Trump supporters and conspiracy theory - Part 2

[Rick Plant]

DOJ directly probing Trump's actions in plot to overturn 2020 election in criminal investigation: report



On Tuesday, The Washington Post reported that the Justice Department is now focusing in on the actions of former President Donald Trump in the plot to throw out the results of the 2020 presidential election.

"Prosecutors who are questioning witnesses before a grand jury — including two top aides to Vice President Mike Pence — have asked in recent days about conversations with Trump, his lawyers, and others in his inner circle who sought to substitute Trump allies for certified electors from some states Joe Biden won, according to two people familiar with the matter," reported Carol Leonnig, Devlin Barrett, Josh Dawsey and Spencer Hsu. "Both spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation."

"The prosecutors have asked hours of detailed questions about meetings Trump led in December 2020 and January 2021; his pressure campaign on Pence to overturn the election; and what instructions Trump gave his lawyers and advisers about fake electors and sending electors back to the states, the people said," the report continued. "Some of the questions focused directly on the extent of Trump’s involvement in the fake-elector effort led by his outside lawyers, including John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani, these people said."

Eastman was the architect of an infamous memo arguing Pence could use the fake electors to throw out the real results in several close states, tipping the electoral vote to the former president.

"The Washington Post and other news organizations have previously written that the Justice Department is examining the conduct of Eastman, Giuliani and others in Trump’s orbit. But the degree of prosecutors’ interest in Trump’s actions has not been previously reported, nor has the review of senior Trump aides’ phone records," noted the report. "A Trump spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A Justice Department spokesman and a lawyer for Meadows both declined to comment."

According to the report, the investigation is focusing on Trump's potential role in both seditious conspiracy surrounding the January 6 attack, and fraud related to the fake electors scheme.

Read More Here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/07/26/trump-justice-investigation-january-6/


Garland promises ‘justice without fear or favor’ as DoJ digs into Trump’s January 6 role
Investigators have specifically questioned witnesses about ex-president’s involvement in the insurrection, reports say



The US attorney general, Merrick Garland, said he would “pursue justice without fear or favor” in his decision on whether to charge Donald Trump with crimes related to the Capitol attack and his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, as news reports indicate the justice department’s investigation is heating up.

The department is conducting a criminal investigation into the events surrounding and preceding the January 6 insurrection, an effort that Garland – speaking to NBC’s Lester Holt on Tuesday – called “the most wide-ranging investigation in its history”.

News reports on Tuesday suggested the inquiry is homing in on Trump’s role. The Washington Post reported – according to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity – that investigators have specifically questioned witnesses about Trump’s involvement in schemes to overturn the vote, and received the phone records of Trump officials and aides, including former chief of staff, Mark Meadows. The New York Times also reported that federal investigators had directly questioned witnesses about Trump’s efforts, signaling an escalation.

Responding to criticism that it is not acting quickly enough, Garland told NBC that the department was “moving urgently to learn everything we can learn about this period, and to bring to justice everybody who is criminally responsible for interfering with the peaceful transfer of power … which is the fundamental element of our democracy”.

The House January 6 committee could make a criminal referral. Whether it should, or will, and whether it has presented sufficient evidence to do so, is a matter of extensive debate around the US and on the committee itself.

Members including Adam Kinzinger of Illinois and Elaine Luria of Virginia, who co-presented last week’s final hearing in a run of eight, have suggested a referral is possible and desirable. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the vice-chair, and Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the chair, have been more circumspect.

NBC released a clip from the interview earlier on Tuesday as Trump was speaking in Washington, a highly contentious return to the city in which he incited a mob attack on Congress which has been linked to nine deaths, including suicides among law enforcement officers.

Watch:

Holt asked about the political sensitivities around potential charges for Trump.

Holt said: “You said in no uncertain terms the other day that no one is above the law. That said, the indictment of a former president, of perhaps a candidate for president, would arguably tear the country apart. Is that your concern as you make your decision down the road here? Do you have to think about things like that?”

Garland said: “We pursue justice without fear or favor. We intend to hold everyone, anyone who was criminally responsible for events surrounding January 6, or any attempt to interfere with the lawful transfer of power from one administration to another, accountable. That’s what we do. We don’t pay any attention to other issues with respect to that.”

Trump has suggested he will soon announce a new run for president. He hinted at such a move again in his speech on Tuesday.

Holt said: “So if Donald Trump were to become a candidate for president again, that would not change your schedule or how you move forward or don’t move forward?”

Garland said: “I’ll say again, that we will hold accountable anyone who was criminally responsible for attempting to interfere with the transfer legitimate lawful transfer of power from one administration to the next.”

Holt also asked if the DoJ would welcome a criminal referral from the House January 6 committee.

The panel has made referrals for Trump aides. Steve Bannon was convicted of criminal contempt of Congress and faces jail time. Peter Navarro has been charged. Dan Scavino and Mark Meadows were referred, the DoJ then deciding not to act.

Garland told NBC: “So I think that’s totally up to the committee.

“We will have the evidence that the committee has presented and whatever evidence it gives us. I don’t think that the nature of how they style, the manner in which information is provided, is of particular significance from any legal point of view.

“That’s not to downgrade it or disparage it. It’s just that that’s not … the issue here. We have our own investigation, pursuing through the principles of prosecution.”

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jul/26/garland-charge-trump-capitol-attack-jan-6-doj

[Rick Plant]

Federal prosecutors questioning witnesses about Trump's conduct related to Jan. 6 inquiry
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/07/27/doj-prosecutors-trumps-jan-6/10161409002/

[Rick Plant]

DOJ has reached out to more former White House officials, ex-Trump official says

(CNN) - The Department of Justice has reached out to other Trump White House officials regarding the January 6 attack on the US Capitol in addition to two top aides to former Vice President Mike Pence, a former administration official told CNN on Wednesday.

Alyssa Farah Griffin, a former White House communications director during the Trump administration who is now a CNN political commentator, said she had not been contacted by the Justice Department but she was "aware of other White House officials who have been reached out to by DOJ and are planning to cooperate."

"I don't want to get ahead of their announcements but I think you could piece it together based on who has testified before the January 6th committee. Again, these are not -- these are related but separate-track investigations and I think DOJ is keeping an eye on who is coming before January 6th and who may have helpful information," Farah Griffin told CNN's John Berman on "New Day."

A spokesperson for the US attorneys' office in Washington declined to comment.

The criminal investigation into the US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, and attempts to disrupt the transfer of power between the Trump and Biden administrations is the most wide-ranging in DOJ's history.

The Justice Department has already brought two top aides to Pence in front of a federal grand jury, a move that signals its probe has reached inside former President Donald Trump's White House and that investigators are looking at conduct directly related to Trump and his closest allies' efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Marc Short, former chief of staff to Pence, confirmed to CNN on Monday that he testified last week in front of a grand jury investigating the insurrection at the US Capitol. Former Pence chief counsel Greg Jacob testified in recent weeks as well, CNN has learned from a source close to the investigation.

Farah Griffin told CNN later Wednesday she's aware of a former "mid-level" Trump official who has been contacted by the Justice Department.

This official, she said, could help the Justice Department with "what they're looking into, specifically around similar questions to what Short was asked about, which is the pressure campaign on Mike Pence in the days leading up to January 6, the schemes of things like fake electors, and even some of these creative ways that certain officials at the Department of Justice wanted to bypass the law to try to hold on to victory."

Farah Griffin said the official is not former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, who CNN also reported Wednesday is cooperating with the Justice Department's criminal investigation.

Watch: https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/27/politics/alyssa-farah-griffin-doj-january-6-cnntv/index.html


Justice Department examines Trump's conduct in Jan. 6 probe

New reports indicate that the Department of Justice is investigating former President Donald Trump’s actions as part of its larger criminal probe into the Jan. 6 attacks on the U.S. Capitol. Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.

Watch:

[Rick Plant]

Latest moves suggest DOJ investigation of 2020 election is looking at conduct directly related to Trump and his closest allies



(CNN) - The move by the Justice Department to bring two top aides to former Vice President Mike Pence in front of a federal grand jury is the most aggressive public step taken yet by prosecutors investigating the plots to subvert the 2020 election.

It signals that the Department's probe has reached inside former President Donald Trump's White House and that investigators are looking at conduct directly related to Trump's and his closest allies' efforts to overturn his election defeat.

Former Pence chief of staff Marc Short testified in front of a grand jury in DC on Friday, CNN has confirmed. Fellow Pence aide Greg Jacob testified in recent weeks as well, CNN has learned from a source close to the investigation.

The questions to Jacob and Short included a focus on the fake elector scheme and the role of Trump lawyers John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani, the source said.

Short and Jacob both were present in key meetings in the lead-up to the January 6 insurrection that were part of a pressure campaign to convince Pence to disrupt Congress' certification of President Joe Biden's electoral win.

Jacob, a former legal adviser to Pence, has participated in the House January 6 select committee investigation, even testifying publicly at a hearing last month. (He has not responded to CNN's inquiries about reports of his grand jury testimony.)

Short confirmed to CNN's Erin Burnett Monday night he complied with a grand jury subpoena but declined to discuss any details about his appearance. Short previously sat for a deposition in the House investigation.

Short's and Jacob's accounts were among the evidence that a federal judge in California cited in concluding that Trump and his allies may have been planning a crime in their plot to disrupt the transfer of presidential power.

How to approach Trump in the January 6 investigation has been a delicate question for the Justice Department. The department has faced immense pressure from lawmakers, former prosecutors and others to focus on the ringleaders of the 2020 election reversal gambits. But any investigation of a former president raises a host of highly sensitive and potentially explosive political and legal questions.

That Pence's inner circle is now being compelled to cooperate in the probe suggests that at least some of those obstacles have been cleared.

Last week, Attorney General Merrick Garland was visibly frustrated when a reporter grilled him about the possibility that the former president would be charged, as the former judge repeated vague assertions that, "No person is above the law in this country."

In an interview with Lester Holt on "NBC Nightly News" on Tuesday, Garland said DOJ would look at any interference on the "lawful transfer of power."

"I will say again that we will hold accountable anyone who is criminally responsible for attempting to interfere with the legitimate, lawful transfer of power from one administration to the next," Garland said.

Rep. Adam Kinzinger, one of the two Republicans on the House select committee, said the Pence aides testifying is a "positive" development.

"The Department of Justice needs to look at any possible criminality," Kinzinger said Tuesday on CNN's "New Day." "I ask, what have they been doing for the last year and a half. That said, if they are moving forward on looking at this stuff, that's positive for the country."

Short, Kinzinger added, is a good source.

"He certainly knows a lot of what happened, and I think under oath you can be pretty much committed that he'll tell the truth," the congressman said.

Witnesses to inflection points in the pressure campaign on Pence

The Justice Department declined to comment on the grand jury subpoenas of Short and Jacob. But scrutiny elsewhere of Trump's election subversion gambits highlight the relevant events that the two aides witnessed.

According to the House select committee's public presentations, Jacob was present at a January 4, 2021, Oval Office meeting with Trump and his attorney Eastman during which Eastman discussed a plan to have Pence not count the Biden electors that would be put forward at the January 6 certification ceremony.

Short attended that meeting as well, and another meeting with Eastman and Jacob on January 5, where Eastman's push to have Pence disrupt the certification was further discussed for another two and a half hours.

"What most surprised me about that meeting was that when Mr. Eastman came in he said, 'I'm here to request that you reject the electors,'" Jacob said at a House committee hearing in June, while referring to a proposal more aggressive than what Eastman had been recommended in the January 4 meeting. Jacob also took notes memorializing Eastman's assertion, according to the committee.

Jacob recalled Eastman acknowledging at one of those meetings that such a maneuver would violate the Electoral Count Act, with Jacob testifying that Eastman thought the law was unconstitutional. Jacob also described a conversation with Eastman where Eastman conceded that no justice on the Supreme Court would support his position.

Jacob's account of the meetings, and emails he exchanged with Eastman, were also presented earlier this year to a federal judge who was considering whether to order Eastman to produce certain emails to the committee.

In approving the release of the documents, US District Judge David O. Carter indicated that he thought Trump's conduct may have been criminal, concluding that it was "more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress on January 6, 2021."

"The illegality of the plan was obvious," Carter wrote. "Our nation was founded on the peaceful transition of power, epitomized by George Washington laying down his sword to make way for democratic elections. Ignoring this history, President Trump vigorously campaigned for the Vice President to single-handedly determine the results of the 2020 election."

Other signs that the DOJ investigation has escalated

While Jacob and Short's grand jury appearances were the most significant public development in the Justice Department's probe, there have been other major signs that the department was moving beyond the low-hanging fruit of prosecuting rioters who physically breached the Capitol on the day of the certification.

Federal investigators seized electronics from Eastman in late June, and also raided the home of former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark, another prominent player in Trump's plots.

As part of the probe, federal investigators have also interviewed Republicans in Georgia about interactions with people in Trump's orbit and his 2020 reelection campaign.

In one instance, FBI agents asked a prominent Georgia Republican whether he had direct conversations with Trump.
"They just asked who talked to me. If anyone from the Trump campaign had been in touch with me. Did Giuliani talk to me? Did Trump talk to me?" Patrick Gartland, who was set to serve as an elector but dropped out, previously said. He recounted how two FBI agents visited his home in Marietta, Georgia, this spring.

And the department has issued numerous subpoenas in recent weeks seeking information in all seven battleground states where Trump's campaign assembled false electors as part of a bid to subvert the Electoral College. Among those subpoenaed were GOP officials in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania, CNN previously reported.

A grand jury subpoena to Arizona state Sen. Karen Fann obtained by CNN through a public records request underscores how investigators have cast a wide net, with their efforts focused on the fake elector plot at the Trump administration and state level.

The subpoena to Fann, who led the partisan audit of ballots cast in Maricopa County, indicates prosecutors are seeking communications about any topics between any individuals associated with the Trump administration, Congress, and Trump's reelection effort.

The House committee has described the fake electoral plot, in which Trump supporters would be fraudulently put forward as substitutes for the legitimate Biden electors, as part of the broader push to have Pence interrupt the certification of Biden's win. Select Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson has also indicated that it's working to share information with the Justice Department from that aspect of the lawmakers' probe.

Meanwhile, the Justice Department has also upped the ante in its prosecutions of those who violently assaulted the Capitol, with seditious conspiracy charges brought against prominent members of fringe groups accused of planning to "oppose by force the lawful transfer of presidential power."

The DOJ's latest moves involving Pence aides come as Pence has broken with Trump by support Republican politicians competing in GOP primaries against Trump's favored, including in races in Georgia and Arizona where Trump's lies about the 2020 election have featured prominently.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/26/politics/justice-department-pence-short-jacob-trump-grand-jury/index.html

[Rick Plant]

Republican's top ally says Jews aren't welcome in conservative movement: 'This is an explicitly Christian country'


Doug Mastriano is the Republican Pennsylvania candidate for Governor 

A top ally for the Republican Party's nominee for Pennsylvania's governor has now explicitly said that Jews should not be welcome into the American conservative movement unless they convert to Christianity.

The Jerusalem Post reports that Andrew Torba, the founder of the far-right Gab social media website that Mastriano has used to promote his campaign for governor, said recently that he believes American conservatism should be for Christians only, and that conservatives should reject right-wing Jewish figures such as Ben Shapiro and Dave Rubin.

"We don't want people who are Jewish," he said. "We don't want people who are, you know, nonbelievers, agnostic, whatever. This is an explicitly Christian movement because this is an explicitly Christian country. We're not saying we're going to deport all these people or whatever. You're free to stay here. You're not going to be forced to convert or anything like this because that's not biblical whatsoever. But you're going to enjoy the fruits of living in a Christian society under Christian laws and under a Christian culture and you can thank us later."

Torba also explained why he believed that it was so important for Mastriano to win, as he believed it would pave the way for a full-blown theocracy.

"This is the most important election of the 2022 midterms because Doug is an outspoken Christian," he said. "He's going to turn this state around for the glory of God. That is the mission here folks."

Mastriano has been slammed even by some Republicans for his extremist ideology, as he has openly embraced the Christian nationalist movement and attended a QAnon-promoting conference earlier this year.

Read More Here: https://m.jpost.com/american-politics/article-713128


'Unfit for office': Pennsylvania Republican blasts her own party's nominee for governor in scathing editorial

A Pennsylvania Republican is calling her own party's nominee for governor unfit to hold the office in a new editorial published by the Pennsylvania Patriot-News.

In the editorial, physician and registered Republican Andrea Kesack argued that GOP gubernatorial nominee Doug Mastriano "has no business" leading her state after winning the GOP's nomination earlier this year.

As justification, Kesack looks at Mastriano's false claims about the 2020 election being "rigged" against former President Donald Trump, as well as his attendance at the infamous "Stop the Steal" rally on January 6th, 2021 that preceded riots at the United States Capitol building.

"He behaved less like a distinguished state senator that day than an unhinged QAnon follower," she writes. "And he certainly didn’t behave like someone worthy of being Pennsylvania’s next governor. Though he condemned the violence, his behavior—and his embrace and promulgation of the Big Lie—raises serious questions about his judgment."

She then pivots to recounting Mastriano's reactionary stances on social issues, including his belief that abortion should be banned even in cases of rape and incest.

"Mastriano wants to go back in time -- before abortion was legal, before gay marriage was legal, and before everyone’s vote counted," she concludes. "We should not give him any time as our governor."

AFP


Doug Mastriano is unfit for office



When you think of distinguished leaders from Pennsylvania, you think of Benjamin Franklin, William Penn, and Gouverneur Morris, to name a few. It would be a tragedy if State Sen. Doug Mastriano, the Republican candidate for governor, were to succeed them.

I’ve been a Republican since 1982. It pains me to say this about a nominee of my party, but I believe Mastriano has no business being governor of Pennsylvania.

Let me explain. For one thing, Mastriano believes that the 2020 election was rigged against Donald Trump, despite there being no evidence whatsoever to back up this claim. It’s been disproven so many times that the claim should be put in the same category as the moon landing being staged.

Nevertheless, Mastriano still pushes conspiracy theories about the 2020 election. He said President Biden’s victory was “statistically impossible.” He claimed there were “vote dumps” that switched Pennsylvania’s votes from Trump to Biden.

He even introduced a bill in the Pennsylvania state senate rejecting certification of our state’s electoral votes. I didn’t vote for Trump in 2020, so Mastriano essentially told me that my vote doesn’t matter. If Mastriano had his way, my vote—along with millions of others—would have been nullified.

Not only did Mastriano attend the rally preceding the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, but he spent more than $3,000 in campaign funds to charter buses there. According to a Senate Judiciary Committee report, he also participated in the events that unfolded, having “breached barricades and police lines.”

He behaved less like a distinguished state senator that day than an unhinged QAnon follower. And he certainly didn’t behave like someone worthy of being Pennsylvania’s next governor. Though he condemned the violence, his behavior—and his embrace and promulgation of the Big Lie—raises serious questions about his judgment.

Speaking of QAnon, Mastriano’s conspiracies don’t end with the 2020 election. He spoke at a QAnon event in April. The event, called “Patriots Arise for God and Country,” promoted conspiracy theories about “ritual child sacrifice” and a “global satanic blood cult.” His taste in extreme conspiracy theories is wide-ranging, too—he shared anti-Muslim memes on Facebook while running for the state senate in 2019.

To make matters worse, when we choose our next governor, we’re essentially voting for two offices at once. The governor of Pennsylvania gets to appoint the secretary of the commonwealth, who oversees elections in our state. Given that Mastriano has proven himself untrustworthy on the matter of elections, anyone he appoints is bound to be as dangerous and conspiratorial as he is. We can’t afford to gamble on whether or not Mastriano will have the temperament to do the job.

To offer just one example, Mastriano said that, if elected, he would require all Pennsylvania voters—roughly nine million people—to re-register to vote. Why does he want to inconvenience us in this way? He hasn’t explained, but one suspects he is suspicious of voters themselves.

It’s not just his conspiracy theories and election lunacy that should frighten you. His political views are alarming, too. Pick an issue, any issue, and you will see that Mastriano is fanatical on it. He described mask mandates and other public-health protocols as “autocratic control over our lives.” He called the separation of church and state a “myth.” Asked if gay marriage should be legal, Mastriano said, “Absolutely not.”

He compared supporters of abortion rights to slave owners. He’s against abortion in every instance—no exceptions, not even in cases of incest or rape. He said, “That baby deserves a right to life whether it was conceived in incest or rape or whether there was concerns otherwise for the mom.”

Mastriano wants to go back in time—before abortion was legal, before gay marriage was legal, and before everyone’s vote counted. We should not give him any time as our governor.

Andrea Kesack is a physician and a registered Republican in suburban Philadelphia.

https://www.pennlive.com/opinion/2022/07/doug-mastriano-is-unfit-for-office-opinion.html

[Rick Plant]

Eastman was 'linchpin' of illegal elector scheme — and now his cooperation could sink Trump: Whitewater prosecutor

On Wednesday's edition of CNN's "OutFront," Paul Rosenzweig, a former attorney who worked on the Whitewater investigation of President Bill Clinton in the 1990s, outlined how important far-right lawyer John Eastman is to the investigation of the plot to overthrow the 2020 presidential election.

Eastman turning to cooperate with the Justice Department, argued Rosenzweig, would be a massive blow to Trump — and a groundbreaking step for investigators.

"I want to play, Paul, some of the testimony that we heard about the importance of John Eastman," said anchor Erin Burnett, showing clips of Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers and Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel testifying Eastman was directing the scheme. "So Paul, how much legal trouble could Eastman be in? And what do you think the goal is here to get him to flip? How much trouble could he get Trump?"

"Well, I think that John Eastman is in many ways the linchpin of this investigation," said Rosenzweig. "You know, the idea behind overturning the election wasn't Donald Trump's. It was John Eastman. He developed it, he built it. so he's in a significant amount of legal jeopardy now ... and if poor John Eastman could determine that he would be better off working with the Department of Justice than staying on Team Trump, that would be an immensely important step for the investigation."

Eastman's plot was to persuade Vice President Mike Pence to use the fake electors to throw out the actual ones voters had selected in several key states, throwing the election to Trump.

His plan was broadly regarded as illegal by many experts, and even Eastman himself said in private it wasn't based on actual law.

Watch:

'Could be devastating': Here's why the new subpoena for Trump lawyer's phone could put him at serious risk

On Wednesday, the Justice Department obtained a new search warrant for Donald Trump attorney John Eastman's phone, as part of their ongoing investigation into the plot to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

On CNN's "OutFront," anchor Erin Burnett laid out why this could spell legal danger for the former president himself.

"More people cooperating, and it comes as the Justice Department has obtained a second warrant to search the contents of John Eastman's cell phone," said Burnett. "What's on that cell phone is crucial, and it could be devastating to the former president. Eastman presented trump with a guide for overturning the election and played a major role in the fake elector scheme."

The plan Eastman laid out in his infamous memo involved using the fake Trump electors declared in several states President Joe Biden narrowly carried, to persuade then-Vice President Mike Pence to use those fake electors as a pretext for throwing out the real electors and tipping the overall electoral count to Trump — or else to the House, where the GOP would have had control of enough delegations to pick Trump themselves. Experts have broadly considered this plan illegal, and even Eastman himself privately admitted as such.

Eastman has been fighting furious legal battles to keep his records away from investigators, but his push to stop another subpoena from the House Select Committee investigating January 6 ended in failure.

Another recent report indicated that the Claremont Institute — the hard-right California think tank that had employed Eastman — has been upended by the investigations against him, with his former colleagues bemoaning how he has associated their organization with efforts to overthrow democracy.

Watch:

Secret Service expert explains why two key witnesses could sink Trump

Washington Post reporter Carol Leonnig, who has long followed and reported on the Secret Service, cited the two White House staffers who appeared before the grand jury and were asked questions about former President Donald Trump.

ABC News reported this week that Marc Short was seen exiting the courthouse where the grand jury was meeting. He is among the first White House aides that were brought in to testify. While grand jury investigations are secret for lawyers and jurors, witnesses can answer questions publicly. Those White House aids have told reporters that they were asked directly about Trump.

Leonnig recalled that Short was among those in the Oval Office on the day that Vice President Mike Pence was being pressured not to certify the election on Jan. 6. There was a debate that unfolded where the White House Counsel and other legal advisers told Trump that it wasn't legal to stop the certification.

Lawyer John Eastman was among those on hand representing the campaign efforts and admitted in front of the president that not only would it not work, that all of the Supreme Court justices would refuse to support the efforts as well. The House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on Congress and attempt to overthrow the election brought Justice Department witnesses to testify that made it clear that Trump knew that the attempt to stop the certification was illegal.

"There are a lot of fact pieces to the way in which Trump pulled levers and used his officialdom, his office, the White House machinery to try to push the big lie and block Joe Biden from ascending to his rightful place in the White House from the votes of the American people. Pence's two senior aides have a lot of firsts testimony to provide. They were in the room with President Trump. They were on the phone with their boss and President Trump. They know -- in the case of Short, he's present when Trump repeatedly pressures pence to not certify the election even though there are people in front of them saying this plan is poppycock and illegal and unconstitutional, and that Trump was alerted to that frequently."

Leonnig said that they're not exactly the lynchpins in the investigation but they are critical to the probe because they can reveal so much about Trump's state of mind.

"And they can not take you deep in, but they can tell you what he said," she said. "They can tell you what his reaction was to that's not legal. I think of another critical moment, I would imagine that there are key former justice department officials that are also being asked for their testimony just as they were asked by the Jan. 6 committee. People like, as we say in the story, Mr. [Richard] Donohue and Mr. Jeffrey Rosen at the Justice Department who were present when then-President Donald Trump was told, 'look, you didn't win the election. We can't slip a switch and change the results.' And Donald Trump's reaction to them as they've testified was, you know, that's okay. I'm not asking you to flip the switch. 'Just say it was rigged and we'll take it from there. It really gives you a sense of where Donald Trump's head is at."

Watch:

[Rick Plant]

Legal expert dives into ‘bombshell’ report: ‘Trump is the subject of a criminal investigation’



The Washington Post's exclusive report published Tuesday evening, revealing for the first time that the Dept. of Justice is investigating Donald Trump's actions as part of a January 6 criminal probe, is a "bombshell," according to legal expert Benjamin Wittes.

"The story is a bombshell because it reports for the first time that Trump is the subject of a criminal investigation for his individual conduct in the wake of the 2020 election," Wittes writes in a lengthy thread on Twitter. He also, speaking frankly, says there is a "sh**load" of new information in the Post's report.

Wittes' name may be familiar to some. He's a legal journalist, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Lawfare Blog, a go-to resource for legal news and opinion, especially on issues of national security, Donald Trump, and the Trump presidency. Among the many lines on his résumé, Wittes is a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution, and a Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School.

Wittes points to this sentence in the Post's report: "Prosecutors who are questioning witnesses before a grand jury — including two top aides to Vice President Mike Pence — have asked in recent days about conversations with Trump, his lawyers, and others in his inner circle who sought to substitute Trump allies for certified electors from some states Joe Biden won, according to two people familiar with the matter."

He explains, "This strongly suggests that this disclosure is coming from the Pence camp. It is a crime for prosecutors or FBI agents to disclose what Pence aides were asked by prosecutors. It is perfectly legal for the aides or their lawyers to talk about it. Assume the leak is from witnesses."

Calling it "one of the most interesting passages in the story," Wittes highlights this passage:

"The prosecutors have asked hours of detailed questions about meetings Trump led in December 2020 and January 2021; his pressure campaign on Pence to overturn the election; and what instructions Trump gave his lawyers and advisers about fake electors and sending electors back to the states, the people said. Some of the questions focused directly on the extent of Trump’s involvement in the fake-elector effort led by his outside lawyers, including John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani, these people said."

And then this one:

"The Washington Post and other news organizations have previously written that the Justice Department is examining the conduct of Eastman, Giuliani and others in Trump’s orbit. But the degree of prosecutors’ interest in Trump’s actions has not been previously reported, nor has the review of senior Trump aides’ phone records."

Wittes amusingly writes that the Post's "reporters here are being modest—which is actually rare in this business. The technical term for the amount of new information in this story is 'spombleprofglidnoctobunsload.' And the quality of the information is very high. This is how high-stakes reporting on big investigations should look."

Wittes is not in the camp of those who have highly criticized the Dept. of Justice for its approach on prosecuting the January 6 insurrection. As recently as last week he penned a piece at Lawfare titled, "In Defense of the Justice Department."

He concludes: "Bottom line. This is a really meaty story packed with a lot of new stuff. Other reporters will be chasing and building on for the next several days."

Other legal experts have responded to the Post's report. George Conway, whose sense of humor is often apparent, tweeted: "All I can say after today's developments is: Will be wild!"

Read The Twitter Thread Here: https://twitter.com/benjaminwittes/status/1552087280776527874

Read The Exclusive Report at WAPO: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/07/26/trump-justice-investigation-january-6/


They 'lie for a living': Legal expert rails against Trump officials who say one thing to the J6 and another on Fox News



Former President Donald Trump's lies were tracked by the Washington Post throughout his presidency, resulting in a list of 30,573 lies. According to Elie Mystal, legal analyst for The Nation and MSNBC, those lies appear to have trickled down to other staffers willing to perpetuate them.

The latest example, he explained, is a slate of Trump administration officials appearing on Sean Hannity's Fox show to explain Trump deployed 10,000 National Guard soldiers to the Capitol on Jan. 6 and jumped to help stop the violence. MSNBC's Chris Hayes played clip after clip of Hannity repeating the talking point over and over again. As recently as last month, Hannity was still spouting the lie he was told.

But there were two former Trump officials who knew better. Former Secretary of Defense Chris Miller and his chief of staff Kash Patel both said that they testified under oath to the House Select Committee that Trump called in the National Guard. As Hayes explained, it's illegal to lie under oath, but it's not illegal to lie on Fox News. So, when the House Select Committee published the audio of Miller answering questions under oath, it became clear Trump never called anyone.

"Lies, just lies, they just lie," said Hayes.

"Chris Miller might as well have said that, 'It's weird that people actually believe the words coming out of my mouth because who would do that?'" joked Mystal. "That was his testimony under oath this is exactly why the subpoenas are so powerful, but this is a lesson that we all need to learn and should've learned circuit 2015. These people lie for a living. All they know how to do is lie. If they're not under oath, everything they say should be viewed as a lie."

He went on to say that even if Donald Trump said that he had a cheeseburger for dinner MSNBC should put a voiceover saying that they couldn't confirm that fact and ensure they and every outlet independently verify every statement.

"Because all they do is a lie. That's all they know how to do," Mystal continued. "Remember Chris, a couple of weeks, go Cassidy Hutchinson testified and there is all this right-wing drama. Oh! Secret Service is going to testify! Tony Ornato is going to testify! Did they do that? No. That's because they were lying. They weren't gonna come under oath to lie so they just have to put this out there when everybody knew that Cassidy Hutchison was telling the truth."

He encouraged the rest of the media to catch up with the idea that all of the Trump people lie.

See the interview below:

[Rick Plant]

Lock Him Up!

Trump could get 6 months in jail for using presidential seal at Saudi Arabia’s LIV golf tournament



Donald Trump appears to be breaking federal law as he hosts a Saudi Arabia-backed LIV golf tournament in Bedminster, The Washington Post reported Thursday.

The article is illustrated with a picture from Associated Press photographer Seth Wenig showing the presidential seal and Trump's signature on a towel attached to his golf bags.

"The seal was plastered on towels, golf carts and other items as the former president participated in the pro-am of the Saudi-sponsored tournament Thursday," the newspaper reported. "While violating this law could result in imprisonment of 'not more than six months,' a fine, or both, these punishments are rarely dolled out."

In a June thread posted to Twitter, Forbes correspondent Zach Everson reported four Trump golf courses have been implicated in using the presidential seal.

Trump's golf course in the Bronx was implicated in October followed by Florida’s Trump National Golf Club Jupiter in November.

And the presidential seal was also seen at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida in June.

Read More Here: https://twitter.com/Z_Everson/status/1533860077693718528


Pro-Trump Wisconsin sheriff calls for eliminating online ballot requests after MAGA group used it for fraud



On Thursday, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Christopher Schmaling, the pro-Trump sheriff of suburban Racine County, Wisconsin, is now calling to abolish MyVote, the state's online portal that allows people to request an absentee ballot.

"Schmaling says ... individuals were able to commit a crime by submitting false information to obtain absentee ballots — in some cases using prominent names, including Assembly Speaker Robin Vos," reported Molly Beck and Corrinee Hess. "Instead of promising to investigate the apparent violations of election law, Schmaling publicized the plot on social media and blamed the Wisconsin Elections Commission and sought to remove a way voters can easily request ballots just a few months ahead of the November election."

"The state Elections Commission called an emergency meeting for tonight — blasting Schmaling's statements," said the report. "'There is no indication of any vulnerability with the MyVote application. The idea that absentee ballot requests made online, via MyVote, are more susceptible to fraud is false,' the commission said in a written statement. 'The MyVote web application requires a person to provide the same information he or she would provide if the person made the ballot request through traditional mail or email. MyVote does not make it any easier to commit voter fraud than requesting a ballot through other methods.'"

The group responsible for the fraudulent registrations is Honest, Open, and Transparent Government, which claims to have done it solely to prove problems in the system. Per the report, H.O.T. Government "has repeatedly promoted Trump's false claims of widespread voter fraud affecting his 2020 loss in Wisconsin and has blamed Democratic public officials and Vos for perceived irregularities."

Schmaling has repeatedly promoted conspiracy theories about the Wisconsin 2020 presidential election. In October 2021, Schmaling held a press conference to reveal what he claimed was "proof of statewide election fraud." His main point of "evidence" was that the Wisconsin Elections Commission didn't send people into nursing homes as usual because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and that one person at a nursing home in Mount Pleasant a court had ruled mentally incompetent to vote had cast a ballot. No charges were filed in that case. There are also just 19,000 nursing home residents in the state of Wisconsin, whereas Biden won the state by 20,000 votes.

Some Democratic officials have alleged that Schmaling himself may have actually violated state law in the course of the investigation, by removing ballot materials from local election clerks.

Read More Here: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/07/28/racine-sheriff-blames-elections-website-after-absentee-ballot-plot-donald-trump-robin-vos/10178217002/


Trump only uses patriotism to 'denigrate others' while rejecting it whenever it requires sacrifice: MSNBC analyst



On Thursday's edition of MSNBC's "The ReidOut," CUNY professor and MSNBC commentator Peter Beinart tore into former President Donald Trump for hosting a Saudi-funded golf tournament at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

This comes as the families of the victims of 9/11, an attack in which Saudi Arabia was intimately involved, have launched a campaign demanding Trump cancel that tournament — something he appears to have no intention of doing. He went out of his way to defend Saudi Arabia when pressured this week, saying that "nobody has gotten to the bottom" of 9/11.

"That is pretty remarkable to host a golf tournament with all sort of top golf tournaments, I could put up a list of them," said anchor Joy Reid. "I'm not a golf enthusiast, but apparently these are some big deal golfers. All is forgiven, apparently. Saudi Arabia can do no wrong. How?"

"Because ultimately, what we know about Donald Trump is he thinks, first, second, third, and fourth of Donald Trump," said Beinart. "And although he likes to claim to be this super-patriot, in fact, he is never willing to put the interests of his country ahead of him, if that requires any sacrifices, if it means that he does get a few more dollars, or serving in the military. For Donald Trump, patriotism only becomes an issue when it is a way to denigrate and exclude others."

Beinart then clearly laid out the double standard.

"So if you remember, he was very vocal about opposing a Muslim community center near Ground Zero a few years ago," said Beinart. "Because that was a way of showing that he was a real American, unlike those Muslims. But when it comes to Saudi Arabia, which was actually involved in the 9/11 attack, they're gonna write him a big check, then he is not such a big patriot."

Watch below: