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Judge Delivers Ruling In Trump Business Fraud Trial

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    Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

    On Friday, a New York judge ordered former President Donald Trump to pay $354 million in penalties stemming from the civil fraud case against his business empire.

    Engoron also barred Trump from serving as a corporate officer or a director of a company in the state of New York for three years. There was one silver lining in the ruling for the Trumps: the judge did not issue an order revoking the Trump Org’s certificate to do business, which has commonly been referred to as the “corporate death penalty.”

    According to The Hill, Judge Arthur Engoron’s 92-page decision came just weeks after closing arguments in the case following a months-long trial last year during which Trump frequently lambasted the judge and the prosecutor who brought the case. 

    Engoron previously ruled that Trump committed fraud in his real estate empire and he is expected to issue a penalty ruling Friday, according to sources familiar with the matter.

    In addition to a $370 million financial penalty, James has asked Engoron to ban Trump from New York’s real estate business for life.

    New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) sued Trump in 2022, alleging he falsely altered his net worth on key financial statements to receive tax and insurance benefits. The documents, which detailed the value of the Trump Organization’s various assets, were sent to banks and insurers to secure loans and deals, which the state purports is evidence of fraud.  

    This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

    Republican Congressman Ends Senate Campaign Days After Launching Bid

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      Days after announcing his campaign for Senate, Congressman Matt Rosendale (Mont.) is ending his campaign.

      On Friday, Rosendale released a statement explaining the quick decision to end his campaign.

      “Instead of one of those phony statements from politicians, here’s my statement on why I’m withdrawing my candidacy for the U.S. Senate,” Rosendale said in a statement. “As everyone knows, I have planned to run for the U.S. Senate and to win both the primary and the general election. However, the day I announced, President Trump then announced that he was endorsing a different candidate.”

      “I have long been a supporter of the president, and remain so,” he continued. “But I have been forced to calculate what my chances of success would be with Trump supporting my opponent. This race was already going to be tough, as I was fighting against Mitch McConnell and the rest of the Republican establishment in Washington. But I felt like I could beat them, as the voters do not agree with them choosing who would be the next U.S. Senator from Montana.”

      Rosendale said that Trump’s endorsement of retired U.S. Navy SEAL and businessman Tim Sheehy meant that he would not have the resources needed to win the primary.

      Rosendale shared he spoke with Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and they agreed that it was best for the party’s chances to regain control of the U.S. Senate if he ended his campaign.

      Daines responded to Rosendale’s announced on X, writing: “I appreciate Matt’s many years of service to Montana. It will take all Republicans working together to defeat Jon Tester in November.”

      House Votes To Impeach Alejandro Mayorkas

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        NEW YORK CITY (September 11, 2022) Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas lays flowers for USSS Master Special Officer Craig Miller and participates in the September 11th Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony at Ground Zero in New York City, NY. (DHS photo by Sydney Phoenix)

        The U.S. House of Representatives has voted to impeach Homeland Security Sec. Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday evening.

        Members voted 214-213 to approve a resolution that made Mayorkas the first Cabinet secretary to be impeached since 1876.

        In response to his impeachment, leftist DHS spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg released a statement that made political attacks against House Republicans.

        “House Republicans will be remembered by history for trampling on the Constitution for political gain rather than working to solve the serious challenges at our border,” the statement claimed. “While Secretary Mayorkas was helping a group of Republican and Democratic Senators develop bipartisan solutions to strengthen border security and get needed resources for enforcement, House Republicans have wasted months with this baseless, unconstitutional impeachment.”

        “House Republicans have falsely smeared a dedicated public servant who has spent more than 20 years enforcing our laws and serving our country,” she claimed.

        House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green (R-TN) opened an investigation into Mayorkas last year as the country has grappled with an explosion in illegal aliens flooding into the U.S. and Mexican drug cartels fueling deaths across the U.S. with fentanyl.

        Democrats have largely panned the impeachment proceedings as a “political stunt.”

        Supreme Court Hands Special Counsel New Deadline In Trump Immunity Case

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          Duncan Lock, Dflock, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

          On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court imposed a deadline for Special Counsel Jack Smith to respond to former President Trump’s request to keep his federal Jan. 6 trial on hold as he appeals his immunity claims.

          In a brief order, the high court ordered Smith to respond by Tuesday, Feb. 20.

          According to The Hill, Trump filed an emergency motion Monday urging the justices to block a lower ruling that he doesn’t have presidential immunity from the indictment, an argument that has enabled Trump to delay his trial date as the appeals process proceeds.

          The Supreme Court’s forthcoming decision on Trump’s motion is poised to have outsized influence on whether the former president’s trial will take place before this year’s elections. The trial was originally scheduled for March 4 but was shelved as Trump appealed the immunity issue.

          Smith has aimed to take Trump to trial quickly to avoid the possibility of Trump first returning to the White House and then pardoning himself or ordering his Justice Department to drop the case.

          By next Tuesday, the special counsel will now have to respond to Trump’s latest tactic: requesting his trial be kept on hold until he can ask the full District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals to review his immunity claims, and then, if needed, the Supreme Court.

          Trump is charged in the case with four federal felonies that accuse him of conspiring to subvert the 2020 election results. It is one of four criminal cases he faces. Trump has pleaded not guilty.

          Watch: DeSantis Calls To Remove Biden From Power After Shocking Report

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            Ron DeSantis via Gage Skidmore Flickr

            Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) slammed President Joe Biden’s response to Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report on the President’s handling of classified materials.

            DeSantis made the remarks during an interview with Mark Levin after Hur’s report at the conclusion of his criminal investigation into Biden said that Biden “willfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice presidency when he was a private citizen” but that prosecutors “conclude that no criminal charges are warranted,” adding that they “also considered that, at trial, Mr. Biden would likely present himself to a jury…as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”

            The Florida Republican suggested Biden be removed from office under the 25th Amendment, arguing Biden is “too senile” to be trusted with national security matters.

            “This was willful retention of documents over many decades, this was like a pattern and practice when he was a U.S. senator, when he was vice president, when he got out of office,” DeSantis said. “And I think back to the Hillary Clinton case which you and I both thought merited prosecution at the time. But Hillary, she set up that server, it wasn’t about classified, she just didn’t want her communications to be subjected to FOIA because of whatever she was doing, Clinton Foundation, who knows. So she was willing to risk exposure of classified by having this private server.”

            “Biden, I think was even more willful because he was doing this for a pattern of practice,” he continued, noting that the special counsel “clearly had the goods” if he wanted to go forward and charge Biden.

            “But they are hanging their hat on the fact that this guy is effectively not mentally competent to stand trial,” he said. “How pathetic is that for our country that this is the guy with the nuclear codes?”

            “If you had a Republican president or even a candidate who had the same level of mental acuity, same level of dementia as Joe Biden did, it would be a nonstop feeding frenzy by the corporate media,” DeSantis said. “The media has very much run cover and interference for Biden.”

            “I think the question is, is he went out on the press conference the other night, it was a disaster,” he continued. “Did his staff not want him to do that or did they want him to do that knowing maybe this ends up causing the Democrat Party to look elsewhere come convention time? Because I can tell you as bad as Biden’s policies are, which is the main reason I’ve opposed him from the start, if you ask the average American voter, the thing they like least about him is the fact that he’s lost so much on his fastball and that he’s just not up to the job. That’s not something you can cure.”

            Larry Hogan Announces Senate Campaign

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              Maryland GovPics, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

              On Friday, anti-Trump Republican Larry Hogan announced he’s running to fill Maryland’s empty Senate seat.

              The Maryland Republican’s decision to run for outgoing Sen. Ben Cardin’s (D-Md.) seat was unexpected given that he’d previously hinted at launching a White House campaign to take on Donald Trump.

              According to The Hill, Hogan is likely to be the heavy favorite on the Republican side while Democrats are likely to choose between Rep. David Trone (D-Md.) and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D).  

              The decision came after intense lobbying from the National Republican Senatorial Committee and its Chair Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.). Hogan had also spoken to Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) in recent months.

              Trump Speaks Out As Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments

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              Duncan Lock, Dflock, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

              Former President Donald Trump is reacting after the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Thursday.

              The court is considering for the first time the meaning and reach of a provision of the 14th Amendment barring former officeholders who “engaged in insurrection” from holding public office again. 

              “I just finished watching Supreme Court, you know, like to watch in many respects. It’s unfortunate that we have to go through the thing like that,” Trump told reporters at a press conference at Mar-a-Lago in Florida. “I consider it to be more election interference by the Democrats that’s what they’re doing. Good news is we’re leading virtually every poll.” 

              The high court heard arguments Thursday on whether Trump should be disqualified from the ballot in Colorado for inciting in an “insurrection” at his Jan. 6, 2021 rally at the Capitol. 

              Trump called the oral arguments a “beautiful process” and said, “I hope that democracy in this country will continue.”

              “You have millions of people that are out there wanting to vote and they happen to want to vote for me or the Republican Party, whatever you want or however you want to phrase it, But I’m the one running and we are leading in every poll,” Trump said, calling the support he’s received a “great honor.” 

              The Hill and other outlets reported the Supreme Court justice appeared reluctant to take the extraordinary step of disqualifying former President Trump from appearing on the ballot.

              Trump Teases Future Leadership Shakeup At RNC

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                Ronna McDaniel via Gage Skidmore Flickr

                Big things are coming…

                Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Ronna McDaniel may find herself out of a job soon.

                On Monday, while referring to RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel as “my friend,” Trump signaled her future as the party chair could be uncertain.

                “Things are looking great in the Presidential Race of 2024 against Crooked Joe Biden,” Trump wrote Monday on Truth Social, adding later that “Ronna is now Head of the RNC, and I’ll be making a decision the day after the South Carolina Primary as to my recommendations for RNC Growth.”

                In an interview that aired Sunday on Fox News, Trump predicted there would be “changes” to McDaniel’s leadership of the committee.

                When “Sunday Morning Futures” anchor Maria Bartiromo asked Trump how McDaniel was doing, he said, “I think she did great when she ran Michigan for me. I think she did OK initially in the RNC.”

                “I would say, right now, there will probably be some changes made,” he added.

                Trump’s post on Monday comes after meeting with McDaniel at Mar-a-Lago, Politico reported.

                Trump signaled his confidence going into the South Carolina primary where he will face off against former governor Nikki Haley.

                “This has been a very exciting Primary Season. The Iowa Caucus was won in Record Fashion … and likewise New Hampshire, where I had the honor of getting more votes than anybody in the History of the New Hampshire Primary, Republican or Democrat,” the former president wrote Monday. “Hopefully, we will continue this string of Victories in Nevada, the Virgin Islands, and then, South Carolina.”

                Senator Responds To Trump Considering Him For Vice President

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                [Photo Credit: The White House from Washington, DC, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons]

                South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott (R) responded to former President Donald Trump’s comments over the weekend naming him as a potential running mate.

                Trump revealed to Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo over the weekend he is considering Scott, along with South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem to be the next vice presidential running mate. (RELATED: Trump Names Two People When Asked About Potential VP Picks)

                “The only thing I can tell you is that the one thing we need is four more years of President Donald Trump,” Scott told Fox News Digital on Monday.

                “We were better off under Trump. In order for us to be successful, the one thing I can’t afford to do is take my eye off the ball. The eye on the ball means making sure that President Trump gets four more years,” he added.

                Over the weekend, Trump told Bartiromo that his top priority in choosing a vice presidential candidate is selecting someone who could easily step into his shoes in case of an emergency.

                “Always, it’s got to be who is going to be a good president. Obviously, you always have to think that because in case of emergency. Things happen, right? No matter who you are, things happen. That’s got to be No. 1,” Trump said.

                On Monday, former Trump senior adviser Kellyanne Conway advised the President to consider choosing a person of color for VP during an op-ed published in The New York Times.

                “With a crisis on the border, economic dissatisfaction, fears about crime, a parents’ rights renaissance and multiple wars and threats across the globe, Mr. Trump’s deputy must be able to navigate chaos and challenges at home and abroad,” Conway wrote.

                “Taking all of this into consideration, if I were advising Mr. Trump, I would suggest he choose a person of color as his running mate, depending on vetting of all possibilities and satisfaction of procedural issues like dual residency in Florida,” Conway wrote. “Not for identity politics a la the Democrats, but as an equal helping to lead an America First movement that includes more union workers, independents, first-time voters, veterans, Hispanics, Asian Americans and African Americans.”

                Conway listed Sen. Tim Scott, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) among the potential options.

                Report: Trump’s PAC Funds Dwindle To Only $5M

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                Image via Pixabay free images

                Donald Trump’s legal troubles are bleeding him dry…

                New reports show Trump has spent around $60 million on legal fees of the four criminal indictments and various ongoing civil lawsuits against him.

                According to Mediaite, disclosures indicate that Trump’s campaign and the various political action committees supporting it have spent millions, leaving his primary PAC with a little over $5 million.

                Save America PAC, Trump’s primary PAC heading into his likely rematch with President Joe Biden, once had over $100 million in the bank. Now, it has just a little over $5 million left after spending over $25 million on legal bills in the second half of last year alone.

                Make America Great Again PAC, which served the same function as Save America is now back in 2016 and 2020, spent $5.9 million in the back half of 2023, with $4 million of that going toward legal fees.

                Most troublingly of all for the former president, perhaps, is the fact that the Super PAC raised only $6.6 million between July and December, a possible indicator of failing enthusiasm for Trump’s candidacy or suspicion of his political operation.

                His campaign itself,  meanwhile, raised a little over $19 million, but spent over $23.5 million in the latest fundraising period.