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Trump Responds To Biden’s ‘Garbage’ Comments

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Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Donald Trump had a surprising reaction to Biden’s shocking “garbage” comments on Tuesday.

The Republican nominee called on his supporters to forgive him during a packed rally at the PPL Center in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

“Please forgive him for not knowing what he said,” Trump said. “These people are terrible, terrible, terrible to say a thing like that. But he really doesn’t know. He really honestly, he doesn’t. And I’m convinced that he likes me more than he likes Kamala. But that’s a terrible thing.”

Watch:

Trump’s call for unity – and forgiveness – came after the president called Trump supporters’ garbage during a get-out-the-vote call for Voto Latino.

In remarks from the White House, Biden had said earlier to Latino voters:

And just the other day, a speaker at his rally called Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage.” Well, let me tell you something. I don’t– I– I don’t know the Puerto Rican that– that I know– or a Puerto Rico, where I’m from– in my home state of Delaware, they’re good, decent, honorable people.

The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporters– his– his demonization of Latinos is unconscionable, and it’s un-American. It’s totally contrary to everything we’ve done, everything we’ve been.

Biden’s comments came after Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates told Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich that President Biden “referred to the hateful rhetoric at the Madison Square Garden rally as ‘garbage.’”

“The president was referencing a joke by comedian Tony Hinchcliffe in which he likened Puerto Rico to an island of floating “garbage” in the middle of the ocean,” Bates said.

Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity Tuesday that Hinchcliffe was not vetted by the campaign but that he saw the outcry as no “big deal.”

Hannity asked, “Do you wish [Hinchcliffe] wasn’t there?”

Trump responded, “Yeah, I don’t know if it’s a big deal or not, but I don’t want anybody making nasty jokes or stupid jokes, and probably he shouldn’t have been there.”

Judge Threatens To Kick Trump Out Of Court

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Gage Skidmore Flickr

A New York federal judge threatened to kick former President Trump out of his courtroom for being “disruptive” on Wednesday,

During a trial proceeding to determine how much Trump owes writer E. Jean Carroll for defaming her after she alleged he raped her.

Carroll, 79, alleged that Trump raped her at the Bergdorf Goodman department store across the street from Trump Tower in Manhattan sometime in 1996. 

“Mr. Trump has the right to be present here. That right can be forfeited and it can be forfeited if he is disruptive, which what has been reported to me consists of. And if he disregards court orders, Mr. Trump, I hope I don’t have to consider excluding you from the trial,” U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said Wednesday, according to CNN.

“I understand you’re probably eager for me to do that,” the judge continued.

“I would love it,” Trump replied, according to several outlets.

“I know you would,” Kaplan said back. “You just can’t control yourself in this circumstance, apparently.”

“You can’t either,” Trump muttered, according to the Associated Press.

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

Trump Lawyer Jenna Ellis Reverses Course To Help Arizona Prosecutors

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Gage Skidmore Flickr

In a surprising turnaround, former Trump campaign attorney Jenna Ellis has agreed to cooperate with Arizona prosecutors in their 2020 election interference case.

Ellis previously faced nine felony counts including fraud, forgery, and conspiracy. However, in exchange for her cooperation, the charges were dismissed.

In a statement, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) called the agreement a “significant step forward” in the case.

“I am grateful to Ms. Ellis for her cooperation with our investigation and prosecution,” Mayes said. “Her insights are invaluable and will greatly aid the State in proving its case in court. As I stated when the initial charges were announced, I will not allow American democracy to be undermined — it is far too important. Today’s announcement is a win for the rule of law.”

As part of the deal, Ellis agreed to testify “completely and truthfully at any time and any place,” including at a criminal trial. She also vowed not to “protect any person or entity” through false information or omissions. 

Ellis’s charges stemmed from her false claims of election fraud and efforts to pressure the Arizona Legislature into overturning the state’s election results in Trump’s favor. 

She was also accused of encouraging then-Vice President Mike Pence to accept slates of fake electors instead of the true electoral votes cast for President Biden. Biden won Arizona by 10,457 votes.

Ex-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Rudy Giuliani are among the 17 total defendants with remaining charges; they were indicted in April and have pleaded not guilty. 

Trump himself is not charged in the case but is described as “unindicted co-conspirator 1.”

Appeals Court Rules Over Trump’s Presidential Immunity In Civil Jan. 6 Suits

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Elvert Barnes, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

On Friday, an appeals court found former President Trump is not immune from civil lawsuits blaming him for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The Hill has more:

A three-judge panel affirmed that presidents can carry out their official duties without exposure to civil liabilities, but when they are not acting in that capacity, the protection doesn’t carry over.

“The President…does not spend every minute of every day exercising official responsibilities,” Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia wrote in an opinion. “And when he acts outside the functions of his office, he does not continue to enjoy immunity from damages liability just because he happens to be the President.”

This is a breaking news story. Click refresh for the latest updates.

House Committee Withdraws Subpoena

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Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

The House Select Committee appointed to investigate the Jan. 6th, 2021 Capitol riot has withdrawn its subpoena of former President Trump as the panel concludes its work ahead of the 118th Congress.

According to committee chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), the former president’s testimony is “no longer needed.”

Trump was initially subpoenaed by the committee in October for testimony and documents regarding the protests at the Capitol Building on January 6th.

Thompson noted in a letter to Trump’s attorneys: “In light of the imminent end of our investigation, the Select Committee can no longer pursue the specific information covered by the subpoena.”

He added, “Therefore, through this letter, I hereby formally withdraw the subpoena issued to former President Trump, and notify you that he is no longer obligated to comply or produce records in response to said subpoena.”

Trump shared a message on his social media celebrating the “win.”

This story is breaking. Check back with Great America News Desk for the latest updates.

CNN To Host First Trump, Biden 2024 Debate

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CNN Headquarters via Wikimedia Commons

Big things are coming…

On Wednesday, CNN announced it will host the first 2024 debate between President Joe Biden and presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump in late June.

“I’ve received and accepted an invitation from @CNN for a debate on June 27th. Over to you, Donald. As you said: anywhere, any time, any place,” Biden posted on X.

Trump told Fox News Digital in a subsequent statement he had also accepted the invitation for the June 27 debate, telling the outlet he is “looking forward to being in beautiful Atlanta.”

The Biden campaign earlier Wednesday called for the first debate to take place in late June, after Biden returns from the Group of Seven summit in Europe and after Trump’s hush money trial in New York will likely have concluded.

Trump, in a post on Truth Social, derided Biden as “the WORST debater I have ever faced” and said the two should discuss border policy, electric vehicles and inflation, among other topics.

“I am Ready and Willing to Debate Crooked Joe at the two proposed times in June and September,” Trump posted. “I would strongly recommend more than two debates and, for excitement purposes, a very large venue, although Biden is supposedly afraid of crowds – That’s only because he doesn’t get them. Just tell me when, I’ll be there. ‘Let’s get ready to Rumble!!!’”

In a separate statement to Fox News Digital, Trump said the proposed dates were “fully acceptable.”

“I will provide my own transportation,” he said.

The Biden campaign suggested a second debate in September ahead of the start of early voting in many states, as well as a vice presidential debate in late July, after the Republican National Convention.

New York Appeals Court Poised To Overturn Trump’s $454 Million Fine

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Alec Perkins from Hoboken, USA, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

An appeals court in New York appears set to issue a favorable ruling for former President Donald Trump after the state’s Attorney General’s Office controversially applied an anti-fraud law to his real estate practices. The case resulted in a hefty $454 million fine, which now faces potential reduction or reversal.

During Thursday’s hearing, justices from the New York Supreme Court expressed concern about the judgment, with one justice labeling the fine “troubling.”

The New York Post reports:

A panel of New York appeals court judges appeared skeptical about the gargantuan $454 million civil fraud judgment Donald Trump was dealt after he was found liable for business fraud — with one jurist calling it “troubling.”

The former president is attempting to reverse or reduce the judgment of $354 million — plus an additional $100 million in interest — after a judge sided with New York Attorney General Letitia James, who argued in a lawsuit that Trump inflated his net worth by billions to get better loan and insurance terms.

Trump’s lawyers, who have called Judge Arthur Engoron’s February ruling “draconian, unlawful, and unconstitutional,” appeared before a five-judge panel of a Manhattan appeals court Thursday to plead their case.

Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Judge Peter Moulton questioned whether James’ lawsuit turned into “something it was not meant to do.”

In a post-verdict interview, Attorney General Letitia James stated that if Trump cannot pay the judgment, her office would pursue asset seizure, including Trump’s iconic properties like the 40 Wall Street skyscraper. “We will seek judgment enforcement mechanisms in court, and we will ask the judge to seize his assets,” she told ABC News.

Fox News Legal Analyst Johnathan Turley criticized the ruling, calling it “astronomical” and accusing James of engaging in “mob justice” by threatening Trump’s assets.

James filed a civil fraud lawsuit against the former president and his three adult children in September 2022, on the heels of a years-long civil investigation into the Trump family’s real estate business, the Trump Organization.

The investigation centered on whether the former president’s company misled investors and tax authorities by inflating property values to get investments and subsequently deflating them to get tax and loan benefits.

Trump continues to deny any wrongdoing.

READ NEXT: House Republicans Subpoena Dishonored Anti-Trump Prosecutor – They Never Expected This

Former Trump Ambassador Endorses Ron DeSantis

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Donald Trump is known for his bombastic personality and his no-nonsense approach to politics but while that attracted voters and donors in 2016 it seems to be having the opposite effect now.

Major Republican donors seem to be turned off by Trump’s recent attacks on GOP challengers, especially Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Donald Tapia, a prominent businessman from Arizona and Trump’s former ambassador to Jamaica from 2019 to 2021, was a strong financial backer of Trump in 2016 and 2020, contributing hundreds of thousands of dollars to the former president over his two elections.

“The name-calling has turned a lot of people off,” Tapia said to Politico. “Let me tell you, we don’t like that.”

Tapia is now amongst a growing group of Republicans choosing to throw their support behind DeSantis, despite the fact he hasn’t even launched a presidential campaign yet.

Recently, DeSantis has been the target of a number of Trump’s Truth Social tirades, even earning the nickname “Ron DeSanctimonious.”

However, despite Trump’s barrage of attacks the Florida governor has opted to play coy, a tactic that seems to be drawing in more and more supporters.

Popular podcast star Joe Rogan recently defended the Sunshine State governor from Trump’s criticsms.

“All of the Fake News is reporting that I spend large amounts of my time coming up with a good ‘nickname’ for Ron DeSanctimonious, who is obviously going to give the presidential ‘thing’ a shot,” Trump claimed. “They are all 100% wrong; I don’t even think about it — A very unimportant subject to me!!!”

When Rogan’s guest noted that Trump was losing “losing his touch” in coming up with nicknames, Rogan responded that the task would be even harder for Trump to do with the Florida governor.

“Well, there’s not a good one that you can come up with for Ron,” Rogan said. “Because Ron, he’s too good with that base and his success in Florida is pretty unparalleled.”

“I think Ron DeSantis would work as a good president. I think, I mean, what he’s done for Florida has been admirable,” Rogan said last summer. “I feel like what he did for Florida, a lot of people gave him a lot of grief, but ultimately, he was correct. He was correct when it comes to like deaths. He was correct when it comes to protecting our vulnerable populations. He was correct in terms of distribution of monoclonal antibodies, and he was furious when the government tried to pull those, they were trying to pull very effective treatments.”

Earlier this week, DeSantis finally shed some light as to when Americans can expect his decision on a White House run.

During an appearance with “Fox & Friends” DeSantis charted out the next few months saying that he will embark on a tour to promote his new book, “The Courage to be Free,” and work through the Florida legislature’s regular session, which begins in early March.

“We’re going to sell some books, we’re going to spread the message of Florida. And then on March 8, I have our Legislative Session that’s kicking off,” DeSantis said.

“You ain’t seen nothing yet,” he added. “This is going to be the most productive Legislative Session we have had across the board and I think people are going to be really excited … So those are what we’re going to be doing over these next few months as we get beyond that, then we can decide from there.”

Report: Georgia DA Planning to Indict Trump Next Month

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Gage Skidmore Flickr

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is reportedly planning to indict former President Trump next month on racketeering charges.

Left-leaning publication The Guardian’s Hugo Lowell cited two sources close to the matter in an exclusive report detailing the possibility of racketeering charges, which would be based on “influencing witnesses and computer trespass.

“The racketeering statute in Georgia requires prosecutors to show the existence of an ‘enterprise’ – and a pattern of racketeering activity that is predicated on at least two ‘qualifying’ crimes,” Lowell explains.

The report added that while the “specific evidence was not clear” the “charge regarding influencing witnesses could include Trump’s conversations with Georgia’s secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger.” Trump was recorded asking Raffensperger to “find” 11,780 votes, his losing margin in the state, in order to be declared the victor. Lowell also details the potential computer trespass charges:

For the computer trespass charge, where prosecutors would have to show that defendants used a computer or network without authority to interfere with a program or data, that would include the breach of voting machines in Coffee county, the two people said.

The breach of voting machines involved a group of Trump operatives – paid by the then Trump lawyer Sidney Powell – accessing the voting machines at the county’s election office and copying sensitive voting system data.

The report notes that the copied data was then “uploaded to a password-protected site from where election deniers could download the materials as part of a misguided effort to prove the 2020 election had been rigged.”

Judge Delays Trump New York Sentencing

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On Friday, Judge Juan Merchan granted President-elect Donald Trump’s request to dismiss charges in his criminal hush money case and removed the sentencing date.

According to The Hill, Merchan halted the case to accept additional written briefing on Trump’s argument that his return to the White House compels the court to toss his 34-count felony conviction entirely. 

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) is opposing that request. Instead, Bragg suggested that Merchan could pause the proceedings while Trump is in office, meaning the conviction would remain on the books but sentencing wouldn’t occur until 2029, at the earliest. 

Merchan ordered Trump to file his formal motion asking for dismissal by Dec. 2 and Bragg to respond by Dec. 9The judge will then decide how to proceed. 

Meanwhile, Trump attorneys have requested that Merchan overturn the guilty verdict altogether, citing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that former presidents have substantial immunity from prosecution for official acts in office.

The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision on presidential immunity came from a question that stemmed from charges brought against Trump in a separate, federal case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith related to the events on Jan. 6, 2021, and any alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

They have moved most aggressively to pull the plug on the hush money case, given that Trump’s sentencing was rapidly approaching on Nov. 26.  

“[D]ismissal of this case is necessary under the Constitution and federal law to facilitate the orderly transition of Executive power — and in the interests of justice — following President Trump’s victory in the Electoral College and the popular vote in the 2024 Presidential election,” Trump attorneys Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, whom the president-elect recently nominated to senior Justice Department officials, wrote in a letter last week. 

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