Trump says his $355m fraud penalty is ‘a form of Navalny’
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Donald Trump has asked a federal court to drop criminal charges against him that allege he unlawfully kept sensitive national security documents after his presidency ended.
Mr Trump, asserting that the legal action against him was flawed, entered a plea of not guilty, court filings show.
The case comes days after the Republican presidential front-runner, his adult sons and their chief associates in the Trump Organization’s sprawling real estate empire were ordered to pay more than $355m after a months-long case targeting fraud in the family business.
Mr Trump could see his assets seized and even lose his buildings in New York if he cannot pay his fine in that civil fraud case, state attorney general Letitia James has warned.
“If he does not have funds to pay off the judgement, then we will seek judgement enforcement mechanisms in court, and we will ask the judge to seize his assets,” Ms James said in an interview with ABC News.
“We are prepared to make sure that the judgement is paid to New Yorkers, and yes, I look at 40 Wall Street each and every day.”
Trump arrives 90 minutes late and delivers wild, incoherent speech to Christian audience
Sleepy Don looked absolutely shattered last night as he took to the stage an hour and a half late in Nashville, Tennessee, to address the National Religious Broadcasters association and boy was he on one.
Tripping over words you might hope he had down for this audience like “evangelical”, he declared, among other things, that he had made “Israel” the capital of Israel during his presidency (presumably confusing the decision to move the US embassy in that country from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem), that he planned to close down the Department of Education (!) and praised the Capitol rioters, or “J6 hostages”, for their “tremendous spirit”.
He even claimed that “everybody” agreed with the US Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v Wade, which, I don’t know, I’m sure can’t be right… Everybody? Really? No one had a problem? You’d think someone would have mentioned it…
It really was an astonishing performance, some of which amounted to outright gibberish.
Joe Sommerlad23 February 2024 09:45
Who’s on the shortlist to be Trump’s running mate?
The names you’d expect… and one surprise…
Oliver O’Connell23 February 2024 09:00
Where’s Melania? (again)
Mike Bedigan ponders the whereabouts of the former first lady:
Oliver O’Connell23 February 2024 07:30
Trump mocked for comparing himself to Alexei Navalny
Lydic attacked Mr Trump for “making it about himself” after the one-term president posted an essay on Truth Social titled ‘Biden:Trump::Putin:Navalny.”
The post included a line which read, “Alexei Navalny’s untimely death shines a light on the Left’s lawfare on Trump.”
However, Lydic thought that to compare Navalny with Trump was “unacceptable.”
Amelia Neath has the story:
Oliver O’Connell23 February 2024 05:30
Trump asks court to dismiss charges accusing him of mishandling classified documents
He faces a 40-count indictment in a federal court, charged with the illegal possession of classified documents at his Florida estate post-2021 and impeding efforts by the US government to reclaim them.
US special counsel Jack Smith’s team charged Mr Trump with storing documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, which contained sensitive details about the US nuclear programme and potential national security weaknesses.
Read the full story here:
Maroosha Muzaffar23 February 2024 04:19
New poll has Trump ahead of Biden on age and mental and physical fitness
Gustaf Kilander has the details:
Oliver O’Connell23 February 2024 03:30
After refusing to go up against Republican rivals, Trump challenges Biden to debate him
Despite refusing to show up for any of the Republican primary debates – or for the presidential debates in 2020 – Donald Trump is now challenging PresidentJoe Biden to debate him this time around.
Speaking at a town hall on Fox News Tuesday night, the former president and Republican frontrunner said there was “an obligation” for the pair to go head-to-head in the lead-up to the election in November.
“Frankly, I think we have an obligation. When you have the final Republican, the final Democrat, you have the two people, you have to debate regardless of polls,” Mr Trump told Laura Ingraham in South Carolina.
Mr Trump said he would like to have as many debates as necessary, adding: “I would like to do it starting now”.
Oliver O’Connell23 February 2024 02:00
Biden ‘bombshells’ all lead back to Trump… and Russia
Andrew Feinberg reports that it has become increasingly apparent that the sources of whatever ‘dirt’ Republicans claim to have on President Joe Biden and his family can all be traced back to one man…
Oliver O’Connell23 February 2024 01:00
Critics warn Biden’s alleged anti-asylum plan revives failed Trump-era policy and violates international law
President Joe Biden’s reported plan to restrict the right to claim asylum at the US-Mexico border has alarmed members of Congress and civil and humanitarian rights groups who fear the administration could be in breach of international law.
Such a proposal, which would bypass Congress, would mirror an illegal Trump-era measure that a federal judge had previously rejected as an unlawful attempt to “rewrite” the nation’s immigration laws to “impose a condition that Congress has expressly forbidden.”
Oliver O’Connell23 February 2024 00:00
Fani Willis’ testimony evokes long-standing frustrations for Black women leaders
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is used to prosecuting high-profile, challenging cases. But as she parried questions about her own personal conduct from the witness stand against the legal teams for defendants her office has accused of election interference, many Black women recognized a dispiriting scene.
“It absolutely feels familiar. There is no secret that the common sentiment among Black women in positions of power (is that they) must over-perform to be seen as equals to their counterparts,” said Jessica T. Ornsby, a family litigation attorney in the Washington, D.C., area.
“Here, Ms. Willis is being scrutinized for things that are not directly related to her job performance, in ways we see other Black women regularly picked apart,” Ornsby said.
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