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    Ex-Superior Court Judge Calls For Putting Trump ‘In a Jail Cell’ 

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    5
    Image via Pixabay

    Yikes.

    A former judge told CNN on Sunday that Donald Trump should be jailed if he violates the latest gag order.

    CNN anchor Omar Jimenez spoke with former Superior Court Judge LaDoris Cordell as his guest on Sunday to discuss Trump’s latest social media attacks on New York Judge Juan Merchan and his family.

    Cordell said that after going through the initial steps of warnings and fines, it was time for Trump to face what any other American would face in his situation if he violates another gag order: jail time.

    According to Mediaite, Jimenez noted that Trump was “testing the limits” of his gag order, with Cordell agreeing that “he’s tiptoeing very close to the line.” However, Jimenez pointed out that Trump was not known for his restraint and asked, “What happens when Trump breaks that gag order on Truth Social or otherwise?”

    [Y]ou said “when” and not “if,” and I think you’re right, Omar. When he steps across then gag order line, and I do hope that will be expanded, there should be only one response: “Bring your toothbrush, Donald Trump, because you’re going to sit in a jail cell for a while.” There has to be an immediate consequence when he defies a court order. That is a normal response. You cannot have a court system that is subjected to these kinds of threats and intimidation. Nowhere else has this ever happened and gone on without any consequences, and that has to change, and it has to change now.

    Prior to that, Cordell explained that Trump’s threats are never empty and that the lives of the people he names in his posts are genuinely at risk:

    What people should know, first off, is that this is not normal. Attacks upon our legal system, attacks on judges, witnesses, jurors, court staff, lawyers, and their families, it’s not normal. I’ve presided over thousands of hearings and trials during my nearly 20 years as a trial judge, and never did any defendants in my courtroom show such disrespect for the court system as was shown by Donald Trump. And occasionally I had to warn a defendant to conduct himself properly, but a warning was usually sufficient. In this instance, Trump’s words are clearly intended to intimidate, threaten, and incite violence against the people he names in the words coming out of his mouth and on social media.

    So what he’s doing, he’s literally thumbing his nose at the courts, and he’s making a mockery of the legal system. And we know this because he has cautioned, he has never once, never cautioned his followers to abstain from making threats and otherwise attack his targets. He wants to put people in fear for their lives by having his followers do his dirty work. So almost the job of a trial judge is to ensure a fair trial for both sides and to manage the courtroom to ensure law and order. So when you have a disrupter like Donald Trump, judges have tools to rein them in. They have warnings, you got fines, you got gag orders, you got incarceration. And warnings and fines haven’t worked with Trump.

    Judge Knocks Attorney Over 2020 Election

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    0
    Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

    On Wednesday, a California judge recommended disbarring pro-Trump attorney John Eastman for his role in former President Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

    According to The Hill, State Bar Judge Yvette Roland found John Eastman culpable on 10 of the 11 counts filed by the California State Bar last year. The state bar sought to strip Eastman’s license to practice law in the state due to his “false and misleading statements” about purported election fraud and his role in “provoking” the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

    “In view of the circumstances surrounding Eastman’s misconduct and balancing the aggravation and mitigation, the court recommends that Eastman be disbarred,” Roland wrote in a 128-page decision.

    The judge also recommended that Eastman be ordered to pay $10,000 in sanctions to the State Bar of California Client Security Fund.

    Roland wrote in her decision that Eastman showed an unwillingness to admit to “any ethical lapses” in his behavior.

    “This lack of remorse and accountability presents a significant risk that Eastman may engage in further unethical conduct, compounding the threat to the public,” the judge wrote.

    Eastman led the legal strategy attempting to change the election results in several key 2020 states, including by using slates of alternate electors to swing the election’s outcome in Trump’s favor. The plan also relied on then-Vice President Mike Pence throwing out the real electors for the “fake” ones.

    Report: Kari Lake To Forfeit Defense In Defamation Case

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    0
    Kari Lake speaking with supporters at a "Stand for Freedom" rally at the Embassy Suites by Hilton Scottsdale Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona. [Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons]

    On Tuesday, Kari Lake’s legal team moved to forfeit a defamation case against her.

    According to The Hill, Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer (R) sued Lake last year in his personal capacity, claiming Lake defamed him after she refused to concede her 2022 Arizona gubernatorial defeat and alleged election fraud.

    The lawsuit claims Lake consistently and systemically lied about Richer’s actions as recorder, causing him to receive harassment and numerous threats to his life. Richer added that Lake claimed without evidence that he stuffed ballot boxes with 300,000 invalid votes and used his role as recorder to make the ballot unclear for voters.

    “For the last seven months, I have been subjected to constant harassment, intimidation, and threats to my and my family’s lives because the defendants in this case were spreading falsehoods about me, my work, and our elections,” Richer said in a statement when the lawsuit was filed last year.

    The court filing Tuesday does not contest Richer’s claims, and requests an accelerated hearing to determine damages. 

    Richer held up the filing as an admission of guilt.

    “Won’t defend / can’t defend,” he wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “I’ll get my due. But not the millions of people she lied to.” 

    “Not the thousands of people who donated ‘to continue the fight.’ Not the people who have gone to jail because they so strongly believed Kari’s lies,” he continued. “Those people won’t get their due.”

    Lake pushed back on the filing as a rejection to participate in what she described as a “political witch hunt” and a “frivolous” lawsuit, refusing to admit culpability.

    “Washington, D.C. operates on blackmail and bribes. Since they can’t blackmail or bribe me, they’ve resorted to filing a punishing lawsuit to try to stop me and bleed me dry,” she said in a video message. “They’re threatening to take everything I own. What they don’t realize is even if they leave me, my husband and children homeless and penniless, that won’t stop us.”

    “By participating in this lawsuit, it would only serve to legitimize this perversion of our legal system and allow bad actors to interfere in our upcoming election,” she continued. “So I won’t be taking part.”

    Report: Judge Imposes Gag Order In Trump Hush Money Trial

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    2
    Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

    On Tuesday, the New York judge overseeing the Trump hush money trial imposed a gag order on the former President.

    Judge Juan Merchan’s order still enables Trump to publicly attack the judge and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) but protects jurors and court staff as the trial approaches.

    The Hill has more:

    But it prevents the former president from attacking other prosecutors, court staff and their family members “if those statements are made with the intent to materially interfere with” the case.

    Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) charged Trump in the case with 34 counts of falsifying business records last spring over reimbursements Trump made to his then-fixer, Michael Cohen.

    Cohen had paid porn actress Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about an affair she alleged to have had with Trump. The indictment accuses Trump of improperly deeming the reimbursements a legal retainer to conceal damaging information from the public ahead of the 2016 presidential election. 

    Trump, who denies the affair, pleaded not guilty.

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

    Trump Press Sec. Claims Campaign Will Have ‘Soldiers’ Watching Polling Stations on Election Day

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    3
    President Donald J. Trump is presented with a 10th Combat Aviation Brigade challenge coin following an air assault and gun rain demonstration at Fort Drum, New York, on August 13. The demonstration was part of President Trump's visit to the 10th Mountain Division (LI) to sign the National Defense Authorization Act of 2019, which increases the Army's authorized active-duty end strength by 4,000 enabling us to field critical capabilities in support of the National Defense Strategy. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Thomas Scaggs) 180813-A-TZ475-010

    Is this a step too far?

    On Monday, former President Donald Trump’s press secretary told Kimberly Guilfoyle during an interview that Trump plans to deploy “soldiers” to monitor polling stations on election day in an effort to make sure “there are no irregularities” or “fraud.”

    Karoline Leavitt, who previously ran for Congress and lost, explained the plan during an appearance on The Kimberly Guilfoyle Show.

    Mediaite has more:

    We’re so excited about our recent merger with the Republican National Committee and the new leadership we have there in both Lara Trump and Michael Whatley. Our team is already working hand-in-hand with the staff at the RNC as one very lean and mean machine, as we like to call it, with one goal, and that goal is victory for Republicans up and down the ballot on November 5th.

    We have the team, now it’s time to deploy the troops on the ground. We have an amazing volunteer-led effort right now in all of the battleground states, in addition to our great paid staff who will be making direct voter contact every single hour of every day between now and November 5th to get out the vote. A large part of this is also educating voters on the laws within their state. If you live in an early voting state, we encourage you to get out and vote early, cast your ballot. You don’t know what could happen to you on election day.

    And then we’re also investing a lot of money into voter integrity efforts to ensure that every American knows their ballot will be cast and counted and matter, and we’re gonna play offense this time around. We’re not gonna play defense like we unfortunately did in 2020. We’re gonna have soldiers, poll watchers on the ground who are making sure that there are no irregularities and fraud like we saw in the last election cycle.

    Guilfoyle replied, “I love it. I cannot wait. It’s gonna be fantastic.”

    This is hardly the first time Trump has called for backup at the polls. During the 2020 election, the then-President encouraged supporters to stay vigilant and independently monitor polling stations for evidence of fraud.

    “I am encouraging my supporters to go into the polls and watch very carefully because that’s what has to happen,” said Trump at the time. “I am urging them to do it.”

    Appeals Court Punts Trump Civil Fraud Judgment

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    1
    Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

    On Monday, a New York Appeals Court extended the deadline by 10 days for Donald Trump to post his bond to satisfy the civil fraud judgment and cut the necessary amount to $175 million.

    “We will abide by the decision of the Appellate Division, and post either a bond, equivalent securities, or cash,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

    CNN reports:

    It’s a major lifeline for the former president, who, along with his adult sons and his company, were fined more than $464 million, including interest, after Judge Arthur Engoron found Trump and his co-defendants fraudulently inflated the value of his assets.

    The ruling staves off the prospect, for now, of New York Attorney General Letitia James seeking to seize the former president’s property to enforce the judgement against him.

    Trump had been struggling to come up with the means to post the $464 million bond, the total that he would have needed before Monday’s appellate decision.

    Judge Engoron’s ruling ordered Trump to pay nearly $355 million, Donald Jr. and Eric to each pay $4 million, and ex-Trump Org chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg to pay $1 million. The order also barred Trump from serving as a corporate officer or a director of a company in New York for three years, and barred his sons for two years. The Trumps did avoid the so-called “corporate death penalty;”

    New York Attorney General Letitia James said that if Trump fails or refuses to pay the $354.8 million fine, plus roughly $100 million in interest, she will seize his assets – including his properties.

    Former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham proposed a list of properties former President Trump would be most disappointed to have seized if he cannot pay the damages in his civil fraud case.

    “I think if it were to happen, 40 Wall Street is probably the one that he would … I mean, he would hate it,” Grisham told CNN’s Erin Burnett on Monday. “But I think if she tried to seize Mar-a-Lago or Bedminster or Trump Tower even — I mean, those are his babies.”

    “You’ve got the Sterling golf course in Virginia. Any of the properties with golf courses, I think, would absolutely devastate him,” Grisham, who worked under the Trump administration, added. “It will be interesting to see what [New York Attorney General Letitia James] goes for.”

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

    Ronna McDaniel Faces Roadblocks Over NBC News Gig

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    3
    Ronna McDaniel via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    Former Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Ronna McDaniel could already be heading for the exit…

    Days after NBC News announced it had hired McDaniel as a new contributor to the network and reports of inner turmoil are already running rampant.

    According to The Wall Street Journal, MSNBC president Rashida Jones “has no plans to have McDaniel on the channel,” citing “people familiar” with the controversy.

    The Journal reported that there has been “internal backlash” over the hire — adding that “a number of MSNBC anchors and producers have voiced concern about McDaniel’s ties to former President Donald Trump and the RNC’s role in his efforts to challenge the 2020 election results.”

    “Morning Joe” Co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski in their Monday broadcast sharply criticized the network for hiring McDaniel and called on NBC News to reconsider the decision.

    “To be clear, we believe NBC News should seek out conservative Republican voices to provide balance in their election coverage. But it should be conservative Republicans, not a person who used her position of power to be an anti-democracy election denier,” Brzezinski said.

    “And we hope NBC will reconsider its decision. It goes without saying that she will not be a guest on ‘Morning Joe’ in her capacity as a paid contributor,” Brzezinski added.

    On Friday, Carrie Budoff Brown, who leads political coverage at NBC, wrote in a memo shared with The New York Times, “It couldn’t be a more important moment to have a voice like Ronna’s on the team.”

    Chuck Todd, the former host of “Meet the Press,” appeared on the Sunday morning show and blasted his network over the decision.

    “There’s a reason why there are a lot of journalists at NBC News uncomfortable with this, because many of our professional dealings with the RNC over the last six years have been met with gaslighting, have been met with character assassination,” he said.

    “We learned about the hiring when we read about it in the press on Friday,” Scarborough said.

    “We weren’t asked our opinion of the hiring, but if we were, we would have strongly objected to it for several reasons, including, but not limited to, as lawyers might say, Ms. McDaniels’s role in Donald Trump’s fake electoral scheme, and her pressuring election officials to not certify election results while Donald Trump was on the phone,” he continued.

    Former RNC Director To Join NBC News

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    4

    Former Republican National Committee (RNC) director Ronna McDaniel is joining NBC News as a contributor.

    According to The Hill, McDaniel will appear on “Meet The Press” this Sunday, giving her first interview since resigning as head of the RNC earlier this year.

    McDaniel is expected to be featured as part of election coverage on NBC and on the network’s sister cable channel, MSNBC.

    “It couldn’t be a more important moment to have a voice like Ronna’s on the team,” Carrie Budoff Brown, who leads political coverage at NBC, wrote in a memo shared with The New York Times.

    McDaniel became RNC chair in 2017 and was re-elected four times before announcing her plans to resign after the South Carolina primary.

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

    Report: Trump Media Company Truth Social To Become Publicly Traded Company

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    0
    Image via Piaxabay

    On Friday,  shareholders voted in favor of making Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, a publicly traded entity.

    According to Fox Business, shareholders voted in favor of Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) merging with its special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Digital World Acquisition Corp., a publicly traded shell company.

    Last month, though, the SEC approved the merger.

    Trump Media & Technology Group first launched in October 2021. 

    Trump launched Truth Social in February 2022, a year after he was banned from platforms such as then-Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, following Jan. 6, 2021. Those bans have been lifted but the former President has refused to rejoin.

    Fox Business has more:

    The merger approval means TMTG stock will trade on Nasdaq as “DJT” as early as next week. 

    Former President Trump, the presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee, holds 78.7 million shares in Trump Media & Technology Group. His personal stake in the company at its current stock price of approximately $44.17 would be worth between $3 billion and $4 billion. 

    There is a six-month lock-up on Trump’s shares, but the board could vote to waive that rule. 

    The merger brings Truth Social, which describes itself as a free-speech platform and a “safe harbor” from censorship on other Big Tech platforms, approximately $300 million to expand the platform.

    The deal’s approval comes as Mr. Trump is facing a Monday deadline to cover a $454 million penalty in a civil fraud case in New York. 

    The Daily Wire Cuts Ties With Candace Owens

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    3
    Image via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    On Friday, The Daily Wire CEO Jeremy Boreing announced the company has ended its relationship with high-profile conservative commentator Candice Owens.

    “Daily Wire and Candace Owens have ended their relationship,” announced Boreing on X.

    Owens’ departure comes after months of tensions between her and Daily Wire co-founder Ben Shapiro over the Israel-Hamas conflict.

    Mediaite has more:

    In November, Boreing had insisted that Owens was “paid to give her opinion,” and that until her opinion violated the law or the terms of her contract, she would be “welcome at Daily Wire.”

    But that defense of Owens came before any of her more recent and more brazen comments.

    Amidst renewed attention on her anti-Semitic comments this week, Owens has doubled down. After the Anti-Defamation League noted that infamous white supremacist Nick Fuentes had been praising Owens for her rhetoric, Owens said she was “grateful” that the organization had “turned their smear merchant guns on me.

    “The world already knows my heart. Their attacks will have the opposite desired effect. Awaken world,” she wrote on X.

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