weisselberg to their Controller and accountants to the fraud.

Now, outside the courtroom, Trump re-iterates his disdain for the AG Letitia James and the court system, as follows:

We built a great company — a lot of cash, it’s got a lot of great assets, some of the greatest real estate assets anywhere in the world,” Trump said outside the courtroom. He dismissed the case as “a disgrace,” the legal system as “corrupt” and the Democratic attorney general as a “radical lunatic.”

He is under a partial gag order, which limits his attacks, but I guess calling the AG a lunatic is ok. Attacking court staff and families is off limits and thank God for this ruling.

The AG James also responded to reporters:

“Mr. Trump may lie, but numbers don’t lie,” she said after court. “He can call me names, he can engage in distractions,” she said, but “his entire empire was built on nothing but lies and on sinking sand.”

Boy, that sounds like a closing line. Court experts do not expect Trump to testify unless he totally ignores the advise of counsel.

Obviously, the news media is focused on the war in Israel and the Gaza strip, which can only be described as horrific and tragic. While the trial is not making headline news, the reporters from the Associated Press, Forbes, The Hill and many other media outlets continue to provide the essential details and post to the internet. Nobody should get information from Facebook or conservative social media commentary. Many legal experts feel the NY State case will continue beyond the proposed end date of December 22, 2023.

There are numerous side cases as well. One is the effort to keep Trump off the ballot in selected states, and my prediction is this will fail because it places far too much discretion in the hands of an elected official (Secretary of State). It did temporarily become a distraction. Steve Bannon trial for the Build the Wall fraud begins May 27 in the same courtroom and judge as the Hush Money case.

Reporters will soon be covering the trial of two defendants, Ken Chesebro and Sidney Powell, in the GA, set to begin on October 23. This court case will be televised. It will give an early indication of whether DA Fani Willis can has enough “connective tissue” (I like this expression) to support the charge of an election interference conspiracy, based on the RICO act.

I assume court reporters will be pretty stretched in 2024 among the courthouses in Washington DC (January 6 federal case), Florida (Documents case), Manhattan (Hush Money, E. Jean Carroll civil lawsuit) and the Atlanta, GA Jan 6 conspiracy case. No date set yet for the Georgia case.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Fani Willis scathing reply to Jim Jordan

by Dave

Donald Trump faces 91 criminal charges against him in four different court cases. And Trump is the front runner by far as the presidential candidate for the Republican party. And as hard as Trump pushes against the set timetable of cases, these cases will go to court in Washington, NY, Florida and Georgia in 2024. Trial date for Georgia is still up in the air, but everything points to a trial start date before the elections. I updated the summary on these four criminal cases in the page to the right of this post.

Rep. Jim Jordan is outspoken chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Jordan would like to help Trump, by claiming these court cases are a part of the weaponization of our legal system and conduct hearings to forward his contention. He can say anything he wants in the Committee, on Twitter and Fox News. But Jordan can not interfere with a prosecution, by ordering documents and testimony from the District Attorney Fani Willis in Fulton County, Georgia on the election interference case. Oversight has its limits.

Separation of our branches of government is essential to a functioning Democracy. Neither Democrats in the Senate nor Republicans in the House, can use their committees to interfere with the judicial system. They can try in the Georgia case, but with strong district attorney in charge, this effort will fail.

Jordan demanded information on the Georgia case twice. The second time around, DA Fani Willis had had enough. Jordan should recognize the famous one-two punch, which was beautifully executed. In boxing, this is a quick left jab, followed by a right cross. An excerpt from her letter below:

A charitable explanation of your correspondence is that you are ignorant of the United States and Georgia Constitutions and codes,” Willis wrote in a letter to the lawmaker. “A more troubling explanation is that you are abusing your authority as Chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary to attempt to obstruct and interfere with a Georgia criminal prosecution.”

Fine writing. Jordan can take his choice between the charitable or troubling interpretation. She ends her letter on a very positive note:

My attached prior letter provided you with four noble suggested uses of your authority as Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee: (1) enhancing funding for victim-witness advocates; (2) expanding funding for testing all rape kits; (3) supporting the Credible Messengers program, which helps to turn around children in trouble with the criminal justice system; and (4) ensuring adequate funding to support state crime labs, which test for drugs like Fentanyl. I would encourage you to focus your attention on those issues, which would make life better for the American people.

Jordan is hell bent on punishing DA Fani Willis and Fulton County, GA with a cut off of federal funds for daring to prosecute Trump. Thank God we have independent judiciary system, which bullies can not mess with, even if they appear on Twitter, Fox News and other biased cable news programs.

So much for aid to state labs that test for Fentanyl. Jordan isn’t interested. Jordan does what Trump wants, and Trump’s hatred for Fani Willis and the conspiracy charge is palatable. Jim Jordan, as of today, is the Republican nominee for the Speaker of the House. He lacks the votes to become Speaker and we will soon return to the saga of House republicans without a leader.

Jordan’s attack on DA Fani Willis is misplaced. It is not the attorney general who will determine Donald Trump’s fate, but a jury composed of ordinary citizens. This is the same for all Americans.

Stay tuned,

Dave

fani-willis-response-to-jim-jordan-1011Download


Trump’s Legal Problems – October 4, 2023

by Dave

Trump showed up for part of the third day of the New York State civil trial. He is now under a gag order not to make disparaging comments about court employees or their families. I predict two big former employees will be testifying next week, first Allen Weiselberg, who was Trump’s Chief Financial Officer, and Michael Cohen, who was Trump’s attorney.

Trump has blasted the whole case as unfair, to put it mildly, without a jury to evaluate all the facts. However, legal experts have laid the blame, partly on Trump’s lawyers, who did not object a non-jury trial.

See Link: “Mind-blowing”: Legal experts warn that lawyer’s incredible “screw-up” is “very ominous” for Trump

I’m not sure they would have succeeded, because they would have to argue for special circumstances exist to allow for a jury trial.

Trump’s attorney Alina Habba adds a bit of drama, but she is not winning any points with the judge:

You Tube video (4.4 minutes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLS80Vxe59U . Fallon Cousins is not a lawyer, but a progressive commentator.

Will Trump testify? He said he wants to, but his lawyers will likely suggest to him that he has more to lose than gain. If he testifies and makes false statements, he can be charged with perjury.

In January, E. Jean Carroll defamation case II will begin. Carroll is seeking an additional 10 million dollars in her suit.

Now on to the heavy hitters- the criminal cases which are Hush Money, Georgia Conspiracy, Classified Documents and January 6 Federal Case, with prosecutors Bragg, Willis, Smith and Smith, respectively.

Hush Money Case: Trump’s lawyers filed for a motion to dismiss of all charges (summary judgement). The case is scheduled for trial in March 2024 in Manhattan. I believe the motion to dismiss will fail.

Georgia Conspiracy: Recent ruling, favorable to the prosecution, have help this case. Both Sidney Powell and Ken Cheseboro have requested a speedy trial. The judge set their trial to begin on October 23, 2023. What they did not want, was to be tried together, and they lost their bids for separate trials.

Others have tried unsuccessfully to have their cases moved to federal court. It was widely anticipated that Donald Trump would also file for removal to federal court. Trump did not file for removal and decided to remain with the others in Georgia.

Then, prosecutors have accepted a plea deal for Scott Hall, one of the defendants, in exchange for his testimony, which likely will be very damaging to Sidney Powell’s case. Additional defendants might to get similar plea deals, which allow them to avoid jail time. Legal experts consider that AG Willis just has too many defendants to try at the same time, so it is to her advantage to offer plea deals, if the defendants can help her case. So, as I count, the large group of conspirators, is now down to 16, down from 19 before.

Classified Documents: Trial to begin May 2024. Judge will have to make some contentious rulings on rules regarding the inspection of classified documents. With the back and forth of motions, this could impact the trial start date. Trump’s lawyers want this case to be held after the presidential elections, and prosecutors are insisting on the May 2024 start date. At issue are rules established in the Classified Information Procedures Act or CIPA. The judge might just push back the start date.

Federal January 6 Case: Trial date to begin March 4, 2024. Trump lost in a bid to delay until April 2026. Just in case you’ve forgotten the charges: The special counsel indictment explained Trump was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, witness tampering, conspiracy against the rights of citizens, and obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding. This will be televised, and the timing, just before Superbowl couldn’t be worse.

After Trump attacked the courts and prosecutors, Judge Chutkan ordered a partial gag order, limiting what Trump could say about prosecutors, potential witnesses and others. Trump’s lawyers argued against this, and a hearing is set for October 16. Gag orders for both prosecutors and defendants are necessary at times, particularly so jurors and witnesses are not inadvertently intimidated by what is said in public.

That’s a wrap. I forgot Steve Bannon “Build the Wall” fraud case starts in May 28, 2024 in Manhattan, so court reporters will go back to Judge Juan Merchan courtroom, following the Hush Money case. Bannon was pardoned by Trump but they were able to file criminal charges against him under NY State law.

And of course, Rudy Giuliani’s lawsuit against Joe Biden for referring to him as a Russian pawn. Wasn’t Rudy Giuliani practically broke? Don’t think this one has legs.

Stay tuned,

Dave

New York State Case – Day 1

by Dave

This is thoroughly covered by the news media. I just wanted to clarify a few points:

(1) Why is this a non-jury trial?

Engoron said that neither side sought a jury and that state law doesn’t allow for juries when suits seek not only money but a court order setting out something a defendant must do or not do.

Trump has complained that he is being railroaded by a biased judge. It’s unclear whether a jury trial would have been available under New York Executive Law 63(12), the statute under which the case was brought, and may legal experts believe it likely would not have been. Trump’s spokesperson emphasized this point in a statement.

“The Attorney General filed this case under a consumer protection statute that denies the right to a jury,” the spokesperson [for Trump] told The Messenger. “It is unfortunate that a jury won’t be able to hear how absurd the merits of this case are and conclude no wrongdoing ever happened.”

But the judge’s remark highlights that neither side sought to litigate the issue.

(2) Why can’t we see it on television?

Both this trial and the hush money criminal trial will not be televised. Generally, court cases can not be televised without special permission. The same with the federal January 6 case and the classified documents case. Now, the Georgia case, with 18 defendants, will be televised.

(3) Why is Trump allowed to attack prosecutors and the judge?

I think no gag order has been requested, as there is no jury which could be compromised if they heard these hostile statements.

(4) When is AG Letitia James planning to call important witnesses?

The list of potential witnesses, both for the prosecution and rebuttal have been provided to the courts. There are 28 witnesses. This list has #4 Allen Weiselberg, #6 Michael Cohen and #14 Ivanka Trump. The prosecution will end Eric, Donald Jr. and Donald Trump, followed by an expert witness on Commercial Banking and Disgorgement Amounts. There are 25 other potential rebuttal witnesses. To have the defense present their case, prosecution could wrap up in mid November – that’s just my guess.

Eric, Donald Jr. and Donald Trump are also on the defense potential list of witnesses. There is a very good chance they will not take the stand.

(5) Is there any credible evidence that this judge is biased towards Trump?

Zero. His handling of the case so far, has been praised by experts in civil lawsuits. Of course Donald Trump has a different opinion, “I have a Deranged, Trump Hating Judge, who RAILROADED this FAKE CASE through a NYS Court at a speed never before seen,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

That’s classic Trump, always on the offense.

(6) Is there any evidence that the Attorney General is targeting Trump?

Of course, it is her job to investigate wrong doing especially when Trump’s lawyer, Michael Cohen, testified in Congress and wrote a book about all the illegal activities of Donald Trump. Successfully prosecuting Allen Weiselberg was a major step in charging Donald Trump, his two sons and the Trump business in this case with fraud.

(7) Is Trump and his organization being judged more harshly than similar cases?

Yes, when there is strong evidence of persistent fraud, the New York State law is more harsh. I happen to agree with harsh laws for repeat violators. There is a lower bar to prove fraud.

Hopefully, they can conclude the trial before Christmas.

Stay tuned,

Dave

The New York State Case Begins

by Dave

When something works, there is a tendency to repeat it. It looked to Trump like over valuations really worked. It is a fact that as he was making money, so were his companies and the banks. A win-win.

To Trump, image is everything. “I look better if I’m worth $10 billion than if I’m worth $4 billion,” he once said, disputing his ranking on the Forbes billionaires list. (a quote from the New York Times)

Multiple fraudulent claims extract a heavy penalty in New York State. This is why Trump’s business is in so much trouble.

Donald Trump has already bashed New York Attorney General Letitia James, calling her racist, and Judge Arthur Engoron as deranged. He has referred to the AG as biased and corrupt. This is pare for the course.

See AP ink: Who is Arthur Engoron?

More to come.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump’s Court Cases

by Dave

Trump is named in two civil cases and four criminal cases. I have created two short pages to summarize these cases.

It is easy to identify websites tracking the developments in each case. The NY State civil case is scheduled to begin on Monday, October 2 in Manhattan, NY. It is a non-jury trial and the judge has already established that the Trump business is guilty of fraud. It will not be televised.

Stay tuned,

Dave

The impeachment inquiry

by Dave

CNN has done an excellent job exposing the false statements made against Joe Biden at the impeachment inquiry hearing today. It is important to remember that Hunter Biden and business associates are not on trial. See link to their article.

In fact, the Chairman of the Oversight committee, Rep James Comer, began with a highly misleading statement. Republican Rep. James Comer, in his opening statement how “the Bidens and their associates created over 20 shell companies” and “raked in over $20 million between 2014 and 2019.” The phrase “the Bidens and their associates” obscures the fact that there is no public evidence to date that President Joe Biden himself received any of this money. And it’s worth noting that a large chunk of the money went to the “associates” – Hunter Biden’s business partners – not even Biden’s family itself.

Nancy Mace made the allegation of that as a known fact, Joe Biden received a bribe from Burisma. Per CNN: The claim about a bribe from Burisma is a completely unproven allegation. The FBI informant who relayed the claim to the FBI in 2020 was merely reporting something he said he had been told by Burisma’s chief executive.

The rest of the false or misleading statements are discussed in the CNN link. I think on this first day of hearings, the Chairman and others have destroyed their credibility with a series of false statements. Representatives Jim Jordan, Nancy Mace, Tim Burchett and Byron Donalds are noted as making highly misleading or false statements.

Representative Byron Donalds tried to show collusion between Joe Biden and his sons, through statements in an email, which were taken totally out of context.

CNN Link: Fact check: Republicans make false, misleading claims at first Biden impeachment inquiry hearing

I am still waiting for some real evidence of wrong doing by Joe Biden.

Stay tuned,

Dave

The Guard Rails have come off

by Dave

How can so few right wing radical Republicans take extreme measures to disrupt government? They make a lot of baseless accusations at Committee meetings, like the recent attacks on Attorney General Merrick Garland. They lectured the Attorney General, and then interrupted him as he attempted to reply. The was a stunt made for television. They want to interfere in the legitimate role of the Department of Justice to investigate criminal activity.

Jim Jordan led the charge for Republicans. His central theme was that the Justice Department has systematically targeted Republicans, while they go easy on Democrats. Jordan and others carried this message from the hearing room to cable news or social media.

But, nothing was panning out like it should. It was totally contradicted when Democrat Senator Bob Menendez and his wife were indicted for bribery and conspiracy to commit fraud. The evidence was astounding. A search of his home found approximately half a million dollars stashed in various locations. I know he is innocent until proven guilty, but I personally this time, they have a great case against Bob and his wife Nadine. Part of the evidence comes from a wiretap of Nadine’s phone. Yes, a court authorized wiretap which will help secure a conviction. So, AG Merrick Garland proved exactly what he was testifying to- that they follow the law and the facts in each case.

I particularly like this opinion as posted on CNN:

Link CNN Opinion, Government isn’t broken, the Republican Party is.

It is much easier to block a road than to construct it. Another words, it is easier to block progress to solving a problem, than actually work to solve it. The fix must come from the electorate. Five members of Congress blocked action of Defense appropriations (Andy Biggs, Dan Bishop, Eli Crane, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Matt Rosendale) . The one area where Republicans could always be counted on was support of the military. Now, as I began, the guard rails are off.

Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and Laura Boebert will never put forward any legislation that has any chance of being passed. They enjoy frustrating progress. In fact, the 20 plus extreme radical Republicans have a certain unity, not in Congress but in the Freedom Caucus, which doesn’t really care about funding government, raising the debt ceiling or reducing carbon emissions. The New York Times provided this list of extreme Republicans in January 2023 as follows:

Link New York Times How Far Right Are the 20 Republicans Who Voted Against McCarthy?

It is hardly all inclusive. A much longer list, is all the Republicans who supported Donald Trump’s claim that the 2020 election was rigged (election deniers).

Link, Election deniers in Congress

It was no surprise to see Senator Tommy Tuberville listed as an election denier. A short biography of Senator Tuberville, shows he is totally off the rails, in blocking the normal promotion of our military leaders.

Wikipedia, Tommy Tuberville

MSNBC

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/senate-confirms-key-military-nominees-tuberville-blockade-rcna116884

I believe that in not fixing what is not broken, which includes our military, our courts, the FBI, law enforcement, and the Department of Justice. Crashing our economy not raising the debt ceiling hurts everyone. False claims of a rigged election in 2020, damage our democracy.

There is a lot to be done going forward. Global warming is a huge problem. People have lost lives in Maui and California, and around the world in forest fires. This is real, and please don’t re-elect representatives who will do nothing. Russia can not be allowed to extend its borders. The US support of Ukraine is extremely important.

I believe in fixing what is broken, and that is the radical members of the Republican party. The next election will be critical in showing these out of control destructive members the door.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Rep Jim Jordan, House Judiciary Committee v AG Merrick Garland

by Dave

The Judiciary Committee is chaired by Republican Representative Jim Jordan. Jim Jordan is known for his very aggressive attacks on the Biden administration. He will conduct hearings to determine if President Biden committed “high crimes and misdemeanors” which warrant his removal through impeachment. It is almost certain that the committee will recommend impeachment although the supporting evidence will inconclusive. There is little justice in the Judiciary Committee under Republican control.

Obviously, Hunter Biden has legal problems. AG Merrick Garland will refuse to give details, as this is an ongoing legal matter, handled by a Special Counsel. Jim Jordan will likely refer to the shady or corrupt “Biden family” as if Hunter and Joe Biden shared a business together. There is zero evidence that Joe Biden was involved with Hunter Biden’s clients or profited from his consulting business. Jordan knows Garland can’t comment, as this is with the Special Counsel.

Rep. Jim Jordan is playing a game of deflection. If a fellow Republican is in trouble, to play the game of deflection, you accuse Democrats of doing much worse things. It seems really hard to deflect on this one, with Donald Trump charged with 91 criminal counts. The President’s son has been indicted on making a false statement on a gun application. Since he lied on the application, he is charged with possessing an illegal gun.

The New York Times got it right this morning (September 20, 2023) with the statement:

“The theory that President Biden intervened to protect his son, widely trumpeted by House Republicans and amplified by conservative news media, is central to the impeachment inquiry begun by Speaker Kevin McCarthy under pressure from the right flank of his party.”

You can be expected that Attorney General will be treated rudely. This is Jim Jordan’s style. He will spend as long as possible on the accusations, and then interrupt AG Garland as he attempts to provide an answer. In fact, Fox News frequently broadcasts just the accusations made by Rep. Jordan and other Republicans, then commentary in favor of Republican committee members.

The elephant in the room, is Trump’s legal charges. The classified documents case looks increasingly stronger, based on recent reports that Trump was actively trying to hide the documents from officials.

Garland’s opening statement will not be interrupted. Excerpts have already been given to the media. Garland will state:

“As the President himself has said, and I reaffirm here today: I am not the President’s lawyer. I will also add that I am not Congress’s prosecutor. The Justice Department works for the American people. Our job is to follow the facts and the law, wherever they lead. And that is what we do.”

And, it is true.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Republican alternatives to Democrat and Republican Candidates

by Dave

I support Joe Biden in 2024. There is no better candidate.

Let me state that the chief criticism of Biden is his age, which is 80 years old. Donald Trump is 77 years old. Mitch McConnell is 81 years old. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is 75 years old. They all are putting in some very long work days and making vital decisions. Ed Meese, who recently helped former US Assistant Attorney General Jeffery Clark to remove Clark from state court, is 91 years old, and I have no doubt, with his decades of government experience including being Attorney General, provided excellent legal support to Clark.

I don’t worry about Joe. He may not be able to lift weights like Putin, but he definitely holds his own on the global stage.

Joe Biden has no serious opposition. Robert Kennedy, Jr. and Marianne Wilkerson are two announced candidates. Robert Kennedy is a weird blend of radical conspiracy public health issues and isolationist policies, like zero support for Ukraine. Marianne Wilkerson writes books on spiritualism. Kennedy and Wilkerson, are two off-the-wall candidates.

Now, the Republican candidates. Trump is the front runner by far, and this has me scared. He will return to the presidency with revenge in mind. The Director of the FBI won’t last a day, and Director Christopher Wray is his appointment. Of course, he detests the IRS, and will be pardoning every tax cheat, including himself, if he can. In fact, everyone Trump was working with in the last month of his term in office will be needing pardons. Do not vote for a twice impeached candidate who has been charged with 91 criminal counts. Your local criminal is probably more law-biding and honest than Trump.

If you are a die hard Republican, who else is there? Either Governor Asa Hutchison and Nikki Haley would be a well relief from the constant BS from the overblown Donald, and they have real government experience. I admit that I like Chris Christie but his polling numbers are way down. The rest, I hate to say this, but they are almost as bad as Trump.

I despise Ron DeSantis. He is forever on the attack. Yes, we have a drug problem in the US. A full blown invasion of Mexico isn’t the solution. Isn’t that why we are defending Ukraine, because their neighbor (Russia, I hope you know this) invaded them. DeSantis has picked fights with almost any organization in Florida, including Disney, public health, school curriculum and university programs, etc.

The rest are non-starters. See link below, breaking up the candidates into normalish, semi-normal and abnormal. The author gets to 3 candidates, by adding 1/2 Christie and 1/2 Burgum. I would consider Mike Pence normalish, except he accepted the vice presidency with Trump. A man with religion doesn’t do that!

Link: Normalish Candidates

Members of the off the wall gang include Robert Kennedy and Marianne Wilkerson on the Democrat side and Vivek Rameswany, Tim Scott and Ron DeSantis on the Republican side. The first three candidates have zero government experience. Tim Scott and Ron DeSantis are appealing to the most extreme faction of the Republican party.

So, I know many people do not like Joe Biden, but he is our best chance of working with other nations and making life better. The fires in California and in Maui, the terrible storm and floods in Derna, Libya and hurricane Idalia have one factor in common: Global Warming. Trump and the rest of the Republicans will do nothing to reduce carbon emission, because they know their base includes climate change deniers.

I am looking for problem solvers, not politicians. Global problems require global solutions. Putin is a threat to world stability. Same with North Korea and China. Stay with Joe.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump’s Seven Springs Property

by Dave

The 213-acre Seven Springs property in Bedford, NY was bought by Donald Trump for 7.5 million dollars, in 1995 and belongs to the Trump Organization. The property lies about one hour drive outside of New York City, in Westchester county, close to Connecticut. This image is from the Trump’s organization website, and the mansion is truly opulent. At 7.5 million dollars, many consider this a real bargain.

See link from the Trump organization website:

https://www.trump.com/estates

The interior of the Seven Springs mansion is also stunning. It is also immaculate because no one lives there. Trump hasn’t visited the property in over four years. I’m certain there is a staff, keeping the place immaculate. He wanted this property as an investment, but every time he tried to develop the property, he ran into opposition.

It was used initially as a family get away location, where Donald and his family could get away during the hot summer months. His sons remember the property as children, where Donald Trump would have them do chores on the property and learn a bit about construction.

Trump wanted to build a golf course at Seven Springs and spent 9 years (I think 2005 to 2013) getting this approved. However, one little problem emerged, namely the golf course lawn would need fertilizer to be kept nice and green for the golfers. And the unspent fertilizer would run off into the Byram Lake, causing pollution. It’s a very common problem, as fertilizer is high in nitrates, and excessive vegetation will starve fish and other marine life of oxygen. The lake is used to supply drinking water to Mount Kisco and so real health issues were involved. So, this might explain why Trump deep down hates environmentalists. They stopped his golf course plans.

The property lies within 3 townships, Bedford, New Castle and North Castle, and residents vigorously protested the golf course on the basis of increased traffic and environmental issues. So by 2013, Trump gave up on the idea of the grand 18-hole golf course, and looked to subdivide the property and build houses on the property. More permits, more protests. Nothing really panned out.

In February 2019, Donald Trump’s lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, testified under oath in the Congressional Oversight Committee, accusing Donald Trump of inflating the value of his properties, to enhance his ability to secure loans. In his testimony, he specifically stated that the Seven Springs property had been valued at a whopping 291 million dollars. In his book in 2020, entitled Disloyal, he named other properties which the Trump organization would double or triple the value, in a very cavalier manner.

In March 2021, the Associated Press published a well researched article on the “sleepy NY estate” like a sleepy dog that you do not dare to disturb. The undevelopable property found a way to make money for Trump anyway, by making an arrangement with the state, not to develop it, and be paid for environmental conservation. Imagine that! The Donald who wanted to become rich by building another golf course, and pollute Lake Byram was now an environmentalist. Well a greedy and dishonest environmentalist who knew how to work the system was what he was.

AP Article: Claimed value of sleepy NY estate could come to haunt Trump

There is more irony to this story. Donald Trump who claims to love his country so much, he wraps himself up in the American flag, was bilking millions from the government (and tax payers) with the conservation payments based on highly exagerrated property evaluation.

Axiom exposed the wide ranging valuation issues in September 2021.

Link: Key takeaways from New York AG’s lawsuit against Trump

It seems Eric Trump was really the one negotiating and approving these deals. The charges against Donald Trump are very long (222 pages). Everything is over appraised, apartment buildings, hotels and golf courses. A total of 23 properties are involved. See links at the end of this posting.

The court case begins on October 2, 2023 and is scheduled to go four months. It is a witch hunt in a sense that the skeletons of the Trump’s shady business deals are coming out of the closet. Actually, there is a warehouse full of skeletons. I pity the jury, who must go through all this, but it will prove again that Donald Trump and his sons have little respect for the law.

I suspect the IRS and the Justice Department will be closely following this case, and they have the authority to bring criminal charges against Donald Trump and likely Eric Trump as well. It still baffles me how Trump receives millions of dollars in contributions to defend his illegal actions, which in this case, hurt the taxpayers. Not the way to make America great.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Summary of Charges

letitia-james-lawsuitDownload

Lawsuit Filed by New York State Attorney General Office

letitia-james-lawsuit-222-pagesDownload