Trump: Set to declare 2024 presidential bid tonight; will indictments follow soon?

[Peter McKillop]

Peter, you mentioned me but were responding to a post by Dilip. But I think you hit on something. with the "white assholes" comment.

Trump wants a race war. That is the hidden (or not-so-hidden) message of MAGA.

And the Caucasians of the USA, seeing the Mexico border problems and just huge numbers of visible minorities in general, are showing themselves willing to be drawn into it. I think that explains Trump's polling numbers and the willingness of many to engage in violence for Trump's benefit.

Sorry, Pargat, yes I should have addressed Dilip. I'm pretty much in agreement with what you've said. According to the Brookings Institution (and almost everyone with the ability to manipulate and extrapolate census data), America will become 'minority white' around 2045. A lot of xenophobic/racist/hate-filled American whites are filled with fear at this prospect and I'm betting that the vast majority of them are in Trump's camp. But why should they be fearful? After all (tongue in cheek), isn't the history of American whites (and others but we're talking about America) a tale of compassion for others and generosity of spirit? Right. Two and a half centuries of de jure slavery, a century of Jim Crow, the treatment of indigenous peoples, current Republican efforts to minimize the impact of the non-white vote through gerrymandering, credential challenges, inequities based on colour pretty much across the board. It's a huge list. I don't know if Trump wants a race war but I believe he wants to turn the clock back by stopping non-white immigration and deporting millions of non-whites.

[Bob Armstrong]

Trump's Legal Problems – Criminal # 2 (Of 4) – Georgia Election Interference

Charge: Georgia Election Vote-Counting Interference - “Racketeering”

Prosecutor: Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney: Ms. Fani Willis

Trial – Fulton County, Atlanta Georgia – Superior Ct. Judge Scott McAffee

Summary Dismissal Application: Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Ruling by Judge McAffee: quashed six of the 41 charges against Donald Trump and his allies in the sprawling Georgia election interference case.

The ruling said charges that Donald Trump and his allies solicited public officials to break the law were not specific enough. Included was the charge related to a call that Mr. Trump made to pressure Georgia’s secretary of state in early January 2021. He left intact the rest of the racketeering indictment, which initially included 41 counts.

Prosecutorial Indiscretion

Application to Remove Prosecutor: Trump and eight other defendants had tried to get Willis and her office removed from the case, arguing that a romantic relationship she had with special prosecutor Nathan Wade created a conflict of interest.

Judgment (March/ 24): McAfee in March found that no conflict of interest existed that should force Willis off the case, but he granted a request from Trump and the other defendants to seek an appeal of his ruling from the state Court of Appeals. He said Willis could remain on the case only if Wade left, and the special prosecutor submitted his resignation hours later.

Update – 24/6/5

Georgia Court of Appeals Order (24/6/5): The Georgia Court of Appeals has halted the Georgia election interference case against former President Donald Trump and others while it reviews the lower court judge’s ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to remain on the case.

The order prevents Fulton County Superior Court Judge, Scott McAfee, from moving forward with pretrial motions as he had planned, while the appeal is pending.

The appeals court on the Monday docketed the appeals filed by Trump and eight others and said that “if oral argument is requested and granted” it is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 4, 2024. The court will then have until mid-March to rule.

Possible Further Proceedings: The losing side will be able to appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court.

Criminal Trial Continuation: While it was already unlikely that the case would go to trial before the November general election, when Trump is expected to be the Republican nominee for president, this makes that even more certain.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-geo...%20Subscribers

Bob A

[Bob Armstrong]

[Peter McKillop]

I hope you're just as enthusiastic about the prosecutions underway against the Trump "crime family."

Because after all, no one is above the law! Right, Neil? Here's what the prosecutor at the Biden trial said in his opening remarks:

“No one is above the law,” prosecutor Derek Hines declared at the outset of his opening statement. “It doesn’t matter who you are or what your name is, because in this country the law applies to everyone equally. … That law makes no distinction between Hunter Biden and anybody else.”

Source: https://www.politico.com/news/2024/0...ments-00161507

[Peter McKillop]

Grabbed a bag of popcorn for the fall of the Biden crime family, ha!

Starting with the prosecution of crack head Hunter with his laptop from hell. You know ... the laptop that Lying Joe Biden denied existed during the debate with Trump right in front of a national audience.

10% for the Big Guy ... Hunter's father Joe Biden, ha!
3 of crack head Hunter's former business partners are testifying against him and his Big Guy dad.

The fall of the Biden crime family ... grab that bag of popcorn folks!!!

C'mon man! Fun times!

I hope you're just as enthusiastic about the prosecutions underway against the Trump "crime family."

[Peter McKillop]

My Analysis

The liberal establishment has failed to deliver in the minds of most Americans.

Trump has played on this, to attack the elite, the experts, science, democracy, the courts, judges and whole justice system...all aspects of the "Establishment".....he is the Great Anti-Establishment Leader.

Trump remains silent about what society will look like under his reign (Autocracy), and most of his supporters seem not to ask about their future.

Bob A

Hi Bob. If you were to add to the above Trump's courting, encouragement, and support of America's white hate community (racists, anti-semites, homophobes, nationalists, supremacists, etc.*), then I think you'd have a pretty good summary of the key ingredients in American politics over the last 9 years or so.

* the items in this list aren't mutually exclusive

[Neil Frarey]

Grabbed a bag of popcorn for the fall of the Biden crime family, ha!

Starting with the prosecution of crack head Hunter with his laptop from hell. You know ... the laptop that Lying Joe Biden denied existed during the debate with Trump right in front of a national audience.

10% for the Big Guy ... Hunter's father Joe Biden, ha!

3 of crack head Hunter's former business partners are testifying against him and his Big Guy dad.

The fall of the Biden crime family ... grab that bag of popcorn folks!!!

C'mon man! Fun times!

[Pargat Perrer]

I don't understand it either, Pargat, but, as has been pointed out by others, I think Trump benefits from (tens of?) millions of American voters with white nationalist/supremacist viewpoints. The U.S. (and Canada to a lesser extent?) seems to be sitting on a powder keg of white assholes.

Peter, you mentioned me but were responding to a post by Dilip. But I think you hit on something. with the "white assholes" comment.

Trump wants a race war. That is the hidden (or not-so-hidden) message of MAGA.

And the Caucasians of the USA, seeing the Mexico border problems and just huge numbers of visible minorities in general, are showing themselves willing to be drawn into it. I think that explains Trump's polling numbers and the willingness of many to engage in violence for Trump's benefit.

[Bob Armstrong]

My Analysis

The liberal establishment has failed to deliver in the minds of most Americans.

Trump has played on this, to attack the elite, the experts, science, democracy, the courts, judges and whole justice system...all aspects of the "Establishment".....he is the Great Anti-Establishment Leader.

Trump remains silent about what society will look like under his reign (Autocracy), and most of his supporters seem not to ask about their future.

Bob A

[Peter McKillop]

.... No half-sensible person would want to listen to the person described above (Trump); and no half-responsible media would want to report on such a person either!
Why then do more than half of the American voters want him to become the President of the USA once again, and why do all the Media help him get there by keeping him in the headlines all the time?
Is it because human nature is basically selfish, and hence his simple 'America first' slogan resonates strongly with the masses?
....

I don't understand it either, Pargat, but, as has been pointed out by others, I think Trump benefits from (tens of?) millions of American voters with white nationalist/supremacist viewpoints. The U.S. (and Canada to a lesser extent?) seems to be sitting on a powder keg of white assholes.

[Pargat Perrer]

The potential for Trump-driven violence in America has now risen to its highest level ever:

Trump verdict unleashes perilous new intensity in American politics (msn.com)

[Dilip Panjwani]

"There is a simple, foolproof way to predict when Trump will describe something or someone as rigged or corrupt: when he doesn’t get what he wants. Elections he loses are fraudulent, legal decisions that go against him are rigged, and anyone who opposes him is corrupt. In every single instance, Trump is decrying not a corrupt individual or rigged process, but a person or process that is not corrupt or rigged enough to give him the results he seeks."

- Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, May 31, 2024

Peter,

No half-sensible person would want to listen to the person described above (Trump); and no half-responsible media would want to report on such a person either!
Why then do more than half of the American voters want him to become the President of the USA once again, and why do all the Media help him get there by keeping him in the headlines all the time?
Is it because human nature is basically selfish, and hence his simple 'America first' slogan resonates strongly with the masses?

And while we are talking about Donny-boy, the recent civil and criminal cases prosecutors in New York simply used existing law to prosecute him, and the criminal case jurors simply did what they were supposed to do, i.e. uphold the law! So why are even the 'independents' in America so angry at what happened?
Is it because the laws involved simply seemed stupid, and the ruling politicians wasted a lot of time searching them out and enforcing these stupid laws, only because Donny was their political opponent? It seems human nature basically respects only the Natural Law!!!

Trump Gets A 6-Point Bump In Approval Ratings After Guilty Verdict: Poll (msn.com)

[Peter McKillop]

"There is a simple, foolproof way to predict when Trump will describe something or someone as rigged or corrupt: when he doesn’t get what he wants. Elections he loses are fraudulent, legal decisions that go against him are rigged, and anyone who opposes him is corrupt. In every single instance, Trump is decrying not a corrupt individual or rigged process, but a person or process that is not corrupt or rigged enough to give him the results he seeks."

- Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, May 31, 2024

[Bob Armstrong]

Legal Problems - Criminal Case # 3 (Of 4) – Falsifying Corp. Docs # 1 (Hush Money)

Prosecutor: Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, under New York Attorney General, Letitia James. Senior Counsel to the DA is Matthew Colangelo, with Ms. Susan Hoffinger.

Manhattan Criminal Court Charge: Falsifying corporate documents # 1

34 counts of falsification of New York business records in an attempt to cover up hush-money payments to Stephanie A. Gregory Clifford, known professionally as Stormy Daniels, an American pornographic film actress, director and former stripper. Stephanie claims she had an extramarital affair with Trump, which he vehemently denies.
Mr. Bragg further accuses Mr. Trump of trying to hide “damaging information and unlawful activity from American voters before and after the 2016 election". Public disclosure of this could have derailed Trump's stunning victory in the 2016 presidential election.

Note: Mr. Bragg seeks a "felony" conviction for what would normally be a "misdemeanor". He argues that the intent to commit or conceal another crime (By making the illegal hush money payment), including breaking “state and federal election laws,” raises the charge to a felony, punishable by up to four years in prison, under New York law.

Interim Motions & Decisions (prior to trial): See Post # 231 (24/4/12)

Start of Trial (Mon. 24/4/15) - Trial Judge Juan Manuel Marchan

Live Trial Updates – May have Jury Verdict & Judge Marchan's Judgment: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/04...d396a4debfd6ce

This is the first criminal prosecution of a former American president. It may be the only one of the 4 current criminal cases against Trump where the trial gets started in 2024.

Trial Opening Statement - Prosecutor

“This is a case about a criminal conspiracy,” Mr. Colangelo told the jury. “The defendant, Donald Trump, orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt the 2016 presidential election.”

Mr. Colangelo then began to unfold, step by step, how Mr. Trump and Mr. David Pecker, [National Enquirer former CEO, then good friend of Trump] using the Enquirer, conceived a scheme “to influence the presidential election by concealing negative information” about Mr. Trump with the help of his former personal lawyer [and now current nemesis], Michael Cohen. The prosecutor called him Mr. Trump’s “former fixer.”

The three men met in August 2015 at Trump Tower and cooked up a three-point plan to help Mr. Trump win the 2016 election, the prosecution alleged. The Enquirer would run “headline after headline that extolled the defendant’s virtues,” Mr. Colangelo argued.

Witnesses for Prosecution

Witness: Mr. David Pecker, former National Enquirer publisher.

Testified that he suppressed Trump stories.At a 2015 meeting at the Trump Tower, he agreed to be the “eyes and ears” of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign by buying up scandalous stories about the real estate mogul and suppressing them.

Witness: Stephanie Clifford (aka Stormy Daniels) - American pornographic film actress, director and former stripper.

Stormy Daniels is not central to the prosecution’s case, but her encounter with Trump led to a hush-money payment that turned into 34 felony charges against a former president. She held her own with Trump the Trump lawyer and continue to assert she was telling the truth, despite minor factual variations from prior statements. She said that she didn’t want money for her account of having had sex with Trump and that she wanted to “get the story out.” But she did strike a deal, accepting money to stay silent.

Trump Motion (24/5/9): request for a mistrial based on the argument that Daniels' changed her story about the alleged encounter - dismissed

Trump Motion (24/5/9): seeking to modify an existing gag order so the former president could talk publicly about Daniels - dismissed.

Witness: Michael Cohen, Trump's former personal attorney

Cohen testified that he worked to bury negative stories on behalf of Trump and connected his former boss to a payoff made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, allegedly in exchange for her silence about an affair. It was part of a wider effort by Trump to save his 2016 presidential campaign by paying to hide lascivious details about his personal life from voters, and then hide those hush money payments with accounting fraud, prosecutors have alleged. Cohen told the jury that Trump told him that if news of a sexual encounter with Daniels got out, it would spell “disaster” for his White House bid. “This is a disaster, a total disaster,” Trump said, according to Cohen. “Women will hate me. Guys may think it’s cool, but this is going to be a disaster for the campaign.”

Trial Summary

Here are five things we learned during the trial:

1. The head of the National Enquirer described a partnership with Trump aimed at boosting his presidential bid

1. Hope Hicks said Trump was worried about the Stormy Daniels story coming out before the 2016 election.
2. Stormy Daniels described being pressured into sex with Trump
3. A handwritten note described Michael Cohen being reimbursed $130,000
4. Michael Cohen admitted he stole from the Trump Organization

Closing Argument of Prosecutor: Donald Trump engaged in “a conspiracy and a cover-up”.

Closing Argument of Defense: The star witness, lawyer Michael Cohen, is the “greatest liar of all time”; the jury should render an across-the-board acquittal.

Update: 24/5/30

Jury Verdict: Guilty

Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes

Donald Trump became the first former president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of falsifying business records in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through hush money payments to a porn actor who said the two had sex.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#in...nJpqVfxWmJvJWQ

What Would Happen If He’s Convicted?

Legal experts the Sun spoke to said a typical defendant convicted of the charges at hand would be very unlikely to face prison, but none of them would speculate about what this would mean for President Trump.

https://www.nysun.com/article/a-verd...0%202024-05-25

Bob A

[Bob Armstrong]

Legal Problems - Criminal Case # 3 (Of 4) – Falsifying Corp. Docs # 1 (Hush Money)

Prosecutor: Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, under New York Attorney General, Letitia James. Senior Counsel to the DA is Matthew Colangelo, with Ms. Susan Hoffinger.

Manhattan Criminal Court Charge: Falsifying corporate documents # 1

34 counts of falsification of New York business records in an attempt to cover up hush-money payments to Stephanie A. Gregory Clifford, known professionally as Stormy Daniels, an American pornographic film actress, director and former stripper. Stephanie claims she had an extramarital affair with Trump, which he vehemently denies.
Mr. Bragg further accuses Mr. Trump of trying to hide “damaging information and unlawful activity from American voters before and after the 2016 election". Public disclosure of this could have derailed Trump's stunning victory in the 2016 presidential election.

Note: Mr. Bragg seeks a "felony" conviction for what would normally be a "misdemeanor". He argues that the intent to commit or conceal another crime (By making the illegal hush money payment), including breaking “state and federal election laws,” raises the charge to a felony, punishable by up to four years in prison, under New York law.

Interim Motions & Decisions (prior to trial): See Post # 231 (24/4/12)

Start of Trial (Mon. 24/4/15) - Trial Judge Juan Manuel Marchan

Live Trial Updates – May have Jury Verdict & Judge Marchan's Judgment: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/04...d396a4debfd6ce

This is the first criminal prosecution of a former American president. It may be the only one of the 4 current criminal cases against Trump where the trial gets started in 2024.

Trial Opening Statement - Prosecutor

“This is a case about a criminal conspiracy,” Mr. Colangelo told the jury. “The defendant, Donald Trump, orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt the 2016 presidential election.”

Mr. Colangelo then began to unfold, step by step, how Mr. Trump and Mr. David Pecker, [National Enquirer former CEO, then good friend of Trump] using the Enquirer, conceived a scheme “to influence the presidential election by concealing negative information” about Mr. Trump with the help of his former personal lawyer [and now current nemesis], Michael Cohen. The prosecutor called him Mr. Trump’s “former fixer.”

The three men met in August 2015 at Trump Tower and cooked up a three-point plan to help Mr. Trump win the 2016 election, the prosecution alleged. The Enquirer would run “headline after headline that extolled the defendant’s virtues,” Mr. Colangelo argued.

Witnesses for Prosecution

Witness: Mr. David Pecker, former National Enquirer publisher.

Testified that he suppressed Trump stories.At a 2015 meeting at the Trump Tower, he agreed to be the “eyes and ears” of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign by buying up scandalous stories about the real estate mogul and suppressing them.

Witness: Stephanie Clifford (aka Stormy Daniels) - American pornographic film actress, director and former stripper.

Stormy Daniels is not central to the prosecution’s case, but her encounter with Trump led to a hush-money payment that turned into 34 felony charges against a former president. She held her own with Trump the Trump lawyer and continue to assert she was telling the truth, despite minor factual variations from prior statements. She said that she didn’t want money for her account of having had sex with Trump and that she wanted to “get the story out.” But she did strike a deal, accepting money to stay silent.

Trump Motion (24/5/9): request for a mistrial based on the argument that Daniels' changed her story about the alleged encounter - dismissed

Trump Motion (24/5/9): seeking to modify an existing gag order so the former president could talk publicly about Daniels - dismissed.

Witness: Michael Cohen, Trump's former personal attorney

Cohen testified that he worked to bury negative stories on behalf of Trump and connected his former boss to a payoff made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, allegedly in exchange for her silence about an affair. It was part of a wider effort by Trump to save his 2016 presidential campaign by paying to hide lascivious details about his personal life from voters, and then hide those hush money payments with accounting fraud, prosecutors have alleged. Cohen told the jury that Trump told him that if news of a sexual encounter with Daniels got out, it would spell “disaster” for his White House bid. “This is a disaster, a total disaster,” Trump said, according to Cohen. “Women will hate me. Guys may think it’s cool, but this is going to be a disaster for the campaign.”

Update (24/5/28)

Trial Summary

Here are five things we learned during the trial:

1. The head of the National Enquirer described a partnership with Trump aimed at boosting his presidential bid

1. Hope Hicks said Trump was worried about the Stormy Daniels story coming out before the 2016 election.
2. Stormy Daniels described being pressured into sex with Trump
3. A handwritten note described Michael Cohen being reimbursed $130,000
4. Michael Cohen admitted he stole from the Trump Organization

Closing Argument of Prosecutor: Donald Trump engaged in “a conspiracy and a cover-up”.

Closing Argument of Defense: The star witness, lawyer Michael Cohen, is the “greatest liar of all time”; the jury should render an across-the-board acquittal.

Jury Deliberations: Start tomorrow (Wed., May 29); a verdict could possibly be rendered this week.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-tri...ternoon%20Wire

What Would Happen If He’s Convicted?

Legal experts the Sun spoke to said a typical defendant convicted of the charges at hand would be very unlikely to face prison, but none of them would speculate about what this would mean for President Trump.

https://www.nysun.com/article/a-verd...0%202024-05-25

Bob A