Below is my column in Fox.com on the superseding indictment of Sen. Bob Menendez (D., N.J.), who faces new charges after the cooperation of a former associate. The new charges only magnified the striking similarities between the corruption scandals involving Menendez and Hunter Biden. The timing could not be more interesting given filings the same week by Hunter Biden claiming selective prosecution.
Here is the column:
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., was in court this week for another superseding indictment brought by federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York. Rather than the four original counts, he now faces 18 counts with his wife, Nadine Arslanian Menendez, and alleged co-conspirators Wael Hana and Fred Daibes.
What is most notable is not the proliferation of counts but the lack of comparative charges in the pending case against Hunter Biden. Some of us have long raised concerns over the striking similarity in the alleged conduct in both cases, but the absence of similar charges against the president’s son. That contrast just got even greater.
The allegations in the two cases draw obvious comparisons.
Menendez is accused of accepting a $60,000 Mercedes-Benz as part of the corrupt practices. In Hunter’s case, it was a $142,000 Fisker sports car. For Menendez, there were gold bars worth up to $120,000. For Biden, there was the diamond allegedly worth $80,000.
Underlying both cases are core allegations of influence peddling and corruption. However, the Justice Department threw the book at Menendez while minimizing the charges against Biden.
That includes charging Menendez as an unregistered foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). Many of us have said for years that the treatment of Hunter under FARA departs significantly from the treatment of various Trump figures like former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort as well as Menendez.
Now, there is a new layer of troubling comparisons to be drawn in the two cases.
The superseding indictment incorporates new charges after the plea and cooperation of Menendez’s former co-defendant and businessman Jose Uribe.
Uribe appears to have supplied the basis for some of the new charges, including a telling account with Nadine Menendez. She allegedly asked Uribe what he would say to law enforcement about the payments used for a Mercedes-Benz convertible and Uribe said that he could say that the payment were a “loan.” Nadine Menendez responded that “sounded good.”
The loan discussion hit a familiar cord with those of us who have written about the Biden corruption scandal. The Bidens have repeatedly referred to payment from foreign sources as “loans.” That most notoriously included millions given by his counsel Kevin Morris.
In some cases, foreign money was received by President Joe Biden’s brother James and then immediately sent to the president’s personal account marked as a loan repayment. James admitted that the $40,000 was coming from the Chinese.
The Justice Department in the Menendez case dismissed the claim of loans as merely a transparent effort to hide influence peddling. That includes not just the convertible payment but more than $23,000 that one businessman made toward the senator’s wife’s mortgage.
Menendez and Biden share the array of luxury gifts, cars, and loans. However, the most important common denominator was the underlying corruption. Both cases are classic examples of influence peddling, which has long been a cottage industry in Washington, D.C.
What they do not share is the same level of prosecution or press support. Menendez is a pariah in Washington and Hunter is the president’s son.
Menendez is blamed by many inside the Beltway not for being corrupt but for being open about it.
The fact that others have been prosecuted for conduct similar to his own has not stopped Hunter from claiming victim status. He has told courts that even the few charges brought against him are evidence of selective prosecution.
In the most recent filing, Special Counsel David Weiss dismissed many of Hunter’s claims as “patently false” and noted that Hunter Biden virtually flaunted his violations and engaged in obvious efforts to evade taxes and hide his crimes.
Weiss further noted that other defendants did not write “a memoir in which they made countless statements proving their crimes and drawing further attention to their criminal conduct.”
It was a devastating take-down of Hunter’s claims, but it did not address the conspicuous omission of charges brought against Menendez, including FARA charges.
It also does not address the fact that the Justice Department not only allowed the statute of limitations to run on major crimes, but sought to finalize an obscene plea agreement with no jail time for Hunter. It only fell apart when a judge decided to ask a couple of cursory questions of the prosecutor, who admitted that he had never seen an agreement this generous for a defendant.
Weiss noted in his filing that they filed new charges only after Hunter’s legal counsel refused to change the agreement and insisted that it remained fully enforceable.
As Hunter continues to claim to be the victim of selective prosecution in various courts, judges need only to look over the Menendez case to see the truth of the matter. Hunter is not the victim of selective prosecution but the beneficiary of special treatment in the legal system.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University and a practicing criminal defense attorney. He is a Fox News contributor.
What is a loan for? Any loan has to have a reason – why was brother loaning brother so much? Makes no sense- but WHy wasn’t ny hurt by such loan too? They pretend to be hurt by other Trump loans. Derivatively.
Thank God Jonathan Turley is a man of honesty
And integrity! Very hard to find in DC today.
What does Menendez’s superseding indictment do to Trump’s claims of selective prosecution? Oh wait, that doesn’t play well to Fox News crowd. Nevermind…
Actua)ly this says a lot – the feds are on the case. And what are they on ? I don’t know – but I do know scotus is taking up immunity. The ship might get righted. But your right Menendez had gold bars in his pocket- manafort ring a bell? It’s selective bc Trump doesn’t have a fur coat nor bars of gold from foreigners but is being prosecuted over bs charges- that’s selective prosecution.
And in other news, Nex Benedict, the transy non-binary whatever kid, who got clobbered in the girls bathroom, died of suicide!
Nex Benedict, a 16-year-old nonbinary student in Oklahoma who died a day after a physical altercation in a high school girls’ bathroom, died as a result of suicide, according to an autopsy report released on Wednesday.
A medical examiner’s report said that the teenager had been found with a “combined toxicity” of diphenhydramine, an antihistimine commonly used for allergies, and fluoxetine, a drug often used to treat depression.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/13/us/nex-benedict-oklahoma-nonbinary-suicide.html
Republicans do not inspire anyone except perhaps Democrats. Republicans are eunuchs and Democrats are MTF Trans on testosterone
Disgraceful
Speaker Johnson says ‘didn’t know’ about fellow House GOPer Buck resigning, narrowing his majority
https://justthenews.com/government/congress/speaker-johnson-says-he-didnt-know-about-colorado-rep-buck-resigning
I guess the Buck didn’t stop there, by Mike Johnson’s office, on the way out the door. . . 🙂
Biden’s America: where crime pays for the Big Guy, his drug addict, thug son and increasing number of criminals protected by Soros / Democrat prosecutors
Owner of Family Dollar to Close 1,000 Stores:
Inflation, store theft and merger indigestion are sapping results at the discount retailer
Persistent inflation and reduced government benefits are pressuring customers, particularly at the lower-income levels, at the Family Dollar chain, executives said Wednesday. Family Dollar caters to low-income shoppers selling everything from $1.25 cans of tuna to $30 air fryers.
“Family Dollar is a victim of the macro environment out there,” Chief Executive Rick Dreiling said Wednesday, citing still-accelerating levels of inventory loss and theft. “But again, I come back to a well-run Family Dollar is a very, very powerful retail format.”
Executives at McDonald’s on Wednesday also said cash-strapped consumers are pulling back in 2024. Lower-income consumers increasingly have spent their savings and are turning to grocery stores instead of restaurants, McDonald’s finance chief, Ian Borden, said at an investor conference. “Some of those consumers are just choosing to eat at home more often,” he said.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/companies/dollar-tree-books-more-than-2-billion-in-charges-plans-to-close-about-600-stores-in-first-half/ar-BB1jOXav
Bidenomics screws over Americans except for Biden’s wealthy leftists
There are about 8,500 Family Dollar stores in the country, and about the same number of Dollar Trees. I used to go to Dollar General to stock up on canned goods, and cheap caviar.
Jonathan: In the Mar-a-Lago docs case Judge Cannon has shown her true stripes. Through delays in hearing motions and other procedural delays she is displaying her utter loyalty to DJT. She is trying to delay the trial until after the election. And Cannon has a lot to answer for in her stalling tactics.
Two days ago, Brian Butler, DJT’s longtime driver, was interviewed by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins. In the long interview Butler spilled his guts about what he saw going at Mar-a-Lago. He described an incident– the same day that DJT and his attorney Evan Corcoran were meeting with DOJ officials about retrieving official government docs. Butler says he was tasked with taking the DJT family personal belongings to the airport to be flown to Bedminster. Butler says Walt Nauta followed him in an Escalade to the airport. There Butller says he helped Nauta load 15-20 banker boxes on to the plane. Butler says he didn’t know what was in the boxes–although he later said they were just like the boxes in Jack Smith’s indictment.
After Jack Smith filed his indictment Butler put two and two together and decided to resign as DJT’s club valet and manager in August of 2022. He is listed in Smith’s indictment as “Trump employee 5” and Butler is now cooperating with Jack Smith’s team. So why is Butler now speaking publicly? He is afraid that Judge Cannon’s perfidy will delay the trial beyond the election and the American people (the voters) will not know about his former boss’s illegality.
Now normally prosecutors don’t want a key witness to make public statements before trial. But they can’t stop a witness from doing so. Butler thinks his hand was forced by Judge Cannon’s delaying tactics– and he has put another nail in DJT’s legal coffin. Walt Nauta was, under orders from the “Boss”, secretly moving boxes of classified material from Mar-a-Lago to Bedminster to avoid detection by the DOJ.
Butler told Collins his life is now upside down. Although he is willing to testify against DJT he knows his life is going to be a living hell–death threats for months waiting to see if the case ever goes to trial. That could all have been avoided had Judge Cannon stuck to her May trial date. But Cannon’s loyalty to DJT came before protecting witnesses. That’s why Judge Cannon has a lot of explaining to do!
Congratulations, Denis. You’ve finally perfected the nothing-burger.
Dennis McIntyre – You are the Nothing-Burger King, Home of the Big-Fat-McWhopper!
Hur informs us that having papers is not a crime. Moving documents is not a crime
So exactly what is the story here.
Thre is no story. Butler is unlikely to testify – unless Trump thinks it is favorable for him to put on half a dozen rebuttle witnesses to say “Yup, Trump has documents, and moves them all the time”.
Dennis claims that Bulter has “flipped” I am sure that the FBI/DOJ interveiwed him along with everyone else that works for Trump.
If Butler saw boxes being moved – it does nto suprise me that Smith’s team had Butler testify to the GJ – you can get almost anything in front of a GJ and you can spin it however you want.
But that does not mean it even gets infront of a petit jury.
Has Butler quit his job – I assume Dennis is not lying about that – but who knows.
I am sure Butlers life is h311 right now – being even a minor witness in an extremely high profile case is going to be nerve wracking and bring a world of attention you do not want.
That is Jack Smith’s fault not Trump’s.
John Say: You need a reality check–once again: (1) Butler will testify; (2) Butler never “flipped”. He was never indicted and only listed in the indictment as “Trump Employee 5”; (3) Butler is not a “minor witness”–he is important to provide further evidence of the DJT’s “obstruction”; (4) Jack Smith is not responsible for Butler stepping forward. JS’s team probably told Butler to wait for trial to give his testimony but Butler apparently thought it was better to get out his story. There are several people responsible for Butler’s predicament: DJT for allowing Butler to get innocently involved in the conspiracy and Judge Cannon who has said she wants to release the names of the witnesses–a move Jack Smith has strenuously opposed. Can’t blame Butler’s predicament on JS!
” Butler will testify”
Butler has already testified to the GJ.
But absent evidence that the boxes he saw contained classified information it is highly unlikely he will testify in the FL case.
Seeing Bankers boxes go to Bedminster is NOT evidence in the FL case.
It is like Butler testifying that Nauto wore shoes that day.
It is possible that Trump will not object to his testimony – it is NOT damaging, even though you seem to think it is.
Bedminster was searched and no classified documents were found. In fact like Biden, all of Trump world was searched and outside of the presidential office and SCIF at MAL no classified documents were found.
Conversely EVERYWHERE that Bidne has been classified documents were found strewn about.
Regardless, when the prosecution has someone testify – the defense has the right to call rebuttle witnesses.
In this case that would be days of people testifying that bankers boxes follow Trump everywhere he goes all the time.
And others to testify to what was in the bankers boxes that Butler saw.
Butler admittedly can not do that. But others can.
If there was someone who could testify that they had classified material in them – Smith would have included that in the indictment.
What has been increasingly evident is that Smith’s “Evidence” is all exactly like Butler,
Testimony of people who know little about things that with great probability do NOT mean what Smith claims they do.
Todate Smith has nothing that constitutes credible evidence that Classified Documents ever left the presidential offices at MAL, or that they were ever shared with anyone.
The fact that Classified documents were found in bankers boxes in the SCIF at MAL does NOT mean that everyone of the likely 10,000 bankers Boxes that Trump has spread through his operations probably contained classified information.
This is like saying the classified docs were found in a closet. Butler saw closets in Bedminster. Therefore there were classified documents in them.
“Butler never “flipped”.”
I did not say he did. I said that I do not trust anything YOU say without evidence to support it.
You ranted about Butler’s alleged thoughts. As you constantly rant about what is going on in other peoples heads.
Your not telepathic, get over yourself.
I have no interest in your claims regarding the thoughts of others.
“Butler is not a “minor witness”–he is important to provide further evidence of the DJT’s “obstruction”; ”
If you think Butler has important evidence – then Smith’s case is completely on the rocks.
AGAIN – Butler only gets in as a witness, If Trump’s lawyers decided it is worth a week of trial boring the schiff out of everyone with proof that Trump has lots and lots of bankers boxes and moves them all the time.
Trump also wears a suit, and likely wore a suit when he was in the SCIF at MAL.
Can we assume that anytime Trump is wearing a suit that he has classified information
“Jack Smith is not responsible for Butler stepping forward.”
Of course they are – if they did not interview pretty much every Trump- employee they did not do their jobs.
I think Smith is an idiot. But even he is not stupid enough not to have interviewed thousands of people and Butler would have been near high among them.
It is evident from the indictment that Smith is relying heavily on “moving boxes” as evidence in his prosecution.
But evidence that boxes were moved is not going to be admitted at trial – absent some evidence that the boxes being moved contained classified information. So far there is no evidence that the Boxes containing classified information in the SCIF ever left the SCIF much less left the presidential offices or MAL.
Smith MUST connect the boxes to classified information or information about bankers boxes does not get admitted to evidence.
All this does is reveal the WEAKNESS of Smith’s case,
And the poor quality of your thinking.
“JS’s team probably told Butler to wait for trial to give his testimony but Butler apparently thought it was better to get out his story. ”
More mind reading.
Do you KNOW what Smith’s team told anyone ?
You constantly speculate and then pretend your speculation is evidence.
“There are several people responsible for Butler’s predicament: DJT for allowing Butler to get innocently involved in the conspiracy”
Todate you have no evidence of an actual conspiracy.
The EVIDENCE that you actually have is”
Trump took or had others take papers from the WH to MAL while he was president.
I would note that happened from the begining of Trump’s presidency to the end.
This all started with the outgoing NARA head observing Trump carrying a few bankers boxes onto VM-1 as he left the WH on J20, 2021. The BBs in the SCIF at MAL were in all likelyhood moved there over the course of 4 years not one day or week.
So we have established that BB’s with WH docs were at MAL.
And some of those BB’s contain docs that were classified at some time.
That is pretty much all you have.
The presence of BB’s in an SUV or anywhere else is not evidence – unless you can provide atleast a more likely than not claim that those BB’s could contain classified docs.
“and Judge Cannon who has said she wants to release the names of the witnesses–a move Jack Smith has strenuously opposed. ”
Because we conduct star chamber trials in the US ?
We do not have secret trials.
“Can’t blame Butler’s predicament on JS!”
Of course you can – JS is bringing a garbage case based on politics not evidence.
MFee in GA just dumped the counts that YOU have ranted as absolute proof – because they do not state an actual crime.
MCFee is stating exactly what I have said for a long time. There is not even an allegation of an actual crime in much of this.
And JS has indicted Trump for “moving boxes”.
If Smith found classifed docs at Bedminster – Butler’s testimony might get it.
If Smith can somehow establish those boxes came from the SCIF – Butler’s testimony might get it.
But testimony that Butler saw Bankers boxes loaded into a plane is NOT EVIDENCE.
Wow Trump transported Boxes to Bedminster.
BTW the FBI searched Bedminster and other Trump properties – just as they did Biden.
I am sure they found hundreds of Bankers boxes.
They found no classified documents anywhere but MAL.
They found no classified documents at MAL anywhere but in Trump’s presidential office.
They found no documents at MAL that were not locked up.
They found no documents at MAL that were not secured inside of a 24×7 gated community, where there is CCTV everywhere,
Where Trump’s residence is separately secured – with even more 24xy security – including Secret Service.
NONE of the above is True about Biden.
Hur confirmed – Biden docs were found in his home – in 4 different places – including in falling apart boxes mixed with clothes and old furniture in Biden’s Garage. They found them at his vacation home, in his arcihves at uDel, and at Biden Center in DC.
It is actually quite important that Hur found Biden incompetent to stand trial – because if he was competent – he violated 18 US 1001 and perjured himself. In his deposition, he stated unequivocally that all classified documents were locked in filing cabinets NONE were.
There is no actual evidence that Trump shared classified information. Biden admitted to providing classified information to his biographer.
I doubt Butler will get to testify – aside from the fact that it is not likely there will be a trial.
He has nothing to testify to.
Seeing boxed loaded into a SUV is not evidence. Yes, the boxes looked like those Smith stole from MAL – they are BANKERS BOXES.
I have atleast 100 in my own home. I would guess that Trump has ten thousand.
Unless Smith can establish probable cause that classified materials were in those boxes – Butler does not testify.
Not that his testimony would be meaningful.
If Butler is getting death threats – the people doing so should be arrested.
Though I am dubious of all these “death threats” claims – few if any people have been arrested for terroristic threats.
Threats against a witness are also witness tampering.
I fully support prosecuting people who threaten others meeting the Brandenberg V. Ohio test for unprotected threatening speech.
Given the number of people claiming to have been threatened and the complete absence of arrests and prosecutions – I am highly suspicious that these “threats” are mostly not real.
I am also sure that Trump’s lawyers and witnesses are getting threats all the time too.
Such threats are relatively commonplace in high profile news and politics.
So far the actual violence we have seen is mostly from the left.
Trump is entitled to delay – every single defendant in every case – civil or criminal is entitled to try to delay the case.
They are entitled to do so with any motive they choose.
Trump can openly admit that he seeks to delay the trials until after the election.
He can say so publicly – he can say so in court filings.
He can even legally argue that the case MUST be delayed as a matter of law until after the election.
He can legally argue that the case MUST be conducted so that it does not interfere in anyway with the election and his campaign.
He can be 100% open about that – and he may even win those arguments.
There are potentially thousands of other legitimate reasons that Trump and any criminal defendant can seek to delay a trial.
Conversely – the prosecutor has no right to a speedy trial. Nor can he claim – though Smith has that the election requires speeding the trial up. Doing so risks Smith getting Biden slapped by SCOTUS – they ALREADY did once when he Tried to jump the queue on the immunity appeal.
Smith. Willis, Bragg can not argue that the case must be expedited to try it before the election. If they do so that would be an ethical violation and risks getting the case tossed or delayed with certainty until after the election.
Cannon is constitutionally obligated to assure that Trump gets “due process” – that COMES FIRST. Further there is absolutely no legal rule or rule of ethics requiring her to conduct the trial prior to the election. In fact she is legally entitled to accept Trump’s argument that the case must be prosecuted after the election. She can rule that openly – and not have violated any cannons of law or judicial conduct.
Trump is engaged in an incredibly complex legal strategy here – taking advantage of the mistakes that Democrats have made in trying to run multiple cases against him at once. The Courts are REQUIRED to schedule in deference to existing schedules in other courts.
One of the reasons that Chutkan rescinded her scheduling order in the J6 case is because it blocked the FL, GA and NY cases.
Trump is doing more than just trying to delay. He is trying to get cases scheduled at times that will block other cases – even though the case being scheduled is not going to proceed at the time scheduled.
Trump is currently trying to get the FL cases scheduled for 6 weeks starting in September. The FL case is not going to trial in September, or in august or this year, or ever. But if it is scheduled in September – no other case can be scheduled for that period.
Absolutely Trump is gaming the courts and trying to delay delay delay.
And he is legally entitled to – it is called due process. It is aright found in ….. THE 14th Amendment – something that SCOTUS just biden slapped the entire left – and YOU – maybe you should read it.
Regardless, most criminal cases take about 18months to go to trial. Cases rarely go faster without a plea deal.
Complex cases usually take much longer. Classified documents cases tend to take 2 years.
Gen. Flynn’s guilty plea took over 2 years.
If you actually see ANY Trump case go to trial – that would be MORE proof of left wing nut corruption in the judiciary
You are constantly telling us what other people are thinking.
What Trump is thinking.,
What cannon is thinking.
What Smith is thinking
What Butler is thinking.
Why they are doing what they are doing.
Yet you provide no evidence to support your telepathic claims.
I am sure that Butler is anxious – being a witness in a high profile trial is anxiety prone.
That is a fact of life – get over it.
My father died in 2013, his estate was finally settled in 2018.
There were numerous motions, and hearings and depositions and briefs.
From 2013 through 2015 pretty much everywhere I went I drug arround atleast 3 bankers boxes of documets related to my fathers estate.
Nor was it the same boxes from day to day – there were probably a couple of hundred bankers boxes of material pertaining to my fathers affairs that I had to review.
Trump has been in the midst of multiple lawsuits pretty much his entire life.
After he left office – in the middle of all this classified documents nonsense there were several cases in NY.
In one of those cases the plantiffs lawyers claimed that Trump was hiding documents at MAL or other properties.
The could concluded that he was and order Alina Habba to visit every single Trump property and look for anything that might be responsive to this complaint. The judge held Habba and tRump in contempt and fined them exhorbitantly until everything was turned over.
That alone would have required moving documents at MAL.
Habba did what the court ordered – searched everywhere, found nothing that should have been provided that was not,
signed an affadavit to that effect, and the judge vacated the contempt order and returned all the fines.
Regardless, the point is that YOUR lawfare against Trump ensures that he and his attornies will ALWAYS be moving arround banker boxes of documents and reviewing them.
I beleive there are 13M documents involved in discovery in the MAL case alone. Trump has an army of lawyers reviewing these.
Those junior lawyers are pulling a tiny percent of these documents – for review by senior lawyers, a portion of those are then sent to Trump for review and comment. This is normal for a trial. Trump has almost a dozen xcases pending or in appeal – each one of those requires some document review by Trump all the time.
If Trump is not dragging 15-20- bankers boxes with him pretty much everywhere he goes – boxes that are likely constantly changing.
THAT would be highly unusual.
I do not doubt that Butler saw what he claims to have seen. But what he claims to have seen is not inculpatory – it is normal.
You are free to guess that Trump was hiding classified documents. But it is just a guess. Butlet provides no0 actual evidence.
His testimony was admisible at the grand jury – because there is no one to object in a grand jury.
It ios likely to be excluded from Trial – not for some high legal reason – but because the testimoeny means nothing.
Butler can not testify to what was in the boxes, and transporting 15-20 bankers boxes would not be unusal for Trump.
It would not be unusal – just as part of managing his empire as he moves arround. I bet Oprah moves 15-20 bankers boxes everytime she goes from one place to the next.
It would not be unusual for someone facing multiple concurrent legal actions.
Butler would be testifying that “the sky is blue” and the courts tend not to want to hear that.
Prosecutors are allowed to present evidence.
They are not allowed to waste the courts time.
At the same time Trump may not object to Butlers testimony. It is trivial to address, allowing Bulter to testify means Trump can put on half a dozen witnesses to explain why he is constantly traviling with larged numbers of documents.
If you want a trial before the election – you do not want to she a week wasted with Butler testifying to “i saw boxes”.
Judge McFee just dismissed 6 counts of the GA indictment against Trump for failure to state a crime.
These include the conversations with Raffensberger and the conversations with members of the state legislature over alternate electors.
JohnSay: Once again you miss the forest for the trees! DJT and his co-defendants wanted the entire indictment dismissed. Didn’t happen. Judge McAfee (not “McFee”) only dismissed 6 of the 41 counts. The 6 counts specifically relate to the charge “Solicitation of Violation of Oath by a Public Officer”. McAfee found the counts vague because the defendants were not on notice about which Oath was involved–state or federal. So now DJT faces only 10 counts. Not exactly a big win.
What you entirely missed was Footnote 8 of Judge McAfee’s order which states: “This does not mean the entire indictment is dismissed. The State may also seek reindictment supplementing these six counts”. What does this mean? Fani Willis, or whoever ends up prosecuting the case, has six months to do one of the following: Appeal Judge McAfee’s order or reconvening the grand jury to hear further evidence and get a superseding indictment on the six counts.
So don’t count your chickens before their hatched. DJT and his co-defendants still face the most serious charges of racketeering under RICO!
“DJT and his co-defendants wanted the entire indictment dismissed.”
Correct, one step at a time. I would note this is almost half of the counts against Trump.
All these counts were dissmissed for the same flaw – broadly failure to state a crime.
These counts were ALL for attempting to get a state official to violate their oath of office.
Willis did not identify what oath much less what provision of that oath was being violated.
As McFee noted – the counts were so thin and ambiguous that the defense was unable to know what they were defending against.
I would further note – these are among the allegedly most egregious counts – the Call to Raffensberger is GONE.
The communications with state legislators are GONE. The nonsense about “fake electors” is GONE.
“dismissed 6 of the 41 counts.”
Almost half the counts against Trump.
” The 6 counts specifically relate to the charge “Solicitation of Violation of Oath by a Public Officer””. McAfee found the counts vague because the defendants were not on notice about which Oath was involved–state or federal. So now DJT faces only 10 counts. Not exactly a big win.”
More half truths. This is not just about which oath. The count does not specify what part of the oath officials were being asked to violate. The judge did not find a minor dot your eyes problem. He found a failure to state an crime.
Willis can refile – but not without going back to a grand jury, and that is not happening anytime soon.
And even if she does – the GJ indictment is going to have to be both specific and provide sufficient evidence to support the count.
Please listen to real legal scholars – ones who have an accurate track records with SCOTUS. The RICO charges were DOA.
IT is remotely possible they survive a trial – if there ever is one. They will not survive on appeal.
All you are doing by ranting about RICO is demonstrating the weakness in the remaining counts.
Today or Tomorow we will find out if the Judge allows Wade, Willis, or Willis’s office to continue on this case.
Various legal scholars I actually trust have noted that
predicting individual judges with little track record is really hard.
That the Judge dismissing 6 counts is a sign that he will broadly disqualify.
Or that he wont. Regardless we will know soon.
My “Guess” is that Willis and Wade are DQ’d – so far while this judge has NOT followed the law carefully, he has also NOT been a left wing nut. I have disagreed with nearly every decision of his, but the entire left has also disagreed with every decision of his.
I am guessing he splits the baby and removes Willis and Wade – there is just too much regarding them.
Willis has credibly taken kickbacks, lied under oath, and engaged in obstruction of justice.
And the standard of proof for those for DQ is low.
It is probable that not DQ’ing Willis’s office would be better for Trump that DQ’s them.
With Willis and Wade gone the case will limp along and die slowly.
But that is just hurdle 1.
Willis is facing impeachment and removal in the GA legislature.
Separately the GA AG is looking into Willis.
There is likely a federal prosecutor looking into Willis for misuse of federal funds.
GA has a prosecutors integrity board, which the GA Supreme court recently disempowered.
The GS LEgislature and Gov Kemp have just corrected the problem the GA SC found.
The GA prosecutors integrity board is looking into Willis, they can sanction her, remove her from cases, remove her from office, force retirement, and refer her for criminal prosecution.
Hot times in Atlanta for Willis. tonight.
You keep telling me that Trump’s lawyers Suck. Well they are on a winning streak here.
No matter what the judge decides on DQ – Trump’s lawyers won a major victory by putting Willis/Wade on trial for the past month.
The damage – not just to the GA case but to ALL Trump cases is significant. Willis is obviously hypocritical and crooked.
That reflects on James, Smith, Kaplan, Engoron. Also while I have disagreed with the judge on many decisions, – he is clearly NOT a biased left wing nut. We are NOT seeing a fair trial. But we are seeing on that does not have a massively politically biased judge.
That reflects badly on Merchan, Kaplan and Engoron in NY.
Further if you watched the hearings in GA – the Defense team was excellent and brutal. the Atlanta DA’s office sucked.
Willis, Wade, and Bradley looked like they got their law degrees from cereal box tops.
Further there was evidence that the GA Bar was engaged in obstruction.
Regardless, you keep ranting about Trump’s lawyers – but it is those on the left that are losing badly.
The Ballot decision in SCOTUS was 9-0 overall – with a clear majority willing to go much farther.
BTW the arguments of the majority all apply to presidential immunity.
So you already have 5 justices likely siding with fairly broad presidential immunity.
That is a huge loss for hundreds of left wing legal pundits.
Smith lost trying to jump the queue. He is losing issue after issue against Trump in FL.
Willis just lost 6 counts in GA.
All of these losses are because of BAD lawyering.
You want to twaddle on about the judges decision – but ignore the fact that this is a significant ERROR on the part of Willis.
Smith has the distinction of having been biden slapped by SCOTUS 9-0 multiple times – Before Trump.
These are the people who you think are good ?
Smith can appeal connons actions in this trial – see how far that gets you.
I highly doubt there will be a “cannon is slow walking the case”
appeal – but who knows – Smith seems to like losing.
I think it’s premature to call either the Menendez case of the Hunter Biden case corruption. But there are larger and more important issues here.
For example, Menendez got a $60,000 Mercedes-Benz and gold bars worth $120,000, for a total of $200,000.
And Hunter Biden got a $142,000 Fisker sports car and a diamond worth $80,000, for a total of $222,000.
It seems to me that Menendez needs to collect $22,000 from his contributors so that the amounts received are the same. Otherwise there’s no equality and no justice.
Turley puts out at least one of these Hunter-Gate columns each week. But by now none of us expects any truly new developments. Even Floyd, the not-so-unofficial gate keeper to this blog, has nothing new to say about Hunter.
Floyd, one gathers, ventures no further than the bathroom or kitchen during his 16 hour shifts on these threads. Yet we appreciate his constant warnings about ‘paid liberal shills’ posting here. Yes, it is annoying when liberals occasionally interrupt Floyd’s near-constant chain of posts.
With regards to Turley and these Hunter-Gate columns, they remind us of a cat on the windowsill. Kitty is watching a bird in the yard with unblinking focus. His rapt attention is such that we start to wonder if that bird is maybe vandalizing the property. Like, “Maybe I should take a look to see what that bird is doing”.
The Biden’s are corrupt. Those of us who are persuaded by the evidence do not need more.
Those who are not would not be persuaded by video of the Biden’s caught in the act.
Regardless., this is a legal blog.
Thank you so much for noticing me! Is being a gate-keeper here, a paid gig? Because if so, I would sure like to apply! Tell me, how much do you get paid to be a Shill, so I will have something to go by? Is it by the word, or by the hour, or by the comment? Since my comments are more intelligent than yours, by far, I think I should make more than you? Oh, and do I have to split my pay with Estovir, or whoever you think I am??? Thanking you in advance for your input! Floyd!
OT, but this is the kind of thing at a micro economic level that small businesses and families are facing as a result of Bidenflation.
#Bidenflation Forces One Taqueria Owner To Double Price Of Burrito To $22
“Ricardo Lopez was long reluctant to raise the prices at his Mission District restaurant La Vaca Birria, where he serves succulent beef braised in a red broth packed into burritos and tacos. But as of late, he simply has no other choice to remain afloat.
“I wish there was something else that I could do,” he said.
Just like seemingly every other restaurant in the Bay Area, prices have been increasing at La Vaca Birria, and customers aren’t always accepting of the change. So in a recent Instagram post, Lopez addressed a customer complaint about high prices and broke down the reasons his popular grilled cheese birria burrito has gone from $11 a couple of years ago to its current price of $22.
Simply put, the cost of ingredients and labor has gone up. The trend isn’t new: In the past few years, increasing costs have pushed the price of popular foods from pizza to fried chicken sandwiches ever higher, and burritos aren’t the exception.”
https://archive.is/OlxAu#selection-1517.0-1523.77
Meanwhile, over at the LGBTQxyz Center in Philly, there was a premature withdrawal of Federal funds. BTW, I am all for tying some of these people up, and suspending them! 🙂
An LGBTQ+ community center in Philadelphia is losing more than $1 million in federal grants after being accused of hosting sex parties, according to 6ABC.
Chris Bartlett, executive director of the William Way Center said: “We’re disappointed, we’re outraged.”
“We provide space for hundreds of groups a year,” he added. One of those parties, as was pointed out by LibsOfTikTok on X, is The Aviary, which 6ABC says ‘hosts kink parties’.
Gil Cnaan, co-founder of The Aviary, offered up this riveting defense: “Almost anything could be a kink. A lot of people are into various forms of spanking.”
“We always have an educational space set up. Then we have an open play space where you can try out a whole bunch of different things,” he continued. “You have benches you can put people over for spanking. You have places where you can tie people up and suspend them, but we also have a room that’s like blanket forts and coloring books.”
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/philly-lgbtq-community-center-loses-1m-federal-funds-due-sex-party-allegations
Floyd said: “…we have an open play space where you can try out a whole bunch of different things,” he continued. “You have benches you can put people over for spanking…”
I recall similar places for heterosexuals when I was younger. We called them “whorehouses”…
And government did not fund them.
Floyd,
It it is times like this, reading things like that, seeing how absurd our country has become, maybe it is better for some kind of social, economic collapse. A lot of people would die, but then no one is going to care about pronouns, gender identity, or spankings when you are either dodging bullets, trying to find clean water, or resorting to eating rats.
And you know the grant had to be some kind of payoff to somebody. Good people are doing without, while money goes out the door for this kind of foolishness.
Floyd,
Right!
It is a grift.
Just like a lot of the whole climate change thing is.
Speaking of Climate Change.
I read where MIcrosoft founder Bill Gates was saying that all the data they are trying to store in server rooms is generating so much heat that are trying to put the servers underwater to reduce the cooling costs.
Doesn’t Bill know that we are in a Climate Change Crisis? If he would stop spying on everyone and storing all our personal info, he could save the planet!
Clearly you have never enjoyed the perils of a spanking
“You were in great peril.”
“I don’t think I was!”
“Yes, you were in terrible peril”
“Look, let me go back in there and face the peril”
“No, it’s too perilous”
“it is better for some kind of social, economic collapse. A lot of people would die, but then no one is going to care about pronouns, gender ”
Upstate, the creation of our nation was one in a million. The chances of a country like ours reappearing are very slim, so before it falls over the edge, we have to save it. If we don’t, the chances are that whatever is rebuilt will be a horrible imitation.
Regardless of your views on sexuality and gender – The government should not be paying for this.
Have all the sex parties you want – ON YOUR OWN DIME.
Yeah, and ON YOUR OWN DAME too! 🙂
The corruption in our government will not stop until we the people stop it. There’s too much money and too much power, this has always been the case. Our founding fathers gave us a Constitutional Republic based upon freedom and liberty, it will only serve an educated and moral populous. It will always boil down to the moral and honest people that believe the very principles of our Nation.
Speaking of Hunter, he’s now saying he’s not going to appear at the public hearing he was demanding.
From the Hill (another online news source Prof. Turley writes for, which is pretty obviously Dem-slanted for those here saying he’s just a foxnews shill): “Hunter Biden for months stated he wanted a public hearing, but now that one has been offered alongside his business associates that he worked with for years, he is refusing to come,” Comer said… To which Raskin, as usual trying to cover for his team, replied, “The idea of calling (him) back now seems within the realm of theater, and bad theater at that.” But who knows, perhaps he’ll show up at the last minute again, sit with folded arms while glaring, until running away like last time.
-Cat
he never actually wanted a public hearing.
In Other News: “Washington Insiders claim lower return on investment after politicians indicted on bribery charges.”
~+~
An unnamed wealthy individual complained lower rates of return from Political Bribery is shaking confidence in the Bribery Market. Influence peddlers took a hit when their commission strategy collapsed following the proment indictment of Menendez. Bribery Investors pulled away from Bribery Futures Contracts when it became clear the sellers of the contract could not perform on quids-pro-quo on favoritism promised for money, gold, and fast cars submitted due to sellers’ own arrests.
Investor Graham Positives said, “When I buy a bribery future from a politician, I expect many years of kickbacks to offset the risk. Now, these indictments have made my futures contracts worthless, just as worthless as these crooks I bought in good faith.”
Darren,
For some reason, the movie Trading Spaces came to mind reading your most witty comment.
great movie!
Jon, you need to fill the slot from noon to 3pm Rush vacated on the AM band. Megyn Kelly is building an enormous audience, on t.v., but there’s plenty for everyone. Act Now Big Fella.
PS – be sure to post comments at the end of the day too – the trolls count on activity slowing down and want to make it seem like they owned the conversation, simply because people are no longer checking in. These are their tactics, but it is what it is. Their boosheet gets bumped to the top because they are paid to be more tenacious, and it isn’t a good look. We all know Gigi, Anonymous, Fishwhatever, Dennis, Bob, Sammy, etc. are either paid shills or very bored and privileged people. Don’t let them get the last word, because they aren’t.
Paid shills.
One of the goobers today, I think it was DeMac, was spieling the same old tired bromide – No Smirnov = no case for impeachment. Geeesh! I commented see this:
https://jonathanturley.org/2024/02/22/no-the-indictment-of-alexander-smirnov-does-not-exonerate-hunter-biden/
Wouldn’t it be kewl if one of them found Jesus, or Buddha, or maybe just a sense of integrity, and blew the whistle on the whole operation?
R u kidding? I love their humor. They r The dumbest boobs! Everyone sees that but them. (Sssshhhh. Don’t tell them.)
James,
I agree with you, but only to a degree.
Yes, the usual suspects come in and add their comments. Generally I just scroll past, as they are not worth the time to read, unless John Say or Lin has some epic take down.
But they are free to post their comments. Reader beware.
@Upstate
Same here, generally speaking, and I’m not proposing revoking anyone’s privileges. It’s likely not worth bothering, but the whole point of comment bombing, as you likely know, is for their posts to be what people see first, as most readers aren’t going to drill down to the other comments. Is what it is. 🤷🏽♂️
Less savvy/interested readers might read the article and see a few comments calling Turley a hack, and that’s it.
The Biden family is a bizarre cross between the Mafia and the communist countries we resisted in previous times. They are thick as thieves with the globalists seeking to control the entire planet. Whatever happens to this guy, whatever has become of justice in this country – use your own moral compass, and let us pray that we do not switch this cold civil war to a hot one, because that increasingly seems like a possibility, and if it came to that, the dems would be perfectly happy to drop bombs or pepper you with machine gun fire (oh, the irony) to hold onto their power. Trump is a ‘threat’? Caring about our own country and its citizens is a threat? 😂😂😂 Make no mistake: if you are still voting dem, you are voting for totalitarianism and destruction, and that is pretty much it. Younger voters, who have never had a real history or civics class, do not understand this. This means you are going to have to put pettiness aside and vote against this madness, even if the other side isn’t perfect and doesn’t ring your particular bells; in eight months, because this is but a tiny preview of our future; it can still get much, much worse. And it is going to with the incompetence of modern young people, whether you like it or not. Grown ups in the White House? Don’t count on it, and be a grownup yourself.
Young modern Leftists will be the globalist’s human shields in a hot civil war. They just don’t know it.
We can always throw Jacob the Shaman Chansley at them to ward off their evil spirits. OLLY can lend him his viking horns.
This guy is nucken futs. How is it possible that men in their 30s like Jacob survive, never mind dress like he did for Tucker’s interview with dangling earrings, a red, white and blue head scarf, oceans of tattoo ink on his hands, limbs and torso, and babble such idiocies?
If we are the only sane ones left then we are really screwed
Prof. Turley. Don’t you mean foxnews.com not fox.com?
College Park, Maryland DEI officer wants to burn America down to the ground; she thinks “we are at war against colonialism.”
Q: is this evil, or just mental illness? Why are mentally ill or evil people hired to these positions? How much do the taxpayers have to fork over to keep this woman employed, who wants America to burn to the ground?
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4223860/posts
A: A lot.
“DEI officer wants to burn America down”
Statin overdose? 🙂
Stalin overdose.
Satan overdose.
You guys are good! 🙂
I have to agree with S. Meyer here!
Well done all!
OldManFromKS,
Wow. What a charmer.
I see this kind of “how we will eat and live and grow after we burn it all down.” here and there.
Very, very few actually understand what it takes to, “how we will eat and live and grow after we burn it all down.”
Just as few understand the implications of “burning it all down.” Destruction for its own sake, or the hubris to think they could build back better. Either way it’s bad.
*There’s even a Bible passage that warns against a “build back better” mindset – Isaiah 9:10
OldManFromKS,
The few times I have meet such people, I point out who is going to run the electrical grid? The electrical grid is actually a fine balance of supply and demand. Screw that up, and the whole thing fails. To add to that, who is going to man that nuclear power station? NG power station? Who is going to rebuild the grid after they burned it all down? Takes a special kind of person to get up there, and have the knowledge of how to connect it properly.
How about water sanitation? Waste?
Who is going to collect the garbage, or manage that?
Then my personal favorite: Who is going to plant and harvest the crops if they burned it all down and there is no fuel? Gonna get out there in the fields and plow by a horse? They know how to manage a horse? Were is the plow? Tell them to get out in the fields and do it with a pick ax? I can hear the cries of systemic racism now. I can tell you this, it is not systemic racism if it is your crops that are going to feed you till next harvest.
A lot of these “burn it all down” types, regardless of color as the ones I have met were white, are going to die by their own ignorance.
Oldman, you got me. I am unsure of the warning part in this phrase set by itself, though I can see a relationship between ‘build back better’ and harm in today’s world and the world of the Bible.
It is a dangerous idea because someone is in control, telling others how the world should be and taxing them simultaneously to create that better world (Build Back Better). Does the Bible warn us about this? One warning that stands out is Solomon’s second temple, which required money to build, and with taxation comes the risk of favoritism.
S. Meyer, I believe that Solomon had the first temple built, not the second.
You are right David. It was a stupid mistake. I don’t know what I was thinking, Thank you
Bob’s wife Nadine Menendez is also under new investigation for killing a man with her 1st Mercedes Benz gift.
Fatal Crash Involving Nadine Menendez Is Under New Investigation
The New Jersey attorney general’s office seized records from Bergen County law enforcement agencies to review whether the investigation of a fatal 2018 car crash involving the soon-to-be wife of Senator Robert Menendez was handled properly.
Dear Prof Turley,
Time. Time, they say, heals all wounds .. . and any lingering unseemly Special Counsel investigations too.
Weiss has been investigating Hunter Biden since 2018, First as US Attorney, and more recently as Special Counsel. And I’m confident Weiss was aware of Hunter’s prior tax liabilities, and with ‘trusted’ FBI’s CHS Smirnov’s allegations prior to 2018. (note. Weiss, on a sudden, has indicted Smirnov too.)
So, that’s six (6) years Weiss has been investigating Hunter Biden. At least. That we know of.
Give me a break. .. it only God six days to create the heavens and earth.
*it only took Special Counsel Hur a little more than a year to exonerate (sic) Joe Biden’s entire 50 years in office .. . and report back to congress.
Dear dgsnowden:
You do this literally, every. Single. Day. You are either very bored, very privileged, or very maladjusted; perhaps a combination of those. Spare us. We are not listening. 🙄
Dear James,
I’m on a mission.
It’s not so much the suffering souls here, like you, clinging to my every word, are not listening that so bothers me. Can’t help that. It’s that so few here seem to understand a word I say.
*FOCK OFF .. . it’s [still] a free country.