For a year, we have debated the foundation for criminal allegations against President Donald Trump and others in the continuing investigation of Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Mueller has indicted individuals for crimes far removed from the Trump campaign, but has remained silent after the singing of the national anthem (I think it was the national anthem) by Fergie at the All-Star NBA game.
Many of us were critical of the decisions of Evergreen State College in not just its holding of it “Day of Absence” event were whites were expected to leave campus but its treatment of Biology professor Bret Weinstein who was hounded out of the college (and later received a $500,000 settlement for his mistreatment). The school has also been criticized for racial exclusions of authors in the school newspaper. Now there is a report that Evergreen could be heading in the same direction of the University of Missouri, which has seen a massive drop in applications in the wake of controversial decisions in race-related controversies. Evergreen reportedly expects a 20 percent decrease in admissions even as it replaces its “Day of Absence” event. There is now a proposed “inclusion” course. The Administration and faculty were remarkably slow in adjusting its course, which seemed to abandon Weinstein and embrace racial exclusionary principles. It is still early to determine if Evergreen will experience the disastrous “Mizzou Effect.”
Below is my column in the Hill newspaper on the implications of the scandals involving two women who have claimed affairs with President Donald Trump in prior years. There are real risks here for the White House which has been issuing categorical denials. Some of the greatest threats to a presidency come from the outer edges. That was the legacy of Bill Clinton whose adultery led to public dishonesty and ultimately perjury.
Continue reading “Does Trump Have an Edwards/Clinton Problem?”
Michael Hufhand and Jed Kidwell, both 54, are facing a novel criminal charge: creating and maintaining an illegal bike trial in a state park. The two men were specifically charged with criminal mischief and trespassing for their bike trial in the Fort Harrison State Park.
Continue reading “Indiana Men Charged With Creating Illegal Bike Path In State Park”
Georgetown received considerable national attention last year when it offered preferential admissions treatment for the descendants of 272 slaves sold in 1838. It also published an apology, announced the creation of an institute on slavery, and renamed two buildings (including one, Issac Hayes Hall, after the first of the sold slaves). It appears however that the school has hit an impasse with the descendants who feel that Georgetown has not done enough and are demanding reparations. It is not clear if the reparations are in addition to the $1 billion demanded earlier from the University for a foundation.
Continue reading “Slave Descendants Demand Reparations From Georgetown”
I recently discussed the highly problematic statement of Michael Cohen, the personal lawyer for President Donald Trump, that he paid off porn star Stormy Daniels (aka Stephanie Clifford) out of his personal funds. This admission did not necessary end the controversy over possible campaign finance violations but did add some thorny ethical questions. One of the possible costs was to void the 2016 agreement itself. Both sides reportedly agreed not to speak publicly about the details of the agreement, but Cohen has now done so in media interviews. In response, Daniels is declaring herself free of any limitations and promising to tell her full story. There is also a story that Daniels has a dress that might have forensic evidence linking her to Trump (sound familiar?). She is reportedly shopping her story. What a mess. This is the result of a combination of bad lawyering, publicity seeking, and what appears strikingly dishonest public statements. Non-disclosure agreements are tricky things since the parties will often dance around a breach in the hopes that the other party will trip the wire in response.
The danger for Trump is that Cohen, as previously described, has left him open to an allegation similar to the one that resulted in criminal charges against John Edwards — the use of a third party to conceal an affair as a circumvention of campaign finance laws. Mueller could conceivably ask about such payments as a possible crime — putting Trump in the same position as Bill Clinton.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren made a surprising appearance at the National Congress of American Indians this week and made an even more surprising statement that she is indeed part Native American. I have been critical of the use of this label (and name calling generally) by the President and others. Yet, the sudden discussion of the controversy was unexpected by Warren. The assumption for years is that Warren had backed off from this claim made during her academic career. She was counted by by two law schools as a Native American. Indeed, we first discussed this issue when Warren was still an academic and her claim that claiming to a Native American offered no advantage to her career. The speech comes at an interesting time for academia where more schools are allowing students to not simply choose their gender (or non-gender) but also their race.
I have been critical of the House Democrats on the Intelligence Committee, particularly for their claims of highly sensitive material in the Nunes memo (which turned out to be facially devoid of such material). However, I believe that the Democrats (and some Republicans) are on solid ground in considering a contempt sanction against former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon. Bannon has refused to answer questions on the grounds of executive privilege but the White House has not asserted executive privilege in prior hearings as far as we can tell. He simply says that he was told not to answer questions. After failing to appear before the Committee or to answer questions previously, Bannon was already looking at a serious possibility of contempt. He then showed up yesterday with a list of 25 questions that he was prepared to answer “yes” or “no.” Bannon spent 20 hours with the Special Counsel’s investigators but gave monosyllabic responses to a congressional oversight committee and then refused to answer material questions. That sounds a lot like contempt to me.
Continue reading “Bannon Moves Closer To Contempt In Defying The House Intelligence Committee”
There is an interesting fight brewing this week after CBS News reported that the White House is refusing to release a photo of President Donald Trump signing a bill overturning an Obama-era regulation restricting certain people from buying guns. I was previously critical of both the Bush and Obama Administrations in withholding photos for purposes political purposes. These photos are the property of the American people and should not be withheld from the media because the White House does not like the imagery. There is a valid journalistic interest in the photo, which should have been released to CBS.
Below is my column in the Hill Newspaper on the recent column in the New York Times by Harvard Law Professor Lawrence Tribe and others that Devin Nunes could be charged with obstruction of justice. The column contains highly dubious uses of both history and precedent to advance this latest claim of criminality. The ABA Journal and other papers have reported on the theory without any objective of its meritless foundation in constitutional law. The basis for such claim is so attenuated as to border on the fanciful. There are serious possible crimes being alleged without twisting the criminal code to go after supporters of President Trump.
Continue reading “When Mania Goes Mainstream: Experts Claim Nunes Could Be Indicted Next”
Juliet Germanotta is running for Congress in Wisconsin on the Democratic ticket and a pledge to advance a“fiscally responsible” approach to government. That promise seemed less than compelling after she was arrested for trying to sell a $4,800 ring allegedly stolen from Mikaelians Jewelry in New York. Her Facebook page says that she is an ordained minister fighting for equal rights as a transgender woman.
We previously discussed the controversy surrounding President Donald Trump’s alleged relationship with porn film star Stormy Daniels. At issue was not just the alleged affair previously described by Daniels in an interview in 2011m but a payment in 2016 of $130,000 in exchange for a denial of the affair. That payment was later the basis for a lawsuit by Common Cause alleging possible campaign finance violations. The source of the money, the lawsuit alleged, may have been campaign money and the use of such money for this purpose would have violated federal law. Now, the Trump attorney who created a shield company and anonymous identity to pay off Daniels has stated that the money was his, not Trump’s or the campaign’s. That disclosure however raises additional questions — both factual and ethical.
Given my column strongly disagreeing with the premise of a recent New York Times column suggesting that House Intelligence Chair Devin Nunes could be charged with obstruction of the memo released by the Committee, I am reluctant to raise yet another Times column. However, the Times yesterday ran a piece that highlights the growing angst over every costume and image as a possible act of “cultural appropriation.” In an article entitled “Who’s Allowed to Wear A Black Panther Mask?”, the newspaper interviews experts on whether white children should be allowed to wear the costume of the popular character. While the verdict was that white children could wear the outfits, it was not without trepidation and the need for some pre-playtime exploration of the racial, socio-economic, and political implications for the children.
Tonight, I will speaking at the Hirshhhorn Museum in Washington, D.C. as part of a panel discussing the ongoing controversy over the removal of confederate and other historical monuments across the country. I have been critical of this movement that has extended not only to Robert E. Lee statues but statues of Christopher Columbus and other historical figures (here and here and here and here and here). The event, Monuments and the First Amendment, will be held at:
The Trump Administration has been openly hostile to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and recently proposed massive cuts in the new budget. Director Mick Mulvaney was viewed as an appointment designed to dismantle the consumer protection agency. Now, as NPR reported, Mulvaney has ordered the dropping of the case against Golden Valley Lending which alleged charged consumers up to 950 percent interest rates. The Administration owes the public a full explanation for this decision. There may be a reason (such as deferring to state prosecution) but the decision on its face is troubling.