Court temporarily lifts Trump gag order in 2020 election case: Live
Jimmy Kimmel roasts Eric Trump for claiming he is ‘a construction guy’
A federal appeals court has temporarily lifted a gag order placed on former President Donald Trump in his 2020 election interference case.
The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit issued the ruling on Friday, putting a hold on the limited gag order to allow judges more time to review Mr Trump’s request for a longer pause on the restrictions on his speech during his appeals.
The court said that the pause “should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits” of Mr Trump’s request.
This comes after Eric Trump concluded his testimony at Mr Trump’s $250m civil fraud trial in New York on Friday. Judge Arthur Engoron expanded a gag order in that case originally imposed on the former president to include his attorneys after a heated exchange over accusations of bias from the court clerk.
The fraud trial is a civil proceeding while the election interference case is one of four criminal indictments against Mr Trump.
The Trump Organization is accused by New York Attorney General Letitia James of inflating asset values to fraudulently obtain better financing terms from banks. The outcome of this trial could topple the company.
GOP Rep Ken Buck plots scorched-earth exit from Congress
Rep. Ken Buck has had enough.
When the Colorado Republican announced this past week that he would not seek reelection, he began with the type of criticism of Democratic policies that is standard fare for a hard-line conservative. But then Buck turned his ire to fellow Republicans, spending most of the three-minute announcement video accusing them of being “obsessively fixated on retribution and vengeance for contrived injustices of the past.”
Buck’s scorched-earth approach caught few on Capitol Hill by surprise.
With a deadpan demeanor, an independent streak and a background as a federal prosecutor, Buck has gained national prominence as a House Republican fed up with Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 presidential election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden and the Trump allies in Congress who amplify them. It’s a stand few others in the GOP are taking and is a remarkable turn that shows just how deeply Trump’s once-fringe lies about that race have settled into the Republican mainstream.
Buck regularly appears on networks such as CNN and, with no plans to leave Congress before the end of his term, he probably will be a prominent foil to Republicans during his final months in office. His political heresy extends to the impeachment inquiry into Biden, which Buck has dismissed as baseless.
“Our nation is on a collision course with reality, and a steadfast commitment to truth — even uncomfortable truths — is the only way forward,” Buck said in the video.
Stephen Groves, Farnoush Amiri4 November 2023 13:55
ICYMI: Ivanka Trump loses appeal to delay New York civil fraud trial testimony
An interim appeals court swiftly denied her motion to seek temporary stay on Thursday night for a testimony on 8 November after her attorney said she would encounter “undue hardship” as it was scheduled “in the middle of a school week”.
“Ms Trump, who resides in Florida with her three minor children, will suffer undue hardship if a stay is denied and she is required to testify at trial in New York in the middle of a school week, in a case she has already been dismissed from, before her appeal is heard,” her attorney said in an appeal filed Thursday.
Oliver O’Connell4 November 2023 13:00
Appeals courts temporarily lifts Trump’s gag in election fraud case
A federal appeals court temporarily lifted a gag order on Donald Trump in his 2020 election interference case in Washington on Friday — the latest twist in the legal fight over the restrictions on the former president’s speech.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit decision puts a hold on the limited gag order to give the judges time to consider Trump’s request for a longer pause on the restrictions while his appeals play out. The appeals court said the temporary pause “should not be construed in any way as a ruling on the merits” of Trump’s bid.
The court set oral arguments for Nov. 20 before a panel of three judges — all appointees of Democratic presidents.
An attorney for Trump declined to comment on Friday.
The gag order, imposed by U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, bars Trump from making public statements targeting prosecutors, court staff and potential witnesses in the case accusing him of conspiring to overturn the 2020 election he lost to President Joe Biden. It still allows the former president to assert his innocence and his claims that the case against him is politically motivated.
Chutkan, who was appointed to the bench by former President Barack Obama reimposed the gag order on Sunday, after prosecutors pointed to Trump’s recent social media comments about his former chief of staff Mark Meadows.
It’s the most serious restriction a court has put on the speech of the GOP presidential primary frontrunner and criminal defendant in four separate cases. Gag orders are not unheard of in high-profile cases, but courts have never had to wrestle before with whether they can curtail the speech of a presidential candidate.
George Santos sinks lower with vile attack on GOP lawmaker’s son
Serial liar George Santos unleashed a vile attack on the son of a fellow Republican lawmaker, calling him a “felon” and a “drug dealer” who has been “poisoning people on the streets with meth”.
“Last night, the House saw its shadow. Unfortunately, this means there will be two more weeks of Santos,” Mr Womack quipped on X, formerly Twitter.
In response, the embattled New York congressman chose to launch a venomous and highly personal attack on Mr Womack’s son James Womack.
Rachel Sharp reports on what he said.
Oliver O’Connell4 November 2023 11:00
‘Vaping groping’ Lauren Boebert slammed by Marjorie Taylor Greene
Marjorie Taylor Greene has lashed out at “vaping groping” Lauren Boebert in the latest spat between the friends turned sworn foes.
Mr Roy was one of 23 Republicans who joined 199 Democrats in rejecting Ms Greene’s measure and defended the move in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
“Rep. Rashida Tlaib has repeatedly made outrageous remarks toward Israel and the Jewish people. Her conduct is unbecoming of a member of Congress and certainly worthy of condemnation – if not censure,” Mr Roy wrote on X.
The post clearly rattled Ms Greene who fired off an angry reply – while managing to take aim at her fellow MAGA fan but sworn rival Ms Boebert in the process.
Oliver O’Connell4 November 2023 09:00
Watch: Eric Trump claims world ‘laughing about what’s going on’
Oliver O’Connell4 November 2023 06:00
Jimmy Kimmel rips Donald Trump Jr over testimony
Mr Trump Jr, who denies any involvement alongside his brother Eric Trump, made a witty remark about regretting not wearing make-up as photographers lined the courtroom.
One person who certainly did not find Mr Trump Jr’s jokes funny was talk show host Mr Kimmel.
Amelia Neath has the story.
Oliver O’Connell4 November 2023 03:00
Why are Trump’s children testifying at New York civil fraud trial?
The main focus on Donald Trump’s myriad of legal woes shifted to Lower Manhattan in October as his civil fraud case came to trial at New York state’s Supreme Court.
New York Attorney General Letitia James brought the case against the Trump Organization and maintains that between 2011 and 2021 the company falsified financial statements regarding the development of several real estate projects and artificially inflated Mr Trump’s net worth in order to get better financing terms from banks and insurance companies.
This was done by over-stating valuations of the former president’s most prestigious holdings including his triplex penthouse at Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan and his current home at the Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Florida.
As the prosecution’s case draws to a close, three of his adult children are taking the stand to testify under oath, which begs the question: how are they wrapped up in all this and why is their testimony important at the trial?
Oliver O’Connell4 November 2023 01:30
In an order issued on Friday afternoon, the judge said Mr Trump’s attorneys have made “on the record, repeated, inappropriate remarks” about Ms Greenfield, “falsely accusing her of bias against them and improperly influencing the ongoing bench trial.”
“These arguments have no basis,” the judge wrote.
The heated exchanges came moments before Eric Trump’s final round of questioning on the witness stand.
His father and co-defendant in the case is next. Mr Trump will testify on Monday.
Ivanka Trump, who successfully removed herself as a co-defendant in the attorney general’s $250m lawsuit earlier this year, will testify on Wednesday. She lost her appeals to block or delay her testimony.
The lawsuit alleges that the former president, his adult sons and their chief associates defrauded financial institutions for years by inflating his net worth and assets to fraudulently obtain favourable business deals.
In September, Judge Engoron issued a summary judgment finding the defendants liable for fraud. The trial, which could last through the weekend before Christmas, is considering the attorney general’s attempts to recover tens of millions of dollars from the Trumps’ allegedly ill-gotten gains.
Alex Woodward4 November 2023 00:40
Mr Kise drew audible groans and laughter from the courtroom when he pointed to allegations about the clerk that appeared in Breitbart, a website formerly operated by Mr Trump’s former aide Steve Bannon.
“I’ll let everyone in the room decide what they think about Breitbart,” the judge said.
The article in Breitbart is solely sourced from the man who claims to be behind a social media account (which describes itself as “like a clandestine intelligence organization”) filled with false and inflammatory statements surrounding the case. False attacks from the account that targeted Judge Engoron’s clerk Allison Greenfield were shared by Mr Trump, which prompted the judge’s gag order.
That man, Brock Fredin, also launched a website using Ms Greenfield’s name one day after that gag order was imposed.
“I think the defense will have to make serious consideration to seeking a mistrial” if those allegations are substantiated, Mr Kise told the judge on Friday.
Kevin Wallace with the office of attorney general criticised the Trump attorneys’ “sideshow” that he said is “designed to interrupt our ability to put an end to this.”
“If there’s something improper between a judge and a clerk passing notes, you should make your motion now,” he added.
Alex Woodward4 November 2023 00:20
