With so much going on this week I plan to do a lot of short posts instead of a few omnibus posts. I already posted about the Sandoval ruling this morning. That’s interesting stuff by itself. In the Manhattan criminal trial, the prosecution has made opening arguments and the defense is finishing up. It’s going to be a short trial day today because one of the jurors has a medical issue that needs addressing. The best way to follow along is the New York Times live feed, IMO. No paywall.
Update: The trial had time to introduce the first witness, who is David Pecker of the National Enquirer. He’ll be brought back to the stand tomorrow.
The hearing on Trump’s appeal bond is today, but I’m not sure when. I’m not seeing any new news about it pop up yet.
I wanted to say something more about Congress and the bills passed on Saturday. Axios is reporting that many House Republicans are mightily pissed at Marjorie Taylor Greene.
A growing number of House Republicans are accusing their conservative colleagues of enabling Democratic wins, especially after this weekend’s foreign aid votes.
Why it matters: Multiple members believe they could have gotten concessions from Democrats on border policy in exchange for Ukraine funding, only to be blown up by backlash from conservatives.
My understanding is that Chuck Schumer wants the Senate to accept what the House passed as is and march it to the Oval Office to be signed. I don’t think that’s happened yet. But it’s fascinating that Greene is getting blowback for trying to stop the Ukraine bill entirely. I’ve been seeing news stories here and there over the past few days about how Senate Republicans think Moscow Marjorie needs to dial it back. She’s even getting blowback on Fox News. And now some House members are openly criticizing her also. She may be about to learn the limits of her own influence.
Update: See also All Talk Marge by Josh Marshall.
See also Vance versus McConnell defines GOP Ukraine fight at The Hill.
I'm hearing that Trump is nodding out in court again today. He must be burning the midnight oil devising strategies to counter the evil plot of election interference the Soros backed prosecutor and Joe Biden have launched against him. I'm no legal expert,but my take would be that stress has a magnifying effect on the mind and body as we age. And I would assume that stress being compounded with his knowledge of guilt is extremely debilitating and would make any old and worn out criminal just want to close their eyes and go to sleep.
Trump should adopt the tried and true A.A. slogan to carry him through his difficult journey…"Let go and Let God."
What I'm concerned about – and this was raised by that astrologer I linked to a couple posts ago – is his ANGER. This man has spent his entire life never having to answer to anyone, and now the judge has got him in a box, for the next couple months. His ANGER is going to go off the scale, and it would not surprise me if he has a stroke or some other cardiac event. He wasn't in great physical shape before the trial started, and it's my opinion this will push him over the edge.
He has never practiced "Let go and Let God", which I'm sure is something he regards as for losers.
I'm trying to figure out the settlement on the bond. There's $175 M in an account controlled by the bonding company, Knight, that Trump can not touch. There will be monthly reporting to guarantee the money is there. That wasn't the original deal, the $175 M was put up but with no guarantee it could not disappear. Chris Kise was affronted by the suggestion that Trump can't be trusted – after Trump was found guilty of massive fraud. I can't tell if that's Trump's cash or Knight put it up. The final deal certainly does not help Trump's cash position.
The thing to watch tomorrow is the contempt of court hearing, Trump's attacks on Cohen and Daniels AFTER the gag order. This relates to Moonbat's observation – Trump has no control in the courtroom and he doesn't like it. The judge is properly committed to making the trial fair, Trump wants everyone opposed to him to be intimidated. IMO, Trump will go after jurists if he can. (Trump is not supposed to have the actual list of names but his lawyer has ONE copy.) I think (hope) the judge is not going to allow it but the only leverage he seems to have is the threat of jail.
The Sandoval ruling should end any discussion of Trump taking the stand. But Trump is less concerned about the outcome of this trial than he is the outcome in November. Trump's lawyers aren't "into" the election – all their training and experience is what to do and not do in a trial. I'm not sure Trump's legal team has ANY defense beyond creating doubt about credibility. The problem is that there's evidence, including signed checks to Cohen with Trump's signature and (I think) a recording Cohen made of the deal. Hope Hicks may testify to the deal. (No one knows the exact content of her testimony.) But the defense has an uphill battle creating doubt about everybody and everything. So Trump will feel compelled to take the stand and persuade the jury it's all a deep-state conspiracy. For Trump's lawyers to tell him that, with what the Sandoval decision will allow, taking the stand would be a suicide mission, certain to do more harm than good… let me say, the message would not be well received.
Trump taking the stand is 50-50 in my book.
Good concerns. My take is that if TFG's appeal in that civil settlement fails, then the State of NY will get control of the $175M account that has been provided to Knight as collateral. I view that as the first payment against the civil settlement, and the State of NY will then have to immediately commence legal proceedings to collect the balance. So it would amount to a delay in the timing of the payment of the other (roughly) 2/3 of the judgement.
That's not great, but it's better than nothing. The longer he delays settling up the more interest he will owe, and I doubt he can get enough earnings from delaying the loss of control of the assets to make it worth his while. He's just pathologically incapable of paying money to anyone but himself.
IMO, this is Part II of "Trump Losing His Grip on the Republican Party". Exhibit #1 is the NY Post's front page "Nyet, Moscow Marjory":
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As I've been saying for years, "the GOP" is not Trump, it's not a bunch of voters, it's a set of Think Tanks and the Zillionaires who fund them. That part of the GOP – the Liz Cheney wing! – has never liked or trusted Trump, because he's a loose cannon (ha, personally as well as politically!). Trump has never really been a "Republican"; for him, politics is just a fun way to garner attention. He has no ideology, no political framework. The only parts of the Republican Platform that he talks about are the Culture War issues that excite the Mob – the parts that the Big Money wing invented to get people to vote for politicians whose real job was to enact legislation which impoverished that Mob.
That same Old GOP has always supported funding Ukraine against Russia. In 2012, Obama skewered Romney for claiming that Russia – rather than Al Qaida – was "the biggest geopolitical threat facing America"!
The old Big$ GOP has been slowly working to regain control of Trump's Mob. They don't directly oppose Trump; they are letting Democrats do their dirty work for them. They gladly join in the chorus of "Democrats are jackbooted thugs abusing the Justice system to destroy Trump", because that's the best way they can win back the loyalty of the Maga Mob.
MTG is a loudmouth idiot – another loose cannon – and the GOP will be glad to be rid of her, even if it means losing a Congressional seat for a couple years. They play the long game, and they play it well. They will "support" Trump through the election, but they will give their money to specific Senate & House candidates, not to Trump or the NRC. And even if Democrats somehow regain control of both Houses of Congress, they can live with Biden (and then probably Harris…) as President for the next four years (with a 6-3 majority in the Supreme Court to block any tax increases or environmental regulation).
The GOP is winning its war against Trump.