Trump lawyers appeal against DC trial partial gag order: Live
Donald Trump’s legal team was in federal court in Washington, DC on Monday for oral arguments concerning the partial gag order imposed on the former president in his federal election interference case.
Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled that Mr Trump cannot make “disparaging or “inflammatory” comments about people or entities involved in the case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith.
Mr Trump’s team argued that as he is running for president any restrictions on what he can say while he campaigns would violate his right to free speech.
A panel of judges didn’t appear to buy that argument, but an official ruling is yet to be made.
Meanwhile, the former president’s civil fraud trial in New York enters its eighth week. In that trial, Mr Trump’s attorneys won a pause on the gag order imposed on him there.
Over the weekend, Mr Trump visited the US-Mexico border in Texas, where Republican Governor Greg Abbott endorsed his 2024 White House run.
Mr Trump served food to members of the National Guard and others stationed at the border for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday before a rally of his supporters.
Key Points
Judges aren’t buying Trump’s gag order appeal
Trump celebrates far-right candidate Javier Milei’s win in Argentina
Donald and Melania Trump react to Rosalynn Carter’s death
DeSantis thinks both Trump and Biden are too old to run country
Colorado judge rules Trump can remain on 2024 primary ballot
Trump loses bid for mistrial in New York fraud case
Yesterday in court: Judges aren’t buying Trump’s gag order appeal
08:45 , Oliver O'Connell
A three-judge federal appeals court panel appears skeptical of arguments from Donald Trump’s legal team to overturn a gag order that blocks the former president from attacking witnesses and prosecutors in a criminal conspiracy case surrounding his attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
But the judges also appear likely to narrow the scope of the order, hoping to balance First Amendment protections and political speech against the wave of threats and harassment unleashed by Mr Trump and his supporters towards the prosecutors, judges, witnesses and prospective jurors involved with a growing list of litigation against him.
The gag order imposed by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan last month blocked Mr Trump from launching a “pretrial smear campaign” as he seeks the 2024 Republican nomination for president, the judge wrote.
That order was paused by the appeals court in Washington DC, which heard arguments in the case on Monday during a hearing that lasted nearly three hours. A ruling is not immediately expected.
Alex Woodward reports.
Judges aren’t buying Trump’s gag order appeal
Tim Ryan: Democrats must fix their ‘brand’ – and ditch Biden – to win in 2024
06:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Democrats saw a series of welcome victories across Ohio, Virginia, and Kentucky last week as voters in statewide elections delivered the GOP key defeats chiefly tied to the issue of abortion rights.
Left-leaning activists in Virginia and Ohio in particular appeared energised by their victories, a much-needed boost to their confidence and optimism after heartbreaking defeats for the party in 2022 and 2021. Ohioans saw the election of author and Trump convert JD Vance to the US Senate, while Virginians witnessed the downfall of Terry McAuliffe, their state’s former governor, as he sought to defeat Republican Glenn Youngkin. Both were considered blows to Joe Biden for different reasons — in Virginia, Mr McAuliffe ran aligned with Mr Biden and was beaten soundly just months into the latter’s presidency, and in Ohio the president lost a much-needed opportunity to pick up a vote for his agenda in the US Senate.
But 2024 is on the horizon, and Democrats are looking ahead to the future — though not without some considerable sense of unease. Their incumbent president remains in serious trouble, if the polling is to be believed, based on concerns about his age and ability to represent America through a time of multiple global crises. At the same time, the prospect of a Trump victory — with the former president openly plotting to unleash the powers of the federal government on his political enemies — presents a real reason to be concerned about the country’s future.
Enthusiastic as they are about the party’s victory on a ballot initiative enshrining abortion rights in the state’s constitution, Ohio Democrats are cognizant of the fact that no such issue will be as directly on the ballot next year. What that means for Joe Biden and other Democrats is simple: they’ll be running on their own political reputations, and that of the national Democratic Party.
If you listen to former Congressman Tim Ryan, that’s a real problem.
How old is Trump and how does that compare to other presidents?
04:45 , Oliver O'Connell
When Donald Trump was inaugurated in January 2017, he became the oldest commander-in-chief sworn in at the age of 70 years and 220 days old.
That was surpassed by his successor Joe Biden, who was 78 years and 61 days when he became the country’s 46th president in January 2021.
Before Mr Trump, Ronald Reagan was the oldest person to assume the presidency at 69 years and 349 years old at his first inauguration in 1981.
Reagan was the oldest president when he left office at the age of 77 in 1989, just 22 days away from turning 78.
But depending on who wins the 2024 presidential election, a new record could be set as both Mr Biden and Mr Trump are running for reelection.
How old is Donald Trump and how does his age compare to other presidents?
ICYMI: Trump reshares Melania’s response to ‘golden shower’ claims
03:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump looked back on the wild allegations about him getting a “golden shower” from sex workers in Russia during an unbelievable moment at an Iowa rally.
Speaking in Fort Dodge on Saturday, the former president brought up the mostly-debunked 2016 dossier in which ex-British spy Christopher Steele alleged Mr Trump had paid sex workers to urinate on him in a Moscow hotel.
Mr Trump gave a rambling retelling of his conversation with wife Melania after the claims emerged.
Trump shares Melania’s response to ‘golden shower’ claims
DeSantis: Both Trump and Biden are too old to run the country
02:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Ron DeSantis has said he thinks both Donald Trump and Joe Biden are too old to run the country as the president celebrates his 81st birthday today.
Speaking to CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday, the Florida governor and 2024 hopeful claimed that he is in the “prime of my life” while his two rivals are far from it.
“I just think that that’s something that has been shown with Joe Biden. Father Time is undefeated. Donald Trump is not exempt from any of that,” he said.
Mr DeSantis, 45, said that running the White House is “not a job for somebody that is pushing 80”.
“I will serve two terms, deliver big results, and get the country moving again,” he told CNN.
Rachael Sharp reports on the Florida governor’s remarks.
Today in court: Judges aren’t buying Trump’s gag order appeal
01:45 , Oliver O'Connell
A three-judge federal appeals court panel appears skeptical of arguments from Donald Trump’s legal team to overturn a gag order that blocks the former president from attacking witnesses and prosecutors in a criminal conspiracy case surrounding his attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
But the judges also appear likely to narrow the scope of the order, hoping to balance First Amendment protections and political speech against the wave of threats and harassment unleashed by Mr Trump and his supporters towards the prosecutors, judges, witnesses and prospective jurors involved with a growing list of litigation against him.
The gag order imposed by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan last month blocked Mr Trump from launching a “pretrial smear campaign” as he seeks the 2024 Republican nomination for president, the judge wrote.
That order was paused by the appeals court in Washington DC, which heard arguments in the case on Monday during a hearing that lasted nearly three hours. A ruling is not immediately expected.
Judges aren’t buying Trump’s gag order appeal
Trump posts doctor note claiming he’s lost weight as Biden marks 81st birthday
01:15 , Mike Bedigan
In a doctor’s note shared on Monday, Donald Trump boasted he was in “excellent health, as both he and his potential 2024 opponent Joe Biden face continued questions about their age and mental fitness for the White House.
The letter added that Mr Trump was showing improved results on certain tests, likely because of “weight reduction.”
Josh Marcus has the full story:
Trump posts doctor note claiming he’s lost weight as Biden marks 81st birthday
Meet Argentina’s new MAGA-like leader
00:45 , Oliver O'Connell
South America’s Trump wins election: Meet Argentina’s new MAGA-like leader
Analysis: Trump un-gagged could prime his fraud trial for more chaos
Monday 20 November 2023 23:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Alex Woodward writes:
For six weeks, lawyers with New York Attorney General Letitia James put more than two dozen witnesses on the stand and introduced dozens of documents to connect Donald Trump and his business empire to a decade of fraud allegations.
When the attorney general handed the case to his team of lawyers on 13 November, their first witness was Donald Trump Jr, who spent several hours testifying to his father’s “artistry” and “sexy” properties.
Two days later, Mr Trump’s attorneys demanded a mistrial. They lost. His attorneys also sued the judge overseeing the case, hoping to strike down a gag order that has blocked the former president from attacking court staff. They won.
Trump attorney asks Fulton County DA for help accessing federal evidence in DC case
Monday 20 November 2023 23:15 , Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump’s attorney in the sprawling Fulton County election interference case in Georgia has asked District Attorney Fani Willis — who brought the case against the former president and his 18 co-defendants — for help gaining access to lists of evidence disclosed to Mr Trump’s defence team in his federal election interference case.
A protective order handed down by Judge Tanya Chutkan, at the request of Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith, prevents the disclosure of evidence ahead of the trial.
Georgia attorney Steve Sadow has asked Ms Willis to contact Mr Smith and ask if he will disclose discovery letter and lists of evidence to her, which she can then share with him as he builds his defence case in the state criminal indictment.
Given both cases involve interference in the 2020 election, there is potential for crossover between the two criminal cases against the former president.
The federal trial is currently scheduled for 4 March 2024, whereas Georgia prosecutors have asked for a trial date in early August 2024. The timing of Mr Trump’s two other criminal trials is expected to change but the New York hush-money trial is currently scheduled for 25 March, and the federal classified documents trial is set for 20 May.
What a tangled web.
Another Jan 6 committee? Majorie Taylor Greene wants a Maga version
Monday 20 November 2023 22:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Marjorie Taylor Greene continues to fight her quixotic crusade to prove that the thousands of Trump supporters seen on video attacking the Capitol on January 6 were actually being controlled by a shadowy federal conspiracy.
The Georgia congresswoman on Sunday reacted to the decision this past week by the new Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, to release all of the footage gathered and compiled by the now-shuttered select committee to investigate the attack. According to Ms Greene, hidden within the more than 40,000 hours of footage of Trump fans battering police officers and committing other crimes on camera is irrefutable proof of a government conspiracy.
The Trump-aligned GOP, and its conspiracy magnets like Ms Greene, have long latched on to the desperate allegation that the FBI was seemingly in control of the riot from the beginning, and that the president’s supporters would have remained peaceful were it not for secretive government agents egging them on. In reality, no such evidence of government agents directing the crowd has been uncovered, and FBI Director Christopher Wray has testified under oath that those allegations are nothing more than nonsense.
Marjorie Taylor Greene wants another January 6 select committee
Trump ahead of Biden in new poll as Israel criticism hurts president
Monday 20 November 2023 22:15 , Oliver O'Connell
A new poll from NBC News this weekend shows President Joe Biden in his worst position yet — with no signs of clearer skies ahead.
The sitting president now trails his likely 2024 challenger, Donald Trump, among voters nationally; despite the ex-president’s ongoing legal escapades, Mr Biden trails his opponent 46-44.
The reason for his continued slide is clear: Americans are quickly souring on the president’s handling of US foreign policy and America’s presence on the world stage. The spiraling conflict in Israel has only served to turn America’s youngest voters, long a Democratic-leaning demographic, against the president as seven in ten voters age 18-34 disapprove of Mr Biden’s response.
His approval rating is now at 40 per cent — the lowest recorded by NBC at any point during Mr Biden’s presidency. This poll also marks the first time Mr Biden has trailed Mr Trump in an NBC survey.
John Bowden has the details of the latest poll.
Trump leads Biden in new poll as Israel conflict fuels criticism
Ramaswamy slams ex-DNC chair for ‘racist’ mockery of name
Monday 20 November 2023 21:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Vivek Ramaswamy has hit out at a former chair of the Democratic National Committee, after she “intentionally” mispronounced his name and said that he should “go home”.
Donna Brazile, a political strategist and ABC News commentator, made the remarks while appearing on Real Time With Bill Maher – and was called out for apparent “racism”.
In a clip of an exchange with Maher, circulated online, Brazile says “Vivek needs to shut the hell up and go home, I’m tired of him.”
After Maher corrected her on her pronunciation of the Republican presidential hopeful’s first name, Brazile replied “Well whatever…” and proceeded to mispronounce his second name also.
Mike Bedigan has the story.
Vivek Ramaswamy slams ex-DNC chair for ‘racist’ mockery of name
Trump campaign releases former president’s medical report
Monday 20 November 2023 21:23 , Oliver O'Connell
The Trump campaign has released a medical report on the health of the former president — neatly timed for the 81st birthday of his Democratic opponent, President Joe Biden.
Dr Bruce Aronwald writes in a letter dated today, that Donald Trump’s overall health is “excellent”, his physical exams are within the normal range and his cognitive exams were “exceptional”.
He also writes that the 77-year-old former president has also lost weight through “an improved diet and continued daily physical activity, while maintaining a rigrous schedule”.
Mr Trump will reportedly “continue to enjoy a healthy active lifestyle for years to come”.
Notably, there are almost no specific details given about his health.
Donald Trump Truth Social Post 04:08 PM EST 11/20/23 pic.twitter.com/3YTvLPwJme
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) November 20, 2023
Liz Cheney chides GOP senator for promoting new Jan 6 conspiracy
Monday 20 November 2023 21:15 , Oliver O'Connell
The former co-chair of the January 6 investigation in the House brawled with Senator Mike Lee, a fellow Republican, on X, formerly Twitter, over the weekend after he resurfaced a conspiracy regarding the attack on the Capitol.
Mr Lee, a conservative on the right wing of the US Senate, pointed to recently-released footage of Capitol Police officers having relatively peaceful interactions with riot participants as evidence that Donald Trump’s supporters were actually welcomed into the Capitol during the attack.
John Bowden reports from Washington, DC.
Liz Cheney chides GOP senator for promoting latest Jan 6 conspiracy
Analysis: Can Lachlan Murdoch rein in scandal-hit Fox as 2024 election looms?
Monday 20 November 2023 20:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Bevan Hurley writes:
As anointed son Lachlan Murdoch took the stage at Fox Corporation’s annual meeting in Los Angeles on Friday, he touted the potential windfall the company hoped to see from the 2024 US presidential election.
With national and local political races “heating up”, he told the gathering of execs including father Rupert, board members and shareholders that he expected next year’s pivotal election would drive “strong results across our news properties and local stations”.
The meeting rubber stamped Lachlan’s takeover as chair of Fox Corporation, days after he officially took charge of the Murdochs’ publishing division News Corp as the chosen child.
Less than a year out from the 2024 presidential election, with the warning signs for democracy flashing red and Donald Trump declaring his authoritarian intentions if reelected, the 52-year-old arguably has the power to shape US politics more than any other executive in the country.
Read the full article:
Can Lachlan Murdoch rein in scandal-hit Fox as 2024 election looms?
McConney returns to stand at Trump NY fraud trial
Monday 20 November 2023 20:17 , Alex Woodward
Donald Trump’s co-defendant in his civil fraud trial in New York, Jeff McConney, is back on the stand as a witness for the defence. He testified as a witness for the prosecution some weeks ago.
Mr McConney was the controller of the Trump Organization and was responsible for the company’s statements of financial condition from 2011 to 2017 though distanced himself from accountancy firm Mazars who prepared the statements.
“We as the Trump Organization didn’t prepare the statement,” said Mr McConney.
Donald Bender with Mazars already testified in the trial as the very first witness eight weeks ago, telling the attorney general’s team that the Trump Organization appeared to withhold information from him in the preparation of the statements.
Today, Mr McConney claims that Bender could’ve asked for anything he wanted from the Trump Organization. He said he never hid anything from him.
Judge Arthur Engoron and the attorney general’s team have previously hinted this kind of argument isn’t gonna work, pointing to an example of tax preparers who base their filings off the documents you give them.
X gives special counsel Jack Smith 32 of Trump’s private messages
Monday 20 November 2023 20:00 , Oliver O'Connell
Elon Musk’s X platform handed over 32 direct messages from Donald Trump’s account with the social media platform to special counsel Jack Smith as part of his election subversion probe.
The former president was a voracious user of his @realDonaldTrump as he tried to overturn Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, but was suspended by the platform, formerly known as Twitter, in the wake of the January 6 attack “due to the risk of further incitement of violence.”
Last November, following Mr Musk’s $44bn purchase of the social media app, the billionaire said that banning Mr Trump had been a mistake. The former president, who has a financial stake in Truth Social, said that he would never return to Twitter, but in August posted there for the first time in two years.
But that has not stopped federal prosecutors from getting access to a string of Mr Trump’s private messages from the high-profile account, according to court filings.
Graeme Massie has the details.
Twitter gives special counsel Jack Smith 32 of Trump’s private messages
Not enough food for Trump at Texas Thanksgiving lunch
Monday 20 November 2023 19:40 , Oliver O'Connell
While at a Thanksgiving dinner event commending US troops serving at the Southern Border, former President Donald Trump jokingly complained that organisers didn’t save him a plate of food.
“The food looked very good,” the former president said at a luncheon for Texas State Patrol officers. “I wanted to have some but they didn’t have any for me.
“They had none left. That’s not good. That’s my kind of food too.”
Mr Trump later took to Truth Social, his social media platform, to thank the officials.
MIchelle Del Rey reports.
Trump complains that there wasn’t enough food for him at Texas Thanksgiving lunch
Trump attorney asks Fulton County DA for help accessing federal evidence in DC case
Monday 20 November 2023 19:32 , Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump’s attorney in the sprawling Fulton County election interference case in Georgia has asked District Attorney Fani Willis — who brought the case against the former president and his 18 co-defendants — for help gaining access to lists of evidence disclosed to Mr Trump’s defence team in his federal election interference case.
A protective order handed down by Judge Tanya Chutkan, at the request of Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith, prevents the disclosure of evidence ahead of the trial.
Georgia attorney Steve Sadow has asked Ms Willis to contact Mr Smith and ask if he will disclose discovery letter and lists of evidence to her, which she can then share with him as he builds his defence case in the state criminal indictment.
Given both cases involve interference in the 2020 election, there is potential for crossover between the two criminal cases against the former president.
The federal trial is currently scheduled for 4 March 2024, whereas Georgia prosecutors have asked for a trial date in early August 2024. The timing of Mr Trump’s two other criminal trials is expected to change but the New York hush-money trial is currently scheduled for 25 March, and the federal classified documents trial is set for 20 May.
What a tangled web.
Read the full court filing here.
Monday 20 November 2023 19:20 , Oliver O'Connell
Trump vows to ‘take over’ Washington DC: ‘We are going to make it beautiful’
Democrats must fix their ‘brand’ – and ditch Biden – to win in 2024, says Tim Ryan
Monday 20 November 2023 19:00 , Oliver O'Connell
Democrats saw a series of welcome victories across Ohio, Virginia, and Kentucky last week as voters in statewide elections delivered the GOP key defeats chiefly tied to the issue of abortion rights.
Left-leaning activists in Virginia and Ohio in particular appeared energised by their victories, a much-needed boost to their confidence and optimism after heartbreaking defeats for the party in 2022 and 2021. Ohioans saw the election of author and Trump convert JD Vance to the US Senate, while Virginians witnessed the downfall of Terry McAuliffe, their state’s former governor, as he sought to defeat Republican Glenn Youngkin. Both were considered blows to Joe Biden for different reasons — in Virginia, Mr McAuliffe ran aligned with Mr Biden and was beaten soundly just months into the latter’s presidency, and in Ohio the president lost a much-needed opportunity to pick up a vote for his agenda in the US Senate.
But 2024 is on the horizon, and Democrats are looking ahead to the future — though not without some considerable sense of unease. Their incumbent president remains in serious trouble, if the polling is to be believed, based on concerns about his age and ability to represent America through a time of multiple global crises. At the same time, the prospect of a Trump victory — with the former president openly plotting to unleash the powers of the federal government on his political enemies — presents a real reason to be concerned about the country’s future.
Enthusiastic as they are about the party’s victory on a ballot initiative enshrining abortion rights in the state’s constitution, Ohio Democrats are cognizant of the fact that no such issue will be as directly on the ballot next year. What that means for Joe Biden and other Democrats is simple: they’ll be running on their own political reputations and that of the national Democratic Party.
If you listen to former Congressman Tim Ryan, that’s a real problem.
DeSantis: Trump and Biden are too old to run the country
Monday 20 November 2023 18:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Ron DeSantis has said he thinks both Donald Trump and Joe Biden are too old to run the country as the president celebrates his 81st birthday today.
Speaking to CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday, the Florida governor and 2024 hopeful claimed that he is in the “prime of my life” while his two rivals are far from it.
“I just think that that’s something that has been shown with Joe Biden. Father Time is undefeated. Donald Trump is not exempt from any of that,” he said.
Mr DeSantis, 45, said that running the White House is “not a job for somebody that is pushing 80”.
Rachel Sharp has the story.
DeSantis says both Trump and Biden are too old to run the country
Capitol officer’s bodycam shows Jan 6 attacks two weeks before suicide
Monday 20 November 2023 18:20 , Oliver O'Connell
Newly released video footage has captured the cruel attacks and terrifying situation that a Capitol police officer endured just two weeks before he took his own life.
Officer Jeff Smith’s body camera footage reveals the harrowing reality of what unfolded in the halls of the Capitol building on January 6 2021.
In it, the officer is seen facing a barrage of physical and verbal attacks from rioters.
People are screaming and lining the walls of the monument as officers pass by.
One woman is seen telling Smith: “Get a real job. We don’t support y’all anymore.”
Outside, someone else is yelling repeatedly: “You stand with criminals! You stand with criminals!”
Kelly Rissman reports.
Capitol officer’s bodycam shows Jan 6 attacks two weeks before suicide
Full story: Judges aren’t buying Trump’s gag order appeal
Monday 20 November 2023 17:54 , Oliver O'Connell
A three-judge federal appeals court panel appears sceptical of arguments from Donald Trump’s legal team to overturn a gag order that blocks the former president from attacking witnesses and prosecutors in a criminal conspiracy case surrounding his attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
But the judges also appear likely to narrow the scope of the order, hoping to balance First Amendment protections and political speech against the wave of threats and harassment unleashed by Mr Trump and his supporters towards the prosecutors, judges, witnesses and prospective jurors involved with a growing list of litigation against him.
The gag order imposed by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan last month blocked Mr Trump from launching a “pretrial smear campaign” as he seeks the 2024 Republican nomination for president, the judge wrote.
That order was paused by the appeals court in Washington DC, which heard arguments in the case on Monday during a hearing that lasted nearly three hours.
Judges aren’t buying Trump’s gag order appeal
Monday 20 November 2023 17:10 , Oliver O'Connell
DC hearing wraps up with no ruling on future of partial gag order
Monday 20 November 2023 17:00 , Oliver O'Connell
The panel of judges in Washington, DC have concluded the hearing on the future of the partial gag order imposed on former president Donald Trump by Judge Tanya Chutkan.
They heard two hours and twenty minutes of arguments and will now consider their opinion.
Two hours and 20 minutes of arguments. One statement by one judge stood out in particular:
After Trump attorney concluded answering (or avoiding answering) judges’ questions, one judge said “We’re back where we started”— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) November 20, 2023
Meanwhile, in Manhattan...
Monday 20 November 2023 16:54 , Oliver O'Connell
Day 32 and week eight of Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial is underway in the New York State Supreme Court in Lower Manhattan, with the defence’s sixth expert witness kicking off the day.
David Miller, who has worked in insurance for four decades, took the stand to argue that there was no insurance fraud because insurer Zurich did not examine Mr Trump’s financial statements and rubberstamped the insurance as a favour to broker Aon.
The defense logic:
Zurich was rubberstamping Trump's insurance as a favor to a big broker Aon. Zurich just wanted Aon happy to keep the biz/money flowing from Aon.
So, Trump's financial statements didn't matter bc Zurich didn't rely on them in approving the insurance.— Frank G. Runyeon (@frankrunyeon) November 20, 2023
Monday 20 November 2023 16:43 , Oliver O'Connell
One of the judges emphasised that this is a challenging balance to make and that they have to use a delicate “scalpel” in this case to determine what Trump could or could not say.
VanDevender responds that District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan has already struck an appropriate balance.
In one potential scenario that the judges float, a Democratic nominee brings a Trump trial witness on stage at a campaign rally to talk about why Trump should not be re-elected — would the former president be prohibited from calling the witness “a liar”?
The special counsel’s attorney responds yes if it goes to the substance of their testimony.
A judge asks: “What if Trump calls a witness an 'untruth speaker'... instead of ‘a liar’?”
Monday 20 November 2023 16:09 , Alex Woodward
The panel is extremely skeptical of Trump’s argument but they want to zero in on the scope of the order supported by Jack Smith’s team. How is the court supposed to differentiate between “adverse conduct” and just expressive views in our “social media world” that can’t be held responsible?
VanDevender goes down the list of “sheer number of occurrences” from Trump already.
A judge asks about proposed restrictions on “inflammatory language,” which doesn’t give “much balance at all to the First Amendment’s vigorous protection of political speech,” she says.
Monday 20 November 2023 15:58 , Alex Woodward
After touring a number of hypothetical situations in which the former president might intimidate a witness or juror, Sauer steps down with the judging panel promising him time for rebuttal later.
They are now hearing from Cecil VanDevender from the special counsel’s office.
He is asked why Trump’s comments create a “systemic risk” to the judicial system.
VanDevender replies: “It creates a world in which public servants will have to decide, ‘Do I want to handle this kind of case … or in doing so will I be threatened, my family be threatened?’ There’s a chilling effect and a pall cast on the whole proceedings … How likely are you to quit if your family received a death threat?”
Monday 20 November 2023 15:20 , Alex Woodward
The judges are extremely sceptical of Sauer’s arguments against preventative measures intended to protect witnesses and other parties in a trial, insisting that Trump’s speech because he’s running for office, is “core political speech” protected under the First Amendment.
Does he need to break the law first? What else needs to happen to stop him from undermining the integrity of a trial and the safety of anyone involved? Sauer equivocates.
Monday 20 November 2023 15:04 , Alex Woodward
Judge Bradley Garcia cuts to the heart of the issue with Trump’s statements: “This is predictably going to intensify. Why isn’t the district court justified taking a proactive measure … and stepping in to protect the integrity of the trial?”
DC gag order hearing underway
Monday 20 November 2023 14:46 , Alex Woodward
One of the appellate court judges is trying to get Trump’s attorney John Sauer to answer what kind of behaviour from his client would require a gag order.
The judge notes that Jack Smith’s team already found a pattern “whereby when the defendant has publicly attacked individuals … those people are threatened and harassed.”
Jack Smith’s team described that dynamic in a court filing as “part of a pattern, stretching back years, in which people publicly targeted” by Trump are “subject to harassment, threats, and intimidation.”
Trump “seeks to use this well-known dynamic to his advantage,” they added, and “it has continued unabated as this case and other unrelated cases involving the defendant have progressed.”
Sauer says that precedent for an order like this would require “imminently impending danger” or an “imminently impending threat.”
“We are nowhere near that in this case,” he says.
Listen to the oral arguments: Live
Analysis: Trump un-gagged could prime his fraud trial for more chaos
Monday 20 November 2023 14:39 , Oliver O'Connell
Alex Woodward writes:
For six weeks, lawyers with New York Attorney General Letitia James put more than two dozen witnesses on the stand and introduced dozens of documents to connect Donald Trump and his business empire to a decade of fraud allegations.
When the attorney general handed the case to his team of lawyers on 13 November, their first witness was Donald Trump Jr, who spent several hours testifying to his father’s “artistry” and “sexy” properties.
Two days later, Mr Trump’s attorneys demanded a mistrial. They lost. His attorneys also sued the judge overseeing the case, hoping to strike down a gag order that has blocked the former president from attacking court staff. They won.
Meanwhile, other members of Mr Trump’s legal team – a stable of attorneys defending him in four criminal cases and lawsuits across the country – are preparing for a separate courtroom battle to revoke a different gag order that prevents him from attacking witnesses and others in case accusing him of a conspiracy to overturn 2020 presidential election results.
In a filing to a federal judge, Mr Trump’s attorneys argued that the gag order blocks his “core political speech” – including his abilities to spread false claims about the chief court clerk in his fraud trial, in a courthouse that has been inundated with threatening messages.
Continue reading...
Trump un-gagged could prime his fraud trial for more chaos
DeSantis says both Trump and Biden are too old to run the country
Monday 20 November 2023 14:00 , Rachel Sharp
Ron DeSantis has said he thinks both Donald Trump and Joe Biden are too old to run the country as the president celebrates his 81st birthday today.
Speaking to CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday, the Florida governor and 2024 hopeful claimed that he is in the “prime of my life” while the two men are far from it.
“I just think that that’s something that has been shown with Joe Biden. Father Time is undefeated. Donald Trump is not exempt from any of that,” he said.
Mr DeSantis, 45, said that running the White House is “not a job for somebody that is pushing 80”.
“I will serve two terms, deliver big results, and get the country moving again,” he told CNN.
“That’s what Republican voters want to see.”
Read the full story:
DeSantis says both Trump and Biden are too old to run the country
What’s going on in Trumpworld today?
Monday 20 November 2023 13:40 , Rachel Sharp
- Donald Trump’s legal team will continue his defence case in the New York civil fraud trial.
- A Washington DC appeals court will hear arguments from the former president’s legal team as to why the gag order in his federal election interference case should be scrapped.
WATCH: Trump brags Taliban leader was ‘nice to him’– not Biden
Monday 20 November 2023 13:20 , Rachel Sharp
Capitol officer’s bodycam shows Jan 6 attacks two weeks before suicide
Monday 20 November 2023 13:00 , Rachel Sharp
Newly released video footage has captured the cruel attacks and terrifying situation that a Capitol police officer endured just two weeks before he took his own life.
Officer Jeff Smith’s body camera footage reveals the harrowing reality of what unfolded in the halls of the Capitol building on January 6 2021.
In it, the officer is seen facing a barrage of physical and verbal attacks from rioters.
People are screaming and lining the walls of the monument as officers pass by.
One woman is seen telling Smith: “Get a real job. We don’t support y’all anymore.”
Read the full story:
Capitol officer’s bodycam shows Jan 6 attacks two weeks before suicide
Trump fights gag order in federal election interference case
Monday 20 November 2023 12:40 , Rachel Sharp
Donald Trump is fighting the gag order in his federal election interference case arguing that his First Amendment rights are being violated.
US District Judge Tanya Chutkan issued a gag order in the case after Mr Trump made a series of attacks on special counsel Jack Smith, the judge as well as court personnel.
The order has since been put on pause while Mr Trump appeals it.
On Monday, a Washington DC appeals court is hearing arguments from the former president’s legal team as to why the gag order should be axed altogether.
This comes after the gag order has also been temporarily lifted in Mr Trump’s New York civil fraud trial.
Trump mocked Jimmy Carter hours after Rosalynn entered hospice care
Monday 20 November 2023 12:20 , Rachel Sharp
Donald Trump mocked Jimmy Carter just hours after his wife Rosalynn Carter entered hospice care – and hours before she passed away.
Speaking at a rally in Iowa on Sunday, the former president took aim at the former president in a bizarre attempt to lash out at current President Joe Biden.
“The happiest person anywhere in this country right now is Jimmy Carter because his administration looked brilliant compared to these clowns,” he said of the Biden administration.
“Compared to Biden, Jimmy Carter was a brilliant, brilliant president.”
His comments came hours after it was announced that the former first lady had entered hospice care.
She died on Sunday aged 96.
Trump leads Biden in new poll as Israel conflict fuels criticism
Monday 20 November 2023 12:00 , Rachel Sharp
A new poll from NBC News this weekend shows President Joe Biden in his worst position yet — with no signs of clearer skies ahead.
The sitting president now trails his likely 2024 challenger, Donald Trump, among voters nationally; despite the ex-president’s ongoing legal escapades, Mr Biden trails his opponent 46-44.
The reason for his continued slide is clear: Americans are quickly souring on the president’s handling of US foreign policy and America’s presence on the world stage. The spiraling conflict in Israel has only served to turn America’s youngest voters, long a Democratic-leaning demographic, against the president as seven in ten voters age 18-34 disapprove of Mr Biden’s response.
His approval rating is now at 40 per cent — the lowest recorded by NBC at any point during Mr Biden’s presidency. This poll also marks the first time Mr Biden has trailed Mr Trump in an NBC survey.
Read the full story here:
Trump leads Biden in new poll as Israel conflict fuels criticism
Trump isn’t getting over Iowa governor’s endorsement for DeSantis
Monday 20 November 2023 11:30 , Rachel Sharp
Earlier this month, Iowa’s Republican Governor Kim Reynolds announced that she is endorsing Ron DeSantis for president – after claiming that Donald Trump “can’t win” the 2024 election.
Ms Reynolds, who is in her second term and popular with Iowans, previously said she would stay neutral in the Republican primary race, but has appeared with Mr DeSantis multiple times since he announced his candidacy.
At an event with Mr DeSantis on 6 November, she publicly backed him, saying that the Florida governor would “reverse the madness we see every day.”
“Not only do we need to make sure we elect someone who can win and beat Joe Biden,” she said. “We need a President who has the skill and the resolve to reverse the madness that we see every single day.
Mr Trump has lashed out at Ms Reynolds ever since.
In his latest rant about the Iowa governor on Truth Social on Sunday, he branded her the “MOST UNPOPULAR GOVERNOR IN THE UNITED STATES”.
“Kim Reynolds of Iowa has gone from a popular Governor to the MOST UNPOPULAR GOVERNOR IN THE UNITED STATES, not an easy feat. Her Endorsement of Ron DeSanctimonious, who is 50 Points down to me in the Polls, has given him exactly ZERO “Bounce.”,’ he wrote.
“He is a wounded bird falling violently from the sky. I wonder what position Kim was promised in order to back someone who is sooo far down? I got Iowa “First in the Nation,” Ethanol security, and 28 Billion Dollars for our Great Farmers. I also protected Social Security and MediCare. DeSanctimonious and Birdbrain did NOTHING. MAGA!!!”
DeSantis thinks both Trump and Biden are too old to run country
Monday 20 November 2023 11:00 , Rachel Sharp
Ron DeSantis has said that both Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are too old to run the country.
Speaking to CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday – one day before Mr Biden’s 81st birthday – the Florida governor and 2024 hopeful claimed that he is in the “prime of my life” while the two men are far from it.
“I just think that that’s something that has been shown with Joe Biden. Father Time is undefeated. Donald Trump is not exempt from any of that,” he said.
Mr DeSantis, 45, said that running the White House is “not a job for somebody that is pushing 80”.
His comments come as age has become a major factor among American voters gearing up for the 2024 race.
Mr Biden turned 81 on Monday while Mr Trump is 77.
Argentina’s Donald Trump – Javier Milei – wins presidential election
Monday 20 November 2023 10:30 , Rachel Sharp
Far-right populist Javier Milei has won Argentina‘s presidential election following a fiercely polarised campaign where he promised to shake up the country.
He secured 55.7 per cent of the votes, beating centre-left economy minister Sergio Massa who received only 44.3 per cent, Argentina’s electoral authority said on Sunday.
The 53-year-old political newcomer had gained a rockstar-like following by raging against what he called the “political caste” on television. Among his controversial policies was a pledge to close down the country’s central bank.
“Argentina’s situation is critical,” said Mr Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist who has often been compared to former US president Donald Trump and Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro.
The Independent’s Alisha Rahaman Sarkar has the full story:
Argentina election won by far-right Javier Milei as Trump says he is ‘very proud’
Donald Trump reacts to Rosalynn Carter’s death
Monday 20 November 2023 10:00 , Rachel Sharp
Donald Trump has released a statement on Truth Social paying tribute to former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. Read his statement in full:
Melania and I join all Americans in mourning the loss of Rosalynn Carter. She was a devoted First Lady, a great humanitarian, a champion for mental health, and a beloved wife to her husband for 77 years, President Carter.
Over a life spanning nearly a century, Rosalynn Carter earned the admiration and gratitude of our entire nation. From her days as a U.S. Navy spouse, to the Georgia Governor’s Mansion, to her tenure as First Lady of the United States, and her later work at the Carter Center and volunteering with Habitat for Humanity, she leaves behind a legacy of extraordinary accomplishment and national service.
Our prayers are with the former president, the Carter family, and the entire community of Plains, Georgia, that she loved so much!
Trump celebrates far-right candidate Javier Milei’s win in Argentina
Monday 20 November 2023 09:30 , Rachel Sharp
Donald Trump has celebrated far-right candidate Javier Milei’s win in Argentina’s presidential election after he sailed to victory on Sunday.
“Congratulations to Javier Milei on a great race for President of Argentina. The whole world was watching! I am very proud of you. You will turn your Country around and truly Make Argentina Great Again!” he wrote on Truth Social.
In a follow-up post, he adopted his MAGA moniker for the South American country, writing: “MAKE ARGENTINA GREAT AGAIN!”
Mr Milei has been compared to Mr Trump as an outsider, celebrity figure who sought to sow doubt in the legitimacy of the election.
WATCH: Trump brags that Taliban leaders were ‘nice to him’ – not Biden
Monday 20 November 2023 09:07 , Rachel Sharp
Trump brags that the leader of the Taliban was nice to him: I wonder if he calls Biden ‘your excellency.’ I don’t think so pic.twitter.com/upmGlfL8FO
— Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) November 18, 2023
WATCH: Trump boasts about disease named after him
Monday 20 November 2023 08:00 , Megan Sheets
ICYMI: Trump praises the public release of the January 6 tapes
Monday 20 November 2023 06:00 , Megan Sheets
“Congratulations to Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson for having the Courage and Fortitude to release all of the J6 Tapes, which will explicitly reveal what really happened on January 6th!” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday. A January 6 subcommittee wrote in its 2022 final report that Mr Trump was the “central cause of” the events of the Capitol riot.
Mr Johnson announced the decision earlier on Friday, saying allowing access to the footage “will provide millions of Americans, criminal defendants, public interest organizations, and the media an ability to see for themselves what happened that day, rather than having to rely upon the interpretation of a small group of government officials.”
A number of Republicans also joined in celebrating Mr Johnson’s move.
Read more:
Trump celebrates release of violent January 6 tapes
Trump leads Biden in new poll as Israel conflict fuels criticism
Monday 20 November 2023 04:00 , Megan Sheets
A new poll from NBC News this weekend shows President Joe Biden in his worst position yet — with no signs of clearer skies ahead.
The sitting president now trails his likely 2024 challenger, Donald Trump, among voters nationally; despite the ex-president’s ongoing legal escapades, Mr Biden trails his opponent 46-44.
The reason for his continued slide is clear: Americans are quickly souring on the president’s handling of US foreign policy and America’s presence on the world stage. The spiraling conflict in Israel has only served to turn America’s youngest voters, long a Democratic-leaning demographic, against the president as seven in ten voters age 18-34 disapprove of Mr Biden’s response.
His approval rating is now at 40 per cent — the lowest recorded by NBC at any point during Mr Biden’s presidency. This poll also marks the first time Mr Biden has trailed Mr Trump in an NBC survey.
Read more:
Trump leads Biden in new poll as Israel conflict fuels criticism
WATCH: Trump mocks supporter for shouting ‘we love you’
Monday 20 November 2023 02:00 , Megan Sheets
Trump celebrates Colorado case win in Iowa
Monday 20 November 2023 00:00 , Megan Sheets
Elsewhere in his Iowa speech on Saturday, Mr Trump celebrated his win in a Colorado election case that sought to remove him from the state’s primary ballot.
A judge rejected the removal effort on Friday, concluding that Mr Trump had engaged in insurrection during the January 6 Capitol riot but that it was unclear whether a Civil War-era constitutionalamendment barring insurrectionists from public office applied to the presidency. It was Trump’s latest win following rulings in similar cases in Minnesota and Michigan.
Mr Trump called the decision “a gigantic court victory” as he panned what he called “an outrageous attempt to disenfranchise millions of voters by getting us thrown off the ballot.”
“Our opponents are showing every day that they hate democracy,” he charged before a crowd of about 2,000 people at a commit-to-caucus event at a high school in Fort Dodge.
Mr Trump energised the crowd two months out from the Iowa caucuses on 15 January, drawing raucous applause as he asked: “Will you please give me a good showing? That’s the least you can do.”
Trump reshares Melania’s response to ‘golden shower’ claims
Sunday 19 November 2023 22:00 , Megan Sheets
Donald Trump looked back on the wild allegations about him getting a “golden shower” from sex workers in Russia during an unbelievable moment at an Iowa rally.
Speaking in Fort Dodge on Saturday, the former president brought up the mostly-debunked 2016 dossier in which ex-British spy Christopher Steele alleged Mr Trump had paid sex workers to urinate on him in a Moscow hotel.
Mr Trump gave a rambling retelling of his conversation with wife Melania after the claims emerged.
“‘He was with four hookers’ — you think that was good that night to go up and tell my wife? ‘It’s not true darling, I love you very much, it’s not true,’” Mr Trump said.
“Actually, that one she didn’t believe because she said he’s a germaphobe, he’s not into that, you know. He’s not into golden showers as they say.”
Read more:
Trump reshares Melania’s response to ‘golden shower’ claims
Melania Trump pays tribute to Rosalynn Carter
Sunday 19 November 2023 21:19 , Megan Sheets
Melania Trump posted a tribute to fellow former first lady Rosalynn Carter following her death aged 96.
“Rosalynn Carter leaves behind a meaningful legacy not only as First Lady but as a wife and mother. We will always remember her servant’s heart and devotion to her husband, family, and country. May she rest in peace,” Melania wrote on X.
Rosalynn Carter leaves behind a meaningful legacy not only as First Lady but as a wife and mother. We will always remember her servant’s heart and devotion to her husband, family, and country. May she rest in peace.
— MELANIA TRUMP (@MELANIATRUMP) November 19, 2023
Read more:
Rosalynn Carter dies aged 96, days after entering hospice care
Ramaswamy under fire after he echoes Trump’s ‘vermin’ comments
Sunday 19 November 2023 20:35 , John Bowden
Vivek Ramaswamy became embroiled in a heated on-air argument with CNN anchor Abby Phillip when he was asked whether he believed the term “vermin” to be neo-Nazi rhetoric.
Former President Donald Trump used the term when speaking to a crowd in New Hampshire recently, telling his supporters “We will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists, and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our county.”
Instead of directly answering the question, Mr Ramaswamy instead lashed out at Phillip.
Michelle Del Rey has the story.
Vivek Ramaswamy under fire after he echoes Trump’s ‘vermin’ comments
Greg Abbott endorses Donald Trump at rally
Sunday 19 November 2023 19:36 , John Bowden
Texas Gov Greg Abbott reiterated his endorsement for Donald Trump in the 2024 GOP primary on Sunday, telling Texans at the US-Mexico border that Mr Trump would restore “law and order” if elected.
The former president remains under multiple felony charges for his attempts to block Joe Biden from assuming the presidency in 2020 following US national security agencies affirming the security of the election vote.
Trump takes selfies with law enforcement while serving meals in Texas
Sunday 19 November 2023 19:13 , John Bowden
Former president Donald Trump and Texas Governor Greg Abbott served meals to law enforcement officials in Edinburg, Texas, on Sunday, 19 November.
Footage shows Mr Trump taking selfies with troops and offering cutlery and napkins to servicemembers.
The former GOP president is visiting the US-Mexican border to discuss his border control policy as he campaigns for the Republican nomination.
Mr Abbott endorsed Mr Trump’s bid for the White House this past week, and is set to appear with the president on Sunday.
Donald Trump to visit US border on Sunday
Sunday 19 November 2023 16:48 , John Bowden
The former president will visit a key political ally on Sunday — Texas Gov Greg Abbott — as he campaigns for the Republican nomination with a visit to the US-Mexico border.
Security along the US southern border remains a top issue of interest for a majority of Republicans and Mr Trump’s alliances in Texas will be key to protecting his credbility on that issue as he faces criticism from other GOP contenders like Chris Christie for not following through on his promise to complete a fence along the divide and rely on Mexico to pay for it.
Fulton County prosecutors want Trump’s co-defendant jailed for witness intimidation
Sunday 19 November 2023 16:21 , John Bowden
One of Donald Trump’s co-defendants in Georgia’s election interference case could return to jail after he repeatedly violated the terms of his release, according to prosecutors in Atlanta.
A filing from the office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis argues that Harrison Floyd, the leader of Black Voices for Trump, has “engaged in a pattern of intimidation” against his co-defendants and witnesses since he was released on bond in August.
Mr Floyd, like his co-defendants, was charged under the state’s anti-racketeering statute for allegedly joining a criminal enterprise to reverse Mr Trump’s loss in the state in the 2020 presidential election. He also is charged with conspiracy to commit solicitation of false statements and writings and influencing witnesses.
The terms of his release prohibited him from intimidating co-defendants and witnesses and from communicating “in any way, directly or indirectly, about the facts of the case” with any co-defendants or witnesses, except through his counsel.
Alex Woodward explains how he violated those terms.
Georgia prosecutors want Trump’s co-defendant jailed for witness intimidation
Sunday 19 November 2023 15:15 , John Bowden
More chaos could ensue following the lifted gag order
For six weeks, lawyers with New York Attorney General Letitia James put more than two dozen witnesses on the stand and introduced dozens of documents to connect Donald Trumpand his business empire to a decade of fraud allegations.
When the attorney general handed the case to his team of lawyers on 13 November, their first witness was Donald Trump Jr, who spent several hours testifying to his father’s “artistry” and “sexy” properties.
Two days later, Mr Trump’s attorneys demanded a mistrial. They lost. His attorneys also sued the judge overseeing the case, hoping to strike down a gag order that has blocked the former president from attacking court staff. They won.
Read the full story by Alex Woodward...
Trump un-gagged could prime his fraud trial for more chaos
Manchin: Trump would destroy US democracy if he wins in 2024
Sunday 19 November 2023 14:42 , John Bowden
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, days removed from announcing he won’t seek reelection, said Wednesday that if the nation’s voters give former President Donald Trump another term in the White House, “he will destroy democracy in America.”
Manchin, whose home state voters overwhelmingly backed Trump in the last two presidential elections, made the comment on a press call with West Virginia-based reporters amid speculation that Manchin himself might be weighing a third-party run for president.
The moderate West Virginia Democrat said Wednesday that he would never want to be a “spoiler” who contributed to getting any other candidate elected. But he said he would do what he had to in order to save the country.
“If they said, ‘You’re the only person to do it,’ I’ll do whatever I can to save this nation,” he said.
Read more:
Trump would destroy US democracy if he wins in 2024, Manchin says
Sunday 19 November 2023 13:00 , Kelly Rissman
WATCH: New York AG Letitia James explains what happened during the fraud trial this week
This week, we heard testimony from Donald Trump's expert witnesses.
These witnesses weren't experts on the issues in this case and could not refute the facts.
But some of them are Donald Trump's longtime friends, political contributors, and a Mar-a-Lago member. ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/I9oWUihcdB— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) November 17, 2023
Sunday 19 November 2023 11:00 , Kelly Rissman
ICYMI: Trump loses bid for mistrial in fraud case
The New York judge overseeing Donald Trump’s civil trial for fraud allegations has rejected a motion from the former president’s attorneys for a mistrial
.
A filing from attorneys for Mr Trump and his co-defendants argued that the case was “tainted” with “tangible and overwhelming” evidence of “apparent and actual bias” from Judge Arthur Engoron and his chief clerk, who has been the subject of ongoing attacks from Mr Trump and his allies, which prompted the judge to issue a gag order in the case that prevented parties from disparaging court staff.
In his order on Friday, Judge Engoron shot down “nonsensical” legal arguments from Mr Trump’s legal team involving his clerk, and underscored his “unfettered right” to consult with his law clerks throughout the course of a trial.
The Independent’s Alex Woodward has the full story...
Trump loses bid for mistrial in New York fraud case
Sunday 19 November 2023 09:00 , Kelly Rissman
After the gag order was lifted in NY fraud case, Mr Trump lashed out — yet again
“The Judge committed FRAUD in my Trial by valuing my assets at a tiny fraction of what they are really worth in order to make his FAKE CASE against me - And everyone, including his crooked and highly partisan Law Clerk, Allison Greenfield, and Racist A.G. Letitia James, knows it,” he wrote on Truth Social.
“The Judicial System in New York State is in chaos and disrepute over this horribly handled Persecution of a Political Opponent. The World is watching this illegal Witch Hunt. Engoron, James, and Greenfield should be sanctioned and prosecuted over this complete and very obvious MISCARRIAGE OF JUSTICE!!!” the former president wrote in one of a series of angry posts on Saturday.
Sunday 19 November 2023 07:00 , Kelly Rissman
ICYMI: Fresh Trump claims about his role in January 6 Capitol riot, revealed
Former President Donald Trump said he thinks he would’ve been “very well received” by crowds at the Jan 6 insurrection, according to newly revealed audio.
The revelation was brought to light in ABC News’ Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl’s new book, Tired of Winning: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party.
The recording was from a conversation Mr Karl and Mr Trump had in 2021, which mainly focused on the former president’s reaction to the day’s events.
Mr Trump continued to claim that the number of protestors at his rally, which occurred before hundreds of insurrectionists stormed the Capitol, was inaccurately reported.
The Independent’s Michelle Del Rey has the full story...
No mistrial for Trump in civil fraud case, judge rules
Sunday 19 November 2023 04:45 , Oliver O'Connell
The New York judge overseeing Donald Trump’s civil trial for fraud allegations has rejected a motion from the former president’s attorneys for a mistrial.
A filing from attorneys for Mr Trump and his co-defendants argued that the case was “tainted” with “tangible and overwhelming” evidence of “apparent and actual bias” from Judge Arthur Engoron and his chief clerk, who has been the subject of ongoing attacks from Mr Trump and his allies, which prompted the judge to issue a gag order in the case that prevented parties from disparaging court staff.
In his order on Friday, Judge Engoron shot down “nonsensical” legal arguments from Mr Trump’s legal team involving his clerk, and underscored his “unfettered right” to consult with his law clerks throughout the course of a trial.
Alex Woodward reports.
Trump loses bid for mistrial in New York fraud case
Sunday 19 November 2023 02:45 , Oliver O'Connell
ICYMI: Trump co-defendant’s attorney confesses to Georgia witness videos leak
The source of the leak of several witness proffer videos in Donald Trump’s sweeping RICO election interference case in Georgia has now been revealed.
Jonathan Miller, an attorney for one of Mr Trump’s co-defendants Misty Hampton, confessed in a court hearing on Wednesday that he was responsible the leak.
Mr Miller told Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee that he was coming clean so that he can “sleep well tonight” and to prevent anyone else shouldering the blame – after legal teams for Mr Trump and co-defendant Rudy Giuliani sought to pin the leak on District Attorney Fani Willis’ office.
“In being transparent with the court and to make sure that nobody else gets blamed for what happened and so that I can go to sleep well tonight, judge, I did release those videos to one outlet,” Mr Miller confessed.
“In all candour to the court, I need the court to know that.”
Trump co-defendant’s attorney confesses to Georgia witness videos leak
Sunday 19 November 2023 00:45 , Oliver O'Connell
According to Trump, Kim Kardashian is world’s ‘most overrated celebrity’
Former President Donald Trump took a break from bashing public officials in his New York civil fraud case and his 2024 rivals to take on Kim Kardashian.
In a rambling Truth Social rant, the former president called the reality TV star-turned-social justice campaigner the “World’s most overrated celebrity.”
His criticism comes as Jonathan Karl writes in his new book, Tired of Winning: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party, how the reality star leveraged her celebrity to urge the then-president to commute certain prison sentences.
Kelly Rissman reports.
Trump rants that Kim Kardashian is world’s ‘most overrated celebrity’
Fulton County prosecutors want Trump’s co-defendant jailed for witness intimidation
Saturday 18 November 2023 22:45 , Oliver O'Connell
One of Donald Trump’s co-defendants in Georgia’s election interference case could return to jail after he repeatedly violated the terms of his release, according to prosecutors in Atlanta.
A filing from the office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis argues that Harrison Floyd, the leader of Black Voices for Trump, has “engaged in a pattern of intimidation” against his co-defendants and witnesses since he was released on bond in August.
Mr Floyd, like his co-defendants, was charged under the state’s anti-racketeering statute for allegedly joining a criminal enterprise to reverse Mr Trump’s loss in the state in the 2020 presidential election. He also is charged with conspiracy to commit solicitation of false statements and writings and influencing witnesses.
The terms of his release prohibited him from intimidating co-defendants and witnesses and from communicating “in any way, directly or indirectly, about the facts of the case” with any co-defendants or witnesses, except through his counsel.
Alex Woodward explains how he violated those terms.
Georgia prosecutors want Trump’s co-defendant jailed for witness intimidation
Saturday 18 November 2023 22:14 , Kelly Rissman
Highlights: Trump stops in Iowa
While making a campaign stop in the Hawkeye state, the former president bashes Joe Biden, Adam Schiff, and Ron DeSantis.
Mr Trump also promised the “Trump Reciprocal Trade Act,” in which he would implement an “identical” tariff rate on a country that places a tariff on the US. “That will solve the problem,” Mr Trump said. He specifically took aim at China.
He also discussed crime. He said he hoped to fix the cities “in decay,” which are run by Democrats. He claimed that he talked to a policeman backstage, who said there’s no crime in Iowa. “They’ll stop all the problems with crime,” Mr Trump said of law enforcement and called for their respect.
Biden brands Trump ‘loser’ for Nazi rhetoric
Saturday 18 November 2023 20:45 , Oliver O'Connell
President Joe Biden slammed his predecessor Donald Trump’s aggressive rhetoric, including the use of the word “vermin” to describe opponents, which has been compared to that of fascist leaders Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.
In a speech on Veterans Day, Mr Trump argued that his domestic opponents are more of a threat to the US than the likes of China, Russia and North Korea.
Mr Trump, 77, spoke in Claremont, New Hampshire, telling the crowd in his usual grievance-laden parlance: “We pledge to you that we will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country that lie and steal and cheat on elections.”
Biden slams ‘loser’ Trump for Nazi rhetoric
Jimmy Kimmel delivers droll response to Trump’s demand for apology
Saturday 18 November 2023 18:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Jimmy Kimmel has fired back at Donald Trump’s media company after they demanded an apology for the talk show host’s recent segment on Truth Social.
Mr Kimmel, host of late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live, ran a segment about Truth Social, Donald Trump’s social media platform, earlier this week in which he claimed the platform has lost $73 million since its launch. Several media outlets ran the same number — such as Reuters and MSNBC — before issuing corrections, noting the platform had actually lost $31.6 million.
Trump Media and Technology Group demanded a retraction and apology from the talk show host — which Mr Kimmel delivered in his classic fashion.
Jimmy Kimmel delivers droll response to Trump’s demand for Truth Social apology
Ramaswamy under fire after he echoes Trump’s ‘vermin’ comments
Saturday 18 November 2023 16:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Vivek Ramaswamy became embroiled in a heated on-air argument with CNN anchor Abby Phillip when he was asked whether he believed the term “vermin” to be neo-Nazi rhetoric.
Former President Donald Trump used the term when speaking to a crowd in New Hampshire recently, telling his supporters “We will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists, and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our county.”
Instead of directly answering the question, Mr Ramaswamy instead lashed out at Phillip.
Michelle Del Rey has the story.
Vivek Ramaswamy under fire after he echoes Trump’s ‘vermin’ comments
Saturday 18 November 2023 16:00 , Kelly Rissman
Former President Donald Trump praised the public release of the January 6 tapes
“Congratulations to Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson for having the Courage and Fortitude to release all of the J6 Tapes, which will explicitly reveal what really happened on January 6th!” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday. A January 6 subcommittee wrote in its 2022 final report that Mr Trump was the “central cause of” the events of the Capitol riot.
Mr Johnson announced the decision earlier on Friday, saying allowing access to the footage “will provide millions of Americans, criminal defendants, public interest organizations, and the media an ability to see for themselves what happened that day, rather than having to rely upon the interpretation of a small group of government officials.”
A number of Republicans also joined in celebrating Mr Johnson’s move.
Read the full story...
Trump celebrates release of violent January 6 tapes
Saturday 18 November 2023 15:02 , Kelly Rissman
Mr Trump starts blasting judge and New York AG in civil fraud case again after gag order lifted
“Judge Arthur Engoron, the most overturned and stayed Judge in the State, and the Racist New York State Attorney General, the most corrupt & incompetent A.G. in the Country... have FRAUDULENTLY Undervalued my properties, by many times, in order to make me look bad,” Mr Trump wrote in a rage-filled Truth Social post on Saturday morning.
“This Judicial and Prosecutorial corruption and misconduct took place BEFORE THE TRIAL EVEN STARTED, & WITHOUT ANY KNOWLEDGE OF THE CASE. Judge Engoron just did what the highly partisan A.G. told him to do. He is her complete and total puppet!” the former president wrote.
Fresh Trump claims about his role in January 6 Capitol riot revealed in new audio
Saturday 18 November 2023 14:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Former President Donald Trump said he thinks he would’ve been “very well received” by crowds at the Jan 6 insurrection, according to newly revealed audio.
The revelation was brought to light in ABC News’ Chief Washington Correspondent Jonathan Karl’s new book, Tired of Winning: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party.
The recording was from a conversation Mr Karl and Mr Trump had in 2021, which mainly focused on the former president’s reaction to the day’s events.
Michelle Del Rey reports.
Audio reveals fresh Trump claims about January 6 Capitol riot
Trump bid for mistrial in New York fraud case denied by judge
Saturday 18 November 2023 14:15 , Oliver O'Connell
The New York judge overseeing Donald Trump’s civil trial for fraud allegations has rejected a motion from the former president’s attorneys for a mistrial.
A filing from attorneys for Mr Trump and his co-defendants argued that the case was “tainted” with “tangible and overwhelming” evidence of “apparent and actual bias” from Judge Arthur Engoron and his chief clerk, who has been the subject of ongoing attacks from Mr Trump and his allies, which prompted the judge to issue a gag order in the case that prevented parties from disparaging court staff.
In his order on Friday, Judge Engoron shot down “nonsensical” legal arguments from Mr Trump’s legal team involving his clerk, and underscored his “unfettered right” to consult with his law clerks throughout the course of a trial.
Alex Woodward reports.
Trump loses bid for mistrial in New York fraud case
Trump lashes out at court clerk as soon as gag order lifted
Saturday 18 November 2023 13:45 , Oliver O'Connell
In probably the least surprising development in all of the many Trump trials and cases that this blog tracks, Donald Trump launched a fresh tirade on both the judge and his chief court clerk in his New York civil fraud trial just hours after a gag order banning him from criticising court personnel was paused.
Judge Arthur Engoron had issued the gag order in the case after the former president made a series of false and disparaging remarks about his chief clerk of court Allison Greenfield both to reporters outside the courtroom and on his Truth Social account.
Mr Trump had already violated the gag order twice and incurred $15,000 in fines as a result.
The judge then expanded the order to include his attorneys after Mr Trump’s attorneys also criticised the clerk in the courtroom earlier this month, alleging “bias” against his client and amplifying allegations outlined in a right-wing news website.
But on Thursday, Associate Justice David Friedman of the state’s intermediate appeals court agreed to temporarily lift the gag order, “considering the constitutional and statutory rights at issue”.
Trump instantly lashes out at court clerk as soon as gag order lifted
Trump furious after Biden sees no charges in documents case
Saturday 18 November 2023 12:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Donald Trump lashed out at President Joe Biden and the Department of Justice in an all-caps Truth Social rant after the news came that Mr Biden will face no charges following allegations that he mishandled classified documents.
The special counsel in the case, Robert Hur, isn’t expected to charge anyone linked to the alleged mishandling of classified documents at two places connected to Mr Biden, two people told CNN.
Mr Hur and his fellow investigators are writing a report after concluding their investigation, which lasted around a year, with the prosecutors expected to issue a critical assessment of Mr Biden and his staff for how they handled the sensitive documents.
Appeals court judge pauses Trump fraud trial gag order
Saturday 18 November 2023 10:45 , Oliver O'Connell
An appeals court judge in New York has paused a gag order intended to block Donald Trump from disparaging members of a court in a civil fraud trial targeting the former president’s family business and real-estate empire, a measure that his attorneys claim is a violation of his First Amendment rights.
The judge overseeing the fraud case issued the order after the former president made a series of false and disparaging remarks about his chief clerk outside the courtroom and on his Truth Social account.
Mr Trump already has violated the order twice, incurring $15,000 in fines.
Read more...
Gag order in Trump’s fraud trial paused by appeals court judge
Manchin: Trump would destroy US democracy if he wins in 2024
Saturday 18 November 2023 08:45 , AP
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, days removed from announcing he won’t seek reelection, said Wednesday that if the nation’s voters give former President Donald Trump another term in the White House, “he will destroy democracy in America.”
Manchin, whose home state voters overwhelmingly backed Trump in the last two presidential elections, made the comment on a press call with West Virginia-based reporters amid speculation that Manchin himself might be weighing a third-party run for president.
The moderate West Virginia Democrat said Wednesday that he would never want to be a “spoiler” who contributed to getting any other candidate elected. But he said he would do what he had to in order to save the country.
“If they said, ‘You’re the only person to do it,’ I’ll do whatever I can to save this nation,” he said.
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Trump would destroy US democracy if he wins in 2024, Manchin says
ICYMI: Trump co-defendant’s attorney confesses to Georgia witness videos leak
Saturday 18 November 2023 06:45 , Oliver O'Connell
The source of the leak of several witness proffer videos in Donald Trump’s sweeping RICO election interference case in Georgia has now been revealed.
Jonathan Miller, an attorney for one of Mr Trump’s co-defendants Misty Hampton, confessed in a court hearing on Wednesday that he was responsible the leak.
Mr Miller told Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee that he was coming clean so that he can “sleep well tonight” and to prevent anyone else shouldering the blame – after legal teams for Mr Trump and co-defendant Rudy Giuliani sought to pin the leak on District Attorney Fani Willis’ office.
“In being transparent with the court and to make sure that nobody else gets blamed for what happened and so that I can go to sleep well tonight, judge, I did release those videos to one outlet,” Mr Miller confessed.
“In all candor to the court, I need the court to know that.”
Read the full report by Rachel Sharp
According to Trump, Kim Kardashian is world’s ‘most overrated celebrity'
Saturday 18 November 2023 04:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Former President Donald Trump took a break from bashing public officials in his New York civil fraud case and his 2024 rivals to take on Kim Kardashian.
In a rambling Truth Social rant, the former president called the reality TV star-turned-social justice campaigner the “World’s most overrated celebrity.”
His criticism comes as Jonathan Karl writes in his new book, Tired of Winning: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party, how the reality star leveraged her celebrity to urge the then-president to commute certain prison sentences.
Kelly Rissman reports.
Trump rants that Kim Kardashian is world’s ‘most overrated celebrity’
Fulton County prosecutors want Trump’s co-defendant jailed for witness intimidation
Saturday 18 November 2023 03:45 , Oliver O'Connell
One of Donald Trump’s co-defendants in Georgia’s election interference case could return to jail after he repeatedly violated the terms of his release, according to prosecutors in Atlanta.
A filing from the office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis argues that Harrison Floyd, the leader of Black Voices for Trump, has “engaged in a pattern of intimidation” against his co-defendants and witnesses since he was released on bond in August.
Mr Floyd, like his co-defendants, was charged under the state’s anti-racketeering statute for allegedly joining a criminal enterprise to reverse Mr Trump’s loss in the state in the 2020 presidential election. He also is charged with conspiracy to commit solicitation of false statements and writings and influencing witnesses.
The terms of his release prohibited him from intimidating co-defendants and witnesses and from communicating “in any way, directly or indirectly, about the facts of the case” with any co-defendants or witnesses, except through his counsel.
Alex Woodward explains how he violated those terms.
Georgia prosecutors want Trump’s co-defendant jailed for witness intimidation
Giuliani and Ellis could testify at election workers’ defamation trial
Saturday 18 November 2023 02:45 , Oliver O'Connell
defence during a trial that will determine how much damage his false statements caused a mother-daughter pair of election workers at the centre of bogus conspiracy theories surrounding the 2020 election.
Donald Trump’s former attorney, who was found liable for defaming Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, could be called to testify about his false statements as well as his team’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, according to a Tuesday filing with an outline of the case.
Jenna Ellis, among attorneys alongside Mr Giuliani who launched a spurious legal campaign to overturn election results, also is on the trial’s witness list, along with other Trump-connected figures Bernie Kerik and Christina Bobb, among others.
A trial is scheduled to begin on 11 December and will last up to four days.
Alex Woodward has the full story.
Trump drops bid to move Stormy Daniels case to federal court
Saturday 18 November 2023 01:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Former President Donald Trump dropped his effort to move his hush money case from New York state court to federal court.
On Tuesday, his attorneys asked the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals “to “dismiss his appeal in this case,” after a previous ruling that had declined the relocation, court documents reveal.
The filing came one day before the deadline for Mr Trump’s legal team to submit its brief for why the case should be moved from state to federal court.
The reason for the move is not immediately clear. A lawyer for Mr Trump declined to comment.
Kelly Rissman has the story.
Trump abandons bid to move Stormy Daniels case to federal court
Trump un-gagged could prime his fraud trial for more chaos
Saturday 18 November 2023 01:20 , Graeme Massie
Prosecutors and a New York judge reported threats surrounding the former president’s lawsuits and criminal cases. While his lawyers steer his fraud trial, he can’t be stopped from targeting them and others, for now.
