;)
The Conversation -- May 20, 2024
New York Times reporters are liveblogging developments in the Manhattan D.A.'s criminal case against Donald Trump: ~~~
Jonah Bromwich: "Justice Merchan says that it's become apparent that closings will not take place tomorrow. It;s looking more like evidence, testimony and all other business before closings will happen this week and closing arguments will take place next Tuesday.... Justice Merchan has made two minor rulings against the defense this morning, both of them fairly deep in the legal weeds. But both times, the defense lawyers have pushed back.... Merchan ... looks as if he is working to keep his patience....
"Justice Merchan has made several other things clear as the pre-jury proceedings continue. As expected, he will restrict the testimony of a witness who is an expert in election law, who the defense had wanted to call. He says that too much explanation of the law from an expert would overstep the role usually granted to such witnesses. They are meant to help jurors understand a certain subject area, but it is the judge's role to help jurors understand the law itself."
Maggie Haberman: "Trump has entered the courtroom with an enormous entourage, so large that it's a bit disruptive in the courtroom. It includes Kash Patel, a close ally, and Gerry Kassar, a conservative party leader in New York, as well as Bernie Kerik..., the former N.Y.P.D. commissioner who was imprisoned for tax fraud and false statements, and whom Trump pardoned as president...., and Alan Dershowitz.... Part of his entourage today is Chuck Zito, the former president of the New York chapter of the Hell's Angels.... If Trump's lawyers hope to convince the jury that Michael Cohen was a lone wolf who was freelancing, surrounding the defendant with people with their own legal challenges, past and present, seems like a curious choice."
Bromwich: "Michael Cohen is back on the stand...."
Haberman: "Todd Blanche, Trump's lawyer, begins by asking Michael Cohen how many reporters he's talked to about what happened last week. Cohen says he didn't speak to reporters about what happened last week."
Bromwich: "Todd Blanche is trying to muddy the timeline of the hush money payment. On Friday, he called into question Michael Cohen's story about the events of Oct. 24, 2016. Now he's moved on to casting doubt on Cohen's testimony about the two days that followed, Oct. 25 and 26th. Cohen wired the payment to Stormy Daniels's lawyer a day later, on Oct. 27.... He suggests that one of the L.L.C.s that Cohen said he created to help with the hush-money payment may actually have been formed to address an issue Cohen was having in the taxi industry....
"Todd Blanche broadens the scope, suggesting that Michael Cohen had said he was singlemindedly focused on the hush-money deal, including when he spoke to Trump that October. But Blanche suggests that Cohen would have reported back to Trump about other issues, too, including dealing with an extortion attempt against the candidate's younger daughter, Tiffany Trump."
Kate Christobek: "Cohen stands firm, saying in response: 'My recollection is that I was speaking to him about Stormy Daniels, because that was what he tasked me to take care of.'"
Haberman: "Michael Cohen is now testifying about a tech company, RedFinch, that was hired to rig online polls in Trump's favor. The company was owed $50,000. But Cohen ended up only paying them $20,000. Nonetheless, he still asked for a $50,000 reimbursement from the Trump Organization. Blanche bluntly asks if he lied, and Cohen acknowledges he did."
Bromwich: "Blanche hits the note he's been reaching toward, his voice rising. 'You stole from the Trump Organization, right?' he says, referring to Cohen having been repaid far more than what he was owed -- $100,000 in all, after the money was doubled for tax purposes. 'Yes, sir,' Cohen says."
Susanne Craig: "This is another big ding to Cohen's credibility. Jurors have heard he has lied to Congress, tax authorities and on the witness stand. Now they are learning he stole from the Trump Organization."
Bromwich: "Todd Blanche, predictably in this unpredictable cross, is blaming Allen Weisselberg, the former chief financial officer of the Trump Organization, for designing Michael Cohen's reimbursements for the hush-money payment. Cohen had said that Trump signed off on that design in a January 2017 meeting at Trump Tower. Blanche got very close to discussing that conversation itself -- testimony that could be key as the jurors decide the case -- but then moved on.... Todd Blanche has sought to illustrate several times this morning that Cohen did legal work for the Trump family in 2017. Right now he is addressing Melania Trump's agreement with Madame Tussauds, the wax museum. A wax figure of Melania Trump, the first lady, was unveiled at the museum the following year."
Haberman: "Again, Blanche is seeking to suggest that the invoices that said Cohen was being reimbursed for legal work were not actually false, because he did in fact do legal work for Trump.... Todd Blanche has drawn this cross-examination out, apparently as part of his overall goal of making the trial last as long as possible while simultaneously complaining that Trump has been kept from the campaign trail. The jurors look bored, and it's hard to see how that helps Blanche, despite what has been a strong outing today by him."
Haberman: "Trump and his entourage are back in the courtroom after a short break.... There are fewer of them here now than were here before. Before the break, many looked very bored at the back of the room, unable to use their phones."
Bromwich: "Todd Blanche is telling a story about greed, as he questions Michael Cohen.... Blanche asks Cohen if he has a financial interest in this case, and Cohen agrees he does. But when Blanche suggests that Trump being convicted would help Cohen, Cohen balks. Now he's explaining that he only thought it would benefit him because he talks about it on his podcasts and television appearances."
Haberman: "Todd Blanche concludes his cross-examination of Michael Cohen with something of a whimper. He seemed to be trying to remind jurors of the most dramatic moment from Thursday's session: that Cohen may have lied on the stand when he described a conversation on Trump's bodyguard's phone in which he said he briefed Trump about the payment to Stormy Daniels. There was 'no doubt in your mind' that that was the purpose of the call, Blanche asks. 'No doubt,' Cohen replies, meaning he stands by his testimony."
Bromwich: "Susan Hoffinger seems to enjoy responding to the defense during redirect, and acting more like a defense lawyer herself: arguing responsively, as a counterpuncher. She begins with the call on Oct. 24, 2016, that Todd Blanche has made much of, the one where Blanche suggested Cohen had lied about talking to Trump. Responding to Hoffinger, Cohen again says that he spoke to Trump that day, and told him that he had determined how he would pay Stormy Daniels.... From the clutter of cross-examination, we return to the relative simplicity of the prosecution's argument. Susan Hoffinger asks Michael Cohen about his 2018 statement that he was not reimbursed for the hush money by the Trump campaign. Cohen says it was misleading because he was paid by Trump himself....
"After a long sidebar, the judge is giving what's called a 'limiting instruction' about some of the testimony Michael Cohen has offered. The statement we're looking at is 'the payment in question does not constitute a campaign contribution.' Cohen, as was just noted, pleaded guilty federally for making an illegal campaign contribution. So it seems the defense asked the judge to specify that Cohen's guilty plea did not mean Trump himself committed a crime. Justice Merchan did so....
"Michael Cohen testifies that Trump approved his false 2018 statement about whether or not Cohen decided to pay Stormy Daniels of his own volition. As a bonus, Susan Hoffinger ... has Cohen confirm that one of Trump's lawyers at the time was aware of the statement and texted him to tell him that Trump was grateful for all he did.... [Emphasis added.]
"Michael Cohen has now suggested several times that he committed crimes in connection with the Stormy Daniels payoff. This is helpful for the prosecution, as they seek to prove to jurors that Trump caused the falsification of business records to conceal a second crime. That crime doesn't need to have been committed by Trump -- Cohen's crimes are equally applicable....
"'Are you actually on trial here in this case?' Hoffinger asks Cohen. 'No,' he says. Through her questions, Hoffinger makes an obvious point -- that the defense sought to make Cohen look like a criminal. But ultimately, the jurors aren't here to judge Cohen's criminality. They are here to judge Trump....
"Susan Hoffinger returns to what prosecutors say are crimes. She asks if the $420,000 that Michael Cohen received in 2017 -- the reimbursement for the hush money, additional money to cover taxes, a reimbursement for the payment to the tech company, RedFinch, and a bonus -- had anything to do with legal services. No, he says. Hoffinger again emphasizes that the financial documents connected to the payments were false, because they said the payments were in exchange for legal services. Cohen agrees that they were false."
Haberman: "Michael Cohen is now explaining why he didn't sign a retainer agreement or agree to pay Robert Costello. 'I didn't trust him,' he says, explaining that he thought everything he said to Costello would immediately make its way back to Trump.
[Sidebar drama up next, as the reporters relay in several entries that follow.]
Bromwich: "The prosecutors have found pictures of Trump with his bodyguard Keith Schiller on Oct. 24, 2016, right around 7:57 pm. The defense had sought to suggest that Michael Cohen had talked to Schiller that night instead of Trump, as Cohen originally testified. Now, the prosecutors will fight to get this piece of evidence in, which shows that Cohen could have talked to both Schiller and Trump on the call, as he testified he did earlier today.... The jurors are excused for an early lunch.... This evidence would go some way toward defanging an argument that Todd Blanche spent a lot of time on: He suggested that Michael Cohen had lied about speaking to Trump on Oct. 24. So it's no wonder Blanche was fighting as hard as he could to keep this piece of evidence out.... 'I think it's relevant,' Justice Merchan says, but he does not decide whether he will allow the evidence in. He says he wants to research another legal issue the defense raised, a hearsay issue, during the lunch break.... The prosecution has argued that the evidence in question, a still from a video of Trump and his bodyguard, Keith Schiller, is not hearsay because an earlier expert witness laid the foundation for it to be shown to jurors."
Bromwich: "Earlier today, outside the courtroom, Trump told television cameras that 'we paid a legal expense,' arguing, as his defense lawyer has, that Michael Cohen was paid for legitimate legal purposes. With his use of the word 'we,' Trump assigns himself responsibility for the way the payment was categorized, before correcting himself and blaming a bookkeeper. It's not clear if it will matter, but it's a notable comment from the defendant nonetheless."
Bromwich: "Justice Merchan returns from lunch with a ruling on the evidentiary issue raised before the break, involving stills from a video that show Trump with his bodyguard Keith Schiller on the evening of Oct. 24, 2016.... Merchan says he will not allow in video stills that show Schiller with Trump.... Those stills could have undermined an argument that the defense was clearly proud of, and that was a momentum-changer on Thursday, seeming to give Trump's lawyers an extra boost of confidence.... But wait -- Joshua Steinglass, a prosecutor, says the prosecution will seek to bring back a witness who works at C-SPAN and testified earlier, so that he can verify the veracity of those stills. The judge asks when the witness ... could return, and the prosecutors say they don't know yet. It sounds as if they just sought to get in touch with him during the lunch break....
"Joshua Steinglass, a prosecutor..., say[s] he doesn't understand why they have to jump through so many hoops just to show that Keith Schiller and Trump were together that night. He asks to bring the C-SPAN witness in again. Justice Merchan asks Todd Blanche, a defense lawyer, if he objects to the prosecutors bringing in the C-SPAN witness after the defense rests later today. Blanche does protest....
"Todd Blanche concludes his argument about bringing back the witness by saying: 'That's not the way a trial is supposed to work, judge.' Justice Merchan looked grimly amused -- judges, of course, are the people who determine how individual trials work. Merchan asks the prosecutors to try to contact the witness again, and we pause....
"We are back and the prosecutors confirm that they were able to reach C-SPAN, which is booking travel right now for the witness -- Robert Browning, who is executive director of archives at the network -- to be present at 9:30 tomorrow morning.... Todd Blanche objects to the decision by the judge that could compromise one of the most important parts of his cross-examination of Michael Cohen. Joshua Steinglass, almost mocking Blanche to his face, says that the witness will be very quick. Justice Merchan points out that the trial has already been delayed, given that closing statements will be next week anyway. He gives Blanche the option to decide when the witness can appear. Blanche asks to talk to his team and his client....
"Joshua Steinglass ... says that 'we may be able to short circuit' this process after all. Instead, the prosecution and the defense will agree to allow the exhibit in. This is the second time this trial that we have seen the defense, under pressure, agree to let in an exhibit, possibly because they realize that a whole witness appearing just to allow the exhibit in could draw more attention to it.... The photo of Keith Schiller and Trump on Oct. 24, 2016, which is what the lawyers were arguing about, is immediately entered into evidence.
"Prosecutors are playing a recording we've already heard, of Michael Cohen talking to Keith Davidson, who was Stormy Daniels's lawyer, in October 2017. But we are hearing more of it than we did before. It's fascinating to hear again, after so much of Cohen's testimony has passed. It corroborates much of what he has told the jury about the hush-money payment, including that he cared about Trump and that he would not 'play pennywise, pound foolish' with his then-boss.... At the same time, it had elements of the defense's argument too, showing that Cohen mulled 'going completely rogue' and also that he was focused on money."
Haberman: "... Hoffinger's redirect of Cohen is done.... Todd Blanche, the defense lawyer, is questioning Michael Cohen again, and he is drilling down on Cohen's guilty pleas to crimes that were unrelated to Trump. Cohen is saying he lost his law license as a result, and that he blames Trump in part for that."
Bromwich: "Todd Blanche, having to contend with visual evidence of Trump with his bodyguard, Keith Schiller, on Oct. 24, 2016, tries to address it directly. He asks Cohen to again confirm that he told Trump that day that he had arranged to pay Stormy Daniels the hush money. Cohen says once more that he spoke to both Schiller and Trump that evening, answering with a brisk 'Yes, sir.'...
"Todd Blanche suggests that the famously frugal Trump would have been unlikely to overpay anyone -- again harping on the disparity between the $130,000 that Michael Cohen paid Stormy Daniels and the $420,000 that Cohen was repaid. 'Did he happily write checks to lawyers, for example?' Trump's current lawyer asks his former lawyer. 'No, sir,' Cohen responds....
"'Your honor, the people rest,' Joshua Steinglass says. The prosecution's case against Donald Trump has concluded."
Haberman: "The defense calls its first witness: Daniel Sitko, the paralegal who often trails the defense team out the door each day.... He works for Todd Blanche."
Bromwich: "The exhibit that the first defense witness, Sitko, is presenting, makes it clear that Cohen and Robert Costello, the lawyer who once advised Cohen and will likely attack his credibility if called to testify, were in frequent communication. We're looking at the records of 75 calls between them, most if not all of them in 2018.... Becky Mangold, who handled the prosecution's custodial witnesses and is now handling the defense's custodial witness, stands up to question him. She starts by asking him basic questions about the phone records he used to make the chart that jurors just saw, which displayed the calls between Michael Cohen and Robert Costello."
Haberman: "The defense calls Robert Costello, and prosecutors immediately ask to approach.... Prosecutors are objecting to the scope of the questions the defense lawyers want to ask him about Michael Cohen's credibility.... Justice Merchan also sounds frustrated that this wasn't worked out before, which falls on the defense, not the prosecutors."
Bromwich: "... the judge is being asked to rule on the spot whether and how Costello can testify.... Justice Merchan returns and tells Emil Bove, the defense lawyer, that he will give him some latitude to explore the pressure campaign that Michael Cohen said Robert Costello waged during the summer of 2018. But Merchan adds: 'I'm not going to allow this to become a trial within the trial' of Michael Cohen.... Merchan says he will take five minutes to decide. 'Don't leave the courtroom,' he says, using a tone that is as close to a bark as I have heard from this judge."
Haberman: "Robert Costello describes Michael Cohen as 'absolutely manic' during their first meeting at the Loews Regency hotel on Park Avenue in 2018, after his hotel room and office were searched by the F.B.I."
Bromwich: "Costello testifies that Cohen told him then, with federal investigators breathing down his neck, that 'my life is shattered.' He asked Costello, 'What's my escape route?' Costello says, adding that he had told Cohen then that he could cooperate with the government.... 'I swear to God, Bob, I don't have anything on Donald Trump,' Costello recalls Cohen telling him."
Christobek: "Robert Costello shakes his head in apparent frustration on the witness stand as the judge sustains several objections by the prosecutors."
Bromwich: "Susan Hoffinger, the prosecutor, is objecting to many of Emil Bove's questions, often successfully. Robert Costello had been ignoring the judge's rulings, so Justice Merchan warned him directly to wait for a ruling before answering. It happens again, and when Merchan sustains an objection, Costello says 'jeez,' apparently meaning to question the judge's authority. 'I'm sorry?' the judge asks, glaring down at the suddenly reddened witness. Costello mumbles something in return and testimony resumes.... Merchan orders that the courtroom be cleared after scolding Costello.... Justice Merchan was lecturing Robert Costello. 'I want to discuss proper decorum in my courtroom,' he said. 'If you don't like my ruling, you dont say "jeez," and you don't say "strike it," because I'm the only one who can strike testimony in court.... The jurors are back, having missed the lecture...."
Haberman: "Costello does not like being challenged, and [prosecutor Susan] Hoffinger is getting under his skin quickly. 'The email speaks for itself,' he keeps saying when asked about an email exchange between his partner and Cohen."
Bromwich: "Robert Costello is nitpicking at Susan Hoffinger as she questions him, correcting her mild misstatements, such as describing him as a former chief of a criminal division rather than deputy chief. He also takes issue with her use of the term 'raid' when she refers to the F.B.I. executing a search warrant against Michael Cohen that year. And he just instructed her to talk into the microphone. There are five women on the jury.... Robert Costello's contradictions from moment to moment are fairly clear here. He just said he wasn't seeking Michael Cohen as a client. Now it's clear that his own son knew that landing Cohen was a big deal."
Haberman: "Costello ... was called by the defense to attack Cohen's credibility. So far he is attacking his own." [The judge dismisses the jurors for the day.]
Bromwich: "The defense lawyers will now move, as is typical, to dismiss the prosecution's case.... Merchan asks ... whether Blanche wants him to rip the case away from the jury and decide it himself. Blanche agrees that this is what the defense wants.... Merchan cuts Blanche off. 'You said that his lies were irrefutable but you think he's going to fool 12 New Yorkers into believing this lie?' he asks. As Blanche begins to respond, Merchan signals he is done with the defense for now and adds, 'I'd like to hear from the people.'... The judge says he will reserve his decision on whether to dismiss the case for tomorrow."
Ivana Kottasová & Madalena Araujo of CNN: "The International Criminal Court is seeking arrest warrants for Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the October 7 attacks on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza, the court's prosecutor Karim Khan told CNN's Christiane Amanpour in an ... interview on Monday. Khan said the ICC's prosecution team is also seeking warrants for Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as two other top Hamas leaders -- Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, the leader of the Al Qassem Brigades who is better known as Mohammed Deif, and Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas' political leader. The warrants against the Israeli politicians mark the first time the ICC has targeted the top leader of a close ally of the United States."
Megan Specia of the New York Times: "A London court ruled on Monday that Julian Assange, the embattled WikiLeaks founder, could appeal his extradition to the United States, a move that opens a new chapter in his prolonged fight against the order in Britain's courts. Two High Court judges said they would allow a full appeal to be heard because questions remained about his First Amendment rights in the United States and whether his status as an Australian citizen would be prejudicial. Mr. Assange's lawyers have until Friday to submit a full case outline to the court. Mr. Assange, 52, has been held in Belmarsh, one of Britain's highest-security prisons, in southeastern London since 2019 as his fight against the extradition order has proceeded through the courts.""
~~~~~~~~~~
Holly Bailey & Cleve Wootson of the Washington Post: "President Biden delivered a commencement address devoid of major interruptions or protests at Morehouse College on Sunday, using the platform to reach out to the Black voters at a time when their enthusiasm for him has waned in recent polls.... As many as six students could be seen seated with their backs to Biden at one point, fists raised in the air. At least one faculty member appeared to be doing the same thing. Biden recognized the protests and said he respected them. 'Let me be clear: I support peaceful nonviolent protest. Your voices should be heard and I promise I hear them,' he said.... [Biden] touted historic investments in historically Black colleges and universities like Morehouse and highlighted the diversity he has put in place at the highest levels of government. He said he was drawn into politics by the example of Martin Luther King Jr., a Morehouse graduate whose bust sits in the Oval Office. Biden also sought to contrast himself with Donald Trump..., saying Trump and other Republicans would dismantle the progress Black Americans have made in the past three years." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ The story has been updated. New Lede: "President Biden pitched himself as a leader who is 'breaking down doors' for Black Americans during a closely watched commencement speech on Sunday at Morehouse College and an evening speech in Detroit to try to make inroads with a constituency that has drifted away from him in recent polls.... He focused his speeches on what he sees as his record of improving the lives of Black Americans, stressing that the strides would stop if Donald Trump were elected, a theme he returned to throughout the day. Sunday capped several days when Biden made an effort to draw on Black institutions and pivotal moments in Black history to contextualize the role his administration has played in the fight for racial equity." ~~~
~~~ Victoria Bekiempis of the Guardian & Agencies: "Despite a backlash from some students and alumni in the weeks leading up to [President] Biden's commencement address, including over the Hamas-Israel war and concerns that Biden would use the speech as a campaign event, the president's address to the all-male school was warmly received. He used his speech to reaffirm his commitment to democracy in the wake of the January 6 insurrection, and to reiterate his call for a ceasefire in Gaza."
Saving Michael Cohen. Stephen Collinson of CNN: "The biggest questions as Donald Trump's first criminal trial resumes Monday are whether his attorneys have destroyed the credibility of star witness Michael Cohen -- and how much of the damage prosecutors can fix. The presumptive GOP presidential nominee is due back in court amid clear signs the hush money trial is drawing toward a close -- unless he takes the risky decision to testify in his own defense, a step that would lengthen and complicate the proceedings."
David McAfee of the Raw Story: "The judge overseeing Donald Trump's criminal case over classified document retention is catching some heat for her latest court filing. Earlier on Sunday, Judge Aileen Cannon issued a ruling in which she stated she was 'disappointed' in the conduct of Special Counsel Jack Smith, who brought the case against Trump. The filing itself is an order directing the public docketing of 'outstanding undocketed pre-trial motions.'... Former federal prosecutor Joyce Vance said the judge 'has repeatedly criticized, federal prosecutors, while giving Trump's lawyers a pass for things like misleading the court about a conflict in dates with another court, despite moving to reschedule the date in the other court.'" Commentator Allison Gill called Cannon's editorializing "fucking ridiculous."
Mark Berman of the Washington Post: "The federal judge who sentenced the man convicted of violently attacking Nancy Pelosi's husband said Saturday that she would reopen the sentencing portion of the case later this month, acknowledging that she had not properly given him a chance to speak in court.... In a motion filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, prosecutors said DePape should have been given an opportunity to allocute ... before being sentenced.... U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley, who sentenced DePape on Friday, wrote in an order that no one had informed her during sentencing that she had not directly addressed DePape to give him a chance to speak. Corley, who was nominated to the bench in 2022 by President Biden, wrote that 'it was the Court's responsibility to personally ask' DePape whether he wanted to speak. 'As the Court did not do so, it committed clear error.'" (Also linked yesterday.)
Jennifer Weiner, in a New York Times op-ed, sees a faint glimmer of hope in the latest blame-the-wife defenses: "... even as these stories feature men cheerfully tossing the women they pledged to love and to cherish under the bus, they also position those women as their own people with their own independent agency.... When a Supreme Court justice [-- Sam Alito --] blames his wife, he is also acknowledging that his wife has the ability to act on her own ideas.... When a male politician [--Sen. Bob Menendez --] blames his wife for soliciting bribes and hiding their fruits from him, he's telling us -- however self-servingly -- that she was smart enough to pull the wool over his eyes[.]... It's worth considering their predecessors, who were not blamed for things they did, or might have done, but instead shamed for things that were done to them.... Better, perhaps, to be the wife whose husband says, 'I did not hang that flag upside down' ... thereby making you the focus of the nation's blame -- than one whose husband says, 'I did not have sexual relations with that woman' and leaves you the object of its ridicule."
Presidential Race
Victoria Bekiempis of the Guardian & Agencies: "Donald Trump flirted with the idea of being president for three terms -- a clear violation of the US constitution -- during a bombastic speech for the National Rifle Association.... 'You know, FDR 16 years '' almost 16 years -- he was four terms. I don't know, are we going to be considered three-term? Or two-term?' The ex-president and GOP presidential frontrunner said to the organization's annual convention in Dallas, prompting some in the crowd to yell 'three!' Politico reported." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I consider this less of a real threat than of further evidence of Trump's disqualification to hold any elective office because of his lack of respect for U.S. laws or for traditions of governance. The irresponsibility of proposing a grotesque violation of the Constitution to a roomful of know-nothing radicals is unmatched by any recent major-party candidate for president.
~~~~~~~~~~
Iran. Farnaz Fassihi of the New York Times: "President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran was killed along with the country's foreign minister in a helicopter crash on Sunday in the country's mountainous northwest, state news media reported on Monday, leaving the country without two of its most influential figures at a time of heightened foreign tensions and domestic discontent. The death of Mr. Raisi, a conservative who violently crushed dissent and was widely viewed as a possible successor to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, comes during a particularly tumultuous period for Iran. During Mr. Raisi's tenure the country had been roiled by protests and economic upheaval and engaged in a long shadow war with Israel, which burst into the open in an exchange of direct strikes last month." This is the pinned item in a liveblog.
Israel/Palestine, et al.
CNN's live updates of developments Monday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "Israeli war cabinet divisions broke into the open over the weekend when member Benny Gantz demanded the cabinet lay out a plan for the war against Hamas by June 8, threatening to otherwise withdraw from the government. US President Joe Biden said he called for an 'immediate ceasefire' in Gaza while delivering a commencement address Sunday at Morehouse College in Atlanta. Biden spoke at the graduation ceremony as pro-Palestinian protests continue to roil US college campuses."
Aileen Graef & Avery Lotz of CNN: "House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik delivered remarks at the Israeli Knesset Sunday, saying victory for Israel in the war against Hamas starts with 'wiping' those responsible for the October 7 terrorist attacks 'off the face of the Earth' and calling for a return to ... Donald Trump's policies.... 'There can be no retrievable dignity for Hamas and its backers,' she said in her speech in which she called herself a 'leading proponent and partner' to Trump and sharply criticized the Biden administration.... Her speech makes her the highest-ranking House Republican to address the Israeli governing body since the October 7 attacks, according to the GOP conference.... In a rare instance of a member of Congress publicly criticizing the American president to a foreign government, Stefanik went after Biden, saying there is 'no excuse' for his administration blocking military aid to Israel." The CBS News report is here. See Akhilleus' commentary in today's thread. (Also linked yesterday.)
New York Cops Are Still New York Cops. Chelsia Marcius & Jay Root of the New York Times: "Violent confrontations at a pro-Palestinian rally in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, on Saturday reflected what some local officials and protest organizers called an unexpectedly aggressive Police Department response, with officers flooding the neighborhood and using force against protesters. At the rally, which drew hundreds of demonstrators, at least two officers wearing the white shirts of commanders were filmed punching three protesters who were prone in the middle of a crosswalk."
News Lede
New York Times: "Ivan F. Boesky, the brash financier who came to symbolize Wall Street greed as a central figure of the 1980s insider trading scandals, and who went to prison for his misdeeds, died on Monday at his home in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego. He was 87." Thanks to Akhilleus for the lead.
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Reader Comments (21)
As Marie points out, Trump’s suggestion that he should get three terms as President*, because he’s as great as FDR, is indeed grotesque. But this dangerous maniac doesn’t stop at demanding yet another override of the Constitution for his personal benefit (as far as the MAGAts are concerned, the Constitution, with the exceptions of First Amendment rights only for them, and guns for everyone, is optional).
No.
As is his wont, it wouldn’t be a Trump speech without a little gratuitous Grand Guignol. In this case, a rousing reminder, to slavering gun knobbers, of all people, that the President of the United States, Joe Biden, needs to be killed.
Yup. Some bullshit about Biden getting favors and money from Russia (projection alert!) which makes him a Manchurian Candidate in need of execution.
Now, Trump Television (Fox), if they ever mentioned this astounding call to murderous action at a convention of gun nuts for whom gun violence in the service of extreme right-wing ideology barely registers as maybe not the best idea, would likely let him off the hook by snickering that it was just a joke, Trump kidding around. But the cheers that accompany such astonishing statements point to the very obvious conclusion that the NRA nuts didn’t get the joke.
It’s bad enough to encourage drooling MAGAts at his fascist wingdings to punch out protesters. It’s quite another thing to push the murder of a sitting president as something not just reasonable, but necessary.
“Unfit” doesn’t come close to how bad this fuckimg lunatic is. But yeah. Let’s give him two or three more terms in office.
I really think the Donald should get three terms. Three life terms
in solitary, no windows, no gold leaf, only what other felons get.
He's probably going to declare a mistrial, since "a jury of your peers"
can't apply to him. He believes he has no peers.
No one is smarter, kinder, more personable than him (in his warped
little brain).
This Alito guy really gets my goat, so much. so that I woke early this AM thinking about him and the serial inanities he has the empty headed arrogance to say aloud.
This morning's thought paralleled Ms. Weiner's above, but I would have phrased it differently. For the Alito's of the world, women are no more than a convenience; they are worth nothing by themselves, but wholly defined by the duties they owe to and perform for their mates.
I do see an irony in Alito blaming his wife for her seeming independence that might have damaged his reputation but there is no contradiction in that irony. For men like Thomas and Alito, their wives are their stalking horses, only superficially and maybe legally independent entities, but in reality handy public spigots for their own offensive and treasonous beliefs.
But neither is "man" enough to take credit for them. Tough guys hiding behind skirts.
Ken,
Thinking more about Alito, I’m wondering about that whole concept of judicial temperament. Did he ever have that? Because it’s nowhere to be seen these days. You can’t find it in Thomas either, or Kavanaugh, both of whom spent their confirmation hearings whining and crying. The combined sense of victimhood with the urge for revenge is astounding in all three. Even with Gorsuch, who wants to destroy the system that he believes wronged his mother.
This is judicial temperament?
Loose Cannon also seems to have the same god awful combination of “they’re out to get me” victimhood with “I’ll show these fuckers” arrogance. She shits on Jack Smith because he demands competence and non-partisan behavior in application of the law? Oh, well pardon us all to hell, Aileen. How terrible for you. Go git ‘em.
As far as Alito’s tale of neighborhood woe, I don’t for an instant believe someone shouted the C word at his wife. Did someone put up a “Fuck Trump” sign in their yard, which is, like, their first amendment right? I dunno. Maybe. A smart person, I guess. But guess what, Sammy? He gets to do that.
That C word story was manufactured to puff up his victimhood and provide—he believes—more than adequate reason to show his ass by flying the flag of treason. Seriously, if your goal in life is to “show those fuckers”, to “own the libs”, by being a dickhead, then step down from the court, exchange that black robe for the red MAGA hat you wear to bed every night and have at it.
There’s a telling moment in the film “Spartacus”, in which the title character, working as a slave, bridles at the vicious treatment doled out to a fellow slave. He strains at his chains to get at the guard who beat his friend, but then holds back. A supervising guard sees this and notes, somewhat admiringly “Interesting. You have the spirit to fight back, but the brains not to.”
Alito and Thomas are not slaves. They’re not in chains, working in a Roman salt mine. They live lives of gold plated luxury, cosseted by billionaires who curry favor with them for beneficial rulings. They have lifetime appointments and no worries about consequences for their criminal and astoundingly unethical behavior. But they lack the brains and the discipline needed to behave judiciously.
You want to see judicial temperament?
Judge Merchan, in New York. Alito’s and Thomas’s ideological soulmates attack him and his family and the rule of law every day. Does he say “I’ll show those fuckers”? Does he run home and plant a “Fuck Trump” sign on his lawn to “own the traitors”?
No. Why?
Unlike them, he’s a real judge.
One other thing about the Orange Monster’s referring to Joe Biden as the Manchurian Candidate.
In the story, “The Manchurian Candidate”, Raymond Shaw, is sent by Russian and Chinese handlers to cause chaos in America. To upend democratic institutions, sow distrust in the electoral process, to destroy democracy and replace it with violent authoritarianism.
He’s right. We do have a Manchurian Candidate. His name is Donald Trump. And Raymond Shaw, in the story, is given a medal he didn’t earn and didn’t deserve. Just like Trump, who was thrilled to be given a Purple Heart by a veteran who did earn it. If you recall, Cadet Bone Spurs chuckled that he always wanted one of those but didn’t want to have to do what was required to deserve it.
No shit. Better to get on with destroying democracy, just as your Russian handlers hoped you would. The real Manchurian Candidate.
Gee, why's everybody pickin' on Sammy?
Here's one reason why, from WaPo Ruth Marcus:
"Last year, appellate lawyer Adam Unikowsky examined a decade of ideologically charged cases in which the justices were divided on standing, the legal doctrine about when a party can sue. Alito was an outlier among the justices. There were zero cases in which he found that a conservative litigant lacked standing and zero cases in which he found that a liberal plaintiff had the ability to sue."
This guy is either totally obtuse, or a fanatical believer in the righteousness of ... something. Or both.
So...Fatty's defense team is calling an "expert" on election law? Who? Sidney Powell? Or maybe her friend who listens to the wind? John Eastman? Runny Hair Dye Man? Oh...Maybe Lara Trump.
And what's election law got to do with anything? Are they going to argue that election interference is okay if Trump does it? It's not the defense's job to lecture the jury on what the law says, that's the judge's purview. I'm guessing Fatty's mouthpieces want to try to sneak something by and mess with jurors' thinking before they deliberate. With Trump there's always some sneaky business, always a scam. And all they need is for one juror to think twice about things.
In any event, there's little chance we'll see Brave Sir Donald take the stand. He's still whining to reporters that he can't testify in his own defense because Gag Order! Unfair! Never seen anything like it before! WAAAAAAHHHH.
Trump's lawyers can't afford to put Fatty up there because he'll lie. Or start ranting. Let's just get on with it.
ProPublica
"Toxic Gaslighting: How 3M Executives Convinced a Scientist the Forever Chemicals She Found in Human Blood Were Safe
Decades ago, Kris Hansen showed 3M that its PFAS chemicals were in people’s bodies. Her bosses halted her work. As the EPA now forces the removal of the chemicals from drinking water, she wrestles with the secrets that 3M kept from her and the world."
It's time someone replies that someone should shoot Mango Monster. After all, it is that fantasy that inspires millions of us every day. If the hamberder diet doesn't do its work, where's the lunatic left-winger with a gun? Answer: nowhere, because we aren't members of the ultralunatic and utterly inconsequential NRA. Is the MSM reporting these grisly, barely covered wishes by the worst president ever? I don't know, since I don't read WaPo or the NYT anymore.
There's a story out today about the exits of OB/GYNs and other obstetric physicians from northern Idaho. I knew it was a bright red state, but I didn't know how neon red it is with regard to abortion rights. (There are none--death penalties for anyone knowing of, helping, having or doing one). Docs are leaving in droves. I guess it becomes the first state with zero redeeming value, if you count its white supremacy and anti-government residents AND the danger for women who unfortunately get pregnant. The victims are people with no wherewithall to leave. I don't even want to fly over it.
Will Bunch
"Scared about America losing democracy? Texas is already gone
Abbott’s chilling pardon sent an even bigger, and more alarming message. In this sprawling state of just over 30 million people, supposedly First Amendment-protected protests for causes like Black civil rights or against the slaughter of civilians in Gaza can, and probably will, expose you to arrest or state violence, risk your schooling or your job, or — when all else fails — leave you in danger of deadly vigilante justice. Abbott’s pardon was the last bootheel on Texans’ right to dissent.
Let’s be clear: When top lawmakers and the federal judiciary abandon any notion of checks and balances to support the criminal boss of their political movement, the United States is acting like the most buffoonish banana republic you could imagine. But the rot of billionaire kleptocracy runs much deeper than its purchase of the major branches of the federal government.
Everything that’s happening in Abbott’s Texas — the relentless war against liberalism and education itself, the influence of a corporate oligarchy, the surge of Christian nationalism, the war on feminism that features its strict abortion ban, and its own state military and militarized cops now deployed against its own people — is textbook fascism. The crackdown on dissent is the flame that keeps this downward spiral going. Knowing that attending a protest can expose you to legalized vigilante murder is just pouring more Texas crude on the fire."
"Justice Alito sold Bud Light stock amidst anti-trans boycott effort"
Deflate this debate…
As usual…(*sigh*) the Orange Monster, barely hours after agreeing to two debates, sought to inject a huge helping of his particular brand of chaos into the mix by declaring that there would be a “debate” on Fox, moderated by Fox co-conspirators of his choosing.
I say co-conspirators because no debate on Fox (aka Trump TV) would be free of the taint of the vast conspiracy that propaganda arm of the Trump administration engaged in for years, and which forced them to cough up almost $800 billion rather than see more of its secret connivances to destroy democratic norms exposed to the public.
There is no possible universe in which Fox should be allowed to produce a debate. None. They lied for years—and admitted as much—in order to support Trump’s attempted government overthrow. They still continue their efforts to tarnish Biden while sanctifying Fatty and normalizing his fascist, violent, white Christian nationalist extremism.
Their considerable role as a cheerleader of disaster and a facilitator of the organized dismemberment of democracy permanently eviscerates any claim they have to legitimacy either as a news organization (as opposed to full time propagandists) or a fair and unbiased proprietor of their fetid frequencies of the public airwaves.
A presidential debate on Fox would be like a geography class taught by a flat earther, a driving school operated by a perennial drunk driver, a class in legal ethics taught by Sam Alito, or a business school run by Donald Trump. Choose your own oxymorons, accent on morons.
Once again, you need to speak MAGAlish to understand what they are saying:
From above, NRA convocation -
"... are we going to be considered three-term? Or two-term?' The ex-president and GOP presidential frontrunner said to the organization’s annual convention in Dallas, prompting some in the crowd to yell 'three!' ..."
Term 1: 2017-2021
Term 2: 2021-2025 (stollen, but he was never de-sworn, so ... still the boss!!)
Term 3: 2025 - life (God help us all!)
It got confusing in the article because the writer referred to DiJiT as the "ex-President", a title which is not allowed at the beach hut. His peeps refer to him as "the President."
@Akhilleus: Biden already said no to a Fox "debate."
I think you mentioned last week that Trump is looking for excuses to wriggle out of the ABC News & CNN debates. So far we have nailed down
(1) Biden refuses to debate on Fox.
(2) Biden refuses to be tested for cocaine.
Oh, there will be more.
@Patrick: Upon reflection, I see that you're right about your interpretation of that bit of Trumpspeak. Be careful; you don't want to be known as the expert Trump translator.
BTW, I fully endorse your remarks last week on re-embracing the American flag and flying it without apology. It belongs to all of us; more to some than to the "America, love it or leave it" crowd.
Mr. Costello ("Bob") testified this afternoon as a defense witness that Michael Cohen told him in 2018, after Costello suggested MC could cooperate with the gummint:
"... 'I swear to God, Bob, I don’t have anything on Donald Trump,' Costello recalls Cohen telling him.”
Prior testimony had established that Mr. Costello was Mr. Cohen's backchannel to DiJiT. So, Cohen was talking to DiJiT through Costello's ears.
So it is logical to conclude that Mr. Cohen is telling DiJiT, through Mr. Costello, that he Cohen can't roll over on DiJiT because he doesn't have the goods, even if he wanted to. (Even though you bet he had the goods.) It was probably a cry for help to his (still powerful) jefe, and an assurance that he Cohen was unable to be a threat, so give a guy a hand?
But the defense of course characterizes the statement as a straightforward declaration of fact: I Cohen have nothing on him DiJiT. This within a few breaths of demonizing Cohen as an inveterate liar, sneak, thief and manipulator, In this case, per the defense, it's just clear English, "Cohen got nada." You will see this come back in defense's closing summary.
The businessman lighting more money on fire.
"Trump’s Social Media Company Posts Q1 Revenue of $770,500 and Net Loss of $327.6 Million"
Marie,
Yes. Biden did say no to this furshlugginer Fox debate thingie. My point was more to counteract the MSM weepy bullshit about how horrible it is that poor Donald has to accede to debates on non-MAGA outlets but Biden refuses to go to a debate sponsored by Fox, a bandit hideout for traitors and liars.
The Both-Sidesism that dominates American media constantly denigrates a real President working for all Americans and gives every benefit of the doubt to a scumbag criminal.
Ivan Boesky kicks the bucket?
Greed is dead.
Well, not all greedy pricks. Trump is still darkening someone’s linens, but at least one cheating capitalist cocksucker assholetrageur is gone.
Buh-bye, Ivan. As he once said (sort of), “You can be greedy and still be dead.”
Is there insider trading in hell? Guess he’ll find out.
Omigod, what?? Biden won't do a "debate" (consisting of Biden talking policy and current stuff happening, and Mango Craptastic whining about everything, huffing and rolling his eyes, and never even mentioning policy or current events) on Faux. Glad he said that. A typical Dem move would be acquiescing to any and all debates regardless of the sponsors or monitors or subject matter, just to be, well, a nice, DECENT guy...
Thanks for all the typing involved in keeping us abreast of the latest outrages expressed by Crapfoot's lawyers. I have given up listening to it all day on MSNBC. Every once in a while they throw in a repugnican who might be "moderate" for his viewpoint. Thanks, but we don't need their lying phrases.
Also I am infuriated by all the people on the right who insist on discussing Blurpface as "President Trump." I could really chew nails every time I hear a clip.
The other outrage is the squads of dumbies appearing at the court and marching around in fcking red ties and electric blue suits. I can only conclude that they are all liars and this is the liars' uniform. Do those nitwits tie their ties to their little mushrooms like their idol? (Yes, I am sorry about the visual this causes...)