Below is my column in the Hill newspaper on the calls for the impeachment of Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein. While the key sponsors have indicated that they may be willing to delay this effort, many continue to advocate for a vote on articles of impeachment. As I have previously said, that would be a mistake. Putting aside the historical and constitutional reasons discussed below, this is the worst possible time for the Republicans to lower the standard for impeachment. The Democrats could well retake the house in November and the effort against Rosenstein could make it all the more easy for Democrats to pursue Donald Trump after the midterm elections. Continue reading “Republicans Need To Consider The Consequences Of A Rosenstein Impeachment”
New reports in Jacksonville, Florida show a man chasing customers in a convenience story with a live gator chased. Strangely it is the wildlife officials who announced that they are investigating (as they should) but not the local police. Last time I check, assault was still a crime and brandishing an alligator would appear to fit the definition.
The 300-pound head of a sphinx has been discovered in dunes in the California central coast traces. Before you rush to re-read your Egyptian history, this sphinx is the work of that great Pharaoh Cecil B. DeMille. It turns out that after filming the silent movie “The Ten Commandments” in 1923, DeMille just left parts of the huge set to be claimed the desert. It is not a Hollywood archeological site.
Continue reading “Giant Sphinx Head Discovery In California Desert . . . Calling Mr. DeMille”
Below is my column in the Hill newspaper on release of the first Cohen tape and rumored seizure of many more such tapes by federal prosecutors. I have previously stated that the secret taping of Donald Trump was, in my view, flagrantly dishonest and disloyal in dealings with a client. While the American Bar Association relaxed the rule against secret taping from being per se unethical, few lawyers would contemplate what Cohen did to his client. Indeed, New York is a jurisdiction that looks with disfavor on such taping as a routine matter. Unless done for some clear societal benefit, it is a serious potential unethical act. Michael Cohen continues to be an embarrassment to the profession in his low level of legal judgment and even lower professional standards of conduct.
Here is the column:
Michael Cohen is reportedly ready to give Special Counsel Robert Mueller key testimony contradicting not only President Donald Trump but the sworn testimony of his son, Donald Trump Jr. He will reportedly say that Trump was aware of the planned meeting with the Russians in Trump Tower. Such testimony may also contradict Cohen’s own statements, which would make a deal all the most essential with Mueller. Cohen’s lawyer Lanny Davis has announced that “Cohen is trying to reset his life . . . This is a turn for him. It’s a new resolve to tell the truth no matter what, even if it endangers him.” It certainly could be dangerous if it contradicts sworn testimony or statement to investigators Continue reading “Cohen Reportedly Ready To Testify That Trump Knew Of The Planned Russian Meeting In Trump Tower”
We earlier discussed the dropping of the highly dubious charges brought against Stormy Daniels in Columbus, Ohio. The arresting officials insisted that they were at the Sirens strip club on an undercover mission entirely separate from the appearance of Stephanie Clifford, aka Stormy Daniels. Emails now appear to contradict that account — raising not only the question of selective enforcement but political bias. There is also the question of the false statements allegedly made to investigators. Continue reading “Sirens: Emails Appear To Confirm That Stormy Daniels Was Selectively Targeted By Ohio Detective And Her Uncover Teams”
In one of the most exciting discoveries of our generation, a reservoir of briny water has been discovered by the European Space Agency’s Mars Express under the surface of Mars. This shallow subglacial lake is 2.4 miles wide and may include still flowing water.
Continue reading “Houston, We Have Water: Europeans Find Possible Subglacial Lake On Mars”
I have done a fair amount of hiking in rattlesnake areas including my recent hike in the Cleveland National Forest. However, the video of a rattler swimming toward a family in a boat is still unnerving and surprising. Wayne Robbins films the aquatic snake in Fontana Lake, North Carolina. Continue reading “Swimming Rattlesnake Terrifies Family In Boat In North Carolina”
The late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan famously said that “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.” That distinction may have been lost in the editing of the controversial press conference in Helinski with President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Arguably the most important and most reporting part of the press conference was a question and answer involving Putin, where he admitted that the Russians wanted Trump to win the presidential election. An official transcript of the press conference, however, by the White House omits the key controversial part of the question by Reuters reporter Jeff Mason. Additionally, the White House videotape omits the same information. The discrepancies have been raised with the White House but no change has been made. This is a serious problem given the fact that this is an official record being released to the public. In fairness to the White House, some news organizations also omitted the language and, as noted by the Atlantic, the clarity of the question was muddled due to cross talk and movement. It could indeed be due to “feed issues.” The Atlantic cites two news organizations with the same editing:the Federal News Service and Bloomberg Government. Nevertheless, the question was clearly stated by Mason but edited out of the transcript. If this was (as claimed) a transcription or feed error, then it should have been corrected. It has not. Continue reading “White House Under Fire Over Editing Of Transcript and Video Of Press Conference In Helinski”
CNN landed a major news coup with the airing of one of the conversations that Michael Cohen secretly taped with President Donald Trump. The tape is not the best in terms of the audio quality but it contains some troubling portions. Notably, this was clearly not a telephone conversation but sounds like an actual meeting where Cohen is sitting and meeting with Trump. I just posted a column on the implications of this secret recording by an attorney. While Rudy Giuliani insists that the tape is clearly exculpatory, the tape could prove more damaging than beneficial to a defense. Clearly, both sides can read negative or positive elements into this tape. While some have insisted that Trump sounds like a mobster, there is not a clear crime being discussed on this tape. There are reportedly more tapes, but this tape has good and bad elements for the Trump team. However, the tape can be used to show that Trump was informed of the deal before the election and participating in the strategy to silence Trump’s alleged former mistress Karen McDougal. However, Trump has not spoken to investigators (as a basis for some false statement prosecution) on this issue. Continue reading ““Our Friend, David”: Newly Released Tape Shows Trump And Cohen Discussing Purchase of McDougal Story”
The economic meltdown under the moronic Chavez-Maduro government in Venezuela is now moving toward an impressive milestone: hitting an estimated inflation rate of 1,000,000% by the end of the year. According to the International Monetary Fund, the hyperinflation devastating the country will continue — making the currency little more than decorative elements in an economy reduced to a barter system. Socialists have now taken one of the most successful economies in the region and returned most people back to a subsistence existence. Continue reading “IMF: Venezuela To Hit 1,000,000% Inflation By End Of 2018”
Many civil libertarians long objected to the reliance on local policy on money and property seized in drug stops and raids. I have previously written about drivers being stripped of any cash that they cannot clearly account for in highway stops and the windfall such seizures represent for some departments. The federal government has been repeatedly criticized for its seizures, which are shared with local departments. Now this program is at the heart of a controversy in Gwinnett County where Sheriff Butch Conway used money from the federal program to purchase a Hellcat muscle car for use as his official car. However, the story gets much, much worse in my view after Conway’s department cited the other use of the car beyond transported Conway in Knight Rider fashion. Continue reading “Georgia Sheriff Suspended From Federal Program After Using Funds To Buy Hellcat Muscle Car”
Eric Stagno, 34, insisted that he was only enjoying Planet Fitness’s policy of being a “Judgment Free Zone” . . . when he walked around naked and started doing exercises on the yoga mats.
As is often my practice, I used an out-of-town speech this week to experience another of our wonderful national parks. With my keynote to the Ninth Circuit scheduled for Monday, I used Sunday to explore the rough remote areas of the Cleveland National Park. I decided to get up early an hike the San Juan and Chiquito Falls trails. It would turn out memorable beyond all of my expectations. With a heat wave hitting the area, the hike in the desert environment was well over 100 degrees with no shade. Despite bringing over a gallon of water in my camel back, I ran out of water on the return of the long hike and ended up with heat stroke . . . and had to be airlifted out after taking a tumble into a ravine. More of that rescue later. All I can say is that I can never repay the Orange County rescue team of the Sheriff’s office and fire department. While I wish I was not the subject of their work, meeting these incredibly heroic first responders was an inspiring experience. I will be writing about that experience separately. While I am now recovering from heat stroke in my hotel, I wanted to share some of the pictures before my embarrassing failure just short of the trail head. Continue reading “My Wonderful, Inspiring, and Embarrassing Hike In the Cleveland National Forest”