Month: February 2023

Categories
Elections Fox News Fox News Lies

Murdoch Admits Under Oath That Fox Peddled 2020 Election Lies To Protect Their Financial Bottom Line

Former Fox News chairman Rupert Murdoch admitted under oath in a recent deposition that the network aired conspiracy theories suggesting the 2020 election had been stolen for the sole purpose of protecting their financial bottom line, according to documents released Monday.

In one section of Murdoch’s deposition, which was taken as part of a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems, the Fox chief says his network wasn’t interested in red or blue, and was instead focused on “green.”

“Rupert confirmed that he could tell FNN (Fox News Network) to stop running (MyPillow founder Mike) Lindell’s advertisements, ‘But I’m not about to.’ … and when asked why Fox continues to give a platform to Lindell — who continues to this day to spout lies about Dominion — Murdoch agreed that ‘It is not red or blue, it is green.’ … Lindell brought—and brings— Fox a lot of green. He also predictably brought the same lies about Dominion to Fox’s viewers that had been peddled on Fox’s ‘alternate reality machine’ for months.”

The Washington Post notes that in another section of the Monday filing from Dominion, current Fox chairman Lachlan Murdoch was worried that coverage of Trump rally after the election had been called for President Joe Biden had been too negative, which could cost Fox financially:

“News guys have to be careful how they cover this rally,” he told Fox News C.E.O. Suzanne Scott. “So far some of the side comments are slightly anti, and they shouldn’t be. The narrative should be this is a huge celebration of the president.”

Elsewhere in the deposition, Rupert Murdoch admits that some of his primetime hosts did indeed endorse nonsensical conspiracy theories about the election.

Question: “About Fox endorsing the narrative of a stolen election; correct?”

Murdoch: “No. Some of our commentators were endorsing it.”

Question: “About their endorsement of a stolen election?”

Murdoch: “Yes. They endorsed.”

In reaction to the Monday court filing, Fox released a statement:

“Dominion’s lawsuit has always been more about what will generate headlines than what can withstand legal and factual scrutiny, as illustrated by them now being forced to slash their fanciful damages demand by more than half a billion dollars after their own expert debunked its implausible claims. Their summary judgment motion took an extreme, unsupported view of defamation law that would prevent journalists from basic reporting and their efforts to publicly smear FOX for covering and commenting on allegations by a sitting President of the United States should be recognized for what it is: a blatant violation of the First Amendment.”

Fox is also facing a multibillion-dollar defamation lawsuit from Smartmatic, an electronic voting systems company.

Categories
Crime Donald Trump Elections

Joyce Vance: Indictments In Georgia Election Investigation Could Come As Soon As This Week 

Former Alabama U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance says indictments connected to the Georgia investigation of possible 2020 election crimes allegedly committed by former president Donald Trump and some of his top allies may be issued as soon as this week.

The country, Vance writes on Substack, is “officially on Georgia-watch,” adding, “It’s entirely possible that this could be the week to expect the world to turn upside down.”

What should we expect if indeed the indictments are unsealed this week?

“The first signal we’ll probably get—you’ll be in a crowded restaurant, or at work, or on a train, or in the gym, and suddenly everyone’s phone will start blowing up all at once. Reporters tend to stalk the clerk of court’s office in person and online when they know a big case is close. We’re in that sweet spot, although it’s important to keep in mind that we could remain there for awhile.”

Vance also explains that indictment of Trump isn’t a given:

“It’s not certain that anyone, let alone Donald Trump, will be indicted. But Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney, certainly seems to be giving off all the signals that she means business here.”

However, if Trump is indicted, here are the possible charges that will be brought against him, according to Vance:

“First up, election-related crimes: solicitation to commit election fraud, intentional interference with performance of election duties, interference with primaries and elections, and conspiracy to commit election fraud.”

But the worst possibility for the failed ex-president involves conspiracy charges.

“Georgia’s state RICO statute could also be charged: RICO stands for the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act and originally referred to a federal law passed in 1970 to strengthen the tools and charges available to federal prosecutors for dealing with the unlawful activities of those engaged in organized crime—Mafia or other entities devoted to organized, ongoing, serious criminal conduct.”

This could be a week of historical importance. Let’s hope it does indeed bring up indictments of Trump and his co-conspirators.

Categories
Elections GOP WTF?!

Nikki Haley Says She’s Qualified To Be POTUS Because ‘I Did A Book’

Now that she’s announced she’s running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, Nikki Haley is desperately trying to convince voters (and herself) that she’s actually qualified to be President of the United States, even though she keeps proving that she isn’t even capable of explaining why people should vote for her or how she’s the least bit different from every other member of the GOP who envisions him or herself as leader of the free world.

On Sunday, it was Fox host Maria Bartiromo’s turn to try and pin down exactly why Haley thinks anyone with even a single brain cell would ever cast a ballot for her, asking, “How will you differentiate yourself from the other candidates and tell us your plan for foreign policy?”

Haley responded:

“You know, one of the main things I did at the United Nations that I think is so important is I did a book. that focused on the 193 countries, the percentage of time they voted with us, and how much foreign aid we give them.”

She did a book? So what?! Is that some sort of qualification that entitles a person to lead the country? If so, there are a lot of folks out there who have also “done” books and think they’re more qualified than the former South Carolina governor, who ran a state that also elected Lindsey Graham to the U.S. Senate and is badly in need of enlightenment.

Haley continued her book bragging:

“The number one thing I would do is stop giving foreign aid to our enemies. We give $46 billion in foreign aid. You’re basically talking about a billion dollars going to Iraq, who’s basically dealing with the Iranians, who are saying, ‘Death to America.'”

Just about every nation in the Middle East deals with the Iranians. And can we really afford to further alienate countries as unstable as Iraq, which is partially in the mess it’s in as a result of the invasion we staged in 2003?

As many people noted after Haley’s interview with Bartiromo, the more the ex-U.N. ambassador speaks, the more it becomes painfully clear that she’s in way over her head.

Categories
Crime Donald Trump

Jack Smith Has A ‘Killer Witness’ Who Can Send Trump To Prison For A Very Long Time

According to one of Donald Trump’s former assistants, the failed ex-president was so cavalier with who saw classified documents he kept at Mar-a-Lago in violation of federal law that he would write to-do lists on those files and give them to her.

ABC News reported Monday that Molly Michael has spoken with investigators working for Special Counsel Jack Smith, and what she had to say was terrifying.

Michael told investigators that — more than once — she received requests or taskings from Trump that were written on the back of notecards, and she later recognized those notecards as sensitive White House materials — with visible classification markings — used to brief Trump while he was still in office about phone calls with foreign leaders or other international-related matters.

The notecards with classification markings were at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate when FBI agents searched the property on Aug. 8, 2022 — but the materials were not taken by the FBI, according to sources familiar with what Michael told investigators.

Michael will make one hell of a “killer witness” for Smith at trial, according to former federal prosecutor Harry Litman, who told MSNBC host Chris Jansing :

“This playing around with notecards shows he’s cavalier, shows he’s very Trumpian. But what you read, Chris, is the real punch line. Knowing that the FBI wants to interview her, he said you don’t know anything about the boxes. And by the way, we know that is clearly a lie. It sounds like it anyway because she takes a picture and gives it to him. So, he knows, and the picture is in the indictment.”

Michael, who is identified as “Employee 2” in the federal indictment, is pure gold as a witness, Litman continued.

“She’s going to be a killer witness here. No deal, no ax to grind. In fact, was loyal to Trump. Goes to Mar-a-Lago with him after, and then finally leaves when she knows he’s basically breaking the law and obstructing justice. She gives absolute killer evidence about his trying to keep more than the boxes he had given up already to the FBI, and that’s why the search ensued. Very, very powerful witness, she’s going to be.”

A big problem for Trump, Litman noted, is that so many of the witnesses who have been loyal to him so far and refused to cooperate with Smith are now looking at massive legal bills they simply cannot hope to pay.

“For example, Jenna Elis, saying why is he not paying our fees? That’s exactly the kind of posture that is dangerous for Trump because if you are in financially dire straits, that is one real reason you would go to the prosecution and try to cooperate. One quick additional point about Molly Michael, by the way. She is present when Trump makes the statement to Evan Corcoran, ‘What if we told [the FBI] nothing? Could we just pretend there is nothing there?’ So, to the extent, he tried to make that a credibility battle between Corcoran, she is there to break the tie in a very persuasive fashion.”

 

Categories
Donald Trump Viral Video

Video Appears To Show The Rapid Physical Deterioration Of Donald Trump

While disgraced former president Donald Trump and his most ardent acolytes (including some who are members of Congress), love to say that President Joe Biden is in poor health, the evidence would seem to suggest that Trump is the one who needs a medical intervention.

There have also been hints that Trump’s health may indeed be failing, with the one-term ex-president noting in an off-handed comment that he might not run in 2024 due to health complications.

In a 2022 interview with The Washington Post, Trump remarked:

“You always have to talk about health. You look like you’re in good health, but tomorrow, you get a letter from a doctor saying come see me again. That’s not good when they use the word again.”

NBC News notes that the comment drew plenty of interest and raised all sorts of questions about a man who is known to hedge the truth when it comes to any information regarding himself.

This offhand comment — one that apparently came as something of an afterthought toward the end of the interview — sent shock waves through the political establishment, because it was the first time that Trump, who has been notoriously secretive about sharing his health records with the public, seemed to admit that health issues might influence his decision to run. He has often been deliberately misleading and even dishonest about his health, and for him to proactively bring it up as a potential reason not to run in 2024 is something of a watershed moment.

Add to that something said by Rev. Franklin Graham, who told Axios:

“I think for him, everything will depend on his health at that time. If he still has energy and strength like he does. I don’t.
“You know the guy does not eat well, you know, and it’s amazing the energy that he has.”

And now we have a new video of Trump at his Mar-a-Lago golf resort,

In the video, Trump looks incredibly obese, red-faced, and is moving slowly. He also appears to be having trouble breathing and can barely speak to acknowledge the reception from those who are in the room with him.

Granted, Trump has looked like a beached whale for years now, but he looks even heavier in this latest video, and he almost seems to be in a daze as he walks though the frame and mumbles to the supporters.

The video set off plenty of chatter on social media.