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RFK Jr. Accuses Trump, Biden Of ‘Collusion’

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ripped into Joe Biden and Donald Trump after CNN announced it would host a debate between the Republican and Democrat candidates.

    In response to the news, the independent candidate suggested that denying him access to the debates is a knock against democracy, even going as far as accusing the two of “colluding” against him.

    “Presidents Trump and Biden are colluding to lock America into a head-to-head match-up that 70% say they do not want,” Kennedy Jr. wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “They are trying to exclude me from their debate because they are afraid I would win. Keeping viable candidates off the debate stage undermines democracy.”

    “By excluding me from the stage, Presidents Biden and Trump seek to avoid discussion of their eight years of mutual failure including deficits, wars, lockdowns, chronic disease, and inflation,” Kennedy Jr. wrote after the debate was confirmed.

    The independent candidate was not explicitly barred from the debate. According to CNN, candidates simply need to meet the criteria for the debate. At this time, only Biden and Trump have qualified. Those qualifications include being on enough state ballots to realistically be able to earn 270 electoral votes and hitting 15% in four national polls.

    Biden campaign communications director Michael Tyler was asked on Wednesday by CNN’s Jake Tapper if Kennedy Jr. should make the debate stage in September if he’s qualified. Tyler said the “reality” is only Biden or Trump can win the election.

    “The American people deserve to hear from them because that is the reality we are facing,” he said. “That’s the choice in this election, so we should have a debate between the two candidates.”

    Watch: Hollywood Actor Compares Trump To Hitler

      By
      Madeleine Jackson
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      Austin Green, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

      Famed actor Robert De Niro says he’s baffled as to why voters aren’t taking Donald Trump “seriously,” comparing the former president to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. 

      “I don’t understand why people are not taking him seriously,” the “Ezra” actor said of Trump during a Tuesday appearance on “The View.”

      “Because you read about it historically in other countries that they didn’t take the people seriously — Hitler and Mussolini, they’re fools and clowns,” De Niro, one of Hollywood’s most vocal Trump critics, said.

      “It’s gonna happen. If he gets elected, it’s going to change this country for everybody,” De Niro said.

      “Those people who support him with anger and hate — because that’s what he’s about — they’re going to see,” he said.

      Next, co-host Whoopi Goldberg added that if Trump is re-elected in November he will move to amend the Constitution to allow for Presidents to serve a third term.

      “If he becomes president again, he is not going to not stop being president,” Whoopi Goldberg, one of ABC daytime talk show’s co-hosts, added of Trump. 

      “You understand this? His idea is to stay in until he drops dead,” Goldberg said. 

      “That’s it,” De Niro agreed.

      “He’s not conceding it now. So imagine if he actually did win the election — it’s over. We’re going to have such civil strife,” De Niro said.

      De Niro has been a frequent critic of Trump, once famously saying he wanted to “punch” him in the face and describing him as a “flat-out blatant racist.” 

      CNN To Host First Trump, Biden 2024 Debate

      By
      Madeleine Jackson
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      3
      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.

      Appeals Court Upholds Limited Gag Order

      By
      Madeleine Jackson
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      2
      Gavel via Wikimedia Commons Image

      On Tuesday, a New York Appeals court upheld Judge Juan Merchan’s limited gag order in the ongoing hush money trial against former President Donald Trump.

      The gag order which was imposed in March prohibits Trump from from attacking witnesses, prosecutors, court staff, and the judge’s family. The gag order does not prevent Trump from attacking the judge or Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D). 

       The judge in the case has ruled Trump has violated the order 10 times, resulting in a total of $10,000 in fines, and threatened jail time if Trump continues to violate the order. 

      “Justice Merchan properly determined that petitioner’s public statements posed a significant threat to the integrity of the testimony of witnesses and potential witnesses in this case as well,” the decision from the five-judge panel reads. 

      The Hill reports that in the decision, the panel compares Merchan’s gag order to a gag imposed on Trump in his federal election interference case. The New York judges aligned with the District of Columbia U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision to allow Trump’s gag there to stand. (RELATED: Trump Legal Team Moves To Appeal ‘Unconstitutional’ Gag Order)

      “Weighing these concerns, the circuit court ultimately concluded that, given the record, the court had ‘a duty to act proactively to prevent the creation of an atmosphere of fear or intimidation aimed at preventing trial participants and staff from performing their functions within the trial process,’” the five-judge panel wrote. “This Court adopts the reasoning in the circuit court’s Federal Restraining Order Decision.”

      Trump is being charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records to make alleged hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels.

      DeSantis Addresses Rumors About First Lady’s Political Future

        By
        Madeleine Jackson
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        0

        Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) addressed rumors his wife Casey could be considering a political future of her own in the near future.

        The Republican governor shot down speculation of his wife’s political ambitions at an event in Coral Gables. Recent polls have suggested that Casey DeSantis would be strongly favored in a hypothetical Republican primary for governor. 

        Asked about those polls, DeSantis smiled and told reporters, “If I had to characterize her interest in getting into the political thicket as a candidate, I would say, I would characterize it as zero. But, you know, I think it’s because she has had a front row seat on all the nonsense that goes on when you do it.”

        In an interview with Fox News’ Harris Faulkner in 2023, DeSantis said “humility” is what defined her as the first lady of the Sunshine State.

        “I think one who looks at the role with a lot of humility,” Casey said. “It isn’t about me. It is about being in a position to be able to do good on behalf of the people of this state and hopefully of this country.”

        Before her husband’s election as governor in 2018, DeSantis enjoyed a career as a television host, reporter and anchor.

        Potential VP Pick To Join Trump In NYC Court

        By
        Madeleine Jackson
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        2
        Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

        Could this be a sign of who Trump plans to pick as his running mate?

        On Tuesday, conservative tech mogul Vivek Ramaswamy will join Donald Trump at the Manhattan courthouse as part of the ongoing hush money trial.

        He will spend the entire day with Trump as the former president’s criminal trial continues, a spokesperson for Ramaswamy confirmed to Fox News Digital.

        “The best proof that the Trump trial is a sham: if DJT had done the exact *opposite* of the alleged crime, they’d still be prosecuting him & have an even stronger case,” Ramaswamy said in a statement. 

        “Every one of these prosecutions… is backfiring,” Ramaswamy said during an April appearance on Fox News’ “Hannity.” “These people are sick and tired of being lied to. They’re sick and tired of the lawfare.”

        “I’ve talked to many Democrats who disagree with Donald Trump on many policies but believe we’re not a country where you’re supposed to use prosecutorial power to eliminate your opponents,” he added.

        Other allies of the former president have attended court proceedings in a show of support, including U.S. Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) and Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Al.)

        Vance is widely considered to be a contender for Trump’s potential running mate. Tuesday would be the second straight day when a potential vice presidential nominee contender shows up in support of Trump.

        “The thing that the president is prevented from saying, which is a disgrace, is that every single person involved in this prosecution is practically a Democratic political operative,” Vance said outside the courthouse Monday during a morning break.

        Trump is being charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records to make alleged hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels.

        Trump Leading 5 of 6 Swing States: Report

        By
        Madeleine Jackson
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        0

        The Biden campaign is scrambling to play catch up…

        New surveys conducted by The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Siena College show former President Donald Trump leading President Joe Biden in five of six swing states.

        The Daily Wire has more:

        In a two-man race between Trump and Biden, Trump leads 51-38% among likely voters; by a whopping 13 points 51-38% in Nevada; six points 49-43% in Arizona; nine points 50-41% in Georgia; three points in Pennsylvania 48-45%; and one point in Wisconsin 47-46%; while Biden clings to a one-point margin in Michigan.

        When third-party candidates such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were included, Trump’s lead soared to nine points in Arizona, to 14 in Nevada, and stayed almost the same at eight points in Georgia.

        “As three-quarters of likely voters in these six battleground states say the economy is no better than only fair or poor, large majorities in each state trust Donald Trump to do a better job on the country’s financial well-being than Joe Biden,” Siena College stated.

        “The polls suggest that Mr. Trump’s strength among young and nonwhite voters has at least temporarily upended the electoral map, with Mr. Trump surging to a significant lead in Arizona, Georgia and Nevada — relatively diverse Sun Belt states where Black and Hispanic voters propelled Mr. Biden to signature victories in the 2020 election,” The New York Times stated, adding, “Seventy percent of voters believe that Mr. Trump will either bring major changes to the political or economic system or tear down the systems altogether, compared with 24 percent who expect the same from Mr. Biden. … 43 percent of voters believe that he (Trump) will bring good changes to the country, compared with 35 percent who think the changes will be bad.”

        Report: Barron Trump Responds To GOP Delegate Invite

        By
        Madeleine Jackson
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        0
        Image via Gage Skidmore Flickr

        Former President Donald Trump’s youngest son Barron has reportedly decided not to serve as a delegate for Florida at this summer’s Republican National Convention (RNC).

        “While Barron is honored to have been chosen as a delegate by the Florida Republican Party, he regretfully declines to participate due to prior commitments,” former first lady Melania Trump’s office said in a statement.

        The Florida GOP earlier this week said Barron Trump, who is 18, would join three of the former president’s other children — Eric, Tiffany and Donald Trump Jr. — as delegates, with Eric Trump serving as the state’s delegation chair.

        Trump said in a radio interview Friday that his youngest son has gotten into politics.

        “He does like politics. It’s sort of funny. He’ll tell me sometimes, ‘Dad, this is what you have to do.’ So anyway, he’s a good guy. He’s a senior now in high school, and he’ll be going to college,” the former president said on Philadelphia’s Talk Radio 1210 WPHT.

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

        Judge Imposes Rules Ahead Of Michael Cohen Testimony

        By
        Madeleine Jackson
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        2
        IowaPolitics.com, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

        Judge Juan Merchan on Friday directed Manhattan prosecutors to inform Michael Cohen to stop speaking publicly about the case as his testimony approaches.

        Cohen is expected to testify Monday and has been billed as a key witness for the district attorney’s office. He made the $130,000 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who claimed she had an affair with Trump, which he denies. 

        The Hill reports:

        Trump’s lawyers have repeatedly criticized Cohen’s public attacks on Trump, given that the former president’s ability to respond is limited under the terms of his gag order.


        Todd Blanche, Trump’s attorney, asked that Cohen be prohibited from talking “in the same way President Trump is” restricted.

        “I will direct the People to communicate to Mr. Cohen that the judge is asking him to refrain from any more statements about this case,” Merchan said from the bench.


        He told prosecutors moments later, “that comes from the bench, and you are communicating that on behalf of the bench.”

        The former president’s ex-fixer previously said he would refrain from attacks on Trump, but defense attorneys said Friday that he posted a TikTok on Wednesday night wearing a tee-shirt that showed Trump in an orange jumpsuit and behind bars.

         Report: Judge Upholds Steve Bannon Jan. 6 Conviction

          By
          Madeleine Jackson
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          3
          Thor Brødreskift / Nordiske Mediedager, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons

          On Friday, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld one-time former Trump adviser Steve Bannon’s Jan. 6th contempt of Congress conviction.

          The news was reported by Politico senior legal affairs reporter Kyle Cheney, who noted that the ruling was by a unanimous three-judge panel.

          The three judge panel rejected Bannon’s appeal of his conviction for defying a subpoena to testify before the congressional subcommittee that investigated the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

          Bannon was sentenced to four months in 2022 on one count for his refusal to appear before Congress and another count for failing to produce documents requested by the subcommittee.

          Bannon’s conviction being upheld paves the way for him to be required to actually serve his four-month prison sentence.

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

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