Tag: Capitol Insurrection

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Donald Trump Sedition

An Obscure 19th Century Federal Law Could Finally Rid Us Of Donald Trump

Since January 6, it’s been clear that the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol and staged an insurrection were operating at the urging of former President Donald Trump, and it now appears that he can be charged in a way that would keep him from ever serving in public office again.

Harvard Law Professor Laurence Tribe was a guest on MSNBC, and he was asked by host Alex Witt:

“So, Laurence, the DOJ has actually named Trump, they’ve cited his false claims about the election, this in a legal argument to try to keep an accused capitol rioter under monitoring. Does that connection create any legal jeopardy for him?”

Tribe responded:

“Well, it’s at least an indication that they’re beginning to connect the dots.

“That is, if it is the case as the Department of Justice has asserted in saying that somebody ought to be constantly monitored and not trusted to be completely at liberty, if they’re saying that part of what is fomenting violence even now is the claim by Trump and some of his followers that the election was stolen, and if that is fomenting violence now, then the claim that it was all stolen and that the mob should use force to prevent the transition of power to Joe Biden by interrupting the counting of the electoral votes on January 6th, all of that seems to be part and parcel of a violation of a very important federal criminal law that goes back to the civil rights, civil war era. That is, 18 U.S.C § 2383.”

That just so happens to be the section of federal law that covers rebellion or insurrection against the government. It reads:

“Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.”

According to Prof. Tribe:

“That law, I think, may well apply to Donald Trump.”

If it does, not only would Trump go to prison, he would also be ineligible for any public office for the rest of his miserable life.

Here’s Professor Tribe on MSNBC:

 

Categories
Crime Elections

Former Federal Prosecutor Predicts Trump Will Be Charged For Inciting The Capitol Insurrection

A few weeks ago, we learned that the Justice Department had formally charged four more members of the Oath Keepers for their role in the Capitol insurrection which took place on January 6, with CNN reporting:

“The Justice Department has added four new defendants to the federal criminal conspiracy case against Oath Keepers who allegedly prepared for and took part in the US Capitol riot, according to a new indictment made public in DC District Court on Sunday.”

There are also reports that 510 individuals have been charged for their connection to the Jan. 6 incident at the Capitol:

“The number of people charged in the insurrection is expected to keep growing as FBI agents pore through video footage, social media posts, phone location data, and tips from the public.”

However, these latest developments beg a much larger question: Will failed, one-term former President Donald Trump be charged for inciting the thousands of his supporters who stormed the Capitol?

Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner says he has no doubt that Trump will indeed be charged by the DOJ, telling SiriusXM host Dean Obeidallah that the new charges against the Oath Keepers are very revealing:

“The date for the insurrection was chosen by Donald Trump, they were incited to violence by Donald Trump and I think you have all of the building blocks you need for a charge of inciting insurrection against Donald Trump. And as to seditious conspiracy, you know they’re still building to that. A conspiracy is an agreement between two or more people to commit a crime and then one of the conspirators taking an act toward the commission of that crime called an overt act.”

Kirschner added that there is other evidence to suggest a conspiracy:

“This is more of what I would say is a call and response conspiracy; the leader said I want you to come to DC, it will be ‘wild.’ I want you to assemble, now that you’re here I’m going to lift you up here are my mouthpieces: Don, Jr, Mo Brooks, Giuliani, they’re going to tell you things like go down there and have trial by combat, fight for your vote because they’re in that building stealing it. Now I, as the inciter in chief, am telling you get down to the Capitol and stop what’s going on in that building.”

All of this, Kirschner concluded, will leave Attorney General Merrick Garland no choice but to allow for charges to be brought against Trump for his role in the insurrection which led to the deaths of five people, including a police officer:

“Do you think that guy (Garland) is going to let Donald Trump bring our democracy to an end, he’s going to let the Republicans in Congress end the American experiment?! No way.

“They are building to charges against Donald Trump, I can feel it in my bones.”

It’s hard to disagree with Kirschner’s logic. After all, the insurrection would never have taken place had it not been for what Trump and others said at the White House shortly before the storming of the Capitol began. To allow Trump to get away with such actions would be to invite future, more hideous and deadly events.

The American republic is too precious to allow the horror Trump and his minions have already spawned to go unpunished.

 

Categories
Donald Trump Elections Fox News Media in America Right Wing Morons

Maria Bartiromo Pitches A Fit As Her Jan. 6 Lies Come Back To Bite Her Squarely On The A*s

One thing you have to give to Fox News: No one hires more delusional crazies than Rupert Murdoch. From Tucker Carlson to Sean Hannity, the Fox hosts and “reporters” are all cut from the same batshit bonkers bolt of cloth.

One of the Fox conspiracy theorists who sometimes gets lost in the hoopla generated by the network’s primetime stars is Maria Bartiromo, who is normally seen on Fox Business but also has a show that runs on the main Fox network two each weekend.

Bartiromo was in rare form recently, inviting Moscow’s favorite senator, Ron Johnson (R-WI) to join her as they both suggested that the January 6 Capitol insurrection was non-violent because the rioters weren’t carrying guns, with the host telling Johnson:

“Armed insurrection is what Nancy Pelosi keeps calling Jan. 6, Senator. How many guns were actually taken up on that day since she says it was armed?”

Johnson was only too happy to extrapolate on what Bartiromo had just said, adding:

“They always talk about thousands of armed insurrectionists. I asked the FBI witness. Not one gun was recovered either in the Capitol or on the Capitol grounds, according to the FBI witness. So that’s just one of the latest big lies.”

Thing is, PolitiFact says Johnson and Bartiromo’s claims that none of the insurrectionists were armed is a blatant lie and earned the site’s “Pants On Fire Rating.” They noted:

“Police stopped only a fraction of the violent protestors Jan. 6, but we still know of guns and explosives seized in and around the Capitol. And we know rioters brought knives, brass knuckles a stun gun, and other weapons. Just as notable, video plainly shows the mob using all manner of makeshift weapons to attack police and force their way in, including hockey sticks, flagpoles, fire extinguishers, and a police shield stolen from an officer.”

All of this led to Bartiromo having an on-air meltdown as she acknowledged that she too has been criticized for things she says about the rioting that led to the deaths of five people, including a police officer. Bartiromo told her viewers:

“I am so incredibly proud of this team on Sunday Morning Futures and of working alongside you. We have been telling every story. We’ve been on the right side of it for seven years going. I’ve been trashed every day along the way.

“Keep trashing me! I’ll keep telling the truth.”

Actually, Maria, no one has to try and trash you. You’re doing a helluva fine job of trashing what’s left of your pathetic career.

Here’s the video:

 

Categories
Crime Donald Trump

A Question FBI Director Chris Wray Declined To Answer Today Could Mean Big Trouble For Trump

When he testified before the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, FBI Director Christopher Wray was asked in great detail about what transpired on January 6 when thousands of pro-Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, which left five people dead.

Specifically, Wray weighed in on the ongoing investigation of the Capitol insurrection, telling members of the committee:

“This is a very ongoing investigation and there’s a lot more to come. I would expect to see more charges — some of them maybe more serious charges.”

Wray added that he did indeed consider the Capitol riots to be an act of “domestic terrorism.”

But it was a question Wray refused to answer that led legal analysts to suggest that former President Donald Trump is indeed facing felony charges for his role in the insurrection.

Wray was asked if the FBI was also looking at charging Trump and others around him, along with members of Congress, for inciting the violence on Jan. 6.

Former FBI assistant director Frank Figliuzzi noted that what Wray didn’t say spoke volumes:

“We did hear a very good question that he was asked, which is, are you going to be looking at those people in and around the president — former president, maybe even sitting members of Congress, are you getting up to that big level?

“I’m trying to read the tea leaves. He said very, very carefully, ‘We have 500 pending cases, I have judges who would be very upset if I talked about the pending cases. It’s not appropriate to tell you whether or not we have such high-level cases.’ If I’m going to read the tea leaves, that sounds like the answer was, yes, we are looking at anybody and anything that looks like high-level playing.”

Trump’s speech shortly before the rioting started is what incited the riots. That means he’s partially responsible for what happened.

Trump is also part of a larger conspiracy which seems to involve others in the administration and Congress who helped set up the actions that took place that fateful day in Washington.

Anyone that played a role — no matter how small — in the Jan. 6 insurrection should be charged. That includes Trump, Donald Trump Jr., Rudy Giuliani, and Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL). If, as they all maintain, they did nothing wrong, then they have nothing to fear.

Let the chips fall where they may. Charge every last one of them and take them to trial. Justice demands it.

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Categories
Crime Domestic Terrorism Elections Justice Department Sedition

DOJ Issues New Criminal Conspiracy Charges Against Capitol Insurrectionists

The wait is over for some of the people who participated in the January 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol which resulted in the deaths of five people, including a member of the Capitol Police Force.

CNN reports that the U.S. Department of Justice has begun handing down more criminal conspiracy charges against members of the group known as the Oath Keepers:

“The Justice Department has added four new defendants to the federal criminal conspiracy case against Oath Keepers who allegedly prepared for and took part in the US Capitol riot, according to a new indictment made public in DC District Court on Sunday.

“The newly named Oath Keeper defendants are Joseph Hackett, who went by ‘Ahab,’ Jason Dolan, who went by ‘Turmoil,’ and William Isaacs, all from Florida. A fourth new defendant’s name and alleged actions are still redacted.”

All of the Oath Keeper defendants are accused of taking part in a criminal conspiracy and entering the restricted Capitol grounds:

 “Isaacs, for instance, allegedly yelled, ‘The fight’s not over’ once the Oath Keepers group had gotten inside the building, and he waved rioters down the hallway toward the Senate, according to the indictment.”

Additionally, five of the individuals already named as defendants are also facing charges of allegedly deleting their social media and cell phone activity, which could lead to them being convicted of obstruction of justice and other federal felonies.

The new court filings also lay out disturbing new details about how the Oath Keepers illegally attempted to smuggle weapons into Washington, D.C. for the Jan. 6 event:

“Department of Justice prosecutors were describing in court filings what else they’ve learned about the group’s so-called Quick Reaction Force, an effort to allegedly bring guns to a Northern Virginia Comfort Inn as backup for the siege.

“Previously, prosecutors had described how the Oath Keepers gathered and stashed weapons at the Comfort Inn, and how defendant Thomas Caldwell of Virginia allegedly had floated an idea of ferrying weapons across the Potomac River to assist with the Capitol siege.”

Before federal prosecutors are finished, many of the Oath Keeper defendants could well be facing charges that would put them in federal prison for the remained of their lives, a fitting punishment for anyone who dares to try and overthrow the elected representatives of the nation as they were going about their official duty of certifying the 2020 presidential election results.

Ironically, the Oath Keepers love to portray themselves as being devoted to the principle of defending the Constitution “against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” But they’re nothing more than terrorist punks who deserve to rot behind bars.