Post inauguration Trump:

[watt price tully]

It’s always been said that a grand jury would indict a ham sandwich, but today shows they’ll even settle for lesser lifeforms.

[lazzadesilva]

I fear that the right wingers will go on a bloody rampage if their darling leader is in line for any form of major punishment involving incarceration. They will not stay silent and let this happen without a proper bun fight. Interesting times. Need to get more popcorn

[roar]

It's nice to see him squirm a little but I have a feeling all this will backfire and only make his campaign stronger, much like the russiagate nonsense.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/ ... ret-police


I wouldn’t be quite so dismissive of Russia’s meddling whatsoever.

I have no doubt of their meddling, however blaming Trump is/was ridiculous.

[stui magpie]

When did paying someone to shut up become illegal?

[Pies4shaw]

^ That's not illegal. What's said to be have been illegal was failing to disclose the payment appropriately - that's said to be a contravention of campaign financing laws.

[David]

That’s what I’ve been trying to figure out. I think you can make a strong argument that it should be (i.e. that it’s essentially bribery), and we certainly wouldn’t tolerate the opposite arrangement, which is blackmail. But it seems Trump isn’t being indicted for the hush money payment, per se, but how it was accounted for:

https://amp.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... -explained

Cohen […] made the $130,000 payment to Daniels in October 2016. When Trump was president, he reimbursed Cohen with monthly $35,000 checks from his personal account.

In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance charges related to the hush money payment. Court documents in Cohen’s federal case said the Trump Organization falsely described payments as legal expenses, citing a legal retainer that did not exist.

In the Manhattan case, prosecutors effectively maintain that Trump’s handling of the reimbursement violated state law.

So the comparisons being made to the case that finally brought Al Capone down seem apt. No doubt he’s been doing dodgy shit like this for decades, but they finally got him on the smallest (but easiest to prove) breach they could find.

[Pies4shaw]

^ Breach of campaign finance laws is a felony. I don't much care about this (the tax evasion case against Trump Organization and the sedition charges that might be brought against Trump are much more interesting) but it's not the mere misdescription that's the problem - the concealment, however, is.

[doriswilgus]

The concealment or cover up of a crime is always the bigger issue,usually bigger than the initial crime itself.That’s what brought Nixon undone in the Watergate scandal back in the 70’s.

Interestingly the Republican Party was still a political party back then with some scruples and abandoned Nixon when they realised what he had done.The Republican Party today is more of a cult than an actual political party,and that’s why they haven’t abandoned Trump-yet.

[stui magpie]

Thanks P4S, that makes sense. It's hard to understand why it's taken 6 years to get to this point, but it seems like a lay down misere that he'll go for this. From the little I read, a Grand Jury is very different to a normal criminal trial.

[watt price tully]

Thanks P4S, that makes sense. It's hard to understand why it's taken 6 years to get to this point, but it seems like a lay down misere that he'll go for this. From the little I read, a Grand Jury is very different to a normal criminal trial.

Personally I’m shocked that DT has been manipulating the tax system

[stui magpie]

^
I refer you to Kerry Packers comments at the Sentate Estimates Committe decades ago.

[watt price tully]

^
I refer you to Kerry Packers comments at the Sentate Estimates Committe decades ago.

The fat goanna is Gawn. It’s not the manipulation that’s the issue it’s the criminal manipulation of his tax. I refer you to Al Capone’s trial.

[watt price tully]

More Trump investigations to be played out:

The election in Georgia: urging others to break the law by lying about votes / election fraud.

The January 6 investigations: awaiting an outcome of Trumps’ degree of criminal responsibility (conspiracy to obstruct / election fraud)

Mar-A-Lago: deliberate mishandling of secret documents (a crime).

New York businesses & properties: criminal manipulation of assets to avoid paying tax.

These are listed and discussed in the Washington Post.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics ... itigation/

[stui magpie]

^
I refer you to Kerry Packers comments at the Sentate Estimates Committe decades ago.

The fat goanna is Gawn.

I refer you to a Mirror or Scales provider, slim.

BTW, I'm down to 86kg. I wouldn't recommend anxiety but it seems to work as a weight loss treatment.

[watt price tully]

^
I refer you to Kerry Packers comments at the Sentate Estimates Committe decades ago.

The fat goanna is Gawn.

I refer you to a Mirror or Scales provider, slim.

BTW, I'm down to 86kg. I wouldn't recommend anxiety but it seems to work as a weight loss treatment.

86 kg: gunna have to refer you to the Eating Disorders program! Amazing. I’m 105kg. Now that the kitchen is just about done back to “the programme”. I’ve kept my spin classes up and went for my first ride since January after breaking a bone in my hand last week (75 km’s non stop to Frankston & back minus the hills). My goal is 95kg.