Category: Corruption

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Corruption Crime Donald Trump The Trump Adminstration

New Developments In The Case Against Rudy Suggest The DOJ Has Evidence Of Multiple Crimes

A little over two weeks ago, you probably recall, the FBI raided the home and office of Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, seizing his electronic devices and sending a clear message that the former New York City mayor is on the Justice Department’s radar screen in a major way.

There are reports federal prosecutors already have evidence that proves Giuliani illegally took money from foreign governments such as Russia and Ukraine. If they can prove that, Rudy is looking at spending a few years in federal prison, which at his age could conceivably be a death sentence.

Now, however, we know now that the DOJ is investigating Giuliani for other, more serious crimes which also trace back to his connections in Ukraine.

On Wednesday, The Daily Beast reported that the feds are taking a long look at a dossier Giuliani had cooked up in an attempt to smear Joe Biden during the height of the 2020 election:

“In late 2019 during the Trump-Ukraine scandal, The New Yorker, which obtained a copy of the dossier, described one of its allegations as a byzantine conspiracy theory in which the U.S.-backed creation of NABU— Ukraine’s anti-corruption prosecutors—in 2014 was somehow a scheme concocted by Ambassador Yovanovitch and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State George Kent to prevent Ukraine from investigating the Bidens. In another allegation described by the magazine, the dossier casts right wing boogeyman and liberal philanthropist George Soros as the orchestrator of Yovanovitch’s appointment as U.S. ambassador in Kyiv.”

The dossier, however, did manage to make its rounds inside the Trump administration, where it was discussed and debated, then dismissed as worthless:

“According to one former Trump White House official, those in the White House who examined the pages and interview notes in 2019 almost across-the-board dubbed the research “amateurish” and unhelpful, with Trump officials discussing amongst themselves how they believed it was unlikely that anyone, foreign or American, would agree to pay Giuliani to produce this—if only because of the utterly shoddy nature of the work.”

The fact that none of those White House advisers reported Giuliani’s bogus dossier to the FBI or other law enforcement agency also places them in significant legal jeopardy. And it’s safe to assume they’ll be glad to sell out Rudy to save their own hides. Provided, that is, Giuliani doesn’t feed them to prosecutors first.

What a nasty mess Rudy and his pals have gotten themselves into. Here’s hoping they all go to prison for a very long time.

 

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Corruption Crime Justice Department The Trump Adminstration WTF?!

Federal Judge Indicates Rod Rosenstein Is Going To Need A Good Criminal Attorney

U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson recently issued a scathing ruling in which she ordered the Justice Department to release a memo from the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel which helped support former Attorney General William Barr’s decision not to prosecute failed, one-term former President Donald Trump on charges of obstruction of justice, making it clear that she believed Barr had lied to maintain a narrative that the Mueller report cleared Trump, which it most certainly didn’t.

Judge Jackson wrote:

“The review of the document reveals that the Attorney General was not then engaged in making a decision about whether the President should be charged with obstruction of justice; the fact that he would not be prosecuted was a given.”

Barr had made up his mind prior to receiving the report from Special Counsel Robert Mueller: He would declare that Trump had been cleared by Mueller and urge the country to move on.

But it turns out Barr didn’t pull off his deception alone. Instead, he had lots of help from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.

Remember Rod Rosenstein? He’s the one who appointed Mueller after then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions had recused himself because he had a conflict of interest. Rosenstein was seen as a steady, reliable man who would do what was right, not what was politically expedient.

However, as attorney Dirk Schwenk points out in a fascinating Twitter thread, Judge Jackson also exposed Rosenstein as a co-conspirator who had better hope he has a good criminal attorney on retainer:

Be sure and read the above tweet very carefully. Rosenstein and Barr had the OLC memo drafted to help cover up a decision the AG made regarding the Mueller investigation: No matter what Mueller found, Trump would be protected at all costs. That was the prime objective.

Barr, Rosenstein, and the Office of Legal Counsel were all in on the fix from the beginning. They would declare Trump exonerated even if Mueller said otherwise. Mueller was used as a pawn in a larger criminal scheme to assure that Trump wasn’t found guilty.

Rosenstein set the cover-up in place; Barr took the ball and carried it over the goal line. The upper echelons of the DOJ were used to protect Trump instead of protecting the Constitution those same Justice Department officials had sworn to uphold.

Rod Rosenstein is a criminal. So is Barr. So are others at the DOJ who were part of the conspiracy. It’s time to charge them and try them in a court of law.

 

Categories
Corruption Crime Donald Trump Ivanka Trump Justice Department The Trump Adminstration

The Trump ‘Inner Circle’ Fears Ivanka’s Connections To Giuliani Mean She’s Next

Those close to the Trump family are nervous, and the move by the Justice Department last week when search warrants were served on former President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, reportedly have the Trump “inner circle” terrified that Ivanka, Don Jr., and even the former president are next to get a visit from the FBI.

News.com.au reports that there’s grave concern the DOJ is preparing to make more moves that could have serious repercussions for the Trump family:

“Trump insiders told CNN the raid was orchestrated to send a message to his inner circle, and it had worked, with a sense of fear ignited in those who believed they weren’t in the firing line.

“’This was a show of force that sent a strong message to a lot of people in Trump’s world that other things may be coming down the pipeline,’ one Trump adviser said.

“’I can’t for the life of me think why you would need to send seven FBI agents to go and collect a cellphone and laptop.'”

Also a source of worry is that if Guiliani is facing serious prison time, as former US attorney Preet Bharara has predicted, he will cooperate with federal investigators and tell what he knows about the former president and members of his family, all of whom are part of running the Trump Organization, which is suspected of having committed crimes such as insurance and tax fraud and is under investigation by multiple agencies in the state of New York, where the company is headquartered.

 

Another former Trump attorney, Michael Cohen, says it’s ironic that the tactics being used against the former New York City mayor (who was also U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York) are the very same ones Rudy used to go after the mafia:

“And it’s just ironic that the tactics that he created for that office are now going to be employed against him, in terms of making him plead guilty and, certainly, at the least, turning over information about Jared, Ivanka, about Don Jr., about Donald himself, about all of these individuals in that garbage can orbit of Donald Trump.”

Cohen added there’s probably much more evidence that has not yet been revealed by prosecutors but will come to light in due time:

“Who knows what Rudy was involved with. What we’re going to find out is, there are text messages, there are emails, there are different types of communication apps that the FBI knows how to re-establish, even if Rudy, who I don’t think is technological, tried to delete or what have you.”

The raid on Giuliani’s home and office is certain to have Donald Trump worried, according to Cohen:

“He cares about only himself. So, he doesn’t care that they raided Rudy’s home. He doesn’t care that they raided Rudy’s law office. What is it going to do to affect me, is all that he’s thinking right now. What did stupid Rudy do? What did stupid Rudy write? What sort of text messages or emails?

“What sort of stupid things was Rudy up to that’s now going to implicate me?”

The DOJ has indeed rattled the Trumps. And it’s safe to assume they have other moves they haven’t yet made that could be even more terrifying for the former president and his family.

Categories
Congress Corruption Crime Social Media

Photo Of Matt Gaetz Getting The Finger From A Young Girl Goes Viral After Re-Emerging

Things are not going well for Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who is facing being charged with child sexual trafficking and other crimes related to his alleged sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.

Gaetz, who has long been an ardent supporter of failed, one-term former President Donald Trump, is also being re-humiliated online by a viral tweet that was first posted earlier in April.

The photo was taken at Shoal River Middle School in Crestview, Florida, and it’s clearly a selfie that the congressman took with some of the students. But as you can see from a look at the picture, one girl wasn’t the least bit impressed by Matty:

Gaetz even shared the photo on his social media accounts. For example, on Facebook:

The photo went viral in early April and is now going viral for a second time. That’s what you call some major internet karma.

But perhaps the only thing half as good as the middle finger selfie are the comments that were lodged about the tweet:

https://twitter.com/GrandpaGrouse/status/1377942189041389573?s=20
https://twitter.com/howcrazy/status/1377989666058743810?s=20

Matt is in a world of hurt. One day he’ll wish the worst of his problems was being flipped off. Maybe he can take selfies in prison.

 

Categories
Corruption Crime GOP Justice Department

Here’s How Merrick Garland Is Becoming Every Republican’s Worst Nightmare

Though he’s only been on the job for a few months, Attorney General Merrick Garland has already made it clear that he plans to start dismantling some of the most disgusting tenets of the Trump administration and run the Department of Justice (DOJ) in strict adherence with the U.S. Constitution.

For example, the DOJ announced recently that it would be restoring the use of consent decrees for abuses committed by police departments across the country:

“In easing restrictions placed on the use of consent decrees, the Justice Department is making it easier for its prosecutors to use the tool to force changes at police departments and other government agencies with widespread abuse and misconduct.”

The DOJ under Garland is also going after longtime Trump stooge Roger Stone, who owes nearly $2 million in back taxes to the IRS. Justice filed suit against Stone demanding immediate repayment of the money he and his wife owe the government, which means that Stone can either comply or face imprisonment for failure to comply.

Those two moves alone are antithetical to everything Republicans have been pushing for the past four years with Trump as president: That police can abuse or kill anyone and get away scot-free and that friends of the Donald are immune to facing any consequences for their actions. Under Trump, the GOP ran roughshod over the rights of anyone who wasn’t on their side while coddling those who supported their neo-fascist agenda of hatred, scapegoating, and grift.

What does this tell us about what to expect from Merrick Garland and the DOJ in the months ahead? Well, consider what remains on the agenda:

  • The conclusion of an investigation into the January 6 Capitol insurrection, which could well result in criminal charges being filed against Donald Trump and his son, Don Jr., along with some Congressional Republicans such as Sens. Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley.
  • A second look at the Russia investigation and the release of the full, unredacted report from former Special Counsel Robert Mueller
  • Possible criminal charges against the Trump family, the Trump Organization, and others associated with the Trump corporation.
  • Charges being filed against Rudy Giuliani, Steve Bannon, and other close Trump associates who may have served in the administration, i.e. Stephen Miller.
  • Filing suit against states such as Georgia and Texas that have passed new voter suppression legislation.
  • A return to the rule of law without interference from the White House and in accord with the way things are supposed to be done.

Attention, Republicans: The days of lawlessness that existed for you under Trump are over with. Merrick Garland is going to flush some of you right down the crapper.