Lucky match win real money free.Makakuha ng libreng 700pho sa bawat deposito https://www.on-toli.com/author/ashley-murray/ Shining brightest where it’s dark Wed, 16 Oct 2024 02:28:15 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.6.2 https://www.on-toli.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/cropped-Kentucky-Lantern-Icon-32x32.png Ashley Murray https://www.on-toli.com/author/ashley-murray/ 32 32 Walz rallies with Steelers fans in Pittsburgh, questions Trump’s mental fitness https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/15/walz-rallies-with-steelers-fans-in-pittsburgh-questions-trumps-mental-fitness/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/15/walz-rallies-with-steelers-fans-in-pittsburgh-questions-trumps-mental-fitness/#respond Wed, 16 Oct 2024 02:28:15 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=23166

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz rallied before a few hundred spectators at Pittsburgh’s Acrisure Stadium on Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, and her running mate, Walz, have been blanketing Pennsylvania, a key swing state in the 2024 presidential race. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

PITTSBURGH — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz urged a crowd of Pittsburgh Steelers fans to vote early as he rallied a few hundred of them Tuesday night at the professional football team’s home at Acrisure Stadium.

Vice President Kamala Harris’ Democratic presidential running mate campaigned in the southwestern Pennsylvania city as the campaign continues its blitz of the coveted swing state that could decide the 2024 presidential contest.

The race between Harris and former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, remains razor-thin in the Keystone State.

Former Steeler Will Allen introduced Walz to a cheering crowd dotted with Steelers hats, jerseys and Terrible Towels, the team’s official rally towel.

“Give me my moment here, yesterday I made my first trip to Lambeau Field,” Walz said, referring to his trip to Green Bay, Wisconsin, and the home of the Green Bay Packers football team. “Today, I’m making my first trip into Steeler territory, so thank you.”

The former high school football coach and teacher visited Wisconsin Monday, which is alongside Pennsylvania on the list of must-win swing states. The others include Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and North Carolina.

Early mail-in ballot voting is already underway in Pennsylvania.

“If you’re voting by mail, get the damn thing in the mail as soon as possible,” Walz said.

Harris campaigned in Erie, Pennsylvania, Monday night before heading to Michigan Tuesday.

Attacks on Trump

Like Harris did in the state’s northwestern corner the previous night, Walz roused the Pittsburgh crowd by attacking Trump’s mental fitness.

“I would not usually encourage this, but go watch this guy, watch his town hall. He stopped taking questions and stood frozen on stage for 30 minutes while they played his Spotify list,” Walz said, referring to Trump’s Monday night town hall outside of Philadelphia.

“If this were your grandfather, you would take the keys away,” Walz said to laughter. “And I tell you this, look, it would be funny if this guy weren’t running for president of the United States.”

In Erie, Harris warned that Trump is “unhinged” and played video clips of the former president explaining his potential plans to use the military to silence “the enemy from within.”

Trump wrote on his social media platform Tuesday morning that Harris’ own health report is “really bad.”

“With all of the problems that she has, there is a real question as to whether or not she should be running for President!” he wrote on Truth Social.

Harris’ medical report released Saturday describes her “in excellent health.”

Walz on the farm

While Walz wore a white shirt and sports jacket when talking to the football fans, earlier in the day he donned a flannel shirt and told supporters gathered outside a barn in Lawrence County that he and Harris would fight for American farmers and resources for rural residents.

The governor also highlighted his bona fides as a veteran, hunter and gun owner. His speech can be viewed in full on C-SPAN.

The Harris-Walz campaign released a plan Tuesday for rural America that promised to shore up rural health care and support small farms.

Walz also stopped at a garden center and cafe in Butler County before heading into the city.

The pro-Democrat Rural USA political action committee highlighted economic analyses Tuesday that show Trump’s promised tariffs would cause farmers to lose business as exports would decline.

Pennsylvania farmers could lose $111 million in soy exports, $50 million in corn exports, $22 million in beef exports and $20 million in wheat exports, according to the analysis from the University of Illinois Department of Agriculture and Consumer Economics.

“These new studies literally show that Trump’s tariffs will put Pennsylvania farmers out of business,” Chris Gibbs, an Ohio corn and soybean farmer and president of Rural Voices USA, said in a statement Tuesday. “Exports are vital for Pennsylvania farmers and they cannot absorb the sharp fall in exports and prices these studies foreshadow.”

Trump defended his tariff proposals at the Economic Club of Chicago earlier Tuesday.? He told Bloomberg Editor-in-Chief John Micklethwait during an hour-long interview that he would spur a manufacturing boom in the U.S. by making tariffs “so high, so horrible, so obnoxious” that companies would relocate.

Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio is scheduled to campaign in Pittsburgh Thursday.

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‘You pick the next president’: Pivotal Erie County, Pennsylvania, rallies for Harris https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/14/you-pick-the-next-president-pivotal-erie-county-pennsylvania-rallies-for-harris/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/14/you-pick-the-next-president-pivotal-erie-county-pennsylvania-rallies-for-harris/#respond Tue, 15 Oct 2024 02:36:45 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=23105

The Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, speaks during a campaign rally at Erie Insurance Arena on Oct. 14, 2024 in Erie, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

ERIE, Pa. — Vice President Kamala Harris packed an arena Monday night in Erie, Pennsylvania, a swing corner of the key swing state in the 2024 presidential election.

Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, told thousands of spectators, “You are a pivot county.”

“How you all vote in presidential elections often ends up predicting the national result,” Harris said.

Harris, attacking the Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, urged the crowd to watch Trump’s recent rallies and interviews.

“Please roll the clip,” she said before compilations of Trump appearances showed on two big screens in the arena.

Several showed him talking about the “enemy from within,” including a Sunday interview on Fox News where he said “radical left lunatics” could be “very easily handled, if necessary, by the National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military.”

Obama to Trump to Biden

Erie County, at the northwestern tip of Pennsylvania, with just under 270,000 residents, has been a “pivot” county in the battleground state for the last several presidential elections.

Former President Barack Obama won the majority of the lakeside county’s voters in 2012. The county turned for Trump in 2016. And, in 2020, just 1,319 voters delivered a win for President Joe Biden over Trump, turning the county blue again.

This is Harris’ seventh visit to the western side of Pennsylvania, according to her campaign.

Trump was on the other side of the state Monday night, speaking in Upper Providence Township, 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia.

Mail-in voting is already underway in the Keystone State — one of a handful that will decide who wins the Oval Office. The others include Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and Wisconsin.

Both the Harris and Trump campaigns are blanketing Pennsylvania — Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, Trump’s running mate, stumped in Johnstown Saturday, where in response to a question, he told States Newsroom he considered what happened in January 2021 to be a “peaceful transfer of power.”

Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, will hold a campaign rally in Pittsburgh Tuesday.

Party-like atmosphere

Long lines began to snake outside the arena as early as four-and-a-half hours before Harris’ Monday rally.

A DJ played party music inside as spectators filled the floor and the stands of the roughly 9,000-seat arena.

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania told the loud crowd, “Erie, my God, have you showed up.”

“The national media’s here, and you want to know why?? Because you pick the next president,” Fetterman said.

“Erie is the ultimate bellwether county, not just in Pennsylvania, in the nation right now. Right now the nation is all thinking about you and wondering where you’re gonna go,” Fetterman continued, to cheering. “And we know what you’re gonna do, and you’re gonna make sure that Harris and Walz is the team that’s gonna lead our nation.”

‘Born from personal experience’

Harris spoke for just under a half hour, highlighting her usual themes of a middle-class upbringing and her vision for an “opportunity economy.”

She outlined her platform of tax cuts for new parents, first-time home buyers and entrepreneurs, and a policy plan to “take out corporate price gouging.”

Harris also laid out her plan to expand Medicare to help pay for in-home senior care so “more seniors can live at home with dignity.”

“And like so many of my priorities it is born out of a personal experience,” she said, prefacing the story of how she cared for her mother, who died of colon cancer in 2009.

“But far too many people who want and need to take care of family members — either you have to leave your job or spend down everything you have to be able to qualify for Medicaid. That’s not right.”

“I will always put middle-class and working families first. I came from the middle class, and I will never forget where I come from,” Harris said as the crowd broke into chants of “U.S.A.”

Harris also told the crowd that Trump threatens health insurance for tens of millions of Americans with his platform to overhaul the Affordable Care Act.

During the single presidential debate of the election cycle, the former president said he had “concepts of a plan” to replace the insurance program that ushered in an era of covered medical care for pre-existing conditions.

“The seriousness of this cannot be overlooked. Think about that, taking us back to a time we all remember when insurance companies could deny people with pre-existing conditions, you remember what that was? Well, we are not going back,” she said, repeating a common rally cry at her events.

‘Brutally serious’ consequences

Harris slammed Trump as an “unserious man” with a “very different plan” if he wins in November.

“But the consequences of him ever being president again are brutally serious,” she said.

The vice president highlighted the July U.S. Supreme Court opinion that granted former presidents immunity for core constitutional duties, and presumptive immunity for other actions, except for personal ones.

“Now just imagine Donald Trump with no guard rails,” she said. “He who has vowed that he would be a dictator on day one, that he would weaponize the Department of Justice against his enemies.”

Republican response

The Republican National Committee issued a statement ahead of Harris’ rally in Erie, attacking her specifically on energy policy.

“The Keystone State will reject another four years of Kamala Harris’ dangerously liberal policies because Pennsylvanians trust President Trump to unleash American energy and provide economic relief,” read a statement from RNC Chairman Michael Whatley.

The Trump campaign attacked the vice president on two fronts in its daily press release Monday. The campaign accused her of being on an “anti-fracking crusade” and of failing “to deliver to Black voters.”

Harris earlier Monday unveiled an “Opportunity Agenda for Black Men” that would legalize recreational marijuana and introduce a “regulatory framework for cryptocurrency,” according to a release from the Harris campaign.

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Vance in Pennsylvania says there was a ‘peaceful transfer of power’ in January 2021? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/12/vance-in-pennsylvania-says-there-was-a-peaceful-transfer-of-power-in-january-2021/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/12/vance-in-pennsylvania-says-there-was-a-peaceful-transfer-of-power-in-january-2021/#respond Sat, 12 Oct 2024 23:07:50 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=23058

Vance in Pennsylvania says there was a ‘peaceful transfer of power’ in January 2021?

CAPTION: Republican vice presidential candidate and U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, of Ohio, speaks at a rally at JWF Industries on Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance campaigned Saturday in the key battleground of Pennsylvania, where early mail-in voting is already underway as just 25 days remain in the heated 2024 race that will be decided by a handful of states.

Former President Donald Trump’s running mate rallied a crowd of a few hundred at a sprawling riverside manufacturing facility in Johnstown, adhering to the ticket’s main themes of immigration and the economy.

During a question-and-answer session with the press following his prepared remarks, States Newsroom asked Vance if he will commit to the peaceful transfer of power no matter the winner in November.

The coming presidential election is the first since a mob of Trump supporters violently breached the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, delaying Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election results. More than 1,500 defendants have been charged with crimes associated with the attack on the Capitol, during which 140 police officers were assaulted.

“Yes, of course,” Vance replied. “Look, this is very simple. Yes, there was a riot at the Capitol on January 6, but there was still a peaceful transfer of power in this country, and that is always going to happen.”

Vance, Ohio’s junior U.S. senator, in his speech painted Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, as “a tax-and-spend San Francisco liberal who wants to open our borders and destroy American manufacturing.”

“Are we going to give Kamala Harris a promotion to president of the United States? Hell no. We are going to tell Harris ‘You are fired,’ and we are voting Donald J. Trump to be our next president,”? Vance said to cheers.

Vance spoke from a stage inside JWF Industries, a local plant that manufactures transportation, energy and defense equipment and vehicles.

Four military tactical utility vehicles framed the stage, where roughly 80 spectators lined the stage behind and to each side of Vance. A couple hundred people sat below the stage, with several empty rows behind them and an empty section to the left.

New poll numbers

Both campaigns and their surrogates are blanketing seven must-win swing states, as the presidential contest remains incredibly tight.

Trump holds an advantage in Arizona, while Harris has a slight lead in Pennsylvania, according to the latest poll results for the key battleground states released Saturday morning by The New York Times/Philadelphia Inquirer/Siena College.

Vance urged the crowd to check their voter registration status and talk to family and friends about going to the polls.

“It’s the only way that we’re going to make Donald Trump the next president, so let’s get out there and vote, my friends,” he said.

Vance spent the majority of his remarks faulting Harris and President Joe Biden for economic suffering, including inflation and credit card debt delinquency.

A consumer price index report released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed inflation is at its lowest since February 2021.

Vance also attacked Harris for participating in “softball interviews,” citing her recent appearances on podcasts, as well as daytime and late-night TV.

Vance took credit for the Trump campaign ad that features a clip from Harris’ interview on “The View” in which she declined to distance herself from decisions of the Biden presidency.

“The problem with a softball interview is that you still have to be able to hit a softball,” Vance said.

In addition to appearances this week on the podcast “Call Her Daddy” and “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” as well as a town hall for Univision, Harris also sat for an interview with CBS News’ “60 Minutes” on Monday. Trump backed out of his own promised appearance on “60 Minutes.”

Jan. 6 protesters ‘knuckleheads’

Vance implied accusations of voter fraud during his speech, telling the crowd that “you have to make the margins so big in Pennsylvania that it doesn’t matter what shenanigans Democrats pull at the last minute.”

“We will never have the fake media or the Democrats telling the truth. We do have our own voices, and our own networks, our family and friends. That is the people power that is going to make Donald Trump the next president,” Vance said.

During the reporter Q and A, the crowd jeered when a student journalist from a Pittsburgh university asked if Vance condemned the Jan. 6 violence.

Vance defended Trump’s actions on that day, saying the former president encouraged the crowd to protest “peacefully.”

“And the fact that a few knuckleheads went off and did something they shouldn’t do, that’s not on him. That’s on them,” Vance said to cheers.

Vance chafed at journalists asking more than once about Trump’s refusal to accept that Biden won the 2020 race. The former president continues to repeat the falsehood that he won. Trump challenged election results across dozens of lawsuits in multiple states following the 2020 election and lost them all.

“What Kamala Harris and the media are doing is trying to tell us that we should hear more about what happened four years ago than about her failure in governance,” Vance said. “I think that on November the 5th, we are going to reject it.”

Other questions from the press focused on western Pennsylvania, veterans’ benefits and Project 2025, the 900-page “mandate” for the next government, produced by the conservative Heritage Foundation.

Vance said the conservative project has “no relation” to the Trump campaign. An CNN investigation in June found at least 140 several former Trump administration officials were involved in the project.

Vance spoke for 23 minutes and addressed reporter questions for just under the same amount of time.

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Foreign policy: Where do Harris and Trump stand? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/11/foreign-policy-where-do-harris-and-trump-stand/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/11/foreign-policy-where-do-harris-and-trump-stand/#respond Fri, 11 Oct 2024 09:40:20 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22987

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy holds an American flag as he addresses a joint meeting of Congress in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 21, 2022 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

This is one in a series of States Newsroom reports on the major policy issues in the presidential race.

WASHINGTON — The next U.S. president must steer the nation through crises across the globe, including worsening violence in the Middle East, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s refusal to retreat from Ukraine and U.S-China trade relations.

The Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, largely built her career as a prosecutor, but once in Washington she sat on the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, a position that comes with access to highly classified national security files.

As vice president she’s represented the U.S. at high-profile international meetings, including the Munich Security Conference and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.

The Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, who followed his wealthy father’s path into real estate and ascended to the status of celebrity businessman, has already held the elected position of Commander-in-Chief for four years — though high-ranking officials who served under him say he should not occupy that seat again.

Trump and Harris’ track records can provide clues on how, if elected, they would handle complex and challenging national and economic security policies.

But overall on the campaign trail, foreign policy “has played a back seat role to domestic politics in the 2024 election,” James M. Lindsay, a senior fellow in U.S. foreign policy for the Council on Foreign Relations, told States Newsroom in an interview.

That’s not unusual, Lindsay said, as presidential year politics generally tend to have a domestic focus.

“This has been more a campaign about personalities than about specific policy prescriptions. It’s safe to say that the two candidates have very different world views,” Lindsay said.

Relationships with allies

Harris centers relationship building, and promised in her Democratic National Convention acceptance speech to “stand strong” with NATO allies.

In Trump’s convention speech he lamented that the U.S. has “long been taken advantage of” by “so-called allies.”

Observers say the former president leads with a transactional outlook: In other words, nations must pay for access to U.S. markets and security.

It’s safe to say that the two candidates have very different world views,” said James M. Lindsay, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, in an interview with States Newsroom.

“Trump thinks that U.S. support to allies is a bad deal for America, whereas Harris realizes that the United States benefits immensely from them,” Matthew Waxman, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and chair of Columbia Law School’s National Security Law Program, told States Newsroom.

But predicting how a presidential candidate would act on the global stage, if elected, is tricky. Conflicts continue to evolve, and those in top defense and diplomatic jobs are likely to turn over.

“It’s partly because a President Harris or President Trump could face a very different situation in the Middle East or in Ukraine come Inauguration Day, but it’s also because in Washington personnel are policy, people are policy,” Lindsay said.

Here are some of the serious international situations either administration will face:

Middle East

The deadly Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, launched from the Palestinian territory of the Gaza Strip, reignited smoldering regional tensions and highlighted the inextricable U.S. role. Hamas militants killed roughly 1,200 in the brutal and unexpected incursion, and took 250 hostages, many of whom still remain in captivity.

President Joe Biden immediately surged weapons and security aid to the key U.S. defense partner, and in April Congress approved his request for $8.7 billion more in foreign military financing and missile defense.

Israel’s year-long campaign to completely eliminate Iranian-allied Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip has resulted in a staggering death toll, now over 41,000, according to Gaza health officials.

Hamas’ assault also set in motion attacks from other Iranian-backed militias, opening up a war front between Israel and Hezbollah fighters to the north in Lebanon. And for months, Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthis have terrorized commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

Biden has faced fierce criticism for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s war tactics.

Harris, as early as March, publicly criticized Israel over the humanitarian “catastrophe” in Gaza and called for an immediate six-week cease-fire.

Harris, who became the Democratic presidential nominee in mid-summer after Biden dropped his bid, has repeatedly said she defends Israel’s right to defend itself but that “how it does so matters.”

Protesters could be heard in the distance Monday as Harris planted a memorial tree at the vice president’s residence to mark the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack. Pro-Palestinian activists protesting the death toll in Gaza have marched and rallied throughout the U.S. during the past year.

Harris told reporters that the administration is “not giving up” on negotiating a cease-fire deal and release of hostages, an effort that has so far floundered.

“It’s one of the most important ways we will be able to end this war and bring any type of stability to the region. It’s one of the highest priorities of this administration,” she said.

She has not indicated any slowdown or conditions on assistance to Israel if elected — though she continues to advocate for a two-state solution.

“Trump may give Jerusalem less public chastising and criticism, but I’m not sure the policy differences would be that great either,” Michael O’Hanlon, senior fellow and foreign policy research director at the Brookings Institution, told States Newsroom. O’Hanlon recently published an article arguing the Trump and Harris defense strategies would at least “partially” converge.

Trump maintains that Oct. 7 “would never have happened” had he been in office, and he accuses the Biden administration of inviting the attack because of its “weak” relationship with Iran.

“What is needed more than ever is a return of unwavering American leadership and unquestioned American strength. We were strong, we were powerful … That’s what I intend to deliver as the 47th president of the United States,” he said Monday while in Miami marking one year since the ambush on Israel.

The attack also wrecked any forward progress on the Abraham Accords — Trump’s signature Middle East achievement that created full diplomatic relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco. While those established channels remain steady, the Biden administration’s efforts to strike a deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia are now at a standstill.

Trump is increasingly selling himself on the campaign trail as the candidate of stability who can quash Iran’s aggression — which is pretty much a “standard approach to campaigning,” Lindsay said.

“He is not the first challenger to argue that the incumbent president has been weak.”

But Lindsay said, “the important question isn’t whether he was tougher, it’s whether his policies were more effective.”

For example, the Iranian-backed so-called “axis of resistance” militias currently upending the Middle East were also operating during Trump’s presidency.

“(They) pre-dated his coming into office but it’s not that a Trump administration ended that network of anti-Western, anti-Israeli groups,” Lindsay said. “And during the Trump administration it was the case that Iran both underwrote attacks on American troops and actually launched attacks on American troops.”

Trump drew attention last week to an early January 2020 barrage on U.S. troops in Iraq when he again described the traumatic brain injuries they suffered as “headaches.”

U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria, already a target, have come under increasing fire from Iran-backed militants, with more than 100 attacks on U.S. service members since Israel began its post-Oct. 7 offensive. A drone strike in January killed three U.S. soldiers and injured 30 at an outpost in Jordan on the Syrian border. The U.S. retaliated by launching more than 100 precision rockets at 85 of Iran military sites in Iraq and Syria.

The U.S. assisted Israel twice in 2024 in intercepting rockets fired directly from Iran — once in April following Israel’s bombing of the Iranian embassy in Damascus, and again in September after Israel’s assassination of Iranian-backed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, Lebanon.

“We’re in the last months of the Biden presidency, and Biden’s own, I think, personal influence here is quite diminished. And you know, I can’t predict what Trump policy really would be. I assume he would be less likely to be trying to restrain the Israelis, but so is the Biden administration. And maybe that is a Biden-Harris policy,” Elliott Abrams, CFR’s senior fellow for Middle Eastern Studies, told reporters on Oct. 2, the day after Iran launched its second direct attack.

Ukraine and NATO

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with both Harris and Trump in recent weeks to shore up continued U.S. support for his country’s ongoing war against Russia’s occupation.

Harris’ meeting with the Ukrainian leader was her seventh, and she pledged continued aid for the eastern European nation on the principle that Putin would continue marching into Europe if allies relent on Ukraine.

Harris supports continued U.S. assistance, which has totaled roughly $175 billion since 2022. At the Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland in June, Harris pledged nearly $2 billion, some new and some redirected, to bolster the country’s energy sector and add to humanitarian efforts.

The vice president has represented the U.S. three times at the annual Munich Security Conference in Germany, where she praised the NATO alliance and said the U.S. commitment to its principles is “ironclad.”

When facing Harris on the presidential debate stage in September, Trump refused to answer whether he wants Ukraine to be victorious over Russia.

Trump’s rhetoric and past behavior “spells bad news for Ukraine,” Waxman said.

“He is likely to reduce American support for Ukraine and push Ukraine to make concessions to Russia. Overall, Trump’s transactional approach to leader-to-leader diplomacy is likely to benefit Putin,” Waxman continued. “Whereas Harris wants to invest in alliances like NATO, Trump is skeptical of them.”

That type of leader-to-leader communication was notoriously highlighted in 2019 when U.S. House lawmakers impeached Trump for directly threatening to withhold Ukraine aid if Zelenskyy did not announce an investigation into Biden — Trump’s presidential campaign rival at the time. The Senate acquitted Trump.

Like his campaign line on the Israel attack, Trump also repeatedly claims that had he been in office, instead of Biden, Russia would have never launched its February 2022 attack on Ukraine.

“The war in Ukraine did not begin in February of ‘22, it began back in 2014,” Lindsay said, referring to Putin’s forced annexation of the Crimean Peninsula.

Trump’s own administration expanded Obama-era sanctions meant to punish Russia’s actions in Crimea.

“Experts can argue about how to dole out criticism across administrations, but clearly the issue of Russian support for a notionally independent insurrection in eastern Ukraine was not solved during the Trump presidency,” Lindsay continued.

China and trade

Foreign trade is a “political hot potato,” and neither Harris nor Trump are offering much clarity for U.S. trading partners around the world, Mary E. Lovely, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, told States Newsroom in an interview.

Lovely described the Biden-Harris approach as multipronged, in that they’ve instituted policies to bring manufacturing back to the U.S. while also aiming to maintain good trade relationships with partner nations.

The tightrope walk becomes even trickier as U.S. policy also disincentivizes materials and components from China — one of the world’s largest trading nations — in the final products imported from trading partners. Think: components in solar panels and electric vehicles.

The Biden administration’s major legislative accomplishments — the Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS and Science Act — provided major subsidies for “reshoring,” or returning to the U.S., clean energy and semiconductor production. But the policies were not without risks to U.S. trading partners.

“We had a lot of things (in the legislation), including things that upset the allies — you know, subsidies for American businesses, that they saw potentially as pulling investment out of their economies,” Lovely said.

“These are things that the European Union, Japan, Korea were concerned about,” Lovely continued. “So we’ve seen it there — this tension between foreign policy and this idea of economic security.”

While Lovely said she worries about how some of the Biden-Harris trade policies might affect competition and the nation’s ability to sign timely trade agreements, she said Trump’s plans are overall “destabilizing.”

“The increased use of tariffs is misguided at best,” Lovely said.

Trump’s promise to not only increase tariffs on Chinese imports to 60%, but also to slap flat 10% to 20% tariffs on all imports across the board is akin to “starting a trade war with the entire world.”

“We’re not going to see those kinds of tariffs without retaliation,” Lovely said.

If enacted, the tariffs would be particularly challenging for Indo-Pacific countries that rely on U.S. partnership in the face of China’s regional dominance.

“I mean, you can imagine how this will go down in, say, Japan and Korea, two countries which rely on the U.S. for a security umbrella, which is why Trump thinks that he can do stuff to them. But they also have to protect their own economies,” Lovely said. “So it’s going to put them in a really terrible position because it’s very important for them to maintain their alliance with the U.S., economic as well as military.”

But one thing is for sure, Lovely said: “Everybody wants to know what’s going to happen. Everybody in every embassy here in Washington.”

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Trump labels Detroit a ‘mess,’ pledges to make car loan interest fully deductible https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/10/trump-labels-detroit-a-mess-pledges-to-make-car-loan-interest-fully-deductible/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/10/trump-labels-detroit-a-mess-pledges-to-make-car-loan-interest-fully-deductible/#respond Thu, 10 Oct 2024 22:38:09 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=23011

The Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, speaks at the Detroit Economic Club on October 10, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan. Trump is campaigning in Michigan, a key battleground state, ahead of the upcoming presidential election. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump promised to “save the American auto industry” Thursday during a meandering speech to the Detroit Economic Club, during which he insulted his host city as a “mess” and announced a new plan to make car loan interest payments fully deductible.

Trump unveiled the new plank of his tax plan near the close of his remarks that included berating the United States as “dumb” on trade and pledging, if elected, to “have a lot of fun” renegotiating a trade agreement with Canada and Mexico.

The former president spoke for nearly two hours to the economic club in Michigan, a key swing state.

Trump is already running on a platform to impose across-the-board tariffs, up to 20%, on all imported goods, and at 60% on goods from China. On Thursday he said cars imported from Mexico could see tariffs as high as 200% if he wins in November.

He told the crowd that his newest plan to make interest on car loans fully deductible is “going to revolutionize your industry.”

“This will stimulate massive domestic auto production and make car ownership dramatically more affordable for millions and millions of working American families. This is a phenomenal thing, if I do say so myself,” Trump said.

However, it’s unclear whether the deduction would only be available to taxpayers who itemize, or also to those who take the standard deduction. For example, some deductions, like student loan interest, can be a special exception.

Another question would be the price tag of Trump’s proposal: Americans owe about $1.6 trillion in car loans, according to the quarterly consumer report issued in February by the Federal Reserve of New York.

R&D tax credits

The former president also promised — to applause from the crowd — that U.S.-based carmakers “will be rewarded with expanded research and development tax credits, very substantial, where they will be able to write off 100% of their cost of heavy machinery and other equipment necessary to build a plant in the first year, and full expensing for manufacturing investments.”

The Trump campaign did not respond to emails asking whether the proposals were new, or would be an extension of expiring policies enacted under Trump’s signature 2017 tax law, titled the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Erica York, senior economist and research director for the Tax Foundation, wrote on X that “R&D tax credits are an entirely separate policy from deductions for R&D expenses or capital expenditures.”

“(B)ut if I had to guess, Trump is probably talking about bringing back immediate R&D expenses and restoring 100 percent bonus depreciation,” wrote York, who’s been closely following the tax debate during the 2024 presidential election.

Except for wanting to change the corporate tax rate — lowering it to 15% — Trump is campaigning on fully renewing the TCJA, which cleared Congress strictly along party lines. The law sunsets at the end of 2025.

‘Take a look at Detroit’

Trump also used his speech to attack trading partners and competitors, at one point describing the European Union as “brutal” and recalling an alleged conversation with former German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“‘Angela, how many Chevrolets do we have in the middle of Berlin?’ ‘Oh, I do not know. Perhaps, perhaps none.’ ‘You’re right. Angela,’” Trump said he recalled.

“And yet, they send their cars to us. Like a bunch of dummies we are — BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen, by the millions and millions and millions. We’re not doing that crap anymore,” Trump said. “Now they’re gonna have to play by our rules.”

It is a fact that American cars are on the streets of Europe.

But China was the “biggest abuser” of trade while he was president, he said.

“They were a professional abuser. They did things to us, and they go down as a ‘developing nation,’” he said, as if talking in another’s voice. “‘We are a developing nation.’ But we’re (the U.S. is) a developing nation too — just take a look at Detroit.”

His campaign did not answer an email asking for clarification about the remark.

Harris campaign responds to Detroit visit

Ahead of Trump’s Detroit appearance, Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign organized a press call featuring Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers.

Fain told reporters Trump “has done nothing” to help autoworkers.

“The job-killer-in-chief is once again back in Michigan to do what he does best. He’s going to lie about bringing our jobs back,” Fain said.

The union leader endorsed President Joe Biden in January, and promptly endorsed Harris in July when Biden exited the race.

Biden became the first sitting U.S. president to walk a picket line when he joined striking UAW members in September 2023.

Harris was in Las Vegas, Nevada, Thursday to record a live town hall for Spanish-language network Univision. The question-and-answer session for undecided Hispanic voters was organized by the network’s news division and moderated by TelevisaUnivision’s Enrique Acevedo.

Harris was scheduled to speak at a campaign event Thursday night in Phoenix, Arizona.

‘There will be no rematch!’?

Once again, the question of another presidential debate has come, and apparently gone.

Fox News on Wednesday issued a final offer to host a live 90-minute presidential debate in Pennsylvania on either Oct. 24 or 27, with moderators Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum.

“THERE WILL BE NO REMATCH!” Trump posted Wednesday evening on his online platform Truth Social.

On Thursday, CNN offered to host live town halls with each candidate.

Ahead on the campaign trail

Harris returns to Washington, D.C., Friday while Trump continues west for rallies in Aurora, Colorado, and Reno, Nevada.

The former president then travels for rallies in Coachella, California, on Saturday and in Prescott, Arizona, on Sunday.

Trump’s running mate, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, will host a rally in Johnston, Pennsylvania, Saturday.

Harris is also set to visit Pennsylvania, hosting a rally Monday in the commonwealth’s northwestern city of Erie.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will campaign in Wisconsin on Monday, hitting both Eau Claire and Green Bay.

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One year since Oct. 7 attack on Israel, U.S. leaders honor victims and protesters march https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/07/one-year-since-oct-7-attack-on-israel-u-s-leaders-honor-victims-and-protesters-march/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/07/one-year-since-oct-7-attack-on-israel-u-s-leaders-honor-victims-and-protesters-march/#respond Mon, 07 Oct 2024 22:23:18 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22871

On Monday, U.S. leaders marked the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attacks on Israel. In this photo, photographs of some of those taken hostage by Hamas during the attacks are seen on Oct. 18, 2023 in Tel Aviv, Israel. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. leaders marked one year Monday since Hamas militants launched a shocking attack on Israel, murdering more than 1,000 civilians, taking hundreds prisoner and igniting an all-but-declared regional war and a deadly Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip that the U.S. has failed to halt despite months of cease-fire negotiations.

Demonstrations against Israel’s continued retaliatory bombing of the Hamas-controlled Palestinian territory cropped up again ahead of the anniversary, including one man attempting to set himself on fire outside the White House Sunday during an otherwise peaceful protest.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation warned that synagogues, mosques and vigil gatherings could be targeted by violent extremists.

President Joe Biden lit a yahrzeit candle Monday at the White House alongside first lady Jill Biden and Rabbi Aaron Alexander of the Washington-based Adas Israel Congregation, who recited a Jewish prayer to honor those who died.

Biden also spoke by phone to Israeli President Isaac Herzog to express his condolences and reaffirm the U.S. commitment to Israel’s security, according to a White House readout of the call.

“On this day last year, the sun rose on what was supposed to be a joyous Jewish holiday. By sunset, October 7 had become the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust. Today marks one year of mourning for the more than 1,200 innocent people of all ages, including 46 Americans, massacred in southern Israel by the terrorist group Hamas,” Biden said in a statement early Monday, also acknowledging Hamas’ “horrific acts of sexual violence.”

Twelve Americans were among the hostages forcefully taken and still held by the militants, though many have died in captivity.

The past 12 months have been punctuated by protests against a U.S. surge in weapons to Israel since the attack. Health officials in Gaza say over 41,000 have been killed in the strikes that critics describe as indiscriminate to civilians, but Israel maintains are targeted at Hamas, an ally of Iran.

Prior to dropping his bid for reelection, Biden’s campaign events were regularly interrupted by demonstrators who accused the president of supporting “genocide” of Palestinians.

A pomegranate tree for hope

The chanting of protesters and sirens could be heard as Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, and second gentleman Doug Emhoff honored the Oct. 7 victims Monday by planting a pomegranate tree, an important symbol in the Jewish faith, at the vice president’s residence at the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington, according to reporters who were present.

Harris said during brief remarks that “we must uphold the commitment to repair the world” and “work to relieve the immense suffering of innocent Palestinians in Gaza who have experienced so much pain and loss over the year.”

“For years to come, this pomegranate tree will stand here, spreading its roots and growing stronger to remind future vice presidents of the United States, their families and all who pass through these grounds, not only of the horror of October 7, but the strength and the endurance of the Jewish people. It will remind us all not to abandon the goal of peace, dignity and security for all, and it will remind us all to always have faith,” Harris said.

Emhoff, the first Jewish spouse of any U.S. president or vice president, said he is “still filled with pain and despair.”

In response to a shouted question about a cease-fire, Harris replied: “We’re not giving up. We’re doing everything we can possibly do to get the cease-fire hostage deal done. It’s one of the most important ways we will be able to end this war and bring any type of stability to the region. It’s one of the highest priorities of this administration.”

Earlier in the day Harris issued a statement saying she will “never forget the horror” that occurred on this day last year.

“Women raped on the side of the road. 250 people kidnapped. … What Hamas did that day was pure evil — it was brutal and sickening,” she said.

Harris has repeatedly said her commitment to Israel’s security is “unwavering.”

Schumer at Brooklyn synagogue

Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York spent the morning at his synagogue in Brooklyn continuing to call for the release of hostages.

“When I went to Israel days after October 7th to express American solidarity with the Israeli people and Israel’s right to self-defense, we gathered with the families of American victims of Hamas’s attack. I will never forget the meeting. I still remember when one of the family members told me every minute is an hour, every day is a year not knowing the fate of their loved ones held in Hamas’s captivity,” Schumer said in a statement.

“We must not and we cannot waver in our efforts to bring the hostages home. It is long past time.”

Schumer, who on the Senate floor in March heavily criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of Israel’s retaliatory bombardment of Gaza, honored the death of American Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was murdered after nearly 11 months in captivity. Goldberg-Polin was taken hostage as Hamas militants terrorized and killed hundreds at a desert music festival as part of their surprise attack.

The Senate majority leader also listed the names of several of his New York constituents who remain in captivity, including three whose bodies Hamas hasn’t returned.

GOP slams Biden, Harris

The Republican National Committee hosted a “remembrance press call” ahead of former President Donald Trump’s attendance at an Oct. 7 memorial event in Miami, Florida, Monday night.

The call largely focused on blaming Biden and Harris for the gruesome Hamas attack and for the rise of antisemitism.

“None of this happened under President Trump when he was in office, because America was respected in the eyes of this world, and President Trump created peace through his strength, strong foreign policy,” Karoline Leavitt, the Trump campaign’s national press secretary, said.

The call featured former Democratic Florida Congressman Peter Deutsch announcing his endorsement of Trump for president.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said time “has not dulled the pain inflicted on the people of Israel one year ago today, nor eased the grief left in its wake.

“October 7th confronted the world with the irredeemable evil of Iran-backed terror, and drew emboldened strains of the world’s oldest hatred out of the shadows,” the Kentucky Republican continued in a statement issued Monday.

McConnell’s comments did not mention Biden, Harris or Trump.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson released a video featuring footage from the Hamas attack and clips of him shaking hands with Netanyahu when the Israeli leader visited the Capitol to address a joint session of Congress.

“The terror and antisemitism we’ve witnessed have demanded full resolve from America’s leaders, which is why Congress passed legislation in the spring to provide Israel with necessary military aid and support,” Johnson, of Louisiana, said in a statement.

“Today, at this critical time, following a second direct attack by Iran and ongoing terror from Hezbollah, Americans must insist that the Biden-Harris Administration stand unequivocally with Israel and against the terrorist regime in Iran, as we continue to pray for peace and security in Israel,” Johnson continued.

Johnson’s video also featured footage of protesters carrying Palestinian flags on college campuses, and of him speaking at Columbia University.

In the months following the Oct. 7 attack, House Republicans fixated on anti-war university encampments and demonstrations — some, but not all, of which featured blatant antisemitism and violence. The party continues to laud GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik’s heated questioning in December about antisemitism to University of Pennsylvania’s Liz Magill and Harvard’s Claudine Gay, which contributed to both the university presidents’ resignations.

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Special counsel Jack Smith reveals new evidence against Trump in 2020 election case https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/special-counsel-jack-smith-reveals-new-evidence-against-trump-in-2020-election-case/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/special-counsel-jack-smith-reveals-new-evidence-against-trump-in-2020-election-case/#respond Thu, 03 Oct 2024 01:04:54 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22693

Special counsel Jack Smith delivers remarks on a recently unsealed indictment including four felony counts against former U.S. President Donald Trump at the Justice Department on Aug. 1, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan unsealed a lengthy and partly redacted motion Wednesday that charts special counsel Jack Smith’s final argument before November that former President Donald Trump acted in a private capacity when he co-conspired to overturn the 2020 election.

Much of the motion concerns Trump’s interactions with individuals in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, as he sought to disrupt election results, Smith alleged.

The document, due on Chutkan’s desk late last month, is central to reanimating the case after months of delay as Trump argued for complete criminal immunity from the government’s fraud and obstruction charges related to his actions after the 2020 presidential contest, which Joe Biden won.

The U.S. Supreme Court returned Trump’s case to Chutkan after ruling that former presidents enjoy criminal immunity for core constitutional acts, presumed immunity for acts on the perimeter of official duties, and no immunity for personal ones. At that point it became clear that the case against the Republican presidential nominee would not be tried prior to Election Day.

Smith’s superseding indictment shortly thereafter retained all four felony counts against Trump, and Chutkan is tasked with parsing which allegations can stand in light of the Supreme Court decision.

In his unsealed 165-page motion, Smith outlines Trump’s alleged plots with private lawyers and political allies — names redacted — to ultimately deliver false slates of electors to Congress so that he appeared the winner over Biden in the seven states.

“Working with a team of private co-conspirators, the defendant acted as a candidate when he pursued multiple criminal means to disrupt, through fraud and deceit, the government function by which votes are collected and counted — a function in which the defendant, as President, had no official role,” Smith wrote.

Trump slammed the court filing on social media in numerous posts, writing in a mix of upper and lowercase letters that “Democrats are Weaponizing the Justice Department against me because they know I am WINNING, and they are desperate to prop up their failing Candidate, Kamala Harris.”

“The DOJ pushed out this latest ‘hit job’ today because JD Vance humiliated Tim Walz last night in the Debate. The DOJ has become nothing more than an extension of Joe’s, and now Kamala’s, Campaign. This is egregious PROSECUTORIAL MISCONDUCT, and should not have been released right before the Election,” he continued in just one of his many reactions on his platform, Truth Social.

Trump’s running mate, Ohio GOP Sen. J.D. Vance, faced Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz, in a vice presidential debate on Tuesday night.

Here are key arguments from Smith’s filing, which alleges efforts by Trump and allies to subvert voters’ will during the last presidential election:

Arizona

Smith detailed calls to and communications with various Arizona officials, including the governor and speaker of the Arizona state House, arguing the interactions were made in Trump’s “capacity as a candidate.”

  • “The defendant and his co-conspirators also demonstrated their deliberate disregard for the truth — and thus their knowledge of falsity — when they repeatedly changed the numbers in their baseless fraud allegations from day to day. At trial, the Government will introduce several instances of this pattern, in which the defendant and conspirators’ lies were proved by the fact that they made up figures from whole cloth. One example concerns the defendant and conspirators’ claims about non-citizen voters in Arizona. The conspirators started with the allegation that 36,000 non-citizens voted in Arizona; five days later, it was ‘beyond credulity that a few hundred thousand didn’t vote’: three weeks later, ‘the bare minimum [was] 40 or 50,000. The reality is about 250,000’; days after that, the assertion was 32,000; and ultimately the conspirators landed back where they started at 36,000 — a false figure that they never verified or corroborated.”

Georgia

Smith plans to introduce into evidence Trump’s communications, in his personal capacity, with Georgia’s attorney general, including a call on Dec. 8, 2020, and to the secretary of state.

  • Trump “had early notice that his claims of election fraud in Georgia were false. Around mid-November, Campaign advisor [redacted] told the defendant that his claim that a large number of dead people had voted in Georgia was false. The defendant continued to press the claim anyway, including in a press appearance on November 29, when he suggested that a large enough number of dead voters had cast ballots to change the outcome of the election in Georgia.”
  • “In the post-election period, [redacted] also took on the role of updating the defendant on a near-daily basis on the Campaign’s unsuccessful efforts to support any fraud claims…. He told the defendant that if the Campaign took these claims to court, they would get slaughtered, because the claims are all ‘bullshit.’ [Redacted] was privy in real time to the findings of the two expert consulting firms the Campaign retained to investigate fraud claims — [redacted] and [redacted] — and discussed with the defendant their debunkings on all major claims. For example, [redacted] told the defendant that Georgia’s audit disproved claims that [redacted] had altered votes.”

Michigan

The document details an Oval Office meeting Trump held with Michigan’s Senate majority leader and speaker of the House on Nov. 20, 2020, during which Trump tried to acquire evidence of voter fraud in Detroit.

  • “Despite failing to establish any valid fraud claims, [redacted] followed up with [redacted] and [redacted] and attempted to pressure them to use the Michigan legislature to overturn the valid election result.”

Michigan and Pennsylvania

The filing said that directly following the 2020 election, Trump and his “private operatives sought to create chaos, rather than seek clarity, at polling places where states were continuing to tabulate votes.”

  • “For example, on November 4, [redacted]—a Campaign employee, agent, and co-conspirator of the defendant—tried to sow confusion when the ongoing vote count at the TCF Center in Detroit, Michigan, looked unfavorable for the defendant.”
  • “When a colleague suggested that there was about to be unrest reminiscent of the Brooks Brothers Riot, a violent effort to stop the vote count in Florida after the 2000 presidential election, [redacted] responded ‘Make them riot’ and ‘Do it!!!’ The defendant’s Campaign operatives and supporters used similar tactics at other tabulation centers, including in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the defendant sometimes used the resulting confrontations to falsely claim that his election observers were being denied proper access, thus serving as a predicate to the defendant’s claim that fraud must have occurred in the observers’ absence.”

Michigan voting machines

Smith will argue that Trump, outside his official presidential duties, tried to persuade political allies in Michigan to sway the election in his favor.

  • Among the evidence he will introduce: The former president held a meeting, “private in nature,” with Michigan legislators at the White House.
  • Smith also wrote that “In mid-December, the defendant spoke with RNC Chairwoman [redacted] and asked her to publicize and promote a private report that had been related on December 13 that purported to identify flaws in the use of [redacted] machines in Antrim County, Michigan. [Redacted] refused, telling the defendant that she already had discussed this report with [redacted] Michigan’s Speaker of the House, who had told her that the report was inaccurate. [Redacted] conveyed to the defendant [redacted] exact assessment: the report was ‘f—— nuts.’”

Nevada

In Nevada, Trump allegedly ignored warnings about spreading lies about the state’s election results. Smith wrote: “Notwithstanding the RNC Chief Counsel’s warning, the defendant re-tweeted and amplified news of the lawsuit on November 24, calling it ‘Big News!’ that a Nevada Court had agreed to hear it. But the defendant did not similarly promote the fact that within two weeks, on December 4, the Nevada District Court dismissed Law v. Whitmer, finding in a detailed opinion that ‘there is no credible or reliable evidence that the 2020 General Election in Nevada was affected by fraud,’ including through the signature-match machines, and that Biden won the election in the state.”

  • Trump continued to repeat false claims in tweets and speeches “as a candidate, not as an office holder,” Smith wrote.

Pennsylvania?

In the Keystone State, officials warned Trump there was no smoke and no fire related to election fraud in the commonwealth, Smith wrote.

  • “Two days after the election, on November 6, the defendant called [redacted], the Chairman of the Pennsylvania Republican Party—the entity responsible for supporting Republican candidates in the commonwealth at the federal, state and local level. [Redacted] had a prior relationship with the defendant, including having represented him in litigation in Pennsylvania after the 2016 presidential election. The defendant asked [redacted] how, without fraud, he had gone from winning Pennsylvania on election day to trailing in the day afterward. Consistent with what Campaign staff already had told the defendant, [redacted] confirmed that it was not fraud; it was that there were roughly 1,750,000 mail-in ballots still being counted in Pennsylvania, which were expected to be eighty percent for Biden. Over the following two months, the defendant spread false claims of fraud in Pennsylvania anyway.”
  • “In early November, in a Campaign meeting, when the defendant suggested that more people in Pennsylvania voted than had checked in to vote, Deputy Campaign Manager [redacted] corrected him.”

Wisconsin

Smith wrote Trump ignored reality in Wisconsin as well.

  • “On November 29, a recount that the defendant’s campaign had petitioned and paid for confirmed that Biden had won in Wisconsin — and increased the defendant’s margin of defeat. On December 14, the Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected the Campaign’s election lawsuit there. As a result, on December 21, Wisconsin’s Governor signed a certificate of final determination confirming the prior certificate of ascertainment that established Biden’s electors as the valid electors for the state.”

Trump responded by rebuking the Wisconsin Supreme Court judge who had signed the majority opinion that rejected the lawsuit, forcing the state marshals responsible for the judge’s security to enhance protection due to a rise in “threatening communications.”

Fake electors?

Smith alleged that as Trump and co-conspirators faltered at overturning states’ official election results, they turned their attention to fake slates of electors.

As early as December 2020, Trump and his allies “developed a new plan regarding targeted states that the defendant had lost (Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin): to organize the people who would have served as the defendant’s electors had he won the popular vote, and cause them to sign and send to Pence, as President of the Senate, certificates in which they falsely represent themselves as legitimate electors who had cast electoral votes for the defendant,” Smith wrote.

Trump and his allies lied to Vice President Mike Pence heading toward Jan. 6, “telling him that there was substantial election fraud and concealing their orchestration of the plan to manufacture fraudulent elector slates, as well as their intention to use the fake slates to attempt to obstruct the congressional certification.”

Trump’s alleged lies to Pence and the public “created a tinderbox that he purposely ignited on January 6.”

The filing details numerous people, including Trump, pressuring Pence for weeks to use his role overseeing Congress’ certification of the Electoral College vote to overturn the election results.

On the morning of Jan. 6, Pence, once again, told Trump he would not go along with the plan.

“So on January 6, the defendant sent to the Capitol a crowd of angry supporters, whom the defendant had called to the city and inundated with false claims of outcome-determinative election fraud, to induce Pence not to certify the legitimate electoral vote and to obstruct the certification.”

“Although the attack on the Capitol successfully delayed the certification for approximately six hours, the House and Senate resumed the Joint Session at 11:35 p.m. But the conspirators were not done.”

The filing alleges a co-conspirator once again urged Pence to “violate the law” by delaying the certification for 10 days. He refused.

Pressure on Pence

Smith must prove that Trump’s pressure on Pence was outside of their official duties together, and therefore can not be considered immune from prosecution.

Smith plans to introduce evidence of private phone calls and conversations between Trump and his VP, including some with campaign staff, essentially tying their interactions to their interests as those seeking office again, “as running mates in the post-election period.” Smith also plans to highlight that Pence’s role in certifying the election was largely ceremonial and within the realm of the Senate, and strictly outside the bounds of the Oval Office.? Among Smith’s points made in his motion:

  • “Because the Vice President’s role is and has always been ministerial, rather than substantive or discretionary, it is difficult to imagine an occasion in which a President would have any valid reason to try to influence it. As such, criminalizing a President’s efforts to affect the Vice President’s role as the President of the Senate overseeing the certification of Electoral College results would not jeopardize an Executive Branch function or authority.”
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Trump describes traumatic brain injuries sustained by U.S. troops in Iraq as a ‘headache’ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/trump-describes-traumatic-brain-injuries-sustained-by-u-s-troops-in-iraq-as-a-headache/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/trump-describes-traumatic-brain-injuries-sustained-by-u-s-troops-in-iraq-as-a-headache/#respond Wed, 02 Oct 2024 20:16:44 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22666

Members of the U.S. military and international media survey the damage of Iranian missile attacks at Al Asad Air Base, Iraq, on Jan. 13, 2020. Alaska Air National Guardsmen of the 211th Rescue Squadron evacuated many squadron members during the Jan. 7 and 8 attack. (Photo courtesy of the Department of Defense)

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump said Tuesday that U.S. troops who suffered traumatic brain injuries after Iranian rocket fire in Iraq in 2020 only experienced a “headache,” dismissing the experiences of dozens of American soldiers who were later awarded the Purple Heart.

Trump’s comments came after a reporter in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, asked whether he should “have been tougher on Iran” after that nation launched ballistic missiles on Al-Asad Air Base in western Iraq in January 2020, during Trump’s presidency. A couple thousand U.S. troops remain on an anti-ISIS mission at the Iraqi air base, one of the largest during the U.S. invasion.

“First of all, injured, what does injured mean? Injured means, you mean, because they had a headache because the bombs never hit the fort?” Trump responded.

“If you were a truthful reporter, which you’re not, you would tell the following: None of those very accurate missiles hit our fort. They all hit outside, and there was nobody hurt, other than the sound was loud, and some people said that hurt, and I accept that,” Trump continued.

Trump added that Iran did “a very nice thing” by missing the military base. Photographs taken after the attack show extensive damage on the base.

U.S. troops at the base, that housed roughly 2,000 soldiers at the time, were given notice to shelter in bunkers. The missiles carried warheads weighing well over 1,000 pounds, leaving impact craters that spanned several feet wide, according to CBS News’ “60 Minutes” and The Washington Post.

While no troops were killed in the attack, hundreds were exposed to blast waves, and many were evacuated to Germany for medical care. Weeks later, more than 100 troops were diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries. Dozens were eventually awarded the Purple Heart, including one retired major interviewed by States Newsroom in May.

Soldiers described lasting effects from those injuries as including chronic migraines, vertigo, short-term memory issues and vision impairment.

Trump’s comments Tuesday came as he took questions from the press after delivering wide-ranging remarks at a campaign event at the Discovery World Science Museum on the city’s lakefront.

The reporter did not identify herself before asking her question. Trump’s remarks were recorded in full by the local Fox affiliate and live streamed by the Trump-focused YouTube channel “Right Side Broadcasting Network.”

Details of attack

This is not the first time Trump has downplayed the soldiers’ experiences and injuries stemming from that specific attack.

Iran fired 16 ballistic missiles at the air base and another Iraqi military site between Jan. 7 and 8, 2020. Roughly a dozen landed, according to reports. The attack was in retaliation for a U.S. strike days earlier in Baghdad that killed top Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani.

The 2020 attack on the base has been well documented. Images taken by photographers with National Public Radio and The Washington Post showed damaged buildings on the base. The New York Times and The Associated Press compiled video footage and compared satellite images before and after the attack.

CBS News’ “60 Minutes” aired drone footage of the attack and first-hand accounts from troops who described the experience in a nearly 14-minute news package for the television magazine program.

The National Institutes of Health collected medical data from nearly 40 soldiers for months after the attack and found persistent symptoms following concussions.

Military installations that still house U.S. troops in Iraq have been the target of Iranian attacks following the outbreak of violence on Oct. 7 when the Hamas militant group, one of Iran’s allies, launched a deadly surprise incursion into southern Israel, sparking a year-long war that has also drawn in Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants, according to the Pentagon.

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Top moments from the Walz-Vance veep debate https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/top-moments-from-the-walz-vance-veep-debate/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/top-moments-from-the-walz-vance-veep-debate/#respond Wed, 02 Oct 2024 11:41:25 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22647

The Republican vice presidential candidate, Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, and the Democratic vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, participate in a debate at the CBS Broadcast Center on Oct. 1, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The vice presidential candidates outlined vastly different visions for the country and traded barbs about their qualifications Tuesday during their first and only debate before Election Day.

Ohio Republican Sen. J.D. Vance, who’s on the ticket with former President Donald Trump, and Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, running mate to Vice President Kamala Harris, stuck to their rehearsed, scripted remarks to answer many questions, though they deviated from the talking points more than once.

Here are 10 telling moments from the vice presidential debate, moderated by “CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell and “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan at CBS studios in New York City:

Vance on his past negative comments about Trump: “When you screw up, when you misspeak, when you get something wrong and you change your mind, you ought to be honest with the American people about it. It’s one of the reasons, Margaret, why I’ve done so many interviews, is because I think it’s important to actually explain to the American people, where I come down on the issues and what changed.“

“I’ve been extremely consistent that I think there were a lot of things that we could have done better in the Trump administration in the first round, if Congress was doing its job.”

Walz on bipartisan immigration bill and threats against Haitian immigrants: “We could come together and solve this if we didn’t let Donald Trump continue to make it an issue. And the consequences in Springfield (Ohio) were the governor had to send state law enforcement to escort kindergartners to school.”

Vance on the legislative branch: “Congress is not just a high-class debating society. It’s not just a forum for senators and congressmen to whine about problems. It’s a forum to govern. So there were a lot of things on the border, on tariffs, for example, where I think that we could have done so much more if the Republican Congress and the Democrats in Congress had been a little bit better about how they govern the country.”

Walz on access to fertility treatments: “Infertility treatments are why I have a child. That’s nobody else’s business.”

Vance on reproductive rights: “I want us as a Republican Party, to be pro-family in the fullest sense of the word. I want us to support fertility treatments. I want us to make it easier for moms to afford to have babies. I want to make it easier for young families to afford a home, so they can afford a place to raise that family. And I think there’s so much that we can do on the public policy front just to give women more options.”

Walz on trade and tariffs: “Look, I’m a union guy on this. I’m not a guy who wanted to ship things overseas. But I understand that, look, we produce soybeans and corn; we need to have fair trading partners. That’s something that we believe in. I think the thing that most concerns me on this is Donald Trump was the guy who created the largest trade deficit in American history with China.”

Vance on debating national health care policy: “You’re not going to propose a 900-page bill standing on a debate stage. It would bore everybody to tears, and it wouldn’t actually mean anything, because part of this is the give-and-take of bipartisan negotiation.”

Walz on previously saying he was in China during the Tiananmen Square massacre:I’m a knucklehead at times.”

Vance on housing shortages: “What Donald Trump has said is we have a lot of federal lands that aren’t being used for anything, they’re not being used for a national park … and they could be places where we build a lot of housing. And I do think that we should be opening up building in this country.”

Walz on the peaceful transition of power following the election: “So America, I think you’ve got a really clear choice on this election of who’s going to honor that democracy and who’s going to honor Donald Trump.”

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Tim Walz and J.D. Vance tangle in wonky, largely cordial vice presidential debate https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/tim-walz-and-j-d-vance-tangle-in-wonky-largely-cordial-vice-presidential-debate/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/10/02/tim-walz-and-j-d-vance-tangle-in-wonky-largely-cordial-vice-presidential-debate/#respond Wed, 02 Oct 2024 11:35:20 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22644

The Democratic vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and the Republican vice presidential candidate, Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, speak after their debate at the CBS Broadcast Center on Oct. 1, 2024 in New York City. This is expected to be the only vice presidential debate of the 2024 general election. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Republican Ohio U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance squared off Tuesday night in a vice presidential debate that marked the last scheduled in-person meeting for the campaigns as Americans decide the country’s next chapter.

Meeting for the first time, Walz and Vance engaged in a policy-heavy, nearly two-hour back-and-forth hosted by CBS News at its studios in New York City. The debate was moderated by Norah O’Donnell, host of the “CBS Evening News,” and Margaret Brennan, who anchors the network’s Sunday political show “Face the Nation.”

The vice presidential candidates emphasized their modest upbringings and laid out their visions to lower high living costs, address charged issues like reproductive rights, immigration and gun violence, and navigate a quickly worsening conflict in the Middle East.

And, with the presidential contest marking the first since the violent aftermath of the 2020 election, and Trump’s continued false claims that he won, the moderators pressed the men on whether voters would see a peaceful transfer of power, no matter the winner. Vance would not provide a direct answer whether he would have certified the 2020 vote.

Walz is a second-term governor who previously served six terms in the U.S. House. Prior to his election, Walz worked as a public school teacher and football coach while also enlisted in the Minnesota Army National Guard for 24 years.

Vance served in the U.S. Marines for four years before earning his Yale law degree and becoming a venture capitalist and bestselling memoirist. He was first elected to public office in late 2022 to serve as Ohio’s junior U.S. senator.

The mostly amicable debate, with some moments of tension, was a noticeable departure from the bitter polarization on display daily during the presidential campaign. Walz and Vance shook hands and lingered onstage afterward chatting and introducing each other to their wives.

The presidential nominees, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris, met on the debate stage last month in a more acrimonious exchange during which the former president falsely claimed immigrants were eating pets in Ohio and Harris ripped into him for his remarks on race and abortion.

Trump has refused to debate again. Following the Vance-Walz exchange, the Harris campaign renewed its offer for another presidential meetup offered by CNN in Atlanta later this month.

Growing Middle East conflict

Answering the first question from the moderators Tuesday night, Walz and Vance sparred over which administration, if elected, would best quell signs of a widening war in the Middle East.

Tensions in the region escalated earlier Tuesday when Iran fired nearly 200 ballistic missiles at Israel, according to the Pentagon.

Walz accused Trump of being “fickle” on foreign policy and said the world is worse off since Trump pulled the United States out of the Iran nuclear deal. Walz argued for “steady leadership.”

“You saw it experienced today where, along with our Israeli partners and our coalition, (we were) able to stop the incoming attack,” Walz said.

“It’s clear, and the world saw it on that debate stage a few weeks ago, a nearly 80-year-old Donald Trump talking about crowd sizes is not what we need in this moment,” the governor continued.

Vance maintained that Trump headed off heated global conflict by invoking fear.

“We have to remember that as much as Governor Waltz just accused Donald Trump of being an agent of chaos, Donald Trump actually delivered stability in the world, and he did it by establishing effective deterrence,” Vance said. “People were afraid of stepping out of line.”

The barrage in the Middle East followed Israel’s ground incursion into Southern Lebanon and its recent assassination in Beirut of Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Iranian proxy militant group Hezbollah.

While Israel intercepted the majority of the rockets Tuesday, U.S. Navy destroyers in the Middle East fired roughly a dozen interceptors at incoming Iranian missiles, Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said.

The Biden administration promised “severe consequences,” though it has not provided details. Harris said late Tuesday that Iran poses a “destabilizing, dangerous force in the Middle East” and her commitment to Israel is “unwavering.”

Despite a visit to Washington less than a week ago from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the CBS moderators did not ask about the ongoing war in Ukraine, and neither candidate brought up the costly and ongoing fight against Russia’s continued invasion.

2020 election

Vance and Walz sparred over how Trump handled his loss in the 2020 presidential election and his actions leading up to Jan. 6, 2021, when a mob of his supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol following a rally that Trump hosted.

Walz said while he and Vance found some areas of common ground at other points during the debate, the two were “miles apart” on Trump’s actions following the 2020 election.

“This was a threat to our democracy in a way that we had not seen, and it manifested itself because of Donald Trump’s inability to say – he is still saying he didn’t lose the election,” Walz said.

Vance didn’t directly answer whether he would have certified the electoral count for President Joe Biden had he been a member of Congress at the time, to Walz’s dismay.

“I’m pretty shocked by this,” Walz said. “He lost the election. This is not a debate.”

Walz said he was concerned that Vance wouldn’t follow the example set by former Vice President Mike Pence, who refused to go along with a scheme to recognize fake slates of electors and deny Biden the presidency.

Vance tried to pivot to Harris’ actions following the COVID-19 pandemic and whether she “censored Americans from speaking their mind” before saying that both he and Trump “think that there were problems in 2020.”

There was no evidence of widespread voter fraud during the last presidential election, during which Trump lost both the popular vote and the Electoral College.

Walz also criticized Trump and Vance for using the same narrative ahead of this November’s elections, saying they were “already laying the groundwork for people not accepting” the results should Trump lose.

Taxes and tariffs

Both Harris and Trump have released economic plans that would add trillions to the national deficit — though analysis after analysis shows Trump’s proposals outpacing Harris’ by at least a few trillion.

Harris and Walz are running on an “opportunity economy” theme that would permanently expand the Child Tax Credit, including giving $6,000 to new parents, and provide tax credits and deductions to first-time homebuyers and entrepreneurs.

Harris, following Biden’s earlier budget proposal, has said she would impose a minimum tax on high-wealth individuals, but vowed steeper levies on long-term capital gains.

Trump has promised to fund the Treasury’s coffers with money raised by taxing imported goods. Largely he wants to extend his signature 2017 tax law and permanently lower the corporate tax rate.

When asked by the moderators how the candidates could accomplish those goals without ballooning the national debt, both Vance and Walz sidestepped directly answering the question. Rather they touted Trump and Biden administration policies and then went on the attack.

“Donald Trump made a promise, and I’ll give you this: He kept it. He took folks to Mar-a-Lago (and) said, ‘You’re rich as hell. I’m gonna give you a tax cut,’” Walz said, adding that Trump’s tariff plan would be “destabilizing” for the economy.

Economists warn that Trump’s plan to slap tariffs on imports across the board —? as high as 60% on Chinese imports and 100% to 200% on cars and John Deere tractors manufactured in Mexico — could cause consumer prices to increase and invite retaliation.

But Vance said he wanted to “defend my running mate” on the issue.

“We’re going to be taking in a lot of money by penalizing companies for shipping jobs overseas and penalizing countries who employ slave laborers and then ship their products back into our country and undercut the wages of American workers. It’s the heart of the Donald Trump economic plan,” the senator said.

High costs and housing

Both candidates spent significant time addressing housing and child care costs.

Walz touted Harris’ “bold forward plan” that calls for construction of 3 million new homes and “down payment assistance on the front end to get you in a house.”

“A house is much more than just an asset to be traded somewhere. It’s foundational to where you’re at,” Walz said.

Vance said some of Walz’s ideas on housing were “halfway decent.”

One of the central pillars of Trump and Vance’s housing plans is to turn over federal lands to private hands for development.

“We have a lot of federal lands that aren’t being used for anything. They’re not being used for national parks. They’re not being used, and they could be places where we build a lot of housing,” Vance said.

On child care, Walz pledged a paid federal family and medical leave mandate as a priority for the Harris campaign, and advocated a parallel workforce development program for the care professions.

“We have to make it easier for folks to be able to get into that business, and then to make sure that folks are able to pay for that,” Walz said.

The dual goals, he said, “will enhance our workforce, enhance our families, and make it easier to have the children that you want.”

Vance said he sees an opportunity for a “bipartisan solution” to the high cost of child care, though he stopped short of agreeing with a federal paid leave law.

Instead he proposed expanding the potential recipients for federal child care grants.

“These programs only go to one kind of child care model. Let’s say you’d like your church maybe to help you out with child care. Maybe you live in a rural area or an urban area, and you’d like to get together with families in your neighborhood to provide child care and the way that makes the most sense. You don’t get access to any of these federal monies,” Vance said.

Immigration, again

Vance also repeatedly connected the housing shortage and high costs to immigration — the central issue for Trump’s campaign and a common answer from him for several of the nation’s woes.

The Ohio senator said housing is “totally unaffordable because we brought in millions of illegal immigrants to compete with Americans for scarce homes.”

“The people that I’m most worried about in Springfield, Ohio, are the American citizens who have had their lives destroyed by Kamala Harris’ open border,” Vance said, referring to the town where he and Trump falsely claimed over and over that Haitian migrants were stealing and eating pets.

Debate moderator Brennan pressed Vance on his claim: “Senator on that point, I’d like for you to clarify. There are many contributing factors to high housing costs. What evidence do you have that migrants are part of this problem?”

Vance said he would share on social media following the debate a Federal Reserve study that supported his claim.

Reproductive rights?

Access to abortion and fertility treatments was one of the more contentious areas of disagreement, though neither candidate trod new ground for their party.

Vance maintained the Trump stance that abortion laws should be set by voters or state lawmakers, while Walz said women and their doctors are best suited to make those decisions.

Vance told a story about a woman he grew up with having an abortion, then telling him a few years ago that “she felt like if she hadn’t had that abortion, that it would have destroyed her life because she was in an abusive relationship.”

“And I think that what I take from that, as a Republican who proudly wants to protect innocent life in this country, who proudly wants to protect the vulnerable, is that my party, we’ve got to do so much better of a job at earning the American people’s trust back on this issue, where they frankly, just don’t trust us,” Vance said. “And I think that’s one of the things that Donald Trump, and I are endeavoring to do.”

Walz rejected Vance’s position that state lawmakers should determine women’s access to the full slate of reproductive decisions, including fertility treatments.

Walz referenced some of the stories women have told in the last two years about being denied medical care for miscarriages or other dangerous pregnancy complications because of vaguely written state laws that banned or significantly restricted access to abortion.

“This is a very simple proposition: These are women’s decisions to make about their health care,” Walz said, later adding that people should “just mind their own business on this.”

Gun violence

The two vice presidential candidates had one of the more genuine exchanges of the debate after the moderators asked them about solutions for gun violence.

Vance conceded that he and Walz both want to reduce the number of people killed by guns every year, but said the solution should center around addressing illegal guns, including those used in drug trafficking, and through changing how schools are designed.

“Unfortunately, I think that we have to increase security in our schools. We have to make the doors lock better. We have to make the door stronger. We’ve got to make the windows stronger,” Vance said. “And of course, we’ve got to increase school resource officers, because the idea that we can magically wave a wand and take guns out of the hands of bad guys, it just doesn’t fit with recent experience.”

Walz said school shootings are every parent’s “worst nightmare” before telling a story about how his son witnessed a shooting at a community center while playing volleyball.

“Those things don’t leave you,” Walz said, before talking about meeting with parents of the children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, when he was a member of Congress.

“We understand that the Second Amendment is there, but our first responsibility is to our kids to figure this out,” Walz said. “In Minnesota, we’ve enacted enhanced red flag laws, enhanced background checks.”

Walz said he absolutely believes Vance hates it when children die from gun violence, but added that’s “not far enough when we know they’re things that work.”

“No one’s trying to scaremonger and say, ‘We’re taking your guns,” Walz said. “But I ask all of you out there, ‘Do you want your schools hardened to look like a fort?’ … when we know there’s countries around the world that their children aren’t practicing these types of drills.”

Vance expressed sympathy that Walz’s son had witnessed a shooting and thanked him for bringing up Finland as an example of a country with a high rate of gun ownership that doesn’t have school shootings.

“I do think it illustrates some of the, frankly, weird differences between our own country’s gun violence problem and Finland,” Vance said, before mentioning higher rates of substance abuse and mental health issues within the United States.

“I don’t think it’s the whole reason why we have such a bad gun violence problem, but I do think it’s a big piece of it,” Vance said.

Hurricane Helene response, climate change?

The two candidates expressed dismay about the destruction stemming from Hurricane Helene in states in the Southeast, but disagreed about how best to address climate change.

Vance said “a lot of people are justifiably worried about all these crazy weather patterns,” before criticizing how Democrats have drafted climate change laws.

“This idea that carbon emissions drive all the climate change; well let’s just say that’s true, just for the sake of arguments,” Vance said. “Well, if you believe that, what would you want to do? The answer is that you’d want to restore as much American manufacturing as possible, and you’d want to produce as much energy as possible in the United States of America, because we’re the cleanest economy in the entire world.”

Walz said that Biden and Harris have worked with Congress to enact legislation addressing climate change that also created jobs.

“We are producing more natural gas and more oil at any time than we ever have. We’re also producing more clean energy,” Walz said. “Reducing our impact is absolutely critical, but this is not a false choice. You can do that at the same time you’re creating the jobs that we’re seeing all across the country.”

Walz also said that farmers in Minnesota know climate change is real because some years they experience significant drought and other years they’re inundated with too much rain for their crops to handle.

“They’ve seen 500-year droughts, 500-year floods back-to-back,” Walz said. “But what they’re doing is adapting, and this has allowed them to tell me, ‘Look, I harvest corn, I harvest soybeans, and I harvest wind.’”

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Walz, Vance prep for debate as hurricane politics swirl around presidential campaign https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/30/walz-vance-prep-for-debate-as-hurricane-politics-swirl-around-presidential-campaign/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/30/walz-vance-prep-for-debate-as-hurricane-politics-swirl-around-presidential-campaign/#respond Tue, 01 Oct 2024 01:08:55 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22588

The entrance to the CBS Broadcast Center undergoes repairs on Sept. 30, 2024, the day before the television network will host the vice presidential debate in New York City. The Republican vice presidential candidate, Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, and the Democratic vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, will hold their only debate of the 2024 general election on Tuesday night. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Republican U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance and Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will face off Tuesday night for a vice presidential debate, the final scheduled in-person exchange between the campaigns as polls continue to show a tight race just over five weeks out from November’s election.

The debate, hosted by CBS News, is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m. Eastern and last for 90 minutes. The event will air live on local CBS affiliate stations?and stream on the CBS News app, CBSNews.com, YouTube and Paramount+.

The matchup between the running mates of former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris brings together two men who both claim congressional records and previous service in the U.S. armed forces.

The debate also comes as the southeastern U.S. reels from the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, which barreled inland as a tropical storm that brought record-breaking flooding and claimed more than 100 lives — a third of them in North Carolina, a swing state in the 2024 presidential election.

Republican National Committee and Trump campaign officials said Monday that Vance, Ohio’s junior senator, plans to attack Walz during the debate on several fronts, including tying Walz to the Biden administration.

“No amount of Minnesota nice is going to make up for the fact that Walz embodies the same disastrous economic, open-border and soft-on-crime (record) Harris has inflicted on our country over the last four years,” said Minnesota GOP Congressman Tom Emmer, who has been standing in as Walz during Vance’s debate prep.

“J.D. Vance is prepared to wipe the floor with Tim Walz and expose him for the radical liberal he is,” Emmer told reporters on a Monday morning call.

But Jason Miller, senior adviser for the Trump campaign, warned “Walz is very good at debates. I want to repeat that Tim Walz is very good in debates, really good. He’s been a politician for nearly 20 years.”

Trump posted Monday on his Truth Social platform that he will be doing a “personal play by play” of the debate.

The Harris campaign has not revealed details about Walz’s debate preparation. CNN reported that Walz is nervous and has been practicing with Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg as a stand-in for Vance.

Walz spent Saturday in Ann Arbor at the University of Michigan Wolverines vs. University of Minnesota Golden Gophers football game, where he was greeted by local elected officials and rallied students about the importance of the youth vote, according to the campaign.

Military service, China

Trump campaign surrogates said debate watchers are guaranteed to see Vance attack Walz on his military service.

Vance touts his own four years in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2003 to 2007, during which he was deployed to Iraq in 2005 as a military journalist.

The Trump campaign maintains Walz retired to avoid being deployed to Iraq. Trump campaign officials featured two veterans on Monday’s call who slammed Walz for being a “turncoat.”

“He deserted his post and his unit after 24 years of military service,” said Tom Behrends, a retired Command Sergeant Major for the Minnesota National Guard.

Walz, a former six-term congressman who represented the state’s 1st Congressional District, served in the Army National Guard for 24 years prior to running for office. He deployed to Italy between 2003 and 2004 to support Operation Enduring Freedom, a non-combat post.

A fact check by PolitiFact found he filed his candidacy paperwork in February 2005, a month before the Walz battalion was notified of possible deployment within two years. Walz filed retirement paperwork five to seven months before the deployment notification, according to the fact check.

Walz led a U.S. House resolution in 2007 to honor the Minnesota service members for their deployment to Iraq, according to the National Guard.

Walz carries the distinction of being the highest-ranking enlisted soldier to ever serve in Congress, according to his congressional biography published in 2017.

Walz suffered hearing loss and tinnitus after specializing in heavy artillery for two decades, according to Department of Veterans Affairs records he shared with journalists when running for governor in 2018.

He wrote in a 2013 benefits application that blasts “would knock us down and after firing I had ringing in my ears,” according to the records reviewed by Minnesota Public Radio. Eventually Walz underwent surgery to improve his hearing loss.

Retired Sgt. 1st Class Tom Schilling, who joined the RNC call Monday, also attacked Walz’s trips to China and how the governor handled “the George Floyd thing,” referring to protests that rocked Minneapolis following the murder of Floyd, a Black man, by police.

“He had 30 trips to China that really haven’t been answered. As a governor, he let Minneapolis burn,” said Schilling, who served in the Minnesota National Guard.

Walz has said he’s proud of the way local, state and federal officials handled the protests in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Walz ordered full National Guard mobilization roughly three days into the protests. However, Democratic Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and state Republican officials both criticized parts of the response by Walz, according to a review by The Associated Press.

Walz taught for a year in the southern China city of Foshan. As a public school teacher in Minnesota he then took students on annual trips to China. In the past he said he visited China 30 times. When pressed for documentation of the trips by APM Reports, the Harris campaign said his visits totaled “closer to 15.”

Trump visits Helene’s destruction in Georgia

Trump delivered remarks Monday in front of a damaged furniture store in Valdosta, Georgia, wearing his signature red “Make America Great Again” hat.

“We’re here today to stand in complete solidarity with the people of Georgia, with all of those suffering in the terrible aftermath of Hurricane Helene,” Trump said, standing alongside American evangelist Franklin Graham, who was coordinating the delivery of supplies.

Trump also said the presidential campaigns should take a backseat to the storm response. “We’re not talking about politics now, we have to all get together and get this solved.”

Moments later he stated falsely that Biden had not taken calls from Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp. Biden had spoken with Kemp by phone Sunday.

Journalists traveling with Harris in Las Vegas, Nevada, reported in the wee hours of Monday that the vice president was canceling her campaign events to return to Washington. D.C., to be briefed on the response to Helene.

Harris issued a statement Saturday saying that her “heart goes out to everyone impacted by the devastation unleashed by Hurricane Helene.

“Doug and I are thinking of those who tragically lost their lives and we are keeping all those who loved them in our prayers during the difficult days ahead. President Biden and I remain committed to ensuring that no community or state has to respond to this disaster alone,” she continued.

At his campaign rally Sunday in Erie, Pennsylvania, Trump criticized Harris for being in San Francisco “at fundraising events with her Radical Left lunatic donors, when big parts of our country have been devastated by that massive hurricane and are underwater, with many, many people dead.”

President Joe Biden delivered remarks from the White House early Monday and pledged federal support to the affected areas. Biden has already issued emergency declarations for Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. He also said he would visit the storm-ravaged areas as soon as his motorcade would not get in the way of response efforts.

Republicans for Harris

The Harris campaign continues to tout its growing endorsements from Republicans.

Former conservative Sen. Jeff Flake, of Arizona, announced his endorsement of Harris over the weekend.

“I’ve served with Kamala in the U.S. Senate. I’ve also served with Tim in the House of Representatives. I know them. I know first hand of their fine character and love of country,” Flake wrote on X Sunday.

Republican Voters Against Trump also announced on Sunday a new multi-million-dollar ad blitz in swing states.

The group launched a $5.8 million ad campaign in Pennsylvania’s Philadelphia, Harrisburg and Pittsburgh media markets. The ad launch is part of a $15 million campaign that will also reach Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin, according to a press release.

“Many swing voters are going to be making up their minds in the coming weeks, and it’s critical that we let them know what’s at stake,” Sarah Longwell, the political action committee’s executive director, said in a statement.

“You can repudiate him without renouncing your deeply held conservative values. We’re here to help establish a permission structure for right-leaning swing voters to do the right thing and vote their conscience,” the statement continued.

Ahead on the campaign trail

Trump is scheduled Saturday to return to Butler, Pennsylvania — the location of the first attempt on his life, during which he suffered a non-life-threatening ear injury and one spectator was killed by gunfire while two others were severely injured.

Trump also plans to hold a town hall Thursday in Fayetteville, North Carolina, well east of the devastation caused by Helene.

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U.S. government unveils charges against Iranians who hacked into Trump 2024 campaign https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/27/u-s-government-unveils-charges-against-iranians-who-hacked-into-trump-2024-campaign/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/27/u-s-government-unveils-charges-against-iranians-who-hacked-into-trump-2024-campaign/#respond Fri, 27 Sep 2024 20:38:43 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22541

The Department of Justice on Friday unsealed an indictment detailing a yearslong hacking scheme by Iran that targeted the 2024 presidential campaign of former President Donald Trump. In this photo, Trump speaks on May 28, 2022 in Casper, Wyoming. (Photo by Chet Strange/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. law enforcement on Friday announced charges against three Iranians who allegedly stole materials from former President Donald Trump’s campaign and tried to pass them to news media and Democrats in an attempt to influence the 2024 election.

The Department of Justice unsealed the indictment detailing a yearslong hacking scheme by Iran that targeted the email accounts of U.S. government officials, journalists, think tank experts, and most recently the 2024 presidential campaigns.

“The defendants’ own words make clear that they were attempting to undermine former President Trump’s campaign in advance of the 2024 U.S. presidential election,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a Friday press conference. Prosecutors believe the defendants acted from Iran and were never in the U.S.

“We know that Iran is continuing its brazen efforts to stoke discord, erode confidence in the U.S. electoral process and advance its malign activities for the (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps), a designated foreign terrorist organization,” Garland said.

The unsealed indictment in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia came three days after Trump’s campaign revealed the former president was briefed by the U.S. intelligence officials about “real and specific threats from Iran to assassinate him,” according to a statement Tuesday from Steven Cheung, the campaign’s communications director.

“Big threats on my life by Iran,” Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, posted on X Wednesday. Trump suggested at a campaign stop in Mint Hill, North Carolina, that Iran could be responsible for two assassination attempts on him.

The U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence has not published a statement on the matter. Its most recent press release focuses on the Iranian plot to hack Trump’s campaign.

‘It takes two to tango’?

Global politics continued to top the U.S. presidential election headlines Friday when Trump welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Trump Tower after announcing the invitation late Thursday at a meandering press conference where he promised, if elected, to strike a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia “quite quickly.”

The pair met behind closed doors in Trump’s New York City skyscraper on the sidelines of this week’s United Nations General Assembly, and one day after Zelenskyy traveled to Washington to meet with Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden and bipartisan lawmakers.

“After November we have to decide, and we hope that the strengths of the United States will be very strong, and we count on it. That’s why I decided to meet with both candidates,” Zelenskyy said during brief joint comments alongside Trump ahead of the meeting.

Trump, who refused during a live presidential debate to say whether he wanted Ukraine to win its war with Russia, detoured from that stance and hinted Friday that he wants a victory for the Western ally.

“I think the fact that we’re even together today is a very good sign, and hopefully we’ll have a good victory, because (if) the other side wins, I don’t think you’re gonna have victories with anything to be honest with you,” Trump said during the joint remarks.

During the exchange, Trump highlighted his “very good relationship” with Putin and said he could settle the war “very quickly.”

“But you know, it takes two to tango,” he said.

Harris at the border

Harris traveled to the U.S. southern border Friday to stump for a bipartisan border security deal that collapsed in early 2024 shortly after Trump publicly lambasted it.

Harris was scheduled to deliver what her campaign billed as a major speech in the border town of Douglas, Arizona, where she planned to talk about setting and enforcing new immigration rules at the border, according to a senior campaign official.

“Donald Trump cares more about self-interest than solutions. He wants a problem to run on, not a fix for the American people,”? Harris campaign spokesperson Ammar Moussa said in a statement Friday.

“When he was president, Trump created chaos at the border, taking our already broken immigration system and making it worse – leaving behind a mess for the Biden-Harris administration to clean up. Americans deserve a president who puts national security over their own self-interest – that’s Kamala Harris,” the statement continued.

Trump is attacking Harris over border crossings into the U.S. — his central campaign issue — and calling her by the dishonest nickname “border czar” and claiming she caused the “worst border crisis in the history of the world.”

“When you look at the four years that have taken place after being named ‘border czar,’ Kamala Harris will be visiting the southern border that she has completely destroyed,” Trump said at his Thursday press conference.

Biden, in February 2021, tasked Harris with strategizing ways to fight the “root cause” of migration from Central American countries, including economic insecurity, government corruption and gender-based violence.

Trump has historically painted with a broad brush the complex issue of immigration at the U.S. southern border, announcing his first presidential campaign in 2015 by describing Mexican immigrants as “rapists.” During his own presidency in 2018 he warned of immigrant “caravans” crossing into the U.S. from Mexico. He has promised mass deportations if elected in November.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security publicly releases numbers of border encounters, apprehensions and expulsions.

Back on the trail

The presidential and vice presidential candidates are scheduled to make the following appearances:

  • Harris will deliver a speech in Douglas, Arizona, Friday.
  • Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks in Walker, Michigan Friday, followed by a town hall in Warren, Michigan.
  • Trump is expected to attend the Alabama-Georgia football game on Saturday in Tuscaloosa, the University of Alabama, as confirmed by States Newsroom last week.
  • Not to be outdone on the college football scene, Harris’ running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is scheduled to attend the Michigan-Minnesota football game Saturday in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
  • Harris will head to Las Vegas, Nevada, Sunday for a campaign rally.
  • Trump will also host a rally Sunday, this time in Erie, Pennsylvania.
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Taxes: Where do Trump and Harris stand? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/27/taxes-where-do-trump-and-harris-stand/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/27/taxes-where-do-trump-and-harris-stand/#respond Fri, 27 Sep 2024 09:50:46 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22471

With many 2017 tax cuts expiring and cost of living a major challenge for Americans, tax policy has become a central issue in the 2024 presidential campaign. (Photo by Phillip Rubino/Getty Images)

This is one in a series of States Newsroom reports on the major policy issues in the presidential race.

WASHINGTON — With the clock ticking on former President Donald Trump’s signature 2017 tax law, and high housing, food and child care costs darkening Americans’ mood, tax cuts have become the star of the 2024 presidential contest between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Trump wants to overall extend his tax provisions beyond the 2025 expiration date and then some, promising to lower the corporate tax rate even further and lift the cap on the state and local taxes deduction.

He argues the loss in federal revenue will be made up by imposing steep tariffs on imported goods.

Tariff is a “beautiful word,” he told a crowd in Savannah, Georgia, Tuesday night, “one of the most beautiful words I’ve ever heard.”

“We will take in hundreds of billions of dollars into our treasury and use that money to benefit the American citizens,” he said.

Harris is running on an “opportunity economy” platform that keeps the Biden administration’s promises to not raise taxes on those making less than $400,000 and enact a “billionaire” tax.

The vice president has also vowed to give tax deductions and credits to budding entrepreneurs and first-time homebuyers, and permanently expand the Child Tax Credit.

“Under my plan, more than 100 million Americans will get a middle-class tax break that includes $6,000 for new parents during the first year of their child’s life,” Harris said Wednesday at a campaign speech in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Whoever wins the Oval Office will need a cooperative Congress to enact these policies — with the exception of tariffs, over which the president enjoys wide latitude.

What would it cost?

The barrage of proposals has kept economists busy with near-constant and evolving analyses of how much the tax cut promises would add to the nation’s ballooning federal deficit and change the economy.

Both candidates’ plans come with a price tag in the trillions of dollars, though Trump’s is the more expensive of the two.

Models released in late August by the Penn Wharton Budget Model project Trump’s plan would add up to $5.8 trillion to the deficit over 10 years, while Harris’ plan would increase the deficit by up to $2 trillion over the same time period.

“I think that both candidates are missing the mark when it comes to fiscal responsibility and economic responsibility,” the Tax Foundation’s Erica York told States Newsroom in an interview Monday.

“Neither of them have really outlined a plan that would get us on a sustainable path in terms of debt and deficits, nor that would boost growth and opportunity in the economy. Both are likely to have a negative impact on the economy,” said York, senior economist and research director for the foundation, which generally favors lower taxes.

Promise: No taxes on tips, overtime

Trump, followed by Harris, has proposed to nix taxes on tipped workers — though Harris has suggested limiting the benefit to workers in the service and hospitality industries who earn less than $75,000.

She has also said the tax break would not apply to payroll taxes, meaning the contribution workers pay toward Social Security and Medicare. Trump has not detailed any limits on his proposal for tipped workers.

Whoever wins the Oval Office will need a cooperative Congress to enact these policies — with the exception of tariffs, over which the president enjoys wide latitude. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images. Right: Kyle Davidson)

Economists across the board warn Trump’s plan could incentivize more tipped work. They also question whether Trump and Harris’ proposals would actually benefit low-income workers.

After all, tax benefits for lower income workers who have children phase in as the person earns income. Reporting less income means those taxpayers could ultimately see less help from the Child Tax Credit or the Earned Income Tax Credit.

“If you work and you report income, you get these provisions. But if you don’t, you don’t get these provisions. Well, you add exemptions into the tax code that reduces the amount of earned income that you report to the IRS, you could potentially reduce the value of these credits for very low-income households,” Kyle Pomerleau, senior fellow at the conservative-leaning American Enterprise Institute, told States Newsroom in an interview Monday.

For instance, a tipped worker who has one child and earns $24,000 annually, half of which comes from tips, could see a $300 decrease in refundable tax credits under this policy, Pomerleau and senior AEI fellows Alex Brill and Stan Veuger wrote in August.

The same principle for lower income taxpayers applies to Trump’s recent promise to eliminate taxes on overtime.

“There could be a negative effect there, depending on how this is structured,” Pomerleau said Monday.

The nonpartisan watchdog Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates an elimination of taxes on all overtime would cost the country $1.7 trillion in lost revenue over 10 years. With no guardrails preventing workers switching from salaried to hourly, the price tag could reach up to $6 trillion in the most extreme case, CRFB estimates.

Promise: No taxes on Social Security

Economists monitoring the nation’s Social Security coffers continue to sound alarm bells on the program’s solvency — with little reaction on the campaign trail.

The fund that provides money to senior citizens and people with disabilities is on track to be depleted by 2035, and recipients would face an immediate 17% cut in benefits, as the Tax Foundation’s Alex Durante wrote Tuesday.

Trump has mentioned Social Security during campaign rallies and on his social media platform, but in the context of eliminating taxes on the benefit payments.

While low-income recipients do not pay taxes on their benefits, others do and are projected to contribute $94 billion this year back into the fund.

Nixing those taxes could speed up Social Security’s insolvency by one year, according to an analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

Promise: New corporate tax rates and tariffs

Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which cleared Congress strictly along party lines, permanently lowered the top corporate tax rate to 21% from 35%.

Harris has vowed, if elected, she will bump the rate up to 28%. Analyses from the CFRB, the Tax Foundation, Penn Wharton and the Yale Budget Lab estimate the increase would raise roughly $1 trillion to $1.2 trillion in federal revenue over the next decade.

The former president wants to cut the rate even further to 15%, a level not seen in the U.S. since the 1930s. Economists estimate the cut would reduce revenue anywhere from $460 billion to $673 billion over 10 years.

“Here is the deal that I will be offering to every major company and manufacturer on Earth: I will give you the lowest taxes, the lowest energy costs, the lowest regulatory burden and free access to the best and biggest market on the planet, but only if you make your product here in America,” Trump said in Georgia Tuesday.

Trump has big plans for products imported into the U.S. He’s planning to impose up to 20% tariffs on most imports, reaching as high as 60% on Chinese goods and 100% on countries that turn away from the U.S. dollar.

That could cost the typical American household about $2,600 a year as costs on consumer goods would shift to the customer, particularly affecting those with lower incomes, according to economists Kimberly Clausing and Mary Lovely at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Speaking at a farming roundtable in Pennsylvania Monday, Trump publicly warned John Deere that if the company moves manufacturing to Mexico, he’ll impose a 200% tariff on tractors coming back over the border.

A downside of tariffs is they invite other countries to retaliate, by penalizing U.S. exports, such as Kentucky bourbon, of which there 11.4 million bourbon barrels in the state as of 2021. (Getty Images)

Experts warn another downside is that the policy invites foreign retaliation.

“So if we are, say, exporting Kentucky bourbon to China, China may say, well, to retaliate for the 60% tax on imports, we’re going to place taxes on this export, and that’s going to have a direct impact on the incomes of Americans and make us poorer,” Pomerleau said.

Promise: A billionaire tax

A familiar refrain from Harris and the Biden administration is that billionaires and wealthy corporations should pay their “fair share.”

The U.S. individual tax rate already progresses with an earner’s income, meaning that the higher your income, the higher your tax rate.

Both Harris and Trump want to keep individual tax rates that were lowered across the board in the 2017 law, but Harris is seeking to increase taxes on long-term capital gains, and levy a minimum tax on unrealized capital gains for very high earners.

For those earning upwards of $1 million a year, Harris proposed raising taxes to 28%, up from 20%, on profits made from the sale of an asset, like stocks, bonds, or real estate, that have been held by the owner for more than a year.

The vice president also proposes quadrupling the stock buyback tax to 4%, up from 1%.

For ultra-wealthy households that have more than $100 million in assets, Harris follows Biden in proposing a 25% tax rate — sometimes referred to as the “billionaire tax.”

Those high-wealth individuals would need to calculate their regular income tax liability and compare it to their total net worth, meaning income plus unrealized capital gains, multiplied by 25%.

“Whichever is greater you pay,” Pomerleau explains. “So if you are in a situation where you have a low effective tax rate relative to this broader definition of income, the minimum tax will kick in and you’ll start paying increments.”

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates the plan could raise $750 billion in revenue over ten years.

Promise: No SALT cap

Ahead of a mid-September campaign rally on Long Island, New York, Trump pledged to abandon the cap in his 2017 law on the state and local tax deduction — simply known in tax parlance as SALT.

As the law stands now, taxpayers can only deduct up to $10,000 of their state and local tax bill from their federal tax liability.

A full SALT deduction is more valuable for higher income taxpayers, and prior to the 2017 cap, 91% of taxpayers who claimed it lived in California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Texas and Pennsylvania, according to an analysis by the Tax Foundation.

Eliminating the cap would cut taxes by an average of more than $140,000 for the highest earning 0.1% of households, according to modeling by the Tax Policy Center, a collaboration between the left-leaning Urban Institute and Brookings Institution.

The Committee for a Responsible Budget estimates the move could cost $1.2 trillion over a ten-year budget window.

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Zelenskyy in Washington meets with U.S. leaders to beef up support for Ukraine https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/26/zelenskyy-in-washington-meets-with-u-s-leaders-to-beef-up-support-for-ukraine/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/26/zelenskyy-in-washington-meets-with-u-s-leaders-to-beef-up-support-for-ukraine/#respond Thu, 26 Sep 2024 23:10:34 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22461

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, center, walks with U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., right, and U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., left to a closed-door meeting at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 26, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Tom Brenner/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Standing alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris admonished any suggestion that Ukraine should end its war by relinquishing territory to Russia.

Zelenskyy and Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, met for the seventh time during Harris’ tenure as vice president as the Ukrainian leader visited the White House and U.S. Capitol.

Zelenskyy is expected to meet in New York on Friday morning with former President Donald Trump, who said in a press conference late Thursday he would be able to “make a deal” between Ukraine and Russia “quite quickly.”

“I don’t want to tell you what that looks like,” said Trump, the GOP nominee, who is locked in a tight race with Harris for the Oval Office.

Zelenskyy’s Thursday meetings included a separate one-on-one with President Joe Biden, to shore up continued support as the United States faces the possibility of a shift in power after the quickly approaching 2024 election.

Harris proclaimed the need for “order and stability in our world,” and reiterated her pledge to work with NATO allies to defend Ukraine from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022 nearly a decade after? forcefully annexing Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.

“Nothing about the end of this war can be decided without Ukraine,” Harris said in comments livestreamed on C-SPAN.

“However, in candor, I share with you, Mr. President, there are some in my country who would instead force Ukraine to give up large parts of its sovereign territory, who would demand that Ukraine accept neutrality, and would require Ukraine to forgo security relationships with other nations,” Harris continued during brief joint remarks with Zelenskyy to the press. “These proposals are the same of those of Putin.”

Harris delivered the comments one day after Trump told a rally crowd in North Carolina that Biden and Harris “allowed” the ongoing war by “feeding Zelenskyy money and munitions like no country has ever seen before.”

United Nations

Zelenskyy’s Washington visits came as the United Nations General Assembly gathered this week in New York City, where Zelenskyy again communicated to world leaders that he wants “territorial integrity” for his nation.

Zelenskyy and Biden met in the Oval Office Thursday afternoon, where they discussed the Ukrainian leader’s “victory plan,” which requests U.S. authority to launch Western missiles deeper inside Russia’s borders.

“Your determination is incredibly important for us to prevail,” Zelenskyy told Biden in front of reporters.

In brief joint remarks to the press, Biden said “I see two key pieces. First, right now, we have to strengthen Ukraine’s position on the battlefield.”

Biden announced the release of $7.9 billion that Congress appropriated for Ukraine and ordered any remaining money to be allocated by his last day in office, Jan. 20, 2025.

“This will strengthen Ukraine’s position in future negotiations,” Biden said.

Ukraine is expected to request more assistance from the U.S. in the coming months.

The U.S. has directed more than $59.3 billion in security assistance since Biden took office, the vast majority of which was committed after Russia’s invasion, according to Pentagon figures. Overall U.S. foreign assistance to Ukraine since 2022 has totaled roughly $175 billion.

Biden, Harris and Zelenskyy did not answer reporters’ shouted questions following their respective meetings.

Zelenskyy goes to Capitol Hill, again

Zelenskyy began Thursday with meetings on Capitol Hill, splitting time with Senate and House lawmakers, absent U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson.

The meetings occurred less than 24 hours after Johnson wrote a letter to Zelenskyy demanding he fire Ukraine’s ambassador to the U.S. for organizing a trip for the Ukrainian president alongside Democrats to Pennsylvania, a key swing state in the 2024 presidential election.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro led Zelenskyy on a tour Sunday of an ammunition plant in Scranton. They were joined by Sen. Bob Casey and Rep. Matt Cartwright, both Pennsylvania Democrats up for reelection.

“The facility was in a politically contested battleground state, was led by a top political surrogate for Kamala Harris, and failed to include a single Republican because — on purpose — no Republicans were invited. The tour was clearly a partisan campaign event designed to help Democrats and is clearly election interference,” Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, wrote.

Republican Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, opened an investigation Wednesday into the “misuse of government resources that allowed Zelensky to interfere in the 2024 presidential election.”

Lawmakers exiting the meetings told reporters Zelenskyy did not comment on Johnson’s letter but rather spoke about the war effort and Ukraine’s desire to use long-range missiles to target military assets farther into Russia.

Republican Sen. John Boozman, who sits on the U.S. Helsinki Commission, told reporters “the more damage we can do, the sooner, the better off we are.”

“It’s to the Russians’ advantage if this thing drags on forever,” said Boozman, of Arkansas.

When asked by reporters if Biden should give permission to Zelenskyy to strike deeper into Russia, Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado said, “I hope he will.”

Bennet, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, told reporters he would not repeat “anything that anybody else said in that room,” but said he “didn’t hear” any concern over fears of stoking Russia, a nuclear power, to retaliate against NATO allies.

Rep. Joe Wilson, chair of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, told reporters the meeting with Zelenskyy was “positive” and reiterated his support for a Ukrainian victory.

He chalked up Johnson’s absence to a possible “scheduling” issue.

Wilson, who also co-chairs the Congressional Ukraine Caucus, said he’s “confident things are going to work out” regarding Johnson’s rebuke of Zelenskyy. Wilson then quickly pivoted to praising Trump’s approval of a 2017 sale of U.S. weapons to Ukraine.

When pressed by States Newsroom on Trump’s refusal to say whether he wants Ukraine to win the war, Wilson defended the former president.

“I defer to President Trump, but I again, I have so much appreciation that it was Donald Trump that tried to avoid all of this,” the South Carolina Republican said.

Trump was impeached by the U.S. House in 2019, but acquitted by the Senate, for threatening to withhold security assistance for Ukraine unless Zelenskyy publicly announced an investigation into Biden ahead of the 2020 presidential election, which the former vice president under Barack Obama won.

Jennifer Shutt contributed to this report.

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Trump immunity decision splits U.S. Senate panel along partisan lines https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/24/trump-immunity-decision-splits-u-s-senate-panel-along-partisan-lines/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/24/trump-immunity-decision-splits-u-s-senate-panel-along-partisan-lines/#respond Tue, 24 Sep 2024 21:33:07 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22299

Former President Donald Trump walks to speak to the media after being found guilty of state felony business falsification charges on May 30, 2024, in New York City. (Photo by Seth Wenig-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Stark polarization was on display Tuesday as U.S. senators argued whether the U.S. Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision effectively crowns the president “a king” or aligns with the history of the office.

In the first congressional hearing on the court’s July decision, lawmakers on the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary debated and questioned witnesses on the historic 6-3 opinion that granted presidents criminal immunity for core constitutional duties and presumptive immunity for “outer perimeter” actions. Personal acts are not immune, the court ruled.

Committee Chair Dick Durbin of Illinois lamented the high court has now “made it nearly impossible for the courts to hold a runaway president accountable.”

“It will be left to the American people and Congress to hold the line, because as Justice (Sonia) Sotomayor noted in her dissent, ‘the President is now a king above the law,’” the Democratic senator said in his opening statement.

Ranking Republican member Lindsey Graham dismissed the Democratic-led hearing as “designed to continue an attack on the court.”

“This hearing is about a continued narrative of delegitimizing the court you don’t like. We’ll see how this holds up over time,” said Graham of South Carolina.

A contentious decision

The Supreme Court issued its immunity decision in the thick of the roller coaster 2024 presidential election campaign — just one month after former President Donald Trump was convicted on 34 felonies in New York, the only of his four criminal cases to go to trial.

Trump, who is locked in a close race with Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election polls, escalated his presidential immunity claim to the Supreme Court, to which he appointed three conservative justices while in office. At the time, he was leading against President Joe Biden, who exited the race in late July.

Trump argued he could not be prosecuted on federal fraud and obstruction charges for allegedly conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.

The Supreme Court remanded the election subversion case to the trial court to decide which charges can still stand in light of the immunity decision.

Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith issued a superseding indictment soon after that retained all four felony charges, but omitted all supporting accusations that Trump allegedly pressured the Department of Justice to intimidate state officials to manipulate the 2020 election results.

Graham downplayed Smith’s case as well as the now-dismissed federal case alleging Trump improperly stored and refused to return classified information after he left office as “politically motivated legal garbage.”

Graham also criticized the Georgia state 2020 election interference case against Trump and the New York state conviction of Trump for falsifying business records related to a porn star hush money payment ahead of the 2016 election.

A license for abuse?

Three witnesses invited to testify before the Democratic-led panel warned the immunity decision could lead to sweeping consequences for U.S. democracy and accused the court of abandoning long-standing guardrails on executive power.

Granting protection from criminal exposure “essentially licenses a president to abuse his power and get away with it,” said Philip Allen Lacovara, former U.S. deputy solicitor general and former counsel to the Watergate special prosecutor.

The court did “not rely on any historical practice in favor of criminal immunity,” Lacovara testified. “In fact, practice is exactly the opposite.

“I know from my own experience in the Watergate affair that President Nixon was under active criminal investigation for his role in the cover-up.”

Mary McCord, executive director of the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection at Georgetown University Law School, agreed with the court that the president should be protected for powers defined by the Constitution, including pardoning and vetoing.

But, she said, her concern is that the court’s opinion “capaciously defines core constitutional powers to extend far beyond these well recognized powers.”

“The majority holds that the former president is absolutely immune for alleged conduct involving his discussions with Justice Department officials.

“That conduct includes the indictment’s allegations about efforts to leverage the Justice Department to convince certain states to replace their legitimate electors with fraudulent Trump slates of electors,” said McCord, who served in the Justice Department during the Obama and Trump administrations.

McCord also questioned how criminal immunity would guide a future president’s interactions with other government arms, including the Internal Revenue Service and the Central Intelligence Agency.

“The reforms enacted by Congress in the wake of past abuses would be impotent in the case of a president unconcerned about adhering to the rule of law,” she said.

Timothy Naftali, senior research scholar at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, reminded the committee of Nixon’s investigation of Jewish members of the government, as revealed in his preserved recorded conversations.

“As we assess the effects of the Supreme Court’s decision to remove additional guardrails from the presidency, I suggest we consider some events of the year 1971 and a few other well documented episodes of presidential abuse of power,” said Naftali, the former founding director of the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum.

Immunity as necessary

Witnesses invited by the panel’s GOP minority dismissed concerns about presidential immunity as overblown.

Jennifer Mascott, director of the Separation of Powers Institute and associate professor of law at The Catholic University of America, said “since the court handed down this opinion, a number of public statements and commentary have significantly mischaracterized the opinion’s holding and its scope.”

“Some of those overstatements have made their way into some of the prepared testimony before the committee today,” she continued.

Republicans reiterated that presidential criminal immunity keeps the lid on a “Pandora’s box” of political retaliation against former administrations via the courts.

Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, ranking member of the committee’s Subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action and Federal Rights, entertained the scenario that a district attorney in a Republican-held jurisdiction could sue Biden once he leaves office for the withdrawal from Afghanistan during which 13 U.S. service members were killed.

“Can you imagine a scenario in which an ambitious district attorney after President Biden’s out of office could bring a charge against President, former President Biden for criminal negligence in the death of Americans?” he asked.

Former U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey, who served under former President George W. Bush, said the court’s ruling was “narrow, consistent with precedent and constitutional principles.”

“I think if one examines the historical record of controversial acts by presidents, it would be dangerous — particularly although not exclusively as to acts that impact national security such as border or drug enforcement — to subject presidents to the constant threat of prosecution for official acts when they leave office,” Mukasey said.

He used the examples of former President Barack Obama’s drone killing of U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki and former President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s World War II internment of Japanese Americans.

“And even more pointedly, I doubt that many people think that our country would be better off if President Lincoln, Roosevelt, Clinton or Obama were prosecuted or imprisoned for controversial decisions they made in office,” Mukasey said.

Lack of court ethics to blame?

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, chair of the Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action and Federal Rights Subcommittee, blamed a lack of an enforceable ethics code on the court and “creepy right-wing billionaires” for influencing justices’ decisions.

The court has been rocked by revelations that Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas did not disclose gifts and luxury travel from Republican donors. The justices have not faced repercussions, and the donors deny any improper actions.

“The Trump justices invented presidential immunity and then didn’t even carve out treason,” the Rhode Island Democrat said. “The first mention ever that a president can freely commit crimes comes from this court, just as we have our first ever criminal presidential candidate.”

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Racing toward Election Day, control of U.S. Senate and House up for grabs https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/21/racing-toward-election-day-control-of-u-s-senate-and-house-up-for-grabs/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/21/racing-toward-election-day-control-of-u-s-senate-and-house-up-for-grabs/#respond Sat, 21 Sep 2024 18:56:40 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22141

The Dome of the U.S. Capitol Building is visible as protective fencing is erected around construction for the 2025 inauguration platform on the West Front on Capitol Hill on Sept. 17, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The country’s next president will need a friendly Congress to make their policy dreams a reality, but control of the two chambers remains deeply uncertain with just weeks until Election Day — and whether the outcome will be a party trifecta in the nation’s capital.

Recent projections tilt in favor of Republicans taking the U.S. Senate, an already closely divided chamber that is sure to be near evenly split again next Congress.

And though Vice President Kamala Harris injected a jolt of energy into the Democratic Party, prognosticators still say the prizewinner of the House is anybody’s guess.

“The House is highly close and competitive, and really could go either way.? And I say the same thing about the presidential race,” Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics, told States Newsroom on Thursday.

A ‘district-by-district slug fest’?

Control of the 435-seat House remains a toss-up, with competitive races in both the seven swing states and in states that will almost certainly have no bearing on who wins the top of the ticket.

Sabato’s, an election prognosticator, currently ranks nine Republican seats of the roughly 30 competitive races as “toss-up” seats for the party — meaning the GOP incumbents are locked in competitive races.

The GOP has held a slim majority this Congress, and Democrats only need to net four seats to gain control.

“It really is right on the razor’s edge,” Kondik said. “It’s pretty crazy that, you know, we’ve had two straight elections with just 222-seat majorities. And it’s pretty rare historically for there to be, you know, majorities that small twice in a row — unprecedented.

“Usually you’d have one side or the other breaking out to a bigger advantage, and I think both sides are viewing this, really, as a district-by-district slug fest.”

Sabato’s adjusted its ratings on five races Thursday, including moving Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola of Alaska to the “toss-up” category from a safer “leans Democratic.” Kondik also nudged the race for Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York to “leans Republican” from “toss up.”

“The big ones are probably Peltola, and then Mike Lawler, who holds one of the bluest seats held by a Republican, but I moved him to ‘leans R.’ It seems pretty clear to me that he’s in a decent position,” Kondik said.

The National Republican Congressional Committee, the party’s fundraising arm for House races, announced in June nearly $1.2 million in ad buys in Alaska. The organization launched a new ad in the state this month that accuses Peltola of not supporting veterans.

It’s always about Pennsylvania

In addition to Peltola, Kondik ranks nine other Democratic incumbents — of the nearly 40 competitive races — as toss-ups.

Among the toss-ups is the seat currently held by Rep. Matt Cartwright of Pennsylvania, a key swing state in the presidential race. Cartwright’s Republican challenger, Rob Bresnahan, runs an electrical contracting company in the northeastern Pennsylvania district that he took over from his grandfather.

Democrats are investing in the seat: Cartwright is running a new ad featuring union workers praising him, and just last week Harris hosted a rally in the district, which includes Scranton.

But the NRCC thinks they have a pretty good chance of flipping his seat.

Breshnahan’s company is “a union shop,” said NRCC head Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina. “So he can talk union talk. He’s a great candidate for us.”

“Matt Cartwright is in trouble,” Hudson said on the conservative “Ruthless Podcast” on Sept. 12.

“I think the way we’ve structured it, the type of candidates we recruited across the country, from Maine to Alaska, from Minnesota to Texas, regardless of top of the ticket, we’re going to pick up seats,” Hudson said.

Van Orden targeted in Wisconsin

But Sabato’s also nudged three seats toward the Democrats’ favor on Thursday.

Kondik moved Rep. Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin from the safety of “likely Republican” to the weaker “leans Republican” category.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, sees an “important opportunity” in Van Orden’s district. The GOP congressman, who represents central and western Wisconsin, became known for his profanity-laced outburst at young Senate pages for taking photos of the Capitol rotunda.

The Democrats are running challenger Rebecca Cooke, a small business owner, in the hopes of unseating him.

“We have an incredible candidate in Rebecca Cooke (against) one of the most extreme, which is saying a lot, Republicans in the House,” DelBene told reporters on a call Monday.

“We have put Rebecca Cooke on our Red-to-Blue list and are strongly supporting her campaign. She’s doing a great job, and this absolutely is a priority for us,” DelBene said, referring to the DCCC’s list of 30 candidates that receive extra fundraising support.

DelBene said she’s confident in the Democrats’ chances to flip the House, citing healthy coffers and revived interest.

“We have seen huge enthusiasm all across the country. We have seen people, more and more people turning out to volunteer, to knock on doors, to make phone calls,” she said.

Democrats’ cash ‘flooding,’ NRCC chief says

Erin Covey, a House analyst with The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, wrote on Sept. 5 that Democrats have a brighter outlook after Harris assumed the top of the ticket, though November remains a close call.

“Now, polling conducted by both parties largely shows Harris matching, or coming a few points short of, Biden’s 2020 margins across competitive House districts,” Covey wrote.

The NRCC has taken note. During his interview on the “Ruthless Podcast,” Hudson compared Harris becoming the Democrats’ new choice for president as a “bloodless coup,” and said the enthusiasm she’s sparked is a cause for concern for Republicans. Democratic delegates nominated Harris, in accordance with party rules, to run for the Oval Office after Biden dropped out in late July.

“A lot of people, even Democrats, you know, just weren’t comfortable voting for Joe Biden. With Kamala on the ticket, we saw a surge in Democrats coming home and having the enthusiasm,” Hudson said.

Hudson said he also worries about Democrats’ fundraising numbers.

“The one thing that keeps you awake at night is the Democrat money. It’s flooding,” Hudson said. “The second quarter this year I was able to raise the most money we’ve ever raised as a committee, and the Democrats raised $7 million more. I mean, it’s just, they just keep coming. It’s like the Terminator.”

“But we don’t have to match them dollar for dollar,” Hudson said. “We’ve just got to make sure we’ve got the resources we need. And so we’ve just got to keep our pace.”

The DCCC announced Friday it raised $22.3 million in August, bringing its total for this election cycle to $250.6 million.

Senate map tilts toward GOP

Republicans are inching closer and closer to flipping the Senate red during this year’s elections, thanks to a map that favors GOP incumbents and puts Democrats on the defensive in several states.

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice is widely expected to win his bid for the upper chamber, bringing Republicans up to 50 seats, as long as they hang on in Florida, Nebraska and Texas.

But Democrats will need to secure wins in several challenging states, including Arizona, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — and break the 50-50 tie through a Democratic presidency — if they want to remain the majority party.

That many Democratic wins seems increasingly unlikely, though not entirely out of the realm of possibility.

Montana, where Sen. Jon Tester is looking to secure reelection against GOP challenger Tim Sheehy, has been moved from a “toss-up” state to leaning toward Republicans by three respected analysis organizations in the last few weeks.

The Cook Political Report wrote in its ratings change earlier this month that several “public polls have shown Sheehy opening up a small, but consistent lead.”

“Democrats push back that their polling still shows Tester within the margin of error of the race, and that those are exactly the type of close races he’s won before,” their assessment said. “Tester, however, has never run on a presidential ballot in a polarized environment of this kind before — and even with his stumbles, Sheehy is still the strongest, best financed candidate he’s ever faced.”

Republicans winning Montana’s Senate seat could give them a firm, though narrow, 51-seat Senate majority.

Florida, Texas, Nebraska

That, however, would require the Republican incumbents in states like Florida and Texas — where it’s not clear if evolving trends against Republicans will continue — to secure their reelection wins.

And it would mean holding off a wild card independent candidate in the Cornhusker state.

The Cook Political Report says it’s “worth keeping an eye on a unique situation developing in Nebraska, where independent candidate Dan Osborn is challenging Republican Sen. Deb Fischer.”

CPR also noted in its analysis that Democrats’ best pick-up opportunities, which could rebalance the scales a bit, are Florida and Texas.

“Today, the Lone Star State looks like the better option because of the strengths and fundraising of Democrats’ challenger there, Rep. Colin Allred,” CPR wrote.

If Democrats do hold onto 50 seats, through whatever combination of wins and losses shakes out on election night, majority control would depend on whichever candidate wins the presidential contest.

Given the close nature of several Senate races, it is entirely possible control of that chamber isn’t known until after recounts take place in the swing states.

Chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Gary Peters, D-Mich., said during a Christian Science Monitor breakfast this week that he’s known all along Democratic candidates will be in “very right races.”

“In a nutshell, I’m optimistic,” Peters said. “I believe we’re going to hold the majority. I feel good about where we are. We’re basically where I thought we would be after Labor Day in really tight races. None of this is a surprise to us. Now we just have to run our playbook, be focused, be disciplined.”

The National Republican Senatorial Committee, led this cycle by Montana Sen. Steve Daines, is confident the GOP will pick up the Senate majority following November’s elections.

The group highlighted a Washington Post poll this week showing a tie between Democratic Sen. Bob Casey and GOP candidate Dave McCormick in the Pennsylvania Senate race.

NRSC Spokesman Philip Letsou sent out a written statement after the poll’s release that Casey is in the “race for his life…because Pennsylvania voters know Casey’s lockstep support for Kamala Harris and her inflationary, anti-fracking agenda will devastate their economy. Pennsylvanians have had enough of liberal, career politicians like Casey and Harris.”

No change in filibuster in sight

The GOP acquisition of a handful of seats would still require the next Republican leader to constantly broker deals with Democrats, since the chamber is widely expected to retain the legislative filibuster.

That rule requires at least 60 senators vote to advance legislation toward final passage and is the main reason the chamber rarely takes up partisan bills.

A Republican sweep of the House, Senate and White House for unified government would give them the chance to pass certain types of legislation through the fast-track budget reconciliation process they used to approve the 2017 tax law.

How wide their majorities are in each chamber will determine how much they can do within such a bill, given Republicans will still have centrist members, like Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski and Maine’s Susan Collins, balancing the party against more far-right policy goals.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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Secret Service acknowledges ‘failures’ in protection of Trump in Pennsylvania shooting https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/20/secret-service-acknowledges-failures-in-protection-of-trump-in-pennsylvania-shooting/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/20/secret-service-acknowledges-failures-in-protection-of-trump-in-pennsylvania-shooting/#respond Fri, 20 Sep 2024 19:38:13 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22118

Law enforcement agents stand near the stage of a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump on July 13, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. Secret Service Acting Director Ronald Rowe told reporters on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, that the agency takes responsibility for the failures that resulted in an assassination attempt on Trump there that day. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Secret Service has taken responsibility for the failures that resulted in the July assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania and is asking for more resources going forward, a top official said Friday.

Acting Director Ronald Rowe briefed reporters on the agency’s findings following an investigation into how a gunman was able to scale a nearby roof and fire multiple shots at Trump during a July 13 campaign rally in Butler. Trump sustained an injury to his right ear, and one spectator was killed while two others were seriously injured.

“It’s important that we hold ourselves accountable for the failures of July 13, and that we use the lessons learned to make sure that we do not have another failure like this again,” Rowe said.

The investigation revealed communication “deficiencies” between law enforcement personnel and an “overreliance on mobile devices, resulting in information being siloed,” Rowe said, highlighting that vital information about the shooter was transmitted via phone instead of over the Secret Service radio network.

The investigation also uncovered “complacency” among some staff members who visited the site ahead of time but did not escalate to supervisors their concerns over “line of sight issues,” Rowe said.

“The findings of the Mission Assurance review have prompted the Secret Service to move into the accountability phase of this process,” he said, referring to the agency’s title of its investigation.

“What has become clear to me is we need a shift in paradigm in how we conduct our protective operations. As was demonstrated on Sunday in West Palm Beach, the threat level is evolving,” Rowe said.

“This increased operational tempo requires additional resources to not only account for costs being incurred today, but ensure that we have the tools, technology and personnel needed to meet these new requirements and execute our mission going forward,” he said.

Second attempt to harm Trump

The investigation’s conclusions were revealed less than a week after a second attempt on Trump’s life. On Sunday the Secret Service thwarted a gunman’s attempt to aim a high-powered rifle at the former president while he was playing golf on his West Palm Beach, Florida, property.

The incidents prompted unanimous U.S. House support for a measure to grant presidential and vice presidential candidates the same security level as the officeholders. The proposal sailed through the lower chamber Friday in a 405-0 vote.

On Monday a bipartisan congressional task force investigating the July attempted assassination in Pennsylvania announced an expansion of its purview to also probe Sunday’s attempt in Florida. The task force will hold its first hearing Thursday.

Rowe said the agency has been providing the “highest levels” of protections for presidential candidates since the July 13 assassination attempt.

That increased level of protection is working, Rowe told reporters, recounting how an agent swept the area ahead of Trump and “took steps to neutralize that threat.”

“No shot was fired at the former president. The former president was not exposed to where he was on the golf course,” he said.

Extending that level of protection means the agency is “burning through a lot of assets and resources.”

“This isn’t pie in the sky, trying to say ‘Hey, we want this now.’ We are not capitalizing on a crisis,” Rowe said.

Rowe would not disclose an additional dollar amount the agency is seeking and said conversations with congressional appropriators are “ongoing.”

“The threat is not going to evaporate anytime soon, and so we have to be prepared for this. And that is the argument that we have been making. We have certainly made some inroads, and we’re having these productive conversations with the Hill,” he said.

Rowe was appointed as the agency’s acting director after former Director Kimberly Cheatle heeded loud cries for her resignation, stepping down 10 days after the attempt on Trump’s life in July.

Rowe would not detail who or how many in the agency will face discipline, citing federal regulations preventing him from discussing it further.

“What I will tell you is that I have not asked for anybody to retire. I know some of that was reported. That is false,” Rowe said. Rowe said the agency’s offices of Integrity and Professional Responsibility will together decide any discipline in accordance with the agency’s “table of penalties.”

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As ‘Super Bowl of taxes’ looms in 2025, progressives urge Congress to ensure fairness https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/18/as-super-bowl-of-taxes-looms-in-2025-progressives-urge-congress-to-ensure-fairness/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/18/as-super-bowl-of-taxes-looms-in-2025-progressives-urge-congress-to-ensure-fairness/#respond Wed, 18 Sep 2024 19:55:34 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=22012

Robert Codero, 49, of New York City, joined hundreds of advocates on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024, to speak to lawmakers about tax policy ahead of next year’s expiration of the Trump-era tax law. Codero attended as part of the nonprofit Make the Road New York, which also has chapters in New Jersey, Nevada and Pennsylvania. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — Dozens of progressive organizations from across the United States descended on the nation’s capital Wednesday to champion “tax justice” ahead of Congress’ major task of resetting the tax code in 2025.

Led by a coalition named Fair Share America, state and national advocates urged lawmakers to raise the corporate tax rate and ensure those who make over $400,000 annually “pay their fair share.”

Organizers from 20 states fanned out across Capitol Hill, meeting individually and speaking publicly with lawmakers, and testifying before senators.

Kristen Crowell, the coalition’s executive director, said the advocates traveled to Washington to “make sure our representatives know that we know exactly how this tax scam has played out at the local level in our communities.”

“We are getting organized, we are building a multi-racial, multi-sector organization that has real people power on the ground so they can’t cut deals behind closed doors without us holding them accountable,” Crowell said at a large press conference held by lawmakers and advocates outside the U.S. House that eventually thinned out due to rain.

Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado told the crowd they are the “only antidote there is to the special interests that come to this Capitol.”

“This is the beginning of a long battle that we’re going to have for tax fairness in this country, and we’re really happy that you’re here,” said Bennet, a Democratic member of the Senate Committee on Finance.

Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas, a senior Democrat on the tax-writing House Committee on Ways and Means, co-led the press conference and told the crowd to get ready for the “Super Bowl of taxes.”

A group of 61 care-giving advocacy groups among the visiting organizations urged using tax revenue — raised by tax increases on the wealthy — to fund child care, and care for the elderly and those with disabilities.

One of its leaders, Ai-jen Poo, president of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, testified Wednesday afternoon before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Policy.

“By asking the wealthiest individuals and wealthy corporations to pay their fair share, lawmakers can leverage the tax code to support robust public investments such as guaranteed access to early education (including child care and pre-K), comprehensive paid family and medical leave, and robust aging and disability care, and good jobs for all care workers,” the Care Can’t Wait coalition wrote in a letter to congressional leadership ahead of the subcommittee hearing.

Harris, Trump tax promises

The advocates’ coordinated visit comes as Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump make broad tax promises on the campaign trail ahead of November’s presidential election.

Prior to his Wednesday night rally on Long Island, New York, Trump declared on his social media platform Truth Social that he would lift a $10,000 cap on the state and local tax deduction, otherwise known as SALT. The deduction was part of Trump’s signature 2017 tax law, which is set to expire in 2025.

“WHAT THE HELL DO YOU HAVE TO LOSE? VOTE FOR TRUMP! I will turn it around, get SALT back, lower your Taxes, and so much more,” he posted Tuesday.

A full SALT deduction is more valuable for higher income taxpayers, and prior to the 2017 cap 91% of taxpayers who claimed it lived in California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Texas and Pennsylvania, according to an analysis by the Tax Foundation.

Pennsylvania is a key swing state in the presidential race, and several competitive U.S. House races in New York could help decide which party will gain control of the chamber.

Before this change to his platform, Trump had been running on fully extending his 2017 tax law beyond its 2025 expiration date, with the addition of permanently lowering the corporate tax rate even further to 15%.

Analyses from several economists estimate a wholesale extension would add anywhere from $2 trillion to roughly $6 trillion to the national deficit over the next decade.

Trump has also promised to get rid of taxes on tips, Social Security benefits and overtime.

When asked about the effects of Trump’s tax proposals on the nation’s deficit, Republican Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, who is eyeing the position of Senate majority leader if the GOP takes control, told reporters Wednesday, “We’re starting to have some of those conversations already, what impact do some of those changes have? And what does, you know, what are the trade-offs that would happen as a result?”

Harris’ “opportunity economy” platform includes plans to make permanent a pandemic-era expansion of the child tax credit and attach an additional $6,000 credit for new parents. Like President Joe Biden’s budget proposal, Harris also vows to not raise taxes on anyone earning under $400,000 a year.

When speaking to the National Association of Black Journalists Tuesday, Harris revived an earlier Biden administration promise to cap child care costs at 7% of a household’s income.

“If you think about the benefit to the economy overall, it strengthens our economy to do things like pay attention to affordable child care, affordable home health care and extending the child tax credit,” Harris told the association at a discussion in Philadelphia.

The National Women’s Law Center Action Fund, one of the interest groups on Capitol Hill Wednesday, said Harris’ plan would be “transformative” for families.

Harris also promises to increase the corporate tax rate to 28% from the current 21%; tax long-term capital gains at 28%; give a $25,000 tax credit to first-time home buyers; and give new small businesses a $50,000 deduction for start-up costs. She has also embraced the promise to end taxation on tips.

Organizers on Capitol Hill Wednesday represented groups from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Jennifer Shutt contributed to this report.

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Trump, Harris storm swing states in days after debate as presidential race ratchets up https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/13/trump-harris-storm-swing-states-in-days-after-debate-as-presidential-race-ratchets-up/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/13/trump-harris-storm-swing-states-in-days-after-debate-as-presidential-race-ratchets-up/#respond Fri, 13 Sep 2024 22:36:41 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21765

The Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, greets the Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump, as they joined other officials at Ground Zero on Sept. 11, 2024, honoring the lives of those lost in the terror attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City. The handshake came the day after a fiery debate between the candidates. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump intensified in the days following their first, and likely only, debate, as both hit swing states with just over 50 days until the election.

The Harris campaign rode a wave of momentum to the week’s end, cutting ads featuring debate clips and kicking off an “aggressive” blitz of battleground states that it dubbed the “New Way Forward” tour.

Trump and Republican Party officials meanwhile filed what they described as “election integrity” lawsuits this week targeting voter registration and absentee ballots in Nevada and Michigan.

While numerous polls showed Harris outperformed the former president at Tuesday’s debate, Trump continued to tout his performance at a press conference Friday and chastised a reporter for suggesting some Republicans thought he gave a poor showing.

“We’ve gotten great praise for the debate,” he said, adding “You know, look, you come from Fox (News), you shouldn’t play the same game as everybody else.”

He has refused to debate Harris again.

Trump repeats lies about migrants

Trump spoke for roughly an hour and took a dozen questions at the Trump National Golf Course in Los Angeles where he promised, if elected, “to start with Springfield and Aurora” when he carries out the “largest deportation in the history of our country.”

Trump has repeated baseless rumors that Venezuelan gangs overtook an apartment building in Aurora, Colorado. In an unforgettable moment during Tuesday’s debate he claimed Haitian migrants are eating domesticated pets in Springfield, Ohio — a lie that circulated among the right on social media, including from his running mate, Ohio’s junior U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance.

Hundreds of thousands of Haitians live in the U.S. legally under temporary protected status after the nearby Caribbean nation was rocked by a violent government collapse this spring.

When asked by a reporter Friday if he felt any concern for the Ohio community that has been thrust into the national spotlight and is now the target of bomb threats, Trump said no.

“The real threat is what’s happening at our borders,” he snapped back.

Trump also lobbed similar attacks at a Thursday night rally in Tucson, Arizona, describing a small western Pennsylvania town of Charleroi as “not so beautiful now” because Haitian migrants moved in.

In reality, Charleroi has suffered population loss and blight for decades following the collapse of the steel industry in the 1980s.

Harris campaigns in North Carolina, Pennsylvania

Prior to the debate, a national New York Times/Siena poll showed Trump with a slight edge over Harris.

“We are the underdog, let’s be clear about that,” Harris told a roaring crowd in Greensboro, North Carolina Thursday night. “And so we have hard work ahead of us, but we like hard work.”

Harris held back-to-back campaign rallies Thursday night in North Carolina’s Raleigh and Greensboro that together drew 25,000, according to campaign figures.

The vice president headed to the battleground state of Pennsylvania Friday, where she first visited Classic Elements, a bookshop and cafe in the ruby-red Johnstown area before a nighttime rally in Wilkes-Barre.

The commonwealth’s junior U.S. Sen. John Fetterman and wife Gisele accompanied Harris to the small business, where she told about a dozen patrons, “You’ve created a space that is a safe space, where people are welcome and know that they’re encouraged to be with each other and feel a sense of belonging,” according to reporters traveling with her.

“I will be continuing to travel around the state to make sure that I’m listening as much as we are talking,” Harris said. “And ultimately I feel very strongly that you’ve got to earn every vote and that means spending time with folks in the communities where they live. And so that’s why I’m here and we’re going to be spending a lot more time in Pennsylvania.”

Harris garnered the coveted endorsement from mega pop star and Pennsylvania native Taylor Swift immediately after the debate.

Both Trump and Harris at 9/11 ceremony

By week’s end the vice president added to her list of Republican endorsements, when the Bush-era Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez announced his support. Gonzalez, who served under former president George W. Bush, wrote Thursday in Politico that Trump poses “perhaps the most serious threat to the rule of law in a generation.”

Tuesday’s debate was immediately followed by the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Harris joined President Joe Biden at multiple ceremonies.

Trump also attended events in New York City and Shanksville, Pennsylvania, accompanied by far-right activist and 9/11 conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer. He defended her at his press conference Friday, calling her a “free spirit.”

Several Republicans have criticized Loomer in recent days.

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‘Three to one’: Republicans protest presidential debate fact checking as unfair to Trump https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/11/three-to-one-republicans-protest-presidential-debate-fact-checking-unfair-to-trump/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/11/three-to-one-republicans-protest-presidential-debate-fact-checking-unfair-to-trump/#respond Thu, 12 Sep 2024 00:55:03 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21679

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican nominee former President Donald Trump, took part in an ABC News debate on Sept. 10, 2024. “World News Tonight” anchor and managing editor David Muir and “World News Tonight” Sunday anchor and ABC News Live “Prime” anchor Linsey Davis were the moderators. (Photo courtesy ABC News/Michael Le Brecht II)

 

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump and other Republicans complained Wednesday that the previous night’s ABC News presidential debate was unfair toward the GOP nominee.

But the campaigns of Trump and the Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, also engaged via the news media about the possibility of a second debate before the Nov. 5 election.

Trump and his allies said the ABC News moderators, “World News Tonight” anchor and managing editor David Muir and “World News Tonight” Sunday anchor and ABC News Live “Prime” anchor Linsey Davis, sided with Harris by fact-checking a few of Trump’s more outlandish claims.

“It was three to one,” Trump said Wednesday in a call to Fox News’ morning program “Fox & Friends,” referring to Harris and the two moderators. “It was a rigged deal, as I assumed it would be, because when you looked at the fact that they were correcting everything and not correcting with her.”

At the debate Tuesday night, Davis contested Trump’s claim that a former Democratic governor floated the possibility of allowing abortion after a baby is born.

“There is no state in this country where it is legal to kill a baby after it’s born,” Davis said.

Muir also challenged Trump when the former president repeated baseless rumors that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, were stealing and eating residents’ pets, saying Springfield’s city manager had debunked the claim.

“Terribly moderated debate,” Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told Fox News’ Sean Hannity immediately after the debate. “It was three against one.”

Representatives for ABC News did not immediately return an email seeking comment on the criticism.

Polling on debate

The perception that ABC’s moderators were partial to Harris was not widely shared outside of Republicans.

In a YouGov survey of more than 3,000 adults, 40% said the moderators were fair and unbiased. The second-most common answer was “don’t know,” with 29%, and 27% of respondents said the moderators were biased toward Harris.

A plurality of independents, 32%, and 69% of Democrats also said the moderators were fair. Just more than half of Republicans said Muir and Davis were unfair to Trump.

On his social media platform Truth Social overnight, Trump touted his debate performance and posted several screenshots of right-wing news outlet polls stating he had won the matchup.

“Comrade Kamala Harris is going around wanting another Debate because she lost so badly – Just look at the Polls! It’s true with prizefighters, when they lose a fight, they immediately want another. MAGA2024,” Trump wrote in response to the Harris campaign suggesting a second meeting.

Trump defended his comments about Haitian migrants in Ohio. The false claims have been circulating among right-wing circles, and amplified on social media Monday by Trump’s running mate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio.

He posted police audio published by the conservative news outlet The Federalist alleging migrants were seen carrying geese in late August. Trump also republished a video, fact-checked by the Canton, Ohio, newspaper The Repository, of a woman, with no known connection to the Caribbean nation, in Canton, who on Aug. 16 was arrested and charged with animal cruelty for allegedly killing and eating a cat.

Prior to the debate, Trump posted an AI-generated image of him surrounded by and hugging cats and water fowl on his private jet, as well as an army of cats wearing MAGA hats and carrying semi-automatic rifles.

Another debate?

During a Sept. 11 memorial event in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, Trump reportedly said he was open to two more debates, hosted by NBC News and Fox News.

The NBC event would be Sept. 25, but Harris has not agreed to it, preferring a date in October.

Fox executives on Tuesday night renewed the network’s offer to host another debate in a battleground state in October.

Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in an email the former president’s Fox News comment was a reference to a town hall with commentator Sean Hannity earlier this month.

“It was supposed to be on September 4,” Leavitt wrote. “Kamala didn’t show up so it turned into a town hall with Sean Hannity.”

The Harris campaign has said the vice president wants another debate with Trump in October. Campaign Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon repeated that in a statement late Tuesday.

“Under the bright lights, the American people got to see the choice they will face this fall at the ballot box: between moving forward with Kamala Harris, or going backwards with Trump,” O’Malley Dillon wrote. “That’s what they saw tonight and what they should see at a second debate in October. Vice President Harris is ready for a second debate. Is Donald Trump?”

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On the 23rd anniversary of Sept. 11 attacks, victims and first responders honored https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/11/on-the-23rd-anniversary-of-sept-11-attacks-victims-and-first-responders-honored/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/11/on-the-23rd-anniversary-of-sept-11-attacks-victims-and-first-responders-honored/#respond Wed, 11 Sep 2024 21:21:04 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21669

The Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, President Joe Biden, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, former President Donald Trump and the Republican vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, attend the annual 9/11 Commemoration Ceremony at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum on Sept. 11, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris honored victims on the 23rd anniversary of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, when four hijacked commercial airliners crashed into New York City’s Twin Towers, a Pennsylvania field and the Pentagon, shocking the world and precipitating years of U.S. war targeting extremists.

Biden and Harris honored the nearly 2,977 lives lost that day visiting all three sites Wednesday. In New York City they sat among leaders past and present, including former President Donald Trump and his running mate Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, during the annual reading of the names of those who died when the Twin Towers collapsed.

Harris and Trump shook hands at the ceremony just hours after their contentious presidential debate Tuesday night, during which they blamed each other for the deadly 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan two decades after the United States invaded in retaliation for the 9/11 attacks.

Biden and Harris then traveled to Shanksville, Pennsylvania, to lay a wreath at a memorial near the field where United Airlines Flight 93 crashed.

They also brought pizza and beer to local volunteer firefighters.

Both walked to a sandstone boulder in the field that marks the point of impact, according to reporters traveling with the president and vice president.

Trump also visited the memorial and crash site in Shanksville on Wednesday, according to press who were present.

Biden and Harris closed the day by laying a wreath at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, where 184 people were killed when a hijacked jet targeted the hub of U.S. defense operations.

“On this day 23 years ago, terrorists believed they could break our will and bring us to our knees. They were wrong. They will always be wrong,” Biden said in a statement. “In the darkest of hours, we found light. And in the face of fear, we came together — to defend our country, and to help one another. That is why terrorists targeted us in the first place: our freedom, our democracy, our unity.”

“They failed. But we must remain vigilant. Today, our longest war is finally over. But our commitment to preventing another attack on our people never will be,” he continued.

Both the president and Harris hailed the Obama administration’s 2011 U.S. killing of Osama bin Laden, a known terrorist who antagonized the U.S. for years before directing his al-Qaida network to carry out the 9/11 attacks.

“(A)nd two years ago, President Biden ordered an operation that killed Ayman al-Zawahiri, bin Laden’s deputy,” Harris said in a statement. “We remain vigilant against any terrorist threat directed at the United States or the American people and we continue to disrupt terrorist networks wherever we find them.”

Tributes from Congress

Congressional leaders paid tribute to the victims as well Wednesday.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York attended the morning ceremony at Ground Zero in Manhattan.

“Today and every day, we remember and honor the sacrifice, resiliency, and the bravery of New Yorkers, our first responders, the families of those who were taken from us, and Americans across the country,” Schumer posted on X Wednesday. “We will #NeverForget the souls we lost on 9/11 and in the years since.”

In remarks on the Senate floor, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell honored the 9/11 victims and also criticized the Biden administration for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. He also attacked Harris for comments she made on the debate stage Tuesday.

“The Biden-Harris Administration pretends the war on terrorism is over,” the Kentucky Republican said. “The vice president, herself, claimed last night that ‘there is not one member of the United States military who is in active duty in a combat zone (for) the first time this century.’”

“This, of course, would be news to the U.S. service members who conducted operations against ISIS in Iraq last week, and to the sailors intercepting Houthi rockets in the Red Sea, and to the families of service members killed and injured in the attack on Tower 22 near Jordan’s border with Syria earlier this year,” McConnell said, referencing Iran-backed militant attacks on shipping vessels and a U.S. Air Force and Army base in the northernmost tip of Jordan.

Both U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries marked the anniversary by laying a wreath at the 9/11 memorial in the U.S. Capitol that honors the passengers and crew of Flight 93.

“The 9/11 terrorists sought to destroy America, but they were no match for the indomitable American spirit. On this solemn day, we honor the lives of those lost and remember the strength and courage of our first responders who ran towards danger, not from it. We will never forget their extraordinary sacrifice,” Johnson of Louisiana said in a statement.

Jeffries, a New York Democrat, called attention to emergency workers who developed chronic health issues following their duties at the Manhattan crash site.

“Hundreds of first responders selflessly and bravely answered the call and ran towards danger. They risked their own safety to rescue whoever they could find. Due to the toxic exposures they endured at Ground Zero, many went on to contract severe or terminal long-term illnesses,” Jeffries said in a statement, spotlighting the more than two dozen New York firefighters who died this year from their 9/11-related diseases.

“Our commitment to our courageous first responders is ironclad and must endure. House Democrats will always stand up for the heroes who gave everything on that tragic day,” Jeffries said, blasting Republicans who in 2019 stalled, and some who voted against, a government medical fund for the responders. “We will never forget their sacrifice.”

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Harris tears into Trump over abortion rights and race in tense presidential debate https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/11/harris-tears-into-trump-over-abortion-rights-and-race-in-tense-presidential-debate/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/11/harris-tears-into-trump-over-abortion-rights-and-race-in-tense-presidential-debate/#respond Wed, 11 Sep 2024 05:21:27 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21647

The Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, and the Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, debate for the first time during the presidential election campaign at The National Constitution Center on Sept. 10, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump touted policy proposals and traded barbs Tuesday during a presidential debate packed with promises to revive America’s economy and riddled with Trump’s falsehoods about abortion, the 2020 election results and immigration.

The debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia hosted by ABC News just 56 days before the election was also notable as the first exchange between the candidates since President Joe Biden exited the race weeks after his botched debate performance in late June.

It is the only debate the campaigns have agreed to before the November election, although the Harris camp afterward suggested they’re ready for another and Fox News offered to host it in October.

The night began with Democratic nominee Harris crossing the stage to initiate a handshake and introducing herself to Trump, the GOP candidate. The two had never before met.

But the back-and-forth quickly grew contentious, as Trump blasted Harris’ record as vice president under President Joe Biden, and Harris said Trump was unfit to be president for myriad reasons. The two did not shake hands at the close.

Harris portrayed herself as a champion of the middle class. She presented a hopeful vision of the country that she sought to contrast with what she described as Trump’s self-centered vision that included attacks on the country’s democratic traditions and people of color.

“I am actually the only person on this stage who has a plan that is about lifting up the middle class and working people of America,” she said. “I believe in the ambition, the aspirations, the dreams of the American people.”

The vice president lambasted Trump as “extreme” and sought to tie him to the ultraconservative Project 2025, with which he denied an association. Harris also underscored the numerous legal cases Trump continues to face. Trump is the first former president to become a convicted felon.

“Donald Trump actually has no plan for you,” she said. “Because he is more interested in defending himself than he is in looking out for you.”

Protestors and curiosity seekers mixed with a heavy police presence outside the presidential debate site in Philadelphia Tuesday afternoon. (Photo by Paige Gross/States Newsroom).

Trump repeated unverified claims about migrants eating dogs in Ohio, returned time and again to complaints about immigration, defended his plan to raise tariffs and boasted about campaign rally crowd sizes — after Harris taunted him about his events, saying people left.

“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats. They’re eating, they’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” Trump said in one of the more jarring moments of the debate, when he repeated baseless claims about Haitian migrants. The rumors have circulated on social media in recent days, and have been amplified by Trump’s running mate, Ohio U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance.

Trump challenged Harris to use her position in the administration to address inflation and immigration, suggesting that she was not actually able to follow through on her promises.

“She doesn’t have a plan,” he said. “She copied Biden’s plan, and it’s like four sentences like, ‘Run, Spot, run,’ four sentences that are just, ‘Oh, we’ll try and lower taxes.’ She doesn’t have a plan.”

Polls show the race is virtually tied nationally and in seven key states that will decide the Electoral College margin: Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada. Harris enjoyed a polling bump soon after she became a candidate, but her numbers have dropped in the weeks since and recent polls showed her roughly even with Trump.

Among the top moments of the night touching on policy and politics:

Election integrity

The 2024 presidential election marks a test for the peaceful transfer of power after political violence marred the nation’s tradition when Trump’s refusal to accept his loss sparked a Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Trump repeated false claims during Tuesday’s debate that he won the 2020 presidential election, even walking back recent public statements that seemed to accept defeat.

Asked by moderator David Muir if recent statements that he “lost by a whisker” and similar sentiments were acknowledgements he’d lost, Trump said the comments were sarcastic.

“I don’t acknowledge that at all,” he said. “That was said sarcastically.”

Harris called Trump’s answer “deeply troubling.”

“You did, in fact, lose that election,” she told him. She added that his continued denial “leads one to believe that perhaps we do not have, in the candidate to my right, the temperament or the ability to not be confused about fact. That’s deeply troubling, and the American people deserve better.

When asked if he regretted any of his actions when the U.S. Capitol was violently overrun by his supporters, Trump defended himself and returned to the topic of immigration.

“I had nothing to do with that, other than they asked me to make a speech,” Trump said.

Harris responded: “For everyone watching who remembers what January 6 was, I say ‘We don’t have to go back.’”

Race

Moderators asked Trump about his disparaging comments about Harris’ biracial identity to the National Association of Black Journalists last month. Muir questioned if it was appropriate for Trump to weigh in on his opponent’s race.

Trump said it was not appropriate, but seemed to defend the comment that Harris had “turned Black” to promote her political career.

“I don’t care what she is,” he said. “Whatever she wants to be is OK with me. All I can say is that I read where she was not Black, that she put out, and I’ll say that, and then I read that she was Black, and that’s okay. Either one was okay with me. That’s up to her.”

Harris called it “a tragedy” that Trump continued “to use race to divide the American people.”

She invoked allegations that he refused to rent his residential properties to Black families, spread conspiracy theories that the first Black president, Barack Obama, was not born in the United States and supported the execution of Black and Latino boys accused of attempted murder and other charges?in New York’s Central Park. The suspects were later exonerated.

“The American people want better than that, want better than this,” she said, adding that voters wanted a conversation about how candidates could improve their lives. “Regardless of people’s color or the language their grandmother speaks, we all have the same dreams and aspirations, and want a president who invests in those, not in hate and division.”

Abortion and IVF

The 2024 presidential election is the first since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

While Trump told debate moderators that he would not sign a nationwide abortion bill into law, he refused to give a yes or no answer when asked if he would veto one.

Moderator Linsey Davis corrected Trump after he claimed that some states allow abortion “in the ninth month,” but he continued to repeat it throughout the debate.

Trump hailed the Supreme Court justices — three of whom he appointed — for giving full control of abortion laws to state governments.

Protestors and curiosity seekers mixed with a heavy police presence outside the presidential debate site in Philadelphia Tuesday afternoon. (Photo by Paige Gross/States Newsroom).

“What I did is something, for 52 years, they have been trying to get Roe v. Wade into the states, and through the genius and heart and strength of six Supreme Court justices, we were able to do that,” Trump said, adding that he “strongly” believes in exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.

Harris said she would “proudly” sign a bill into law that restored the federal right to an abortion.

“One does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree the government and Donald Trump certainly should not be telling a woman what to do with her body,” Harris said.

She attacked what she dubbed “Donald Trump’s abortion bans” and said his actions resulted in a reality where couples “who pray and dream of having a family are being denied IVF treatments.”

In vitro fertilization, or IVF, has become a lightning rod for debate on the right after an Alabama court ruled in early 2024 that frozen embryos counted as children. Legislators in the state have since passed a law to restore IVF access.

Trump said Harris was telling “another lie.”

“I have been a leader on IVF, with which is fertilization, the IVF. I have been a leader,” he said.

Taxes, the economy, health care

With Trump’s signature 2017 tax law expiring at the end of 2025, tax policy has been front and center of the 2024 presidential race.

Harris trumpeted her plans for an “opportunity economy” and panned Trump’s proposal to raise tariffs and “provide a tax cut for billionaires and big corporations.”

“Donald Trump has no plan for you, and when you look at his economic plan, it’s all about tax breaks for the richest people,” Harris said on the debate stage.

Harris’ proposals include increasing the corporate tax rate to 28%, permanently expanding the child tax credit to pandemic levels and extending up to $6,000 to new parents, providing up to $50,000 in tax relief for business start-up costs, and offering new homebuyers a $25,000 tax credit.

A large part of Trump’s economic plan is to impose universal tariffs of at

least 10% on all U.S. imports, with tariffs on Chinese goods at 60%. When asked by Muir if the approach could cause consumer prices to increase, Trump denied the possibility.

“We’re not going to have higher prices. What’s going to happen, who’s going to have higher prices is China, and all of the countries that have been ripping us off for years,” Trump said.

Trump has promised, at minimum, to extend his tax policies, which cut individual income tax rates, lowered the corporate tax rate to 21%, loosened business expensing and deductions, and doubled the child tax credit to $2,000.

Economists warn that if extended, the Trump-era tax cuts would add trillions to the deficit. That total could reach between $4 trillion and $5.8 trillion over the next decade, according to the University of Pennsylvania’s Penn Wharton Budget Model. In a separate model, the Tax Foundation estimated the policies could reduce federal revenue up to $6.1 trillion over a 10-year window.

The Penn Wharton model estimates Harris’ proposals would increase the deficit by up to $2 trillion over ten years. Modeling from the Tax Foundation released Tuesday predicts the vice president’s plan would increase taxes by $4.1 trillion over the next decade, but after accounting for various tax cuts and credits, the projected revenue drops to $1.7 trillion, and even further if slowed economic growth is considered.

On health care, Trump said he had “concepts of a plan” to overhaul the law signed by President Barack Obama in 2010.

“I would only change it if we come up with something that’s better and less expensive,” he said. “And there are concepts and options we have to do that, and you’ll be hearing about it in the not too distant future.”

Harris defended the law known as “Obamacare.”

Immigration and border security

Trump tried several times to steer the conversation to immigration, his signature issue since he began his first White House run in 2015.

He referenced viral —?but unverified —?stories of sensational disruptions caused by immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, and Aurora, Colorado, and blamed Harris and Biden for the supposed episodes.

“These are the people that she and Biden let into our country,” he said.

Continuing Biden’s immigration policies would turn the country into “Venezuela on steroids,” he said.

Harris laughed after Trump pressed unverified claims about immigration. “Talk about extreme,” she said.

Harris promoted a bipartisan immigration and border security bill this year that included measures Republicans sought to strengthen enforcement. But the bill fell apart, she said, under opposition from Trump, who preferred campaigning on the issue to solving the problem.

When moderators then asked Trump about the bill, he began his answer by bragging about crowds at his campaign rallies,?responding to a comment Harris had made.

Rally attendance remained high, he said, “because people want to take their country back.”

“Our country is being lost,” he said. “We’re a failing nation, and it happened three-and-a-half years ago. And what? What’s going on here? … What they have done to our country by allowing these millions and millions of people to come into our country and look at what’s happening to the towns all over the United States.”

He did not answer the question about the bill.

Energy and climate

Moderators asked Harris about her position on hydraulic fracturing, a technique for extracting natural gas better known as fracking.

The process is controversial among environmentalists, but a major industry in gas-rich Pennsylvania. During her unsuccessful bid for the Democratic nomination in 2020, Harris told a climate activist during a televised town hall that she favored banning fracking, but has said this year that is not her position.

Asked by Davis to explain the change Tuesday night, she said she’s also made clear in 2020 that she did not want to ban fracking.

She also noted her tie-breaking vote in the Senate to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, a massive energy, taxes and domestic policy law Democrats passed along party lines in 2022 that included expanded leases for natural gas production.

Trump urged voters not to believe Harris.

“If she becomes president, fracking in Pennsylvania will end on day one,” he said.

The last question before closing statements was on climate change.

Harris called it a threat and touted the Biden administration’s work to expand the clean energy industry, while preserving natural gas jobs.

Trump declined to answer the question, instead focusing on the work of Hunter Biden, the president’s son, with a Ukrainian energy company. Trump called the Biden administration “corrupt.”

Foreign policy

As the humanitarian crisis continues in the Gaza Strip with deaths mounting 40,000, according to Gaza health officials, Davis asked Harris how she could break through a stalemate on a proposed cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas militants.

The vice president offered little detail on how to finally broker a deal, but said, “What we know is this war must end.”

“It must end immediately, and the way it will end is we need a cease-fire deal, and we need the hostages out, and so we will continue to work around the clock on that — work around the clock — also understanding that we must chart a course for a two-state solution,” she said.

Harris added that she will “always give Israel the ability to defend itself, in particular as it relates to Iran.”

Trump lashed back with accusations that Harris “hates” Israel and the “Arab population,” and repeated his refrain that “if I were president, (the war) would have never started.”

“I will get that settled and fast, and I’ll get the war with Ukraine and Russia ended. If I’m president-elect, I’ll get it done before even becoming president,” Trump said.

He did not directly answer if he wanted Ukraine to win the war.

“I think it’s in the U.S. best interest to get this war finished and just get it done, negotiate a deal, because we have to stop all of these human lives from being destroyed,” Trump said when asked if a Ukraine victory is in the U.S.’s best interest.

Harris said she would continue to stand with NATO allies on defending Ukraine.

“I believe the reason that Donald Trump says that this war would be over within 24 hours is because he would just give it up. And that’s not who we are as Americans,” she rebutted.

Another foreign policy topic was on display at the U.S. Capitol hours before the debate when congressional leaders held a ceremony honoring 13 service members who were killed during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Trump and Republican lawmakers have ratcheted up criticism of Harris — implicating her hundreds of times in a damning report released Monday — for the Biden administration’s handling of the August 2021 exit from Afghanistan after two decades of war.

“I will tell you I agreed with President Biden’s decision to pull out of Afghanistan. Four presidents said they would, and Joe Biden did,” Harris told Muir when asked if she bears any responsibility for the deadly withdrawal.

Harris criticized Trump for “negotiating directly with a terrorist organization” when he struck a deal with the Taliban before he left office.

Trump defended himself saying “I got involved with the Taliban because the Taliban was doing the killing” and said he achieved a “very good agreement.”

Trump made waves on the recent third anniversary of the 13 service members’ deaths when his staffers pushed an Arlington National Cemetery official aside to take photos in a restricted area, according to the U.S. Army and reporting by NPR.

Swift endorsement

Shortly after the debate’s close, mega star Taylor Swift said in an Instagram post she would vote for Harris.

Part of Swift’s exuberant fan base had called on her to endorse Harris, following her support for Biden and Harris four years ago.

Taylor Swift performs onstage for the opening night of “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at State Farm Stadium on March 17, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)

This article has been updated to more specifically describe the charges against Black and Latino boys in New York’s Central Park.

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Trump and Harris to meet in long-anticipated debate Tuesday night in Philadelphia https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/09/trump-and-harris-to-meet-in-long-anticipated-debate-tuesday-night-in-philadelphia/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/09/trump-and-harris-to-meet-in-long-anticipated-debate-tuesday-night-in-philadelphia/#respond Mon, 09 Sep 2024 21:38:34 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21565

Final preparations are made in the spin room prior to the ABC News Presidential Debate in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, and the Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump, will face off in their first debate Sept. 10 at the Constitution Center. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet in a highly anticipated and potentially consequential debate Tuesday night in Philadelphia — just over two months after President Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance precipitated his exit from the race.

The debate, to be hosted by ABC News, is set for 9 p.m. Eastern and will be the first time Trump and Harris will meet in person, according to Harris. Viewers can livestream the debate on ABC.com or on the platforms ABC News Live, Disney+ and Hulu. The debate will also be simulcast on C-SPAN.

The event is the only scheduled televised exchange between the candidates before Election Day in November, though early voting kicks off in the battleground state of Pennsylvania Sept. 16 and in four other states later this month.

‘We’ll be ready’

Trump surrogates on Monday said the former president plans to challenge Harris on views she’s changed over the years, including on fracking and immigration.

“We’ll be ready tomorrow, President Trump will be ready. The question is will Kamala Harris be ready because she’s gonna have a lot of things to defend,” Jason Miller, Trump campaign senior adviser, said on a call organized by the Republican National Committee that also featured Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida and former Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, a Democratic Party defector who has endorsed Trump.

“You can’t prepare for President Trump. There’s just no way to do it,” Miller later added.

Trump will also seek to tie Harris to all decisions made under the Biden administration. Gaetz dubbed her “co-president” and alleged on the call that Harris is “in charge of the entire administration.”

Republicans are using the narrative to blame Harris for the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in which 13 service members died.

The GOP-led House Committee on Foreign Affairs released a 353-page report Monday blaming the deadly conclusion of the two-decade U.S. war in Afghanistan squarely on the Biden-Harris administration. Harris’ last name is mentioned 285 times in the report.

“Kamala Harris is unfit to be our president and commander-in-chief,” Gabbard said on the call.

Retired U.S. military leaders issued a letter defending Harris’ fitness to lead the country, and blaming Trump’s “chaotic approach” to negotiating with the Taliban before leaving office.

“He repeatedly fails to take responsibility for his own role in putting service members in harm’s way,” the former generals wrote on behalf of the veterans’ advocacy group National Security Leaders for America.

Trump attracted his own attention related to the Afghanistan withdrawal when his campaign staffers confronted an Arlington National Cemetery official on Aug. 26, the third anniversary of the 13 service members’ deaths. The incident was first reported by NPR.

Trump has denied his staffers pushed the cemetery official aside in order to take photos in a restricted area, but the U.S. Army confirmed the incident.

‘Go to Bat 4 Harris’

The vice president prepped for the debate in a Pittsburgh hotel over the weekend before traveling across the swing state Monday for the following night’s prime-time event.

The Harris campaign began the week by releasing an ad Monday featuring several former Trump administration officials, including former Vice President Mike Pence and former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley, who have spoken out against a second Trump presidency.

The Democratic National Committee flew a banner Monday above Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia ahead of the division-leading Phillies’ home game against the Tampa Bay Rays. The banner read: “Don’t Strikeout W/Trump Go to Bat 4 Harris.”

After roughly 50 days into her campaign and just 56 days until the election, Harris released her policy platform one day ahead of the debate. The four-pillar plan includes promises to lower taxes on the middle class and build affordable housing, protect reproductive freedoms and civil rights, secure the border and address gun violence, and “stand up to dictators” and support veterans.

Harris also vowed to support an ethics code for the U.S. Supreme Court, and to “ensure that no former president has immunity for crimes committed while in the White House” — a reference to the high court’s July ruling that granted former presidents immunity for core official acts and presumptive immunity for “outer perimeter” duties, but none for personal actions.

The Trump campaign accused Harris’ platform of “dishonesty” in a campaign email sent Monday. “We know the results of her policies: chaos, devastation and destruction.”

Trump and the Republican party released a platform in July that centered on 20 core promises which swore to “seal the border,” “carry out the largest deportation operation in American history,” and “end inflation,” among others.

When asked by reporters Saturday in Pittsburgh’s Strip District market area if she was ready to debate Trump, the former California prosecutor and U.S. senator answered, “Yes, I am. Yes.”

What’s the main message she wants to tell Trump on the debate stage?

“There is a lot,” Harris said in response to the question.

“But look, it’s time to turn the page on the divisiveness. It’s time to bring our country together to chart a new way forward,” she said.

Trump’s legal issues ahead of debate

While Harris hunkered down for debate prep, Trump has been focusing in recent days on his myriad legal issues and hosting long-winded? appearances.

On Saturday the former president held court for nearly two hours at a campaign rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin, and repeated a debunked claim that Venezuelan gang members had overtaken an Aurora, Colorado, apartment building. He told the crowd that removing Venezuelan immigrants from the state will “be a bloody story.”

He also downplayed his New York state conviction as a “witch hunt,” as he has several times before.

Trump, the only former president to become a convicted felon, learned Friday that a Manhattan judge delayed his sentencing until after the November election. Trump was convicted in May of 34 counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to a porn star ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Trump also spoke for nearly an hour Friday at Trump Tower during what was billed as a press conference but included no questions. The appearance followed oral arguments in his appeal of a civil trial verdict in which he was found liable of sexual abuse and defamation of writer E. Jean Carroll.

On Thursday his lawyers pleaded not guilty on his behalf in federal court to a renewed indictment alleging he co-conspired to subvert the 2020 presidential results. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan set a pre-trial schedule that includes deadlines both before and after November’s election.

The vice presidential debate between Ohio U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is scheduled to be hosted by CBS News in New York City on Oct. 1.

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Trump sentencing in New York hush money case postponed until after presidential election https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/06/trump-sentencing-in-new-york-hush-money-case-postponed-until-after-presidential-election/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/06/trump-sentencing-in-new-york-hush-money-case-postponed-until-after-presidential-election/#respond Fri, 06 Sep 2024 19:00:59 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21494

Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he arrives to court for his hush money trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 30, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Steven Hirsch-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump will not face criminal sentencing in New York for his state felony convictions ahead of the November election, according to a decision released Friday by New York Judge Juan Merchan.

The New York judge said Friday the new sentencing date will be Nov. 26,? according to a letter he issued Friday.

Merchan wrote that the court is “now at a place in time that is fraught with complexities,” referring to the fast-approaching presidential election and the consequential U.S. Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity that Trump’s legal team has now brought to the center of the New York case.

“Adjourning decision on the motion and sentencing, if such is required, should dispel any suggestion that the Court will have issued any decision or imposed sentence either to give an advantage to, or to create a disadvantage for, any political party and/or any candidate for any office,” Merchan wrote.

“This is not a decision the court makes lightly but it is the decision which in this court’s view best advances the interests of justice,” Merchan later concluded.

Trump, vying again for the Oval Office as the Republican nominee, is the first-ever former president to become a felon.

He was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records in May after a weeks-long Manhattan trial that centered on hush money payments to a porn star ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Trump asked the New York court to delay the sentencing until after the 2024 election, arguing that the question of presidential immunity as it related to the New York conviction remains unresolved.

Friday’s decision marks the second time Merchan has delayed Trump’s sentencing.

Merchan delayed Trump’s initial July sentencing date, just one day after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that former presidents enjoy criminal immunity for official “core constitutional” acts and at least presumptive immunity for “outer perimeter” activities, but not for personal ones.

Trump’s lawyers argued the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision nullified his New York state convictions, particularly because the evidence presented at trial could now be considered subject to immunity.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg agreed to a delay while the parties filed legal arguments on the issue of immunity, which Bragg ultimately argued had “no bearing” on Trump’s convictions and evidence examined by the jury.

Trump, who has been entangled on several legal fronts, escalated his separate federal criminal case alleging 2020 election interference all the way to the Supreme Court, arguing presidential immunity for any criminal charges stemming from his time in office.

The case alleging Trump schemed to overturn the 2020 presidential election results was returned to federal trial court. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan on Thursday released a pre-trial calendar that extends beyond this November’s election.

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Trump promotes raising tariffs, corporate tax cut in battle over economy with Harris https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/05/trump-promotes-raising-tariffs-corporate-tax-cut-in-battle-over-economy-with-harris/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/05/trump-promotes-raising-tariffs-corporate-tax-cut-in-battle-over-economy-with-harris/#respond Thu, 05 Sep 2024 23:47:54 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21483

Taxes and the economy are taking center stage in the 2024 presidential campaign. (Getty Images)

Former President Donald Trump said Thursday he would protect American industries if he is reelected by increasing tariffs on imports while cutting other taxes and regulations, in a speech to the Economic Club of New York.

The GOP presidential candidate’s remarks came as the economy has taken center stage in the run-up to the 2024 presidential election. Both Trump and the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, have criticized a ballooning national deficit, high housing costs and increasingly expensive groceries.

In a wide-ranging speech that also framed his hardline immigration position in economic terms and blasted Harris for what he said were the policy shortcomings of the Biden administration, Trump laid out several planks of an economic platform focused on corporate tax cuts and protectionist policies that he predicted would boost domestic manufacturing.

“Some might say it’s economic nationalism,” he said. “I call it common sense. I call it America First … We have to take care of our own nation and our industries first.”

Trump’s speech came one day after Harris delivered new proposals to cut taxes on small businesses during a speech at a brewery in New Hampshire.

While Trump would cut corporate taxes and extend the tax cut for high earners that he signed during his first term, he said he would raise tariffs, which are taxes on foreign goods. Doing so would compel U.S. companies to keep their production jobs in the country, he said.

Tariffs would also seed a new “sovereign wealth fund” that would “return a gigantic profit,” he said.

He told the economists and business professionals in the room that he would lean on them to advise on the fund, and that it would be flush with cash from tariffs on foreign imports.

The “greatest sovereign wealth fund,” he said, would also pay for infrastructure, defense capabilities and “cutting-edge medical research,” as well as pay down the nation’s debt.

“We’ll create America’s own sovereign wealth fund to invest in great national endeavors for the benefit of all of the American people,” he said. “Why don’t we have a wealth fund? Other countries have wealth funds. We have nothing. We have nothing. We’re going to have a sovereign wealth fund or we can name it something different.”

Tax battle

Trump told the group that Harris would raise taxes, including on unrealized gains on investments before they are sold.

“Unbelievably, she will seek a tax on unrealized capital gains,” he said.

Trump would lower the corporate tax rate from 21% to 15%, he said, while Harris would raise it to 28%.

He also said he would appoint Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X who has endorsed Trump and regularly posts about the election, to lead a government efficiency commission.

Trump would seek to make permanent the tax cuts he signed into law in 2017. Taxes have featured prominently on the campaign trail ahead of the 2025 expiration of the law that cut individual tax rates, reduced the corporate tax rate and doubled the child tax credit.

In her remarks in New Hampshire, Harris promised to increase deductions tenfold on business start-up costs, up to $50,000 from $5,000. She also vowed to simplify the tax filing process for entrepreneurs by allowing them to claim a standard deduction, similar to what’s available for individual income taxpayers.

Harris also drew attention to her New Hampshire speech when she broke with President Joe Biden’s tax plan for capital gains, promising “a rate that rewards investment in America’s innovators, founders and small businesses.”

Harris told the crowd that anyone earning $1 million or more would see a 28% rate on long-term capital gains under her administration, if elected. The proposal deviates from Biden’s plan to raise revenue by taxing capital gains over $1 million at 39.6%. Biden also proposed a 5% Medicare surcharge on long-term capital gains for high earners.

The current rate for high earners is 20%.

A long-term capital gain tax is applied to any profit made on the sale of an asset, like stocks, bonds, or real estate, held by the owner for more than a year.

Immigration

Trump also sought to make his signature policy issue —?an ultra-hardline immigration stance —?an economic one.

An increasing number of migrants entering the country through the border with Mexico are taking jobs from Americans, he said, singling out Americans of color.

“Hispanic American jobs are under massive threat from the invasion taking place at our border,” Trump said. “They’re taking jobs from Hispanic Americans, African Americans.”

He added, falsely, that all jobs created during the Biden administration were filled by immigrants in the country illegally.

Trump has called for an unprecedented deportation program of undocumented immigrants and has placed the blame for record migrant crossings on Biden and Harris.

‘Like nobody’s ever grown before’

Trump promised “tremendous growth,” mostly attributing that growth to a yet unnamed percentage tariff on foreign imports. He signaled his target for tariffs will be higher than any percentage floated so far.

“We’re gonna grow like nobody’s ever grown before,” he said. “We will be bringing in billions and billions of dollars, which will reduce our deficit.”

He also suggested during the question-and-answer portion that funds raised through tariffs could help families reduce the cost of child care, but offered little detail.

But economists and critics say Trump’s major economic plans to raise tariffs and extend his signature tax cuts will put additional costs on consumers and add trillions to the deficit.

Trump’s plan to extend the 2017 tax cuts would add between $4.1 and $5.8 trillion to the national deficit over the next decade, according to the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Budget Model.

Rule of law

Trump said the country has suffered economically under Biden and Harris because of his legal issues.

Trump has faced four criminal prosecutions, including two federal cases related to his mishandling of classified documents following his presidency and his conduct to provoke the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

He was also convicted of New York state felonies related to an illegal hush money arrangement during his first White House campaign and is charged in Georgia with election interference related to the 2020 campaign.

He said Thursday the prosecutions were politically motivated, making investors lose faith in the country’s governance. He hinted that he would retaliate and said that he would eliminate political prosecutions.

“They always have to remember that two can play that game,” he said. “Nobody ever thought this was possible. This is how you create massive capital flight and turn once prosperous nations into absolute ruins. I will have no higher priority as president than to restore the fair, equal and impartial rule of law in America. We have lost the rule of law.”

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Trump’s Jan. 6 case to extend beyond Election Day under timeline laid out by judge? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/05/trumps-jan-6-case-to-extend-beyond-election-day-under-timeline-laid-out-by-judge/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/05/trumps-jan-6-case-to-extend-beyond-election-day-under-timeline-laid-out-by-judge/#respond Thu, 05 Sep 2024 23:38:41 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21481

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a rally at Clinton Middle School on Jan. 6, 2024 in Clinton, Iowa. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Exactly two months out from the presidential election, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan plans to move ahead with the case accusing former President Donald Trump of subverting the 2020 presidential election results, telling Trump’s attorneys that she is “not concerned with the electoral schedule.”

Chutkan released a timeline for the case late Thursday afternoon setting several deadlines for evidence, briefs and replies for the weeks prior to November’s election, and ultimately stretching beyond Election Day.

Judge Tanya Chutkan (uscourts.gov)

While it had been evident for some time that the Republican presidential nominee likely would not face a trial before Nov. 5 on election interference charges, Chutkan’s calendar made it certain.

Trump did not appear in federal court for Thursday morning’s hearing in Washington, D.C., but his lawyers pleaded not guilty on his behalf to the four charges that remained unchanged in U.S. special counsel Jack Smith’s new indictment, filed last week.

The case had been in a holding pattern for eight months as Trump appealed his claim of presidential immunity all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

U.S. prosecutors say they are ready to restart the case in the coming weeks, while Trump’s team has argued for more time to review evidence and dismiss the superseding indictment.

The Supreme Court returned Trump’s case to the trial court after ruling that former presidents are immune from criminal charges for official “core constitutional” acts while in office and hold at least presumptive immunity for “outer perimeter” activities, but not for personal actions.

This gave Chutkan, an Obama administration appointee, the major task of parsing Smith’s indictment, deciding which allegations against Trump fall under the umbrella of official acts and which relate to actions taken in a personal capacity.

Chutkan set the following deadlines on the pre-trial calendar:

  • The government must complete all mandatory evidentiary disclosures by Sept. 10, with other disclosures ongoing afterward.
  • Trump’s reply briefs to certain evidence matters are due Sept. 19.
  • The government’s opening brief on presidential immunity is due Sept. 26, and the Trump legal team’s reply is due on Oct. 17. The government’s opposition is thereafter due on Oct. 29.
  • Trump is also scheduled to provide a supplement to his original motion to dismiss based on statutory grounds by Oct. 3, and the government must reply by Oct. 17.
  • Trump’s request to file a motion based on his argument that Smith was illegally appointed to his special prosecutor position is due on Oct. 24, with the government’s reply due on Oct. 31. The due date for Trump’s opposition to the government’s reply is Nov. 7, stretching the pre-trial calendar beyond the presidential election.

Chutkan skeptical?

Chutkan did not issue any decisions on immunity at the Thursday hearing but rather spent significant time grilling Trump’s attorney John Lauro on why he believes it is “unseemly” for Smith’s office to lay out its case this month in an opening brief. Thomas Windom, a federal prosecutor in Smith’s office, said the government would be ready to file the brief by the end of September.

Lauro argued that Smith wanting to file “at breakneck speed” is “incredibly unfair that they are able to put in the public record (evidence) at this sensitive time in our nation’s history.”

“I understand there’s an election impending,” Chutkan snapped back, reminding him that it “is not relevant here.”

“Three weeks is not exactly breakneck speed,” Chutkan added.

Lauro argues that Chutkan should examine parts of the indictment that accuse Trump of pressuring then-Vice President Mike Pence to accept false slates of electors leading up to Pence’s ceremonial role in certifying the election results on Jan. 6, 2021.

“The problem with that issue is if in fact the communications are immune, then the entire indictment fails,” Lauro argued.

“I’m not sure that’s my reading of the case,” Chutkan replied.

The government maintains that all actions and communications by Trump described in the new indictment were “private in nature,” Windom argued.

Chutkan also spent time during the roughly 75-minute hearing questioning Lauro on the Trump legal team’s numerous plans to request the case’s dismissal. One anticipated plan is to try its successful play in Florida, where a Trump-appointed federal judge tossed his classified documents case after Trump argued Smith was illegally appointed as special counsel.

Chutkan said she will allow the defense to file that motion but warned that attorneys must provide convincing arguments on why “binding precedent doesn’t hold” for the time-tested position of special prosecutor.

New indictment, same charges

Trump is charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of, and attempt to obstruct, an official proceeding; and conspiracy against rights for his alleged role in conspiring to create false electors from seven states and spreading knowingly false information that whipped his supporters into a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

A federal grand jury handed up a revised indictment Aug. 27 in an effort to tailor the charges to the Supreme Court’s July 1 immunity ruling. The fresh indictment omitted any references to Trump’s alleged pressure campaign on Justice Department officials to meddle in state election results.

But the document added emphasis on Trump’s personal use of social media outside of his actions as president, and said he and several co-conspirators schemed outside of his official duties. The new indictment also stressed Trump’s pressure on Pence to accept the fake electors in his role outside of the executive branch as president of the Senate.

If Trump wins the Oval Office in November, he would have the power to hinder or altogether shut down the Department of Justice’s election interference case against him.

If he loses to Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris, the case is sure to be set back by further delays, as the Trump team plans numerous challenges and will almost certainly appeal — likely to the Supreme Court again — Chutkan’s decisions on which allegations against Trump are or are not subject to immunity.

According to Friday’s joint filing in which each side laid out plans for the case going forward, Trump’s team also warned they will challenge that Trump’s tweets and communication about the 2020 presidential results should be considered all official acts.

Additionally, Trump plans to file a motion to dismiss the case based on the Supreme Court’s June ruling that a Jan. 6 rioter could not be charged with obstructing an official proceeding — a charge that Trump also faces.

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Harris to roll out new plan on tax relief for small businesses https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/03/harris-to-roll-out-new-plan-on-tax-relief-for-small-businesses/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/09/03/harris-to-roll-out-new-plan-on-tax-relief-for-small-businesses/#respond Tue, 03 Sep 2024 21:01:22 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21420

Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris speaks on stage during the final day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Aug. 22, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to announce economic policy proposals aimed at helping small businesses during a campaign speech Wednesday in New Hampshire.

The Democratic presidential candidate will stump in Portsmouth for expanding the tax deduction to $50,000 on business start-up costs, up from $5,000, a campaign official said on background Tuesday. Harris will also propose a standard deduction for businesses as a way to simplify tax filing for entrepreneurs.

Congress writes the nation’s tax laws, so any changes will hinge on which party wins control of the House and Senate in November. Many provisions enacted under the 2017 Trump-era tax law are set to expire at the end of 2025, teeing up for the next Congress the major task of reworking the tax code.

The announcement comes as part of Harris’ pitch for what she calls an “opportunity economy” that would include an expanded child tax credit — up to $6,000 — for new parents, $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-time home buyers, and tools to combat “price gouging” by big businesses, whom Harris blames for high grocery prices, she told CNN’s Dana Bash on Thursday.

Middle-class message

Harris, whose running mate is Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, has in recent weeks largely homed in on helping the middle class.

The former California attorney general and U.S. senator is also expected to announce a host of other proposals Wednesday to incentivize the creation of more small businesses — with her goal of 25 million new business applications under her administration, if elected.

Among the proposals are easing licensing to allow businesses to expand across state lines and incentivizing state and local governments to “cut red tape” and reduce regulations. Harris will also pitch granting more federal contracts to small businesses and launching a fund that would allow community banks to pay interest costs for businesses expanding in regions that see little investment.

Former President Donald Trump (Photo by Steven Hirsch-Pool/Getty Images)

Harris’ stop in New Hampshire is one of at least three presidential campaign events this week. On Thursday she will return to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she and President Joe Biden campaigned on their support for organized labor during Monday’s Labor Day holiday.

The Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, is scheduled to attend a town hall in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with Fox News host Sean Hannity on Wednesday and a Saturday campaign rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin.

Trump attacked Biden and Harris on his online platform Truth Social Monday, blaming the administration for high prices.

Trump wrote in his signature mix of upper and lowercase letters that under Harris, whom he refers to as “comrade,” “all Americans are suffering during this Holiday weekend – High Gas Prices, Transportation Costs are up, and Grocery Prices are through the roof. We can’t keep living under this weak and failed ‘Leadership.’”

U.S. presidents do not set transportation or grocery prices.

YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.

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Harris, Walz defend past statements, promise ‘opportunity economy’ in CNN interview https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/30/harris-walz-defend-past-statements-promise-opportunity-economy-in-cnn-interview/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/30/harris-walz-defend-past-statements-promise-opportunity-economy-in-cnn-interview/#respond Fri, 30 Aug 2024 13:24:38 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21336

Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris has won the endorsement of a Teamsters local that represents union members in Kentucky and Southern Indiana. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday defended her values and vowed, if elected, to appoint a Republican to her cabinet in her first major sit-down interview since her presidential campaign began just over a month ago.

Harris, who rose to the top of the Democratic ticket after President Joe Biden dropped his bid in July, spoke to CNN’s Dana Bash in Savannah, Georgia, for roughly 30 minutes with her running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz by her side.

The interview came a week after Harris formally accepted the party’s nomination at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Harris had recently become the target of criticism for not yet participating in an unscripted interview with a major news outlet.

Harris and Walz sat down with the network anchor Thursday afternoon in Georgia during a pause in the pair’s two-day bus tour through the southeastern region of the battleground state.

Harris told Bash that she envisions building an “opportunity economy” for the middle class, including expanding the child tax credit to up to $6,000, providing a $25,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers, and combating “price gouging,” to which Harris attributed high grocery prices.

The vice president ticked off Democratic accomplishments under Biden, including capping the price of insulin and reducing child poverty under a pandemic-era temporary expansion of the child tax credit that eliminated the work requirement and paid families in monthly installments.

“I’ll say that that’s good work, there’s more to do, but that’s good work,” Harris said.

The CNN anchor pressed Harris on her changes in policy positions, including immigration and fracking.

Republicans have pounced on Harris’ past statements and accuse her of changing her tune to appeal to more centrist voters. Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday dubbed her “FLIP-FLOPPING KAMALA” on his Truth Social platform, where the current GOP presidential nominee posts numerous times a day.

“??Let’s be clear, in this race I’m the only person who has prosecuted transnational criminal organizations who traffic in guns, drugs and human beings,” Harris said when asked about her past position on decriminalizing the border. “I’m the only person in this race who actually served a border state as attorney general to enforce our laws, and I would enforce our laws as president going forward, I recognize the problem.”

Harris also defended her switch from opposing fracking to supporting it.

“I think the most important and most significant aspect of my policy perspective and decisions is my values have not changed. I have always believed, and I have worked on it, that the climate crisis is real,” Harris said.

Despite attacks from Republicans, Bash noted that the Democratic National Convention featured quite a few speakers from the GOP side of the aisle.

Prompted to the idea by Bash, Harris said “it would be a benefit to the American public” to appoint a Republican to her administration cabinet, if elected — though she didn’t name names.

“I have spent my career inviting diversity of opinion. I think it’s important to have people at the table when some of the most important decisions are being made that have different views, different experiences,” she said.

Harris brushes off Trump’s insults

The interview revealed for many that Harris and Trump have never met face-to-face.They will do so for the first time on the debate stage on Sept. 10, an event that will air on ABC News.

As for her thoughts on Trump, Harris told Bash that the former president is “diminishing the character and the strength of who we are as Americans.”

When Bash asked Harris to respond to Trump’s attacks, including questioning her race, the vice president only briefly addressed them.

“Same old tired playbook, next question please,” she said.

Bash then moved to the topic of the Israel-Hamas war to which Harris responded that she is “unequivocal and unwavering in my commitment to Israel’s defense and its ability to defend itself,” adding that “how it does so matters.”

She reiterated her plea for a peace deal that includes rescuing hostages who remain in Hamas captivity.

“??A deal is not only the right thing to do to end this war, but will unlock so much of what must happen next. I remain committed, since I’ve been on October 8, to what we must do to work toward a two-state solution where Israel is secure, and in equal measure, the Palestinians have security and self-determination and dignity.”

Walz defense

Bash asked Walz to respond to controversy around how he described his military service that spanned more than two decades in the Army National Guard, but never included combat deployment. Questions arose when Walz said he carried weapons “in war” in a 2018 video where he was speaking about gun violence, according to The Associated Press.

Walz, who also worked as a public school teacher and high school football coach, said he misspoke and that his “grammar is not always correct.”

“I wear my emotions on my sleeve, I speak especially passionately about our children being shot in schools and around guns. So I think people know me. They know who I am. They know where my heart is, and again, my record has been out there for over 40 years to speak for itself,” Walz said.

Bash also asked Walz about his mix-up when describing he and wife’s fertility method; he said it was in vitro fertilization — a topic that has fractured anti-abortion voters — while in reality the couple used artificial insemination.

Walz told Bash, “I certainly own my mistakes when I make them.”

“I spoke about our infertility issues because it’s hell, and families know this. And I spoke about the treatments that were available to us, that had those beautiful children. That’s quite a contrast in folks that are trying to take those rights away from us,” he said.

Just as the interview ended, Trump posted to his Truth Social platform the word “BORING!!!”

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Special Counsel Smith files new indictment in Trump’s Jan. 6 case https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/27/special-counsel-smith-files-new-indictment-in-trumps-jan-6-case/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/27/special-counsel-smith-files-new-indictment-in-trumps-jan-6-case/#respond Tue, 27 Aug 2024 23:24:55 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21265

Special Counsel Jack Smith has filed a new version of the indictment against former President Donald Trump on his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election to take into account a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that granted presidents immunity from prosecution for “official acts” committed while in office. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Adjusting for the U.S. Supreme Court’s sweeping presidential immunity decision last month, U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith on Tuesday filed a fresh federal indictment alleging former President Donald Trump attempted to overturn the 2020 election in his favor.

In a superseding indictment filed in the late afternoon, Smith emphasized the private nature of Trump and his co-conspirators’ alleged conduct and omitted allegations that Trump pressured Department of Justice officials to overturn election results.

The new indictment, which will replace the original August 2023 document, comes after the Supreme Court ruled on July 1 that presidents enjoy criminal immunity for their official “core constitutional” duties while in office, but are not immune for unofficial acts.

The justices returned the case to the federal trial court level following the ruling.

Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan granted Smith’s request for more time to assess how the immunity ruling could impact the election subversion case against Trump. The parties are set to meet in court for a pre-trial hearing on Sept. 5.

In his superseding document, Smith left out a substantial section from the original indictment that detailed Trump’s conversations with former Department of Justice officials about his alleged scheme to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Trump’s pressure campaign on the department allegedly included urging officials to send letters to state election officials falsely claiming investigations into election results, according to the original indictment.

Smith also focuses attention in the superseding indictment to Trump’s lack of a formal role in the states’ certification of election results.

“The defendant had no official responsibilities related to any state’s certification of the election results,” Smith wrote in the revised indictment.

He later added, “The defendant had no official responsibilities related to the convening of legitimate electors or their signing and mailing of their certificates of vote.”

Core to the charges against Trump are his alleged conspiracies with private attorneys and state election officials to produce and deliver false slates of electors to Vice President Mike Pence and Congress for final certification on Jan. 6, 2021. Those states included Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Both the former and superseding indictments allege Trump repeated false claims about election results on his Twitter account leading up to and on Jan. 6, 2021.

However, the fresh indictment states that while Trump “sometimes used his Twitter account to communicate with the public, as President, about official actions and policies, he also regularly used it for personal purposes — including to spread knowingly false claims of election fraud, exhort his supporters to travel to Washington, D.C., on January 6 [and] pressure the Vice President to misuse his ceremonial role in the certification proceeding [.]”

Smith also wrote in the superseding indictment that Trump’s remarks to supporters on Jan. 6, 2021, at the Ellipse — the park between the White House and Washington Monument — amounted to a “campaign speech at a privately-funded, privately-organized political rally held on the Ellipse.”

The felony criminal charges against Trump remain unchanged in the new indictment.

Trump is accused of conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of, and attempt to obstruct, an official proceeding; and conspiracy against rights.

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DOJ looks to revive classified documents case against Trump, argues judge’s dismissal was ‘flawed’ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/27/doj-looks-to-revive-classified-documents-case-against-trump-argues-judges-dismissal-was-flawed/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/27/doj-looks-to-revive-classified-documents-case-against-trump-argues-judges-dismissal-was-flawed/#respond Tue, 27 Aug 2024 16:38:57 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=21239

Special Counsel Jack Smith is looking to reopen a case against former President Donald Trump, filing arguments on Monday, Aug. 26, with a federal appeals court of Judge Aileen Cannon’s decision to dismiss it. Cannon, a Trump appointee, was nominated in 2020 and confirmed by the Senate. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith has asked a federal appeals court to reverse the dismissal of a case alleging former President Donald Trump mishandled classified documents at his Florida home after he left the Oval Office.

The appeals process could take months, likely closing the door on any movement in the classified documents case against Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential nominee, before November’s election.

Smith argued late Monday that U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon’s decision to toss the case was based on a “flawed” argument that Smith was illegally appointed to the office of special counsel.

Over an 81-page brief filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, Smith cited statutes and a Watergate-era Supreme Court decision to argue the time-tested legality of U.S. attorneys general to appoint and fund independent, or special, counsels.

“In ruling otherwise, the district court deviated from binding Supreme Court precedent, misconstrued the statutes that authorized the Special Counsel’s appointment, and took inadequate account of the longstanding history of Attorney General appointments of special counsels,” Smith wrote.

Further, he warned, “[t]he district court’s rationale could jeopardize the longstanding operation of the Justice Department and call into question hundreds of appointments throughout the Executive Branch.”

Cannon, a federal judge for the Southern District of Florida, dismissed the classified documents case against Trump on July 15 — two days after Trump was injured in an attempted assassination in Pennsylvania and just as the Republican National Convention kicked off in Wisconsin.

Cannon is a Trump appointee who was nominated in 2020 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate later that year.

Trump had argued for the case’s dismissal in February.

Days before he was set to officially accept the party’s nomination for president, Trump hailed Cannon’s dismissal as a way to unite the nation following the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Cannon argued Smith’s appointment violated two clauses of the U.S. Constitution that govern how presidential administrations and Congress appoint and approve “Officers of the United States,” and how taxpayer money can be used to pay their salaries and other expenses.

Smith appealed her decision just days later.

Historic classified documents case

Smith’s historic case against Trump marked the first time a former U.S. president faced federal criminal charges.

A grand jury handed up a 37-count indictment in June 2023 charging the former president, along with his aide Walt Nauta, with felonies related to mishandling classified documents after Trump’s term in office, including storing them at his Florida Mar-a-Lago estate. A superseding indictment that added charges and another co-defendant was handed up a little over a month later.

The classified documents case is just one of several legal entanglements for Trump, who became a convicted felon in New York state court in May.

The former president also continues to face federal criminal charges for allegedly conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. That case has also been in a holding pattern for several months as Trump appealed all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that the charges should be dropped based on presidential criminal immunity.

The Supreme Court ruled in early July that the former presidents enjoy immunity for official “core Constitutional” acts and returned the case to the federal trial court in Washington, D.C.

Smith has until the end of August to assess how the immunity decision affects the election subversion case against Trump. A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for Sept. 5.

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Struggle for control of Congress intensifies as presidential contest shifts https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/15/struggle-for-control-of-congress-intensifies-as-presidential-contest-shifts/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/15/struggle-for-control-of-congress-intensifies-as-presidential-contest-shifts/#respond Thu, 15 Aug 2024 09:30:22 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20880

In this year’s battle for control of Congress, Republicans aim to increase their slim majority in the House of Representatives and flip the Senate, while Democrats are hoping to hang onto their majority in the upper chamber and regain control of the House. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — The 2024 battle for control of Congress centers on just a handful of Senate races and about two dozen House seats, putting considerable pressure on those candidates to win over voters as party leaders and super PACs funnel millions of dollars into their campaigns.

The incumbents representing those states and congressional districts will spend nearly all of their time campaigning between now and Election Day, with Congress in session just three weeks ahead of Nov. 5. They’ll be fighting off challengers who will be on the home front the entire time.

Republicans aim to increase their slim majority in the House of Representatives and flip the Senate, while Democrats are hoping to hang onto their majority in the upper chamber and regain control of the House.

Experts interviewed by States Newsroom said the outcome will be determined by multiple factors, including turnout, ticket splitting and the trajectory of the presidential campaign, which underwent an abrupt change with the exit of President Joe Biden and the nomination of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic candidate.

At stake is whether Harris or Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, faces a Congress friendly to their ambitions or another two years of a deeply divided government in the nation’s capital. Biden has struggled with a GOP House and a Senate narrowly controlled by Democrats during the past two years.

“There’s a lot of energy on both sides for these congressional races, because of just how close the margins are going to be in the House and Senate,” said Casey Burgat, assistant professor and legislative affairs program director at George Washington University.

Senate GOP control?

The Senate is trending toward a Republican majority, though that will be determined by voters in Michigan, Montana, Nevada and Ohio, all of which are considered toss-ups by the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, a respected non-partisan publication.

If the GOP picks up any one of those four seats, that would give Republicans at least a 51-seat majority in the chamber after winning the West Virginia seat that’s currently held by Joe Manchin III, thought to be nearly certain in the GOP-dominated state.

Democrats maintaining those four seats as well as three others classified as “lean Democrat” by the Cook Political Report would leave control of a 50-50 Senate to the results of the presidential election, since the vice president casts tie-breaking votes in that chamber.

The Senate map is highly favorable to Republicans, who are defending 11 seats in safely red states, while Democrats are trying to hold on to 23 seats, with seven of those in purple states.

While the entire 435-member House of Representatives is up for reelection every two years, senators are elected to six-year terms, leaving about one-third of the chamber up for reelection in evenly numbered years.

Eyes on Montana

Robert Saldin, professor of political science at the University of Montana, said during an interview that Democratic Sen. Jon Tester will need to get voters in the state who support Trump to split their tickets if Tester is going to secure reelection.

“One of the secrets to Tester’s success over the years is that he has been able to distinguish himself from stereotypes of the national Democratic Party,” Saldin said. “And that’s going to be really important again, obviously, because Trump is on the ticket, and is certainly going to carry the state by a very wide margin.”

Republican challenger Tim Sheehy could potentially have a bit of an easier time getting elected this November in the deeply Republican state, he said.

“All he has to do is get people who are voting for Trump to also vote for him. And in fact, he can probably lose some tens of thousands of voters and still be okay,” Saldin said.

Sheehy, however, is somewhat disadvantaged by not having run in a competitive GOP primary, leaving him to move directly into a high-stakes general election.

“He is a political novice,” Saldin said. “He didn’t have a practice run in the primary. And here he is fresh out of the gate in one of the most expensive, most watched, most hyped Senate elections in the country. And so he’s having to learn as he goes.”

One factor that could benefit Tester over Sheehy is a ballot question addressing abortion access in the state that is likely to go before voters in November, Saldin said.

“That should give at least a little nudge in the direction of the Democrats,” Saldin said.

A dozen other states have approved or could approve abortion ballot questions, including Arizona, Florida, Maryland and Nevada.

In Ohio, edging away from national politics

Paul A. Beck, academy professor of political science at The Ohio State University, said Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown has sought to separate himself from national political figures throughout this reelection bid.

“I think he really wants to make this a local contest, a statewide contest, not a national contest,” Beck said. “And so he’s going to do everything he can to not appear on the stage with the Democratic nominees for president, and everything he can to try to define himself as somebody who is above partisan politics.”

Brown was elected to the House in 1992 before winning election to the Senate in 2006. He secured reelection in 2012 and 2018, though Republican candidate Bernie Moreno is looking to end that streak this year.

Beck said a ballot question about redistricting could help boost turnout, potentially increasing Brown’s chances.

“It’s going to energize voters and is going to produce higher turnout on the left than it will on the right, and that could be a factor in 2024,” Beck said.

Incumbent clout

Sitting members of Congress have historically held an advantage that may help the party that holds more members seeking to return to Capitol Hill for the 119th Congress.

“Reelection rates in the House have never dropped below 85%, and have recently stretched to highs of 98% in 2004 and 97% in 2016,” according to analysis from Miro Hall-Jones at OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan organization that reports on the role of money in U.S. politics. “While the Senate is more susceptible to shifts in public opinion — reelection rates dropped as low as 50% in 1980 at the dawn of the Reagan Revolution — incumbent senators have retained their seats in 88% of races since 1990.”

Every single one of the 28 senators seeking reelection two years ago was able to convince voters in their home states to give them another term, marking the first time that has happened in American history, according to the analysis.

Michigan and Arizona Senate races could then present a bigger challenge for Democrats, since both those seats are open due to the upcoming retirements of Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow and Arizona independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema.

Michigan is currently rated as a toss-up by the Cook Political Report while Arizona is rated as “lean Democrat.”

In the House, the 11 seats held by Republicans and considered by the Cook Political Report to be toss-ups all are held by an incumbent seeking reelection, while two of the Democrats’ 11 toss-up seats are open.

House majority

The contest for who controls the House after November is “razor thin,” said Burgat from George Washington University. With Republicans holding on by a slim margin, Democrats only need a net gain of four seats to capture the majority.

“Whether it goes Democratic or Republican, it’s not going to be by much,” Burgat said.

While Democrats and Republicans will focus much of their attention on the 22 toss-up races, they’ll also be funneling resources toward the campaigns that are rated as only leaning in their direction, as opposed to being likely or solid seats.

The Cook Political Report has eight seats held by GOP lawmakers as leaning in Republicans’ favor while 14 races, all Democratic-held seats except one, are in districts that “lean Democrat.”

That makes a total of about 44 competitive House races, according to the Cook Political Report’s analysis.

Among the closely watched congressional districts:

  • Both parties are eyeing open seats in California, Colorado, Michigan and Virginia.
  • Michigan’s 7th and 8th districts, now held, respectively, by Democrats Elissa Slotkin, who is seeking the state’s open Senate seat, and the retiring Dan Kildee, are rated by the Cook Political Report as toss-ups.
  • Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, being vacated by Democrat Abigail Spanberger, who will focus on a run for governor, is expected to lean blue.
  • California Democratic Rep. Katie Porter’s district also leans towards Democrats. Porter decided to leave the seat for an unsuccessful Senate run.
  • Colorado’s 3rd, abandoned by Republican Lauren Boebert, who shifted to a friendlier district, leans Republican, according to the Cook Political Report.
  • One open seat each in Maryland and New Hampshire is rated as likely Democrat by the prognosticator.

DCCC ads

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is throwing big money where races are competitive, zeroing in on 15 media markets including those in Arizona, Colorado, Michigan, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. The official campaign arm of House Democrats announced a $28 million initial ad buy in June, spending double on digital ads compared to 2022, according to the organization.

The DCCC maintains that House Democrats “have always had multiple paths to reclaim the majority in November — including our 27 Red to Blue candidates in districts across the country working to defeat extreme Republicans who are out-of-touch with their communities,” spokesperson Viet Shelton told States Newsroom in a written statement.

Shelton said voters are “fed up with these politicians who are more interested in obeying Trump, voting for abortion bans, and giving tax breaks to billionaires and big corporations, while ignoring the needs of the middle class.”

The DCCC sees pickup opportunities in the 16 districts Biden won in 2020 that are currently held by Republicans.

Among them are five seats in California, four in New York, two in Arizona, and one each in New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Nebraska also saw incumbent GOP Rep. Don Bacon’s district go to Biden.

The switch to Harris at the top of the Democratic ticket could boost challengers in heavily college-educated districts, according to the Cook Political Report’s latest analysis of the field.

Those include Arizona’s 1st Congressional District held by GOP Rep. David Schweikert, New Jersey’s 7th occupied by freshman Thomas Kean Jr., and New York’s 17th held by Mike Lawler, also in his first term. All are rated as Republican toss-ups by the Cook Political Report.

Frontline candidates

But the DCCC campaign has vulnerable Democratic incumbents to worry about as well. The organization has identified 31 as “frontline” members, meaning their purple districts are what campaigners describe as “in play.”

Among them is 40-year Democrat Marcy Kaptur, who has held Ohio’s 9th Congressional District, in the state’s northwest region, since 1983.

Other vulnerable Democrats include Reps. Yadira Caraveo in Colorado’s 8th, Jared Golden in Maine’s 2nd, Don Davis in North Carolina’s 1st, Gabe Vasquez in New Mexico’s 2nd, Emilia Sykes in Ohio’s 13th, Susan Wild and Matt Cartwright in Pennsylvania’s 7th and 8th districts, and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez in Washington’s 3rd.

The National Republican Congressional Committee did not respond to requests for comment, but the House GOP campaign arm announced in late June a $45.7 million initial ad buy across 29 media markets, with large chunks going to metro areas in Los Angeles; New York City; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Anchorage, Alaska; Denver, Colorado; Detroit, Michigan; Portland, Oregon; and Omaha, Nebraska.

The ad buy — an offensive “to grow our majority,” NRCC Chair Richard Hudson said in a press release — will specifically target 13 districts currently held by Democrats.

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Chair of U.S. Senate tax panel probes GOP megadonor’s travel gifts to Clarence Thomas? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/05/chair-of-u-s-senate-tax-panel-probes-gop-megadonors-travel-gifts-to-clarence-thomas/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/05/chair-of-u-s-senate-tax-panel-probes-gop-megadonors-travel-gifts-to-clarence-thomas/#respond Mon, 05 Aug 2024 21:57:48 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20669

Associate U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas sits with his wife and conservative activist, Virginia Thomas, while he waits to speak at the Heritage Foundation on Oct. 21, 2021. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden urged billionaire GOP donor Harlan Crow’s attorney to provide details Monday on exactly when Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas stepped foot on Crow’s private jet and yacht, and whether the donor deducted the trips on his taxes.

The questions from the Oregon Democrat add to the refrain from President Joe Biden, Democratic lawmakers and ethics watchdogs who for months have been sounding the alarm over conflicts of interest by members of the high court.

Investigative reports have revealed luxury travel, school tuition and property gifted to Thomas or his family members as well as public political statements from justices or their spouses, including an upside-down American flag hoisted outside Justice Samuel Alito’s home after the violent riot at the U.S. Capitol following the 2020 election.

Wyden, chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, sent a letter Monday to Michael Bopp, an attorney for Crow, requesting the records as part of a committee probe into Thomas’ undisclosed luxury travel gifted by the conservative donor, including a 2010 roundtrip flight for Thomas and his wife from Hawaii to New Zealand, and a separate trip to Russia.

“The possibility that Mr. Crow may have lavished secret gifts on a sitting Supreme Court justice and then impermissibly reduced his taxable income by millions of dollars with impunity requires legislative scrutiny,” Wyden wrote.

The Senate Finance Committee has jurisdiction over tax policy.

‘A tax scheme’

Citing an investigative ProPublica report and previous correspondence from Bopp about Crow’s yacht usage, Wyden questioned why the entity that owned Crow’s yacht, the Michaela Rose, was previously organized as an S corporation and reported “sustained losses and lack of profits over the course of a decade.”

Wyden wrote the situation “has all the markings of a tax scheme to write off the cost of operating and maintaining a pleasure yacht used entirely for the Crow family’s enjoyment.”

“I seek to understand the means and scale of Mr. Crow’s undisclosed largesse to Justice Thomas to inform several pieces of legislation that the Committee is drafting,” Wyden wrote, adding that changes to the tax code and audit requirements for Supreme Court justices are on his legislative list.

A representative for Crow told States Newsroom in an emailed statement Monday that Crow’s attorneys have already addressed Wyden’s inquiries “which have no legal basis and are only intended to harass a private citizen.”

“Congress has no role in tax enforcement. Mr. Crow and his businesses are in good standing with the IRS. He has always followed applicable tax law as advised by national accounting firms who serve as his tax advisors. It’s concerning that Senator Wyden is abusing his committee’s powers as part of a politically motivated campaign against the Supreme Court,” the spokesperson wrote.

ProPublica first reported on Thomas’ longtime friendship with Crow in April 2023. Crow, a real estate developer, had not had any direct involvement with any Supreme Court cases since Thomas joined, though the court occasionally takes cases that could affect the broader real estate industry.

There is no enforceable standard to demand justices recuse themselves from cases in which they may have a conflict of interest.

Calls for Supreme Court ethics overhaul

Wyden’s is not the only voice scrutinizing Thomas’s acceptance of gifts from a well-known political donor.

Biden urged Congress in late July to “restore faith” in the court by passing an enforceable ethics code and term limits for the Supreme Court justices. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana has said any legislation to that effect is “dead on arrival” in the Republican-led House.

Efforts in the Democrat-led U.S. Senate to pass ethics legislation have been stalled for over a year. A bill sponsored by Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse advanced out of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary along party lines in July 2023 but has not reached the chamber floor.

In November 2023, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to subpoena Crow and conservative operative Leonard Leo for information related to luxury travel gifted to Thomas and Alito.

In June, the Judiciary Committee revealed information provided by Crow that listed undisclosed travel by Thomas, including three domestic private jet flights as well as more details on a recently disclosed 2019 yacht trip to Indonesia.

Crow’s representative said Crow “was glad to reach an agreement with the Senate Judiciary Committee — the committee with jurisdiction over the judicial branch — to end its inquiry as part of an agreement that provided responsive information.”

According to an analysis of Supreme Court gift disclosures, the advocacy group Fix the Court reported that Thomas received gifts and travel totaling well over $4 million between 2004 and 2023.

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U.S. Senate fails to advance expanded child tax credit, despite broad House support https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/01/u-s-senate-fails-to-advance-expanded-child-tax-credit-despite-broad-house-support/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/08/01/u-s-senate-fails-to-advance-expanded-child-tax-credit-despite-broad-house-support/#respond Thu, 01 Aug 2024 20:56:18 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20531

hildren from the KU Kids Deanwood Childcare Center complete a mural celebrating the launch of the Child Tax Credit on July 14, 2021 at the KU Kids Deanwood Childcare Center in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Community Change)

WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans and two independents blocked a bipartisan tax package Thursday that would have temporarily expanded the child tax credit and revived tax breaks for some business activities.

The 48-44 procedural vote to advance the package was largely viewed as a messaging exercise by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer ahead of the August recess and continued ramp up to the general election in November, when the presidency and control of Congress are on the line.

The vote on the tax bill was the Senate’s last until it returns in September. The House left for August recess a full week ahead of the Senate.

During a post-vote press conference, Schumer said, “American families lost.”

“Today, Senate Republicans boldly told the American people we refuse to help you in 2024, and we want to be frank, Republicans voted no because of partisanship, not policy,” the New York Democrat said.

Not all Senate Republicans voted against the bill. Those who voted yes included: Sens. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma, Josh Hawley of Missouri and Rick Scott of Florida.

Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Joe Manchin III of West Virginia, independents who generally caucus with the Democrats, voted no.

Also voting no were both Kentuckians in the Senate, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Sen. Rand Paul, both Republicans.

Schumer switched his vote from yes to no as a way to enter a motion to reconsider, a routine maneuver.

Eight senators did not vote Thursday, including Democrat John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, and Republicans Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, John Hoeven of North Dakota, Mitt Romney of Utah, Tim Scott of South Carolina, Mark Warner of Virginia, and Republican vice presidential candidate and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance. Convicted felon and soon-to-be former Democrat Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey also did not vote.

‘Show vote,’ Republicans say

A large swath of Senate Republicans, including their top tax writer, Mike Crapo of Idaho, the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Finance, has remained opposed to the legislation, which needed 60 votes to advance in the closely divided upper chamber.

Crapo panned the cloture vote on the floor ahead of time as a “doomed-to-fail show vote” that is “focused on election year messaging.”

“If the Democrats are serious about helping these working families, I’m ready to push for an extension of those changes beyond 2025. I’ve maintained a willingness to negotiate a bill that provides meaningful relief to Americans now,” Crapo said.

Taxation has risen on the list of campaign issues as the Trump-era tax law is set to expire at the end of 2025, teeing up a major debate for the next administration and Congress.

“I offered to make changes,” Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat and chair of the Senate Finance Committee, said on the floor ahead of the vote. “I met with a significant number of Senate Republicans personally.”

“This is a thoroughly bipartisan bill — 357 votes in the House of Representatives. Every Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee voted for this bill.”

Child tax credit and the campaigns

In a recent interview with news personality Megyn Kelly, Vance accused the likely Democratic presidential nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, of being opposed to the child tax credit, a statement that has been debunked.

Democrats, including Harris, are on the record advocating for a permanent expanded child tax credit similar to the pandemic-era version — a poverty reducer, according to census data — that eliminated the income requirement, raised the amount per child and provided the refund in monthly installments.

The Democratic Party immediately pounced on the absence of Vance from Thursday’s vote.

“When the American people vote in November, they’ll remember that when Vance had a chance to show up for working families, he was nowhere to be found,” Democratic National Committee spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement after the vote.

Temporary tax cuts for families, businesses

The bicameral, bipartisan package brokered by Wyden and Missouri’s Rep. Jason Smith, chair of the GOP-led House Committee on Ways and Means, received overwhelming approval in the House in January in a? 357-70 vote.

The lawmakers hailed their formula to pay for the bill by clawing back a fraud-ridden pandemic tax break. However, the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget warned that the policies “would add significantly to the already massive federal debt” if extended beyond their 2025 expiration dates.

The legislation would have increased the current $2,000 child tax credit through 2025 by adjusting it for inflation to $2,100 and raising the refundability limit — the actual amount families could see in their tax refunds — to $1,800 for tax year 2023, $1,900 for 2024 and $2,000 for 2025, up from the current $1,600 cap.

Additionally the bill includes a provision that would allow families to claim a previous year’s income, if higher than the current year, when calculating the tax credit — a measure that drew fierce opposition from Senate Republicans who likened it to welfare.

The bill also would have temporarily restored business’ ability to fully expense domestic research and development as well as immediately deducting 100% of equipment purchases and other investments the same year of the transaction? — both incentives under the 2017 Trump tax law that have phased out or are phasing out incrementally.

Business owners, CEOs and a union official urged the Senate Finance Committee in March to move forward on the bill.

Also included in the legislation: increasing the amount of low-income housing tax credits, relieving double taxation for residents of Taiwan, and tax exemption for relief payments to victims of the massive 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio — though the IRS largely took care of this in June.

Supporters of the legislation range from the Business Roundtable, which represents American CEOs, to the Economic Security Project, an organization that advocates for increased tax credits and guaranteed basic income initiatives.

Anna Aurilio, senior campaign director for Economic Security Project Action, said in a statement following the vote that Republican senators were “selfishly picking politics over parents and brazenly disregarding this important opportunity to help families succeed right now.”

“The expanded Child Tax Credit was a critical tool for millions of parents who were struggling to afford the necessities and should be made permanent in the 2025 tax reform fight,” Aurilio said.

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In rare bipartisan vote, U.S. Senate passes package aimed at protecting kids online https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/30/in-rare-bipartisan-vote-u-s-senate-passes-package-aimed-at-protecting-kids-online/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/30/in-rare-bipartisan-vote-u-s-senate-passes-package-aimed-at-protecting-kids-online/#respond Tue, 30 Jul 2024 20:21:53 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20405

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., speaks during a news conference on the Kids Online Safety Act at the U.S. Capitol on July 25, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

This story mentions suicide. If you or a loved one are experiencing a mental health crisis or thoughts of suicide, please dial 988 or chat with a live counselor at 988lifeline.org.

WASHINGTON — Legislation aimed at protecting children online sailed through the U.S. Senate Tuesday, marking what could be the first update since the late 1990s for companies who interact with minors on the internet.

Senators approved the package of two bills in a 91-3 vote, a rare bipartisan landslide in the tightly divided body, despite loud and fervent opposition from civil liberties and LGBTQ organizations that say the measures would hand the government power to subjectively censor content.

The three no votes were cast by Mike Lee of Utah, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ron Wyden of Oregon.

If passed by the House, the legislative package would require producers of platforms popular among children and teens to follow new rules governing advertising, algorithms and collection of personal data.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has expressed interest in “working to find consensus in the House.”

President Joe Biden released a statement Tuesday calling the Senate vote a “crucial bipartisan step forward” and said the bill dovetails with measures he advocated for in his first State of the Union Address.

“There is undeniable evidence that social media and other online platforms contribute to our youth mental health crisis. Today our children are subjected to a wild west online and our current laws and regulations are insufficient to prevent this. It is past time to act,” Biden said, adding that tech companies need to be “accountable for the national experiment they are running on our children for profit.”

Families asked for federal help

The package contains two bills moving together: the Children and Teens Online Privacy Protection Act, which is mainly targeted at regulating the collection of personal data, and the Kids Online Safety Act, a bill that has been a lightning rod of criticism from outside groups.

A bipartisan group of senators points to years of hearings and meetings with tragedy-struck families — including those whose children struggled with eating disorders and died by suicide — as the motivation behind the proposals.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, of Tennessee, one of the Kids Online Safety Act’s original sponsors, said the legislation is a “safety by design bill, a duty of care bill that gives kids and parents a toolbox so that they can protect themselves.”

“A message that we’re sending to big tech: kids are not your product, kids are not your profit source, and we are going to protect them in the virtual space,” Blackburn, a Republican, said at a press conference following the vote.

Blackburn co-led the bill dubbed the Kids Online Safety Act with Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut.

Sen. Ed Markey, who championed the last protections passed by Congress in late 1990s, said “back in 1998 only birds tweeted, a gram was a measurement of weight, and so we need to update the law.”

The Massachusetts Democrat joined Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana in co-sponsoring the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act.

Markey likened addictive social media products to those of the tobacco industry in previous decades, and cited public health warnings attributing increasing childhood mental health issues to the platforms.

“So we have to give the tools to parents and to teenagers and children to be able to protect themselves, and that would be my message to my colleagues in the House. We cannot avoid this historic moment,” Markey said at the press conference.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer praised the legislation’s passage in the Senate and said the parents of affected teens are “the reason we succeeded today.”

“I’ve heard the terrible stories: children, teenagers, perfectly normal, then some algorithm captures them online by accident, and they end up committing suicide shortly thereafter,” the New York Democrat said in a statement. “You imagine being a parent and living with that.”

New rules for platforms

The original two bills, rolled into one legislative vehicle, respectively outline “duty of care” rules requiring platform creators to consider broad mental health categories when designing and operating their products as well as a prohibition of the use of personal data for targeted marketing.

The legislation would also mandate that platforms create an “easy-to-understand privacy dashboard” detailing how a minor’s personal information is collected, used and protected.

Other measures would include a prohibition on hidden algorithms, mechanisms for minors or parents to remove data, parental controls to restrict financial transactions and annual public reports from the platforms on “reasonably foreseeable” harms to children and teens and efforts underway to prevent them.

Enforcement

The new policies, if enacted, would be enforced by the Federal Trade Commission and any civil actions would be prosecuted by states in U.S. district court with advance notice to the FTC.

The legislation defines the online platforms as public-facing websites, social media applications, video games, messaging applications or video streaming services that are “used, or reasonably likely to be used, by a minor.”

Snap, the company behind the popular platform Snapchat, issued a statement specifically praising the Senate’s passage of the Kids Online Safety Act.

“The safety and well-being of young people on Snapchat is a top priority,” a Snap spokesperson said in a statement provided to States Newsroom. “That’s why Snap has been a long-time supporter of the Kids Online Safety Act. We applaud Senators Blackburn, Blumenthal and the roughly 70 other co-sponsors of this critical legislation for their leadership and commitment to the privacy and safety of young people.”

Opponents see ‘dangerous’ measure

A coalition of organizations advocating for First Amendment rights, privacy and the interests of LGBTQ minors urged the House to vote no on the legislation, criticizing it as “blatantly unconstitutional.”

Evan Greer, director of the tech policy group Fight For the Future, also lambasted the bill as “dangerous and misguided” and “wildly broad.”

The coalition largely takes issue with the Kids Online Safety Act’s “duty of care” provision that requires companies to “prevent and mitigate” harms associated with anxiety, depression, eating disorders, substance use disorders and suicidal behaviors.

During a joint virtual press conference hosted by the groups during the Senate vote, Greer described the provision as “a blank check for censorship of any piece of content that an administration could claim is harmful to kids.”

“What that means in practice, is that for example, a Trump administration FTC would get to dictate what types of content platforms can recommend or even show to younger users,” Greer said, referring to Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump.

Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union, said the Kids Online Safety Act is “nothing more than a thinly veiled effort to censor information that some consider objectionable”

“If enacted, KOSA could lead to information about health care, gender, identity, politics and more being removed from social media. And kids note that censorship will make them less and not more safe,” Leventoff said. “As one student recently told me, they don’t get sex education in school, and if information about sex is removed from the internet because platforms fear liability for hosting it, how else can they learn about sex?”

Teens in opposition

The ACLU brought roughly 300 teens to Capitol Hill Thursday to lobby against the legislation.

Dara Adkinson, of the organization TransOhio, said the legislation is “truly terrifying.”

Adkinson questioned whether state and federal authorities could argue that content about climate change or the nation’s history of slavery causes anxiety and should therefore be regulated.

Regarding content about transgender youth, Adkinson said: “We know there (are) people out there that would like us to not exist and having the lack of visibility of the kinds of resources found on the internet is the first step for many of these folks.”

Greer said the coalition is concerned about the role of “big tech” in society. Advocates would support a “heavily modified” version of the Kids Online Safety Act that focuses on regulating business practices, including targeted advertising or videos that automatically play and encourage continuous, addictive scrolling habits.

Greer said their organization is neutral on the legislation targeted at protecting children’s privacy, but that they would like to see comprehensive legislation that protects minors and adults alike.

“Censorship and privacy do not go together, and these should not be moving together,” Greer said.

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VP Harris meets with Netanyahu to discuss Israel-Hamas war in Gaza https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/25/vp-harris-meets-with-netanyahu-to-discuss-israel-hamas-war-in-gaza/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/25/vp-harris-meets-with-netanyahu-to-discuss-israel-hamas-war-in-gaza/#respond Thu, 25 Jul 2024 23:57:06 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20341

Vice President Kamala Harris and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands before the start of a meeting in the Vice President’s ceremonial office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on July 25, 2024 in Washington, DC. Netanyahu’s visit occurs as the Israel-Hamas war reaches nearly 10 months. In addition to meeting with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, Netanyahu also met with President Joe BIden and families of American Hostages held by Hamas. (Photo by Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty Images

WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris, the likely Democratic nominee for president, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday afternoon, a day after he vowed to Congress that he wants “total victory” in the deadly Gaza war.

Harris said she and Netanyahu had a “constructive” meeting and that she expressed to the prime minister “serious concern about the scale of human suffering in Gaza.” Harris also said she stands by a two-state solution for the region as the “only path” to peace.

“I’ve said it many times, but it bears repeating: Israel has a right to defend itself, and how it does so matters,” Harris said during remarks from the White House following the meeting.

“What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating. The images of dead children and desperate hungry people fleeing for safety, sometimes displaced for the second, third or fourth time. We cannot look away in the face of these tragedies. We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the suffering, and I will not be silent,” she said.

Harris said there has been “hopeful movement” for a cease-fire deal that includes the release of all hostages and a phased withdrawal of the Israeli military.

“And as I just told Prime Minister Netanyahu it is time to get this deal done,” she said.

Pressure on Harris over Gaza

Harris, now vying for president after President Joe Biden exited the race Sunday, will inevitably face demands and questions from voters, including reliably Democratic young and progressive blocs, who want to see an immediate and permanent cease-fire, and the release of all hostages.

Cease-fire negotiations have been stop-and-start for months, including on a Biden-backed proposal announced in May.

The death toll in the Gaza Strip has surpassed 39,000 since Israel’s offensive began nearly 10 months ago, according to Gaza health officials in the Hamas-controlled Palestinian territory.

Netanyahu told lawmakers during a joint meeting of Congress in the U.S. House chamber Wednesday that he will accept “nothing less” than total defeat over Hamas, the militant group that invaded Israel on Oct. 7, killing more than 1,100 and taking upwards of 200 hostages.

“The day after we defeat Hamas, a new Gaza could emerge,” Netanyahu said. “My vision for that day is of a demilitarized and deradicalized Gaza. Israel does not seek to resettle Gaza. But for the foreseeable future, we must retain overriding security control there to prevent the resurgence of terror, to ensure that Gaza never again poses a threat to Israel.”

Israel’s parliament voted overwhelmingly on July 18 to disapprove of the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, bucking Biden’s longstanding advocacy for a two-state solution in the region.

Netanyahu’s meeting with Harris followed his afternoon meeting with Biden separately, and both then met with the families of hostages still held captive by Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Harris appeals to protesters

Seemingly in reference to the uprising of protests across the U.S. over the Gaza war, Harris asked Americans to “encourage efforts to acknowledge the complexity, the nuance, and the history of the region.”

Netanyahu’s trip to Washington attracted thousands of protesters to areas surrounding Capitol Hill who demanded the U.S. stop providing aid and weapons to Israel.

Following Netanyahu’s near hour-long address to lawmakers, demonstrators amassed outside the city’s Union Station, where they burned American flags and graffitied the words “Hamas is coming” among other messages on a statue and fountain dedicated to Christopher Columbus, according to numerous media reports.

Harris issued a statement Thursday morning condemning the “despicable” events outside Union Station, just under a half-mile from the Capitol.

“I condemn any individuals associating with the brutal terrorist organization Hamas, which has vowed to annihilate the State of Israel and kill Jews. Pro-Hamas graffiti and rhetoric is abhorrent and we must not tolerate it in our nation,” Harris said.

“I condemn the burning of the American flag,” Harris said in the statement issued by the Office of the Vice President. Harris continued that she supports the right to peacefully protest, “but let’s be clear: Antisemitism, hate and violence of any kind have no place in our nation.”

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Protection of kids on social media platforms advances in U.S. Senate https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/25/protection-of-kids-on-social-media-platforms-advances-in-u-s-senate/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/25/protection-of-kids-on-social-media-platforms-advances-in-u-s-senate/#respond Thu, 25 Jul 2024 21:28:06 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20334

The U.S. Senate voted 86-1 Thursday to move ahead with the Kids Online Safety Act and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act. Both were rolled into one legislative vehicle. (Photo by Mayur Kakade/Getty Images)

This story mentions suicide. If you or a loved one are experiencing a mental health crisis or thoughts of suicide, please dial 988 or chat with a live counselor at 988lifeline.org.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate advanced online safety legislation Thursday aimed at protecting children from targeted advertising, data harvesting, bullying and sexual exploitation on popular social media platforms.

But the rare bipartisan effort by Senate lawmakers did not escape criticism from advocates who warn the legislative package would curtail free speech online.

The body voted 86-1 on a procedural vote to move ahead with the Kids Online Safety Act and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act. Both were rolled into one legislative vehicle.

Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky was the sole no vote.

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer praised the “ground-breaking step” just before the vote began.

The bill arrived on the chamber floor with the support of nearly 70 co-sponsors, well beyond the 60 votes needed for the procedural vote.

The New York Democrat thanked parents sitting in the Senate gallery to watch the vote — including those who lost children to suicide after cyberbullying — calling them the “true heroes of this effort.”

“We met together, we’ve felt pain together, we’ve cried together. What they have endured is incomprehensible,” Schumer said. “Today the Senate tells these parents: ‘We hear you, we’re taking action.’”

Schumer said the proposal will now be on a “glide path” for final passage next week before the chamber heads into August recess.

Updates from 1990s

The proposal, in part, updates a 1998 law meant to protect children under 13 on the internet.

The Kids Online Safety Act, co-sponsored by Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, would require social media platforms to take “reasonable measures” to mitigate harm when designing products and would also tighten age verification tools.

The bill mandates companies take into consideration “evidence-informed medical information” on mental health disorders including anxiety, depression, eating disorders, substance use disorders, and suicidal behaviors.

The bill would also prohibit hidden “black box algorithms,” as Blumenthal put it, that are used to target content to minors.

If enacted, the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, and Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, would prohibit social media companies from collecting minors’ personal data for the purpose of targeted marketing.

The legislation would require companies to provide a mechanism for removal of children and teens’ personal information from the platforms.

Lawmakers on the Senate Committee on Commerce favorably passed both bills, separately, out of committee in December.

After likely passage next week in the Senate, the legislation will then head to the House, which just began its six-week summer recess.

“I am looking forward to reviewing the details of the legislation that comes out of the Senate,” House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana said in a statement provided by his office. “Parents should have greater control and the necessary tools to protect their kids online. I am committed to working to find consensus in the House.”

The internet ‘not designed with kids in mind’

Sustained support from health advocacy groups and concerned parents bolstered the long process for the bills to finally reach the Senate floor.

The American Academy of Pediatrics issued a series of videos featuring pediatricians explaining why they want to see lawmakers approve the online protections.

“The internet was not designed with kids in mind — and every day, pediatricians see the impacts of social media in their offices. That’s why they are making their voices heard,” according to the academy’s advocacy materials.

The organization has long advocated for safeguarding children and adolescents from addictive social media platforms and targeted digital advertising.

Opposition from ACLU

The legislation faces continued opposition from various advocacy groups across the political spectrum, including the American Civil Liberties Union, which planned to lobby on Capitol Hill with hundreds of teens Thursday against the Kids Online Safety Act.

“At its core, KOSA is an internet censorship bill that would harm the very communities it claims to protect,” Jenna Leventoff, the ACLU’s senior policy counsel, said in a statement Wednesday.

“The First Amendment guarantees everyone, including children, the right to access information free from censorship. We urge lawmakers to protect young people by listening to their concerns and voting no on the bill that could be used to silence them,” Levenoff said.

Paul, the no vote, described the legislation Thursday as “vague,” “bizarre” and a “Pandora’s box of unintended consequences.”

“While proponents of the bill claim that the bill is not designed to regulate content, imposing a duty of care on the internet platforms associated with mental health can only lead to one outcome, the stifling of First Amendment protected speech,” Paul said on the Senate floor Thursday specifically about the Kids Online Safety Act.

Paul criticized the legislation’s mandate for a Kid Online Safety Council housed within the Federal Trade Commission, dubbing the potential body as “the speech police.”

Blumenthal, Blackburn, Markey and Cassidy rebuked Paul on the Senate floor after he delivered his comments and offered an amendment to weaken the legislation.

Cassidy called the bills “bipartisan no-brainers.”

Blackburn rebutted Paul, saying the legislation was “years in the making.”

“We have worked tirelessly over three years to get this bill in shape,” she said.

“Without real and enforceable reforms,” Blackburn said, “social media companies will only continue to pay lip service to the issue of protecting children while putting profits over their safety.”

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In Capitol address, Israeli leader calls for U.S. backing to defeat Hamas https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/24/in-capitol-address-israeli-leader-calls-for-u-s-backing-to-defeat-hamas/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/24/in-capitol-address-israeli-leader-calls-for-u-s-backing-to-defeat-hamas/#respond Wed, 24 Jul 2024 22:59:43 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20287

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress in the chamber of the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol on July 24, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Netanyahu’s visit occurs as the Israel-Hamas war reaches nearly ten months. A handful of Senate and House Democrats boycotted the remarks over Israel’s war on Hamas. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised victory over Hamas militants and said he knows “America has our back” during a joint meeting of Congress Wednesday that drew thousands of protesters and sparked a boycott from some Democrats who oppose the Israeli government’s monthslong offensive in Gaza.

“Our enemies are your enemies, our fight is your fight, and our victory will be your victory,” Netanyahu told lawmakers. “Ladies and gentlemen, that victory is in sight.”

The Israeli leader visited Washington as his military’s airstrikes in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis added dozens of deaths to a mounting toll of 39,000, according to Gaza health authorities in the Hamas-controlled territory.

Additionally, news on Monday of the deaths of two captives held by Hamas charged the already roaring calls for their release.

Israel’s offensive, approaching its tenth month, has been ongoing since Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on Oct. 7, 2023, terrorizing music festival attendees and numerous communal settlements. In one day, the militants killed more than 1,100 and escaped with upwards of 200 hostages.

Netanyahu recounted the “sheer evil” during his nearly one-hour speech to lawmakers Wednesday and thanked President Joe Biden for standing with Israel “during our darkest hour that will never be forgotten.”

“This is not a clash of civilizations. It’s a clash between barbarism and civilization,” Netanyahu said. “It’s a clash between those who glorify death and those who sanctify life. For the forces of civilization to triumph, America and Israel must stand together.”

He introduced a rescued hostage sitting beside his wife, Sara, in the House chamber’s gallery and told families of American hostages in attendance that he will “not rest until all their loved ones are home.” Netanyahu also asked a handful of Israeli service members to rise from where they were seated behind lawmakers on the Republican side of the House floor.

GOP lawmakers briefly chanted “USA” after Netanyahu decried Iran’s threats to Israel and warned that Iran’s “real war is with America.”

“Yet at the heart of the Middle East, standing in Iran’s way, is one proud democracy, my country, the state of Israel,” Netanyahu said.

Partisan cracks

Applause was not unanimous throughout the lengthy speech.

When Netanyahu sharply criticized anti-Israel protesters who “stand with Hamas” and “should be ashamed of themselves,” many Democratic lawmakers remained seated, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the body’s highest-ranking Jewish member.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan raised a small sign that read “Guilty of genocide” as Netanyahu called the International Criminal Court’s accusations against him “utter, complete nonsense.”

Netanyahu defended his country’s treatment of Palestinians.

He rejected the position of the ICC, which issued arrest warrant applications in May for both Hamas and Israeli government officials, including Netanyahu.

The ICC “shamefully accused Israel of starving the people of Gaza” and deliberately targeting civilians, he said.

Netanyahu accused Hamas of stealing the half-million tons of food his country has sent into Gaza.

The Israeli military has “dropped millions of flyers, sent millions of text messages” to warn civilians prior to airstrikes, but Netanyahu said Hamas militants use their civilians as human shields.

“For Hamas, it’s a strategy,” Netanyahu said. “They actually want Palestinian civilians to die so that Israel will be smeared in the international media.”

Prior to Netanyahu’s speech, House Speaker Mike Johnson said Israel is a victim of an “information wars.”

The Louisiana Republican shook hands with the prime minister and his wife against the backdrop of American and Israeli flags upon their arrival just after 1 p.m.

“The threats Israel faces are not only kinetic. Jerusalem is also combatting lawfare and information wars and double standards from the U.N. and the media,” Johnson said.

Harris campaigns during Netanyahu visit

Vice President Kamala Harris addressed thousands of Zeta Phi Beta sorority members on Wednesday in Indianapolis. (Whitney Downard/Indiana Capital Chronicle)

Vice President Kamala Harris did not preside over Netanyahu’s joint address, as is tradition for the officeholder who is also the president of the U.S. Senate.

Rather, the likely Democratic presidential nominee departed Washington Wednesday morning for three campaign stops in Indianapolis, followed by travel to Houston.

Harris’s office did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.

Both Biden and Harris are expected to meet Netanyahu separately on Thursday, followed by a joint meeting with the families of American hostages still held by Hamas.

“The leaders will discuss developments in Gaza and progress towards a ceasefire and hostage release deal and the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s security, including countering Iran’s threats to Israel and the broader region,” according to a statement released Wednesday by White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

The Republican National Committee pounced on Harris’s absence in a statement, calling it “disgraceful snub” and accusing the vice president of being “weak” on Israel.

The Senate’s president pro tempore, Patty Murray of Washington, also did not preside, citing opposition to the war in a statement reported in the Spokesman-Review, a Spokane newspaper.

Instead, Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, took the seat behind Netanyahu.

“The United States relationship with the State of Israel transcends politics and partisanship, and it transcends any one Israeli government or any one U.S. administration. Its foundation is cemented in the ties between our people,” Cardin said in a statement.

Schumer said he attended Netanyahu’s address because the leader’s visit presented the latest opportunity to draw attention to hostages, including some of his New York constituents, who remain in Hamas captivity.

“Even though I disagree with many of Bibi Netanyahu’s policies, I will attend the speech because the United States’ relationship with Israel remains ironclad and transcends any prime minister or president. And we must do all we can to get our hostages home,” Schumer said on the Senate floor Wednesday morning.

Schumer, a Democrat, delivered sharp criticism of Netanyahu on the Senate floor in March when he called for a complete overhaul of Israeli and Palestinian Authority leadership. Schumer said on March 14 that Netanyahu had “lost his way” and proposed the country hold new elections.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell met with Netanyahu Wednesday and affirmed the U.S. commitment to the Middle East nation.

“The American people can take pride in the resilience of our friends fighting Iran-backed terror. But Israel’s fight is America’s fight, too. Like our friends on the front lines of Russian and Chinese aggression, Israel’s defiance of the world’s most active state sponsor of terror deserves America’s utmost support,” McConnell said in a statement.

Democrats boycott?

Dozens of Democratic lawmakers boycotted Netanyahu’s address to protest the tens of thousands of civilian deaths in the Gaza Strip and the continued delay of a cease-fire agreement while hostages taken on Oct. 7 remain in Hamas captivity.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Netanyahu’s speech “was by far the worst presentation of any foreign dignitary invited and honored with the privilege of addressing the Congress of the United States.”

“Many of us who love Israel spent time today listening to Israeli citizens whose families have suffered in the wake of the October 7th Hamas terror attack and kidnappings. These families are asking for a ceasefire deal that will bring the hostages home – and we hope the Prime Minister would spend his time achieving that goal,” she wrote on social media following the prime minister’s visit.

Rep. Mark Pocan, a Wisconsin Democrat, called Congress’s invitation to Netanyahu “wildly inappropriate” because the Israeli leader “has violated international human rights law so severely that an arrest warrant for war crimes has been recommended by the International Criminal Court.”

“I regret that one has not been issued yet, as I would have gladly served it to him on the House floor,” Pocan said in a statement Wednesday.

Rep. Summer Lee of Pennsylvania said on the House floor that Israel has “decimated” the Gaza Strip using U.S.-provided weapons.

“When Putin commits war crimes, we condemn him. When Netanyahu commits war crimes, we give him excuses and bombs,” the freshman Democrat said, referring to U.S. support of Ukraine as Russian President Vladimir Putin continues his attack on the neighboring country.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top House Democratic appropriator, did not attend the speech, citing anger that “Republicans have used this address to score political points and stoke division.”

“And I am shocked by the ongoing Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip, spearheaded by Prime Minister Netanyahu, that has been indifferent to the loss of Palestinian lives and settler violence. For these reasons, I will not attend the joint address,” the Connecticut Democrat said in a statement.

DeLauro joined Democrats Jim Clyburn of South Carolina and Jamie Raskin of Maryland to meet with hostages’ families earlier in the day.

Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky was the rare Republican absence during Netanyahu’s address, dismissing it as “political theater on behalf of the State Department.”

“The purpose of having Netanyahu address Congress is to bolster his political standing in Israel and to quell (international) opposition to his war,” Massie wrote on social media.

Protests

U.S. Capitol Police said they deployed pepper spray on protesters marching toward the Capitol just before 2 p.m., when Netanyahu’s speech got underway.

Inside the Capitol, police reported arresting six people in the House gallery for “unlawful conduct” during the Israeli leader’s address.

Later, demonstrators marched on Washington’s Union Station and raised Palestinian flags that Washington Metropolitan Police eventually removed, according to local reports. It was unclear how many protesters were arrested.

Thousands demonstrated on the National Mall and surrounding avenues leading to the Capitol beginning early Wednesday. Numerous coalitions of advocacy groups converged on Washington carrying signs that read “Free Palestine” and attempting to burn an effigy of Netanyahu, according to reporters who were present.

The A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition — short for Act Now to Stop War and End Racism — held court before a large crowd on Pennsylvania Avenue for nearly three hours of rotating speakers including actress Susan Sarandon.

A sit-in Tuesday night in the Cannon House Office Building ended with roughly 200 arrests, according to Capitol law enforcement.

Tall, black security fencing surrounded the Capitol complex, and U.S. Capitol Police increased its presence along with federal law enforcement and other partners.

Netanyahu’s visit came almost exactly one year after Israeli President Isaac Herzog addressed a joint meeting of Congress to mark the 75th anniversary of Israel’s independence. At the time of Herzog’s visit, Netanyahu was facing massive protests in his own country for a law that would shift the judiciary in his favor.

Negotiations over a U.S. and internationally-backed cease-fire proposal are limping along in Cairo as parties struggle to finalize a path forward for the Palestinian territories following the war, according to numerous reports. Israel’s parliament last week rejected the establishment of a Palestinian state, rejecting the Biden administration’s advocacy for a two-state solution.

Netanyahu met separately Tuesday with several families of hostages and evangelical Christian leaders in Washington, according to a statements released by his office.

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump said on his online platform Truth Social that he will welcome Netanyahu to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Friday.

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State police warned Secret Service about Trump shooter, Pennsylvania chief says https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/24/state-police-warned-secret-service-about-trump-shooter-pennsylvania-chief-says/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/24/state-police-warned-secret-service-about-trump-shooter-pennsylvania-chief-says/#respond Wed, 24 Jul 2024 12:44:01 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20267

Pennsylvania state police officers stand near the stage of a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Pennsylvania’s top police officer faced questions Tuesday from lawmakers who wanted details on how the U.S. Secret Service and state and local law enforcement communicated when a gunman attempted to assassinate former President Donald Trump, killed one rallygoer and injured two others in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Lawmakers were aghast to learn state police relayed information to the U.S. Secret Service of a suspicious man with a range finder roughly 20 to 25 minutes prior to the July 13 shooting, and that a photo of him was texted to a phone number provided by the federal agency.

The hours-long hearing before the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security occurred as lawmakers continued to probe how an agency tasked with protecting the nation’s current and former leaders could allow a 20-year-old wielding a rifle to reach a rooftop in such close proximity to Trump.

The committee’s hearing was still ongoing when Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned Tuesday following days of outrage about the agency’s failure to stop the gunman before he fired several rounds and injured the former president’s right ear. The shots were fired just as Trump turned his head.

Pennsylvania State Police Commissioner Col. Christopher Paris testified that in the lead up to Trump taking the stage in Butler, authorities were responding to several simultaneous incidents — heat-related illnesses among attendees, a missing 6-year-old — and they also had eyes on four suspicious individuals, including Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, who was later killed by a Secret Service counter sniper and identified as the shooter.

Paris said that he could not speak to the minute-by-minute timeline of events but told lawmakers that two Butler County Emergency Services Unit officers assigned to monitor the area, including the rooftop, left their post to locate the man who had been spotted with a range finder.

Alert sent

Pennsylvania state police sent an alert and photo of the man to the Secret Service via a phone number the federal agency provided to state authorities, Paris said.

Committee Chair Mark Green, a Tennessee Republican, said he was “totally blown away” that federal law enforcement did not heed the warning and pause the event.

“I find it interesting that this guy is so suspicious, has a range finder, they leave their post that they are manning to go look for him, yet Secret Service, they get told about it 20 to 25 minutes beforehand, but (they) still let the president go on stage,” Green said. “But again, there’s more details to be had.”

Rep. Dan Bishop, a North Carolina Republican, said the agency committed a “colossal failure.”

State police participated in a walk-through of the site on July 11 and were told by Secret Service that Butler County ESU would be responsible for monitoring the rooftop where the gunman perched days later, Paris said.

Secret Service was “the lead agency,” Paris said.

Paris told the committee that his agency’s role in supporting federal law enforcement during presidential and other high-profile visits is “routine” and that his force “provided the Secret Service with everything they requested.”

Working with FBI

Paris told lawmakers his agency is now conducting an investigation “parallel to and in concert with” the FBI into the homicide of local former fire chief Corey Comperatore and the attempted murder of two other spectators. As is routine in officer-involved shootings, state police are also investigating the Secret Service counter sniper’s killing of Crooks.

“I can tell you that the Pennsylvania State Police will fully cooperate with that investigation,” Paris said in his opening statement. He said he would provide the committee answers that did not compromise that investigation

Paris also told lawmakers that the Secret Service has yet to produce for the state police the detailed day-of operations plan for the ongoing investigation.

Communications concerns

Democratic Rep. Lou Correa of California questioned how the various agencies were using real-time communication technology to talk to each other and said he worried about possible failures as the November election approaches.

“Pennsylvania is a battleground state. You will have these kinds of events again,” Correa said. “And to know that we don’t have the facts, let alone execute a plan to fix the holes is unacceptable to our democracy, to our country.”

Patrick Yoes, national president of Fraternal Order of Police, stressed the importance of interagency communications and said that a platform called FirstNet was developed after 9/11 in response to communication lapses.

“There’s infrastructure, but they’re not always used in every event,” Yoes said, adding that he could not speak to the specific communications on July 13.

“We’re not where we need to be on that,” ranking Democrat Bennie Thompson of Mississippi said.

‘I stood on that roof’

Lawmakers from the Homeland Security Committee visited the site of the attempted assassination Monday and climbed the rooftop to see for themselves how close Crooks was able to get to the event.

At Tuesday’s hearing, Rep. Eli Crane of Arizona presented a video he recorded from the rooftop location.

“It’s not that steep at all. We just had a 70-year-old man back here climb up on the roof,” he said, revealing Rep. Carlos Giménez of Florida behind him.

Earlier during questioning Giménez said “I stood on that roof, and yes, I am 70 years old.”

The Florida Republican’s age was mentioned multiple times as a reference point for Cheatle’s comments last week that the roof’s slope presented too much of a danger to post Secret Service personnel there.

Cheatle told ABC News on July 16 that the roof’s slope was a “safety factor” in the decision to post law enforcement inside of the building rather than on top.

When asked for his thoughts on Cheatle’s remarks, Paris said that he “can’t agree” with that decision.

Cheatle faced nearly five hours of questioning on Capitol Hill Monday, and top lawmakers on the Committee on Oversight and Accountability called for her resignation.

Bipartisan task force

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced Tuesday they will form a task force to understand “what went wrong on the day of the attempted assassination.”

The Louisiana Republican and New York Democrat issued a joint press release detailing plans for the task force that will seat seven Republicans and six Democrats, and make legislative and policy recommendations.

“The security failures that allowed an assassination attempt on Donald Trump’s life are shocking,” the House leaders said. “The task force will be empowered with subpoena authority and will move quickly to find the facts, ensure accountability, and make certain such failures never happen again.”

GOP Rep. Mike Kelly, who represents the Butler area, introduced a resolution to establish the task force and attended Tuesday’s hearing.

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President Joe Biden bows out of reelection campaign, Harris vows to win nomination https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/21/breaking-president-joe-biden-bows-out-of-reelection-campaign/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/21/breaking-president-joe-biden-bows-out-of-reelection-campaign/#respond Sun, 21 Jul 2024 18:35:20 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20162

U.S. President Joe Biden departs the White House on July 15, 2024 in Washington, DC. Biden was traveling to Las Vegas, Nevada to deliver remarks at the NAACP National Convention and the UnidosUS Annual Conference. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race Sunday, he said in a letter posted to social media, creating an unprecedented vacancy atop the Democratic ticket one month before he was scheduled to officially accept his party’s nomination.

In a followup post less than 30 minutes later, Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to take his place as the Democratic nominee.

Biden’s withdrawal came after a weeks-long pressure campaign from party insiders following a disastrous June 27 debate performance against GOP candidate former President Donald Trump.

The move throws an already-unusual presidential race into further chaos, and it was not immediately clear Sunday how Democrats would choose a replacement for Biden in November’s election, though Harris would have a strong claim to lead the ticket.

In a written statement, Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said the party in picking a new nominee would proceed under “established rules and procedures.”

“The work that we must do now, while unprecedented, is clear,” Harrison wrote. “In the coming days, the Party will undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward as a united Democratic Party with a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump in November. This process will be governed by established rules and procedures of the Party. Our delegates are prepared to take seriously their responsibility in swiftly delivering a candidate to the American people.”

In his letter, Biden praised Harris as “an extraordinary partner” in the administration’s accomplishments.

Biden, who has been fighting a COVID-19 infection at home in Delaware since last week, was not specific about his reasons for stepping aside, but said he believed it was in the country’s best interest.

“It has been the great honor of my life to serve as your President,” he wrote in the one-page letter. “And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”

Biden, 81, appeared frail and confused at several points throughout the debate, leading to worries among elected Democrats and the party’s voters that he was no longer up to the task of governing or contesting Trump’s bid to win back the White House.

As several congressional Democrats called for him to quit the race, others asked that he ramp up his public schedule and include more unrehearsed appearances that could demonstrate his fitness.

But a more robust schedule of news interviews, press conferences and campaign rallies did not sufficiently quiet the Democratic voices saying Biden’s candidacy was likely to throw the presidential race to Trump –?whom Biden and others have described as an existential threat to U.S. democracy –?and deeply handicap Democrats in other races up and down November’s ballot.

On Friday, Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico brought the number of senators calling on Biden to drop out to four. A day earlier, Montana Sen. Jon Tester said Biden should drop his reelection campaign and that Democrats should hold an open nomination process at their Chicago convention next month.

In the U.S. House, 29 Democrats had called for Biden to withdraw from the race by the end of the day July 19.

In a post following the announcement to his social media site, Truth Social, Trump said Biden was “never” fit to serve as president.

“Crooked Joe Biden was not fit to run for President, and is certainly not fit to serve – And never was!” Trump wrote. “He only attained the position of President by lies, Fake News, and not leaving his Basement. All those around him, including his Doctor and the Media, knew that he wasn’t capable of being President, and he wasn’t – And now, look what he’s done to our Country.”

More details of announcement

In the letter, Biden praised his administration’s accomplishments over three-and-a-half years, saying he’d worked to make “historic investments” in the country, lowered prescription drug costs, nominated the first Black woman to the U.S. Supreme Court and “passed the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world.”

“Together we overcame a once in a century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression,” Biden wrote. “We’ve protected and preserved our Democracy. And we’ve revitalized and strengthened our alliances around the world.”

Biden said he would “speak to the Nation later this week” about the decision.

He praised Harris and other supporters.

“For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me reelected,” he wrote. “I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me.”

In follow-up posts, Biden said he was endorsing Harris and added a fundraising link.

“My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President,” he said. “And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”

Trump gains in polls

The about face in what was to be a 2020 presidential election rematch leaves Democrats searching for a new candidate as Trump, who promises authoritarian-style leadership, has gained support in recent polls.

With just 107 days until Election Day, Biden’s move marks the latest date in modern presidential history that a candidate has withdrawn from the race.

President Lyndon Johnson announced in March 1968 that he would not seek reelection that year, leaving Democratic delegates to decide on a replacement — ultimately Vice President Hubert Humphrey — at the party’s convention that summer in Chicago.

Harris appears to be in a strong position to replace Biden as the party’s standard bearer, though questions remain about how the process will play out and who would become the vice presidential nominee.

Democrats praise decision

Reaction poured in shortly after the Sunday afternoon announcement, with Democrats largely praising Biden’s record and calling his decision courageous.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement that he understood Biden’s decision to step out of the race was “not easy, but he once again put his country, his party, and our future first.”

“Joe Biden has not only been a great president and a great legislative leader but he is a truly amazing human being,” the New York Democrat said.

Several Republicans called for Biden to resign his office.

“If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President,” House Speaker Mike Johnson wrote on X. “He must resign the office immediately. November 5 cannot arrive soon enough.”

A crescendoing chorus to step down

Biden faced calls for him to abandon his reelection bid from congressional Democrats, even as he tried to stabilize the debate aftershock by holding a series of campaign rallies, sitting down for interviews and holding a press conference at the annual NATO conference.

Democratic lawmakers largely presented a public front of support for Biden in statements and passing interviews in the U.S. Capitol hallways with reporters.

What began as a trickle of dissent from rank-and-file Democrats — beginning with Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas and a handful of doubtful senior House Democrats — steadily grew to a torrent by Friday.

50-year career in Washington

Biden’s exit marks the closure of a long, storied career in Washington, including 38 years in the U.S. Senate, featuring stints leading the Foreign Affairs and Judiciary committees, and eight years as vice president under President Barack Obama.

Biden’s presidency was punctuated with major economic wins for Democrats, beginning with nearly $2 trillion to combat the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

His leadership with a Democratic majority in Congress resulted in substantial nationwide infrastructure investments, drove financial incentives to tackle climate change and revive the U.S. global role in semiconductor manufacturing, and strengthened flagging tax enforcement.

However, low approval ratings followed Biden throughout his presidency as Americans aimed their frustrations over inflation at the White House and assigned blame for record numbers of border crossings as a divided Congress –?after Democrats lost their House majority in the 2022 midterms – failed to pass immigration restrictions negotiated with the administration.

Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war also hurt his support among young and progressive voters as Israel’s continued offensive against Hamas militants in the Palestinian territory of the Gaza Strip killed tens of thousands of civilians. Protesters against the U.S. supply of weapons to Israel interrupted dozens of Biden’s reelection campaign events through 2024.

Ariana Figueroa contributed to this report.

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Trump describes assassination attempt in speech accepting GOP presidential nomination https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/19/trump-describes-assassination-attempt-in-speech-accepting-gop-presidential-nomination/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/19/trump-describes-assassination-attempt-in-speech-accepting-gop-presidential-nomination/#respond Fri, 19 Jul 2024 05:57:48 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20078

Former first lady Melania Trump joins Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump on stage after he officially accepted the nomination on the fourth day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 18, 2024 in Milwaukee. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

MILWAUKEE — Donald Trump in an unusual speech accepting the GOP presidential nomination Thursday at the fourth and final night of the Republican National Convention gave a detailed account about the attempt on his life last weekend when a gunman shot at him during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.

“I will tell you exactly what happened. And you’ll never hear it from me a second time because it’s actually too painful to tell,” Trump said in his first public remarks about the shooting that killed one rally goer and injured two others. The gunman was killed by law enforcement at the scene.

Turning his head to look at a chart, which was later displayed on multiple screens inside the Fiserv Forum, is what saved his life, Trump said.

“I heard a loud whizzing sound and felt something hit me really, really hard on my right ear,” Trump recalled. “I said to myself, ‘Wow, what was that? It can only be a bullet.’ I moved my hand to my right ear, brought it down, and my hand was covered with blood.”

Trump said he knew immediately that he was “under attack” and praised the Secret Service agents for rushing on stage to shield him with their own bodies, calling them “great people” who took “great risk,” to applause from the crowd.

He thanked the supporters in attendance last weekend for not panicking and stampeding, which can cause injuries and deaths during a mass shooting.

Trump in his 90-minute remarks appeared to seriously reflect on how close he came to being killed at one point, commenting that he wasn’t sure he was meant to survive the attack.

“I’m not supposed to be here tonight,” Trump said, before the crowd began chanting, “Yes, you are!”

“I stand before you in this arena only by the grace of Almighty God,” he added.

Republicans’ bestowal of the nomination on Trump at the finale of their convention is significant in that he becomes the first convicted felon to accept a major political party’s presidential nod. Trump still faces charges in multiple criminal cases after one of the cases was dropped earlier this week.

Divine intervention seen

Trump’s comments about being saved by God followed days of politicians from throughout the country claiming the bullet only grazing his ear was an act of divine intervention.

Pastor Lorenzo Sewell, from Detroit, said earlier in the night that people “can’t deny the power of God” in Trump’s life.

“You can’t deny that God protected him, you cannot deny that it was a millimeter miracle that was able to save this man’s life,” Sewell said. “Could it be that Jesus Christ preserved him for such a time as this?”

“Could it be that the King of Glory, the Lord God, strong and mighty, the God who is mighty in battle, protected Donald Trump, because he wants to use him for such a time as this?” Sewell added.

Tucker Carlson, former Fox News television personality and conservative pundit, said that “a lot of people” are wondering what’s going on following the shooting on Saturday.

“Something bigger is going on here. I think people who don’t even believe in God are starting to think, ‘Well, maybe there’s something to this,’” Carlson said. “And I’m starting to think it’s going to be okay, actually.”

Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump embraces the firefighter uniform of Corey Comperatore as he speaks on stage at the Republican National Convention Thursday night. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Trump wore a white bandage on his right ear concealing the wound he received last Saturday before Secret Service agents rushed to shield him from bullets.

Trump spoke about Corey Comperatore, a former fire chief attending the rally with his family, who was killed in the shooting as well as the two people who were injured.

Trump called Comperatore a “highly respected” fire chief before walking over to his fire jacket and helmet, which had been placed on the stage, and kissing the helmet in a solemn moment.

Trump said he spoke with Comperatore’s wife as well as the two injured people earlier in the day, who were doing “very well” in recovering from their injuries. The convention then observed a moment of silence for Comperatore.

GOP seeks unity as Democrats debate Biden’s fate

The Republican National Convention and Trump’s acceptance speech provided a prime opportunity for the GOP to show unity as Democrats increasingly questioned whether President Joe Biden should formally become their nominee in the weeks ahead.

Trump repeatedly criticized Democrats’ policies and said they were a threat to the country’s future, though he only mentioned Biden once, saying the damage the current president could inflict on the country is “unthinkable.”

“If you took the 10 worst presidents in the history of the United States… and added them up, they will not have done the damage that Biden has done,” Trump said.

Voters, he said, must “rescue our nation from failed and even incompetent leadership” by voting for him and Republicans during November’s election.

“This will be the most important election in the history of our country,” Trump said.

‘The stakes have never been higher,’ Biden campaign says

Biden-Harris Campaign Chair Jen O’Malley Dillon released a written statement rebuking Trump’s speech, saying he “rambled on for well over an hour.”

“He failed to mention how he had inflicted pain and cruelty on the women of America by overturning Roe v Wade. He failed to mention his plan to take over the civil service and to pardon the January 6th insurrectionists,” Dillon wrote.

Biden, on the other hand, is “running for an America where we defend democracy, not diminish it,” she wrote.

“The stakes have never been higher,” Dillon wrote. “The choice has never been more clear. President Biden is more determined than ever to defeat Donald Trump and his Project 2025 agenda in November.”

DNC Chair Jaime Harrison said in a written statement that in “Trump’s Republican Party, there’s only space for unquestioning loyalists who will put him above our democracy, above our freedoms, and above working families.”

“Over the past four days, we’ve seen speakers endorse a far-right, dangerous vision that would see Americans’ basic liberties stripped away and replace the rule of law with the rule of Trump,” Harrison wrote. “No amount of desperate spin can change how unpopular and out of touch their disastrous plans are for the American people.”

Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump, former first lady Melania Trump, Republican vice presidential nominee, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, and his wife Usha Chilukuri Vance celebrate on the fourth day of the Republican National Convention. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

No stain left by Jan. 6

Trump’s speech solidified a significant turnaround for the former president, who earned rebukes from many of the party’s leaders following the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The events of that day, which led to the deaths of police officers and ended the country’s centuries-long peaceful transition of power, would traditionally have been viewed as a black spot by the party that lauds itself as supporting “law and order” as well as the country’s founding principles.

Instead, Trump has succeeded in convincing his supporters that the people convicted for violent acts should be pardoned as “political prisoners” and the several court cases against him are about his politics and not his actions.

Top Trump campaign official Chris LaCivita refused to say earlier Thursday during an event near the RNC whether Trump would continue to campaign on the promise to pardon Jan. 6 defendants, or “hostages” as he has described them numerous times.

Trump said Thursday night that nothing would prevent him from becoming president following November’s election.

“Our resolve is unbroken and our purpose is unchanged — to deliver a government that serves the American people better than ever before,” Trump said.

“Nothing will stop me to this vision, because our vision is righteous and our cause is pure,” Trump added. “No matter what obstacle comes our way, we will not break, we will not bend, we will not back down and I will never stop fighting for you.”

Trump’s loss of the popular vote and the Electoral College four years ago led him to make false claims about election fraud, which never bore fruit. Judges threw out numerous court challenges.

Trump faces federal felony charges that he conspired to create false slates of electors in seven states and attempted to obstruct the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

That, however, hasn’t stopped Trump from repeating the claim and making it a hallmark of his third run for the Oval Office.

Trump reiterated many of those incorrect claims during his speech to applause and cheers from the crowd gathered inside Fiserv Forum.

“They used COVID to cheat,” he said.

Trump: ‘We must not criminalize dissent’

Despite his incessant encouragement of rally chants during the 2016 campaign to lock up former Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, and a? willingness to explore jailing his rivals if he wins in November, Trump said “we must not criminalize dissent or demonize political disagreement.”

In addition to the federal 2020 election subversion charges, Trump faces racketeering charges in Georgia, sentencing over a guilty verdict in New York, and federal charges over allegedly stealing and hiding classified government documents after leaving the Oval Office.

Federal District Judge Aileen Cannon on Monday dropped the classified documents case on the grounds that the government illegally appointed a special counsel to prosecute it. The Department of Justice has since appealed.

The former president reminded the crowd of the “major ruling that was handed down from a highly respected federal judge.”

“If the Democrats want to unify our country, they should drop these partisan witch hunts,” Trump said.

‘Stop wars with a telephone call’

Trump said the “planet is teetering on the edge of World War Three” and he will “end every single international crisis that the current administration has created.”

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 “would have never happened if I was president,” he said, repeating the same claim about the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel.

“I tell you this, we want our hostages back and they better be back,” Trump said later in the speech about Israeli-American hostages still in Hamas captivity.

Trump praised Victor Orbán — the Hungarian prime minister known for his authoritarian streak — which the crowd cheered. He also touted his friendship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.

He said the press criticized him for his congeniality with Kim, but “it’s nice to get along with someone who has a lot of nuclear weapons,” Trump said.

“I could stop wars with a telephone call,” Trump said, but immediately followed with a promise to “build an Iron Dome missile defense system to ensure that no enemy can strike our homeland.”

Trump’s ‘only crime’ is ‘loving America’

Speakers rallying the crowd before Trump’s appearance on Thursday exalted his golf game and business management style, and defended the former president, who they say supports them through long-established ties.

“To me, he is my friend,” Trump’s attorney Alina Habba said tearfully.

“Sham indictments and baseless allegations will not deter us, because the only crime President Trump has committed is loving America,” she said.

Trump’s 2020 election subversion case has sat in a holding pattern for months while he appealed his claim of presidential immunity to the U.S. Supreme Court. The justices returned the case to the trial court after issuing a 6-3 majority opinion in early July that grants broad immunity for former presidents’ official acts.

Trump was convicted of 34 felonies in New York state court for falsifying business records related to a hush money payment by his personal lawyer to a porn star ahead of the 2016 election.

However, the New York judge handling the case has delayed Trump’s sentencing while his lawyers challenge the case, arguing the Supreme Court’s immunity ruling opens questions about what evidence against a former sitting president can be admitted to court.

Pompeo says no Putin in Ukraine under Trump

Mike Pompeo, Trump’s former CIA director and secretary of State, blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and deaths of its civilians on “weakness” of the Biden administration.

“Last week, we saw what it meant — that Children’s Hospital bombed, innocents killed — it did not have to be,” Pompeo said, referring to the July 8 Russian strike on the medical facility in Kyiv.

World leaders from NATO etched a path for Ukraine to join the alliance at the July summit in Washington, D.C, and pledged more resources for the nation that Russia further invaded in February 2022.

Trump has long criticized NATO, dismissing the post-WWII alliance’s core tenet that an attack against one is an attack against all and threatening to withdraw over funding.

In February he told a rally crowd in South Carolina that he would “encourage (Russia) to do whatever the hell they want” to “delinquent” member countries that do not pay 2% of their GDP on defense.

All members agreed to a 2% commitment in 2014, and 23 are on track to meet the target this year, according to the alliance.

On Wednesday night at the RNC, Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, echoed Trump’s words and declared “no more free rides for nations that betray the generosity of the American taxpayer.”

Lia Chien contributed to this report.

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Top Trump adviser says 2024 election ‘not over’ until Inauguration Day https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/18/top-trump-adviser-says-2024-election-not-over-until-inauguration-day/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/18/top-trump-adviser-says-2024-election-not-over-until-inauguration-day/#respond Thu, 18 Jul 2024 21:01:49 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20051

Chris LaCivita, former President Donald Trump’s 2024 co-campaign manager, participated in a lengthy interview with Politico at the Turner House near the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Thursday, July 18, 2024. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

MILWAUKEE — A top Trump campaign official said Thursday that the 2024 presidential race will not be over until Inauguration Day, rather than after Election Day on Nov. 5 — when voters across the nation go to the polls to cast their ballots and a result normally is projected.

The assertion from Chris LaCivita at a Politico event is notable given former President Donald Trump’s refusal to accept the results of the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to President Joe Biden, and the ensuing violent attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters on Jan. 6, 2021.

It is also significant given that the U.S. Department of Justice alleges after Election Day in 2020, Trump co-conspired with lawyers and election officials in seven states to produce false slates of electors. According to the indictment, those slates were intended to be delivered to Vice President Mike Pence during the routine certification in a joint session of Congress in early January following presidential elections.

“It’s not over until he puts his hand on the Bible and takes the oath. It’s not over until then. It’s not over on Election Day, it’s over on Inauguration Day, cause I wouldn’t put anything past anybody,” LaCivita, Trump’s co-campaign manager, told Politico’s Jonathan Martin during a lengthy interview open to press and attendees, and livestreamed, at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Trump did not attend Biden’s inauguration, and he and many Republican lawmakers continue to repeat false claims that he won.

LaCivita interrupted with his comment when Martin was in the middle of asking about the prospects for Democrats on Election Day.

“It’s also possible that Donald Trump can lose,” Martin followed up. LaCivita said the campaign will remain focused on the issues.

A few moments later Martin asked LaCivita if he thinks it’s politically wise for Trump to continue campaigning on pardoning the Jan. 6 rioters.

“I always find it amazing that you guys are the ones that bring it up,” LaCivita said, referring to the press.

“That’s not true,” Martin replied.

“I’ve been in a lot of interviews where it’s the first question you guys ask,” LaCivita said. “What we’re talking about right now are the issues that matter, Social Security, protecting Social Security and Medicare, closing the border. I mean we have so much to talk about and that’s where our focus is.”

“In a perfect Chris LaCivita world (Trump) would never say the words ‘Jan. 6 hostages’ again,” Martin followed up.

LaCivita immediately responded and repeated: “Social Security, Medicaid, closing the border, deportation — yeah I said it — all of those things.”

In March, Trump told reporters he was open to cutting Social Security and other entitlement programs as a way to address the national debt.

Election fraud falsely claimed

Trump repeated false claims of election fraud in the months following the 2020 election and lost numerous court challenges in states that he insisted he won.

The fight erupted in political violence on Jan. 6, when a mob of Trump supporters overran the U.S. Capitol Police with improvised weapons and the goal of stopping Congress from certifying the election results.

The historic criminal indictment of a former sitting U.S. president — handed up from a federal grand jury in August 2023 — charges Trump with conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstructing an official proceeding, among other felony counts.

Trump has successfully delayed the federal election subversion case as he appealed his motion to dismiss based on president criminal immunity all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The justices on July 1 ruled in a 6-3 decision that former presidents enjoy broad immunity for official acts, and sparked major questions over what type of evidence can be used in any such prosecution.

‘How do you utilize’ an assassination attempt?

Reaction to the attempted assassination against Trump on Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania, has evolved over the RNC’s first three days. It’s gone from initial concerns about political violence to rallying around the event as a symbol of how “Trump Strong” can reshape America, as Donald Trump Jr. said Wednesday night.

Trump supporters wore fake bandages on their ears at the RNC as a political symbol, much like the red “Make America Great Again” hat.

“The energy or the emotion that you feel when something like that happens, how do you utilize it? How do you utilize it to get to where you need to be?” LaCivita said.

“How do you utilize it to win an election or how do you utilize it to bring the country together?” Martin followed up.

“I think it’s both,” LaCivita said.

The co-campaign manager sidestepped a question about whether Trump will make an effort during his RNC speech to tell supporters not to believe conspiracy theories circulating online that the shooting was a Democratic plot. Martin asked if LaCivita agreed that Trump tamping down accusations against his opposing political party would be “good for the country.”

LaCivita said the campaign is planning Trump’s speech to be “forward focused.”

“I mean look, there are not enough facts, and it’s not just up to us to talk about the facts resulting around what happened,” LaCivita said as he added to the chorus of criticism of the U.S. Secret Service and calling on its head to resign.

Hours after the shooting Saturday, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio — announced Monday at the RNC as Trump’s vice presidential pick — wrote on social media that “today is not just some isolated incident.”

“The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs. That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s assassination attempt,” he wrote.

Project 2025 a ‘pain in the ass’ for Trump

Of the themes permeating the RNC, the major conservative Project 2025 has dogged Trump’s campaign in a way that LaCivita described as “a pain in the ass.”

The 922-page document spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation roadmaps a presidential transition and plan to overhaul government administrations, to lobby Congress for national abortion restrictions and restoration of “the American family as the centerpiece of American life and protect our children.”

The organization held an all-day policy fest five blocks from the RNC convention hall Monday.

Trump denies any connection to the project, despite former Trump administration officials identifying their previous positions in the project materials. A CNN analysis found that 140 who previously worked for Trump helped on Project 2025.

LaCivita said any claim that Trump is connected to the project is “utter bulls—t.”

“They do not speak for the campaign.”

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Ohio’s J.D. Vance pitches for swing-state votes in accepting nod as Trump VP https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/18/ohios-j-d-vance-pitches-for-swing-state-votes-in-accepting-nod-as-trump-vp/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/18/ohios-j-d-vance-pitches-for-swing-state-votes-in-accepting-nod-as-trump-vp/#respond Thu, 18 Jul 2024 04:54:25 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20021

Republican vice presidential candidate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, speaks on stage on the third day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 17, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

MILWAUKEE — J.D. Vance — the freshman Ohio senator who used to rebuke Donald Trump’s character and policies before becoming one of his most ardent supporters in Congress — formally accepted the nomination as Trump’s running mate Wednesday at the Republican National Convention.

Vance spoke directly to the swing-state voters who will determine the outcome of the presidential election as well as control of the Congress during his 38-minute prime time speech on the third night of the convention.

“This moment is not about me. It’s about all of us. It’s about who we’re fighting for,” Vance said, as Trump looked on from a special seating section inside Fiserv Forum.

“It’s about the autoworker in Michigan, wondering why out-of-touch politicians are destroying their jobs,” Vance said. “It’s about the factory worker in Wisconsin, who makes things with their hands and is proud of American craftsmanship.”

“It’s about the energy worker in Pennsylvania and Ohio, who doesn’t understand why Joe Biden is willing to buy energy from tinpot dictators across the world when he could buy it from his own citizens right here in our own country,” he added.

Biden-Harris 2024 communications director Michael Tyler released a statement after Vance’s acceptance speech concluded, arguing that working and middle class Americans would be harmed if Trump and Vance are elected later this year.

“J.D. Vance is unprepared, unqualified, and willing to do anything Donald Trump demands,” Tyler wrote.

Former President Donald Trump attends his third night of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. A bandage on his right ear covers a wound after a bullet grazed him Saturday night in an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana is to his left. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

Raised by grandmother

Vance spoke at length about his upbringing and his family during his speech, including his mother, who is close to reaching 10 years clean and sober, as well as his grandmother, who raised him while his mother was struggling with addiction.

He said that his mother should reach that benchmark in January 2025 and that they should celebrate in the White House.

Vance rolled in a story about his grandmother to emphasize the GOP’s support for gun rights, receiving loud cheers from the crowd.

He noted that in 2005, just before he deployed to Iraq as part of the Marine Corps, she died and while going through her home, he and his family found 19 loaded handguns.

“They were stashed all over her house; under her bed, in a closet and in the silverware drawer,” Vance said.

“We wondered what was going on. And it occurred to us that towards the end of her life (she) couldn’t get around so well,” Vance said. “And so this frail old woman made sure that no matter where she was, she was within arm’s length of whatever she needed to protect her family. That’s who we fight for. That’s the American spirit.”

Vance said that his version of the American dream wasn’t becoming a senator or starting a business, but having the type of family he wasn’t able to grow up in.

“My most important American dream was becoming a good husband and a good dad,” Vance said. “I wanted to give my kids the things that I didn’t have when I was growing up. And that’s the accomplishment that I’m proudest of.”

Vance emerges as favorite despite inexperience

Trump announced Monday that he had selected Vance to be his running mate after narrowing down a shortlist that included several other GOP senators with more experience in Congress.

The relationships that a vice president has with both Republicans and Democrats in the upper chamber are especially important given that bills must gain the support of at least 60 senators to advance toward final passage. It’s also the chamber responsible for approving judicial and executive branch nominees.

Additionally, the vice president is responsible for casting tie-breaking votes in the Senate, a job that could take up much of the vice president’s time if the election yields another two years with a 50-50 split.

Vance has been a member of Congress for less than two years and is best known as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” a controversial book about rural poverty in Appalachia, that was later turned into a movie.

The delegates at the convention moved to formally nominate Vance as their vice presidential nominee the same day Trump announced him as his running mate. Vance’s speech on Wednesday night served as his official acceptance.

Foreign affairs?

Vance doesn’t have a lengthy record on domestic or foreign policy issues given his especially brief tenure as a lawmaker, but he has repeatedly opposed funding for Ukraine.

Speaking on the floor of the convention to an enthusiastic crowd, Vance said that “we will make sure our allies share in the burden of securing world peace.”

“No more free rides for nations that betray the generosity of the American taxpayer,” Vance said, seemingly referring to NATO countries that have yet to reach the benchmark of spending at least 2% of their GDP on defense.

NATO allied countries agreed to move toward that goal in 2014 after Russia invaded Crimea in Eastern Ukraine. Twenty-three of the 32 countries in the alliance are expected to meet that target this year.

Vance said if reelected, Trump “will send our kids to war only when we must.”

Vance also spoke about China and the Chinese Communist Party throughout his speech.

“We will protect the wages of American workers and stop the Chinese Communist Party from building their middle class on the backs of American citizens,” he said.

‘A meat and potatoes kind of guy’

On the floor of the Republican National Convention. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt)
On the floor of the Republican National Convention. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt)

Vance’s acceptance speech, which largely served as an introduction to GOP voters, followed a lengthy night of more speeches, including by his wife, Usha Chilukuri Vance, and Donald J. Trump, Jr., who pressed for his father to choose Vance as his running mate.

Chilukuri Vance said she wanted “to explain from the heart why I love and admire J.D. and stand here beside him today, and why he will make a great vice president of the United States.”

Telling the story of how they met at Yale Law School, Usha said Vance approached their differences with “curiosity” and that she learned he had “overcome childhood traumas that I could barely fathom.”

“My background is very different from J.D.’s. I grew up in San Diego, in a middle-class community with two loving parents, both immigrants from India and a wonderful sister,” Chilukuri Vance said. “That J.D. and I could meet at all, let alone fall in love and marry, is a testament to this great country.”

Chilukuri Vance spoke for just under five minutes and told the crowd that although her husband is a “meat and potatoes kind of guy,” he learned to cook Indian vegetarian food for her mother. She said he’s the same person now that she met when they were younger, “except the beard.”

“It’s safe to say that neither J.D. nor I expected to find ourselves in this position. But it’s hard to imagine a more powerful example of the American dream,” Chilukuri Vance said. “A boy from Middletown, Ohio, raised by his grandmother through tough times, chosen to help lead our country through some of its greatest challenges. I am grateful to all of you for the trust you placed in him and in our family.”

Ties between Vance and Donald Trump Jr.

Though he largely spoke about his father, Trump Jr. used his platform to spotlight the friendship between him and Vance. He used the differences in their upbringings as an invitation for voters to support his father in November.

“For everyone watching at home, no matter who you are, you can be a part of this movement to make America great again. Look at me and my friend J.D. Vance. A kid from Appalachia and a kid from Trump Tower in Manhattan. We grew up worlds apart,” Trump Jr. said. “Yet now we’re both fighting side by side to save the country we love. And by the way, J.D. Vance is going to make one hell of a vice president.”

Trump Jr. spoke for nearly 20 minutes prior to Vance taking the stage, focusing most of his speech on defending his father and taking sharp jabs at Biden.

He said he had “never been prouder” of his father than he was Saturday after the former president survived an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

He compared his father standing up and raising his fist after the shooting to how the “America we all grew up with” will return again.

“We’re like that man who stood on that platform and felt the bullet pierce his flesh just days ago in Pennsylvania. He may have moved to the ground, but he stood back up. And when he did, my father raised his fist into the air, he looked out at the crowd, and what did he say?”

“Fight, fight, fight,” the crowd at the RNC shouted back.

“And we will fight. We will fight with our voices. We will fight with our ideas. And then November 5, we will fight with our vote,” Trump Jr. said.

Prior to speaking, Trump Jr. called his oldest daughter Kai Madison Trump — the former president’s eldest granddaughter — to the stage briefly.

She accused the left of attacking her grandfather and told stories of him calling her to ask about her golf game and telling his friends that she made the high honor roll.

“The media makes my grandpa seem like a different person, but I know him for who he is. He’s very caring and loving,” Kai Madison said. “He truly wants the best for this country and he will fight every single day to make America great again.”

Bashing Biden

Dozens of other politicians spoke on the third night of the Republican National Convention, with the vast majority praising Trump while criticizing Biden.

Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., said voters need to elect Trump to the White House in November to prevent Biden and Democrats from implementing their preferred policies.

“We have to remember that the greatest threat to American safety is not Biden’s brain,” Gingrich said. “The greatest threat is Biden’s policies, and the people he appoints.”

Gingrich added that Americans could “vote for weakness and war with Biden,” or they could “vote for strength and peace with President Trump.”

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who was on Trump’s shortlist for a running mate but wasn’t selected, said during a brief speech that Trump would be better for fossil fuel production than Biden.

“When President Trump unleashes American energy, we unleash American prosperity and we ensure our national security,” Burgum said.

The crowd inside Fiserv Forum chanted “drill baby drill” during part of his speech.

Kellyanne Conway, senior counselor to Trump during his first administration, told attendees at the RNC that the GOP ticket is the best path forward for the country.

“The answer to weakness is strength. The antidote to division is unity. And the alternative to failure and incompetence, to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, is to send them packing and send Donald Trump and J.D. Vance to the White House,” Conway said.

U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida told the GOP delegates and guests that Trump — who never served in the military and made up an injury to avoid being drafted into the Vietnam War — “respects our military and understands the true cost of war.”

“President Trump knows what it means to put your life on the line,” Luna said. “Our service members and their families make immense sacrifices, and they deserve a president who respects that sacrifice and who will lay down his own life in defense of this great nation.”

Lia Chien contributed to this report.

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Youth vote targeted at ‘party-agnostic’ event for teens, college kids during GOP convention https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/17/youth-vote-targeted-at-party-agnostic-event-for-teens-college-kids-during-gop-convention/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/17/youth-vote-targeted-at-party-agnostic-event-for-teens-college-kids-during-gop-convention/#respond Thu, 18 Jul 2024 00:53:36 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=20009

Myiah Waddy, 17, of Milwaukee, participates in the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics Youth VoteFest near the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Wednesday, July 17, 2024. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)?

MILWAUKEE — Young people provided a glimmer of hope on the outskirts of the 2024 Republican National Convention that has been dominated nightly by speeches filled with doom, inaccuracies and fearmongering.

A few dozen high school and college students gathered a half-mile away from the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, where the RNC is taking place, to discuss Wednesday how to communicate and organize around their vision for the fu ture.

The “issue agnostic, party agnostic” Youth VoteFest hosted by University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics aimed to provide a space where teens and young adults could learn about civic engagement and voter mobilization, minus the partisan rhetoric, said Zeenat Rahman, the institute’s executive director.

“We want our young people who are attending today to know that they play a role in the political process,” Rahman said.

Mostly Republican programming

Former Democratic U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, who represented North Dakota from 2013 to 2019, opened the event.

But later programming included a fiery speech from a conservative environmentalist, remarks tracing a challenging career move by an Indiana Republican official, a pep talk from a conservative sports talk show host, and a Q&A session with former U.S. Rep. Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, a Republican who now hosts “Sunday Night in America” on Fox News.

The organization plans to mirror the event in August at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago with a fresh slate of speakers.

Myiah Waddy, a 17-year-old Milwaukee native who recently graduated from the Obama School of Career and Technical Education, said she came to the event to “speak up” about changes she wants to see in her community.

“I want to see a difference in my community, and what I mean by that is violence, education, and allowing us youth to get more involved. I don’t see a lot of people my age are involved,” said Waddy, who plans to study early childhood education at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Heitkamp hit that topic, telling the students who attended the event that they represent thousands of disengaged young people.

“They don’t know why they should care. They certainly don’t see two people at the top of the ticket who look in any way like you guys, that in any way live your experience every day. And so I think there’s a level of cynicism. And you know, we cannot be successful in this democracy if we don’t all participate,” Heitkamp said.

Student vote

Clarissa Unger, co-founder and executive director of the Students Learn Students Vote Coalition, said the “student vote has never been more important.” Citing a statistic from Tufts University showing that college-age voting is actually on the rise — jumping to 66% in 2020 — Unger said students have a chance to make change happen.

Unger laid ground rules for the day — that political divisiveness would not be tolerated during discussions.

“We understand and appreciate where we are and what’s taking place down the road and we’re not asking anyone to sacrifice their personal partisan identities, but today’s activities in this space will be nonpartisan,” Unger said.

Students broke into three workshops focused on strengthening nonpartisan voter drives on college campuses, how to make democracy fun and celebratory, and navigating polarization during the 2024 presidential election.

Oscar Allen, a 17-year-old senior at the Bronx High School of Science in New York City, said he and a friend started their own voter drive last year for high school students turning 18.

“We decided that because of the upcoming 2024 election that many high schoolers were actually aging into the vote and not even realizing it. And these people wouldn’t have been able to take their opportunity to vote and actually do their civic duty for the first time in their entire lives,” said Allen, who titled the project VOTE, or Vote of Teens in Elections.

Allen said he considers himself a political moderate after watching his dad, a staunch Republican, and his mom, a progressive immigrant from Japan, argue over politics.

“There was familial conflict that I always had to sit through from a young age of like 9 years old where I didn’t know what was going on. And I really just wanted to promote the harmony and the happiness of our family as a whole. And so I think I’ve taken that perspective into my grown life, even with my own ideologies,” Allen said.

“Political conflict turns into violent conflicts full of rhetoric with vitriol that just is unnecessary because at the end of the day, everyone wants the same kind of harmony,” Allen said, adding that he is scared of more violence after Saturday’s attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania.

Stand up to politicians

Benjamin “Benji” Backer, the 26-year-old founder and executive chairman of the American Conservation Coalition, encouraged the students to challenge rhetoric coming from today’s politicians.

“We’re having this call for unity after the horrifying events that happened in Pennsylvania, but those are the politicians that got us here in the first place, to a place of division,” Backer said.

Backer said the system needs a reboot.

“We have gotten to a place where something like the environment and climate change are partisan. The dangers of partisanship, the two-party system leading us towards destruction, need to be over,” Backer said.

Gowdy closed the program by talking about his friendships across the aisle when he was in the House, as well as his lasting friendship with former Democratic U.S. Rep. Joseph Kennedy of Massachusetts and current ties with Democratic U.S. Sen. Peter Welch from Vermont.

“I am one fact away from changing my mind,” Gowdy said. He gave the students examples of times when former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii changed his mind about the need for a citizen advocate on the foreign intelligence court. He also told the students of his “great affection” for Hakeem Jeffries, now the House minority leader.

“We got to get beyond the notion that the fact that we disagree on the size and scope of government or the role of government is the only thing that matters in life,” Gowdy said. “There are lots of things that matter more than that.”

Conservative groups and youth vote

Other organizations targeting the youth vote were present on the convention’s perimeter and at the RNC.

Young America’s Foundation distributed literature from a table posted outside a Moms for Liberty town hall Tuesday at the Bradley Symphony Center five blocks from the convention hall.

A large message on the group’s website homepage reads “Feel out of place as a conservative at your school? There’s a place

for you here.”

The group did not respond to an interview request Wednesday.

Charlie Kirk, the founder and president of Turning Point USA, received an early speaking slot Monday night at the convention.

Kirk, whose organization promotes limited government and free markets in high schools and on college campuses, said the Gen Z? generation doesn’t have to accept a “mutilated version of the American dream” which he said has been caused by President Joe Biden.

“Donald Trump is on a rescue mission to revive your birthright, the one your grandparents and those before them gave everything to hand down to you,” he said. “And listen carefully everybody, this is why young men are the most conservative that they have been in 50 years. All the Gen Zers watching this convention on TikTok right now, I have a message just for you: You don’t have to stay poor.”

Daniel Cox, director of the Survey Center on American Life at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, told CNN in June that there’s “not a ton of evidence that young men are more likely to identify as conservatives, but there does seem to be a growing affinity for Republican identity.”

Kirk is the author of “Right Wing Revolution: How to Beat the Woke and Save the West.”

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Heritage Foundation touts controversial Project 2025 plan on RNC outskirts https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/16/heritage-foundation-touts-controversial-project-2025-plan-on-rnc-outskirts/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/16/heritage-foundation-touts-controversial-project-2025-plan-on-rnc-outskirts/#respond Wed, 17 Jul 2024 02:41:44 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19960

eritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts speaks to reporters at the organization’s all-day Policy Fest at the Bradley Symphony Center in downtown Milwaukee, just blocks from the Republican National Convention, on Monday, July 15, 2024. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

MILWAUKEE — Despite former President Donald Trump’s denial of any connection to the conservative presidential transition plan known as Project 2025, the initiative’s driver, the Heritage Foundation, promoted the platform mere blocks from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, attracting officials and personalities from the party’s most conservative wing.

The project has taken heat from Democrats in recent weeks, who are warning of the plan’s ambitions — among them passing the most stringent abortion ban the next Republican administration can get through Congress and lowering the corporate tax rate — and Trump, the GOP presidential nominee, has sought to distance himself from the proposal.

The multi-pronged project, featuring a 922-page policy prescription and a training academy, received praise from conservatives who traveled to attend the RNC and ancillary events.

The hundreds of pages in Heritage’s mandate promise to overhaul government agencies and “restore the American family as the centerpiece of American life and protect our children.”

Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts described the comprehensive policy plan as the unification of the conservative movement at the organization’s all-day Policy Fest near the convention Monday.

“For once in modern American history, we have a plan among a unified movement to speak on behalf of the everyday American, the forgotten American,” Roberts said.

“The reason progressive Democrats hate these ideas so much is because they are a threat to their power,” Roberts continued from the stage at the Bradley Symphony Center in downtown Milwaukee, five blocks from the Fiserv Forum where the RNC was just getting underway.

The foundation’s event on the first day of the convention featured a slate of conservative speakers including Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, former presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy and media personality Tucker Carlson.

Awaiting a Trump presidency

Those who traveled to Milwaukee for the RNC packed the auditorium in collective anticipation of the possibility of a second Trump presidency and the promise of traditionalist priorities emanating from the Oval Office.

“I think President Trump has learned a lot over the last few years about where the movement is, where the country is, and also some real hot spots around the world that didn’t exist when he left office,” Roberts told reporters. “I’ve been very impressed during the campaign by signals that President Trump’s involving a lot of voices. I think this is going to be an administration that is very efficient.”

Stitt told the audience during the afternoon session that “we’re here this week to fight for the American dream, and really our way of life.”

“You know, to our founders, the American dream meant freedom to worship, for you to assemble, freedom to speak one’s mind,” Stitt said. “It meant that there was no limit to what someone could accomplish, and freedom from a government not controlled by the government.”

Democrats warn

The Democratic National Committee, President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign and Democratic lawmakers have seized on Project 2025 in recent weeks — a unifier for the party message after Biden’s poor debate performance unearthed party fractures.

The Biden campaign and its surrogates continued their weeks-long focus on the project Tuesday at a “counter convention” press event around the corner from where Trump is staying at The Pfister Hotel downtown.

“It’s all written down in Project 2025,” Ben Wikler, Wisconsin’s Democratic Party chair, said at the event primarily focused on economic policies outlined in the plan.

“Donald Trump and J.D. Vance want to ransack the public treasury to hand out massive tax cuts to billionaires and stick working Americans with the bill,” Wikler said.

Trump announced Monday he had chosen Vance, a U.S. senator from Ohio, as his running mate.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey joined the event and warned that Project 2025 would affect Social Security.

“When you’ve worked all your life and paid into Social Security, and you hear what Republicans are trying to do, from their policy groups, in Congress, all the way to what you’ve heard and read in Project 2025, folks that want to limit benefits,” Booker said.

Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO, said, “I think you should ask yourself, ‘does this project 2025 agenda make my life better if it were to become law?’”

Trump denies

Trump has denied any connection to the project.

“I know nothing about Project 2025. I have not seen it, have no idea who is in charge of it, and, unlike our very well received Republican Platform, had nothing to do with it,” Trump wrote Thursday on his social media platform Truth Social.

“The Radical Left Democrats are having a field day, however, trying to hook me into whatever policies are stated or said. It is pure disinformation on their part,” he continued. “By now, after all of these years, everyone knows where I stand on EVERYTHING!”

Degrees of conservatism

Roberts navigated the tug-of-war over Project 2025 by telling reporters Monday that the plan is meant to be “a menu of options.”

“It is impossible for any individual conservative, I think, to agree with everything that’s stated in the project,” he said.

The platform adopted by the RNC ahead of the convention, short in length, drew criticism from some conservatives, particularly for shying away from supporting a nationwide abortion ban.

When asked about any potential friction among Trump, the RNC platform and Project 2025, Roberts said despite differences he sees “very positive” conversations ahead.

“Presidential campaigns are (in) one lane, the RNC is in another lane, Heritage and Project 2025 and the conservative movement writ large is in another lane,” Roberts said.

“There will always be differences of opinions. We will work on those when we’re talking about specific legislative vehicles in January, and we know that those conversations are going to be very positive,” Roberts said. “We may not always agree, but I think the time now for the center-right in this country is to recognize the American people want one thing to happen and that is for power to be devolved from Washington, D.C.”

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Trump pick of J.D. Vance as running mate opens new battlefront in presidential race https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/15/trump-pick-of-j-d-vance-as-running-mate-opens-new-battlefront-in-presidential-race/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/15/trump-pick-of-j-d-vance-as-running-mate-opens-new-battlefront-in-presidential-race/#respond Mon, 15 Jul 2024 23:59:41 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19936

U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, and his wife, Usha Chilukuri Vance, celebrate as he is nominated for the office of Vice President alongside Ohio Delegate Bernie Moreno on the first day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 15, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Delegates, politicians, and the Republican faithful are in Milwaukee for the annual convention, concluding with former President Donald Trump accepting his party’s presidential nomination. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

MILWAUKEE — Republicans on the floor of the Republican National Convention cheered Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance becoming their vice presidential nominee Monday, as Democrats slammed his opposition to abortion rights, and called him inexperienced and a “clone” of Donald Trump.

Reaction from all corners of American politics poured in as GOP delegates inside the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, formally nominated Vance just hours after Trump announced his pick earlier in the day.

President Joe Biden, the Democrats’ presumptive nominee, told reporters that there’s no daylight between Trump and Vance.

“A clone of Trump on the issues,” Biden said. “I don’t see any difference.”

Republicans and Trump’s family members had vastly different reactions.

Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, who formally nominated Vance from the RNC Convention, said the “vice presidency is an office of sacred trust.”

“The man who accepts this nomination accepts with it the awesome responsibility to give wise counsel to the president, to represent America abroad, to preside over the Senate and to be ready to lead our nation at a moment’s notice,” Husted said. “Such a man must have an America first attitude in his heart.”

Nomination moment

Vance stood on the floor of the arena with his wife, Usha Vance, by his side, as Husted gave the formal nominating speech.

Screens in the large arena showed photos of Vance throughout the speech.

Bernie Moreno, the GOP candidate seeking to unseat Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown this November, made the motion to nominate Vance, which was approved with a unanimous-sounding voice vote.

“To J.D. Vance, ‘America First’ is not just a slogan. It’s his North Star,” Moreno said. “He has followed it in every moment of his life and career. He knows what it’s like to live in poverty, forgotten by Washington politicians. He is dedicated to ensure that no American is ever forgotten again.”

Florida Rep. Kat Cammack said during a brief interview with States Newsroom on the floor of the RNC Convention that Vance brings “a lot of enthusiasm” to the ticket, in part, because “the base loves him.”

“We have the opportunity now to move forward and bring this home,” Cammack said.

Donald Trump Jr. speaks to reporters on the floor of the Republican National Convention on Monday, July 15, 2024. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Donald Trump Jr. talked with reporters on the floor of the Fiserv Forum to reject criticism that Vance doesn’t have enough legislative experience after less than two years in Congress.

“My father had zero political experience, he went on to peace deals in the Middle East, the greatest job economy in the world, incredible prosperity for everyone, with no experience,” Trump Jr. said. “If experience is a marker for Washington, D.C., politics, it’s a bad one.”

Montana Sen. Steve Daines, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, congratulated Vance in a statement, saying Trump made a “great choice” and that Vance “connects with the working class voters we need to win this election.”

Some of the Republicans who had been on Trump’s short list for the vice presidential pick reacted positively.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio posted “#TrumpVance2024!!!”, though others who weren’t chosen didn’t react immediately.

Biden campaign cites abortion stance

The Biden campaign organized a call with reporters Monday afternoon following Trump’s announcement that Vance will be his running mate.

Campaign officials, joined by Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and abortion rights activists, decried Vance’s record and accused him of supporting abortion bans with no exceptions for rape or incest.

They also warned Vance would be instrumental to Trump’s administration in cheering on conservative policy ideas, like the roadmap in the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 — a recent focus of the Biden campaign.

Jen O’Malley Dillon, chair of the Biden campaign, told reporters that “clearly Vance won Trump’s sweepstakes by passing his MAGA litmus test with flying colors.”

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley of North Carolina speaks to delegates at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on Monday, July 15, 2024. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

“You know, Trump picked J.D. Vance as his running mate because he will do what Mike Pence wouldn’t on January 6, bend over backwards to enable Trump and his extreme MAGA agenda, even if it means breaking the law and certainly no matter the harm to the American people,” O’Malley Dillon said, referring to the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol that delayed the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

“With Trump and Vance now entering the general election, they’re facing off against the Biden-Harris ticket and I will certainly take that matchup any day of the week and twice on Sunday,” O’Malley Dillon said, seemingly giving a nod to the campaign’s defense of Biden in recent weeks as high-profile donors and Democrats have called for Biden to exit the race after his weak debate performance.

The campaign said Harris has already accepted the CBS invitation for a vice presidential debate and is ready to face Vance.

“The VP will take it to J.D. Vance,” Warren said on the call. “She is strong, she knows what she’s talking about and she doesn’t give an inch.”

The Democratic National Committee issued a statement Monday afternoon that said November brings “the most consequential election of our lifetimes, and with Donald Trump’s decision today to add J.D. Vance to the Republican ticket, the stakes of this election just got even higher.”

“J.D. Vance embodies MAGA — with an out-of-touch extreme agenda and plans to help Trump force his Project 2025 agenda on the American people,” said DNC Committee Chair Jaime Harrison.

“Let’s be clear: A Trump-Vance ticket would undermine our democracy, our freedoms, and our future,” Harrison later continued in the statement.

The National Women’s Law Center Action Fund weighed in on Trump’s pick, calling Vance an “extremist.”

“Women and girls deserve to live in a country where they are free to make their own choices and live without fear,” Fatima Goss Graves, the action fund’s president, said in the statement. “That is why we must work to ensure that Donald Trump and J.D. Vance are not given the power to inflict a national abortion ban and force their radical MAGA agenda on the rest of us.”

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Federal judge dismisses Trump classified documents criminal case https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/15/federal-judge-dismisses-trump-classified-documents-criminal-case/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/15/federal-judge-dismisses-trump-classified-documents-criminal-case/#respond Mon, 15 Jul 2024 15:39:13 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19907

Former President Donald Trump (Photo by Steven Hirsch-Pool/Getty Images)

MILWAUKEE —The federal classified documents case against former President Donald Trump was dismissed Monday by a Florida judge on the grounds that the Department of Justice unlawfully appointed special counsel Jack Smith.

The order, while likely to be appealed, makes the possibility even more remote that Trump will be tried before the election on any of the federal charges pending against him. The order came on the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, during which Trump will be officially nominated as the 2024 GOP presidential candidate.

Trump, who on Saturday was injured at a Pennsylvania rally in what is being investigated as an attempted assassination, has also been federally charged in Washington, D.C., for his alleged attempts to subvert the 2020 presidential election results. The case is pending as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision.

In May, Trump was convicted of 34 felonies in New York state court for falsifying business records related to a hush money payment ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Trump’s sentencing has been delayed until September while the court reviews the federal immunity decision.

Trump has also been indicted in Georgia on racketeering charges — though the case is bogged down in personnel matters — and has been ordered to pay hundreds of millions in penalties following multiple civil suits.

Trump reaction: Dismiss all ‘witch hunts’

Trump, who arrived in Milwaukee Sunday, wrote on his social media platform Monday that all cases against him should be dropped following the attempt on his life by the 20-year-old gunman identified by law enforcement as the shooter. The gunman was killed at the scene.

“As we move forward in Uniting our Nation after the horrific events on Saturday, this dismissal of the Lawless Indictment in Florida should be just the first step, followed quickly by the dismissal of ALL the Witch Hunts — The January 6th Hoax in Washington, D.C., the Manhattan D.A.’s Zombie Case, the New York A.G. Scam, Fake Claims about a woman I never met (a decades old photo in a line with her then husband does not count), and the Georgia ‘Perfect’ Phone Call charges,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

A representative for Smith said Attorney General Merrick Garland’s appointment of a special counsel is legal.

“The dismissal of the case deviates from the uniform conclusion of all previous courts to have considered the issue that the Attorney General is statutorily authorized to appoint a Special Counsel. The Justice Department has authorized the Special Counsel to appeal the court’s order,” spokesman Peter Carr said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson declared the ruling “good news for America and for the rule of law” and a “critically important step” in unifying the country after Saturday’s shooting in Western Pennsylvania.

In a statement issued from Milwaukee, the Louisiana Republican said

“House Republicans repeatedly argued that Special Counsel Jack Smith abused his office’s authority in pursuit of President Trump, and now a federal judge has ruled Smith never possessed the authority in the first place.”

“As we work to unify this country following the failed assassination attempt of President Trump, we must also work to end the lawfare and political witch hunts that have unfairly targeted President Trump and destroyed the American people’s faith in our system of justice,” Johnson continued.

Republican lawmakers largely echoed Johnson.

House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik of New York said in a statement that she applauds District Judge Aileen Cannon’s “courage and wisdom” to dismiss the case brought by the “corrupt” special counsel.

“Case Dismissed! Big win for the rule of law,” South Carolina Congressman Ralph Norman wrote on X.

The GOP’s Rep. Clay Higgins of Louisiana also posted on the platform: “Winning. More to come. MAGA.”

The dismissal order

In Monday’s 93-page order, Cannon wrote Smith’s appointment violates two clauses of the U.S. Constitution that govern how presidential administrations and Congress appoint and approve “Officers of the United States” and how taxpayer money can be used to pay their salaries and other expenses.

“Upon careful study of the foundational challenges raised in the Motion, the Court is convinced that Special Counsel’s Smith’s prosecution of this action breaches two structural cornerstones of our constitutional scheme—the role of Congress in the appointment of constitutional officers, and the role of Congress in authorizing expenditures by law,” wrote Cannon, who sits on the bench in the Southern District of Florida.

She was nominated by Trump in 2020 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate later that year.

In February, Trump’s team filed the motion to dismiss the case, accusing Smith of being unlawfully appointed and paid.

The classified documents case against Trump presented a historic first for the United States — a former sitting president had never been charged with federal crimes.

A federal grand jury handed up a 37-count indictment in June 2023 charging the former president and his aide Walt Nauta with felonies related to mishandling classified documents after his term in office, including storing them at his Florida Mar-a-Lago estate.

A little over a month later a new indictment was handed up, adding new charges against the former president and also adding Trump’s Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira as a co-defendant.

Cannon’s order dismisses the July 2023 superseding indictment.

The court will now close the case and cancel any scheduled hearings. Any pending motions are considered moot, according to Cannon’s order.

The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Democrats slam ‘misguided ruling’

Cannon’s dismissal of the case was met with shock from Democrats, who view Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents as a serious, prosecutable offense.

The indictment against Trump detailed how U.S. government documents marked “secret” and “confidential” were stored at Mar-a-Lago, an active social club in Palm Beach, in a ballroom, bathroom and shower, bedroom, office space and storage area.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement Monday that the “breathtakingly misguided ruling flies in the face of long-accepted practice and repetitive judicial precedence.”

“It is wrong on the law and must be appealed immediately. This is further evidence that Judge Cannon cannot handle this case impartially and must be reassigned,” the New York Democrat said.

Conor Lamb, a former congressman from Pennsylvania, wrote on X that Saturday’s failed assassination on Trump does not exonerate him from taking and keeping classified records as he left the Oval Office.

“In the same way that the Secret Service’s failure to protect Trump was unacceptable, it was unacceptable for Trump to fail to protect our country’s secrets.? Trump is a victim of the 1st but that doesn’t change that he is the perpetrator of the 2nd.? Accountability for both,” Lamb wrote.

Not Above the Law, a coalition of 150 organizations, issued a statement calling the ruling “flatly wrong.”

“The special counsel statute is clear. Its constitutionality has been upheld by multiple courts in the past, and Judge Cannon has no grounds to reject such a well-settled principle,” read the statement signed by the organization’s four co-chairs.

“Accountability, protecting the rule of law, and justice cannot be further delayed. We expect Judge Cannon’s ruling not only to be swiftly appealed, but also promptly reversed,” continued the statement from Lisa Gilbert, co-president of Public Citizen; Praveen Fernandes, vice president of the Constitutional Accountability Center; David Sievers, interim organizing director at MoveOn; and Brett Edkins, managing director for policy and political affairs at Stand Up America.

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Republican National Convention to go on despite shooting, with Trump plans unchanged https://www.on-toli.com/briefs/republican-national-convention-to-go-on-despite-shooting-with-trump-plans-unchanged/ Sun, 14 Jul 2024 12:54:50 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?post_type=briefs&p=19864

Workers prepare the stage for the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 13, 2024, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The convention will be held in Milwaukee from July 15-18. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Thousands of Republicans will gather in Milwaukee beginning Monday for the party’s presidential nominating convention — a typically joyous occasion that will likely take on a different tone this year after a gunman shot at Donald Trump, injuring him, on Saturday.

Republican National Convention launches Monday amid some grumbling over abortion stance

Trump, who will be formally nominated as the GOP’s presidential nominee on Thursday, still plans to attend the convention and officials stress the four-day event will go on as normal.

The shooting at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania is being investigated as an assassination attempt and the FBI identified the shooter as Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. The U.S. Secret Service “neutralized the shooter, who is now deceased,” the Secret Service said.

Trump, who has been declared “safe” by the Secret Service, posted on social media Sunday morning that he was still looking “forward to speaking to our Great Nation this week from Wisconsin.”

“Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers yesterday, as it was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening,” Trump wrote. “We will FEAR NOT, but instead remain resilient in our Faith and Defiant in the face of Wickedness. Our love goes out to the other victims and their families. We pray for the recovery of those who were wounded, and hold in our hearts the memory of the citizen who was so horribly killed. In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand United, and show our True Character as Americans, remaining Strong and Determined, and not allowing Evil to Win.”

Senior advisors to the Trump campaign Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita released a statement hours after the shooting on Saturday to say that the former president wasn’t changing his plans.

“President Trump looks forward to joining you all in Milwaukee as we proceed with our convention to nominate him to serve as the 47th President of the United States,” Wiles and LaCivita wrote in a joint statement. “As our party’s nominee, President Trump will continue to share his vision to Make America Great Again.”

Reince Priebus, chairman of the MKE 2024 Host Committee, said in a separate statement that he was “heartbroken that reports indicate that at least one innocent person has been killed and perhaps others have been injured. This horrific violence has no place in America.”

“Guests have already begun to arrive in Wisconsin, and we look forward to working with the Republican National Committee to welcome everyone to Milwaukee this week,” Priebus added.

Political party conventions are designated as National Special Security Events, or NSSEs, and come with extremely heightened security compared to a typical campaign rally.

The Secret Service will have at least two security perimeters around the Fiserv Forum in downtown Milwaukee and the city itself will be swarming with additional federal, state and local law enforcement officers.

The convention will still host speeches throughout the week and the dozens of side events hosted by state Republican Parties and conservative organizations were still expected to continue, though likely with a more somber mood than was planned before the shooting.

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Members of Congress condemn violence after shots seemingly fired at Trump rally https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/13/members-of-congress-condemn-violence-after-shots-seemingly-fired-at-trump-rally/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/13/members-of-congress-condemn-violence-after-shots-seemingly-fired-at-trump-rally/#respond Sun, 14 Jul 2024 01:12:54 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19849

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is rushed offstage by U.S. Secret Service agents after being grazed by an apparent bullet during a rally on July 13, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Members of Congress rejected political violence Saturday after a shooting at Donald Trump’s campaign rally in Pennsylvania left at least one rallygoer dead and forced the Secret Service to rush the former president off stage.

Local authorities confirmed the shooter was killed, according to The Associated Press.

The shooting at a crowded outdoor rally in Butler, just an hour outside Pittsburgh, occurred less than 48 hours before the Republican National Convention is set to begin in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Trump is expected to become the party’s official presidential nominee on Thursday.

Video footage of the rally shows Trump bringing his hand to the right side of his face and ducking down behind the podium just after several gunshots and screams were heard. U.S. Secret Service agents huddled around the former president and raced him off the stage as he reached out to pump his fist in the air toward the crowd.

Trump campaign spokesman Steve Cheung issued a statement shortly after that the former president is “fine” and that he thanked law enforcement.

‘Praying for President Trump’

Members of Congress from both political parties uniformly condemned violence in a wave of social media posts and official statements.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, posted on social media that he was “Praying for President Trump.”

“Kelly and I are praying for President Trump and all the attendees of the campaign rally today in Pennsylvania, and we send our gratitude to the law enforcement who responded at the scene,” Johnson wrote.

“I have been briefed by law enforcement and am continuing to monitor the developments,” Johnson added. “This horrific act of political violence at a peaceful campaign rally has no place in this country and should be unanimously and forcefully condemned.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, released a written statement saying that he was “horrified by what happened at the Trump rally in Pennsylvania and relieved that former President Trump is safe.”

“Political violence has no place in our country,” Schumer wrote.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, wrote on social media that “all Americans are grateful that President Trump appears to be fine after a despicable attack on a peaceful rally.”

“Violence has no place in our politics,” McConnell wrote. “We appreciate the swift work of the Secret Service and other law enforcement.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, wrote on social media that his “thoughts and prayers are with former President Trump.”

“I am thankful for the decisive law enforcement response,” Jeffries wrote. “America is a democracy. Political violence of any kind is never acceptable.”

Members of Congress react with horror

Democratic Sen. Bob Casey of Pennsylvania issued a statement that he was monitoring the situation that unfolded in Western Pennsylvania.

“(A)nd I’ve reached out (to) the State Police to offer support. Political violence is never acceptable and I am hoping former president Trump & all attendees are safe. Everyone in Butler should listen to law enforcement,” Casey wrote on social media.

Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, whose wife Gabby Giffords, a former congresswoman, was shot in 2011 at an event, posted that they were both “horrified.”

“Gabby and I are horrified by the incident in Pennsylvania,” Kelly wrote. “No one should ever have to experience political violence — we know that firsthand. We’re keeping former President Trump, his family, and everyone involved in our thoughts.”

Giffords wrote on her own social media feed that “Political violence is terrifying. I know.”

“I’m holding former President Trump, and all those affected by today’s indefensible act of violence in my heart. Political violence is un-American and is never acceptable — never,” Giffords wrote.

Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, wrote on social media that “(p)olitical violence is despicable, and there is no place for it in America.”

“I’m grateful that former President Trump is safe, and to the law enforcement officials who risked their lives to take action” Peters wrote. “I will continue to closely monitor this developing situation.”

Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins wrote on social media that she was “very relieved that President Trump appears to be OK; however, this violence is absolutely appalling.”

“Thank God for the Secret Service and first responders who hurried President Trump out of harm’s way,” Collins wrote.

Quick response

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat, commended the quick response of Secret Service agents and other authorities on the scene.

“My thoughts and prayers are with former President Donald Trump and his family after hearing news of a shooting at his campaign rally today,” DeLauro of Connecticut posted on social media.

House Republican Mike Turner of Ohio, chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, issued a statement saying “As the situation unfolds in Butler, Pennsylvania, I urge everyone to join me in praying for President Trump and our country.”

House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik of New York wrote on social media that “AMERICA IS PRAYING! GOD BLESS PRESIDENT TRUMP! #SAVEAMERICA,”

“I’m praying for President Trump. I hope everyone will join me,” former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy wrote on X.

“Jacquie and I are praying for President Trump and all of the attendees at today’s rally. President Trump is a proven warrior who has overcome adversity time and time again. He will rise above this horrifying situation stronger than ever,” House Republican Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota posted.

Former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney, an outspoken critic of Trump and ranking member of the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, said news of the shooting was “horrifying.”

“Violence of any kind has no place in American politics. We are grateful for the reaction of Secret Service and other law enforcement and pray for the former president and all those injured,” Cheney wrote on social media.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement on social media saying he was “shocked by the apparent attack on President Trump.”

“We pray for his safety and speedy recovery,” the leader of the U.S. ally said.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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Republican National Convention launches Monday amid some grumbling over abortion stance https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/12/republican-national-convention-launches-monday-amid-some-grumbling-over-abortion-stance/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/12/republican-national-convention-launches-monday-amid-some-grumbling-over-abortion-stance/#respond Fri, 12 Jul 2024 17:30:05 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19833

A worker helps prepare the Fiserv Forum for the start of the Republican National Convention on July 11, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Republican National Convention will be held in Milwaukee from July 15-18. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Thousands of Republicans will gather in Milwaukee, Wisconsin beginning Monday for the party’s presidential nominating convention — an opportunity for the GOP to showcase its candidates up and down the ballot and unify behind Donald Trump.

The RNC released its trimmed-down party platform the week prior to the convention, after foregoing one entirely in 2020. And while many Republicans in Congress said during interviews they either support it, or hadn’t read it, some were critical it adopts Trump’s position that abortion access be left up to states — one of the top issues in the presidential race.

The platform wraps in traditional party goals as well as others tied to Trump. But it also competes with attention drawn to the Heritage Foundation’s massive far-right Project 2025 policy agenda, which Trump has repeatedly disavowed.

Democrats and President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign have targeted the Project 2025 document spearheaded by former Trump administration officials — which says the president should work with Congress on abortion policy — as an example of an extreme GOP agenda.

Doug Burgum stumped for Donald Trump in New Hampshire in January. (Getty Images)

The Heritage Foundation is scheduled to host an all-day “policy fest” on Monday at the RNC Convention, headlined by conservative media personality Tucker Carlson and former Utah Congressman Jason Chaffetz, among others.

The RNC convention could also be the showcase for Trump announcing his running mate, after months of speculation about who would get the nod. As of Friday, Trump had not revealed his pick, though speculation centered around Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.

J.D. Vance in 2022. (Graham Stokes/Ohio Capital Journal)

There was also little information available ahead of the convention as to the lineup and schedule of speakers in official sessions throughout the week, which culminates with the nomination of Trump on Thursday and his speech.

Unhappiness over abortion stance

GOP members of Congress said in interviews they would have liked to have seen a national abortion ban in the platform.

Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, the top Republican on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said he preferred the GOP’s last official platform, which called for a nationwide abortion ban after 20 weeks.

Marco Rubio.

“I’m pro-life and I like the way it was previously,” Cassidy said.

Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst said while she hadn’t read the full platform, she had read the section about abortion, as well as a few others.

“I am pro-life and I am always going to be adamantly pro-life,” Ernst said. “And I think what we’re going to have to do is work very hard to educate the American people on the value of life. So would I like to see more robust (language) in the platform? Certainly. But that’s not the way it’s going to be. So we’re just going to have to continue fighting for life.”

Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford said the platform places a “new emphasis on the states” to regulate abortion access, largely as a result of Trump pressing for that structure in an attempt to appeal to independent voters, though Lankford said it won’t bind Republicans in Congress.

“Obviously, this is a platform that’s wrapped around him, it’s a new model for presidential platforms to be wrapped around the candidate,” Lankford said.

Trump has shifted the GOP platform away from pressing for a nationwide law, in part, because he doesn’t believe the votes are there at the moment, Lankford said. But that doesn’t mean Republican lawmakers will stop talking about their beliefs or working to build support for a nationwide law.

“It’s a common ground statement,” Lankford said of the platform. “But for those of us that believe in the value of every single child — and we should do whatever we can to be able to protect the lives of children — we will continue to be able to speak out on those things.”

Mike Pence (Getty Images)

Mike Pence, former Indiana governor and vice president during Trump’s first term in office, released a statement saying the “RNC platform is a profound disappointment to the millions of pro-life Republicans that have always looked to the Republican Party to stand for life.”

“Unfortunately, this platform is part of a broader retreat in our party, trying to remain vague for political expedience,” he wrote.

Pence called on delegates attending the RNC convention to “restore language to our party’s platform recognizing the sanctity of human life and affirming that the unborn child has a fundamental right to life which cannot be infringed.”

Shorter, vaguer

The 16-page platform is much shorter than years past and is at times vague about the goals the Republican Party hopes to accomplish if voters give them unified control of the federal government during the next two years.

The official document was put together behind closed doors.

It says that after nearly 50 years, “because of us,” the ability to regulate abortion has “been given to the States and to a vote of the People.”

“We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments),” the new RNC platform states.

The 2016 Republican Party platform, by contrast, was 66 pages long and mentioned abortion more than 30 times, calling for Congress to pass legislation that banned abortion after 20-weeks gestation.

That previous platform also said that the RNC respected “the states’ authority and flexibility to exclude abortion providers from federal programs such as Medicaid and other healthcare and family planning programs so long as they continue to perform or refer for elective abortions or sell the body parts of aborted children.”

‘Nothing going to happen up here in the Senate’

Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas said that it’s extremely unlikely either political party gets the 60 votes needed to advance abortion legislation through the legislative filibuster in the Senate, making the states the more practical place to enact laws.

“There’s not 48 votes on this issue one way or the other up here, let alone 60,” Marshall said. “There’s nothing going to happen up here in the Senate in the near future, if forever.”

Marshall said that Republicans “won” in getting the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade and that the issue is now left up to voters.

Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley said a full GOP platform shorter than in previous years is a good development, since people might actually read it.

“Nobody’s gonna read the Sears catalog, like previous ones,” Grassley said. “And I think if we can get people to read the Republican platform, it’ll be a great thing for the campaign. I think it’d be a great thing for government generally.”

Grassley said he couldn’t make a judgment about the new abortion language, since he didn’t remember the language from the 2016 platform.

Former President Donald Trump reacts during the CNN debate in Atlanta. (Getty Images)

Voters expect all of GOP on same page

Alabama Sen. Katie Britt said she hadn’t read through the platform, but that she was encouraged some anti-abortion groups expressed support for the new language.

“I’m proud to be pro-life and proud to support the party and President Trump,” Britt said.

Voters, she said, expect to hear from a unified Republican Party during convention week as well as from one that focuses on policy.

“I think people want a secure border, they want stable prices, they want a more secure world,” Britt said. “And I think we need to talk about those things — talk about not only where we are, but our vision for moving forward.”

Sen. Steve Daines of Montana, chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, didn’t directly answer a question about whether he supports removing a nationwide abortion ban from the party’s platform.

“Look, I think they did good work on the platform,” Daines said. “We’re a party that believes in life, we’re a pro-life party. I think they did a good job.”

West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said that voters want to hear Republicans unified at the convention.

“I think they want to hear a unifying message for the future,” Capito said. “I think they want to hear how things will be different and better, especially on the economy and border and international. And I just think, you know, a united front is probably the most important.”

Arkansas Sen. John Boozman said the GOP should emphasize how it differs from Democrats during the RNC Convention.

“I think that they need to hear a message of unity and the contrast between what Republicans can accomplish on inflation and border,” Boozman said.

National treasures, women’s sports

The RNC’s new platform includes familiar GOP policy goals as well as some that came along after Trump became the party’s nominee eight years ago.

For example, it calls for Republicans to “promote beauty in Public Architecture and preserve our Natural Treasures. We will build cherished symbols of our Nation, and restore genuine Conservation efforts.”

It also calls on GOP lawmakers to “support the restoration of Classic Liberal Arts Education,” though it doesn’t detail that particular issue.

The rest of the platform is pretty standard for the types of initiatives and policy goals that Republicans have traditionally pursued.

For example, it calls on Republicans to slash “wasteful Government spending,” “restore every Border Policy of the Trump administration,” make provisions from the 2017 tax law permanent and “will keep men out of women’s sports.”

Trump running mate

The RNC convention could also include Trump announcing who will campaign with him at the top of the ticket.

His last running mate, Pence, began distancing himself from Trump after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, which included calls from the mob to kill Pence, and the construction of a scaffold for public hangings on the National Mall.

Pence was in the Capitol building that day and was removed from danger by his security detail as the pro-Trump mob beat police officers, broke into the building and disrupted Congress’ certification of Biden as the country’s next president.

Trump, without revealing his vice presidential selection, wrote Thursday on social media that he is “looking very much forward to being in Milwaukee next week.”

“The great people of Wisconsin will reward us for choosing their State for the Republican National Convention. From there we go on to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! See you next week,” he posted on Truth Social, his online platform where he regularly publishes comments and statements.

The vice presidential candidate typically gives a speech on Wednesday night, so Trump is expected to make his announcement before then.

Project 2025

Conservative operatives striving to elect Trump to the White House have been circulating the 922-page Project 2025 plan for nearly 15 months.

Spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation, in conjunction with more than 100 organizations, the policy agenda titled “Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise” presents a roadmap should Trump win in November.

The “goal is to assemble an army of aligned, vetted, trained, and prepared conservatives to go to work on Day One to deconstruct the Administrative State,” according to the organization’s description of the mandate.

The lengthy mandate sets forth core promises to “restore the family” and overhaul government agencies.

The document states that “(i)n particular, the next conservative President should work with Congress to enact the most robust protections for the unborn that Congress will support while deploying existing federal powers to protect innocent life and vigorously complying with statutory bans on the federal funding of abortion.”

The mandate is just one pillar under the multi-pronged “Project 2025: Presidential Transition Project” that also includes a presidential administration training academy and a 180-day “playbook” aimed “to bring quick relief to Americans suffering from the Left’s devastating policies.” The project is led by two former Trump administration officials.

The Biden-Harris campaign and Democrats have repeatedly criticized Project 2025 in comments and campaign emails.

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks in Greensboro, North Carolina, July 11, 2024. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

“If implemented, Project 2025 would be the latest attempt in Donald Trump’s full on assault on reproductive freedom,” Vice President Kamala Harris said at a rally in North Carolina on Thursday.

Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said during a press conference Thursday that the plan is “dangerous, it’s dastardly and it’s diabolical.”

“Project 2025, the Trump and extreme MAGA Republican agenda, will criminalize abortion care and impose a nationwide ban on reproductive freedom,” Jeffries said.

Trump and his campaign deny any connection to the project.

“I know nothing about Project 2025. I have not seen it, have no idea who is in charge of it, and, unlike our very well received Republican Platform, had nothing to do with it,” Trump wrote Thursday on his social media platform Truth Social.

“The Radical Left Democrats are having a field day, however, trying to hook me into whatever policies are stated or said. It is pure disinformation on their part,” he continued. “By now, after all of these years, everyone knows where I stand on EVERYTHING!”

Trump has delivered keynote speeches at Heritage Foundation events multiple times. An analysis by CNN showed 140 former Trump administration staffers were involved in the project. Kevin Roberts, Heritage Foundation president, told the New York Times in April 2023 that Trump had been briefed on the project.

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Biden at NATO press conference rebuts doubters: ‘I’m the best qualified to govern’? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/11/biden-at-nato-press-conference-rebuts-doubters-im-the-best-qualified-to-govern/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/11/biden-at-nato-press-conference-rebuts-doubters-im-the-best-qualified-to-govern/#respond Fri, 12 Jul 2024 01:38:31 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19817

President Joe Biden holds a news conference at the 2024 NATO Summit on July 11, 2024 in Washington, D.C. NATO leaders convened in Washington this week for the annual summit to discuss future strategies and commitments and mark the 75th anniversary of the alliance’s founding. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden dug in on his 2024 reelection bid Thursday at a solo press conference following the NATO summit in Washington, despite a growing list of rank-and-file Democrats and high-profile supporters urging him to abandon his campaign over suspected health concerns.

The highly anticipated press conference followed weeks of speculation about Biden’s ability to hold office and whether he should remain in the 2024 presidential election against former President Donald Trump. His performance, while markedly stronger than his devastating debate performance, still included a notable gaffe and could leave questions open.

In response to the first question, about if Vice President Kamala Harris would be an able candidate against Trump, Biden mixed up their names.

“I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if I didn’t think she was not qualified to be president,” he said.

Biden fielded a wide range of questions from reporters from both the U.S. and overseas for just less than an hour. The meeting with the press came exactly two weeks after the June 27 debate, during which Biden stumbled repeatedly, spoke in a hoarse voice and appeared unable to finish some sentences.

Biden and the White House have repeatedly attributed the debate as a “bad night” and pointed to clean results from his last three annual physical examinations.

Asked directly about congressional Democrats’ unease about his candidacy, Biden said he had made a final decision to remain in the race, but was working to show doubters he was up to the task and responding to criticism that he could not handle impromptu questioning.

“I’m determined on running,” he said. “But I think it’s important that I allay fears by seeing — let them see me out there.”

Not stepping aside

He added that delegates pledged to him through the Democratic nominating process should be free to vote their conscience, but that no one had a better alternative to his candidacy against Trump, the presumed Republican candidate.

“I believe I’m the best qualified to govern and I think I’m the best qualified to win,” Biden said. “But there are other people who could beat Trump, too, but it’s awful hard to start from scratch.”

Asked if he would step aside if his polling data showed Harris could beat Trump, Biden said he would not, unless it also showed he could not win.

“No one’s saying that,” he added in a whisper. “No poll says that.”

Harris is seen as the likeliest replacement for Biden if he were to leave the race.

A trickle of congressional Democrats calling for him to leave the race since July 2 turned to a stream this week — with some reports indicating a poor performance Thursday night could give way to a flood.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a decades-long friend of Biden’s, urged colleagues in an MSNBC interview Wednesday to “let (Biden) deal with this NATO conference, this is a very big deal.”

At the time Biden began his Thursday press conference, 14 Democrats in Congress had explicitly called for him to leave the race, with others suggesting it.

Shortly after the press conference concluded, two more, Connecticut’s Jim Himes and California’s Scott Peters, called on Biden to step aside.

Biden should “make room for a new generation of leaders,” Himes, the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, wrote in a statement posted to X.

Peters’ statement was provided to Politico.

Emphasis on foreign policy

Biden, who has rarely held press conferences, consulted a list of reporters and took questions that ranged from his fitness to serve as president to his handling of the Israel-Hamas war.

He lauded his accomplishments in office and said his job performance showed he was still up for the job.

“If I slow down, I can’t get the job done, that’s a sign that I shouldn’t be doing it,” he said. “But there’s no indication of that yet. None.”

Biden — a former chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee —?appeared more comfortable on foreign policy questions than he was discussing his political future, providing in-depth answers on the Israel-Hamas war, China’s growing influence on the world stage and Ukraine’s war with Russia.

Trump mocks Biden

While Biden’s voice and grasp on the issues appeared stronger than he was at the debate, he still made several speaking mistakes, including the confusion between his vice president and Trump.

Trump mocked the mix-up on his social media platform Truth Social with a post saying “Great job, Joe!”

Later, Biden said Harris was qualified to be president and that is why he picked her as a running mate. His comments were worthy of attention given Harris would likely become the nominee if Biden were to step down.

Biden attacks Trump on NATO

Biden declared the summit a “great success” and underlined the U.S. commitment to the alliance and to Ukraine’s war against Russia.

“For those who thought NATO’s time had passed, they got a rude awakening when Putin invaded Ukraine. Some of the oldest and deepest fears in Europe roared back to life because once again a murderous madman was on the march. This time, no one cowered in appeasement, especially the United States,” Biden said.

Prior to taking questions, he attacked Trump’s record of disparaging NATO and its foundational commitment to defend fellow member nations. The former president has threatened to withdraw from NATO and accused allies of shortchanging the organization’s defense coffers.

“A strong NATO is essential to American security, and I believe the obligation of Article Five is sacred. And I remind all Americans, Article Five was invoked only once in NATO’s long history, and that was to defend America after 9/11,” Biden said.

The three-day summit largely centered on Russia’s ongoing bombardment and occupation of parts of Ukraine. World leaders promised a path for Ukraine to join the alliance, and the event culminated with the U.S. joining two dozen allies in signing the Ukraine Compact to “(a)ffirm that the security of Ukraine is integral to the security of the Euro-Atlantic region and beyond.”

Biden sat down with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier Thursday to underscore military assistance including “working with our NATO allies to ensure Ukraine is flying F-16s this summer.”

Zelenskyy thanked Biden for his “support and personal statement” following Russia’s strike on a children’s hospital in Kyiv Monday. Biden shook his head and responded the attack was “sick.”

Another flub

Between his meeting with Zelenskyy and the press conference, Biden introduced the Ukrainian president at a separate event to sign the compact, but mistakenly called him President Putin —?the Russian leader at war with Zelenskyy’s country —?before correcting himself.

When asked about the blunder, Biden acknowledged that he made the mistake but said that he corrected it immediately.

“I thought it was the most successful conference I’ve attended in a long time and find me a world leader who didn’t think it was,” he replied.

Biden did not stumble earlier in the week when he delivered remarks at NATO’s 75th anniversary event; rather, his voice remained steady and firm as he opened the ceremony for leaders from the 32 member nations.

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NATO leaders in D.C. condemn Russia as Zelenskyy thanks Congress for Ukraine aid https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/10/nato-leaders-in-d-c-condemn-russia-as-zelenskyy-thanks-congress-for-ukraine-aid/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/10/nato-leaders-in-d-c-condemn-russia-as-zelenskyy-thanks-congress-for-ukraine-aid/#respond Wed, 10 Jul 2024 22:49:03 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19756

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, meets with House Speaker Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., at the U.S. Capitol on July 10, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Anna Rose Layden/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited U.S. lawmakers Wednesday on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Washington, where world leaders are pledging additional support to the Eastern European nation as it battles Russia’s continued assault.

Zelenskyy met House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other senators behind closed doors as the 32 NATO members huddled across town crafting a summit declaration that stopped short of a full invitation for Ukraine to join the alliance.

Zelenskyy last visited Capitol Hill in December as a Republican lawmakers and the White House wrangled for months over new aid to Ukraine nearly two years after Russia’s full-scale invasion. Congress later approved $60 billion in assistance in April.

That measure spent two months stalled in the House as Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, held a series of meetings on whether that chamber should act.

Johnson ultimately decided to move forward, releasing four bills that would each receive separate votes, before being bundled as one package and sent to the Senate.

Johnson told reporters after Wednesday’s meeting that Zelenskyy provided an update on the situation in Ukraine and that the two shared a “good conversation.”

“And you know, expressed their gratitude for the assistance of the United States and their hope that they can prevail there and that you know, good will triumph over evil,” according to a transcript provided by Johnson’s office.

When asked if he supported restrictions on how Ukraine can use weapons provided by the U.S., Johnson responded, “I explained that the, the will of Congress was to allow them the flexibility to use the weapons and assistance that were sent to prosecute the war as they see fit. So I’m a supporter of that. I believe that’s what Congress intended.”

The Biden administration recently permitted Ukraine to use U.S. weapons for limited strikes over the Russian border.

Invitation to visit Ukraine

Prompted by a reporter’s question prior to the meeting, Zelenskyy invited Johnson to visit Ukraine, but the speaker responded that his schedule will be tight until after the presidential election in November.

“It’s difficult to find a time to go, but I’d certainly like to,” Johnson said.

The face-to-face sit-down with Johnson followed Zelenskyy’s earlier meeting with a bipartisan Senate delegation led by Schumer and McConnell.

Video published by C-SPAN shows Zelenskyy shaking hands with the New York Democrat and Kentucky Republican before entering the Kennedy Caucus Room in the Russell Senate Office Building, where he awarded them the Ukrainian Order Of Merit First Class.

Zelenskyy said in a statement he and the lawmakers “discussed the current battlefield situation and American defense support. I informed them about Russia’s increased missile terror against Ukrainian cities and critical infrastructure.”

“I extend my gratitude to the President of the United States, both chambers of Congress, both parties, and the American people for their support of Ukraine,” he wrote on social media shortly after the meeting.

Schumer described the “honor” of welcoming Zelenskyy to the Senate.

“MAGA extremists — led by Trump — wanted to just let Putin have his way,” Schumer wrote on social media, referring to Vladimir Putin, president of Russia, and echoing his earlier comments on the Senate floor.

“The Senate showed what leadership looks like by pushing to deliver the support Ukraine needs. America stands with Ukraine,” he said.

McConnell posted a statement on X saying that decades ago, President Ronald Reagan “reminded the world that ‘support for freedom fighters is self-defense.’ There’s no daylight between America’s interests and the cause of Ukraine’s defense. Proud, as always, to welcome President @ZelenskyyUA to the U.S. Senate.”

Russia condemned

Late Wednesday afternoon, NATO members announced their official summit declaration, condemning Russia as the “most significant and direct threat to Allies’ security” and committing additional military equipment, training and funding for Ukraine.

“We reaffirm that we will be in a position to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the Alliance when Allies agree and conditions are met.? The Summit decisions by NATO and the NATO-Ukraine Council, combined with Allies’ ongoing work, constitute a bridge to Ukraine’s membership in NATO,” the declaration later stated.

President Joe Biden opened the NATO meeting with brief public remarks Wednesday afternoon ahead of a closed-door working session among the member nations.

“Right now, Russia is on a wartime footing with regard to defense production,” Biden said. “… We cannot, in my view, we cannot allow the alliance to fall behind.”

Biden also delivered opening remarks for the alliance’s 75th anniversary event Tuesday night in Washington during which he declared NATO as “more powerful than ever.”

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Biden commends NATO strength, pledges more aid for Ukraine against Russia https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/09/biden-commends-nato-strength-pledges-more-aid-for-ukraine-against-russia/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/09/biden-commends-nato-strength-pledges-more-aid-for-ukraine-against-russia/#respond Wed, 10 Jul 2024 00:21:54 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19720

President Joe Biden delivers remarks during the NATO 75th anniversary celebration at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium on July 9, 2024, in Washington. NATO leaders convened this week for an annual summit to discuss strategies and commitments and mark the 75th anniversary of the alliance’s founding. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said NATO “is more powerful than ever” in remarks Tuesday to honor the 75th anniversary of the alliance and reaffirm allied support for Ukraine one day after Russian missile strikes on a children’s hospital killed dozens in Kyiv.

Biden spoke at the annual North American Treaty Organization’s summit happening this week in Washington, D.C., where the 12 original member nations signed the Washington Treaty in 1949.

Heads of state fanned out across Washington, visiting lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is scheduled to meet with U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson Wednesday afternoon. Ukraine is not one of the 32 NATO member nations, but the country is in discussions to join and the alliance has sided with Ukraine in its war with Russia.

“It’s a pleasure to host you all in this milestone year, to look back with pride on all we’ve achieved and look ahead to our shared future with strength and resolve,” Biden said during the opening ceremony.

Biden’s 15-minute address came after a dozen days of near constant focus on his health and mental acuity after he flubbed his June 27 presidential debate performance against former President Donald Trump, whose criticism of NATO is well documented.

Biden spoke forcefully about the alliance’s history from the stage in the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium, where world leaders and hundreds of dignitaries from NATO’s 32 member nations gathered, joined by other partner nations.

“Together we rebuilt Europe from the ruins of war, held high the torch of liberty during long decades of the Cold War. When former adversaries became fellow democracies, we welcomed them into the alliance,” Biden said.

“When war broke out in the Balkans, we intervened to restore peace and stop ethnic cleansing. When the United States was attacked on September 11, our NATO allies, all of you, stood with us, invoking Article Five for the first time in NATO history, treating an attack on us as an attack on all of us. A breathtaking display of friendship that the American people will never, ever, ever forget.”

Military aid

Biden used the remarks to announce a joint package of air defense systems for Ukraine in conjunction with Germany, Romania, the Netherlands and Italy. The package is expected to include donations of advanced missile launching systems known as Patriot batteries as well as other equipment, according to a joint statement issued by the White House shortly after Biden’s speech.

Biden described Russian President Vladimir Putin as NATO’s primary antagonist.

He praised the alliance for moving “swiftly” after Putin further invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and said “the war will end with Ukraine remaining a free and independent country.” Putin previously annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula by force in 2014.

“Before this war, Putin thought NATO was going to break. Today, NATO is stronger than it’s ever been in its history,” Biden declared.

Biden concluded the ceremony by honoring NATO’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the U.S.

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United by their objections to Trump, congressional Dems largely close ranks behind Biden https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/09/united-by-their-objections-to-trump-congressional-dems-largely-close-ranks-behind-biden/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/09/united-by-their-objections-to-trump-congressional-dems-largely-close-ranks-behind-biden/#respond Tue, 09 Jul 2024 22:38:24 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19717

U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., speaks to reporters as he leaves a meeting at the U.S. Capitol on July 08, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Jeffries reiterated his support for President Joe Biden, saying the party is backing Biden to defeat the Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Congressional Democrats appeared to quell some inner tumult over supporting President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign, after highly anticipated internal meetings Tuesday showed the president retained considerable support from the Congressional Black Caucus and other lawmakers in public statements.

Speaking to reporters on Capitol Hill, Democrats from both chambers largely declined to detail their closed-door conversations. But they said they are lining up behind Biden, nearly two weeks after his debate performance set in motion prolonged speculation about his fitness for office. The party meetings among lawmakers were the first since the June 27 debate.

Biden issued a defiant letter to party members Monday saying that he will not exit the race, and Democrats interviewed by States Newsroom insisted they are uniting as the party heads toward his official nomination later this summer.

Lawmakers left open whether perfect harmony was achieved — a New Jersey Democrat at day’s end joined a handful of other Democrats urging Biden to drop out — but one message was clear: They do not want to see former President Donald Trump in the Oval Office again.

Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Steven Horsford of Nevada briskly exited the House chamber and said Democrats are focused on “beating Donald Trump and electing Democrats to the House majority.” The CBC met with Biden virtually Monday night.

When asked whether Biden’s unsteady debate performance and the anxiety it’s caused presents an obstacle for House colleagues running in tight races, Horsford answered, “The president is the nominee.”

Another defection

While a steady stream of Democrats said they would back Biden, New Jersey Democrat Mikie Sherrill became the seventh House Democrat urging Biden to drop out of the race.

“I know President Biden cares deeply about the future of our country. That’s why I am asking that he declare that he won’t run for reelection,” Sherrill posted on social media shortly before 5 p.m. Eastern.

Those who spoke out against Biden’s reelection bid in previous days included Angie Craig of Minnesota, Lloyd Doggett of Texas, Raúl Grijalva of Arizona, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts, Mike Quigley of Illinois and Adam Smith of Washington.

Rep. Jerry Nadler, of New York, who was among those calling for Biden to exit the race in a private call on Sunday, walked back his comments Tuesday when he told reporters “we have to support him.”

At the White House briefing, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said expressions of support from members of the Congressional Black Caucus were key to solidifying Biden’s backing among Hill Democrats.

“We respect members of Congress,” Jean-Pierre said. “We respect their view. But I also want to say there’s also a long list of congressional members who have been very clear in support of this president.”

Jean-Pierre cited strong statements of support from CBC members Joyce Beatty of Ohio and Troy Carter of Louisiana following the caucus’ virtual meeting with Biden on Monday.

Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia said Tuesday members had an opportunity to “express themselves” during the closed-door House Democratic meeting.

“Leadership listened, and I think what needs to happen is we need to all come together to decide that we’re not going to be a circular firing squad with Joe Biden in the middle,” Johnson said. “We are going to abide by his decision, and if his decision, as he has previously stated, is to stay in, then he’s gonna be our nominee and we need to all get behind him.”

When asked by States Newsroom whether House Democrats in vulnerable seats now face more potholes on the road to November, potentially costing the party a chance to flip the House, Johnson replied, “No, I think (Biden’s) got a strong record to run on, and the opposition, Donald Trump, has to run against that strong record. So we need to start running on our record, and against the nominee of the other party. And the American people know the difference.”

‘We concluded that Joe Biden is old’

Democratic senators, leaving a nearly two-hour private lunch meeting later Tuesday, had similar comments to their House counterparts, reiterating the president is their nominee, though worries remained.

Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman said that everyone knows about Biden’s age, but that alone won’t lead the party to bump him out as their nominee.

“We concluded that Joe Biden is old, and we found out, and the polling came back that he’s old,” Fetterman said. “But guess what? We also agreed that, you know, like, he’s our guy, and that’s where we’re at.”

Delaware Sen. Chris Coons, a longtime friend and close ally of Biden, argued that Trump is a far worse choice than Biden.

“Donald Trump had a terrible debate,” Coons said. “Donald Trump said things on that debate stage over and over and over that were outright lies filled with vengeance, violated the basic standards of our democracy, and yet we are spending all of our time talking about one candidate’s performance and not the other. Donald Trump’s performance on that debate stage should be disqualifying.”

Coons said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer spoke during the meeting, saying “broadly constructive things, just sort of setting the groundwork of our discussion.”

Coons said he was “not gonna get into the private conversation we just had in the caucus” when asked whether anyone at the meeting called for Biden to not be the nominee. But he added that “folks expressed a range of views in ways that I think were constructive and positive.”

Vice President Kamala Harris’ viability as a potential replacement for Biden didn’t come up during the meeting, Coons said.

Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock underlined his support for Biden following the meeting, saying “what I think is most important right now is what the American people think.”

“We’re getting feedback on that. I think it’s important for the president in this moment, in any moment, to hear what the people are saying. That’s what democracy is all about,” Warnock said. “Donald Trump, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to believe much in democracy. He said he wants to be a dictator on day one, and with their ruling several days ago, the Supreme Court is setting the table for him to continue to be a dictator. That’s what’s at stake in this election: democracy itself.”

Asked whether Biden is the best person to defeat Trump, Warnock said Biden is “making that case as campaigns do” and “hearing back from the American people.”

Asked whether Biden can win Georgia, he said: “I can tell you that no one thought I could win Georgia but I did.”

Project 2025 fears

Rep. Becca Balint of Vermont told States Newsroom that House Democrats’ meeting led to some cohesion.

“The unity as it exists is that we’re all completely committed to making sure that Trump is not the next president,” Balint said. “That’s the unity, and the unity of wanting the president to be out campaigning vigorously on his record.”

Balint, holding in her hand a copy of the Stop the Comstock Act, said, tearing up, that she worries about a nationwide abortion ban and other priorities in the far-right Project 2025 publication.

The nearly 1,000-page policy roadmap is a product of the Heritage Foundation in anticipation of Republicans gaining control of the White House and Congress. Trump and his campaign have repeatedly distanced themselves from the document.

“Trump is a demagogue, I am the child of a man whose father was killed in the Holocaust. I’m really like ‘What can I do day in and day out to make sure we don’t lose the House?’ because we are the blue line,” Balint said.

The Comstock Act is an 1873 law that could provide an avenue for a future Republican presidential administration to ban the mailing of abortion medications. Democrats in the House and Senate have introduced companion bills to repeal the sections of the law that could hinder abortion access.

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told States Newsroom that Biden has “actively thrown weight behind the lawmaking and policy ideas of younger and progressive members,” and that she remains committed to supporting him.

Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden said after the Democratic senators’ meeting that he wasn’t “even gonna get into that,” when asked whether he wants Biden to remain the nominee.

“The fact is, the president has said he is running,” Wyden said. “So, that’s the lay of the land today.”

Swing state senators

Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, who faces a challenging reelection bid this November, said he didn’t want to characterize what other senators said about Biden during the meeting.

Casey said it’s up to political pundits and analysts to determine how Biden remaining the presidential nominee might affect the Pennsylvania race as well as others.

“I’ve got to continue to do my work in the Senate and also to be a candidate, so I can’t sit around being an analyst,” Casey said.

When back home in the Keystone State, he said, voters tend to talk to him more about issues they’re concerned about, including reproductive rights and the cost of living.

Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly declined to comment on Democrats’ meeting and referred to his prior statements about Biden.

Kelly on Monday evening told reporters that the differences between Biden and Trump “could not be clearer.”

Biden, he said, has “delivered to the American people over and over again,” on climate change, prescription drug prices, infrastructure, and semiconductor manufacturing.

“On the other hand, you have Donald Trump, a convicted felon and now a criminal who has no business running for president,” Kelly said.

“Joe Biden is our nominee. Millions of people voted for Joe Biden to be on the ballot,” Kelly said. “He’s on the ballot, and I truly believe he’s gonna win in November.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said when asked about Biden during a press conference that “as I’ve said before, I’m with Joe.”

Schumer declined to answer questions about Democrats potentially nominating a different presidential candidate and about Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray’s statement Monday night critical of Biden.

“As I’ve said before, I’m with Joe,” Schumer reiterated.

Murray’s statement said Biden “must seriously consider the best way to preserve his incredible legacy and secure it for the future.”

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, deferred a question about Biden’s debate performance to Democratic leadership.

Maryland, New Mexico senators comment

Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen said he had to leave the lunch early for a previously scheduled meeting with the Dutch prime minister, but said he doesn’t have concerns Biden will make the right choice on whether to stay in the race.

“Look, as I’ve said, I trust the president’s judgment, he understands the stakes in this election and he’s in the best position to make this decision,” Van Hollen said.

New Mexico Sen. Ben Ray Luján said Democrats discussed several issues during the closed-door meeting, but declined to talk about what was said, though he reiterated his support for Biden’s candidacy.

“I look forward to voting for President Joe Biden to be president of the United States,” Luján said.

Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff said the meeting was “a constructive caucus discussion,” and that he supports Biden’s reelection campaign.

Delaware Sen. Tom Carper said he spoke during the meeting, but declined to specify what his comments were.

Colorado Sen. John Hickenlooper said the lunch went “fine,” but declined to opine on where the party was moving on Biden’s nomination nor his own beliefs about the president’s ongoing candidacy.

Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed declined to answer any questions after the lunch.

House Republicans: ‘Democrats had misled us’

House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana on Tuesday accused the Democratic Party of covering up Biden’s “glaring problem.”

“The Democrats had misled us. They need to be held accountable for that,” he said, during the House GOP’s regularly scheduled press conference.

Johnson also said the 25th Amendment “is appropriate” in this situation. If Biden’s Cabinet declares he is unfit for office, Vice President Kamala Harris would take over presidential duties.

“The notion that the 25th Amendment would be appropriate here is something that most Republicans and frankly, most Americans would agree with,” he said.

Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana, Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota and Elise Stefanik of New York, chair of the House Republican Conference, echoed Johnson’s concerns.

Stefanik called Biden “unfit to be our commander in chief” and accused the Democratic Party of concealing Biden’s mental acuity. “The cover-up is over and accountability is here.”

Jacob Fischler contributed to this report.

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Congressional Dems urge a more robust Biden on the campaign trail, but few openly revolt https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/09/congressional-dems-urge-a-more-robust-biden-on-the-campaign-trail-but-few-openly-revolt/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/09/congressional-dems-urge-a-more-robust-biden-on-the-campaign-trail-but-few-openly-revolt/#respond Tue, 09 Jul 2024 12:32:51 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19690

Sen. Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, departs the Capitol on July 8, 2024 in Washington, D.C. A handful of congressional Democrats have urged President Joe Biden to drop his reelection bid following a shaky debate performance on June 27. Tester is viewed as one of the chamber’s most vulnerable Democrats. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Democrats in Congress called on President Joe Biden to prove to voters that he is up for another four years in the Oval Office, though many in interviews pledged to stick with him as the presumptive nominee as they returned to the Capitol on Monday following the Fourth of July recess.

Questions over Biden’s ability to continue with his reelection campaign dominated the nation’s capital throughout the day. Biden shipped a defiant letter to Hill Democrats and unexpectedly called in to a popular morning MSNBC show to make his case. At the White House, reporters engaged in a tense back-and-forth with Biden press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre over the president’s mental fitness.

Most significantly, the comments about Biden’s future from more than 20 lawmakers came just ahead of crucial meetings Tuesday, when Senate and House Democrats will huddle separately to work out the path ahead for Biden’s reelection bid.

The decision about whether to back Biden is especially tough for vulnerable senators, who are seeking to hold the chamber against long odds, and House members from swing districts full of Republican voters.

Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, a close confidant to Biden, defended the president when asked by States Newsroom whether Biden can steer the narrative back to policy issues and away from questions about his cognitive function, following his shaky debate performance on June 27.

“I’m really struck no one’s asked me a question about should Donald Trump drop out, should Donald Trump have a neurological exam, should Donald Trump be facing Republicans calling for him to step aside given his demonstrably immoral, unhinged conduct? He’s a convict,” Coons said, referring to the former president and presumptive GOP nominee. “In my view, Joe Biden has won our primaries, has won our confidence and deserves our support.”

Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet said Democrats must be level-headed about whether to encourage Biden to withdraw as their presumptive nominee, arguing that it is now more of a moral question than a political one.

“I think it is really important for us, as Democrats, to have an open discussion and to have an open debate to ensure that we are on a path to winning the White House, to winning the Senate, to winning the House,” Bennet said. “And I think that’s an act, not of disloyalty, but an act of loyalty.”

This year’s election is especially critical for Democrats in swing districts and purple states, and party leaders need to ensure the top of the ticket can help those people, not hinder them, said Bennet, who is not up for reelection.

Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico said she wants House Democrats to unify at Tuesday morning’s party meeting.

“My hope is that Democrats come to a reasonable consensus about the path forward, which is that we have to defeat Donald Trump,” Stansbury said.

“And right now we’ve got to work like hell to make sure that people understand the consequences of reelecting Donald Trump. He is a convicted felon, he is a perpetrator in the January 6th (attack), he is all the things that we know he is. And so while I understand the media focus on the current moment, we really need to shift back to the real danger,” Stansbury said.

The unease among congressional Democrats came after a handful of senior House Democrats on Sunday said Biden should step down on a private phone call with Democratic leaders, according to media reports. Rep. Adam Smith of Washington publicly called on Biden to exit the race Monday.

The Biden defenders

Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin said his confidence in Biden is “high,” but he understands “the reality of the challenges that he faces and we face since the debate.”

“It’s raised a national discussion about his competence and the ability to finish the campaign,” Durbin said.

The Illinois lawmaker said he has been discussing alternatives to Biden with colleagues, but so far hasn’t heard a name he’s willing to endorse publicly.

Durbin said he does worry that if Biden remains the nominee, the focus will stay on his health and not on the issues that Democrats want to be front and center in the campaign.

Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said he told voters in his home state over the Fourth of July week that he respects Biden and “never had reason to question his ability to be a patriot, put the country first. And I’m sure he’ll make a decision that does that.”

“And that decision is going to be one that I support,” he said.

Kaine said that Biden often does better talking to smaller groups of voters and suggested his campaign get him in that setting more often, if they want to alleviate concerns.

“Okay, he had a bad debate performance. But when he interacts with everyday folks who are going through challenges, talking about their aspirations and how to achieve them, that’s his strong suit,” Kaine said. “And I’ve seen him do that again and again and again. And I hope the campaign will find ways for him to do that because he does it better than anybody.”

California Rep. Ami Bera said Biden has a pretty good chance to outrun his debate performance, especially considering all the bad headlines that came out during the 2016 Trump campaign.

“Donald Trump came back from ‘Access Hollywood,’ right?” Bera said. “So there’s a long time in this campaign cycle. It was always going to be a close race, but it’s going to be hard if we’re not on the same page.”

Bera called on Biden to meet with Democrats in Congress and for the party to be honest about polling and fundraising.

“I think that the debate was not a good debate. It was one that gave a lot of folks pause,” Bera said. “But the president has said he’s committed to running. At this juncture, having a divided house doesn’t make sense. That’s why my advice is, he ought to come to the Democrats or ought to invite us to meet with him somewhere else. And we all ought to get on the same page.”

Congressional Black Caucus chair supportive of Biden

Nevada Democratic Rep. Steven Horsford, who also chairs the Congressional Black Caucus, said he decided to support Biden’s ongoing candidacy after talking with voters in his district.

“I’m a frontline member in a battleground state. I have as tough of a district as anyone here in the House and I’ve been a frontliner for the last three cycles,” Horsford said. “What my constituents have said is they voted for President Joe Biden, and they expect their representative to honor their vote and the will of the people. And there’s a process and that process should not be overturned by a few select members in Congress.”

Sen. Alex Padilla of California said he remains steadfast in his support for Biden.

“I would encourage my colleagues to take all the time and energy that we’re spending on this topic and put it into voter outreach and organizing for November,” he said.

New Mexico Sen. Ben Ray Luján said he continues to back Biden and is confident that he will win reelection in November.

“What I want to see is President Biden out and about, like we saw this weekend, talking to more people at rallies and areas and just being himself,” Luján said. “I think that he’s the best when he’s just himself and chatting with people.”

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Nanette Barragán said she supports Biden and isn’t focused on what the risk could be if voters don’t gain more confidence in his health.

“I think he can win. He has won. He has ideas. He’s got plans,” Barragán said. “When I talk to people, even people who’ve been undecided have said ‘The president has ideas and he has a track record. The other person is just going up there and telling lies.’”

Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto said that she continues to back Biden because of his record while in the White House.

“He’s been there every step of the way supporting Nevadans as we came through the pandemic, as we fight for a woman’s right to choose, as we lower costs for families, and fighting for affordable housing,” Cortez Masto said. “He’s been on the picket lines with so many in my state. So at the end of the day, I know he’s good for Nevada, and so I stand with him.”

More defenders

Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden said Democrats have “a lot of work to do” to get Biden reelected in November, but said “that’s always the case.”

And while the debate was a “rough night,” he said, there will be many more of those if Trump is reelected president in November.

“You want a lot of rough nights? You’re gonna get four years of them if you elect Donald Trump,” Wyden said.

Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, who is also chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said he will continue to back Biden.

“I support Joe Biden. He is our nominee,” Peters said. “I’m confident he will win and we’re going to be able to hold the Senate as well.”

New Jersey Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman said Democrats need to unify “to protect this democracy” and brushed aside a question about whether Biden is being honest with himself about his health.

“I don’t believe that he’s ever done anything that suggests to me that he’s a liar, like his opponent,” Watson Coleman said.

‘Conversations are healthy’

New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said she has confidence in Biden to do the right thing, but didn’t say what exactly she believes that is.

“I think the conversations are healthy,” Shaheen said. “I expect him to do what’s in the best interest of the country.”

Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey said, “the most important thing right now is to beat Donald Trump. Talking to you all is not gonna necessarily help that.”

Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who is up for reelection in Wisconsin, would not answer reporters directly when asked if she supports Biden.

“I support the Democratic ticket,” she said.

Rep. Jared Huffman of California said the Democratic Caucus meeting Tuesday, which will be private, will be “important” and that he wasn’t ready to comment further on Biden’s reelection bid.

“I support continuing this conversation and winning the election,” Huffman said.

Not answering questions

Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse refused to answer repeated questions from reporters on Capitol Hill, saying he wanted to wait to hear what his colleagues say during the Tuesday closed-door lunch.

Several senators, including Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine, quickly bypassed reporters or pointed them to written statements they’ve issued.

Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland declined to comment “because we’re still in the middle of the whole thing.”

“We’re all working for the best solution,” he said.

Senators with tough races

Vulnerable U.S. senators, who have so far been quiet, issued statements Monday addressing Biden’s ability to remain in the presidential campaign.

Sen. Jon Tester of Montana said in a written statement Biden “has got to prove to the American people—including me—that he’s up to the job for another four years,” according to media reports.

“Meanwhile, I’ll continue to do what I’ve always done: Stand up to President Biden when he’s wrong and protect our Montana way of life,” Tester said in his statement.

Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio said on the campaign trail Monday that he’s heard concerns from voters regarding Biden moving forward in the race, according to an NBC News report.

“I’m not a pundit. I’ve talked to people across Ohio. They have legitimate questions about whether the president should continue his campaign, and I’ll keep listening to people,” Brown said.

Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the president pro tempore and chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, issued a written statement highly critical of Biden remaining the nominee.

“I have a deep appreciation and strong respect for Joe, who has led a historic first term as President,” Murray wrote.

“Still, we need to see a much more forceful and energetic candidate on the campaign trail in the very near future in order for him to convince voters he is up to the job,” she said. “At this critical time for our country, President Biden must seriously consider the best way to preserve his incredible legacy and secure it for the future.”

Parkinson’s disease specialist

Administration officials defended Biden on Monday during a 75-minute, and at times tense, press briefing where reporters largely questioned Biden’s capacity to continue his reelection bid.

Jean-Pierre told reporters the president has cleared detailed neurological exams during each of his three annual physicals, the last one being in February.

The exams “have been detailed, they have been extensive,” she said, refusing to confirm names of medical specialists, for security reasons in a lengthy back-and-forth with reporters.

Journalists pressed Jean-Pierre about a Monday report in the New York Times that a Parkinson’s disease specialist from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center visited the White House eight times from July 2023 to March. Parkinson’s is a “progressive disorder that affects the nervous system and the parts of the body controlled by the nerves,” according to the Mayo Clinic.

Jean-Pierre said “thousands” of military personnel come to the White House.

“Has the president been treated for Parkinson’s? No. Is he being treated for Parkinson’s? No, he’s not. Is he taking medication for Parkinson’s? No. So those are the things I can give you full-blown answers on, but I’m not going to confirm a specialist, or any specialist, that comes to the White House,” Jean-Pierre said.

Jean-Pierre repeatedly stated that Biden receives regular “verbal check-ins” with his doctor, usually while he is exercising.

The White House released a two-page memo much later Monday that Dr. Kevin Cannard “was the neurological specialist that examined President Biden for each of his annual physicals.”

“His findings have been made public each time that I have released the results of the President’s annual physical,” wrote Dr. Kevin O’Connor, physician to the president. “President Biden has not seen a neurologist outside of his annual physical.”

Cannard has been the Neurology Consultant to the White House Medical Unit for 12 years and has held regular clinics for “active-duty members” at the White House, according to the letter.

The president is scheduled to spend most of the week with NATO leaders at the summit in Washington, D.C., and will give a solo press conference Thursday evening.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said during the press briefing “we’re not picking up any signs of (concerns) from our allies at all.”

Kirby dismissed questions that Biden’s debate performance could be illustrative of his communications with his international counterparts.

“What I saw in that debate is not reflective of the man and the leader and the commander-in-chief that I have spent many, many hours with over the last two-and-a-half years, in terms of the specificity of the way he probes, the questions he asks,” Kirby said. “Heck, just this morning he was asking me questions about a situation on the European continent that I couldn’t answer, and I told him I’d have to get back to him.”

Biden pushes back with letter, calls in to ‘Morning Joe’

In a letter to congressional Democrats, Biden wrote Monday that he is “firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump.”

He then called into MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” for a live phone interview during which he criticized Democrats urging him to exit the race as “elites.”

“I’m getting so frustrated by the elites — now I’m not talking about you guys — the elites in the party, ‘Oh, they know so much more.’ Any of these guys that don’t think I should run, run against me. Announce for president, challenge me at the convention,” he said to hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski.

When asked by Brzezinski whether he can assure Americans that he won’t have another performance like the June 27 debate, Biden responded, “Look at my career, I’ve not had many of those nights.”

The live interview came one day after Biden held a rally in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he was joined by U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, Rep. Madeleine Dean and Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Austin Davis.

Biden began the weekend with a 22-minute interview Friday night with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos during which he attributed his debate performance to a “bad episode.”

The first sign of waning Democratic support appeared July 2 when Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas became the first sitting congressional Democrat to call on Biden to withdraw from the 2024 race.

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Trump NY sentencing delayed after U.S. Supreme Court presidential immunity ruling https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/02/trump-questions-ny-guilty-verdicts-after-u-s-supreme-court-presidential-immunity-ruling/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/02/trump-questions-ny-guilty-verdicts-after-u-s-supreme-court-presidential-immunity-ruling/#respond Tue, 02 Jul 2024 19:11:56 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19523

Former U.S. President Donald Trump walks to speak to the media after being found guilty following his hush money trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 30, 2024, in New York City. Trump’s attorney has asked the court to set aside the guilty verdicts, the first for a former U.S. president, after a Monday U.S. Supreme Court ruling that granted broad presidential immunity. (Photo by Seth Wenig-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — A New York judge agreed Tuesday to delay the criminal sentencing of former President Donald Trump in the state hush money case after Trump claimed the U.S. Supreme Court’s presidential immunity decision absolves him.

New York Justice Juan Merchan, who oversaw the case, ordered the delay until Sept. 18 so the court could hear arguments on how the Supreme Court’s immunity decisionon Monday impacts Trump’s state-level convictions, according to court filings.

Trump claims his 34 New York felony guilty verdicts violate Monday’s high court ruling and should be thrown out, according to a letter to Merchan from Trump attorney Todd Blanche.

“The verdicts in this case violate the presidential immunity doctrine and create grave risks of ‘an Executive Branch that cannibalizes itself,’” Blanche wrote, adding that after further review, “it will be manifest that the trial result cannot stand.”

A Manhattan jury on May 30 found the former president guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment made to a porn star in the weeks prior to the 2016 presidential election.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg agreed in a letter to Merchan to a two-week delay in Trump’s sentencing, according to the court filings.

Trump’s team has until July 10 to file its argument. Bragg agreed to a July 24 deadline for his reply.

“Although we believe (the) defendant’s arguments to be without merit, we do not oppose his request for leave to file and his putative request to adjourn sentencing pending determination of his motion,” Bragg wrote Tuesday.

Merchan scheduled the sentencing for July 11, just days before Trump is scheduled to be officially nominated as his party’s 2024 presidential candidate at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. The new date pushes the sentencing less than two months before Election Day.

Presidential immunity opinion

The Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 decision that former U.S. presidents enjoy absolute criminal immunity for “core Constitutional” powers and are “entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts,” but are not immune from criminal prosecution for “unofficial acts.”

Trump escalated the question of presidential immunity to the Supreme Court after two lower courts denied his requests for immunity from federal criminal charges alleginghe attempted to overturn the 2020 presidential election results during his last months in the Oval Office.

The justices’ majority opinion ordered the 2020 election interference case back to the lower district court to decide whether Trump’s actions were official or unofficial acts. Those actions include Trump’s conversations with state officials about overturning election results and his social media posts claiming election fraud.

NY verdict?

Blanche asked Merchan to “set aside” Trump’s guilty verdict based on Monday’s Supreme Court ruling in Trump v. United States, according to the July 1 letter.

Blanche claimed that evidence presented by the prosecution against Trump during the New York case were likely “official acts.”

The New York state case centered on actions Trump took during his first year in office, including an Oval Office meeting to discuss financial transactions with his former personal attorney and checks that he personally signed.

“Under (Trump v. U.S.), this official-acts evidence should never have been put before the jury,” Blanche wrote.

“Moreover, as we argued previously, (Trump v. U.S.) forbids the ‘[u]se of evidence about such [official] conduct, even when an indictment alleges only unofficial conduct.’ This includes President Trump’s ‘Tweets’ and ‘public address[es],’” Blanche wrote, quoting directly from the Supreme Court opinion.

New York prosecutors presented mounds of evidence, including business records and witness testimony, during the seven-week trial illustrating that Trump repaid his former lawyer Michael Cohen for giving $130,000 to porn star Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 election. Trump later recorded the payments as “legal expenses” and increased the amount to Cohen to account for taxes and a bonus.

Testimony also revealed an Oval Office meeting Trump held with Cohen to discuss the repayment scheme, and evidence included nine checks bearing Trump’s personal signature.

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Presidential immunity extends to some official acts, Supreme Court rules in Trump case https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/01/presidential-immunity-extends-to-some-official-acts-supreme-court-rules-in-trump-case/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/07/01/presidential-immunity-extends-to-some-official-acts-supreme-court-rules-in-trump-case/#respond Mon, 01 Jul 2024 15:21:30 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19432

Former U.S President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he leaves court for the day at Manhattan Criminal Court on April 18, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Brendan McDermid-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. presidents enjoy full immunity from criminal charges for their official “core constitutional” acts, but no immunity for unofficial acts, the Supreme Court ruled Monday, sending former President Donald Trump’s election interference case back to the lower courts.

The justices left open the question of how far the boundaries of such official acts reach, possibly reshaping the contours of the American presidency.

The landmark decision by the court’s conservatives — the last of the Supreme Court term — was met with intense dismay from Democrats and allies, who described it as a setback for democracy that undermined the Constitution by putting the former president above the law.

Former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn, who was in the Capitol on Jan. 6, said Trump was responsible for the attack that day. The court’s ruling has empowered the former president, he said.

“Donald Trump is still the single greatest threat to our democracy,” Dunn said on a press call organized by the Biden-Harris campaign. “I don’t need nine Supreme Court justices to tell me that Donald Trump was responsible for Jan. 6. I was there. Those people that attacked us, they attacked us in his name.”

Trump and his allies said the ruling repudiated the prosecutions against him, which he has criticized as politically motivated. “Today’s ruling by the Court is a victory for former President Trump and all future presidents, and another defeat for President Biden’s weaponized Department of Justice and Jack Smith,” U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said in a statement.

Trump escalated his immunity claim to the nation’s highest bench after two lower courts denied his request for protection from federal criminal charges alleging he schemed to overturn the 2020 presidential results.

A federal indictment in August 2023 alleged Trump knowingly spread falsehoods to his supporters, plotting with co-conspirators to overturn results in seven states and eventually working his base into a frenzy that culminated in a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the day Congress was to certify electoral votes.

The Supreme Court’s timing of its decision likely closes the door to any chance that Trump’s election subversion case could go to trial before Election Day. The justices took up the case in February but did not hear oral arguments until April 25.

The trial court, under U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, must now grapple with whether Trump’s alleged conduct to spread false information about the 2020 election results and conspiring to overturn them qualified as official presidential action.

It is unclear how or whether such proceedings would go forward if Trump, who is already a convicted felon in New York, wins a second term.

‘Sweeping powers and duties’

In the 6-3 opinion, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote that the president is subject to criminal prosecution for unofficial acts, “like everyone else.”

“But unlike anyone else, the President is a branch of government, and the Constitution vests in him sweeping powers and duties,” Roberts wrote. “Accounting for that reality—and ensuring that the President may exercise those powers forcefully, as the Framers anticipated he would—does not place him above the law; it preserves the basic structure of the Constitution.”

In a dissenting opinion, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that the decision fundamentally alters the presidency and mocks the principle that no one is above the law.

The majority relied on “little more than its own misguided wisdom” that presidents need to be able to take decisive and quick action, to give Trump “all the immunity he asked for and more.”

“Because our Constitution does not shield a former President from answering for criminal and treasonous acts, I dissent,” she wrote.

Trump, the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee for the 2024 presidential election, declared the high court’s decision a victory. “BIG WIN FOR OUR CONSTITUTION AND DEMOCRACY. PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform immediately after the opinion’s release.

A top Democrat in Congress, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, said Monday was a “sad day for our democracy.”

“This disgraceful decision by the MAGA Supreme Court — which is

comprised of three justices appointed by Mr. Trump himself — enables the former President to weaken our democracy by breaking the law,” Schumer said in a statement following the opinion. “This decision undermines the credibility of the Supreme Court, and suggests that political influence trumps all in our courts today.”

DOJ communications immune

Roberts’ majority opinion held that Trump’s conversations with Department of Justice officials regarding the election results are immune to prosecution, but left unanswered questions about other conduct named in the indictment of Trump by Smith, the Department of Justice special counsel.

The indictment accuses Trump of leveraging the power of the Justice Department to pressure states to replace legitimate electors with false ones as a way to clinch the presidency. Trump threatened to fire those who did not cooperate, according to the indictment.

“??Certain allegations—such as those involving Trump’s discussions with the Acting Attorney General—are readily categorized in light of the nature of the President’s official relationship to the office held by that individual,” the opinion reads. “Other allegations—such as those involving Trump’s interactions with the Vice President, state officials, and certain private parties, and his comments to the general public—present more difficult questions.”

Roberts blamed the “expedition of the case” and “the lack of factual analysis by the lower courts” for leaving open what the court described as complex questions.

A federal grand jury indicted Trump on four counts Aug. 1, 2023, but the former president effectively halted all proceedings in October when he moved to dismiss the case based on presidential immunity. The justices, in December, refused a request by Smith to expedite the question of presidential immunity.

While Trump’s communications with the Justice Department are deemed official, the court returns to the lower court the question of whether Trump’s alleged pressure campaign of Vice President Mike Pence leading up to Jan. 6 falls under the president’s scope of constitutional duties.

Trump is “at least presumptively immune from prosecution” for the conversations with his vice president, Roberts wrote.

But the opinion also highlights that the vice president simultaneously serves as the president of the Senate, taking some of his or her duties —?including the certification of election results — outside the executive branch.

“It is ultimately the Government’s burden to rebut the presumption of immunity,” Roberts wrote. “We therefore remand to the District Court to assess in the first instance, with appropriate input from the parties, whether a prosecution involving Trump’s alleged attempts to influence the Vice President’s oversight of the certification proceeding in his capacity as President of the Senate would pose any dangers of intrusion on the authority and functions of the Executive Branch.”

Trump and the fake electors

Whether Trump’s communication with election officials in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin about false slates of electors qualifies as official presidential conduct must also be decided by the lower courts.

The federal indictment alleges Trump worked with co-conspirators in the seven states “to marshal individuals who would have served as [Trump’s] electors, had he won the popular vote” and submit the false outcomes to Pence and Congress.

During oral arguments in April, Trump attorney D. John Sauer asserted that it is “[a]bsolutely an official act for the president to communicate with state officials on . . . the integrity of a federal election.” The government argued the discussions amounted to a “private scheme with private actors.”

On this debate, Roberts, citing the Constitution, wrote in Monday’s opinion that “Of course, the President’s duty to ‘take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed’ plainly encompasses enforcement of federal election laws passed by Congress.”

“And the President’s broad power to speak on matters of public concern does not exclude his public communications regarding the fairness and integrity of federal elections simply because he is running for re-election,” Roberts continued.

The answer to whether those discussions and alleged plans were official or unofficial will require “a close analysis of the indictment’s extensive and interrelated allegations” by the lower court, Roberts concluded.

Similarly, the justices returned to the lower courts any determination of Trump’s tweets, White House Ellipse speech to rallygoers and Rose Garden address to rioters on Jan. 6, 2021, as official or unofficial.

“(M)ost of a President’s public communications are likely to fall comfortably within the outer perimeter of his official responsibilities,” Roberts wrote.

“There may, however, be contexts in which the President, notwithstanding the prominence of his position, speaks in an unofficial capacity—perhaps as a candidate for office or party leader,” he continued.

He urged the trial court to conduct a “factbound analysis” of who was involved in communications leading up to Jan. 6 and “what else was said contemporaneous to the excerpted communications” quoted in the indictment.

‘With fear for our democracy’

In a scathing dissent, Sotomayor, writing for the court’s three-member liberal wing that also includes Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, said the majority opinion “invents an atextual, ahistorical, and unjustifiable immunity that puts the President above the law.”

The court did not need to declare a president’s core constitutional duties —?which were not at issue in the indictment — as immune from prosecution, Sotomayor wrote. Including a discussion of core constitutional duties seemed to expand their definition, she said.

But more important, she said, was the majority’s finding of presumed immunity for all official acts, which greatly expands a president’s power to commit misdeeds with impunity.

“Whether described as presumptive or absolute, under the majority’s rule, a President’s use of any official power for any purpose, even the most corrupt, is immune from prosecution,” Sotomayor wrote. “That is just as bad as it sounds, and it is baseless.”

The majority’s view that prosecutors cannot even use a president’s official acts as evidence in a prosecution of the president for private offenses was “nonsensical,” she added.

The ruling makes the president “immune from criminal prosecution if he used the trappings of his office to violate the criminal law,” Sotomayor said.

“If the occupant of that office misuses official power for personal gain,

the criminal law that the rest of us must abide will not provide a backstop,” she wrote.

“With fear for our democracy, I dissent.”

Jackson dissent

In a separate dissent, Jackson said she fully endorsed Sotomayor’s view, and expanded on the “theoretical nuts and bolts” of what the decision would mean.

“Being immune is not like having a defense under the law,” Jackson wrote. “Rather, it means that the law does not apply to the immunized person in the first place.”

In the majority opinion, Roberts said the dissents overreacted to the ruling.

The dissents “strike a tone of chilling doom that is wholly disproportionate to what the Court actually does today,” Roberts said.

The majority only ruled that Trump’s conversations with Justice Department officials were immune from prosecution and left to lower courts to determine other questions, Roberts wrote.

Barrett argues for narrower immunity

In a concurring opinion, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the most recent of three justices Trump appointed, agreed with the bulk of the majority’s opinion.

But Barrett argued at least part of the allegations against Trump were valid and said the justices should have explicitly said so, rather than leaving the question to lower courts.

“The Court leaves open the possibility that the Constitution forbids prosecuting the President for any official conduct, instructing the lower courts to address that question in the first instance,” she wrote. “I would have answered it now.”

In particular, the allegations that involve Trump pressuring state officials to appoint alternate slates of electors should not be immune from prosecution, Barrett wrote, citing Trump’s alleged request to Arizona’s House speaker at the time, Rusty Bowers.

“A President has no legal authority—and thus no official capacity—to influence how the States appoint their electors,” Barrett wrote. “I see no plausible argument for barring prosecution of that alleged conduct.”

Court enables Trump’s threat, critics say

Legal scholars and Democratic lawmakers decried the decision as a blow to democracy.

Tom Joscelyn, one of the principal authors of the final report from the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol, told States Newsroom Monday the “court is pretending that there’s some ambiguity on what is an official act or not an official act of indictment.”

“The bottom line is the facts are not really in dispute. They’re easy for all Americans to see. We all saw how Trump pressured Vice President Pence to overturn the election. When Pence refused to do Trump’s bidding, Trump sent a mob down to the Capitol to intimidate him and hunt him,” Joscelyn said. “So this is not something where there’s some great mystery here. We all know what happened.”

U.S. Rep. Daniel Goldman, a New York Democrat who was a lead counsel for the U.S. House impeachments of Trump, including the 2021 proceeding related to Trump’s role in the Jan. 6 attack, said Trump has indicated he would use the office to seek retribution if he is returned to the White House.

“It’s not just the biggest threat in a generation,” Goldman said on the Biden campaign call. “It is far and away the greatest threat since the Civil War.”

The Democratic National Committee issued a statement saying President Joe Biden is “(t)he only thing standing between Donald Trump and his threats to our democracy … and the American people will stand once again on the side of democracy this November.”

Victory for ‘all future presidents’

Trump’s allies celebrated the decision.

House Speaker Johnson said in his statement the court “stated that presidents are entitled to immunity for their official acts. This decision is based on the obviously unique power and position of the presidency, and comports with the Constitution and common sense. As President Trump has repeatedly said, the American people, not President Biden’s bureaucrats, will decide the November 5th election.”

The far-right Heritage Foundation, the think tank behind the Project 2025 document to enshrine conservative policies should Trump win in November, also hailed the decision.

“Today, the Supreme Court recognized and breathed life into the important constitutional principle of separation of powers by providing former, current, and future presidents with absolute immunity for official acts that they undertook during their administrations,” John G. Malcolm, one of the foundation’s legal scholars, said in a statement.

“(A)nd also made it clear that the burden falls on the prosecution to demonstrate that any action taken by a former president clearly falls beyond the outer perimeter of his official responsibilities and on the side of being an unofficial act,” he said.

In a rambling post on Truth Social Monday afternoon, Trump again cheered the decision and also repeated claims that the New York state hush money case against him originated with Biden and was backed by Hungarian Jewish philanthropist George Soros — a yearslong trope repeated by the right wing.

“Today’s Historic Decision by the Supreme Court should end all of Crooked Joe Biden’s Witch Hunts against me, including the New York Hoaxes – The Manhattan SCAM cooked up by Soros backed D.A., Alvin Bragg, Racist New York Attorney General Tish James’ shameless ATTACK on the amazing business that I have built, and the FAKE Bergdorf’s ‘case,’” Trump wrote, also referring to the civil case in New York where he was found liable for sexually abusing a writer in a Bergdorf Goodman dressing room.

GOP-led states back Trump

Trump claimed absolute criminal immunity not long after a federal grand jury indicted him on allegations that he schemed to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, which he lost to Biden.

DOJ’s Smith officially charged the former president with conspiracy to defraud the United States; conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding; obstruction of, and attempt to obstruct, an official proceeding; and conspiracy against rights.

The former president argued that his acts were “official,” as they were conducted while he was still in office. He also claimed that the Constitution’s Impeachment Clause shields a president from criminal prosecution unless he or she is first impeached and convicted by Congress.

The claim led to some jaw-dropping moments in which Trump’s lawyer Sauer argued to both an appeals panel and the high court justices that presidents could not be criminally tried for ordering an assassination of a political rival unless they were first impeached by the House and convicted by the Senate, an inherently political process.

The high-profile case attracted numerous friend-of-the-court briefs.

GOP-led states lined up in support of Trump including 18 Republican state attorneys general who signed a brief in March accusing Smith of trying to “inflict maximum damage on President Biden’s political opponent before the November 2024 election.”

The attorneys general included on the brief were from Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.

Prior to the Supreme Court’s decision to take up the case, 26 former GOP officials warned of “terrifying possibilities” if the court accepted Trump’s claim of blanket immunity.

The officials, a mix of former GOP Department of Justice attorneys and lawmakers, wrote: “No Court should create a presidential immunity from federal criminal prosecution, even for official acts, that is so vast that it endangers the peaceful transfer of executive power that our Constitution mandates.”

This story has been updated.

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U.S. Supreme Court ruling on obstruction law helps cases of Jan. 6 defendants https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/28/u-s-supreme-court-ruling-on-obstruction-law-helps-cases-of-jan-6-defendants/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/28/u-s-supreme-court-ruling-on-obstruction-law-helps-cases-of-jan-6-defendants/#respond Fri, 28 Jun 2024 16:08:38 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19296

Thousands of former President Donald Trump’s supporters storm the U.S. Capitol building following a “Stop the Steal” rally on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — A former Pennsylvania police officer who joined the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol that delayed the certification of the 2020 presidential election results cannot be charged with obstructing an official proceeding unless a lower court finds otherwise, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday.

The ruling throws into question the cases of potentially hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants who faced the same charge, as well as a portion of Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith’s four-count indictment alleging former President Donald Trump schemed to overturn the 2020 presidential election.

In a 6-3 opinion, the justices, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, wrote that the subsection in question of an early 2000s obstruction law can only be applied to tampering with physical records.

“To prove a violation of Section 1512(c)(2), the Government must establish that the defendant impaired the availability or integrity for use in an official proceeding of records, documents, objects, or as we earlier explained, other things used in the proceeding, or attempted to do so,” Roberts wrote.

“The judgment of the D. C. Circuit is therefore vacated, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion,” Roberts wrote.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson delivered a concurring opinion.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan, dissented.

Impact on Jan. 6 defendants, Trump

The ruling has the potential to affect more than 355 Jan. 6 defendants who were charged with the same felony statute, which carries a fine and not more than 20 years in prison.

Dozens, including leaders of the extremist Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, have already been sentenced on the charge, according to the Department of Justice.

The case, Fischer v. United States, centered on whether Jan. 6 defendant Joseph W. Fischer broke the obstruction law when he joined the mob that breached the U.S. Capitol and delayed Congress, and Vice President Mike Pence, from certifying the 2020 presidential election results that declared Democrat Joe Biden the winner.

Trump also faces the obstruction charge as part of his four-count federal indictment that alleges he worked with others to overturn the election results in seven states, pressured Pence to join him and whipped his base into a frenzy that culminated in the Jan. 6 attack.

Trump will almost certainly challenge the charge, as his legal team has already argued he is completely immune to it.

The obstruction provision examined by the high court is contained in section 1512 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, enacted after the 2001 Enron accounting scandal.

The provision targets “whoever corruptly (1) alters, destroys, mutilates, or conceals a record, document, or other object, or attempts to do so, with the intent to impair the object’s integrity or availability for use in an official proceeding; or (2) otherwise obstructs, influences, or impedes any official proceeding, or attempts to do so.”

Physical evidence

Significant time during April’s oral arguments centered on whether the second portion of the statute hinged on the first clause, meaning the law could only be applied if physical evidence was involved.

The government argued the two parts are separate and that Fischer, who sent texts leading up to the riot and is shown on police camera footage inside the Capitol, intended to disrupt an official proceeding of Congress.

Fischer’s team argued that he didn’t actually enter the Capitol until Congress had already paused the proceeding, and that he didn’t stay very long.

A lower federal court agreed last year with Fischer’s motion to dismiss the felony charge.

A federal appeals panel in Washington, D.C., did not. Judge Florence Y. Pan — who also sat on the panel in Trump’s presidential immunity appeal — wrote in the lead opinion that the statute is “unambiguous” in its meaning of what constitutes obstructing an official proceeding.

The obstruction charge is not the only count brought against Fischer after his participation in the Jan. 6 riot.

The original indictment against him also included charges of civil disorder, assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers, entering and remaining in a restricted building, disorderly conduct, and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in a Capitol building.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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Delayed Supreme Court ruling makes Trump trial on 2020 charges unlikely before election https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/26/delayed-supreme-court-ruling-makes-trump-trial-on-2020-charges-unlikely-before-election/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/26/delayed-supreme-court-ruling-makes-trump-trial-on-2020-charges-unlikely-before-election/#respond Wed, 26 Jun 2024 19:50:53 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19206

Dave McCormick, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Pennsylvania, speaks alongside the Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump, at a campaign rally at the Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on whether presidents enjoy total criminal immunity, delaying one of the most consequential legal decisions in U.S. history and likely closing the door on former President Donald Trump facing his federal election interference trial before November.

Trump, the presumed Republican presidential nominee who is entangled in several criminal cases, already faces a July sentencing for a New York state conviction on 34 felonies for falsifying business records ahead of the 2016 election.

Supreme Court justices heard oral arguments in the immunity case on the last day of their term, April 25, and have held the case in their hands since late February.

Opinions are scheduled to be released on Thursday and Friday, but the court does not disclose which ones in advance. Trump is set to debate President Joe Biden on Thursday night at CNN studios in Atlanta, with the campaign for the presidency in full swing.

The question before the court is whether U.S. presidents are immune from criminal prosecution for any official acts taken while in the Oval Office.

Trump pressed the matter to the Supreme Court after a lower court in January denied his claim that he should not face federal charges that allege he schemed to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss by knowingly spreading falsehoods, conspiring to create false slates of electors in several states and egging on supporters who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. 2021.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith urged the Supreme Court in December to leapfrog the appellate court level and expedite a ruling on presidential immunity. At the time, Trump’s trial for the election subversion charges had still been set for March 4. The justices declined Smith’s request.

‘De facto’ immunity

Critics of the Supreme Court accuse the bench’s conservative justices, including three Trump appointees, of purposely delaying the ruling to keep Trump out of the courtroom before November’s election.

“By preventing (a) trial before the election, they have de facto provided him with immunity, regardless of what the substance of the decision may eventually hand down,” Michael Podhorzer, president of the Defending Democracy Project, told States Newsroom Wednesday.

The anti-Trump advocacy organization has been closely monitoring the former president’s legal cases.

Podhorzer blamed the justices for not taking up the case in December.

“Then they waited as long as they possibly could to now rule on it, and they created this crisis. They are basically putting their thumb on the scale in this election,” he said.

Defining ‘official acts’

The justices appeared skeptical in April as Trump attorney D. John Sauer argued a broad definition for what constitutes a president’s “official acts.”

Under his view nearly everything done during a presidential term would count as an official act, including Trump’s efforts to interfere with Congress’ certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

In jaw-dropping moments throughout Trump’s appeal, Sauer argued before Supreme Court justices and a lower appellate panel that presidents could order the assassination of a political rival without facing legal accountability — that is, if he or she is not first impeached by the U.S. House and convicted by the Senate.

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument contend that allowing criminal prosecution of former presidents will open a “Pandora’s box” of political targeting by opponents.

They also accuse Smith of political interference for bringing charges against Trump as he eyed a second term. Smith announced the four-count indictment in early August 2023.

Meanwhile opponents of such immunity, including several who served in previous Republican administrations, warn of “terrifying possibilities” should a president be free from the threat of criminal liability.

Several conservative justices hinted that the case should be returned to the lower courts, where a clear line between official acts and private conduct can be drawn.

That could eat up additional weeks or months, further diminishing any slight possibility that Trump’s election interference trial would happen prior to the November election.

Podhorzer said a further delay sets up a “showdown between the ordinary function of the criminal justice system, which would have Trump go on trial, (and) the normal operation of our presidential elections in which there would be no encumbrance on Trump’s ability to campaign.”

All proceedings at the lower court level have been put on hold until the Supreme Court issues its decision.

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Biden to pardon vets discharged for same-sex relationships https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/26/biden-to-pardon-vets-discharged-for-same-sex-relationships/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/26/biden-to-pardon-vets-discharged-for-same-sex-relationships/#respond Wed, 26 Jun 2024 09:00:52 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19185

Sailors decorate the mess decks in observance of Pride month aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham in the Atlantic Ocean on June 16, 2022. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Theoplis Stewart II)

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will pardon U.S. military veterans who were discharged or convicted under military law for consensual same-sex relations, the administration announced Wednesday.

The White House could not provide an exact number of veterans who will be pardoned, but the administration estimates thousands were convicted over several decades and may be eligible.

The convictions were enforced under a military law that prohibited certain types of sex from May 1951 to December 2013.

When asked why Biden chose now to pardon the veterans, senior administration officials told reporters on a call Tuesday that Biden is “committed to doing everything he can to ensure that the culture of the armed forces reflect the values that make us an exceptional nation and to maintaining the finest fighting force in the world.”

The officials continued that Biden is “taking this historic step to ensure that we live up to our sacred obligation to care for all service members, veterans and their families.”

Biden said in a statement Wednesday that he is “righting an historic wrong by using my clemency authority to pardon many former service members who were convicted simply for being themselves.”

“Our Nation’s service members stand on the frontlines of freedom, and risk their lives in order to defend our country,” Biden said in the written statement.

“Despite their courage and great sacrifice, thousands of LGBTQI+ service members were forced out of the military because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Some of these patriotic Americans were subject to court-martial, and have carried the burden of this great injustice for decades.”

Administration officials said guidance will be posted on the Department of Defense website for veterans to apply for proof they are eligible for pardon under the proclamation.

Veterans can then use the certificate of proof to apply to their respective military branch for a discharge upgrade.

Military law and consensual sex

Biden’s Wednesday proclamation effectuates the pardons for any veterans, alive or deceased, who were discharged or convicted in military court under Article 125 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice for consensual sexual relationships.

While the law prohibited forceful sex acts with minors and animals, Article 125 also banned “unnatural carnal copulation” — defined as oral or anal sex — with another person of the same or opposite sex.

The military code was updated in 2013 to reflect that only forceful, not consensual, sexual acts could be penalized.

Administration officials acknowledged that Article 125 is not the only military law that targeted LGBTQ+ service members.

Senior administration officials told reporters that while the proclamation is narrowly focused on convictions under Article 125, the Department of Justice has been instructed to flag any other clemency applications for veterans penalized for sexual orientation or gender identity under other military statutes.

The U.S. military has a decades-long history of anti-LGBTQ+ policies. The armed forces outright banned gay and lesbian service members during World War II.

In 1993, President Bill Clinton set a “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, essentially allowing LGBTQ+ members to serve in the military, so long as they didn’t make their sexual orientation public.

The policy was repealed under President Barack Obama.

Days after his inauguration, Biden issued an executive order overturning a ban on transgender service members.

Pardon power

The Constitution empowers the president with several ways to forgive crimes against the United States. The president can fully pardon, or lift, punishments without qualification for individuals or groups of people; commute, or reduce, an offender’s sentence; or issue a reprieve, basically delaying an offender’s sentence.

Clemency applications are processed through the Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney.

Biden issued sweeping pardons in October 2022 and December 2023 for marijuana offenses.

The Justice Department posts clemency statistics for each presidential administration dating back to William McKinley at justice.gov/pardon/clemency-statistics.

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Calm, conservative, confident: What GOP senators want in Trump’s vice presidential pick https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/25/calm-conservative-confident-what-gop-senators-want-in-trumps-vice-presidential-pick/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/25/calm-conservative-confident-what-gop-senators-want-in-trumps-vice-presidential-pick/#respond Tue, 25 Jun 2024 15:05:08 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=19153

Former President Donald Trump shakes hands with Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, on June 13, 2024 in Washington, D.C., as Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, left, seen as a possible vice presidential pick, and other Republicans look on. Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, was visiting Capitol Hill to meet with Senate Republicans and participate in additional meetings. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Republican members of the U.S. Senate striving for a takeover of their chamber in the November elections have a wish list for what they’d like to see in Donald Trump’s running mate.

A “little calmer” than Trump. Confident. Conservative. Military experience. Good relationships with senators. Ready to take over as chief executive if needed, they told States Newsroom in interviews.

Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, has held off on revealing his pick. But he’s dropped tantalizing compliments about a few of the short-list candidates, producing non-stop headlines about the veepstakes in advance of the Republican National Convention next month.

So far, Trump hasn’t indicated a clear favorite, leading to incessant speculation about what characteristics he’s looking for in his second-in-command this time around, the person who will head up the GOP ticket with him in what’s likely to be a close election.

In 2016, Trump selected Indiana’s Mike Pence, in part to sway evangelical Christians who were skeptical about Trump’s moral character.

Trump is seeking a second term in office as a convicted felon found guilty on 34 counts in New York for falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to an adult film star ahead of the 2016 election. He’s also facing federal charges for seeking to overturn the results of the 2020 election and has cast aside Pence after his former vice president refused to take part in the scheme.

That, however, hasn’t diminished the number of GOP lawmakers and former presidential hopefuls jostling to join his ticket.

Trump’s list of vice presidential candidates reportedly includes North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Arkansas U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, Florida U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, former South Carolina Gov. and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, former GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy, Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, South Carolina U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, New York U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik and Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance.

Republican senators, including some thought to be in the running to be tapped as the veep candidate, met with Trump on June 13 to map campaign strategy and portray unity.

Trump told NBC News on Saturday his pick “most likely” will be at Thursday night’s debate with President Joe Biden in Atlanta.

Confidence and a coalition

Several Republican senators interviewed by States Newsroom offered suggestions for what traits might be most helpful for Trump in a vice president during a potential second term.

West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito said she’s hoping to see a vice presidential pick who can bring confidence and a wider GOP coalition to the table.

“I think you want somebody who has broad knowledge, not just national, but international, (you want) decisiveness, and somebody who’s got leadership that you could actually see taking the reins of the presidency, somebody who has conservative principles on the Republican side and is a proven leader,” Capito said.

“I would imagine for President Trump, it’s going to be somebody that brings a broader constituency to him,” Capito said, adding “and is probably a little calmer than he is.”

‘Good relationships across the spectrum’

Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina said Trump would “benefit from somebody who, in the right setting, is providing a lot of good upward feedback, supporting the president’s agenda.”

The former and possibly future president would also gain from a pick who is “well studied on the issues,” and if it’s a senator, “a person with good relationships across the spectrum would help,” Tillis said.

“We’re probably going to have a tight margin, so if you think about maybe somebody who has past relationships with people in the House, good relationships with the Republican conference. I mean, we’re gonna have some tough votes,” Tillis said.

For example, Congress faces a massive tax code fight next year as several provisions in the 2017 Republican tax law are set to expire. Tillis recalled the internal GOP debate in 2017 “wasn’t a cakewalk.”

“We had to work to get Republican support,” Tillis said. “So having somebody that naturally has that chemistry, you know, whether or not you’ve worked on legislation, or you just have a good relationship going in. If I were in President Trump’s position, that’d be a key factor.”

Congress will also need to address the debt limit next year, a debate that carries significant economic consequences, both domestically and around the globe.

A stint in the military

Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst — a top member of the Armed Services Committee and a retired lieutenant colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard — said she “would love to see somebody that does have foreign relations or military policy experience.”

“I think that would be key, to have someone that’s young and enthusiastic and would be able to fill the role of our next president as well,” Ernst said.

Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran said that Trump might want to pick someone whom voters feel confident can follow him as the leader of the Republican Party.

“I’m not sure that vice presidential nominees have a lot of impact, influence on how people vote,” Moran said. “But I would say that this may be a year in which that matters — (given the) age of candidates. And so who might follow is probably of interest to people. And I would say that the best qualification is somebody who’d be a great president.”

Indiana Sen. Mike Braun, who is likely to become his home state’s next governor, said Trump needs someone who thinks like him politically, so the two don’t differ on policy issues, as well as someone ready to become president if required.

“I think someone’s going to have to be on the same wavelength politically, for sure,” Braun said. “I think I’ve heard him say that he wants somebody ready to step into the role if necessary. I think the loyalty factor is something he’s always stressed.”

Alabama Sen. Katie Britt said that no matter who Trump picks off his short list, Republicans will win back the Oval Office in November.

“Every senator on the list is outstanding,” Britt said. “And I’ll be excited about the good things that we’re going to be able to do with him back in office and us in control of the Senate.”

When asked his opinion of Trump’s VP short list, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa said, “I haven’t seen anybody on the list that I would object to.”

Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy said he wouldn’t comment on specific contenders, but added “all the names I’ve heard mentioned seem to be good people.”

“But what counts is what President Trump thinks, and I don’t have the slightest idea who he’s gonna pick,” Kennedy said.

A sitting senator

Republican senators who spoke to States Newsroom appeared mostly unfazed by the possibility that a vice presidential pick could be from among their ranks — even if that lowers what could be a very narrow majority in the Senate come January.

Capito said she thinks a Republican majority will likely remain safe even if Trump chooses one of her colleagues as his running mate.

“I think the ones he’s talking about are from pretty red states, but you know, you’re always concerned about that,” Capito said. “But I think it would be great to have a colleague who was in the Senate with me be our vice president.”

Braun said that Trump might want to consider the polling of several key races for the Senate before picking his nominee.

“I think that could be a consideration,” Braun said. “You take that risk off the table.”

When asked whether a VP pick from the Senate could weaken or upset a GOP majority, Sen. Rick Scott of Florida said, “I’m sure Trump will take that into consideration.”

Tillis said he is not concerned about Trump’s VP pick threatening a Republican Senate majority, and he speculated that Trump may even pull from the upper chamber when choosing his Cabinet, should he be elected.

“I think the replacement protocol doesn’t make it a significant issue,” Tillis said.

Grassley echoed Tillis. “Are we talking about Ohio, Florida, South Carolina? That’s it. I don’t think you’d worry about that,” he said.

Forty-five states require the governor to appoint someone to fill a vacant U.S. Senate seat, and 37 of those states fill the vacancy with the chosen appointment until the next statewide election, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.

The remaining states — Kentucky, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Wisconsin — require vacant Senate seats to be filled by a special election.

All of Trump’s picks from the Senate are from states with Republican governors.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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Trump claims ‘great unity’ after talks with congressional GOP https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/14/trump-claims-great-unity-after-talks-with-congressional-gop/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/14/trump-claims-great-unity-after-talks-with-congressional-gop/#respond Fri, 14 Jun 2024 15:21:59 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18806

Former President Donald Trump is applauded by U.S. Senate Republicans before giving remarks to the press at the National Republican Senatorial Committee headquarters on June 13, 2024. Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, visited Capitol Hill to meet with House and Senate Republicans. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — In his first visit to Capitol Hill since leaving office in January 2021, former President Donald J. Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee,?mapped campaign strategy with GOP lawmakers and projected party unity?ahead of the November elections.

Trump said the meetings brought “great unity.”

Surrounded by Republican senators who were smiling and applauding him after a meeting at the National Republican Senatorial Committee headquarters near the Capitol, Trump said “we have one thing in mind and that’s making our country great.”

The positive reception from GOP leaders showed Trump’s standing in the party improved since the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection that saw a mob of Trump supporters attack the U.S. Capitol in an effort to block Congress from certifying the electoral votes from the 2020 presidential election.

The U.S. House impeached Trump – for the second time – for his role in the attack, though the Senate vote fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to convict him.

Trump’s visit Thursday came two weeks after he was convicted on 34 felony counts in New York for falsifying business records to cover up a hush-money payment to a porn star before the 2016 election. Republicans have denounced the verdict as a weaponization of the justice system.

Trump met with House and Senate Republicans separately. Lawmakers exiting their respective meetings said they were unified behind the former president and they discussed a legislative strategy for a potential second term, such as reinstating Trump-era immigration policies.

“He understands he needs a majority in both bodies to have a successful presidency and he is determined to do that,” Rep. Frank Lucas of Oklahoma said.

Trump has made immigration a core campaign issue – as he did in 2016 – and has promised to not only reinstate his policies at the southern border, but to carry out mass deportations.?

Democrats have remained on the offense on immigration policy, with the White House enacting an executive order that limits asylum claims at the southern border and the Senate failing on a second attempt to pass a border security bill. Vulnerable U.S. Senate Democrats in Montana, Ohio and Pennsylvania are aiming for reelection.

Trump urges ‘careful’ abortion talk

The meetings occurred on the day the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on another hot-button issue for the GOP. In a much-anticipated decision, the court unanimously upheld access to mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, under current prescribing guidelines.

House GOP lawmakers leaving the early meeting said that Trump did not comment on the court’s ruling.

But New York Rep. Marc Molinaro said that the former president advised Republicans that they “have to be very careful about” how they talk about abortion and that “is to show respect for women and the choices that they have to make.”

Just days ago, Trump promised to work “side by side” with a religious organization that wants abortion “eradicated.” Trump has yet to release his policy stances on contraception and access to medication abortion, a two-drug regimen approved for up to 10 weeks gestation.

Access to reproductive health care, including contraception and IVF, has become a central campaign theme for Democrats.

The Senate tried to pass legislation last week that would have provided protections for access to contraception, but most Republicans voted against it. The Senate also took a procedural vote Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, but it failed in the face of Republican opposition.

Birthday, baseball and an ‘aggressive agenda’

GOP House members leaving their meeting reported singing “Happy Birthday” to Trump, whose 78th birthday is Friday.

Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee said the conference presented Trump with a baseball and bat from the previous night’s Congressional Baseball Game, a charity event which Republicans won 31-11.

Burchett said they wanted to give him the memorabilia because “he’s the leader of our party, and the Republicans destroyed the Democrats, as we should do on Election Day.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana told reporters after the meeting that Trump “brought an extraordinary amount of energy and excitement and enthusiasm this morning.”

House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, of New York, said Trump was “warmly welcomed” and that GOP lawmakers had a “very successful” meeting with him.

“We are 100% unified behind his candidacy,” said Stefanik, a contender on Trump’s short list for vice presidential picks.

Johnson told reporters that Republicans have “an extraordinary stable of candidates” and that the party is “headed for a great November.”

Rep. Kat Cammack of Florida made similar remarks, and said that she believes “momentum is on our side.”

“We’re very, very motivated, our base is motivated and everyday Americans are motivated,” Cammack said.

She added that the former president is working to grow the Republican party.

“It’s pretty clear that November for us is gonna be incredible,” she said.

Stakes in November

Johnson said that he’s confident Trump will win the White House and that Republicans will flip the Senate and grow their majority in the House.

Control of each chamber of Congress is expected to be closely fought in the November elections, and it’s possible that the House and Senate will continue to be split between the parties, but political observers see the prospect of a big switch.

If current trends continue through the year, it’s possible that the Senate could swing from Democratic to Republican control, and the House could flip from the GOP to Democrats.

House Democrats only need a gain of five seats to regain power and Senate Republicans only need two, or one if Trump wins the presidential race. Republicans have an easy opportunity to pick up a Senate seat in West Virginia after Joe Manchin III, a centrist Democrat, decided not seek reelection.

“We will be working on a very aggressive agenda to fix all the great problems facing this country right now,” Johnson said.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia said that Trump is focused on increasing the GOP majority in the House. Because of the razor-thin majority that Republicans hold in the chamber, Johnson has often had to rely on Democrats to pass government funding bills along with foreign aid to Ukraine and Israel.

Insult to convention city

Republicans are gearing up for the party’s national convention in Milwaukee in mid-July, where they will officially nominate Trump as their 2024 presidential nominee and a yet-to-be-named vice presidential pick as well.

Trump is scheduled to be sentenced in New York four days before the convention begins.

The former president did not mention a running mate during his meeting with GOP senators, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida said.

Trump told lawmakers Thursday that Milwaukee is a “horrible” city, according to Punchbowl News.?

Wisconsin Republicans had varying interpretations of the remark, with Rep. Derrick Van Orden saying Trump was talking about crime in the city and Rep. Bryan Steil denying that Trump even made the comment.

Trump is scheduled to visit southeastern Wisconsin next week, for a campaign rally in Racine on Tuesday.

Key to Senate majority?

Following the meeting Trump had with senators, Alabama’s Tommy Tuberville offered a handful of words to characterize the meeting: “Unification. Leadership.”

But not all Senate Republicans were in attendance. Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski and Maine’s Susan Collins did not attend due to scheduling conflicts, according to the Washington Examiner.

Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said that despite those absences, Republicans are still unified in their support of Trump.

Even those senators who have been at odds with the former president, such as Utah’s Mitt Romney and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, attended, which South Carolina’s Lindsey Graham felt was beneficial.

“We realize that his success is our success,” Graham said of Trump. “The road to the Senate majority is also the road to the White House.”

Dismissing guilty verdict

Johnson of Louisiana said Trump’s guilty verdict in New York has “backfired fantastically,” as the party boasted of a fundraising bump after “the terrible, bogus trial in Manhattan.”

Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall made a similar argument that the verdict benefited Trump.

“It’s helping him,” he said, noting that after the May 30 verdict, the Trump campaign raised $141 million in May.

Sen. Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming said “there was an absolute meeting of minds” that the verdict was a “sham.”

“We are so sorry that he has to endure that,” Lummis told States Newsroom on her walk from the meeting back to the Capitol.

Trump is also charged in three other criminal cases, including federal charges that allege he knowingly spread false information after the 2020 presidential election, pressuring Vice President Mike Pence to join the scheme to overturn the results and whipping his base into a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The Supreme Court is set to decide in the coming weeks whether Trump enjoys presidential immunity, as he claims, from those charges.

Former Rep. Liz Cheney, who was the ranking member of the House Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol, criticized Republican lawmakers for meeting with Trump.

She reposted a New York Times photograph of McConnell shaking Trump’s hand Thursday on X and wrote “Mitch McConnell knows Trump provoked the violent attack on our Capitol and then ‘watched television happily’ as his mob brutally beat police officers and hunted the Vice President.”

“Trump and his collaborators will be defeated, and history will remember the shame of people like @LeaderMcConnell who enabled them,” Cheney, a Wyoming Republican who lost her reelection bid in a 2022 Republican primary, wrote.

Dems blast return

The Biden campaign has also latched onto Trump’s return to Capitol Hill, releasing statements from various Democrats who led investigations into the insurrection and criticized the former president’s return.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a statement on behalf of the Biden campaign that “the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime.”

“With his pledges to be a dictator on day one and seek revenge against his political opponents, Donald Trump comes to Capitol Hill today with the same mission of dismantling our democracy,” she said.

Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson, former chair of the House Jan. 6 committee, criticized Republicans for allowing Trump “to waltz in here when it’s known he has no regard for democracy.”

“He still presents the same dire threat to our democracy that he did three years ago — and he’d be wise to head back to Mar-a-Lago and await his sentencing,” Thompson, of Mississippi, said in a statement on behalf of the Biden campaign.

Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, who served as an impeachment manager for Trump’s role in the insurrection, said in a statement on behalf of the Biden campaign that “Donald Trump is a one-man crime wave and a clear and present danger to the U.S. Constitution and the American people.”

Lia Chien contributed to this report.?

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U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/12/u-s-house-gop-votes-to-hold-attorney-general-in-contempt-in-dispute-over-audio-recording/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/12/u-s-house-gop-votes-to-hold-attorney-general-in-contempt-in-dispute-over-audio-recording/#respond Wed, 12 Jun 2024 22:33:36 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18753

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Biden’s interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Biden’s assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

U.S. Rep. James Comer speaks during the 143rd Fancy Farm Picnic, Aug. 5, 2023. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Austin Anthony)

“Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas,” Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. “House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.”

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as “deeply disappointing” and accusing House Republicans of turning “a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.”

“Today’s vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Department’s need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees,” Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hur’s interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are “not sufficient.”

“We’re in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, we’re entitled to the best evidence, and that’s why we want the tapes,” Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a “history of changing transcripts,” seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

“The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke,” Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a “madcap wild goose chase.”

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a “verbatim” transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

“Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress – evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor – is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape?” Raskin continued. “… They literally don’t even know what they’re looking for anymore.”

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunter’s foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskin’s accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what they’re after: “We’re looking for equal treatment under the law,” he said.

“The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president,” Jordan said.

“They told us ‘we’re going to operate independently of the White House’ … OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Biden’s not being (charged),” Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a “sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory,” a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Biden’s time as vice president. The documents were found at the president’s office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, it’s becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trump’s Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

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Pair of U.S. House Dems add to chorus calling for Alito, Thomas recusals https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/12/pair-of-u-s-house-dems-add-to-chorus-calling-for-alito-thomas-recusals/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/12/pair-of-u-s-house-dems-add-to-chorus-calling-for-alito-thomas-recusals/#respond Wed, 12 Jun 2024 15:33:18 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18741

The U.S. Supreme Court pictured on September 28, 2020. (Al Drago/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Democrats echoed Senate colleagues Tuesday in calling for U.S. Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito to recuse themselves from Jan. 6 cases, and for congressional Republicans to support passing an enforceable ethics code for the entire bench.

Reps. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, and vice ranking member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez brought together fellow progressive Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse with experts and advocates for a roundtable discussion on the “ethics crisis” facing the nation’s highest court.

Recent?revelations?of flags sympathetic to the “Stop the Steal” movement flown outside Alito’s home have reignited simmering concerns over justices’ conflicts of interest as they decide politically divisive issues. This year, justices are set to rule on access to the abortion pill and whether former President Donald Trump enjoys immunity from criminal charges alleging 2020 election interference, among other cases.

Raskin and Ocasio-Cortez delivered searing remarks, admonishing decades of court actions beginning with the 5-4 decision in 2000’s?Bush v. Gore?that ultimately decided the presidential victory for George W. Bush. The lawmakers continued on to recent events that Ocasio-Cortez characterized as “corruption that is almost comical.”

“The Supreme Court as it stands today is delegitimizing itself through his conduct,” the New York Democrat continued in her opening statement. “Americans are losing fundamental rights in the process — reproductive health care, civil liberties, voting rights, the right to organize clean air and water because the court has been captured and corrupted by money and extremism.”

Raskin, of Maryland, said the “highest court in the land today has the lowest ethical standards.”

In his opening statement, Raskin characterized the court as “the judicial arm of the Republican Party,” drawing a throughline from Bush’s appointments to the bench of Chief Justice John Roberts and Alito to Trump’s appointments of conservative Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

“Now this right-wing corporate court, carefully designed to destroy Roe v. Wade and marry right-wing religion to untrammeled corporate power, has been demolishing women’s abortion rights and contraceptive rights, civil rights law, voting rights law, civil liberties, environmental law, workers’ rights and consumer rights, enshrining government power over people and corporate power over government,” Raskin said.

Raskin and Ocasio-Cortez’s roundtable came less than a week after progressive House Reps. Pramila Jayapal of Washington and Hank Johnson of Georgia?rallied?with activists outside the Supreme Court urging an ethics overhaul.

That same day, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky?posted?to X: “As the Supreme Court term ends, the Left is once again bullying Justices who refuse to take orders from liberal Senators. The Court should take any action it deems appropriate to reprimand unethical conduct by members of its Bar. And Justices should continue to pay this harassment no mind.”

‘Keep the pressure on’

Whitehouse told Democratic members of the Oversight and Accountability Committee that Senate Democrats are shining a “heavy spotlight on the mischief.”

The Rhode Island Democrat has championed an ethics bill titled the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal and Transparency Act, which?advanced?out of committee along party lines in July 2023 but has not received a floor vote.

“We need to keep the pressure on until they join the rest of the government in having a real ethics code with real fact finding and some prospects for comparing the facts that are found to the rules,” Whitehouse said.

The bill was introduced during the fallout from a 2023 ProPublica investigation?revealing?that Justice Clarence Thomas received gifts from and traveled with a major Republican donor.

A recent?analysis?by watchdog group Fix The Court illustrated that over the last 20 years the value of gifts received and likely received by Thomas dwarfs that of his colleagues.

Whitehouse again pressed the court in May after the New York Times?published?that an upside-down U.S. flag hung outside Alito’s Alexandria, Virginia, home just days after former Trump’s supporters breached the Capitol. The Times later revealed another flag carried by Jan. 6 insurrectionists flew outside the justice’s New Jersey beach house.

Along with Sen. Dick Durbin, who chairs the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Whitehouse?requested?a meeting with Roberts to urge Alito to recuse himself from cases related to the Jan. 6 attack. Roberts declined, and Alito?responded?to the senators, declaring he would not recuse himself.

“Thank you Sen. Whitehouse for always flying the flag right side up,” Raskin said.

The court ‘will decide all of this for all of us’

Kate Shaw, University of Pennsylvania law professor, told the lawmakers that the court is “conducting itself in ways that are fundamentally inconsistent with basic separation-of-powers principles that are a core feature of our democracy.”

“This is crystal clear right now, as it is every June, as the country waits with bated breath to learn whether and how the court will upend huge swaths of American law,” she continued.

“This year questions include whether and how the court could further erode the capacity of agencies to regulate in ways that protect our health and safety and well being,” and major firearms decisions, Shaw said.

The court will also decide whether laws on the books will “be used to hold accountable individuals charged with the attack on the Capitol, including the former president,” Shaw said. “And the court is asserting that it and essentially it alone will decide all of this for all of us.”

Over two dozen opinions are expected from the Supreme Court by the end of June.

Two decisions related to two Jan. 6 cases remain pending — one involving a former police officer who breached the Capitol and is?seeking?to have an obstruction charge dropped. The decision could affect hundreds of Jan. 6 defendant cases, and the 2020 election interference case against Trump, who faces the same obstruction charge.

The court is also?set to decide?whether Trump is immune from four federal criminal counts alleging he schemed to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and knowingly spread false information that whipped his supporters into rioting on Jan. 6.

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Bipartisan U.S. House caucus planning for post-war Middle East https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/11/bipartisan-u-s-house-caucus-planning-for-post-war-middle-east/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/11/bipartisan-u-s-house-caucus-planning-for-post-war-middle-east/#respond Tue, 11 Jun 2024 18:48:35 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18731

A police officer walks near a police station that was destroyed after a battle between Israeli troops and Hamas militants on Oct. 8, 2023, in Sderot, Israel. A U.S. House caucus formed this month with the goal of planning for the region after the Israel-Hamas war ends. (Footage by Amir Levy/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of U.S. House lawmakers has launched an effort to spur planning for what the Gaza Strip will look like the “day after” the Israel-Hamas war, even as agreement over a U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal remains elusive.

Democratic Reps. Brad Schneider of Illinois and David Trone of Maryland, along with Republicans Ann Wagner of Missouri and Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, formed the Gaza Working Group with the goal of involving Congress in discussions about the future of Israeli-Palestinian relations, according to a joint press release sent to reporters Tuesday.

The four leaders formed the Abraham Accords Caucus in 2022 following the 2020?agreement?to normalize relations between Israel and the three Arab states of Bahrain, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates. The companion caucus in the U.S. Senate is led by Democratic Sens. Jacky Rosen of Nevada and Cory Booker of New Jersey, alongside GOP Sens. James Lankford of Oklahoma and Joni Ernst of Iowa.

“As leaders of the Abraham Accords Caucus, we have an obligation to envision and work towards a future in which Israel — and all of the Middle East — is free of the evil that is Hamas,” McMorris Rodgers said in a statement.

Trone called the working group a “promising start.”

“Moving forward, we must work together to ensure Hamas is no longer in power by establishing a free and fair democracy in Gaza, secure the safety of Israel and surrounding nations and provide hope and diplomacy for their people,” he said in a statement.

The group did not detail or endorse a specific plan for the Gaza Strip after the conflict, but rather aims to “convene meetings to engage” executive branch officials, diplomats and experts to “deliberate and ask questions regarding pertinent issues.”

The group’s first meeting was a “frank, off-the-record exchange” with Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Herzog, according to the joint release. The group met with Herzog on June 4, according to Schneider’s spokesperson.

Wagner said stabilizing the region is important to maintaining a “united front to counter Iran and its proxies.”

“It cannot be the United States’ job to rebuild Gaza, but together with Israel we can choose who sits at that table,” Wagner said in a statement.

Ceasefire talks

The lawmakers’ announcement comes as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in the region for his eighth visit since the start of the conflict, this time to urge agreement on the latest cease-fire?proposal?outlined by President Joe Biden on May 31.

Blinken?told?reporters in Tel Aviv Tuesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “reaffirmed” his commitment to the proposal.

“So everyone’s vote is in, except for one vote, and that’s Hamas. And that’s what we wait for,” Blinken said.

Fourteen nations on the 15-member United Nations Security Council, including the U.S.,?endorsed?the proposal Monday. Russia abstained.

The Israel-Hamas war has been ongoing since Hamas militants infiltrated Israel’s southern border on Oct. 7, killing roughly 1,200, according to Israel’s figures.

The?death toll?from Israel’s continued offensive in the Palestinian territory of Gaza reached 36,379 at the end of May, according to the Health Ministry in the Gaza Strip run by the Hamas-controlled government.

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Trump floats plan to end taxes on tips, though experts raise doubts https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/10/trump-floats-plan-to-end-taxes-on-tips-though-experts-raise-doubts/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/10/trump-floats-plan-to-end-taxes-on-tips-though-experts-raise-doubts/#respond Tue, 11 Jun 2024 01:52:54 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18709

A server delivers beverages at Dover Downs Casino on June 5, 2018 in Dover, Delaware. Former President Donald Trump said in a campaign rally in Las Vegas on June 9, 2024 he would seek to end taxes for tips if elected again in November. (Photo by Mark Makela/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Economists across the ideological spectrum raised doubts about the cost and workability of former President Donald Trump’s proposal over the weekend to exempt tips from federal taxes if he wins in November.

During a campaign rally Sunday in Las Vegas, where hundreds of thousands work in the hospitality industry, Trump promised service workers that they would no longer have to pay federal taxes on tipped income if the presumptive Republican nominee wins a second term.

The roughly 6 million tipped workers in the U.S., as of the latest data available from 2018, make up a small fraction of the country’s 150 million taxpayers, but campaigning on tax cuts for certain demographics is increasingly a top issue leading up to November’s presidential election.

“This is the first time I’ve said this, and for those who work at hotels and people that get tips, you’re gonna be very happy because when I get to office we are going to not charge taxes on tips, on people making tips,” Trump said to cheers at the rally.

Trump said he will “do that right away, first thing in office,” though changing the tax code would require an act of Congress.

Tax code due for update

Large portions of the sweeping 2017 tax law that Congress passed along party lines during the Trump administration are set to expire at the end of 2025, and lawmakers and advocates are already trotting out their priorities.

Tipped workers made an average $6,000 on top of their base wages in 2018, and together they paid about $38 billion in taxes on tips, according to the latest Internal Revenue Service figures. In 2018, the IRS collected about $7 trillion in overall taxes.

“In terms of the macroeconomic impact, it’s pretty small,” said Erica York, senior economist and research director at the right-leaning Tax Foundation.

“If you think of it in terms of what Congress is going to be debating next year, one of the big challenges that lawmakers are going to face is the revenue impact. Every dollar of tax revenue for one type of tax cut is $1 less for another type of tax cut. So it’s going to be a real exercise in prioritizing trade-offs across different policies,” York said.

Trump has vowed to extend all tax cuts enacted under his watch, but the cost of extending them over the next decade would reach $4.6 trillion, according to estimates from the Joint Committee on Taxation and nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

Trump’s proposal to tipped workers “smells more of campaign politics than a really well thought out and principled tax policy proposal,” York added. “And I think the elephant in the room for both candidates is that they haven’t fully addressed ‘what are you going to do about these huge expirations that are scheduled to happen next year?’”

The Trump campaign did not respond to requests for further detail.

Incentivizing tipped work

Andrew Lautz, associate director for the Bipartisan Policy Center, said while tipped workers are a “small slice” of the tax base, “you’re talking about a potentially large chunk of revenue that you’re giving up on an annual basis,” depending on how the policy would be rolled out.

“Our current tax system is certainly not designed to treat all income equally, but this proposal, if it were enacted into law, would sort of add a new category of income that is not subject to tax,” Lautz said. “And you know what economic theory would say is that, all else equal, making that change would incentivize people to have tips which are not taxed under this proposal versus regular wage income.”

There is also the potential for “misuse,” he added.

“If Donald Trump is president again next year, and even if he’s not, but this proposal sort of catches interest from policymakers in Congress, it’s very well possible that this could be on the table,” Lautz added.

Janet Holtzblatt, senior fellow at the left-leaning Tax Policy Center run by the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution, said Trump’s proposal to eliminate taxes on tips is “unusual.”

“Because tips are a substitute for the wages and salaries that the rest of us get, and if you don’t tax tips, you’re basically not taxing tip workers (on) their wages, making it a tax advantage on their earnings. Those of us who don’t work in industries where tips are paid, we would not get the same tax advantage,” Holtzblatt said.

Minimum wage

Several localities’ wage laws allow employers to pay service workers hourly rates well below the federal minimum wage.

Holtzblatt said the “solution” is for localities to raise the minimum wage for service workers for multiple reasons.

“Tips are not always a predictable form of income,” she said. “And there’s a great deal of variation, the tips that the server gets at the top-notch restaurant are going to be very different than the tips the person in the diner gets.”

President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign responded to Trump’s “wild campaign promise” by saying that Biden supports increasing the minimum wage and eliminating the tipped minimum wage, “a much bigger deal” than Trump’s proposal, a campaign spokesman wrote in a Monday email to States Newsroom.

Ted Pappageorge, secretary-treasurer for Culinary Workers Union Local 226, which has 60,000 members in Las Vegas and Reno, Nevada, said the organization has for decades “fought for tipped workers’ rights and against unfair taxation.”

“Relief is definitely needed for tip earners,” Pappageorge said in a statement over the weekend. “But Nevada workers are smart enough to know the difference between real solutions and wild campaign promises from a convicted felon.”

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On 80th anniversary of D-Day invasion, Biden and Macron honor WWII veterans at Normandy https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/06/on-80th-anniversary-of-d-day-invasion-biden-and-macron-honor-wwii-veterans-at-normandy/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/06/on-80th-anniversary-of-d-day-invasion-biden-and-macron-honor-wwii-veterans-at-normandy/#respond Thu, 06 Jun 2024 21:32:31 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18634

U.S. President Joe Biden greets U.S. World War II veteran Victor Chaney after French President Emmanuel Macron awarded 11 veterans the Légion d’Honneur at the Normandy American Cemetery during a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day on June 06, 2024 in Colleville-sur-Mer, France. Veterans, families, political leaders and military personnel are gathering in Normandy to commemorate D-Day, which paved the way for the Allied victory over Germany in World War II. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — “They were brave, they were resolute, they were ready,” President Joe Biden said Thursday at the Normandy American Cemetery overlooking Omaha Beach, one of five along France’s northern coast where Allied troops invaded in 1944 and turned the tide in World War II.

Biden and dozens of U.S. lawmakers traveled to Normandy to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, the largest land, air and sea operation in military history.

More than 150,000 troops from the United States, Britain and Canada landed on the beaches on June 6, beginning a monthslong battle that eventually liberated Europe from Nazi Germany.

Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron honored nearly a dozen D-Day survivors and other World War II veterans on a stage set before an enormous crowd that included service members, U.S. officials, members of Congress and Hollywood’s Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, who dramatized searing World War II scenes on film.

Caretakers and active-duty military members helped the veterans stand before Macron as he pinned France’s Légion d’Honneur, its highest military honor, on their shoulders. Biden shook each veteran’s hand upon receiving the medal.

Among those honored on stage were Hilbert Margol of Georgia, John Wardell of New Jersey, Robert Pedigo of Indiana, Calvin Shiner of California, Edward Berthold of Illinois, Dominick Critelli of New York, Bill Casassa of Kansas, Victor Chaney of Indiana, Raymond Glansberg of Florida, Richard Stewart of Ohio and Jack Kinyon of Illinois.

Roughly 20 miles east, Macron presented the same honor to British veterans at a separate event attended by King Charles III and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the British Normandy Memorial overlooking Gold Beach, according to reporters at the ceremony.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered a speech at nearby Juno Beach, according to reporters present.

‘Bands of brothers’ attend

Biden and first lady Jill Biden met with 41 veterans from the Normandy campaign, 33 of whom served on D-Day, according to reporters traveling with the president. Biden gave each a commemorative coin bearing the presidential seal and images of troops on the beaches of Normandy.

About 180 American WWII veterans attended the ceremony, according to reporters present.

Many veterans, over or approaching age 100, sat on a shaded stage in wheelchairs, covered in blue blankets and wearing red, white and blue scarves.

Among those who attended was Staff Sgt. George K. Mullins, a native of Jenkins, Kentucky, who was part of the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne. Mullins, landed on Utah Beach on June 7, 1944, and later received a Purple Heart for wounds received during Operation Market Garden in Holland. He was also with the 101st during the Battle of the Bulge.

Miniature American and French flags fluttered beside each white marble cross and Star of David in the rows and rows that mark thousands of Americans laid to rest in Colleville-sur-Mer, France.

More than 9,300 Americans are buried at the 172.5-acre cemetery. Just over 300 headstones are marked unknown. A Wall of the Missing bears nearly 1,600 names of Americans declared missing or lost at sea.

“Many, to state the obvious, never came home. Many survived that longest day and kept on fighting for months until victory was finally won. And a few notable bands of brothers are here with us today,” Biden said during the ceremony that was livestreamed by several outlets, including C-SPAN.

More than 4,400 Allied troops died on the first day of the invasion, including 2,501 Americans.

“Just walk the rows of the cemetery as I had. Nearly 10,000 heroes buried side by side — officers and enlisted, immigrants and native born, different races, different faiths, but all Americans, all served with honor,” Biden said.

‘Isolationism was not the answer’

The day was laden with reminders that Russia’s ground invasion in Ukraine is ongoing.

While Russia fought as an ally in the Battle of Normandy, shoring up the Eastern front, its modern-day President Vladimir Putin continues its assault and land grab in Ukraine.

“Isolationism was not the answer 80 years ago, and it’s not the answer today,” Biden said to applause.

“We know the dark forces that these heroes fought against 80 years ago. They never fade — aggression and greed, the desire to dominate and control, to change borders by force,” Biden said, referring to Russia’s Putin. “These are perennial, the struggle between a dictatorship and freedom is unending.”

“The fact that they (WWII veterans) were heroes here that day does not absolve us from what we have to do today. Democracy is never guaranteed,” Biden said.

Biden said the U.S. “will not walk away” from Ukraine.

“Because if we do, Ukraine will be subjugated, and it will not end there,” Biden said.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attended a separate D-Day event at Omaha Beach, according to White House press corps reporters who traveled with Biden to his second event of the day.

The latest $60 billion security package for Ukraine took six months to clear Congress because of strong opposition on the far-right.

Biden said NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization formed four years after WWII that now counts more than 30 member states, is the “the greatest military alliance in the history of the world.”

Precipitated by Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, two additional European nations joined the alliance in 2023 and 2024 — Finland, which shares a long land border with Russia, and Sweden, just across the Baltic Sea.

The alliance has been the target of criticism from presumed 2024 Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump. Notably in February, Trump said in a CNN interview that he would encourage Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to NATO countries, depending on their financial contributions to the alliance.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said during brief remarks Thursday that Allied nations must “again stand firm against aggression and tyranny” and “uphold the spirit of D-Day.”

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Progressives urge Alito recusal from Jan. 6 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/05/progressives-urge-alito-recusal-from-jan-6-cases-before-the-u-s-supreme-court/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/05/progressives-urge-alito-recusal-from-jan-6-cases-before-the-u-s-supreme-court/#respond Wed, 05 Jun 2024 20:01:07 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18607

Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington speaks during a press conference outside the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday, June 5, 2024. Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia, at right, stands waiting to approach the microphone. The lawmakers joined progressive groups to urge Justice Samuel Alito to recuse himself from cases related to the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol attack. Both Jayapal and Johnson have introduced bills related to Supreme Court ethics. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — Progressive lawmakers and organizers on Wednesday urged U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito to recuse himself from cases related to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and to testify before Congress about two flags sympathetic to insurrectionists that were displayed outside his two homes.

With the Supreme Court as their backdrop, a group of roughly 20 people held signs reading “Investigate Alito” and decried a “five-alarm fire consuming democracy,” as Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia put it.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said, “Chief Justice (John) Roberts and Justice Alito need to testify publicly and under oath about the flag-waving incidents and how the court handled it.”

Johnson and Jayapal have respectively introduced bills aimed at imposing term limits on Supreme Court justices and mandating an enforceable code of ethics for the nation’s highest bench.

Johnson also joined Democratic U.S. Rep. Dan Goldman of New York Tuesday in introducing a bill to establish an independent investigative body focused on Supreme Court ethics.

Two flags

An upside-down U.S. flag hung outside Alito’s Alexandria, Virginia, home just days after former President Donald Trump’s supporters breached the Capitol, according to photos obtained by the New York Times.

An upside-down American flag is generally considered a sign of distress or protest across the political spectrum.

The Times also broke the story that an “Appeal to Heaven” flag waved above the justice’s Long Island Beach, New Jersey, home during the summer of 2023. The white flag featuring a pine tree can be seen in photos of the Jan. 6 riot, when Trump supporters overwhelmed the Capitol, attacking and injuring police officers with flagpoles, bear spray and other improvised weapons.

In a May 29 letter to lawmakers, Alito said the flags were flown by his wife and that he would refuse calls to recuse himself from cases related to Jan. 6.

“My wife is fond of flying flags. I am not,” he wrote to Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin of Illinois, who chairs the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, who chairs the Judiciary Subcommittee on Federal Courts.

Both senators, who requested a meeting with Chief Justice Roberts about Alito, have championed an ethics bill titled the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal and Transparency Act, which advanced out of committee along party lines in July 2023 but has not received a floor vote.

Supreme Court rulings on the way

Supreme Court opinions are expected this month in two Jan. 6, cases — one involving a former police officer who breached the Capitol and is seeking to have an obstruction charge dropped. The decision could affect hundreds of Jan. 6 defendant cases, and the 2020 election interference case against Trump, who faces the same obstruction charge.

The court is also set to decide whether Trump is immune from four federal criminal counts alleging he schemed to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and knowingly spread false information that whipped his supporters into rioting on Jan. 6.

Trump appointed three of the current sitting Supreme Court justices: conservatives Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

At Wednesday’s demonstration, one of the leaders, Christina Harvey, executive director of the progressive advocacy group Stand Up America, said, “I don’t know about you, but I prefer Supreme Court justices who fly their American flags right side up.”

Harvey’s group was one of several outside the Supreme Court, including Alliance for Justice, whose program director for justice Jake Faleschini also called for Justice Clarence Thomas to resign. An investigation by ProPublica revealed the justice received gifts from and traveled with major Republican donors.

“Even Justice Roberts has abandoned his duties. He doesn’t appear either willing or capable of addressing his colleagues’ corruption and abuses of power,” Faleschini said.

More flag displays

The upside-down U.S. flag and “Appeal to Heaven” flag have been displayed in other locations as well.

On Friday, the conservative Heritage Foundation flew an upside-down U.S. flag outside its Washington, D.C., office following Trump’s guilty verdict in New York on hush money charges, according to reporting from NPR and photos from The Associated Press.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana, one of the leading voices in the legal movement to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, displays the “Appeal to Heaven” flag outside his congressional office, according to reporting by The Associated Press.

The flag has also been spotted outside the office of GOP Rep. Glenn Grothman of Wisconsin.

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White nationalist, anti-LGBTQ activity on the rise, annual hate report shows https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/04/white-nationalist-anti-lgbtq-activity-on-the-rise-annual-hate-report-shows/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/06/04/white-nationalist-anti-lgbtq-activity-on-the-rise-annual-hate-report-shows/#respond Tue, 04 Jun 2024 22:09:04 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18551

One of the hundreds of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the “alt-right” who marched during the “Unite the Right” rally Aug. 12, 2017, in Charlottesville, Virginia. The Southern Poverty Law Center reported Tuesday that the number of white nationalist groups in the U.S. rose to a record high in 2023. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Emboldened by the mainstreaming of hard-right politics ahead of a presidential election cycle, white nationalist and anti-LGBTQ+ groups increased to record levels in the United States last year, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center’s latest annual report on hate and extremism released Tuesday.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, which has published the annual report since 1990, documented 835 active anti-government groups, up 133 from 2022’s count, and 595 hate groups, an increase of 72 over the previous year’s figure.

Accounting for a large portion of the increase was a 50% surge in white supremacy hate groups in 2023, the highest jump ever recorded by the SPLC, growing to 165 over 109 in 2022. White power and neo-Nazi rallies across the U.S. totaled 143 in 2023, down from 191 in 2022.

SPLC saw a 33% rise in anti-LGBTQ+ organizations over last year, bringing the total to 86. The group said the growth was largely attributable to the anti-trans movement on the far-right.

“What we’re seeing now should be a wake-up call for all of us,” Margaret Huang, SPLC’s president and CEO, said on a call with reporters. “Our 2023 report documented more hate and anti-government extremist groups than ever before. With a historic election just months away, these groups are multiplying, mobilizing and making, and in some cases already implementing, plans to undo democracy.”

Hate groups have increased in-person events and leafleting, according to the report. The SPLC tracked nearly 7,000 flyering incidents last year, many including language derived from racist and antisemitic conspiracies.

The groups also launched campaigns to gain influence in mainstream politics, according to the report, namely through the conservative Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 manifesto that outlines aspirations for anti-abortion, anti-free press and anti-LGBTQ+ priorities should presumed GOP presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump win in November.

Nine of the anti-government and hate groups tracked by the SPLC are part of the coalition that supports Project 2025, the organization reports.

Florida a leader in anti-government, hate groups

Among the states leading in numbers of anti-government and hate groups are California, Florida, Texas, Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, Washington and Ohio.

California topped the list with 51 hate and 66 anti-government groups.

The SPLC recorded the second-most groups in Florida, which has become a leader in book-banning incidents and restrictive policies on teachers. The Sunshine State is home to 43 hate and 71 anti-government organizations, according to the report, and is the birthplace of recently influential “parental rights” group Moms for Liberty.

Moms for Liberty co-founder Tiffany Justice was invited in March 2023 to testify before a U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary subcommittee then chaired by Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana, who is now House speaker.?

The annual survey of hate groups tracked 116 hate-leafleting incidents in Florida, where the antisemitic groups rallied and flyered on multiple occasions, including over Labor Day when groups named the Goyim Defense League, The Order of the Black Sun and the Maine-based Blood Tribe marched in Orlando wielding flags with swastikas and making Nazi salutes.

Antisemitism, already on the rise, became more pronounced following Israel’s continuing offensive on the Gaza Strip following the Hamas-led terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

“Antisemitic conspiracies seeped into mainstream narratives at an alarming pace in 2023. Specifically after Hamas’s October 7 terrorist attack, the far right blurred the lines between legitimate criticism of the Israeli government’s actions and outright antisemitism,” R.G. Cravens, SPLC’s senior research analyst for its Intelligence Project, said during Tuesday’s call with reporters.

Following the Hamas attack, the so-called Goyim Defense League distributed a flyer online and in person that read “FREE PALESTINE,” as a “not-so-thinly-veiled attempt at stoking more antisemitism and using Palestinian people to further their own aims,” according to the report.

Christian ‘dominionism’

The SPLC report also cited the expanding influence of extreme Christian nationalism as a driver for the growing number of anti-government organizations.

The report expresses concern over the rise in the Republican ranks of Johnson, a former senior lawyer for the Alliance Defending Freedom, a Christian legal advocacy group behind the U.S. Supreme Court case that precipitated the overturning of the federal right to abortion.

Johnson’s far-right politics, including his anti-abortion and anti-LGBTQ+ positions and his advocacy to blur Christianity and the state, are well documented.

Spokespeople for Johnson did not immediately return an email seeking comment.

The Alliance for Defending Freedom describes SPLC as a “discredited” and “scandal-ridden group,” and denounces the organization’s “hate map.” The SPLC currently has an interactive U.S. map pinpointing locations of anti-government and hate groups.

“Eventually, their definition of hate included huge swaths of well-respected, mainstream, conservative America,” according to a post on the Alliance for Defending Freedom website.

The SPLC report specifically warns about the rise of the National Apostolic Reformation, a Christian movement made up of “dominionist leaders” that aim to “seize control” of seven areas of society, including government, education and business.

Decline in militias

One area in which the report documented a decline is in the militia movement, which suffered after the hundreds of Department of Justice prosecutions following the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The numbers of militias dropped to 52 in 2023, from 61 in 2022.

One of the most prominent militias, the Oath Keepers, significantly diminished its presence following the 2023 conviction and sentencing of its leader Stewart Rhodes for seditious conspiracy leading up to and during the Jan. 6 attack.

The Oath Keepers active militia chapters dropped to 10 in 2023 from 79 in 2022.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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An angry Trump pledges to appeal ‘this scam’ conviction as Republicans vow resistance https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/31/an-angry-trump-pledges-to-appeal-this-scam-conviction-as-republicans-vow-resistance/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/31/an-angry-trump-pledges-to-appeal-this-scam-conviction-as-republicans-vow-resistance/#respond Fri, 31 May 2024 21:15:57 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18435

Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president in 2024, speaks during a press conference at Trump Tower on May 31, 2024 in New York City. Trump was found guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first of his criminal cases to go to trial. (Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump, now a convicted felon, vowed to launch an appeal based “on many things” he considered unfair during his New York trial, he said Friday in the lobby of Trump Tower in Midtown Manhattan.

Meanwhile Friday, legal and political analysts predicted he will spend little if any time in jail depending on the outcome of that appeal, fundraising among supportive Republicans appeared to surge and eight GOP members of the U.S. Senate pledged they will not support any Democratic priorities or nominations.

The reactions came as Americans continued to digest the news that on Thursday, a jury in Lower Manhattan found the Republican Party’s presumed 2024 presidential nominee guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, a felony in New York.

Kentucky Republicans stand by Trump, blame Democrats for former president’s convictions

The roughly seven-week proceeding marked the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president.

“We’re going to be appealing this scam,” Trump said at his late-morning press conference, referring to New York Justice Juan Merchan as a “tyrant.”

Over about 30 minutes of often misleading or false comments delivered in his familiar stream-of-consciousness style that jumped from topic to topic, Trump complained about aspects of the trial, said the case shouldn’t have been prosecuted at all and made campaign-style appeals on immigration and crime.

Trump has centered his public relations defense on the idea that the prosecution was politically motivated, often blaming the Biden administration, and he repeated the theme throughout his Friday remarks.

“If they can do this to me, they can do this to anyone,” he said.

President Joe Biden said Friday that Trump “was given every opportunity to defend himself.”

“It was a state case, not a federal case. It was heard by a jury of 12 citizens, 12 Americans, 12 people like you, like millions of Americans who’ve served on juries. This jury was chosen the same way every jury in America is chosen. It was a process that Donald Trump’s attorney was part of,” Biden said from the White House before delivering remarks on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Biden said Trump now has the opportunity “as he should” to appeal, just like anyone else who is tried in the U.S.

“That’s how the American system of justice works,” Biden said. “It’s reckless, it’s dangerous, it’s irresponsible for anyone to say this was rigged just because they don’t like the verdict.”

Jail time?

Trump told the crowd Friday morning he could spend “187 years” in jail for being found guilty of falsifying business records. It was not clear how he arrived at that number.

Most observers of his trial and the New York justice system disagree with that estimate.

Merchan set Trump’s sentencing for July 11 at 10 a.m. Eastern, just four days before the Republican National Convention kicks off in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the GOP will officially nominate Trump for president in November’s election.

Trump is convicted of class E felonies, the lowest level felony in New York state, and each carries the possibility of probation to up to four years in prison.

Any incarceration sentence up to a year would be served in the city’s Rikers Island jail or another local facility. Incarceration beyond that time frame would be served at a state facility.

“If that jail sentence happens, it probably will be less than a year,” said Norm Eisen, former White House special counsel in the Obama administration, who has been commenting on the indictment and trial for months.

Eisen spoke during a virtual press conference hosted by the Defend Democracy Project.

New York state law experts say Merchan may not be inclined to imprison a former, and possibly future, U.S. president. And, if he sentences Trump to any length of incarceration, it will likely be stayed — a temporary stop to the action —pending appeal.

Trump could remain free on bail conditions set by the court, or no bail conditions, subject to a decision by the appeals court and potentially any other review if an appeals judge sends the case to the state’s highest court.

“When there is a stay pending appeal, generally, the process is expedited more quickly than it would be if the defendant was at liberty and there was no stay. But even so, this is going to go beyond the election,” said retired New York Supreme Court Judge Michael Obus at the press conference with Eisen.

Appeal strategy?

While Trump said Friday morning he plans to appeal the verdict based on “many things,” legal observers speculate his team’s approach may come down to a few options.

In New York, falsifying a business record is illegal in the first degree when the “intent to defraud includes an intent to commit another crime or to aid or conceal the commission thereof.”

While the jurors had to unanimously agree on an intent to commit another crime, they did not have to agree unanimously on what that underlying crime was, according to Merchan’s instructions to the jury prior to deliberations.

Merchan said jurors could consider three options for the other crime: violations of the Federal Election Campaign Act; falsification of other business records; or, violation of tax laws.

Obus said a “non-frivolous argument” that Trump’s team might use is that one of those underlying crimes was a federal, not a state crime.

“That’s the kind of argument that we might see on appeal — the argument being that New York courts don’t have the authority to prosecute the case with that being the object crime because it’s a federal crime,” Obus said. “I don’t think that’ll be successful.”

In addition to the challenge regarding federal election law, Shane T. Stansbury of Duke Law told States Newsroom in an interview Friday that he expects to see Trump’s legal team challenge evidentiary issues.

“For example, I would expect that the defense would make a claim that the salacious testimony by Stormy Daniels about the details of her sexual encounter with Donald Trump was unfairly prejudicial,” Stansbury said.

Also, Trump’s lawyers might challenge the judge’s decision to strike from defense attorney Todd Blanche’s closing statement a plea he made to the jury, asking them to not send Trump “to prison.”

The charge against Trump could, or could not, result in prison time.

“You can imagine the defense saying that that correction may have prejudiced the jury. Now, I should say that those kinds of evidentiary issues are a much steeper climb for the defense,” Stansbury said.

‘A legal expense’

Trump remains under a gag order imposed by Merchan in March to keep the former president from further attacking court staff and potential witnesses online.

Trump violated the order 10 times, leading Merchan to fine him $9,000 on April 30, and again $1,000 on May 6.

During his comments Friday morning, Trump complained of having to pay “thousands of dollars” because of his “nasty gag order.”

Still, Trump spent several minutes during his remarks talking about one of the prosecution’s star witnesses, his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen.

According to testimony and document evidence presented during trial, Cohen wired $130,000 of his own money to porn star Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 presidential election to silence her about an alleged affair with Trump. Trump then reimbursed Cohen the following year under the guise of “legal expenses.”

Prosecutors never should have brought the case accusing him of falsifying business records, Trump said.

The payments to Cohen were for Cohen to create a nondisclosure agreement with Daniels and secure her signature, which is legal, Trump said Friday. That was a legal service, and the payments were properly recorded that way, he said.

“I paid a lawyer a legal expense,” he said.

“The whole thing is legal expense was marked down as legal expense,” he said. “Think of it: This is the crime that I committed that I’m supposed to go to jail for 187 years for.”

Trump, who wouldn’t say Cohen’s name Friday because of the gag order, said Cohen was not a “fixer” as he is often described, but a lawyer in good standing.

“By the way, this was a highly qualified lawyer,” Trump said. “Now I’m not allowed to use his name because of the gag order. But, you know, he’s a sleazebag. Everybody knows that. Took me a while to find out. But he was effective. He did work. But he wasn’t a fixer. He was a lawyer.”

Trump said he wanted to testify at his trial, but was advised not to by his lawyers.

Attacks on Biden?

Trump pivoted nearly immediately after his remarks began to campaign-style attacks on Biden’s administration and the anti-immigration positions that comprise Trump’s most consistent policy message since his political career began in 2015.

He focused on immigrants from predominantly non-white countries and made false claims that many had been institutionalized in prison and mental hospitals.

“Millions and millions of people are flowing in from all parts of the world, not just South America, from Africa, from Asia and from the Middle East, and they’re coming in from jails and prisons, and they’re coming in from mental institutions and insane asylums,” he said. “And we have a president and a group of fascists that don’t want to do anything about it.”

He also called crime “rampant in New York.” He added that Biden wanted to quadruple taxes and “make it impossible for you to get a car,” neither of which are based on Biden’s actual policy positions.

In a statement, Biden campaign spokesperson Michael Tyler called Trump’s remarks “unhinged.”

“America just witnessed a confused, desperate, and defeated Donald Trump ramble about his own personal grievances and lie about the American justice system, leaving anyone watching with one obvious conclusion: This man cannot be president of the United States,” Tyler wrote. “Unhinged by his 2020 election loss and spiraling from his criminal convictions, Trump is consumed by his own thirst for revenge and retribution.”

GOP convention in less than two months

The Republican National Convention begins July 15. The Republican National Committee, which called Thursday’s verdict “rigged,” did not immediately respond to questions Friday about whether it will adjust plans in the event Trump is placed under any restrictions during his July 11 sentencing.

Trump encouraged supporters to continue backing his campaign as a response to the verdict, calling Nov. 5 – Election Day – “the most important day in the history of our country.”

Throughout his remarks Friday, he touted an online poll conducted by J.L. Partners and published in the conservative British tabloid The Daily Mail on Friday that showed Trump’s approval rating gained points after the verdict.

There were signs that showed Republican support, at least, consolidated even more behind Trump following the verdict.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee, the campaign organization for U.S. Senate Republicans, said it had its highest fundraising day of the cycle Thursday, bringing in $360,000 in donations that the group directly attributed to the verdict in Manhattan.

Other official GOP channels, including the Republican National Committee social media accounts, echoed Trump’s message that the former president was the victim of a political prosecution and predicted the conviction would push voters toward Trump.

Elected Republicans throughout the country continued Friday to almost universally reject the verdict and defend Trump.

A group of eight U.S. Senate Republicans –?Mike Lee of Utah, J.D. Vance of Ohio, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, Eric Schmitt of Missouri, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Rick Scott and Marco Rubio of Florida and Roger Marshall of Kansas –?signed a letter Friday pledging to increase their resistance to administration priorities in response to the verdict.

“Those who turned our judicial system into a political cudgel must be held accountable,” Lee said in a post to X. “We are no longer cooperating with any Democrat legislative priorities or nominations, and we invite all concerned Senators to join our stand.”

The Biden administration and congressional Democrats played no role in the trial, which was in New York state court.

‘No one is above the law’

The top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, said that Thursday’s verdict shows that “no one is above the law.”

Nadler was joined by Eisen, along with accountability advocates and historians, on a Friday webinar for the press hosted by watchdog group Public Citizen. Eisen participated in multiple press appearances Friday.

Nadler said that Republicans are attempting to sow distrust in the verdict, as the chair of the Judiciary Committee, Jim Jordan of Ohio, has already sent a letter to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg requesting that he testify in a hearing before the panel’s Weaponization of the Federal Government Subcommittee on June 13.

Nadler said he disagreed with Jordan’s decision to request testimony from the DA who prosecuted Trump.

“It’s a continuing attempt to bully the prosecutors into abandoning prosecutions and to tell the country the false story of persecution of the president (Trump) and to help undermine confidence in the criminal justice system,” Nadler said.

Nadler said the New York trial was important because it’s likely going to be the only trial that finishes before the November elections. Trump faces two federal criminal cases, and another criminal case in Georgia.

“It is very important for the American people to know, before an election, that they’re dealing with a convicted felon,” Nadler said.

Ruth Ben-Ghiat, a history professor at New York University who specializes in authoritarianism, propaganda and democracy protection, said during the virtual press conference that the trial was a demonstration of American democracy being upheld.

“The fact this trial took place at all and was able to unfold in the professional way it did is a testament to the worth and functioning of our democracy,” she said.

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Trump found guilty on 34 felony counts in NY hush money trial https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/30/trump-found-guilty-on-34-felony-counts-in-ny-hush-money-trial/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/30/trump-found-guilty-on-34-felony-counts-in-ny-hush-money-trial/#respond Thu, 30 May 2024 21:44:26 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18385

Former U.S. President Donald Trump walks to speak to the media after being found guilty following his hush money trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 30, 2024 in New York City. The former president was found guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first of his criminal cases to go to trial. Trump has now become the first former U.S. president to be convicted of felony crimes. (Photo by Seth Wenig-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Jurors in New York state court on Thursday found Donald Trump guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments to a porn star ultimately to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential election.

The first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president wrapped up in Manhattan, marking an extraordinary moment in American history not only for a former leader, but for one who is seeking to again hold the Oval Office. Trump, the Republican Party’s presumed 2024 presidential nominee, is now a convicted felon.

The jury deliberated for more than 11 hours, beginning Wednesday just before 11:30 a.m. Eastern and delivering the verdict to Justice Juan Merchan just after 5 p.m. Thursday, according to reporters at the courthouse.

New York does not allow recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings. States Newsroom covered the trial in person on May 20.

Trump now faces penalties ranging from probation to up to four years in prison for each charge of falsifying business records in the first degree.

Merchan set a sentencing date for July 11 at 10 a.m. That’s just days before the Republican National Convention, where Trump is expected to be officially nominated as the party’s presidential candidate.

New York state prosecutors charged 34 felonies against the former president for each of the 11 invoices, 11 checks, and 12 ledger entries tied to reimbursing his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen.

Cohen, often referred to as Trump’s former “fixer,” said during trial testimony that he wired $130,000 to adult film star and director Stormy Daniels days before the 2016 election to silence her about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump.

Three criminal cases, two federal and one in Georgia, also still hang in the balance for Trump, but the likelihood of another trial happening before November’s election is slim.

Trump speaks after verdict

Trump briefly spoke to news cameras outside the courtroom, criticizing the proceeding as a “rigged, disgraceful trial.”

“The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people, and they know what happened here and everybody knows what happened here,” Trump said in remarks live-streamed and cataloged on C-SPAN.

As he has repeated almost daily for the cameras, Trump again called Merchan a “conflicted” judge and falsely claimed the case “was done by the Biden administration.”

The charges were brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, whom Trump described during his post-verdict comments as “Soros-funded,” a common mantra from Trump’s party referring to Hungarian-American billionaire philanthropist George Soros.

During his roughly three-minute remarks, Trump also referred to immigration at the U.S. Southern border, a major campaign rallying cry for Republicans.

“We don’t have the same country anymore. We have a divided mess. We’re a nation in decline, serious decline. Millions and millions of people pouring into our country right now,” Trump said before exiting the hallway without answering shouted questions from reporters.

Despite being a convicted felon, Trump will still be able to vote in November in Palm Beach County, Florida, where he is registered, as long as he is not incarcerated.

That’s because Florida law only bars voting for convicts tried in a separate state if that state also restricts them; a 2021 New York law restored voting rights for convicted felons following a release from prison and regardless if they are on parole, according to reporting by PolitiFact.

House speaker sees ‘shameful day in American history’

Republicans in Congress and other top GOP officials gathered with Trump at the courthouse for support during the trial and members of the GOP immediately decried the verdict.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican who was among those who made the trek, released a statement saying the verdict marked “a shameful day in American history.”

“Democrats cheered as they convicted the leader of the opposing party on ridiculous charges, predicated on the testimony of a disbarred, convicted felon,” Johnson wrote. “This was a purely political exercise, not a legal one.”

Johnson was referring to the testimony from Cohen, who served time in prison for campaign finance crimes related to hush money payments.

Sen. Joni Ernst, an Iowa Republican, blasted it as the result of an unfair political process.

“This was never about justice. It was always about politics,” she wrote on X. “ Americans see through Democrats’ weaponization of our justice system and this sham trial as a desperate attempt to persecute Trump and block his re-election.”

The Trump campaign almost immediately solicited donations following the verdict, posting a link on his Truth Social platform to his WinRed donation portal.

Trump’s son Eric Trump reacted on X with “May 30th, 2024 might be remembered as the day Donald J. Trump won the 2024 Presidential Election.”

Video posted from reporters outside the courthouse showed a black SUV driving slowly outside the courthouse while members of the news media held cameras and some scattered in the crowd waved Trump flags and shouted “we love you.”

‘The jury has spoken’?

In a Thursday evening press conference, Bragg thanked the jurors and his team of prosecutors.

While affirming the case’s historical importance, Bragg said his office worked the case as they would any other, countering the GOP narrative that the case was politically motivated.

The case was decided on “the evidence and the law alone,” he said.

“Donald J. Trump is guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree to conceal a scheme to corrupt the 2016 election,” he said.

“While this defendant may be unlike any other in American history, we arrived at this trial – and ultimately today at this verdict – in the same manner as every other case that comes to the courtroom doors: By following the facts and the law, and doing so without fear or favor.”

Bragg praised “the 12 everyday New Yorkers,” who paid careful attention to a complicated documents-based case to reach a unanimous decision. The jurors’ service represented the “cornerstone” of the “phenomenal” U.S. system of justice, he said.

Asked if he wanted to respond to any of the personal attacks Trump launched against him and his prosecution team, Bragg declined.

Another reporter asked Bragg about criticism of his investigation of the case and his decision to bring a prosecution.

“I did my job. Our job is to follow the facts and the law without fear or favor. And that’s exactly what we did here,” he said.

“Many voices out there,” he added. “The only voice that matters is the voice of the jury. And the jury has spoken.”

Trials in limbo in D.C., Georgia, Florida

The verdict brought to a close the historic first criminal proceeding against a former sitting American president, albeit at the state level.

Trump is currently mired in a fight for absolute immunity from federal criminal charges accusing him of scheming to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.

A U.S. Supreme Court decision on his immunity claim is pending. Justices heard arguments in the case on April 25.

Meanwhile in Florida, federal District Judge Aileen Cannon has indefinitely postponed the U.S. case against Trump for mishandling and refusing to return classified documents that he hid at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left office.

Trump faces another state case in Georgia, along with several co-conspirators, on racketeering and conspiracy charges related to the state’s 2020 presidential election results. The case has been held up due to pretrial disputes over alleged misconduct by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

Biden campaign reacts

A spokesman for President Joe Biden’s campaign, Michael Tyler, said in a statement that the verdict showed “no one is above the law” and that Trump remained a threat to democracy whom voters should reject.

“Donald Trump has always mistakenly believed he would never face consequences for breaking the law for his own personal gain,” Tyler wrote. “But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people face a simple reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.”

“The threat Trump poses to our democracy has never been greater,” Tyler continued. “He is running an increasingly unhinged campaign of revenge and retribution, pledging to be a dictator ‘on day one’ and calling for our Constitution to be ‘terminated’ so he can regain and keep power. A second Trump term means chaos, ripping away Americans’ freedoms and fomenting political violence – and the American people will reject it this November.”

The Biden White House had much less to say.

Ian Sams, a spokesperson for the White House Counsel’s Office, said in a one-sentence email: “We respect the rule of law, and have no additional comment.”

Members of Congress speak out

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, said in a statement the guilty decision from the jurors represented “a devastating defeat for any American who believes in the critical legal tenet that justice is blind.”

“This verdict will not withstand an appeal, and was only brought as an attempt to interfere with the 2024 election,” Scalise wrote. “The radical partisan Democrats behind this abuse of our justice system will not prevail. The voters will settle this on November 5th.”

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, chair of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee’s federal courts subcommittee, released a statement saying that an “individual who has been convicted of 34 felony counts and shows zero respect for the rule of law is not fit to lead the greatest nation in the world.”

“It’s only in honest courtrooms that the former president has been unable to lie and bully his way out of trouble,” Whitehouse said. “Americans trust juries for good reason.”

North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis posted on social media that he was “shocked by the verdict considering that this case should have never been brought forward.”

“From the beginning, it was clear that a radical, politically-motivated state prosecutor was using the full weight of his office to go after President Trump at the same time he turned a blind eye to violent criminals,” Tillis wrote. “I expect and hope that President Trump will appeal this verdict to address fundamental questions, including whether President Trump received a fair trial and whether the Manhattan D.A. even had jurisdiction on a federal election matter.”

Minnesota Democratic Rep. Betty McCollum said the jury’s decision showed that America’s justice system functioned the way it was supposed to.

“Today our system of justice worked, and former President Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts by a jury of American citizens,” McCollum wrote on social media. “No person is above the law.”

A ‘sham’ or an ‘affirmation’??

Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds wrote in a statement the trial was a “sham.”

“For years, Democrats like Alvin Bragg have been trying to put President Trump in jail with complete disregard for our democracy and the will of the American people,” Reynolds wrote. “The only verdict that matters is the one at the ballot box in November where the American people will elect President Trump again.”

Florida Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz wrote on social media that the jury’s guilty verdict wasn’t political.

“A former president being convicted is nothing to be celebrated, but it is an affirmation that nobody is above the law,” Moskowitz wrote. “This verdict was reached by a jury of Trump’s peers, by citizens of the American justice system, not by a judge or by a political opponent.”

Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, rejected the verdict, writing on social media it was a “travesty of justice.”

“The Manhattan kangaroo court shows what happens when our justice system is weaponized by partisan prosecutors in front of a biased judge with an unfair process, designed to keep President Trump off the campaign trail and avoid bringing attention to President Biden’s failing radical policies,” Jordan wrote.

Virginia Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine posted on social media the “verdict is proof that no one is above the law in this country.”

“It’s also tragic in this way — Americans put the reins of leadership in the hands of a person whose character is so far beneath the office that no rational adult would ever encourage young people to emulate … his behavior,” Kaine wrote.

“Trump’s lack of character has caught up to him,” Kaine added. “And Americans — once again — have received a clear warning about a person who wants to seize leadership once again. I pray that we heed the warning.”

House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer, a Kentucky Republican, said Thursday was a “sad day for all Americans.”

“This verdict in New York is another example of Democrats being relentless in their pursuit to weaponize the courts, abuse America’s judicial system, and target President Joe Biden’s political opposition,” Comer wrote. “One thing is clear: Democrats are afraid to face Donald Trump. Americans will make their voices heard this November.”

Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, the Republican nominee for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat, urged restraint in a social media post.

“Regardless of the result, I urge all Americans to respect the verdict and the legal process,” Hogan wrote. “At this dangerously divided moment in our history, all leaders — regardless of party — must not pour fuel on the fire with more toxic partisanship. We must reaffirm what has made this nation great: the rule of law.”

Jacob Fischler and Jennifer Shutt contributed to this report.

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Free direct filing of federal taxes may be offered soon throughout the U.S. https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/30/free-direct-filing-of-federal-taxes-may-be-offered-soon-throughout-the-u-s/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/30/free-direct-filing-of-federal-taxes-may-be-offered-soon-throughout-the-u-s/#respond Thu, 30 May 2024 19:36:25 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18376

After the success of the Direct File pilot program this year, the IRS plans to make permanent the free filing of federal tax returns. (Phillip Rubino/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Taxpayers across the United States could be guaranteed a free public option to file federal tax returns online as the Internal Revenue Service announced plans Thursday to make its Direct File program permanent.

The pilot program offered in 12 states from March to April drew roughly 140,000 accepted returns this filing season and saved participants $5.6 million in tax preparation costs and helped filers receive $90 million in refunds, according to the IRS.

The states involved in this year’s pilot included Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming.

The agency is now inviting all 50 states to participate and will accommodate however many sign on, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel told reporters on a call Thursday morning.

“We heard directly from hundreds of organizations across the country, more than 100 members of Congress, individual direct file users and those that are interested in using direct file. The clear message is that many taxpayers across the nation want the IRS to provide options for filing electronically at no cost,” Werfel said.

Yellen touted results of a user survey that showed 90% of participants rate their experience as excellent or above average.

“They appreciated that it allowed them to quickly fix mistakes and there were no fees or upsells. The success of the Direct File pilot means there’s now strong demand for direct file from taxpayers across the country,” Yellen said.

The average American spends $270 and 13 hours filing their taxes, according to the agency’s Taxpayer Burden Survey.

The program ‘delivered’

The left-leaning Economic Security Project, which advocates for tax credits for low-income and middle class households, praised the IRS decision to make permanent the program that “delivered on the promise of free and simplified tax filing for taxpayers.”

“It was evident that taxpayers saw the value of Direct File, both in making their lives easier and demonstrating what great government customer service looks like,” Adam Ruben, the organization’s vice president of campaigns and political strategy, said in a statement Thursday.

“We are already working with our partners in states across the nation to support the expansion of Direct File next year so more taxpayers can take advantage of free and simplified tax filing in the next tax season,” he said.

Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top tax writer of the upper chamber, praised the IRS announcement in a statement Thursday as “tremendous news for taxpayers all over the country who are tired of getting ripped off by the big tax prep companies that routinely upcharge for unnecessary services, oversell the quality of their products and offer crummy customer service.”

Werfel said the IRS cannot provide an estimated cost of expanding the program because the agency has yet to learn how many states will jump on board.

The cost to run the program this year totaled $31.8 million, breaking down to $24.6 million in IRS costs, and $7.2 million in U.S. Digital Service costs to create the online platform, Werfel said.

Among the tens of billions of dollars Congress authorized for the IRS in its 2022 budget reconciliation law, otherwise known as the Inflation Reduction Act, $15 million was earmarked for exploring a way for the public to electronically file federal returns for free directly to the government, rather than through a third party.

This year’s pilot program was only available to taxpayers with basic tax situations, including W-2 income or simple credits and deductions, like the child tax credit or student loan interest.

“Our goal is to gradually expand the scope of Direct File to support most common tax situations, focusing in particular on tax situations that impact working families,” Werfel said.

When asked on the call whether the success of the program depends on who is in the Oval Office next year, Werfel responded, “I truly believe that the vision that the IRS has for the future tax administration is a nonpartisan one.”

Opposition from GOP

The free public program was met with fierce opposition from congressional Republicans and GOP state officials who criticized it as redundant, “unconstitutional” and a threat to state tax revenue.

Many cited the already established IRS Free File program, a regularly evolving partnership between the federal agency and private tax prep software companies that provide a free federal return filing option.

That 22-year-old program has been riddled with issues, including low participation and “confusion and complexity” that led millions of eligible taxpayers to actually pay the commercial partners who were supposed to offer the free service, according to a 2019 Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration report.

A 2019 ProPublica investigation revealed deliberate tactics by Free File participant Intuit, maker of TurboTax, to cloud access to the free option.

Nearly two dozen state auditors, comptrollers and treasurers from 18 states urged the IRS to “shut down” the new Direct File pilot program because users could be confused about having to file a state return separately, therefore resulting in a loss in state revenue.

This argument is based on the fact that many commercial tax prep software companies and private tax preparers automatically prompt taxpayers to complete their state returns after filing the federal one.

The state officials who signed on to the March 25 letter to the IRS hailed from Alaska, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.

The Kentuckian signing the letter was Auditor of Public Accounts Allison Ball, a Republican.

Two of the Direct File pilot program states — Arizona and New York — worked with the nonprofit Code for America to integrate a free state tax return filing option in concert with Direct File. The nonprofit reported that of the state returns filed through its tool, 98% were accepted.

Several state governments already offer free public electronic filing for state income tax returns that users must access separately through dedicated state websites, including Alabama, Kansas, Kentucky and Pennsylvania, which offer the service regardless of income level. Some states, like California and Iowa, have income thresholds for free filing.

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The jury now will decide Trump’s fate in hush money trial, after lengthy closing arguments https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/28/the-jury-now-will-decide-trumps-fate-in-hush-money-trial-after-lengthy-closing-arguments/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/28/the-jury-now-will-decide-trumps-fate-in-hush-money-trial-after-lengthy-closing-arguments/#respond Wed, 29 May 2024 02:02:14 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18319

Former U.S. Capitol Police officers Michael Fanone and Harry Dunn, who were overwhelmed by the mob at the Capitol on Jan. 6, are interviewed during former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial in Manhattan Criminal Court on May 28, 2024 in New York City. Closing arguments were under way. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Closing arguments in the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president concluded Tuesday, leaving the jury to now decide if Donald Trump is guilty of faking reimbursement to his personal lawyer for hush money paid to a porn star just before the 2016 presidential election.

Just outside the Lower Manhattan courthouse during summations, the campaign to reelect President Joe Biden held a press conference featuring actor Robert DeNiro and two former U.S. Capitol Police officers who were overwhelmed by the angry mob of Trump supporters who stormed the building on Jan. 6, 2021.

DeNiro bickered with a heckler and the Trump campaign then followed with its own press conference.

The trial’s final day of arguments wrapped up after nearly eight hours of closing arguments, during which the defense portrayed Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen as the “M.V.P. of liars” and Trump as a victim of extortion and too busy a leader in 2017 to understand the payments to Cohen.

Meanwhile, the prosecution walked jurors through excruciating details of events and witness testimony to show that Trump’s objective, along with those in his orbit, was to “hoodwink the American voter” leading up to the 2016 election, according to reporters at the courthouse.

New York does not allow recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings. States Newsroom covered the trial in person on May 20.

Trump, the presumed 2024 Republican presidential nominee, is charged with 34 felonies, one for each of the 11 invoices, 11 checks, and 12 ledger entries that New York state prosecutors allege were cooked-up as routine “legal expenses,” hiding what were really reimbursements to Cohen for paying off adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

Trump denies any wrongdoing

Daniels, also an adult film director, testified in early May to a 2006 sexual encounter at a Lake Tahoe golf tournament with Trump, which he maintains never happened.

Cohen, the prosecution’s key witness, later told the jurors that he wired Daniels $130,000 to secure her signature on a nondisclosure agreement in late October 2016, and that Trump was aware.

Cohen’s payment swiftly followed the release of the “Access Hollywood” tape, in which Trump was recorded telling a TV host that his fame allows him to grab women by the genitals.

The revelation spun Trump’s campaign into a frenzy over possibly losing women voters, additional witnesses testified.

Further, Cohen testified that Trump was present during conversations to hatch a plan with the Trump Organization’s longtime chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, to repay Cohen under the guise of “legal expenses.” Cohen would eventually receive a grossed-up sum of $420,000 to account for a bonus and taxes.

The hush money trial, which began in mid-April, is likely the only one to occur prior to the November election. Three other criminal cases against the former president, two federal and one in Georgia, remain stalled.

Throughout the six-week trial, jurors heard from nearly two dozen witnesses called by the prosecution to establish Trump’s history of working to suppress negative stories.

David Pecker, former National Enquirer publisher, testified to coordinating with Trump and Cohen earlier in 2016 to pay off former Playboy model Karen McDougal and bury her story of an alleged affair with Trump.

The G.L.O.A.T.

In his closing statements, Trump attorney Todd Blanche addressed the jury for nearly three hours, arguing that Trump made no such effort to influence the 2016 election by “unlawful means.”

Blanche told the jurors to put the idea of a conspiracy aside, emphasizing that the existence of a nondisclosure agreement is “not a crime.” Working with editors to buy sources’ silence and bury stories was routine, Blanche said.

“Every campaign in this country is a conspiracy,” he told the jurors, according to reporters at the courthouse.

While no hard contract existed between Trump and Cohen at the time, Blanche argued that the two had entered into an “oral” retainer agreement, and that Cohen was lying about how much work he was actually doing for Trump.

By the time Trump reached the Oval Office and personally signed nine of the 11 checks for Cohen, the then-president was too busy “running the country” to realize what he was signing, Blanche said.

As for the classification of the payments on the ledger, Blanche argued that the Trump Organization’s software featured limited dropdown menu categories, and that “legal expenses” was one of the options.

Blanche’s closing statements were largely dominated by his effort to persuade jurors that Cohen’s testimony could not be trusted.

“There is no way that you can find that President Trump knew about this payment at the time it was made without believing the words of Michael Cohen — period,” Blanche told the jurors, according to reporters in the courtroom.

Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 for lying to Congress.

Using another sports metaphor, Blanche told jurors that Cohen is the “G.L.O.A.T.”

“He’s literally the greatest liar of all time,” Blanche said.

He closed by urging the jurors to not send Trump “to prison” based on Cohen’s testimony.

Justice Juan Merchan admonished Blanche for mentioning prison, pointing out that a guilty verdict does not necessarily mean prison time. Merchan told the jurors to disregard that “improper” comment, according to reporters at the courthouse.

‘The only one who’s paid the price’

For just under five hours, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass led jurors through his closing argument, clocking the longest day of the trial.

Steinglass started off by telling them the prosecution only needs to prove the following: There were false business records used as part of the conspiracy and that Trump knew about them.

Steinglass reviewed earlier evidence presented to the jury — phone records, handwritten notes, recorded phone conversations and checks bearing Trump’s own signature. He also recalled the damning testimony of several Trump allies, including Pecker, the publisher.

“The conspiracy to unlawfully influence the 2016 election — you don’t need Michael Cohen to prove that one bit,” Steinglass said, according to reporters at the courthouse.

Steinglass leaned into Cohen’s seedy past, including his lying to Congress and his jail time for campaign finance violations related to hush money payments to women who alleged extramarital affairs with Trump.

These actions, he said, were taken on Trump’s behalf to defend and shield him; the irony, Steinglass said, is now they are being used against Cohen, again, to protect Trump.

Cohen transformed from a loyal Trump ally into a bitter foe who has published books titled “Disloyal” and “Revenge,” and produces a podcast called “Mea Culpa” on which he regularly lambastes Trump.

Cohen is “understandably angry that to date, he’s the only one who’s paid the price for his role in this conspiracy,” Blanche told the jurors, according to reporters, who noted Trump was shaking his head.

Steinglass attempted to humanize Cohen for the jurors, telling them one can “hardly blame” the former fixer — who now has a criminal record and no law license — for selling merchandise including t-shirts depicting Trump in an orange prison jumpsuit.

Steinglass also refuted the defense’s argument that Trump’s actions ahead of the 2016 were routine, describing the National Enquirer as “a covert arm” of the Trump campaign and “the very antithesis of a normal legitimate press function.”

“Everything Mr. Trump and his cohorts did in this case was cloaked in lies,” Steinglass said nearing the end of his closing statement. “The name of the game was concealment, and all roads lead to the man who benefited the most, Donald Trump.”

Biden deploys DeNiro

On the sidewalk just outside the New York County Supreme Court, the Biden campaign deployed DeNiro, the voice of the latest campaign ad, and former U.S. Capitol Police officers Harry Dunn and Michael Fanone. The officers are campaigning for Biden in battleground states, the campaign said in a press release.

The campaign’s Michael Tyler, communications director, introduced the trio and said they were not in Manhattan because of the trial proceedings, but rather because that’s where the media is concentrated.

Loud protesters, whom DeNiro called “crazy,” competed with the speakers.

“Donald Trump has created this,” DeNiro said, pointing to the demonstrators. “He wants to sow total chaos, which he’s succeeding in some areas … I love this city, and I don’t want to destroy it. Donald Trump wants to destroy, not only this city, but the country, and eventually he could destroy the world.”

“These guys are the true heroes,” De Niro said, pointing to Dunn and Fanone behind him. “They stood and put their lives on the line for these low lives, for Trump.”

A protester then interrupted DeNiro to call the officers “traitors.”

“I don’t even know how to deal with you, my friend,” DeNiro snapped back during the livestreamed event.

Both Dunn and Fanone testified two years ago before lawmakers investigating the violent mob that overran the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 as Congress gathered for a joint session to certify Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory. Trump still falsely claims he won the election.

Trump’s campaign immediately followed with its own press conference.

Jason Miller, senior adviser to Trump, held up Tuesday’s copy of the New York Post bearing the headline “Nothing to Bragg About,” a play on Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s name.

“Everybody knows this case is complete garbage,” Miller said. “President Trump did nothing wrong. This is all politics.”

On Trump’s social media platform Truth Social, the former president posted “BORING!” in all capital letters during a break in the Steinglass summation.

Late Monday, Trump posted in all caps a complaint about the order in which closing arguments would occur — a routine, well-established series of remarks in trials.

“WHY IS THE CORRUPT GOVERNMENT ALLOWED TO MAKE THE FINAL ARGUMENT IN THE CASE AGAINST ME? WHY CAN’T THE DEFENSE GO LAST? BIG ADVANTAGE, VERY UNFAIR. WITCH HUNT!” he wrote.

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Missouri residents affected by radiation exposure push Congress to extend benefits https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/28/missouri-residents-affected-by-radiation-exposure-push-congress-to-extend-benefits/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/28/missouri-residents-affected-by-radiation-exposure-push-congress-to-extend-benefits/#respond Tue, 28 May 2024 16:42:15 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18262

Tammy Tesson Puhlmann, 63, who now lives in Villa Ridge, Missouri, shows photos of her son Drew as she sat in the Russell Senate Office Building on May 22, 2024. Puhlmann’s son died of cancer at age 30, and she was among 10 eastern Missouri residents speaking to lawmakers on Capitol Hill about expanding the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — A fund to compensate Americans sickened by exposure to atomic bomb tests, uranium mining and radioactive waste expires in just under 20 days, and activists and lawmakers are scrambling to keep the fund active and open to additional victims.

A bill to reauthorize and expand the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, often shortened to RECA, sailed through the U.S. Senate in early March on a bipartisan 69-30 vote, but the House has yet to take it up for a vote.

Critics cite high costs, but bipartisan lawmakers and activists rallying in favor of the bill say the victims have already paid the price through medical bills and lost loved ones, and that it’s ultimately the government’s wrong to make right.

The U.S. Senate-passed legislation, championed by Republican Sen. Josh Hawley, aims to extend the program by six years and expand eligibility to several new locations, including his state of Missouri where, over decades, residents witnessed numerous rare similar cancers among neighbors in and around St. Louis.

Chemical plants in downtown St. Louis and Weldon Spring, Missouri, processed uranium during the nation’s WWII effort to build the first atomic bomb. Radioactive waste from the plants were stored and dumped around the area.

States Newsroom’s Missouri Independent, in collaboration with the Associated Press and MuckRock, obtained and combed through thousands of government records that revealed the government downplayed and ignored the dangers of the radioactive waste.

‘The government has done this’

Tammy Tesson Puhlmann, 63, who lived for decades in Florissant, Missouri, sat in the Russell Senate Office Building Wednesday showing photos of her son Drew — first, as a baby who was born with a rare blood disease, and then as a thin 30-year-old man just a week before he died of cancer.

“If I can prevent one mom from having to go through something like this, I would do anything,” she said through tears. “It’s the most unbearable feeling in the world to know that there is nothing you can do for your child, and to know that the government has done this.”

Puhlmann was among 10 eastern Missouri residents and state representatives who met with 10 lawmakers on Wednesday, including House Majority Leader Steve Scalise; U.S. Reps. Ann Wagner and Blaine Luetkemeyer, both Republicans of Missouri; and the state’s GOP Sens. Eric Schmitt and Hawley.

Missouri state Reps. Tricia Byrnes and Richard West, both Republicans, who represent districts just outside St. Louis, flipped through maps and photos documenting the contaminated sites, including where a uranium processing plant and byproduct dumping ground were located next to Francis Howell High School, which Byrnes attended.

“Look how close it was to all of the contamination. That high school is still there,” Byrnes said, pointing to a map.

To Byrnes’ left sat Kristin Denbow, a 1988 Francis Howell graduate who has been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer in the bone marrow.

“We have memories of men in full containment suits walking around the grounds of our high school while we were there,” Denbow said.

‘This has been our lives’

Susie Gaffney, 66, who now lives in O’Fallon, Missouri, holds a packet of papers that she distributed to lawmakers on Capitol Hill on March 22, 2024. The packet contained photos of her son Joey, 45, who developed thyroid cancer at 18, and her husband, Jim, 68, who survived bladder cancer and now lives with myelodysplastic syndrome. Three generations of her family lived along Coldwater Creek, which is contaminated with radioactive waste. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

Three generations of Susie Gaffney’s family made their homes in the suburbs of St. Louis near Coldwater Creek, unaware that radioactive waste relocated from the downtown uranium plant was leaking into the water.

Susie’s husband, Jim, grew up in a house beside the creek and not far from Jana Elementary School, which closed in 2023 because of radioactive contamination.

“Jim grew up playing in the creek, everybody did. Everybody who tells the creek stories played (there). It was awesome, it wasn’t deep. Kids fished, they made mudslides. It was a great place to live,” Gaffney said.

Jim, whose mother died of colon cancer after being diagnosed in her 40s, developed lymphoma at the age of 24.

When Susie and Jim’s son Joey was an infant, they moved to a nearby subdivision named Wedgewood, a few miles down the creek. Joey also played in the water as a child.

Joey was diagnosed at 18 with thyroid cancer and eventually underwent a thyroidectomy. Gaffney, now 66, recalls the doctors telling her, “This kid is?Chernobyl.”

“‘This is what happened in Chernobyl. He has metastasized thyroid cancer. This is what happened there. He had to be exposed to radiation’ and naively I said, ‘Well, where?’ And so this has been our lives,” she said.

Joey is now 45. Jim, 68, was also diagnosed with bladder cancer and is now living with myelodysplastic syndrome, Gaffney said.

“He’s living on blood transfusions,” she said, pointing to a photo of him on a packet of papers she was handing out to lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

Below the photo of Jim was a map of the region with red dots for each cancer case.

“I just want people to tunnel in,” Gaffney said. “Pretend you’re on Google Earth, zoom all the way down and get on those front doors and picture our lifespan with health care, with depression, with anxiety, fear. Our quality of life has definitely been affected, all of us.”

Debate on Capitol Hill

The government’s nearly expired compensation program pays one-time sums of $75,000 to those who developed certain diseases after working on U.S. nuclear tests before 1963. It pays $50,000 to those who lived in select counties downwind from test explosion sites between January 1951 and October 1958, and the month of July in 1962, in Arizona, Nevada and Utah.

Uranium industry workers who were employed in 11 states from 1942 to 1971 and subsequently developed eligible illnesses qualify for $100,000.

Hawley’s bill, co-sponsored by Democratic Sen. Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico, would also expand to include the entirety of Arizona, Nevada and Utah, and include downwind and affected areas in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, and Guam. Additionally, the one-time compensation sums to victims or surviving family members would increase to $100,000.

If enacted, the legislation would reach areas including ZIP codes in Alaska, Kentucky, Missouri and Tennessee, where communities were impacted by radioactive waste dumping, uranium processing and other related activities surrounding the testing.

The bill’s estimated cost of $50 billion to $60 billion has drawn criticism. Hawley’s office confirmed the estimate. There is not an official budget score.

On Thursday, Sen. Mike Lee of Utah, asked for unanimous consent on the Senate floor for his proposed “clean extension” of the program as it exists for another two years — only covering those affected in areas of Arizona, Nevada and Utah.

Lee cited the risk of “inflating the deficit by at least $60 billion” and questioned whether enough data backs contamination in the additional areas in Hawley’s bill.

“You see, the House of Representatives has thus far declined to take up and pass Sen. Hawley’s previous bill, with some signaling concern and raising some of the concerns that I just restated,” the Utah Republican said.

Hawley objected, and Luján spoke in support of the objection.

“Study after study has shown the expanse of the nuclear radiation. Here is a study from 1997, from 2005, another from 2005, from 2023, all showing that the nuclear radiation is far beyond the contours of the original RECA bill passed in 1990,” Hawley said. “Yet my friend from Utah wants to keep doing the same old thing, leaving out in the cold hundreds of thousands of Americans. I will not consent to it.”

Lee responded, saying he understood the “impassioned pleas” from Hawley and Luján. He offered an updated version that includes Missouri and New Mexico, but leaves out other states and Guam. His office cites an unofficial budget score of $30 billion.

“There are other states in (Hawley’s) legislation pending in the House that deal with law in the Marshall Islands, Idaho, Kentucky, Ohio, Alaska, and perhaps one or two other jurisdictions. The claims of those states are not on equal footing,” Lee said.

“That is where a lot of the — not all, but a lot of the expense is accrued and a lot of concerns expressed in the House impeding its quick passage over there that might lead to it not being able to be passed at all,” he continued.

Hawley again objected, saying he “will not be party to any attempt at some halfway measure, some short stopgap bill, or some effort to sweep this under the rug.”

A spokesperson for House Speaker Mike Johnson, of Louisiana, told States Newsroom on May 15 that “The Speaker understands and appreciates Senator Hawley’s position and is working closely with interested members and stakeholders to chart a path forward for the House.”

RECA was established in 1990.

The U.S. conducted more than 1,000 atomic weapons tests from 1945 to 1992 — the first at the Trinity Test site near Alamogordo, New Mexico, where scientists detonated the Manhattan Project’s first atomic bomb prior to the U.S. dropping the weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, at the end of World War II.

As of June 2022, the government has approved more than 36,000 RECA claims for more than $2.3 billion in benefits.

Unless the fund is extended, claims have to be postmarked by June 10, 2024, according to the Department of Justice, which administers the payouts.

YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.

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As Memorial Day arrives, bill unveiled in Congress to assist Purple Heart recipients https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/23/as-memorial-day-arrives-bill-unveiled-in-congress-to-assist-purple-heart-recipients/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/23/as-memorial-day-arrives-bill-unveiled-in-congress-to-assist-purple-heart-recipients/#respond Thu, 23 May 2024 21:15:12 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18106

A Purple Heart medal is seen during a Purple Heart ceremony June 9, 2015 at George Washington’s Mount Vernon in Mount Vernon, Virginia. The U.S. Army held a celebration for its 240th birthday. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — When a Purple Heart recipient named Pat reached out to U.S. Sen. Patty Murray in November to inform her that he couldn’t transfer his GI bill benefits to his children, he wasn’t expecting congressional action to solve the problem.

He simply just wanted to let the Washington state Democrat know, he told States Newsroom in an exclusive interview.

With a child about to head to college, Pat, who didn’t want his last name used, had recently been told by the Army that he couldn’t transfer his education benefits to them because he received the Purple Heart after he was medically discharged. This rule does not apply to those who receive the medal while still in service.

Murray and Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, introduced a bipartisan bill Thursday aimed at closing that loophole.

The legislation, titled the Purple Heart Veterans Education Act, would permit retroactive award recipients who served on or after Sept. 11, 2001 to transfer their education benefits to one or more dependents. It was unveiled just ahead of Memorial Day, when the nation honors its deceased service members.

“As the daughter of a Purple Heart recipient, I’ve seen firsthand the enormous sacrifices Purple Heart veterans make to defend our freedoms, and I feel strongly that we should be doing absolutely everything we can to help all veterans and their families thrive,” Murray said in a statement Thursday.

“It doesn’t make any sense that service members who are awarded a Purple Heart after their service can’t transfer their GI benefits to their dependents, while those who receive it during their service can—and I am grateful to Pat, my constituent in Washington state who brought this gap in the law to my attention,” continued Murray, a senior member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs.

“Our legislation will close this loophole and allow more children of Purple Heart veterans to further their education. I want to thank Senator Tillis for joining me on this legislation and I’ll be working hard to get it passed into law.”

Glitch in education benefits

Pat was medically discharged from the U.S. Army and retroactively received a Purple Heart for his actions during Iran’s retaliatory missile barrage in January 2020 on an Iraq airbase, after a U.S. drone strike killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani.

The Army later approved 39 Purple Hearts for service members who experienced the attack, according to a December 2021 report by the Army Times.

As his teenager looks to enroll at Central Washington University next year, Pat found out that by law his education benefits would only be available for transfer if he had received the award while still in service.

“My thought was, ‘I doubt that legislators would have done that intentionally.’ I just thought, you know, people probably just didn’t think about how that happens — that some people are going to get retroactive Purple Hearts, or for whatever reason in evaluating them, they’re delayed. So it’s not like an unusual thing,” Pat said in a phone interview.

“I wasn’t thinking much was going to happen, but I just wanted to write Senator Murray, who is my local senator, and let her know the issue. They responded by saying, ‘That’s an oversight on our part, and we want to make good on that.’”

Pat said he’s “grateful for Sen. Murray” and hopes his action is able to help other Purple Heart veterans. For now, his family is moving forward with the college enrollment process for his child, he said.

Benefits and dependents

Among the provisions in the legislation, Murray and Tillis’ bill would also allow veterans to split up 36 months worth of benefits to each of their dependents. For example, they could transfer 20 months to one and 16 months to another.

The bill, if enacted, would also prohibit the benefits from being treated as marital property or a marital estate asset.

And, the bill would permit dependents to access unused benefits if their veteran family member has died.

“Purple Heart recipients are heroes who honorably served our country at great costs, and this oversight that prevents servicemembers who received this distinguished award after their service from transferring their GI bill benefits to their dependents needs to be corrected immediately,” Tillis said in a statement Thursday.

“I am proud to co-introduce this commonsense legislation with Senator Murray to close this loophole and ensure every Purple Heart recipient and dependents are able to further their education,” continued Tillis, who also sits on the Senate’s Veterans’ Affairs Committee.

The number of veterans who retroactively received the Purple Heart after their post-9/11 service is unclear. The bill is estimated to cost $500,000 in mandatory spending over 10 years, according to an informal analysis provided to Murray’s office by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

The bill has received praise from veterans groups, including the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

“Unfortunately, not every veteran’s service and sacrifice on behalf of the United States of America is fully recognized while they’re still in uniform,” IAVA CEO and Iraq War veteran Allison Jaslow said in a statement Thursday.

“The Purple Heart Veterans Education Act ensures that those veterans who’ve endured bodily harm on behalf of our nation, but weren’t recognized for it until their service concluded, are able to turn that recognition into an investment in the education of their loved ones.”

More Purple Heart recipients

The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have “greatly increased” the number of Purple Heart recipients as the Department of Defense has added some traumatic brain injuries as a recognized condition for the award, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.

It wasn’t until a 2017 law that Purple Heart recipients were able to receive full post-9/11 GI Bill benefits regardless of their length of service. Previously, the recipients had to have 36 months of active service.

The Department of Defense does not maintain a record of the number of recipients, according to the CRS, but by law they do maintain a publicly accessible list with the permission of the veteran or next of kin.

Military historians and the National Purple Heart Hall of Honor estimate about 1.8 million Purple Hearts have been awarded since 1932. The Army Historical Foundation estimated as of 2016 that 30,000 Purple Hearts had been awarded since 2001. The CRS cited this statistic.

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Experts eye tax changes ahead of Trump-era cuts’ sunset https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/23/experts-eye-tax-changes-ahead-of-trump-era-cuts-sunset/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/23/experts-eye-tax-changes-ahead-of-trump-era-cuts-sunset/#respond Thu, 23 May 2024 15:32:37 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=18053

Some provisions of the 2017 federal tax law expire at the end of next year, setting off debates about what changes to make to the tax code. (Photo by Douglas Sacha/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The race to harness the tax code is in full swing as economists and advocates across the political spectrum view the expiring Trump-era tax law as an opportunity to advance their economic priorities.

Democratic Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington said Wednesday that reworking the tax code will be “a reflection of what your values are.”

DelBene, who sits on the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Tax Policy, said her priorities include modernizing the tax code, raising revenue via carbon fees on imported goods, and making permanent an expanded child tax credit akin to the temporary changes in place during the pandemic.

“The top line is starting from what our values and goals are, and then looking at what the policies are that help us get there,” DelBene said at a Politico-sponsored discussion on proposed tax law changes.

The early morning event at Washington’s Union Station brought together tax experts and advocates from Georgetown University Law Center, the Urban Institute, the Heritage Foundation and Groundwork Collaborative.

Tax overhaul

The massive tax overhaul ushered in under the Trump administration permanently cut the corporate tax rate to 21% from 35%. The 2017 law, championed by Republicans as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, also put in place several temporary measures for corporations and small businesses. Some are phasing out or already expired, including immediate deductions for certain investments.

Temporary changes for households included marginal tax rate cuts across the board, a doubling of the child tax credit, and a near doubling of the standard deduction — all of which are set to expire Dec. 31, 2025.

A bipartisan bill to temporarily extend the expiring business incentives and expand the child tax credit through 2025 sailed through the U.S. House in late January, but has been stalled by U.S. Senate Republicans who oppose some of the child tax credit expansion proposals.

A May 2024 nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office report estimated extending the tax cuts would cost roughly $4.6 trillion over 10 years. The bulk of the cost would stem from keeping in place individual tax cuts, according to an analysis of the report by the Bipartisan Policy Center.

Critics of the 2017 law point to a recent March analysis from academics and members of the Joint Committee on Taxation and the Federal Reserve that shows that the law’s benefits flowed to the highest earners.

DelBene said revisiting the corporate tax rate, even on the Republican side, is “on the table” and lawmakers will be talking about “where the TCJA wasn’t about investing and making sure that we were being fiscally responsible.”

‘Incredibly bullish’

Lindsay Owens, executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative, said Wednesday she’s “incredibly bullish” on elected officials making “fundamental changes” to the tax code next year.

The progressive think tank sent a letter Wednesday to House and Senate leadership and top tax writers urging them “to use the expiration of these provisions as an opportunity to address long-standing problems with our tax code, not just to tinker around the edges.”

The letter was signed by 100 organizations from across the U.S., ranging from the AFL-CIO and the United Auto Workers to the National Women’s Law Center and United Church of Christ.

Stephen Moore, who helped write the Trump-era tax law and is now the conservative Heritage Foundation’s senior visiting fellow in economics, said the 2017 law was a “huge success” and that “we’re gonna definitely make those tax cuts permanent.”

Moore is an economic adviser for former President Donald Trump’s reelection effort, but said he was not speaking on behalf of the presidential campaign.

He said he does not agree with Trump on everything, including a promise to enact 10% tariffs on imported goods, reaching as high as 60% on Chinese imports.

“A tariff is just a consumption tax,” he said. “And so you know, I think that it is not a great policy, in my opinion. But if you’re gonna have a tariff, I would rather have a tariff that is uniform than trying to have, like, a protectionist tariff to, you know, protect this industry or that industry.”

When pressed on data that shows funding the Internal Revenue Service increases revenue, Moore said that President Joe Biden’s increase in funding for the agency is “diabolical.”

Correction: This report has been corrected to reflect how long an expanded child tax credit would be in effect under a bipartisan House bill.

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Trump declines witness stand as testimony in his first trial concludes https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/21/trump-declines-witness-stand-as-testimony-in-his-first-trial-concludes/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/21/trump-declines-witness-stand-as-testimony-in-his-first-trial-concludes/#respond Tue, 21 May 2024 17:58:24 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17895

Former President Donald Trump sits in court during the final day of testimony in his New York trial. Trump, the first former U.S. president to face trial on criminal charges, is accused of falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments. (Photo by Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The end of the first criminal trial of a former U.S. president is in sight as Donald Trump’s defense team rested its case Tuesday in Manhattan, where jurors have heard weeks of testimony from nearly two dozen witnesses about Trump’s alleged reimbursement of hush money meant to silence a porn star before the 2016 presidential election.

Trump did not take the stand after his team called just two witnesses.

The former president is accused of 34 felonies for falsifying business records. New York prosecutors allege that Trump covered up reimbursing his former personal lawyer Michael Cohen for paying hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels just before Election Day in 2016 to silence her about a tryst with Trump.

Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican candidate for president, denies the affair and maintains that he was paying Cohen for routine legal work.

The case will not resume until after the Memorial Day holiday, when closing arguments are expected.

A back channel to Trump

Trump’s defense team’s second and final witness, former federal prosecutor and longtime New York-based attorney Robert Costello, stepped down from the witness stand Tuesday morning. His brief but tense appearance began Monday afternoon and included an admonishment from Justice Juan Merchan for “contemptuous” conduct.

Costello testified to meeting a panicked and “suicidal” Cohen in April 2018 after the FBI had raided Cohen’s New York City hotel room as part of an investigation of his $130,000 payment to Daniels just before the 2016 presidential election.

After Merchan sustained a series of objections from the prosecution Monday, Costello exclaimed, “jeez” and “ridiculous” on the mic and at one point rolled his eyes at Merchan. Merchan cleared the courtroom, including the press, to address Costello and Trump’s defense team.

Costello’s testimony confirmed that he offered a back channel for Cohen to communicate with then-President Trump through Costello’s close contact and Trump’s former legal counsel Rudy Giuliani as Cohen was under investigation, according to reporters at the courthouse.

New York does not allow recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings.

During cross examination, prosecutor Susan Hoffinger showed a series of Costello’s emails in an attempt to convince jurors that Costello was actively working to assure Trump that Cohen would not turn against him during the federal investigation.

In one email between Costello and his law partner, he asks, “What should I say to this (expletive)? He is playing with the most powerful man on the planet,” according to reporters at the courthouse.

Hoffinger also established from Costello during her final series of questions that Cohen never officially retained him for legal help — reinforcing that Costello showed up in Cohen’s life only after the FBI raid.

Trump’s multiple indictments

Costello has been publicly critical of the hush money trial against Trump, and of Cohen, as recently as May 15, when he testified before the GOP-led U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary’s Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government.

There, Costello told lawmakers that the cases brought against Trump during this election year are “politically motivated.”

Trump, who faces dozens of criminal charges in four separate cases, was indicted in New York in April 2023.

Three other criminal cases were also brought against Trump in 2023. They all remain on hold.

  • The former president was indicted by a federal grand jury in Florida in June 2023 on charges related to the mishandling of classified information. Federal District Judge Aileen Cannon indefinitely postponed proceedings, making a trial before the November election unlikely.
  • Trump was indicted by a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., in August 2023. A four-count indictment accused him of knowingly spreading falsehoods about the 2020 presidential election results and scheming to overturn them. Trump claimed presidential immunity from the criminal charges in October 2023, which both the federal trial and appeals courts denied. Trump is awaiting a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court.
  • Weeks after the federal election interference indictment, Trump was indicted on state charges in Fulton County, Georgia, for allegedly interfering in the state’s 2020 presidential election results. The Georgia case has been mired in pretrial disputes over alleged misconduct by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

Courtroom conditions

In the dim, tightly secured hallway just feet from the courtroom at the New York County Supreme Court, Trump again criticized the trial Monday and accused prosecutors of wanting to keep him off the campaign trail.

“We’re here an hour early today. I was supposed to be making a speech for political purposes. I’m not allowed to have anything to do with politics because I’m sitting in a very freezing cold courtroom for the last four weeks. It’s very unfair. They have no case, they have no crime,” he said before the news cameras that he’s stopped to speak in front of every day during the trial.

Trump told the cameras that outside the courtroom was like “Fort Knox.”

He complained that there are “more police than I’ve ever seen anywhere,” and said “there’s not a civilian within three blocks of the courthouse.”

That statement is false. States Newsroom attended the trial Monday and witnessed the scene outside the courthouse during the morning, mid-afternoon and late afternoon.

Just as dawn broke, people standing in the general-public line vying for the few public seats in the courtroom squabbled over who was in front of whom.

About an hour later, a woman with a bullhorn showed up in the adjacent Collect Pond Park to read the Bible and amplify contemporary Christian music played from her phone. A man paced the park holding a sign that read, “Trump 2 Terrified 2 Testify.”

Several people sat outside eating and talking at tables in Collect Pond Park during the 1 p.m. hour, as witnessed by reporters who left the courtroom after Merchan dismissed the jury for lunch.

By late afternoon, a small handful of protesters holding Trump flags and signs shouted that he was innocent.

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Prosecution rests in Trump hush money trial, after former fixer Cohen is grilled https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/20/prosecution-rests-in-trump-hush-money-trial-after-former-fixer-cohen-is-grilled/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/20/prosecution-rests-in-trump-hush-money-trial-after-former-fixer-cohen-is-grilled/#respond Mon, 20 May 2024 23:23:40 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17843

Former President Donald Trump appears in court during his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 20, 2024, in New York City. Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first of his criminal cases to go to trial. (Photo by Steven Hirsch-Pool/Getty Images)

NEW YORK — New York state prosecutors rested their case against Donald Trump Monday after four days of testimony from their key witness, Trump’s former fixer Michael Cohen, who says the former president was well aware of a hush money cover-up. The defense paints Cohen as a liar.

The Manhattan criminal trial, the first ever for a former president, now in its sixth week, was poised to reach closing arguments as early as Tuesday. But New York Justice Juan Merchan indicated Monday that proceedings would stretch beyond Memorial Day.

Trump attorney Todd Blanche, in a lengthy, and at times slow and disjointed cross- examination Monday, continued wringing Cohen for proof that would convince jurors the former fixer cannot be trusted.

Cohen’s earlier testimony that Trump reimbursed him for paying a porn star to stay quiet before the 2016 presidential election is at the crux of the prosecution’s case.

Trump is charged with falsifying 11 invoices, 11 checks, and 12 ledger entries as routine legal expenses rather than reimbursement of the hush money, amounting to 34 felony counts.

Trump denies any wrongdoing and maintains he never had a sexual relationship with adult film actress and director Stormy Daniels. She testified otherwise in excruciating and awkward detail in early May.

Monday’s proceedings were beset with objections and technology issues, and wrapped with tense testimony from the defense’s second witness, Robert Costello, Cohen’s legal counsel, who promised backdoor communication to Trump after Cohen was under the FBI’s thumb in 2018.

The day ended with a long shot, but expected, request from the defense to throw the case out. Merchan dismissed the court, saying he’d issue his ruling Tuesday. The defense is likely to rest its case then as well.

Closing arguments are expected after the holiday.

On a ‘journey’

Blanche began the day grilling Cohen on his previous business dealings, income and the money he’s made since breaking ties with the former president.

Cohen testified that he’s made millions of dollars on his books “Disloyal” and “Revenge,” and his podcast “Mea Culpa,” all of which sharply criticize the man from whom he used to seek praise, as he testified days earlier.

Prompted by Blanche, Cohen confirmed he’s mulling over a third book, has a television show in the works titled “The Fixer” and is considering a run for Congress because he has “the best name recognition” out there.

When Blanche suggested Cohen’s name recognition hinges on Trump, Cohen disagreed.

“I wouldn’t characterize it that way. My name recognition is because of the journey I’ve been on,” Cohen said.

“Well the journey you’ve been on … has included daily attacks on Trump,” Blanche responded.

Through the course of Blanche’s questioning, Cohen again acknowledged his previous crimes and also fessed up to stealing $30,000 from the Trump Organization when Trump lagged on paying a tech company to rig a CNBC poll of famous businessmen.

Minutes later, Blanche asked, “Do you have a financial interest in this case?”

“Yes, sir,” Cohen responded.

When Blanche pressed about whether a guilty verdict is Cohen’s preferred outcome, Cohen responded, “The answer is no. It’s better if he’s not (guilty) for me because it gives me more to talk about in the future.”

Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger conducted her redirect at a tidy and speedy clip, leading Cohen through each of Blanche’s doubting lines of questioning to reaffirm for the jury Cohen’s testimony that Trump’s hand was behind the hush money reimbursements.

“They’ve asked you a lot of questions about how you’ve made money and (your) podcast… Putting aside financial matters, how has telling the truth affected your life?” Hoffinger asked.

“My entire life has been turned upside down as a direct result,” Cohen responded.

Before the prosecution rested its case, the defense lobbed a lengthy objection to a still frame of a C-SPAN video depicting Trump with his bodyguard Keith Schiller just before 8 p.m. on Oct. 24, 2016. The parties eventually agreed to admit it.

Evidence that Trump and Schiller were together that night looms large for Cohen’s claim that he spoke to both of them on the phone about paying off Daniels.

Trump’s support inside the courtroom

A steady flow of high-profile Republican supporters has shown up for the GOP’s presumed 2024 presidential nominee.

Monday’s supporters included Trump ally and attorney Alan Dershowitz; legal adviser Boris Epshteyn, who himself is indicted in Arizona for trying to subvert the 2020 presidential election results; and Chuck Zito, an actor and one of the founders of New York City’s Hells Angels chapter in the 1980s.

Several Republican lawmakers, including vice presidential hopefuls, have flocked to Manhattan for the trial.

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio and former GOP primary hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy attended May 13. Sens. Rick Scott of Florida and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama also made appearances last week, alongside Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird.

House Speaker Mike Johnson delivered remarks outside the courthouse May 14, slamming the “sham trial” and accusing New York prosecutors of only wanting to keep the former president off the campaign trail.

The Louisiana Republican cast Trump as a victim of a “travesty of justice.”

Nearly a dozen far-right Republican House members showed up Thursday, led by Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida. Accompanying Gaetz were other right-wing House Freedom Caucus members: fellow Floridian Reps. Anna Paulina Luna and Mike Waltz; Eli Crane and Andy Biggs of Arizona; Lauren Boebert of Colorado; Ralph Norman of South Carolina; Diana Harshbarger and Andy Ogles of Tennessee; Mike Cloud of Texas; and caucus Chair Bob Good of Virginia.

Speaking on the sidewalk outside the courthouse, Gaetz described the charges as the “Mr. Potatohead doll of crimes,” accusing the prosecution of combining things “that did not belong together.”

Reps. Byron Donalds and Cory Mills of Florida attended earlier in the week.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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U.S. House rebukes Biden administration over pause in heavy bomb shipments to Israel https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/16/u-s-house-rebukes-biden-administration-over-pause-in-heavy-bomb-shipments-to-israel/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/16/u-s-house-rebukes-biden-administration-over-pause-in-heavy-bomb-shipments-to-israel/#respond Thu, 16 May 2024 22:21:27 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17739

A bill passed Thursday, May 16, 2024 by the U.S. House says military assistance withheld from Israel “shall be delivered to Israel not later than 15 days after” the bill becomes law and requires the secretaries of Defense and State to obligate all funding for Israel within 30 days of the bill becoming law. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Kentucky delegation roll call

Yea: Barr, Comer, Guthrie, Rogers

Nay: Massie, McGarvey

Source: Clerk of the House

WASHINGTON — The U.S. House passed legislation Thursday rebuking President Joe Biden’s decision to withhold some military assistance from Israel amid its ongoing war in Gaza.

The 224-187 vote approved a bill released over the weekend by a handful of Republicans that, in part, “calls on the Biden Administration to allow all previously approved arms transfers to Israel to proceed quickly to ensure that Israel can defend itself and defeat threats from Iran and its proxies, including Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis.”

Kentucky’s Rep. Thomas Massie was one of only three Republicans voting against the bill. The other two were Reps. Majorie Taylor Green of Georgia and Warren Davidson of Ohio.

The measure says withheld military assistance “shall be delivered to Israel not later than 15 days after” the bill becomes law and requires the secretaries of Defense and State to obligate all funding for Israel within 30 days of the bill becoming law.

The legislation now goes to the Senate, but it’s unlikely that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, will bring it up for a vote. The White House issued a veto threat for the bill.

“The president has already said he’d veto it, so it’s not going anywhere,” Schumer said Wednesday.

At a Thursday morning press conference outside the U.S. Capitol, House Speaker Mike Johnson accused Biden of emboldening Iran and “using his authority to defend himself politically.”

“Israel needs to finish the job and America needs to help Israel extinguish the flame of terror that is wrought by Hamas. It wasn’t that long ago when President Biden called for the elimination of Hamas. But he’s not doing that anymore. And now it’s clear that Biden and Schumer have turned their back on Israel. They’re carrying water for Iran and its proxies,” Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said.

House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole, of Oklahoma; Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Ken Calvert, of California; State-Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Mario Díaz-Balart, of Florida; and Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman David Joyce, of Ohio, released the nine-page bill this weekend.

Quiet pause

The legislation comes weeks after the Biden administration quietly paused one shipment of heavy bombs to Israel over concerns that more civilians in Gaza could be killed by U.S.-supplied weapons.

The death toll has reached more than 35,000 in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Biden is facing severe opposition from progressives, including high-profile protests on college campuses, over Israel’s continued offensive following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.

The previously scheduled single shipment that was paused in late April contained 1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs, according to a Pentagon update on May 9.

Pentagon spokesman Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters on May 9 that the administration has “not made a final determination on how to proceed with this shipment.”

“And as you know, we’ve provided billions of dollars in security assistance to Israel. We’ve supported their efforts to defend themselves, most recently (during) Iran’s unprecedented attack. So there should be no question that we will continue to stand by Israel when it comes to their defense,” Ryder said during a press conference.

The U.S. and allies shot down dozens of drones and missiles launched by Iran at Israel in mid-April, according to the Pentagon.

Israel has been the largest cumulative recipient of financial support from the U.S. since World War II, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.

Some House Democrats, including Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, expressed concern over the administration’s paused shipment, though she voted against the bill Thursday.

“President Biden has been ironclad in his commitment to Israel over the last seven months. His Administration must stay the course and avoid any impression that our support is wavering,” Wasserman Schultz said in a statement Friday.

“Targeting remaining Hamas fighters while minimizing harm to civilians will require the best of our combined efforts. I share the President’s concern for Palestinian civilians used as human shields and understand the risks posed by a full-scale invasion of Rafah. However, we must remember that Hamas is eager to sacrifice as many Palestinian lives as possible and wants to maximize the civilian toll of this operation as part of their cowardly PR campaign,” she continued.

Numerous media reports are citing congressional aides who say the White House is poised to sign off on a $1 billion arms transfer to Israel.

When asked by reporters Thursday about the reported deal, Johnson criticized it as “window dressing” to provide Biden with “political cover.”

White House ‘strongly’ opposes bill

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday during the press briefing that the administration didn’t support the legislation.

“We strongly, strongly oppose attempts to constrain the president’s ability to deploy U.S. security assistance consistent with U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives,” she said.

Jean-Pierre added the Biden administration plans “to spend every last cent appropriated, consistent with legal obligations.”

White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said during the same press briefing the administration had “paused a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs because we do not believe they should be dropped in densely populated cities.”

“We still believe it would be a mistake to launch a major military operation into the heart of Rafah that would put huge numbers of civilians at risk without a clear strategic gain,” Sullivan said. “The president was clear that he would not supply certain offensive weapons for such an operation, were it to occur.”

Sullivan said the Biden administration was working with the Israeli government “on a better way to ensure the defeat of Hamas everywhere in Gaza, including in Rafah.” He also noted that the U.S. is “continuing to send military assistance” to Israel.

The White House released a statement of administration policy on Tuesday further criticizing the legislation and issuing a veto threat.

“The bill is a misguided reaction to a deliberate distortion of the Administration’s approach to Israel,” it states. “The President has been clear: we will always ensure Israel has what it needs to defend itself.”

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GOP politicians rush to Manhattan to line up behind Trump as hush money trial continues https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/14/gop-politicians-rush-to-manhattan-to-line-up-behind-trump-as-hush-money-trial-continues/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/14/gop-politicians-rush-to-manhattan-to-line-up-behind-trump-as-hush-money-trial-continues/#respond Tue, 14 May 2024 21:48:09 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17649

Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, and U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., watch as former U.S. President Donald Trump walks towards the courtroom for his hush money trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 14, 2024, in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Republican lawmakers are taking turns supporting former president and presumed 2024 GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump in his trial in Manhattan criminal court, where he is charged with covering up payments intended to silence porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.

Dressed alike in navy blue suits and red ties, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, viewed as a 2024 vice presidential contender, former GOP primary hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy and U.S. Reps. Byron Donalds and Cory Mills of Florida filed behind Trump into the courtroom Tuesday morning, according to reporters present. Outside, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, conducted a press conference.

The entourage followed appearances Monday by U.S. Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio, another contender on Trump’s VP short list, and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, and Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, as well as an appearance last week by U.S. Sen. Rick Scott of Florida.

Tuesday’s show of solidarity occurred as the prosecution’s star witness and former Trump fixer Michael Cohen took the stand for a second day to testify that Trump signed off on falsifying reimbursement to Cohen for $130,000 of his own money that Cohen paid to Daniels on the eve of the 2016 election.

Jurors again saw checks signed by Trump, and heard from Cohen about instructions from Trump associates to submit fake invoices for “legal services rendered.” Cohen also described a February 2017 Oval Office meeting during which he discussed the reimbursement with Trump, according to reporters at the courthouse.

New York does not allow recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings.

Cohen followed high-profile and detailed testimony last week from adult film actress and director Daniels about her alleged sex affair with Trump in 2006, an event he denies.

Trump is facing 34 felony counts for each alleged falsified business record related to his repayment to Cohen — 11 invoices, 11 checks and 12 ledger entries.

A ‘sham’ to ‘keep him off of the campaign trail’

Out on the sidewalk, Johnson — the second in line for presidential succession after the vice president — told reporters he wanted “to call out what is a travesty of justice.”

With a sarcastic snicker and gesture toward the New York County Supreme Court location on Centre Street in Lower Manhattan, Johnson lamented that he had to speak to media outside “because the court won’t allow us to speak inside the building. That’s just one of the many things that are wrong here.”

It’s worth noting that surrogates routinely make comments outside courthouses.

Johnson summed up what he called a “sham trial” as a conspiracy to stymie Trump’s reelection campaign — despite recent New York Times/Siena College polls showing the former president leading in several swing states.

“This is the fifth week that President Trump has been in court for this sham of a trial,” Johnson said. “They are doing this intentionally to keep him here and keep him off of the campaign trail, and I think everybody in the country can see that for what it is.”

The trial meets weekdays, except Wednesdays.

Trump hit the campaign trail Saturday at a rally in Wildwood, New Jersey, where he spoke for 90 minutes, criticizing the New York trial, repeating false claims that he won the 2020 presidential election, calling the “late, great” fictional cannibal serial killer Hannibal Lecter “a wonderful man,” and thanking the six U.S. Supreme Court justices — three of whom he appointed — for overturning Roe v. Wade.

‘Election interference’

Trump’s allies echoed Johnson’s earlier remarks in their own press conference later outside the courthouse, calling the trial a “scam” and “joke,” according to reporters at the event.

Ramaswamy reportedly likened the courtroom to a “Kafka novel” and called it “one of the most depressing places I have been in my life” and said the prosecution’s strategy is “to bore jurors into submission.”

In a video of the press conference he posted to X, the entrepreneur said the “justice system should be blind to politics” and accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg of targeting Trump for political reasons.

Burgum characterized the trial as “election interference” in the 2024 race. Meanwhile, Trump’s critics say the trial is squarely about election interference that occurred in 2016.

Mills said “what was the Department of Justice, now the department of injustice, has continued to be utilized against the American people.”

The charges for which Trump is now on trial did not originate with the U.S. Department of Justice, but rather from a New York state grand jury investigation.

Trump’s two federal cases are in a holding pattern while, for one, the U.S. Supreme Court deliberates over Trump’s claim of absolute immunity from criminal charges that he schemed to subvert the 2020 presidential election results. The second, centered on Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents following his presidency, has been put indefinitely on hold by federal district Judge Aileen Cannon in Florida.

The New York trial is expected to resume Thursday with further cross-examination of Cohen by Trump attorney Todd Blanche.

YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.

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Star witness in Trump trial tells of plot to conceal porn star hush money payments? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/13/star-witness-in-trump-trial-tells-of-plot-to-conceal-porn-star-hush-money-payments/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/13/star-witness-in-trump-trial-tells-of-plot-to-conceal-porn-star-hush-money-payments/#respond Mon, 13 May 2024 22:43:25 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17604

U.S. Sens. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, and Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., listen as former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media outside Manhattan Criminal Court on May 13, 2024, during his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump’s former fixer took the stand in a Manhattan courtroom Monday and told jurors that Trump was well aware of a scheme to hide the repayment of money intended to silence porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Michael Cohen, the prosecution’s star witness, told the jury that he used a home equity loan to pay $130,000 to Daniels’ lawyer, trusting a promise from Trump — then a Republican candidate for the presidency — that he’d be repaid.

The criminal trial, the first ever for a former president, centers on Trump’s reimbursement to Cohen and whether Trump illegally covered up the hush money as routine legal expenses, a felony in New York.

Trump is charged with 34 felony counts for each alleged falsified business record related to his repayment to Cohen — 11 invoices, 11 checks and 12 ledger entries.

Cohen has already served time in prison for several federal crimes, including campaign finance violations in relation to the hush money deals with women who alleged sexual affairs with Trump. He was sentenced to three years in August 2019, but did not serve the entire sentence.

Cohen’s intense loyalty to Trump fizzled after the then-president distanced himself. The former fixer is now an outspoken Trump critic and has published books titled “Disloyal” and “Revenge,” and produces a podcast called “Mea Culpa.”

Cohen was called to the stand just days after Daniels, an adult film actress and director, described in lurid detail her alleged sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, the affair at the heart of the payments in question.

GOP senators show up as moral support?

Journalists at the courthouse reported that Trump, the presumed 2024 Republican presidential candidate, was sleeping at times during the trial Monday and shaking his head in response to some of Cohen’s testimony.

New York does not allow recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings.

Trump was accompanied by Republican U.S. Sens. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and J.D. Vance of Ohio, considered to be on the short list as Trump’s running mate. Republican U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, of New York, also joined the senators and spoke to media outside the Lower Manhattan courthouse.

Florida’s GOP Sen. Rick Scott made an appearance in the courtroom last week.

Prior to Monday’s proceedings, Trump delivered remarks to the press with Tuberville and Vance, among others, behind him.

Trump defended his payments to Cohen and blamed the charges on the Biden administration, despite the indictment coming down from the state of New York.

“A legal expense is a legal expense. It’s marked down in the book quote ‘legal expense,’” Trump told reporters, making air quotes with his hands.

“This all comes from Biden in the White House by the way,” he added.

Worries about ‘Access Hollywood’ tape

Cohen testified that he wanted to protect Trump from further alienating women voters just weeks before the November election, according to reporters at the courthouse.

A story about Trump’s alleged extramarital affair with Daniels reaching the public shortly after the revelation of the “Access Hollywood” tape would have been “catastrophic,” Cohen said.

The tape, published by the Washington Post just a month before the 2016 presidential election, showed Trump bragging to “Access Hollywood” host Billy Bush that fame allowed him to grab women’s genitals.

The tape caused upheaval in the Trump camp as Election Day approached, former Trump spokesperson Hope Hicks testified on May 3.

Prosecutors showed phone records, texts and emails of Cohen’s frantic attempts to quash stories of Trump’s alleged trysts with Daniels, and with former Playboy model Karen McDougal, according to journalists witnessing the testimony.

Cohen testified for several hours about communications with David Pecker, former National Enquirer publisher; Keith Davidson, the attorney for both Daniels and McDougal; and Hicks — all of whom took the stand during the trial’s preceding weeks.

Phone records revealed a five-minute call between Cohen and Trump on Oct. 28, 2016, at 11:48 a.m., during which Cohen told the jury that he assured Trump “that this matter is now completely under control and locked down,” according to reporters at the courthouse. The phone call occurred on the same date Cohen signed the agreement with Daniels and Davidson.

The jury also saw records of a wire transfer from Cohen’s shell company Essential Consultants to Davidson, the purpose of which was to “to pay Stormy Daniels to execute the non-disclosure agreement and to obtain the story, her life rights,” Cohen said, according to reporters at the courthouse.

‘Legal services rendered’

By late afternoon, Cohen began to testify about Trump’s direct knowledge of the plan for reimbursement. The plan was hatched with the Trump Organization’s longtime chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg, who is currently in prison for crimes related to Trump’s civil fraud trial, which wrapped up in New York in February.

Jurors saw handwritten notes from Weisselberg detailing plans to get the money back to Cohen. This was the second time the jury has seen the notes, as Jeffrey McConney, the Trump Organization’s longtime controller, testified to them on May 6.

Just before the court broke for the day, Cohen testified that he and Weisselberg went to Trump’s 26th-floor office when Trump was president-elect and received Trump’s approval for the reimbursement plan, according to reporters in the courthouse. Cohen said Weisselberg had instructed him to submit a series of invoices over 12 months and to label them “legal services rendered.”

The prosecution’s direct questioning of Cohen is expected to resume Tuesday.

Weisselberg is serving time at Rikers Island after pleading guilty to committing perjury during Trump’s civil fraud trial. The former financial officer for Trump had already spent three months at Rikers for tax fraud offenses stemming from the same case.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

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Porn star Stormy Daniels in NYC hush money trial alleges sexual encounter with Trump https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/07/porn-star-stormy-daniels-in-nyc-hush-money-trial-alleges-sexual-encounter-with-trump/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/07/porn-star-stormy-daniels-in-nyc-hush-money-trial-alleges-sexual-encounter-with-trump/#respond Tue, 07 May 2024 22:02:14 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17356

Former U.S. President Donald Trump attends his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 7, 2024, in New York City. Trump has been charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records, which prosecutors say was an effort to hide a potential sex scandal, both before and after the 2016 presidential election. Trump is the first former U.S. president to face trial on criminal charges. (Photo by Sarah Yenesel-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Adult film star Stormy Daniels told a Manhattan jury Tuesday about meeting Donald Trump in a penthouse suite in 2006, where he told the actress not to worry about his wife and that she reminded him of his daughter shortly before they had sex.

The testimony, reported by journalists in the courtroom, described in granular detail the intimate physical encounter with a former president, who is now facing charges in New York for falsifying records of hush-money payments to the actress and director. Trump is the first former president to face criminal charges.

Trump, the presumed 2024 Republican presidential nominee, denies the encounter.

Daniels was called to the stand in the trial’s fourth week as prosecutors aim to prove that Trump covered up a $130,000 payment to silence the star during his 2016 presidential campaign.

The former president faces 34 felony charges for allegedly disguising the payments, reimbursed to his former lawyer Michael Cohen, as “legal expenses.” The Trump organization eventually paid Cohen $420,000 to account for taxes and a bonus.

Book editor testifies

The trial opened Tuesday with a brief appearance from witness Sally Franklin. Franklin is an executive and editor with Penguin Random House, the publisher of some of Trump’s books, including “Trump: How to Get Rich” and “Trump: Think Like a Billionaire.”

Prosecutors led jurors through excerpts of Trump’s books, including portions where Trump claims to always sign checks personally and that he fastidiously kept track of funds going in and out of the Trump Organization.

On Monday, the jury heard from both a former and current finance employee of the Trump Organization about the payments to Cohen. The prosecutors used the testimony to show the jurors financial documentation, including the 11 checks personally signed by Trump.

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

The New York case is the first of four criminal indictments against Trump to reach the trial stage. The likelihood of the other cases reaching trial before the November election dwindled further Tuesday when a federal district judge in Florida indefinitely postponed the trial date in Trump’s classified documents case that had been scheduled for May 20.

‘My motivation wasn’t money’

Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, testified for several hours, telling the jury about a reluctant sexual encounter with Trump and multiple public meetings with him in the following months as he dangled a possible appearance for her on NBC’s “The Apprentice,” according to reporters at the courthouse.

New York does not allow video or audio recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings.

Journalists reported Judge Juan Merchan growing irritated with Daniels’ long and detailed testimony, at times chastising her and telling her to stick to the questions. Merchan sustained objections from Trump’s team, and at times objected on his own.

The actress described meeting Trump in 2006 at a Lake Tahoe golf tournament where she was promoting Wicked Pictures, an adult film company.

Initially refusing an invitation for dinner, Daniels then agreed to meet Trump for the meal in his luxury hotel suite. Daniels testified that Trump answered the door in silky pajamas, and she asked him to get changed.

After dinner, Daniels testified, she was shocked that Trump had stripped down to his underclothes and then positioned himself between her and the door when she attempted to leave, according to reporters at the courthouse.

She testified that she didn’t say no “because I didn’t say anything at all.”

Daniels said she stopped taking Trump’s calls in 2007 after he couldn’t guarantee her an appearance on the NBC show.

In the ensuing years, her story appeared on an obscure website, and Daniels talked about being approached in 2011 by a man who threatened her and told her to keep quiet about the encounter.

Daniels testified that after Trump announced his presidential run in 2015 her publicist unsuccessfully tried to sell her story. Interest only heated up, however, in October 2016 after the surfacing of an “Access Hollywood” tape in which Trump brags that his fame allows him to grab women’s genitals.

“My motivation wasn’t money. It was to get the story out,” she said, according to reporters at the courthouse.

Trump and Cohen reached out to Daniels’ publicist Gina Rodriguez to buy her story, after which Daniels said she decided keeping quiet would be the safest option for her and her family.

Daniels eventually received $96,000 of the $130,000 payment, after her manager and lawyer took fees, she testified.

A mistrial attempt

Trump’s defense lawyer Todd Blanche moved for a mistrial Tuesday afternoon, arguing Daniels’ testimony went beyond what was necessary for the case.

Blanche especially took issue with Daniels describing from the witness stand her feelings about the alleged affair and her claim that Trump didn’t wear a condom.

While Merchan told the defense that some things would have been “better left unsaid,” he denied the motion for a mistrial.

Daniels returned to the stand in the afternoon as Trump attorney Susan Necheles aimed to discredit her, accusing her of making “a lot of money” from her story, according to reporters at the courthouse.

Necheles also questioned Daniels about the 2011 encounter with the man she said threatened her. At the time Daniels was in a parking lot on the way into a “mommy and me” class with her baby.

Necheles cast doubt on the veracity of the story, saying “Your daughter’s life was in jeopardy and you did not tell her father,” according to reporters at the courthouse. Daniels said she kept the story and the parking lot encounter secret from her husband.

In a further attempt to poke holes in Daniels’ testimony, Necheles asked why the porn star decided she wanted to sell her story in 2016 after having been so afraid of threats.

Necheles said Daniels saw an “opportunity to make money,” to which Daniels responded, “I saw the opportunity to get the story out. I didn’t put a price tag on it,” according to reporters at the courthouse.

Merchan dismissed the jury at 4:30 p.m. Eastern. Trump’s team is expected to continue cross-examination Wednesday.

In response to Daniels’ testimony, Trump posted in all caps on his platform Truth Social Tuesday afternoon: “THE PROSECUTION, WHICH HAS NO CASE, HAS GONE TOO FAR. MISTRIAL!”

The post followed an earlier one that had since been deleted, according to media reports. The earlier post expressed anger that Daniels was unexpectedly being called to the witness stand.

Trump was fined $1,000 Monday for again violating his gag order, which prevents him from posting about witnesses. The former president was fined for nine other gag order violations on April 30.

YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.

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Parents tote toddlers to D.C. to press for expanded child tax credit, child care funds https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/01/parents-tote-toddlers-to-d-c-to-press-for-expanded-child-tax-credit-child-care-funds/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/05/01/parents-tote-toddlers-to-d-c-to-press-for-expanded-child-tax-credit-child-care-funds/#respond Wed, 01 May 2024 15:18:11 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17096

Sabrina Donnellan of Girdwood, Alaska, sits with her 13-month-old, Blakely, on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., and talks with Candace Winkler, ZERO TO THREE’s chief development and strategy officer, at the eighth annual “Strolling Thunder,” a child and family issues advocacy event on April 30, 2024, organized by the nonprofit ZERO TO THREE. (Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — Families gathered outside the U.S. Capitol Tuesday to “make a fuss for babies,” who they believe are being left behind by lawmakers who direct only a fraction of U.S. resources to young children.

Parents and kids representing 50 states and the District of Columbia convened for the eighth annual “Strolling Thunder.” Moms and dads pushing strollers decked out in state license plates rallied on the Capitol’s East Lawn to lobby lawmakers to fund child care, establish national paid family leave, and permanently expand the child tax credit.

Matthew Melmed, executive director of ZERO TO THREE, the organization behind the event, rallied parents to tell their representatives that the 11 million babies in the U.S. “make up 3.4% of our population, but 100% of our future.”

“You’re here with the pork producers and the insurance lobby and the pharmaceutical industry. Members of Congress don’t normally see real people, and they rarely see babies and toddlers, particularly babies and toddlers who need to have their diapers changed on their desks. And that’s what I encourage you to do if you need to have that happen,” Melmed told the crowd.

The nonprofit ZERO TO THREE bases its advocacy on health and developmental research findings in infants up to age 3, the years the group describes as “the most important for lifelong mental health and well-being.”

Melmed praised top Democratic appropriators Sen. Patty Murray of Washington and Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut for achieving a $1 billion increase for child care block grants and Head Start in this year’s government funding bills.

DeLauro, who spoke to the crowd, said “families deserve better.”

“The cost of living has increased year after year, and more and more Americans simply do not get paid enough to live on, let alone to raise a family,” the Connecticut lawmaker said, promising to advocate for the reinstatement of a fully refundable child tax credit.

‘Diapers, child care, formula’

Candace Winkler, a former Alaska resident and current ZERO TO THREE leader, sat on the Capitol lawn next to Sabrina Donnellan who traveled to D.C. from Girdwood, Alaska, with her 13-month-old Blakely to advocate for lower child care costs and paid family leave.

Winkler, the organization’s chief development and strategy officer, said the group of families would divide up in the halls of Congress Tuesday to meet with their representatives about six key policy issues, including permanently expanding the child tax credit to pandemic levels.

“We’ve seen that time and time again that families are using those resources for diapers, child care, formula and things their babies and their family needs. And it’s really critical for their success,” WInkler said.

The current child tax credit is $2,000 a year after tax liability, but the amount a parent could receive per child under 17 in a refund check is capped at $1,600 in 2023. The credit phases in at 15% on every dollar after earnings of $2,500.

As the U.S. was digging out from under the COVID-19 economic crisis, Congress approved a one-year expansion of the tax credit to $3,000 per child under age 18, and $3,600 for those under age 6 — including for families who made $0 in income. Lawmakers made the entire amount refundable, and a portion of it was sent to families in monthly installments.

Advocates hailed the research findings that showed the temporary move was a game changer for lifting children from poverty in the U.S.

A current bipartisan proposal, widely supported by U.S. House lawmakers, to temporarily expand the child tax credit until 2025 — though not to pandemic levels — is currently stalled by U.S. Senate Republicans who liken aspects of the bill to a welfare program.

The proposal, as passed by the House, would increase the credit’s refundable portion to $1,800 in 2023, $1,900 in 2024 and $2,000 in 2025. The legislation would also increase the phase-in rate to 15% per child, simultaneously — in other words, 30% for a family with two children, 45% for a family with three, and so on.

Credit card debt for child care

Cruz Bueno, a parent from Rhode Island, shared her story of racking up credit card debt to enroll her 11-month-old Rosie in child care, along with her 2-year-old sister Amalia.

“Putting Rosie into day care means that we must put a halt to our dream of buying a home,” said Bueno, an economist who lives in Warwick with her husband, Xhuljan Meta.

“One of the stipulations of our mortgage pre-approval was to keep our credit card balances low. Even so, we remain hopeful that one day in the not-so-distant future we will be able to buy a home to raise our girls and pass on wealth to them,” she said.

When asked about the Strolling Thunder event at Tuesday morning’s regularly scheduled House Republican press conference, House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana said, “There’s lots of ideas out there. What we stand for, what our party stands for, is support of families. We support infants and children, and there’s an appropriate role to play in that.”

“The devil’s always in the details on legislation, so I’m not sure exactly what they’re proposing, but all of us are looking at those avenues. We want to support families. That’s good public policy,” Johnson said. “In our view, the best way often for the government to do that is to step back and allow the local and state officials to handle their business at that local level.”

Rep. Elise Stefanik, House Republican Conference Chair, said the GOP is “proud to be a pro-family conference.”

“There are many of our members who have proposed innovative solutions — one is rural child care. Home-based child care, that’s an issue I’ve worked with many of my colleagues on the Education and Workforce Committee,” Stefanik, of New York, said. “But the economy, the border, crime, these issues, these crises caused by Joe Biden, they impact every family.”

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U.S. Supreme Court floats return to trial court for Trump in presidential immunity case? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/25/u-s-supreme-court-floats-return-to-trial-court-for-trump-in-presidential-immunity-case/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/25/u-s-supreme-court-floats-return-to-trial-court-for-trump-in-presidential-immunity-case/#respond Fri, 26 Apr 2024 00:36:40 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=17017

An anti-Trump "kangaroo court" posed outside the Supreme Court while Trump v. United States was argued inside. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court appeared skeptical Thursday of former President Donald Trump’s argument he is immune from criminal charges that he tried to overturn his loss in the 2020 election.

But conservatives who dominate the court appeared open to returning key questions to a trial court, possibly delaying Trump’s prosecution beyond the November election — and essentially assisting the former president as he fights legal challenges on multiple fronts.

Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, has argued in a federal trial court and in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that his actions following the 2020 election and leading up to the violent Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, were “official acts” conducted while still in office and therefore are not subject to criminal prosecution.

While court precedent establishes that U.S. presidents are immune to civil damages for their official acts, and to criminal prosecution while in office, the justices now must decide the unanswered question of whether former presidents are absolutely immune from criminal law.

At oral arguments Thursday in Trump v. United States, much of the discussion centered on what should be considered an official presidential act.

Several conservative justices suggested that lower courts work to determine what aspects of the charges against Trump arose solely from his private conduct.

Such a detour could eat up additional weeks or months as the trial calendar converges with Election Day.

A decision from the court may not arrive until late June or early July. If a ruling calls for additional fact-finding at the trial court level, Trump’s election interference trial likely would not happen prior to the November election.

Trump’s lawyer, D. John Sauer, of St. Louis, argued that nearly everything a president does in office —?including hypotheticals about ordering a military coup or assassinating a political rival — could be considered official acts.

While much of the court appeared skeptical of that broad view of official acts, several justices on the conservative wing asked about having the trial court determine what acts should be considered official. They also suggested prosecutors could drop sections of the four-count indictment against Trump that dealt with official acts.

The court’s three liberal justices voiced serious concerns about Trump’s immunity argument, with Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wondering aloud if the court accepting a broad view of criminal immunity for the president would make the Oval Office “the seat of criminal activity.”

The case is one of four in state and federal courts in which criminal charges have been made against Trump. On Thursday, he was in a New York state courtroom where he faces charges in an ongoing hush-money trial; the judge there did not allow him to attend the Supreme Court arguments.

Trial court determination

Conservative justices asked if they could avoid the constitutional question by having the trial court, presided over by U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, determine which parts of the allegations could be considered official or unofficial acts.

Special counsel Jack Smith and his team of prosecutors have indicated that prosecuting only Trump’s private conduct would be sufficient, Justice Amy Coney Barrett said.

“The normal process, what Mr. Sauer asked, would be for us to remand if we decided that there were some official acts immunity, and to let that be sorted out below,” Barrett said, referring to a process in which a case is sent back to a lower court. “It is another option for the special counsel to just proceed based on the private conduct and drop the official conduct.”

‘Absolute immunity

Sauer argued, as he has for months, for “absolute immunity” from criminal prosecution for presidents acting in their official capacity.

No president who has not been impeached and removed from office can be prosecuted for official actions, Sauer said, broadly interpreting the meaning of official acts.

Liberal justices questioned Sauer about how far his definition of official acts would stretch. Trump’s attorney was reluctant to list any exceptions.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor asked a hypothetical that arose in a lower court: Would it be an official act for the president to order the assassination of a political rival?

“That could well be an official act,” Sauer answered.

He also answered Justice Elena Kagan that it could be an official act for a president to order a military coup, though Sauer said “it would depend on the circumstances.”

Michael R. Dreeben, representing the U.S. Department of Justice, argued that Trump’s broad view of presidential immunity would break a fundamental element of U.S. democracy, that no one is above the law.

“His novel theory would immunize former presidents for criminal liability for bribery, treason, sedition, murder, and here, conspiring to use fraud to overturn the results of an election and perpetuate himself in power,” Dreeben said.

Jackson, questioning Sauer, appeared to agree with that argument.

She said Sauer appeared worried that the president would be “chilled” by potential criminal prosecution, but she said there would be “a really significant opposite problem if the president wasn’t chilled.”

“Once we say, ‘No criminal liability, Mr. President, you can do whatever you want,’ I’m worried that we would have a worse problem than the problem of the president feeling constrained to follow the law while he’s in office,” Jackson said.

‘A special, peculiarly precarious position’

But other members of the court appeared more amenable to Sauer’s argument that subjecting presidents to criminal prosecution would constrain them.

Justice Samuel Alito, one of the court’s conservatives, asked Dreeben about Trump’s argument that a president’s duties require a broad view of immunity.

The president has to make difficult decisions, sometimes in areas of law that are unsettled, Alito said.

“I understand you to say, ‘If he makes a mistake, he makes a mistake, he’s subject to the criminal laws just like anybody else,’” Alito said. “You don’t think he’s in a special, peculiarly precarious position?”

Dreeben answered that the president has access to highly qualified legal advice and that making a mistake is not what generally leads to criminal prosecution.

He also noted that the allegations against Trump involve him going beyond his powers as president to interfere with the certification of an election, which is not a presidential power in the Constitution.

Incumbents leaving office

Alito, who seemed to be the justice most sympathetic to Trump’s argument that allowing a president to be prosecuted would undermine the powers of the office, also raised the prospect that incumbents who lose elections may seek to illegally stay in power precisely because prosecution would await after they leave office.

“A stable democratic society requires that a candidate who loses an election, even a close one, even a hotly contested one, leave office peacefully,” he said.

“If an incumbent who loses a very close, hotly contested election, knows that a real possibility after leaving office is … the president may be criminally prosecuted by a bitter political opponent, will that not lead us into a cycle that destabilizes the functioning of our country as a democracy?”

Dreeben answered that “it’s exactly the opposite,” because there are well-established lawful options, including court challenges, available to challenge election results.

Trump posted several times Thursday morning on his social media platform Truth Social that the president would “have no power at all” without absolute immunity.

“That would be the end of the Presidency, and our Country, as we know it, and is just one of the many Traps there would be for a President without Presidential Immunity. Obama, Bush, and soon, Crooked Joe Biden, would all be in BIG TROUBLE,” he wrote.

‘Writing a rule for the ages’

Some justices indicated they will be thinking beyond the question as it relates to Trump’s election interference charges, possibly hinting at a drawn-out process in issuing an opinion.

Criminally prosecuting a former president could open the door to prosecution based on motives, including the motive to get reelected or for other personal gain, conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch suggested.

“I’m not concerned about this case, but I am concerned about future uses of the criminal law to target political opponents based on accusations about their motives,” Gorsuch said in a lengthy back-and-forth with Dreeben.

“I’m going to say something that I don’t normally say, which is: That’s really not involved in this case,” Dreeben said, eliciting a laugh from Gorsuch.

“I understand that. I appreciate that. But you also appreciate that we’re writing a rule for the ages,” Gorsuch responded.

At another point, Dreeben tried to redirect the justices to specific details of the Trump case, including his point that the judicial system has safeguards against purely politically motivated and retaliatory legal action.

Dreeben attempted to detail for Alito that the Justice Department functioned “in the way that it is supposed to” when Trump’s alleged plan to ask officials to send fraudulent letters to states regarding election results failed.

Alito pushed back, saying he wanted to discuss the case “in the abstract.”

“I understand that Mr. Dreeben. But as I said, this case will have effects that go far beyond this particular prosecution,” Alito said.

Alan Morrison, a law professor at George Washington University who has argued 20 cases before the Supreme Court, said in a phone interview after oral arguments that the court will not reach “a fast decision” as the justices wrestle with the extent of what is considered a president’s official acts.

“Neither side is going to get everything they want,” Morrison said. “And the hardest questions to answer are going to be what are official and what are not official acts.”

‘Reacting against a monarch’

Sticking to the specifics of the indictment against Trump, Kagan ran through a list of the allegations and asked Sauer to discern what constituted an official act.

“The defendant asked the Arizona House Speaker to call the legislature into session to hold a hearing based on their claims of election fraud,” Kagan said, citing the indictment.

“Absolutely an official act for the president to communicate with state officials on a matter of enormous federal interest and concern,” Sauer answered, “attempting to defend the integrity of a federal election to communicate with state officials and urge them to view what he views as their job under state law and federal law.”

Kagan moved to hypotheticals and asked if a president who ordered a military coup, but was never impeached and convicted by Congress, could not be held to U.S. criminal law.

“He was the president. He is the commander in chief. He talks to his generals all the time, and he told the generals, ‘I don’t feel like leaving office. I want to stage a coup.’ Is that immune?”

“If it’s an official act, there needs to be impeachment and conviction beforehand,” Sauer said, citing the defense’s reliance on the Constitution’s Impeachment Clause argument.

“That is the wisdom of the (Constitution’s) framers,” he added.

“The framers did not put an immunity clause into the Constitution,” she quickly responded. “… They didn’t provide immunity to the president, and you know, not so surprising. They were reacting against a monarch who claimed to be above the law.”

“Wasn’t the whole point that the president was not a monarch and the president was not supposed to be above the law?” she said.

Federal election interference charges

A federal grand jury charged Trump with four felony counts in August 2023 for working with several co-conspirators to overturn election results in seven states.

The indictment charged the former president with conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of an official proceeding, among other charges.

Trump allegedly worked with several others to replace legitimate electors with fraudulent ones in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, according to the indictment.

The prosecution also alleges that he tried to leverage the Justice Department to pressure the states to replace their slates of electors, and pressure Vice President Mike Pence into altering results during Congress’s joint session to certify the results on Jan. 6, 2021.

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Trump’s claims of presidential immunity to be probed at U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/25/trumps-claims-of-presidential-immunity-to-be-probed-at-u-s-supreme-court-on-thursday/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/25/trumps-claims-of-presidential-immunity-to-be-probed-at-u-s-supreme-court-on-thursday/#respond Thu, 25 Apr 2024 09:00:11 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16981

Former President Donald Trump boards his plane at Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, following an arraignment in Washington, D.C. federal court on Aug. 3, 2023. Trump pleaded not guilty to four felony criminal charges during his arraignment this afternoon after being indicted for his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Thursday over former President Donald Trump’s pursuit of absolute immunity from criminal charges alleging that he schemed and knowingly fed lies to subvert the 2020 presidential election, eventually leading to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

In the final argument of this term, the justices must consider whether Trump can be tried on criminal charges, and depending on the timing of their decision, whether a trial can move forward before November’s presidential election.

The former president and presumed 2024 Republican presidential nominee is seeking immunity from charges that include conspiracy to defraud the United States for spreading “prolific lies about election fraud,” working with co-conspirators to develop fake electors in seven states and pressuring his vice president, Mike Pence, to alter election results using the slates of fake electors.

Oral arguments are at 10 a.m. Eastern in the Supreme Court chamber Thursday, and audio will be live-streamed on the Supreme Court website. Audio and a transcript also will be available later on the site.

Here’s a guide to the complicated path from Trump’s false election fraud claims that inflamed his supporters to his immunity claim reaching the nation’s highest court this week:

When was Trump charged?

A federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., indicted Trump on Aug. 1, 2023.

The 45-page indictment outlined four felony criminal charges against the former president as a result of an investigation of his actions following the November 2020 presidential election. In addition to conspiracy to defraud the U.S., they include:

  • Conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding
  • Obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding
  • Conspiracy against rights

Trump’s “pervasive and destabilizing lies” about his 2020 presidential election loss to Democrat Joe Biden “targeted a bedrock function of the United States federal government: the nation’s process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of a presidential election,” prosecutors wrote.

The indictment details Trump’s alleged schemes with co-conspirators to falsify election results in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The indictment also describes a steady pressure campaign to “enlist” Pence to alter the outcome during his ceremonial role in certifying presidential election results during a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, prior to Inauguration Day.

Among the multiple phone calls and conversations detailed in the indictment is Trump’s outreach to Pence on both Christmas and New Year’s Day to send holiday greetings, during which he “berated” the vice president as “too honest” for refusing to join the scheme.

Why hasn’t the case gone to trial?

Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith said upon the indictment’s release that he would seek a speedy trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

The case began to move, and Trump pleaded not guilty on Aug. 3, 2023 at his arraignment before Magistrate Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya.

District Judge Tanya Chutkan, who waived Trump’s appearance at the first hearing on Aug. 28, 2023, set jury selection to begin on March 4 despite protests from Trump’s lawyers who asked to delay the trial until January 2026.

However, March has come and gone, and proceedings have been on hold as Trump and his legal team steadily marched his immunity challenge to the high court and hopscotched between the several other criminal and civil cases against him.

Trump, who is currently on trial for criminal charges in New York, will not attend Thursday’s Supreme Court arguments. The state judge has mandated Trump to be in the Manhattan courtroom every day throughout the proceedings.

Trump’s motion to dismiss his federal election interference case, which he filed in October 2023 and based on the argument of presidential immunity, was denied by Chutkan in early December.

Trump appealed the ruling on Dec. 7, 2023, and Smith quickly asked the Supreme Court justices to leapfrog the appellate court and promptly rule on the question of presidential immunity. The justices denied Smith’s request.

On Jan. 9, a three-judge panel — made up of one former President George W. Bush appointee and two Biden picks — grilled Trump’s lawyer over claims that former and sitting presidents should be immune from criminal prosecution.

The oral arguments notably featured a line of questioning from Judge Florence Y. Pan on whether a president could order SEAL Team Six to assassinate a political rival with impunity.

In early February, the federal appeals court turned down Trump’s immunity argument.

The former president then asked the Supreme Court to pause his federal trial while he requested a hearing before a full panel of appeals judges.

But the justices decided on Feb. 28 that they would be the final arbiters and scheduled arguments for the last week of the term.

Trump’s federal trial would meanwhile remain on hold.

What do the critics say about the delay?

Critics contend that Trump’s quest for immunity has been an exercise in delaying his trial until after the November 2024 presidential election.

“It’s much more about that than this underlying immunity claim,” said Tom Joscelyn, senior fellow at the Reiss Center on Law and Security at New York University and former senior staff member on the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol.

“Now, we’ve had to delay the federal trial for a couple of months because they’re taking up this claim,” Joscelyn told States Newsroom, as he lambasted the legal community for “having these navel-gazing arguments for hours on end over stuff that is obviously nonsense.”

“There’s no way a president, current or former president, can be immune from charges that stem from that president seeking to overturn the will of the American people in a democratically held election, and that’s what these charges are all about,” said Joscelyn, one of the principal authors of the select committee’s Jan. 6 report. “Nothing is more unconstitutional.”

Former Rep. Liz Cheney, who was vice chair of the Jan. 6 select committee, published an op-ed in the New York Times Monday urging the justices to swiftly rule on the immunity question.

“If delay prevents this Trump case from being tried this year, the public may never hear critical and historic evidence developed before the grand jury, and our system may never hold the man most responsible for Jan. 6 to account,” the Wyoming Republican wrote.

What arguments will Supreme Court justices hear?

Trump and supporters of the presidential immunity argument paint a doomsday picture of a hamstrung executive office should the justices decide that a president can be held criminally accountable.

The former president maintains that the framers of the U.S. Constitution intended a strong executive to face virtually no liability from the judicial branch, and that a “234-year unbroken tradition” of not prosecuting presidents bolsters his case.

“The President cannot function, and the Presidency itself cannot retain its vital independence, if the President faces criminal prosecution for official acts once he leaves office,” Trump’s attorneys wrote in March.

They wrote later in the brief: “Even if some level of Presidential malfeasance, not present in this case at all, were to escape punishment, that risk is inherent in the Constitution’s design.”

Trump’s lawyers argue that the only exception that makes a president vulnerable to criminal prosecution is if he or she is first impeached and convicted.

The former president was impeached by the U.S. House twice — the second time for inciting an insurrection on Jan. 6. He was acquitted by the U.S. Senate on both occasions.

In his response, special counsel Smith characterized Trump’s arguments as “radical” and akin to the monarchy rule that the U.S. broke away from at its birth.

“If petitioner were correct that the former President has permanent immunity from federal criminal prosecution except after his impeachment and Senate conviction — which has never happened — it would upset the separation of powers and usher in a regime that would have been anathema to the Framers,” Smith wrote.

Impeachment, Smith wrote, is a “political remedy” and “not intended to provide accountability under the ordinary course of the law.”

History also illustrates that presidents have presumed they must follow the law, the special counsel argued.

Following the Watergate scandal, former President Richard Nixon’s “acceptance of a pardon implied his and President Ford’s recognition that a former President was subject to prosecution,” Smith wrote.

Who is weighing in on the case?

The case has attracted nearly 50 friend-of-the-court filings, otherwise known as amici briefs.

Like supporters of the immunity argument, opponents similarly envision a bleak future for the presidency, and the nation, if the ruling doesn’t go their way.

Twenty-six former U.S. Department of Justice attorneys, lawmakers and others, who were either elected Republicans or served during GOP administrations, warned of “terrifying possibilities” that would endanger the nation’s hallmark peaceful transfers of power.

“Under former President Trump’s view of absolute immunity, future first-term Presidents would be encouraged to violate federal criminal statutes by employing the military and armed federal agents to remain in power,” they wrote.

Several retired four-star generals also argued that absolute immunity for a commander-in-chief would result in “??irreparably harming the trust fundamental to civil-military relations” if he or she ordered generals to direct troops unlawfully.

“Immunizing the Commander-in-Chief from criminal prosecution, as Petitioner argues for here, would fly in the face of that duty, creating the likelihood that service members will be placed in the impossible position of having to choose between following their Commander-in-Chief and obeying the laws enacted by Congress,” the generals wrote.

Filings in support of the former president insist the criminal charges against Trump are “partisan” and warn of opening the proverbial “floodgates” of politically motivated cases against presidents if immunity is not granted.

Several state attorneys general accused the Department of Justice of timing the case with Trump’s 2024 presidential run.

The “lengthy delay in bringing charges … followed by an unexplained rush to take him to trial, gives credence to the concern that factional interests can drive criminal investigations and prosecutions of the President for his official acts,” Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall wrote in a brief co-signed by 17 other Republican attorneys general.

They include: Ashley Moody of Florida, Raúl R. Labrador of Idaho, Theodore E. Rokita of Indiana, Brenna Bird of Iowa, Kris Kobach of Kansas, Liz Murrill of Louisiana, Lynn Fitch of Mississippi, Andrew Bailey of Missouri, Austin Knudsen of Montana, Michael T. Hilgers of Nebraska, Drew Wrigley of North Dakota, Gentner Drummond of Oklahoma, Alan Wilson of South Carolina, Marty J. Jackley of South Dakota, Ken Paxton of Texas, Sean D. Reyes of Utah and Patrick Morrisey of West Virginia.

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, a Montana Republican and chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, contends that the Constitution already dictates a process of accountability for the president through impeachment.

The fact that the Senate acquitted Trump over his actions surrounding Jan. 6, 2021, “should have ended the matter,” Daines and the NRSC wrote.

“Not every impeachment inquiry will result in the punishment that a President’s political opponents believe he deserves, but that is not a reason for prosecutors and the courts to go hunting for an alternative.”

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NY prosecutor ties Trump hush money payments to campaign as criminal trial kicks off? https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/22/ny-prosecutor-ties-trump-hush-money-payments-to-campaign-as-criminal-trial-kicks-off/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/22/ny-prosecutor-ties-trump-hush-money-payments-to-campaign-as-criminal-trial-kicks-off/#respond Mon, 22 Apr 2024 18:30:19 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16953

Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media as he arrives with his attorney Todd Blanche, right, in court for opening statements in his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments at Manhattan Criminal Court on April 22, 2024, in New York City. Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first of his criminal cases to go to trial. (Photo by Yuki Iwamura-Pool/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Oral arguments in former President Donald Trump’s historic case in New York began Monday in a Manhattan courtroom where jurors will be tasked with deciding whether deceptive hush money payments to hide an affair amount to a criminal conviction.

The first-ever criminal trial of an ex-U.S. president centers on Trump’s alleged falsified business records to cover up a $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, with whom he denies he had a sexual relationship.

Assistant District Attorney Matthew Colangelo told jurors Monday that Trump’s payments to Daniels in 2016, which he reimbursed to his former lawyer Michael Cohen as legal expenses, were meant to “influence the presidential election,” according to reporters at the courthouse.

“This case is about a criminal conspiracy and fraud. The defendant, Donald Trump, orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt the 2016 presidential election, then he covered up that conspiracy by lying in his New York business records over, and over, and over again,” Colangelo argued, according to journalists present.

The New York court does not permit audio or video recording but will provide daily transcripts on its website.

Calling him ‘President Trump’

Defense attorney Todd Blanche argued for Trump, whom he said will be referred to as “President Trump” throughout the trial “out of respect” and because he “earned” the title.

Blanche told the jurors “President Trump is innocent. President Trump did not commit any crimes. The Manhattan district attorney should never have brought this case.”

Claiming that Trump was unaware of the nuances of the payments, Blanche argued, “You’ll learn that President Trump had nothing to do with any of the 34 pieces of paper … except he signed the checks.”

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree for each reimbursement payment to Cohen.

Blanche also told the jurors to dismiss the prosecution’s election interference theory: “I have a spoiler alert: there’s nothing wrong with trying to influence an election, it’s called democracy,” he said, according to reporters in the courthouse.

Trump raised his fist and did not take questions as he left the courtroom for a brief recess after opening statements, according to reporters.

National Enquirer exec called

The prosecution called David Pecker, former chairman of the tabloid National Enquirer’s parent company, as its first witness Monday. Pecker was involved in the scheme with Cohen to identify and purchase, nicknamed “catch and kill,” damaging stories about Trump ahead of the 2016 election.

The prosecution is also expected to call Cohen, who has already served prison time in relation to the payments, and Hope Hicks, a former Trump campaign press secretary.

The trial could last for longer than a month, possibly two, keeping the presumed 2024 Republican presidential nominee off the campaign trail four days a week.

The New York proceeding also overlaps with Trump’s immunity arguments scheduled for Thursday before the U.S. Supreme Court.

The former president claims he enjoys absolute criminal immunity for his actions while in office, including immunity from special counsel Jack Smith’s charges that he allegedly schemed to subvert the 2020 presidential election results, culminating in a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

New York Judge Juan Merchan denied Trump’s request to attend the Supreme Court arguments, saying he must be present at his Manhattan trial, according to media reports.

In early morning posts to his social media platform Truth Social, Trump blamed President Joe Biden — despite the case being at the state level — and repeated his refrain that the trial is politically motivated. He wrote, partially in all caps, that he will now be “STUCK in a courtroom, and not be allowed to campaign for President of the United States!”

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U.S. House tries anew to force sale or ban for TikTok, a ‘spy balloon in your phone’ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/18/u-s-house-tries-anew-to-force-sale-or-ban-for-tiktok-a-spy-balloon-in-your-phone/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/18/u-s-house-tries-anew-to-force-sale-or-ban-for-tiktok-a-spy-balloon-in-your-phone/#respond Thu, 18 Apr 2024 22:28:20 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16797

In this photo illustration, a mobile phone can be seen displaying the logos for Chinese apps WeChat and TikTok in front of a monitor showing the flags of the United States and China on an internet page, on Sept. 22, 2020 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. House leadership has packaged more than a dozen bipartisan bills into a so-called “sidecar” agreement meant to attract isolationist lawmakers’ support for long-stalled foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.

The wide-ranging catchall, introduced as the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act, would force the split of the hugely popular app TikTok from its Chinese owner, divert frozen Russian assets to Ukraine’s reconstruction, and sanction international traffickers of deadly fentanyl.

Also among the proposals wrapped into the “sweetener” bundle are several anti-Iran measures quickly passed by the House Monday and Tuesday in reaction to Iran launching hundreds of missiles and drones toward Israel over the weekend.

A widely backed measure in the package that could potentially ban TikTok is garnering significant attention. Supporters of the measure cite national security concerns that China’s government could access user data and manipulate algorithms. The app has over 170 million users in the U.S., according to the company.

The proposal to force Chinese-owned ByteDance to sell TikTok received a bipartisan endorsement in March when it passed the House on a 352-65 vote, but has been stalled in the U.S. Senate.

This time around, House lawmakers have extended a provision that would now give TikTok 270 days, up from 180 days, to find a buyer and remain in compliance if the bill is enacted. Also tucked in the new language is the authority for the president to grant an additional one-time extension up to 90 days.

Under the provision, if TikTok does not split from its Chinese parent-company within that time frame, app stores and web hosting platforms would be committing a crime by distributing, maintaining or updating the video sharing site.

‘Spy balloon in your phone’

Rep. Michael McCaul, chair of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, on Thursday likened TikTok to having a “spy balloon in your phone,” referring to the February 2023 incident when a surveillance balloon from China drifted over the U.S. before being shot down off the coast of South Carolina.

“If you’re worried about privacy, as I know you are extremely worried about that, and if we don’t think Congress should be using TikTok, why in the world would we let our children use it or the American people?” the Texas Republican said to House Rules Committee member Rep. Thomas Massie during a Thursday hearing.

Congress banned TikTok from government-issued devices last year.

Massie said he opposed the addition of the TikTok bill into the larger national security package.

“This was not unanimously supported on the floor of the House. It’s been described as a sweetener in the bill. It doesn’t sweeten the package for me at all. It’s kind of sour if you ask me,” the Kentucky Republican said.

Massie cited concerns that the bill would grant too much power to the president and executive branch agencies in determining when an application owned by a foreign adversary has been divested.

“I’m just afraid that we are creating another authority for the executive branch where we could have withheld some discretion,” Massie said. “The president, whoever that may be, we don’t know who’s going to win the next election, whoever that may be, may abuse that authority.”

An email sent Thursday to Congress members by the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party highlighted talking points to counter criticism. The message underscored that only applications owned by specifically designated foreign adversaries would be subject under the bill, if enacted.

“Congress is the only one that can change the (foreign adversary) definition used in this bill, not the Biden administration,” read an email from Allison Aprahamian, the committee’s communications director.

The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Mike Gallagher, who chairs the committee, is set to leave Congress on Friday. However, an aide said the Wisconsin Republican has the flexibility to stay and support the package through Saturday, when votes are expected.

Senate hesitation

While the bill sailed through the powerful House Committee on Energy and Commerce with unanimous support in March and landed on the House floor days later, the Senate has not followed with speed.

Sen. Maria Cantwell, a Washington Democrat who chairs the Senate Committee on Commerce, told reporters she doesn’t want to rush through the process.

“I think it’s important to get it right,” Cantwell told reporters outside a classified briefing on TikTok on March 20.

It remains unclear if the upper chamber would let the House TikTok bill go through as part of the national security supplemental package.

A TikTok spokesperson said Thursday that the company finds it “unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, devastate 7 million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24 billion to the U.S. economy, annually.“

Other pieces of the package

Another provision gaining attention is the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act, otherwise known as the REPO Act.

The McCaul bill introduced nearly a year ago with Ohio Democrat Marcy Kaptur, among other sponsors, would liquidate confiscated Russian assets into a fund for humanitarian and reconstruction efforts in Ukraine.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, of Louisiana, vowed during recess that he would attach the REPO Act to the administration’s Ukraine aid request as a way to attract skeptical conservatives who largely oppose helping the war-torn European ally.

Other bills in the package include:

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National privacy standard eyed by Congress for data harvested by big tech companies https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/18/national-privacy-standard-eyed-by-congress-for-data-harvested-by-big-tech-companies/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/18/national-privacy-standard-eyed-by-congress-for-data-harvested-by-big-tech-companies/#respond Thu, 18 Apr 2024 09:00:28 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16783

Ava Smithing, director of advocacy for the Young People’s Alliance, testifies before a U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce subpanel on April 17, 2024, on several data privacy bills being considered in Congress. (Screenshot from U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce)

If you are having thoughts of suicide, contact 988. For resources regarding eating disorders, visit nationaleatingdisorders.org/get-help/.

WASHINGTON — U.S. House members tasked with addressing what happens to loads of user data collected by big tech companies see a “long overdue” opportunity for a national privacy standard, particularly for children and teens.

Lawmakers on a subpanel of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce met Wednesday to hear from advocates and online safety experts on a series of data privacy bills that are drawing rare bipartisan and bicameral support.

The 10 bills discussed by six witnesses and members of the Subcommittee on Innovation, Data and Commerce would regulate how data is collected and stored, allow users to opt out of algorithms, and ensure safeguards for minors on the internet.

The hearing came on the heels of widespread bipartisan support for a bill that would force the popular video platform TikTok to split from its Chinese parent company ByteDance. The legislation passed the House in March in a 352-65 vote.

“Today we find ourselves at a crossroads,” said Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers. “We can either continue down the dangerous path we’re on, letting companies and bad actors continue to collect massive amounts of data unchecked, or we can give people the right? to control their information online.”

Washington state lawmakers unite

The Washington Republican’s discussion draft of the American Privacy Rights Act was a focus of the Wednesday hearing.

The bipartisan, bicameral proposal, introduced alongside Senate Committee on Commerce Chair Maria Cantwell, a Washington Democrat, would shrink the amount of data companies can collect, regulate data brokers, allow users to access their own data and request deletion, and empower the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general to enforce the policies.

Placing the burden on consumers to read “notice and consent” privacy agreements “simply does not work,” said Energy and Commerce Committee ranking member Frank Pallone of New Jersey.

“By contrast, data minimization limits the amount of personal information entities collect, process, retain and transfer to only what is necessary to provide the products and services being requested by the consumer,” Pallone said, praising provisions in the American Privacy Rights Act.

Rodgers said the “foundational” legislation would protect minors and establish a national standard to quash a “modern form of digital tyranny where a handful of companies and bad actors are exploiting our personal information, monetizing it and using it to manipulate how we think and act.”

One national standard would preempt “the patchwork of state laws, so when consumers and businesses cross state lines, there are consistent rights, protections and obligations,” GOP Rep. Gus Bilirakis of Florida, the subcommittee’s chair, said during his opening remarks.

Seventeen states have enacted their own privacy laws and regulations with another 18 states actively pursuing various pieces of legislation, creating a “complex landscape of state-specific privacy laws,” testified Katherine Kuehn, chief information security officer-in-residence for the National Technology Security Coalition, a cybersecurity advocacy organization.

‘Insecurity as data’

Among the other proposals the panel discussed was an update to the 1998 Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Act, co-sponsored by Michigan Republican Rep. Tim Walberg and Kathy Castor, a Florida Democrat.

The bill aims to ban targeted advertising to children and teens, prohibit internet companies from collecting the data of 13-to-17-year-olds without consent, and require direct notice if data is being stored or transferred outside of the U.S.

Ava Smithing of Nashville, Tennessee, described for the committee her teen years spent on Instagram and the body image issues and eating disorder that ensued after repeated targeted content.

“The companies’ abilities to track engagements, such as the duration of time I looked at a photo, revealed to them what would keep me engaged — my own insecurity,” she testified.

“They stored my insecurity as data and linked it to all my other accounts across the internet. They used my data to infer what other types of content I might ‘like,’ leading me down a pipeline from bikini advertisements to exercise videos to dieting tips and finally to eating disorder content,” Smithing, director of advocacy for the Young People’s Alliance, said.

‘Big tech has failed’

Bilirakis is a sponsor of the similarly named Kids Online Safety Act, along with fellow Reps. Erin Houchin, an Indiana Republican, Washington Democrat Kim Schrier and Castor.

“We know that big tech has failed, ladies and gentlemen, to prioritize the health and safety of our children online, resulting in a significant increase in mental health conditions, suicide and drug overdose deaths. We’ve heard stories over and over and over again in our respective districts,” Bilirakis said.

Bilirakis’ bill would outline a set of harms to children under 17 and require big tech and video game companies to mitigate those harms. The bill also aims to increase parental protections on platforms and commission a study of age verification options.

A companion bill in the U.S. Senate has been introduced by Connecticut Democrat Richard Blumenthal and Tennessee Republican Marsha Blackburn.

Samir C. Jain, of the Center for Democracy and Technology, told the House panel that some proposals, including the Kids Online Safety Act, “while well-intentioned and pursuing an important goal, do raise some concerns.”

“Legislation that restricts access to content because government officials deem it harmful can harm youth and present significant constitutional issues,” said Jain, vice president of policy for the civil liberties advocacy organization.

“Further, requirements or strong incentives to require age verification systems to identify children often require further data collection from children and adults alike, and thereby can undermine privacy and present their own constitutional issues,” Jain testified.

However, Jain praised provisions in the American Privacy Rights Act that would increase transparency into the algorithms employed by large data companies and “prohibit using data in a way that perpetuates or exacerbates discrimination based on protected characteristics such as race, sex, religion, or disability status — whether a Black person looking for a job, a woman seeking a loan to start a business, or a veteran with a disability trying to find housing.”

During questioning, Bilirakis asked each panelist: “Yes or no, do you think this is the best chance we have to getting something done on comprehensive data privacy?”

All witnesses answered yes.

Meta, which owns Instagram, did not respond to a request for comment.

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Divided U.S. Supreme Court wrestles with case of Pennsylvania man who joined Jan. 6 mob https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/16/divided-u-s-supreme-court-wrestles-with-case-of-pennsylvania-man-who-joined-jan-6-mob/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/16/divided-u-s-supreme-court-wrestles-with-case-of-pennsylvania-man-who-joined-jan-6-mob/#respond Tue, 16 Apr 2024 17:40:13 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16735

Photo of Joseph W. Fischer of Pennsylvania at the “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021. The U.S. Supreme Court on April 16, 2024, heard arguments in a case centering on Fischer’s actions that day. (U.S. District Court documents)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a Jan. 6, 2021, case that could potentially upend convictions for a mass of Capitol riot defendants and slash some election interference charges against former President Donald Trump.

The case, Fischer v. United States, centers on whether former Pennsylvania police officer and Jan. 6 defendant Joseph W. Fischer violated an obstruction statute when he joined the mob that entered the U.S. Capitol and prevented Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election results for several hours.

The justices, appearing split and at times opaque in their individual stances, questioned Fischer’s attorney Jeffrey Green and U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar for more than 90 minutes, though they grilled Prelogar for twice as long as Green.

“We thought it went about as well as it could, but we still think it will be a very close case,” Green told States Newsroom outside the court following arguments.

The provision in question stems from an early 2000s law, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, that passed after the Enron accounting scandal and targets “whoever corruptly … otherwise obstructs, influences, or impedes any official proceeding, or attempts to do so.”

In this particular case, the proceeding is referring to the joint session of Congress to certify the 2020 presidential election results.

The government maintains that Fischer had an intent to disrupt the proceeding, and points to his text messages in the preceding days that discuss stopping the democratic process and committing physical harm of Congress members.

The Justice Department also maintains video evidence shows Fischer assaulting a police officer and encouraging rioters to “charge” into the Capitol.

Fischer’s team argues that he wasn’t present while Congress was meeting, and that he only had a “four-minute foray to about 20 feet inside the Capitol.”

Photo of Joseph W. Fischer of Pennsylvania at the “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021. The U.S. Supreme Court on April 16, 2024, heard arguments in a case centering on Fischer’s actions that day. (U.S. District Court documents)

A lower trial court last year granted Fischer’s motion to dismiss the felony charge against him after he argued the clause is inseparable from preceding language that refers only to tampering with physical evidence.

Washington Metropolitan Police body camera footage shows Joseph W. Fischer in the U.S. Capitol at 3:25 p.m. Eastern on Jan. 6, 2021. (U.S. District Court documents)

The U.S. Circuit of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit reversed the ruling, though the three-judge panel split. Judge Florence Y. Pan wrote in the lead opinion that the statute is “unambiguous” in its meaning of what constitutes obstructing an official proceeding.

Roughly 350 Jan. 6 defendants have been charged under the same statute, and about 50 have been sentenced, according to Prelogar.

The clause in the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act is also at the core of two of the four election subversion charges brought against Trump by U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith.

Whether those charges stand now hangs on whether the justices agree that the law applies to Fischer’s actions at the U.S Capitol.

If the justices rule in Fischer’s favor, Trump would almost certainly challenge the government’s case, further delaying an already drawn out legal process as the 2024 presidential election inches closer.

Additionally, numerous Jan. 6 defendants convicted of the charge, among the most serious levied against them, could challenge and potentially re-open their cases.

A ruling is expected in late June or early July.

This developing story will be updated.

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Small business owners ask U.S. House tax writers to extend Trump-era deductions https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/12/small-business-owners-ask-u-s-house-tax-writers-to-extend-trump-era-deductions/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/12/small-business-owners-ask-u-s-house-tax-writers-to-extend-trump-era-deductions/#respond Fri, 12 Apr 2024 16:47:13 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16580

Austin Ramirez, president and CEO of Husco International Inc. in Waukesha, Wisconsin, testified on Thursday, April 11, 2024, before the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, urging the panel to extend 2017 business tax deductions. (Screenshot from committee webcast)

WASHINGTON — As Congress gears up for negotiations ahead of the 2017 tax law’s expiration, economists and small business owners urged U.S. lawmakers Thursday to extend or make permanent the Trump-era tax cuts.

Business owners from West Virginia and Wisconsin testified at a hearing before members of the House Committee on Ways and Means, advocating for the continuation of deductions that they say allowed them to reinvest in their operations.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which expires at the end of 2025, allowed some business owners to deduct up to 20% of qualified business income. The bill also temporarily cut taxes on new equipment purchases and other qualified assets, but those incentives are phasing out.

For individuals, the TCJA temporarily lowered marginal tax rates across most income levels and expanded the standard deduction and child tax credit, among other changes.

Large corporations saw the top corporate tax rate permanently drop to 21% from 35%.

“Seven years ago, Republicans passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act under President Trump, delivering relief to millions of families and small businesses and creating the best economy in our lifetime,” Committee Chair Jason Smith, a Missouri Republican, said during his opening remarks.

“Here’s the bottom line: Congress must act soon to prevent what will be the largest tax hike in history on workers, families, farmers, and small businesses,” he later added.

Democrats on the committee slammed the bill as a “corporate tax giveaway.”

“We knew that their tax scam would disproportionately benefit the wealthy and well-connected. We knew that it wouldn’t pay for itself. We knew that big corporations, not their workers, would feel the most benefit,” said the committee’s ranking member, Richard Neal of Massachusetts.

The Democratic-invited witness, Kathryn Anne Edwards, a labor economist at the RAND Corporation, said “unless the intention of the 2017 tax law was to directly transfer income to the richest Americans at incredible expense to ordinary Americans, it was a failure.”

Extending the law could cost the government between $3.3 trillion and $3.6 trillion over the next 10 years, Edwards told the panel, citing estimates from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and the Tax Policy Center.

A ‘landmark’ change

But small business owners say the law has been a financial lifeline.

Michael Ervin, founder of Coal River Coffee Company in St. Albans, West Virginia, told the panel that his five-year-old business has benefited from the 2017 tax code changes, particularly the temporary income deductions for sole proprietorships, partnerships and S-corporations.

“After the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, LLCs and other pass-through businesses like mine were able to benefit from the newly minted Small Business Deduction, also known as the 199(a) deduction. This provision has allowed me to deduct up to 20% of my business income, which has let me invest in my business, my employees, and my community,” said Ervin, who employs roughly a dozen people.

If Congress does not extend the special deduction or make it permanent, Ervin told lawmakers that he will face a “significant tax hike” and be at a disadvantage compared to nearby large businesses.

“Down the street from my location is a larger competitor, Tim Hortons. In two years, if my taxes go up, the corporate rate will remain 21%. Tim Hortons will be paying a 21% federal rate and a 6.5% state corporate rate for a total combined rate of 27.5%, while my total combined rate will be closer to 45%. This disparity will make it extremely difficult for me to compete,” Ervin told lawmakers.

Austin Ramirez, president and CEO of the Wisconsin-based Husco International Inc., also told the panel that the pass-through deduction has “leveled our playing field with our peers organized as corporations.”

Husco, a privately held family-owned manufacturer of hydraulic and electromechanical parts for vehicles, employs about 1,600.

Ramirez said the TCJA enabled his business to do the “most significant renovation of our Waukesha, Wisconsin headquarters in 70 years.”

The company has invested $50 million to renovate its office space and shop floor, allowing the addition of nearly $150 million to its top line since 2017, Ramirez said.

Temporarily extending Trump tax cuts

Going forward, Smith said, congressional tax writers should note that the law “provided a critical blueprint that Congress can build upon to make lasting improvements to our tax code.”

“The House has already shown strong bipartisan support for key provisions of the 2017 law by passing the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act earlier this year. But there is still much work to be done,” he said, referencing a bill he sponsored and negotiated with Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon.

The hearing happened against the backdrop of stalled negotiations in the U.S. Senate on the act referred to by Smith, a short-term tax bill that garnered rare widespread bipartisan support in the House in January.

The bill, which would temporarily revive expired or expiring business tax breaks and expand the child tax credit, passed on a 357-70 vote.

While House Republicans overwhelmingly supported the legislation, GOP senators oppose provisions of the bill that would temporarily expand the refundable portion of the child tax credit and allow households to calculate the credit based on their previous year’s earnings, if higher than the current year’s.

Business owners at a February hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance implored the upper chamber to pass the bill.

Ramirez, the Waukesha business owner, also expressed on Thursday to the committee his support for the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, which would revive an expired 2017 incentive for businesses that allowed them to immediately write off research and development expenses.

“Husco’s inability to expense these costs since 2022 has cost us more than $20 million in liquidity, wiping out a large portion of the TCJA benefits and creating a disincentive to invest in innovation,” Ramirez testified.

Other temporary measures enacted under the TCJA expire on Dec. 31, 2025.

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U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley proposes adding radiation exposure bill to stalled tax package https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/09/u-s-sen-josh-hawley-proposes-adding-radiation-exposure-bill-to-stalled-tax-package/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/09/u-s-sen-josh-hawley-proposes-adding-radiation-exposure-bill-to-stalled-tax-package/#respond Tue, 09 Apr 2024 19:05:40 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16491

U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., is proposing to add a bill on radiation exposure compensation that he has championed to a tax package. In this photo, Hawley talks to reporters after an amendment vote on the infrastructure bill at the U.S. Capitol on Aug. 4, 2021 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri thinks he’s found a path for stalled tax legislation that would temporarily expand the child tax credit and restore business tax breaks that are expired or have sunset under the 2017 tax law.

Hawley’s idea is to attach the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to the tax bill to entice his party colleagues to pass it through the upper chamber — including top tax writer and radiation compensation champion Sen. Mike Crapo of Idaho. The House already has passed the tax package with overwhelming bipartisan support.

“I think if they want to move the tax bill, I would say put RECA onto the tax bill and move them together. I think you can get 60 (votes) for that. I would go for it. I think other people would vote for it. It’s hard to see a path if that doesn’t happen, to be honest with you,” Hawley told States Newsroom and a small group of reporters Tuesday.

Hawley’s RECA proposal would expand the expiring compensation fund for victims of past government radiation and atomic bomb testing in the St. Louis area and the western and southwestern U.S.

Senators voted in favor of the bill in March, 69-30.

When asked by States Newsroom if the proposal — first reported by Punchbowl News —? had gained traction, Hawley said he’s “talked to multiple senators about this and where my position is.”

“Listen, I don’t control the floor. So it’s not my decision. But I’m just saying that if they want to move that bill … I can only control my own vote, but I’d vote for it,” he said.

Senate GOP opposition to tax bill

Some Senate Republicans refuse to support the tax bill over a Democratic proposal to allow taxpayers to receive the child tax credit even if they had no annual income the prior year — a “look-back” provision that they liken to expanding welfare.

Several also oppose a provision that would phase-in the credit at a faster rate, therefore increasing the amount parents could receive as a refund.

Crapo, ranking member of the Senate Committee on Finance and lead Senate Republican negotiator on the tax bill, has championed compensation for victims of government radiation exposure.

The Idaho Republican’s invited guest to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address in March was Tona Henderson, head of the Idaho Downwinders in Emmett, Idaho, a group that advocates for compensation for Idahoans affected by government nuclear weapons testing in the 1950s and 1960s.

A Senate Finance Committee spokesperson said Crapo does not have any comment about Hawley’s idea.

A staunch opponent of the tax legislation, GOP Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, said Hawley’s proposal does nothing to move his position.

“You’re talking about the tax legislation I oppose?” he said when asked by States Newsroom Tuesday if attaching RECA would change his mind. “No.”

Sen. Ron Wyden, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee and originally sponsored the tax bill, said he hasn’t yet been briefed on the proposal, which also would have to make it through the Republican-controlled House.

“But, you know, when I hear United States senators, particularly Republicans, say that they’re interested in families and small businesses, and getting a roof over people’s heads, I think that’s a good thing,” the Oregon Democrat said.

Wyden said he’s interested in “approaches that add votes, don’t subtract votes.”

What Republicans want to do — strip the bill of the look-back provision for the child tax credit — would alienate Democratic supporters of the bill, Wyden said.

“What has been offered thus far by the Senate Republicans would not get a single Democratic vote, and the sponsors of it know that.”

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Republicans return to D.C. amid dwindling majority, suspense over House speaker post https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/09/republicans-return-to-d-c-amid-dwindling-majority-suspense-over-house-speaker-post/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/09/republicans-return-to-d-c-amid-dwindling-majority-suspense-over-house-speaker-post/#respond Tue, 09 Apr 2024 18:59:07 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16488

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., speaks to reporters outside the U.S. Capitol Building after a vote on a funding bill that would avert a government shutdown on March 22, 2024 in Washington, D.C. Greene spoke to reporters about introducing a motion to vacate U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., over the bill’s passage. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans are returning from a two-week recess Tuesday with an even slimmer majority and the potential looming chaos of a second speaker fight in less than a year.

Hours before recess began on March 22, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia filed a motion to vacate the U.S. House speaker’s office, threatening to boot Mike Johnson of Louisiana from the role he’s held for just over five months.

The potential leadership crisis looms over a serious to-do list that includes renewing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and pressure to finally approve a long-stalled foreign aid request for conflicts in Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific.

Adding to the risk of chaos for the GOP: Two House Republicans abruptly announced resignations days before lawmakers headed home for the Easter holiday break, narrowing the House GOP’s majority to 217-213 once both are finished and prior to a series of special elections later this spring.

Colorado’s Ken Buck resigned on March 22, quickly followed by the abrupt resignation of Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, whose last day is slated for April 19.

And as the 2024 election cycle accelerates, political observers will be watching for whether House GOP lawmakers will balance day-to-day business while appeasing the political base for presumed Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump.

House Republicans have struggled to unify during the 118th Congress, which started with the party slogging through more than a dozen ballots to seat Kevin McCarthy at the helm, said Matt Dallek, a political historian at George Washington University.

McCarthy, of California, was ousted in the fall, and the former leader left Congress in December, chipping away at the majority’s margin.

“This is a continuation of the tumult that really began when the Republicans took power,” Dallek said.

Ukraine aid

With a two-week work period ahead, House GOP lawmakers face another chance to prove whether they can coalesce around billions in aid to U.S. allies. House Republicans also face big questions about federal funds to help rebuild the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore and the renewal of a surveillance law that expires April 19, a self-imposed deadline after lawmakers extended it in December.

Johnson has vowed to prioritize Ukraine aid when House lawmakers return Tuesday, despite the prospect of continued opposition from the party’s far-right faction.

The U.S. Senate passed a $95.3 billion foreign aid package in February that would cover assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, but the House has yet to advance it.

The standalone foreign aid package received support after Senate Republicans, heeding to?Trump’s opposition, blocked a deal to alter U.S. immigration laws in exchange for Ukraine aid after months of bipartisan negotiations.

Johnson has said the House will be considering Ukraine aid again. “We’ve been talking to all the members especially now over the district work period. When we return after this period, we’ll be moving a product but it’s going to, I think, have some important innovations,” the Louisiana Republican said March 31 on Fox News’ “Sunday Night in America,” hosted by former GOP South Carolina Congressman Trey Gowdy.

Johnson said he wants to see the REPO Act as part of the deal. The legislation, introduced last year, would build a fund for Ukraine using the profits from the sale of seized Russian assets, which Johnson said would be “pure poetry.”

Johnson also said he expects conference members to rally in support if the bill restructured Ukraine aid in the form of loans and if it included a measure that would “unleash” American natural gas exports as a way to “help unfund Vladimir Putin’s war effort.”

The speaker faces an uphill battle in unifying House Republicans on the issue.

Georgia’s Rep. Andrew Clyde,?a member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, wrote on X April 3 that “(b)orrowing billions of dollars to protect Ukraine’s borders while OUR southern border is being invaded is a slap in the face to the American people.”

Some of Johnson’s conservative colleagues think amending the foreign aid bill could be a winning strategy.

Rep. French Hill of Arkansas said adding the REPO Act “would go a long way to filling the Ukrainian budget gap and be a good down payment for reconstruction, to make Putin pay the ultimate cost of his illegal invasion of Ukraine.”

“It would be, in my judgment, a way to get more support for the total package for Ukraine, seizing these Russian assets,” Hill told CBS “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan on Sunday.

When Brennan pressed him on the skepticism from his colleagues on the far right, including Greene, Hill responded: “I think overwhelmingly Americans and Republican primary voters believe that Putin should be defeated in Ukraine. As I’ve said before, we should draw the line on authoritarian dictators, particularly permanent members of the (United Nations) Security Council invading neighboring countries.”

Working with the Democrats?

If Johnson can’t unify the House GOP conference, votes from across the aisle may be the only path to passing an aid package, particularly if Johnson bypasses the House Committee on Rules. That fast-track to the floor requires a two-thirds majority for passage, which will inevitably mean Democrats’ support will matter.

However, striking a government funding deal with President Joe Biden last year was a flash point that led to the far-right House Republicans’ ouster of McCarthy.

Business in the lower chamber ground to a halt for weeks in October after seven House Republicans joined Florida’s Matt Gaetz in taking the gavel from McCarthy. All Democrats joined in voting for his removal.

Greene’s motion in late March to sack Johnson followed a fast-tracked bipartisan House vote? that resulted in the passage of the last round of overdue spending bills.

Greene did not force a vote on removing Johnson, but rather said it was a “warning” to him that the conference would begin looking for a new speaker who “will stand with Republicans and our Republican majority instead of standing with Democrats,” she told reporters after filing the motion.

Dallek said that Johnson putting a Ukraine deal on the floor “may be the final straw for the Marjorie Taylor Greenes of the world, and they might move to get rid of him.”

“There’s talk that Democrats would save (Johnson) in agreement for putting Ukraine funding on the floor. You know, retaining your speakership because you’re saved by the opposition party is not exactly a great place to be, right?” Dallek said.

Johnson said he believes his Republican colleagues view Greene’s effort as “a distraction from our mission.”

“Again, the mission is to save the republic,” he told Fox News’s Gowdy on Easter. “And the only way we can do that is if we grow the House majority, win the Senate and win the White House.

“So we don’t need any dissension right now. Look, Marjorie Taylor Greene filed the motion, it’s not a privileged motion so it doesn’t move automatically. It’s just hanging there. And she’s frustrated. She and I exchanged text messages. Even today. We’re going to talk early next week,” Johnson said.

GOP Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska said he’s “optimistic” the House can pass the Ukraine aid bill during this work period.

“But it is very likely that after this Ukraine bill, we may have a standoff with the speaker. I hope the speaker prevails. He’s doing the right thing. It’s in our national security interest that Ukraine remain independent,” Bacon told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on March 31.

On Monday, Greene wrote on X that she remains opposed to Johnson bypassing the Rules Committee and calling a floor vote.

“Our Republican Speaker of the House is upsetting many of our members by relying on Democrats to pass major bills and working with Dems by giving them everything they want,” Greene wrote.

“That makes him the Democrat Speaker of the House not our Republican Speaker of the House.”

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The IRS is testing a free method to directly file taxes. But not everyone is thrilled. https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/08/the-irs-is-testing-a-free-method-to-directly-file-taxes-but-not-everyone-is-thrilled/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/04/08/the-irs-is-testing-a-free-method-to-directly-file-taxes-but-not-everyone-is-thrilled/#respond Mon, 08 Apr 2024 09:35:04 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=16365

The IRS estimates that 19 million taxpayers are eligible to use a new Direct File program in advance of the April 15 tax filing deadline. (Phillip Rubino/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Many U.S. taxpayers in a dozen states for the first time can electronically file their federal returns directly to the Internal Revenue Service for free — but critics insist the new federal benefit is not needed and will even harm both users and states.

More than 50,000 taxpayers in Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming have so far used the new online IRS Direct File program this tax season, according to the agency.

The free alternative to potentially costly private tax filing software rolled out in mid-March for the 2023 filing season. It is only available for those with W-2 income or simple credits and deductions, like the child tax credit or student loan interest.

The IRS estimates that 19 million taxpayers are eligible to use the new program in advance of the April 15 tax filing deadline.

But opponents argue the government Direct File program is a waste of resources and will snag business from professional tax preparers. They say it will confuse taxpayers who are accustomed to automatically filing their federal and state returns together through private software.

Some states also claim it will cost them revenue and increase what they have to spend on collections from taxpayers who owe money to their states.

The IRS program is purposefully small for now. The agency said in a launch-day release that it’s following “best practices for launching a new technology platform by starting small, making sure it works and then building from there.”

The pilot program “is almost tailor-made for students and young people with simple tax situations,” IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in late March, encouraging people to visit the new directfile.irs.gov.

The White House is celebrating the launch as a win for President Joe Biden, who in 2022 along with a Democratic-led Congress authorized its funding to jumpstart the program as part of the Inflation Reduction Act.

The progressive Economic Security Project estimates that if the program scales up, it could eventually save the average taxpayer up to $160 annually in tax prep costs. Assuming broad public adoption, that could add up to Americans saving $11 billion a year in filing fees and time.

The organization also estimates low-income households could gain up to $12 billion in unclaimed federal tax credits, and that the IRS would see a return on investment of more than $100 per federal dollar spent on the program due to less paperwork and fewer errors.

Roxy Caines, director of the Get It Back campaign, said Direct File could increase tax participation, particularly for low-income households.

“Having an accessible way to file taxes is really important because of the high cost of tax preparation as well as the arduous process. It’s often viewed as intimidating,” said Caines, who runs the financial literacy and tax credit advocacy campaign by the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

‘Unnecessary and unconstitutional’

But not everyone is on board.

When Werfel appeared in February before the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, Republican Chair Jason Smith of Missouri described the program as a “scheme the American people didn’t ask for.”

In January, 13 Republican attorneys general sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen opposing “the unnecessary and unconstitutional efforts to empower the Internal Revenue Service with the expansive authority to prepare and file tax returns for all taxpayers.”

“American taxpayers do not want to invite the proverbial fox into the hen house,” wrote the officials, led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen.

Attorneys general from Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia co-signed it.

The officials wrote that a program for taxpayers to directly file with the IRS at no cost “needlessly threatens” the livelihoods of tax preparers.

“Every year, tens of millions of taxpayers file their taxes for free with help from existing programs or online software. Additionally, millions of Americans work with small businesses in our states to file their taxes at an affordable cost, including both independent tax preparation services and local accountants. They choose to do so because they want an advocate in their corner who will represent their interests against the IRS bureaucracy,” they wrote.

The IRS did not respond to a request for comment about the criticism.

Pete Sepp, president of the National Taxpayers Union, a fiscally conservative organization that advocates for simplifying the tax code, told States Newsroom the project has been “dramatically oversold” and is being piloted in “some very easy places,” including states that don’t collect their own income tax.

Money for the IRS would be better spent on improving customer service, he argues.

“Every single penny they can scrounge up from other places needs to be poured into that effort, right? Now, in our opinion, designing a portal for direct file that is underpowered and is competing with other services is just not a priority,” he said, referring to the 22-year “Free File” arrangement the IRS has had with select private companies.

So what about Free File?

Today, the vast majority of taxpayers file electronically, according to IRS data. Of the 160 million individual federal tax returns that the IRS processed in 2022, 150.6 million, or 94%, were e-filed. Of those, just under 3.3 million used what’s been criticized as an opaque and complicated electronic Free File program.

Free File dates back to the early 2000s, when the idea of e-filing was just budding, and the government had no such program in place.

President George W. Bush’s administration was exploring the possibility of a free direct file portal through the IRS website.

At the time the agency was struggling after failed modernization efforts, and a public-private partnership with the burgeoning tax preparation software companies became an appealing option.

“The tax companies just said, ‘Well, we got a deal for you,’” recalls Nina Olson, who served as the National Taxpayer Advocate for the IRS from 2001 to 2019.

“And at that time, I was very suspect of the deal. I said at the time that they’re going to find themselves in 20 years, that you know, tax companies would pull out and you would have a patchwork of services available to people,” Olson, who now runs the nonprofit Center for Taxpayer Rights, said in an interview with States Newsroom.

What began in 2002 was an agreement between the IRS and a group of? private tax prep software companies, under the name Free File Alliance, to offer free federal tax returns to those under a certain income threshold. In 2023, that annual earnings threshold was $79,000 or less.

Taxpayers who earn above that income threshold have the option to complete their federal returns for free, unguided, using fillable PDF tax forms.

The just over two-decade-old program has been scrutinized for not reaching the taxpayers who most need a free filing option and for not providing a better user experience.

A 2019 Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration report described the program as “fraught with complexity and confusion.”

The inspector general found that in 2018 only 2.5 million of the 104 million taxpayers eligible for Free File actually used it.

About 34.5 million of those Free File-eligible taxpayers used one of the alliance companies’ commercial software options, and a likely 14 million of them paid to e-file their federal returns, the report found.

The low number of Free File users likely was because an estimated 9 million eligible taxpayers were unaware that they had to access the Free File software options via the IRS website.

Those who, for example, searched the web and found one of the IRS partner companies’ websites were “not guaranteed a free return filing,” and subsequently susceptible to advertising for potentially costly add-ons like “audit defense,” the report found.

Investigative reporting in 2019 by ProPublica revealed deliberate tactics to cloud the Free File program by Intuit, maker of TurboTax, one of the Free File Alliance’s largest partners.

Terms between the IRS and Free File Alliance initially included a commitment from the agency to not develop its own free online filing program. In exchange, the partner companies agreed to limit advertising and add-on solicitation on their free file web pages.

In 2019 the IRS dropped the prohibition on developing its own program. Limits on company marketing and solicitation for add-on products continued as part of the agreement — though Intuit would eventually have to pay for breaking its commitment.

H&R Block and Intuit respectively left the Free File Alliance in 2020 and 2021. Together they served about 70% of eligible Free File taxpayers in 2019, according to a 2022 Government Accountability Office report that recommended the IRS develop additional options for taxpayers to file for free.

Acknowledging the opposing viewpoints on whether the IRS should create, or could handle, its own program, the report concluded the agency “should work to manage the risk of taxpayers having fewer options to electronically file their federal taxes for free.”

In 2022, Intuit settled with attorneys general from across the U.S., agreeing to pay $141 million to Intuit TurboTax customers who ended up buying services that should have been free to them.

Today there are eight companies in the Free File Alliance, with differing income and tax situation criteria. All are listed on the IRS website.

Olson said she doesn’t view the IRS Direct File pilot as a competitor to the already existing Free File partnership. Rather, it’s “one more component of a robust tax online taxpayer account,” she said.

“This is what countries do around the world. We’re so far behind,” Olson said. “There’s a response to folks who say ‘The government doesn’t need to do this’ or ‘There’s no interest in this product.’ Regardless of whether there’s interest in the product, it’s a government obligation.”

Congressional mandate

Among the tens of billions of dollars Congress authorized for the IRS in the Inflation Reduction Act, $15 million was earmarked for exploring the possibility of an IRS-run direct federal tax filing system.

Specifically Congress mandated the agency to use the money to survey taxpayers’ wants and needs, obtain a third-party opinion, and report back to lawmakers on the costs to create and run such a program.

In its third-party review, the left-leaning think tank New America assessed that a successful IRS-run Direct File program “depends critically” on whether the agency prioritizes the project and begins with limited testing before building up.

The organization estimated that development, staffing, infrastructure and customer service for a scaled-up platform would cost the IRS annually anywhere from $22 million to $47 million if 1 million taxpayers use a Direct File program, and up to $126 million to $213 million in the event that 25 million taxpayers jump on board.

New America also recommended the IRS consider the importance of customer service, data privacy and taxpayers’ habits of filing federal and state returns all on one platform — one of the main concerns from critics.

Ayushi Roy, deputy director of New America’s New Practice Lab, which led the review, told States Newsroom she’s been talking to taxpayers using the Direct File pilot and “broadly speaking, we’re finding that filers are really landing on either ‘Wow,’ or ‘it didn’t include me for now.’”

The group will conduct its own analysis of the IRS trial run, particularly focusing on the experience for Spanish-speaking filers.

As for taxpayer interest, the IRS found that 72% of survey respondents said they were “very interested” or “somewhat interested” in a free IRS-provided tool to prepare and file federal taxes.

The survey conducted in 2022 by MITRE, a nonprofit that runs federally funded research and development centers, also found that a top reason cited by 46% of those interested is that they would rather give their financial data to the IRS than to a third party.

An October 2023 report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration took issue with the design of the survey, warning that the interest level may be “overstated” because the survey did not include a “neutral” option for respondents to choose.

However, the largely Democrat- and progressive-aligned international polling firm GQR found in late January through early February that between 92% and 95% of taxpayers across political ideologies and income levels in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, New York and Texas support a free online IRS filing service.

Several state governments already offer free public electronic filing for state income tax returns, including Alabama, Kansas, Kentucky and Pennsylvania, which offer the service regardless of income level. Some states, like California and Iowa, have income thresholds for free filing.

States bite back

Despite the adoption of free public filing in some states, 21 state auditors, comptrollers and treasurers from 18 states sent a letter on March 25 to Yellen and Werfel expressing concern about the “serious harm” the IRS Direct File program will cause and urging them to “shut down” the service.

“Taxpayers are not the only parties who will suffer from Direct File. States will suffer too. States will lose out on payments from Direct File taxpayers who owe state taxes but incorrectly assume that Direct File covers federal and state filings.

“States will then have to increase resources dedicated to collection efforts,” wrote the officials from Alaska, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.

According to the Treasury Department, taxpayers using the IRS Direct File pilot in Arizona, California, Massachusetts or New York are automatically directed to their state-supported tax filing websites. Those in Washington are sent to that state’s page to claim the Working Families Tax Credit.

The IRS could not provide a more specific figure of how many taxpayers have so far used Direct File, and its latest estimate stands at 50,000. Advocates say they expect to learn updated numbers as soon as a week after federal taxes are due on April 15.

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U.S. Senate GOP seeking to attach immigration measure to massive spending bill https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/21/u-s-senate-gop-seeking-to-attach-immigration-measure-to-massive-spending-bill/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/21/u-s-senate-gop-seeking-to-attach-immigration-measure-to-massive-spending-bill/#respond Thu, 21 Mar 2024 20:25:50 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=15820

U.S. Sen. Ted Budd of North Carolina told reporters Thursday, March 21, 2024, that he planned to try to add the House-passed Laken Riley Act to the spending package before Congress this week. Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia, was allegedly killed by an immigrant who was in the country illegally and had been cited for shoplifting. The bill has become a lightning rod for Republicans as immigration remains a focal point in the 2024 election cycle. (Screenshot of Senate Republican press conference.)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Republicans want to tie an immigration bill named for a slain Georgia nursing student to a massive spending package lawmakers must pass by Friday night to avoid a partial shutdown.

Senate Republicans, led by Ted Budd of North Carolina, told reporters Thursday they’re proposing to attach the House-passed Laken Riley Act as an amendment to the $1.2 trillion spending bill slated to fund crucial federal government functions, including the Department of Homeland Security.

The legislation is named for 22-year-old Augusta University nursing student Laken Riley who was killed Feb. 22 on a running trail on the University of Georgia campus. Police arrested a 26-year-old Venezuelan man, Jose Ibarra, for her murder.

Ibarra entered the U.S. unlawfully in 2022, according to U.S. immigration authorities, and had been previously arrested in Georgia on a shoplifting charge and in New York for driving a scooter while unlicensed and with a child who was not wearing a helmet, according to news reports.

Budd, with several GOP senators at his side Thursday, blamed the Biden administration for a “complete lack of enforcement” at the border that results in situations like the accused Ibarra not being detained on the federal or local levels.

“We simply don’t believe that another American family needs to experience a tragedy like the one that befell the Riley family. And that’s why we need to pass this Laken Riley Act today,” Budd said.

When asked by reporters if he thought the spending package would be an appropriate vehicle for adding the immigration measure, Budd said he believes the amendment meets the “germane” standard needed to add a measure to an appropriations bill.

“If you look at the content of it, we would hope all of them would support it, but if you look at the reality, that’s not our expectation,” he said.

Campaign issue

The tragic killing has become a lightning rod for Republican lawmakers as 2024 GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump campaigns on immigration.

Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia wore a t-shirt bearing Riley’s name at the State of the Union address and tried to hand President Joe Biden a pin with her name as he entered the House chamber.

Ongoing tensions over U.S. immigration policy grew particularly fierce in early February when months-long bipartisan Senate negotiations for tightened immigration laws in exchange for Ukraine aid went bust after Trump urged congressional Republicans to oppose it.

In a 251-170 vote on March 7, House lawmakers approved the bill named for Riley, which would require Homeland Security officials to detain immigrants charged with local theft, burglary or shoplifting.

The bill would also authorize state attorneys general to bring civil lawsuits against the federal government on behalf of residents harmed by a “failure” of federal officials to enforce immigration laws.

Thirty-seven House Democrats joined Republicans in passing the legislation.

The messaging bill was never expected to gain traction in the Senate, where Democrats hold a slim majority.

Budd and Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama asked on March 14 for unanimous consent that the legislation be brought to the Senate floor.

But Majority Whip Dick Durbin objected, while acknowledging that Riley’s death was “a horrible crime and a heartbreaking loss.”

However, Durbin said, the “sweeping approach” proposed in the bill would eliminate the discretion of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, “to prioritize the most dangerous individuals and require ICE to treat those arrested for shoplifting the same as those convicted of violent crimes. Let me repeat that — require ICE to treat those arrested for shoplifting the same as those convicted of violent crimes.”

“This would overwhelm ICE’s capacity and facilities and make our nation less, not more, safe,” Durbin said on the floor.

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Massive $1.2 trillion spending package that would avert a shutdown released by Congress https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/21/massive-1-2-trillion-spending-package-that-would-avert-a-shutdown-released-by-congress/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/21/massive-1-2-trillion-spending-package-that-would-avert-a-shutdown-released-by-congress/#respond Thu, 21 Mar 2024 12:22:18 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=15786

A bipartisan agreement on government spending for the remainder of fiscal 2024 emerged just before 3 a.m. on Thursday, March 21, 2024. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

 

WASHINGTON — Congress released the final six government funding bills early Thursday, starting off a sprint toward the Friday midnight deadline to wrap up work that was supposed to be finished nearly six months ago.

The bipartisan agreement on the $1.2 trillion spending package, which emerged just before 3 a.m., came less than two weeks after the U.S. House and Senate approved the other six annual appropriations bills.

This package includes the spending measures for some of the most crucial functions of the federal government — the departments of Defense, Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Labor, State and Treasury.

The bill would also fund Congress, the Executive Office of the President, the judiciary and the Social Security Administration.

The 1,012-page spending package provides money for hundreds of programs, including many that lawmakers will tout on the campaign trail heading toward the November elections. Included:

  • U.S. troops and civilian Defense Department employees will receive a 5.2% pay raise retroactive to Jan. 1, 2024.
  • The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s new headquarters project — which has not only divided Democrats and Republicans, but the congressional delegations from Virginia and Maryland — will receive $200 million for construction on the Greenbelt, Maryland, site via the General Services Administration.
  • States will get $55 million in new Election Security Grant funding.
  • Customs and Border Protection as well as Immigrations and Customs Enforcement will get more than $4 billion in funding increases.
  • Child care and early learning programs at the Department of Health and Human Services will receive a $1 billion increase in funding. The boost will go toward the Child Care and Development Block Grant, which provides grants to state, territorial and tribal agencies, and Head Start, which provides funding to local grantees.
  • The U.S. Capitol Police will receive a 7.8% funding increase.
  • Afghans who assisted the United States during the war would be eligible for an additional 12,000 Special Immigrant Visas.
  • The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, the primary aid organization in Gaza, would be stripped of U.S. funding after Israel accused agency employees of taking part in Oct. 7 attacks.

Weekend work possible

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday morning the package clears “another hurdle towards our ultimate goal of funding the federal government.”

“This funding agreement between the White House and Congressional leaders is good news that comes in the nick of time: When passed it will extinguish any more shutdown threats for the rest of the fiscal year, it will avoid the scythe of budget sequestration and it will keep the government open without cuts or poison pill riders,” he said. “It’s now the job of the House Republican leadership to move this package ASAP.”

After the House votes to approve the package, likely Friday, Schumer said, “the Senate will need bipartisan cooperation to pass it before Friday’s deadline and avoid a shutdown.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, said Wednesday during a press conference he expected senators would be in session this weekend to take final votes on the package.

“My assumptions and what I’ve told our members is we’re likely to be here this weekend. That will be determined, however, by how long it stays in the House,” McConnell said.

“And when it’s over here, what we have recently done — and I think hopefully will work again — is that in return for a certain number of amendments, we can finish it quicker, hopefully, than putting us in the position of shutting down the government,” McConnell added.

Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said in a written statement the package would claw back $20.2 billion from the Internal Revenue Service funding that Democrats included in their signature climate change and tax package and $6 billion in unused COVID-19 funds.

On immigration, the funding package “cuts funding to NGOs that incentivize illegal immigration and increases detention capacity and the number of Border Patrol Agents to match levels in the House-passed appropriations bill and the Secure the Border Act (H.R. 2),” he said, referring to non-governmental organizations.

The package also includes funding for the nation’s defense. “This FY24 appropriations legislation is a serious commitment to strengthening our national defense by moving the Pentagon toward a focus on its core mission while expanding support for our brave men and women who serve in uniform,” Johnson said. “Importantly, it halts funding for the United Nations agency which employed terrorists who participated in the October 7 attacks against Israel.”

More than $1B to reduce child care costs

Senate Appropriations Chair Patty Murray, a Washington state Democrat, said in a written statement that she was “proud to have secured $1 billion more to lower families’ child care costs and help them find pre-K — a critical investment to help tackle the child care crisis that is holding families and our economy back.”

“From day one of this process, I said there would be no extreme, far-right riders to restrict women’s reproductive freedoms — and there aren’t,” Murray said. “Democrats stood firm to protect a woman’s right to choose in these negotiations and focused on delivering investments that matter to working people.”

Democratic lawmakers, Murray said, “defeated outlandish cuts that would have been a gut punch for American families and our economy — and we fought off scores of extreme policies that would have restricted Americans’ fundamental freedoms, hurt consumers while giving giant corporations an unfair advantage, and turned back the clock on historic climate action.”

The House and Senate must debate and approve the measure in less than two days under the stopgap funding agreement, otherwise a weekend funding lapse would begin. If it went on beyond the brief period of the weekend, a partial government shutdown would begin.

The House can easily hold a vote within that timeline, but the Senate will need to reach agreement among all 100 of its members in order to avoid casting votes past that benchmark.

Here’s a look at where Congress increased funding and where it cut spending on these six government funding bills for fiscal year 2024, which began back on Oct. 1.

Defense

Congress plans to spend $824.5 billion on the Defense spending bill, which predominantly funds the Pentagon, Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, the Central Intelligence Agency and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

That bill includes funding for a 5.2% pay raise for military and civilian defense employees that will be retroactive to Jan. 1, 2024. The basic allowance for housing will increase by 5.4% and the basic allowance for sustenance will increase by 1.7%.

That total spending level would be divvied up among several core programs, including $176.2 billion for military personnel, an increase of $3.5 billion; $287.2 billion for operations and maintenance, $9.1 billion above current levels; $172 billion for procurement of military equipment, $9.8 billion more than the enacted level; and $148.3 billion for research and development, an $8.6 billion increase, according to a House GOP summary and a summary from House Democrats.

The Israeli Cooperative Missile Defense Programs would get $300 million for research and testing as well as $200 million for procurement, including for the Iron Dome and David’s Sling. An additional $300 million would go toward the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative.

Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chair Jon Tester, a Montana Democrat, said in a statement the bill “will invest in our ability to stay ahead of the threat of China, defend our country from foreign adversaries while standing firm with America’s allies, and take care of our servicemembers and their families.”

The joint explanatory statement that accompanies the bill calls on the Department of Defense to look into why the military is having difficulty recruiting.

“The Military Services are in the midst of one of the greatest recruiting crises since the creation of the all-volunteer force,” it says. “Since retention of enlisted servicemembers remains strong, those who continue to serve will promote to more senior grades, leaving a distressing shortfall in junior enlisted servicemembers, who account for 40 percent of the total active U.S. military force. The Nation needs America’s youth to strongly consider uniformed service.”

The package calls on the Defense Department to “conduct an independent survey to better understand the failure of recruitment efforts by the services,” according to House Republicans’ summary of the bill.

The secretary of Defense must also brief the Defense Appropriations subcommittees on a proposal to increase the pay for junior enlisted troops.

Financial Services and General Government?

The Financial Services and General Government bill — which funds the U.S. Treasury Department, Executive Office of the President, judiciary and more than two dozen smaller programs — would receive $26.1 billion in funding. That’s about $1.1 billion below the current funding levels for those programs.

Senate FSGG Appropriations Subcommittee Chair Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said in a written statement the “bipartisan legislation invests in these critical priorities for our nation and more — including providing key resources to tackle the opioid epidemic and the necessary funding to build the new FBI headquarters in Greenbelt, Maryland.”

“Building an economy that works for everyday Americans requires supporting our small businesses and community-based lenders, protecting consumers, building out our broadband infrastructure, and ensuring the security of our financial system,” Van Hollen said.

The Department of Treasury would receive $14.2 billion, a $22.9 million reduction to its current funding levels. Of that total funding level, $12.3 billion would go to the Internal Revenue Service, equal to its current funding, and $158 million would go toward the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, according to a bill summary from House Democrats.

The Judiciary would get more than $8.6 billion to operate the U.S. courts, including the District Courts, Courts of Appeals and other judicial services. That funding level is an increase of nearly $170 million.

It provides $129 million for salaries and expenses of the U.S. Supreme Court and $20 million to care for the building and its grounds, according to the joint explanatory statement.

The bill includes $791 million in funding for the District of Columbia, a decrease of $1 million. That includes $40 million in residential tuition support, $30 million in emergency and security costs, $8 million in upgrades to sewer and water treatment and $4 million in HIV/AIDS testing and treatment, according to a bill summary from House Democrats.

The Executive Office of the President would receive about $872.5 million — a $6 million decrease from the 2023 fiscal level, according to a bill summary from Democrats.

That includes $114 million for the Office of Administration, $19 million for the National Security Council, $22 million for the Office of National Cyber Director and $457 million for the National Drug Control Policy.

The bill would provide the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission with about $151 million in funding, a decrease of $1.5 million. The bill bars CPSC from issuing a ban on gas stoves, “which would reduce consumer choice,” according to a House GOP bill summary.

That policy provision would prohibit CPSC from “promulgating, implementing, administering, or enforcing any regulation to ban gas stoves as a class of products,” according to the explanatory statement.

CPSC has not made any regulatory action to ban gas stoves. Agency officials have expressed concern about indoor air quality of gas stoves and the agency is researching the impacts on human health of those indoor gas emissions.

The Election Assistance Commission would receive a cut of $280,000 in funding for a total level of $27.7 million.

A total of $55 million from that allocation would go toward Election Security Grants “to make payments to states for activities to improve the administration of elections for Federal office, including to enhance election technology and make election security improvements,” according to the explanatory statement.

Homeland Security?

Congress plans to spend $62 billion on the Department of Homeland Security, including upgrading technology to screen for narcotics like fentanyl at U.S. ports of entry and an additional $495 million in funding to hire 22,000 border patrol agents.

The bill provides U.S. Customs and Border Protection with $19 billion, a $3 billion increase above current levels, and more than $9.6 billion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, an increase of $1.1 billion.

It puts in place policy requirements for detention centers, such as barring contracts with private companies that do not meet inspection standards, and providing an additional $3 million to expand the use of ICE body cameras, according to the explanatory statement.?

The legislation would require the Department of Homeland Security to publish data on the 15th of every month on the total detention capacity and the number of “got aways” and people “turned back” at the southern border, according to the joint explanatory statement.

DHS refers to people as “got aways” when an individual is observed making an unauthorized entry into the U.S. and is not turned away, or apprehended. That data is not publicly available.

The Office of the Secretary and Executive Management would get $404 million, an increase of about $20 million. About $30 million of that funding would go “to support the safe reunification of families who were unjustly separated at the U.S.-Mexico border by the Trump Administration,” according to House Democrats’ summary of the bill.

The bill provides $5.1 billion for Enforcement and Removal Operations, an increase of $900 million above current funding. Of that, $355 million would go toward 41,500 detention beds.

The bill would appropriate $11.8 billion for the U.S. Coast Guard, a $122.7 million boost; $10.6 billion for the Transportation Security Administration, an increase of $1.2 billion; and $25.3 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, a funding cut of $72.9 million.

The FEMA funding would go toward several projects, with $20 billion of those funds for disaster relief.

Labor-HHS-Education?

The bill would appropriate $13.7 billion for the Labor Department, $145 million less than current funding levels and $79 billion for the Education Department, a cut of $500 million, according to the House GOP summary.

The Health and Human Services Department would get $116.8 billion, or about $3.9 billion less than the $120.7 billion provided during the last fiscal year. The House Democrats’ summary of the bill, however, says that when earmarks are factored into the total spending level, HHS would get a $955 million increase.

Senate Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee Chair Tammy Baldwin, a Wisconsin Democrat, said in a written statement the bill “helps take on the fentanyl and opioid crisis, expand access to affordable child care, invest in critical mental health and affordable health care programs, and connect Americans with the education and workforce training they need to land good-paying jobs.”

Funding for HHS would go to numerous health programs, including a $300 million increase to the National Institutes of Health for a total spending level of $48.6 billion.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would get $9.2 billion, more than $4.5 million above its current funding level.

Title X family planning grants would get $286 million in funding, the same amount they currently receive, despite House Republicans proposing to completely eliminate the program.

The Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response, a central component of the nation’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the mpox outbreak, would get $3.6 billion, a $5 million increase.

Of that total spending level, $1 billion would go toward the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority and $980 million would go to the Strategic National Stockpile. That represents an increase of $65 million and $15 million, respectively.

The bill includes a $1 billion increase in funding for child care and early learning programs within HHS, according to Senate Democrats’ summary of the legislation.

The Child Care and Development Block Grant would see a $725 million, 9%, increase in funding compared to current levels, for a total appropriation of $8.8 billion. Another $12.27 billion would go toward Head Start programs, a boost of $275 million over the current level.

“Sustained annual increases to our federal investments in child care and Head Start are critical in tackling the child care crisis and helping to ensure more families can find and afford the quality, affordable child care and early childhood education options they need,” Senate Democrats’ summary says. “With the new investments provided in this bill, annual discretionary funding for CCDBG and Head Start over the last three fiscal years has increased by $4.4 billion.”

The Education Department’s spending would go to numerous initiatives, including $24.6 billion for student financial aid programs.

Pell Grants, which go to about 7 million lower-income college students, would continue to have a maximum award of $7,395 during the 2024-2025 academic year. The Federal Work Study program for college students would also get equal funding at $1.2 billion.

The Labor-HHS-Education bill continues to include the so-called Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funding from being used for abortions with exceptions for rape, incest, or the life of the pregnant person.

The decades-old provision, first added in the 1970s in a slightly different form, affects patients in federal health care programs like Medicaid and Medicare.

Similar provisions on abortion access exist throughout many of the other government funding bills.

Legislative Branch

The Legislative Branch Appropriations bill includes $6.75 billion for operations in the Capitol, including funding related to the summer’s party conventions and the presidential inauguration in January 2025.

The bill would boost funding for the U.S. Capitol Police to $792 million, a 7.8% increase from fiscal 2023.

The measure includes funding for retention and recruitment programs of Capitol Police officers, including student loan payments and tuition reimbursements. Capitol Police officers, the force responsible for security at the Capitol complex, reported lower morale in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

“This is an essential investment in democracy and oversight that bolsters the legislative branch’s capacity to better serve the public,” said Sen. Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat who chairs the Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee. “This bill delivers the funding and infrastructure required for the U.S. Capitol Police to safeguard the Capitol complex and keep it accessible to the public.”

A joint explanatory statement accompanying the bill says the measure would allow $2 million for Capitol Police to protect members of Congress outside the Capitol complex but within the Washington, D.C., region. Members have experienced increased threats in recent years.

The measure also includes funding for quadrennial events related to the presidential election.

Capitol Police would receive $3.2 million for overtime to support the national political conventions — Republicans’ in Milwaukee and Democrats’ in Chicago — over the summer and to prepare for the inauguration in January.

Inauguration Day is in the next fiscal year, which begins in October, but expenses associated with preparing for it could be incurred this year. The bill would allocate nearly $3.7 million for salaries and expenses associated with the inauguration.

The bill would provide $16.6 million for Capitol grounds, House and Senate offices and the Capitol Power Plant.

The measure includes a provision that would claw back unspent funds from members’ Representational Allowances, the accounts that reimburse senators and representatives for official expenses. Unspent funds from those accounts would be used to pay down the national debt.

The measure includes a longstanding policy freezing members’ pay.

State-Foreign Operations?

Congress plans to allocate just over $58.3 billion for the Department of State, U.S. Agency for International Development and other related programs, including refugee emergency assistance and diplomatic activities.

Republican lawmakers are touting an overall cut to the bill — down from last year’s $59.7 billion total.

The bill includes $11.8 billion for the U.S. State Department and USAID and $10.3 billion for international development, including a loan to the International Monetary Fund to provide economic relief for some of the world’s poorest nations.

The bill allocates $10 billion for global health initiatives that focus on combating HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, as well as providing vaccination programs for children.

Of that health funding, Democrats cheered that the bill “protects longstanding funding,” as highlighted by Murray’s office, for family planning and reproductive health services in poor nations around the globe, for which nearly $524 million is allocated, remaining at the same level as the current spending level.

Funding appropriated to the president for multilateral assistance to international organizations and programs — ranging from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to programs for victims of torture — is set to drop to $436.9 million from last year’s funding level of $508.6 million.

That reduction, in part, reflects current political tension over the Israel-Hamas war.

Absent from the bill are funds to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, a primary humanitarian organization in the Palestinian Gaza Strip and West bank territories. Many Western nations cut UNRWA funding after Israel accused 13 of its employees of taking part in the Oct. 7 attacks and many more of sympathizing with Hamas and other militant groups. The agency received $75 million from the U.S. in fiscal year 2023.

Another notable absence from the bill is funding for the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights, which received $17.5 million from the U.S. in last year’s funding bill.

Republicans celebrated the elimination of funding for the agency’s inquiry into human rights abuses in Palestinian territories, which the UN Human Rights Council opened after a flare up of violence in May 2021. The inquiry began to collect evidence of war crimes “committed by all sides” shortly after Hamas attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing some 1,200 and taking roughly 240 hostages.

The bill will meet the annual U.S. $3.3 billion commitment to Israel this year among the $8.9 billion in security assistance to foreign governments.

The funding roadmap for U.S. international activities extends several programs, notably authorizing an additional 12,000 Special Immigrant Visas for Afghans who assisted the U.S. during its war in Afghanistan.

This story has been updated.

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Trump, GOP-led states argue presidential immunity claim to Supreme Court https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/19/trump-gop-led-states-argue-presidential-immunity-claim-to-supreme-court/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/19/trump-gop-led-states-argue-presidential-immunity-claim-to-supreme-court/#respond Wed, 20 Mar 2024 00:56:31 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=15749

Lawyers for former President Donald Trump and attorneys general from 18 states in amicus briefs filed to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday urged that Trump be granted blanket immunity, reversing a lower court ruling. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)

Former President Donald Trump renewed his call to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to dismiss charges against him, asserting that presidents enjoy near-total immunity from criminal prosecution.

In addition, as a deadline loomed for briefs in the case, 18 Republican-led states filed an amicus brief Tuesday urging the Supreme Court to reverse the lower courts and grant Trump blanket immunity. Oral arguments before the high court on the immunity question are scheduled for April 25, and federal district court proceedings have been halted until the Supreme Court issues a ruling.

Trump’s lawyers, led by D. John Sauer of St. Louis, in a 52-page brief?argued that a strong executive with virtually no criminal liability from the judicial system was intended by the framers of the Constitution and part of a “234-year unbroken tradition” of not prosecuting presidents for action taken while in office.

The justices should weigh that tradition and dismiss the federal charges accusing Trump — now the presumptive presidential nominee of the Republican Party — of conspiring to overturn his reelection loss in 2020, they wrote.

U.S. Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith oversaw an investigation into Trump that led to the criminal charges that the president spearheaded a multipart conspiracy trying to avoid leaving office.

But Trump’s attorneys have argued that those charges should be dismissed under a doctrine of “absolute presidential immunity,” which they said presidents must have to properly exercise their powers.

“The President cannot function, and the Presidency itself cannot retain its vital independence, if the President faces criminal prosecution for official acts once he leaves office,” the attorneys wrote in the brief’s opening paragraph.

That view is in line with how framers of the Constitution saw the presidency, they said.

“Even if some level of Presidential malfeasance, not present in this case at all, were to escape punishment, that risk is inherent in the Constitution’s design,” Trump’s attorneys wrote.

“The Founders viewed protecting the independence of the Presidency as well worth the risk that some Presidents might evade punishment in marginal cases. They were unwilling to burn the Presidency itself to the ground to get at every single alleged malefactor.”

Impeachment

The only exception to absolute immunity is a president who is impeached by the House and convicted in the Senate, Trump’s lawyers said.

Trump was twice impeached by the House while in office, but acquitted in two Senate trials that required a two-thirds vote for conviction. A majority of senators —?with seven Republicans joining all Democrats —?voted to convict him in 2021 on charges similar to those he faces in criminal court related to his efforts to subvert the 2020 election results.

Trump’s lawyers argued, as they have in previous filings, that federal courts should never be able to review the conduct of presidents who haven’t been convicted in an impeachment trial.

They asked the court to reject an argument that another exception to presidential immunity could be made for criminal charges stemming from a president’s desire to stay in power.

“Because virtually all first-term Presidents’ official actions carry some, at least partial, motivation to be re-elected, this exception to immunity would swiftly engulf the rule,” they wrote.

Prosecuting or not prosecuting a president is inherently a political act, Trump’s attorneys said.

“This observation applies to former Presidents as well — and it applies most of all to a former President who is the leading candidate to replace the incumbent who is prosecuting him,” they wrote.

Trump has amassed enough delegates to win his party’s nomination and? face President Joe Biden in a fall rematch of the 2020 election.

A Feb. 6 decision by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upholding a lower court’s ruling against Trump noted that the charges allege criminal action that emanated from an effort to unlawfully retain the presidency.

Trump appealed that decision to the Supreme Court.

Red states line up behind Trump

Attorneys general from Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and West Virginia signed a brief to the court filed Tuesday, accusing the government’s timing of the 2020 election interference case as politically motivated.

“After waiting 30 months to indict President Trump, the Special Counsel has demanded extreme expedition from every court at every stage of the case. His only stated reason, the ‘public interest,’ is so thin it’s almost transparent,” the attorneys general wrote.

In the 54-page amicus brief, the state officials allege that the prosecution’s “failure to explain its extraordinary haste suggests one troubling answer: That the timing of the prosecution is designed to inflict maximum damage on President Biden’s political opponent before the November 2024 election.”

The attorneys general argued that the threat of liability could distort a president’s decision-making and lead to a worse job performance, citing several cases, including 1997’s Clinton v. Jones.

The attorneys general, led by Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, further accuse the lower courts of “mistreatment” of concerns over opening the proverbial “floodgates” for future partisan prosecutions. Marshall has taken a lead role in advancing a string of legal arguments surrounding election rules likely to boost Trump.

“The court below also underestimated the risk of ‘a torrent of politically motivated prosecutions’ on the ground that ‘this is the first time since the Founding that a former President has been federally indicted,’” the attorneys general wrote, citing the appeals court.

“Glaringly absent is the fact this case is the second of two federal prosecutions against President Trump, who also faces two state prosecutions. How can the ‘risk’ possibly ‘appear slight’?”

The state officials pointed to state and civil cases against Trump in Georgia and New York as evidence that the 2020 election interference case “is not the only one to raise concerns of partisanship.”

Another view, from Ohio, Alaska and Wyoming

Another brief, signed by only three Republican attorneys general, called on the court to assert a more complex legal standard that would still provide broad immunity on a sliding scale.

The three Republican attorneys general told the U.S. Supreme Court that the justices should take a broad view of presidential immunity when the court hears Trump’s attempt to dismiss criminal charges related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost led a brief to the court that was also signed by Alaska Attorney General Treg R. Taylor and Wyoming Attorney General Bridget Hill. The Republicans argued not for absolute immunity, but a two-part test that would still allow for broad immunity.

Arguing more about legal theory than the specifics of Trump’s case, Yost, Taylor and Hill said the judiciary must balance the need for a president to exercise wide discretion in executing the office’s powers with the need for accountability of a rogue executive.

“Very broad, but not limitless, presidential immunity is dictated by our constitutional structure,” they wrote.

The three attorneys general proposed a two-part test to settle a claim of presidential immunity.

First, the courts should determine how closely the alleged acts are tied to the president’s core constitutional duty, they said. As an example, they said presidents should be given more latitude in conducting foreign affairs than in investigating a political rival because conducting foreign affairs is a central constitutional duty.

Courts should also determine the “urgency of the situation surrounding” alleged crimes by a president, they said. For example, a president seizing property of political opponents should be considered differently than a president seizing property during a war.

The attorneys general did not say how courts should decide Trump’s case, suggesting instead the Supreme Court simply announce that it is adopting the two-part test and leave the trial court responsible for determining how to apply it to the facts of the case.

A Supreme Court-sanctioned test would help the trial court conduct unprecedented proceedings and could also give the public confidence that the trial was nonpolitical, they said.

Other arguments

Several other interested parties submitted briefs Tuesday, the last day for so-called friend-of-the-court briefs in Trump’s case before the high court.

Senate Republicans’ campaign arm, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, led by Montana’s Steve Daines, wrote that the court should adopt the absolute immunity standard, worrying that a decision otherwise would create a cycle of political prosecutions for every future president.

“The D.C. Circuit opinion is akin to a loaded gun lying on the table that future prosecutors can now wield against Presidents (and former Presidents) of all political persuasions,” the NRSC wrote. “The D.C. Circuit seems to believe that partisan actors will be able to resist the temptation to use that weapon against their political enemies; anyone who pays the slightest attention to American politics knows better.”

Mark Meadows, Trump’s White House chief of staff during the 2020 election and his subsequent efforts to overturn the results, also wrote to the court to ask that a decision in the case reinforce the legal principle giving lower federal officials immunity from state prosecution.

Meadows, a former U.S. House member from North Carolina, is among Trump’s co-defendants on state charges in Georgia related to the effort to overturn the 2020 election.

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Suit alleging suppression of free speech met with skepticism at U.S. Supreme Court https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/18/suit-alleging-suppression-of-free-speech-met-with-skepticism-at-u-s-supreme-court/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/18/suit-alleging-suppression-of-free-speech-met-with-skepticism-at-u-s-supreme-court/#respond Mon, 18 Mar 2024 17:39:04 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=15703

Protestors backing a social media case against the U.S. government rallied outside the Supreme Court on Monday, March 18, 2024, as arguments in the case were being heard inside. The lawsuit filed in 2022 by attorneys general in Missouri and Louisiana alleges the federal government colluded with social media companies to suppress the freedom of speech. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court seemed skeptical Monday of a lawsuit alleging the federal government colluded with social media companies to suppress the freedom of speech, with a majority of justices across the ideological spectrum raising issues with the case and its potential consequences.

The Biden administration argued to the court there is no evidence that the government violated the First Amendment in its efforts to combat false, misleading or dangerous information online.

Beyond that, the court should dismiss the litigation because plaintiffs don’t have the right to sue, said Brian Fletcher, principal deputy solicitor general.

Arguments occurred in a packed courtroom, where just outside dozens of protesters held signs accusing the government of infringing on free speech.

The lawsuit was filed in 2022 by two states — Missouri and Louisiana — and five individuals who either were banned from a platform or whose posts were not prominently featured on social media sites such as Facebook, YouTube and X, formerly known as Twitter.

Fletcher argued that the plaintiffs have not shown any evidence that decisions by social media companies to remove or deprioritize content can be attributed to the government. Instead, the companies made their own decisions relying on their own content moderation policies.

There was no coercion or attempted intimidation, Fletcher said, and the best proof of that is that social media companies “routinely said ‘no’ to the government.”

“They didn’t hesitate to do it, and when they said ‘no’ to the government, the government never engaged in any sort of retaliation,” Fletcher said. “Instead, (the federal government) engaged in more speech. Ultimately, the president and the press secretary and the surgeon general took to the bully pulpit. We just don’t think that’s coercion.”

Benjamin Agui?aga, the solicitor general for the Louisiana attorney general, argued that the government has no right to persuade platforms to violate Americans’ constitutional rights, “and pressuring platforms in back rooms shielded from public view is not using the bully pulpit at all. That is just being a bully.”

Emails obtained as part of the lawsuit, Agui?aga contends, show the government badgered platforms behind closed doors, abused them with profanity and “ominously says that the White House is considering its options… all to get the platforms to censor more speech.”

“Under this onslaught,” he said, “the platforms routinely cave.”

Encouragement vs. coercion

Government agencies have routinely encouraged social media companies to restrict harmful or illegal content for years, including posts involving terrorism and human trafficking.

Agui?aga argued that speech involving criminal activity is not protected. But the Biden administration, he said, began to push social media companies in 2021 to restrict misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccine.

Content was also targeted that involved election disinformation.

In 2022, U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty, a court nominee of President Donald Trump, ruled that officials under both President Joe Biden and Trump coerced social media companies to censor content over concerns it would fuel vaccine hesitancy during the COVID-19 pandemic or upend elections.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans prohibited the White House, the Surgeon General’s Office, the FBI, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from having practically any contact with the social media companies. It found that the Biden administration most likely overstepped the First Amendment by urging the major social media platforms to remove misleading or false content.

The Supreme Court placed a temporary stay on the order in October until it decides the case.

Standing and traceability

Another question at the core of Monday’s arguments was whether any harm to the plaintiffs could be, in fact, traced back to the government’s actions or could be remedied by judicial relief.

Justice Elena Kagan asked Agui?aga to highlight “the single piece of evidence that most clearly shows the government was responsible for one of your clients having material taken down.”

“How do you decide that it’s government action as opposed to platform action?” Kagan followed.

Agui?aga pointed to a May 2021 email the Biden administration sent to a social media platform regarding misinformation about COVID-19. Agui?aga argued that evidence shows two months later content from one of the plaintiffs, Jill Hines of Louisiana, was suppressed.

“A lot of things can happen in two months,” Kagan said. “So that decision two months later could have been caused by the government’s email or that government email might have been long since forgotten because there are a thousand other communications that platform employees have had with each other, a thousand other things that platform employees have read in the newspaper.”

“I mean why would we point to one email two months earlier and say it was that email that made all the difference?” Kagan said.

Justices question consequences for public safety, national security

During Monday’s arguments, the justices focused on whether encouragement by federal officials amounted to illegal coercion, rather than merely informing or persuading social media companies.

“There are lots of contexts where government officials can persuade private parties to do things the officials couldn’t do directly,” Fletcher argued when Justice Clarence Thomas questioned him about coercion versus censorship.

“For example, recently after the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, a number of public officials called on colleges and universities to do more about antisemitic hate speech on campus,” Fletcher said.

An ideologically diverse majority of justices raised concerns about the potential consequences of the litigation for things like public safety and national security.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh questioned whether the government violates the First Amendment when it requests the removal of factually inaccurate posts. He suggested there could be national security concerns if false information was posted online about troops.

Kavanaugh also asked how the federal government’s communications with social media companies were any different than when news organizations are warned that a story they are about to publish could affect national security.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett continued along that line of questions, asking whether the FBI would still be able to warn social media platforms if an individual had been doxxed in a way that might put them at risk.

Agui?aga countered that he is a free speech purist but in that circumstance, the government would be allowed to issue warnings to social media companies about content.

But when speech is protected, the government has no right to intervene to push for it to be censored, he said.

“When the government is identifying a specific viewpoint and specific content that it wishes to wholly eliminate from public discourse, that’s when the First Amendment problem arises,” he said, later adding that the government has lots of tools at its disposal to combat misinformation.

“Censorship,” he said, “has never been the default remedy for a perceived First Amendment violation.”

That argument didn’t move Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.

“You have to admit that there are certain circumstances,” she said, “in which the government can provide information and encourage the platforms to take it down.”

The most scathing criticism of the day came from Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

“I have such a problem with your brief, counselor,” Sotomayor said to Agui?aga. “You omit information that changes the context of some of your claims. You attribute things to people who it didn’t happen to. I don’t know what to make of all this.”

Agui?aga apologized if “any aspect of our brief was not as forthcoming as it should have been.”

Justice Samuel Alito, who sat back and rocked his chair with his hands behind his head, seemed most sympathetic to the plaintiffs’ case, reframing the discussion as Agui?aga was facing a series of difficult questions.

“Coercion doesn’t only apply when the government says ‘do this, and if you don’t do this, there are going to be legal consequences,’” Alito said, adding: “It’s a more flexible standard and… you have to take into account the whole course of the relationship.”

In his rebuttal, Fletcher compared the Biden administration’s communications with social media companies and public comments about misinformation to President George W. Bush’s public condemnation of pornography and President Ronald Reagan’s criticism of media influence of drugs and violence.

A ruling on the case is not expected for several months.

Plaintiff reaction

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said afterward he believes the Supreme Court justices “will make the right decision here.”

“Ultimately that (decision) will continue to build a wall of separation between tech and state using this lawsuit. The court will affirm the district court injunction and we’re excited to get back to the district court level,” Bailey told reporters on the plaza in front of the Supreme Court after arguments concluded.

When asked for his reaction to the justices’ skepticism of Agui?aga’s argument of government coercion, Bailey said “the evidence clearly establishes coercion.”

Bailey argued that evidence gathered by Missouri, Louisiana and the individual plaintiffs reveals the Biden administration threatened reform of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which currently shields social media companies from liability for content published on their platforms.

“Those are direct explicit threats against the big tech social media giants,” he said.

The Department of Justice declined to comment on the ongoing litigation.

This story has been updated.

Jason Hancock reported from Columbia, Mo. Ashley Murray reported from Washington, D.C.

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Schumer levels heavy criticism at Israel on U.S. Senate floor, calls for elections there https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/14/schumer-levels-heavy-criticism-at-israel-on-u-s-senate-floor-calls-for-elections-there/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/14/schumer-levels-heavy-criticism-at-israel-on-u-s-senate-floor-calls-for-elections-there/#respond Thu, 14 Mar 2024 16:43:22 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=15587

Senate Majority Leader Chuck?Schumer, a New York Democrat, on Thursday, March 14, 2024, criticized Israeli leadership in a speech on the Senate floor. In this photo, Schumer speaks with reporters inside the U.S. Capitol on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer urged an overhaul of both Israeli and Palestinian Authority leadership and said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “has lost his way,” in strong and lengthy comments delivered on the U.S. Senate floor Thursday morning.

The New York Democrat — the highest-ranking Jewish member in Congress — called for Israel to hold elections and pursue “a fresh debate about the future of Israel after October 7,” the date when Hamas militants stormed Israel’s southern border, brutally attacking and killing an estimated 1,200 people.

“The world has changed radically since then, and the Israeli people are being stifled right now by a governing vision that is stuck in the past,” Schumer said.

Schumer urged Israel to make “significant course corrections” five months into its retaliatory war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip, where tens of thousands of civilians have been killed in Israel’s near-constant bombardment.

The latest Qatar-led negotiations to broker a ceasefire and hostage deal have stalled while the Muslim holy month of Ramadan is underway, and as Netanyahu is poised for an offensive in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, an area densely crowded with displaced Palestinians.

More than 31,000 civilians have been killed in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip since the conflict began, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Schumer squarely blamed Netanyahu for worldwide support for Israel sinking to “historic lows” and directly named right-wing Israeli leaders and top Palestinians as obstacles to a two-state solution.

“Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah,” he said.

Schumer said he supports a temporary pause in fighting but stopped short of calling for a permanent ceasefire, saying doing so “would only allow Hamas to regroup and launch further attacks on Israeli civilians.”

“There can never be a two-state solution if Hamas has any significant power,” he said.

‘Grotesque and hypocritical’

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell immediately answered Schumer on the floor and panned his speech as “unprecedented.”

“It is grotesque and hypocritical for Americans who hyperventilate about foreign interference in our own democracy to call for the removal of the democratically elected leader of Israel,” the Kentucky Republican said.

“Israel is not a colony of America whose leaders serve at the pleasure of the party in power in Washington. Only Israel’s citizens should have a say in who runs their government. This is the very definition of democracy and sovereignty,” McConnell continued. “Either we respect their decisions, or we disrespect their democracy.”

House Republicans also quickly delivered a rebuke from their party retreat in West Virginia.

Majority Whip Tom Emmer of Minnesota said Democrats “have a problem, but it’s not with Netanyahu.”

“It is with the anti-Israel members of their own party that have taken over the woke left,” he said in a video posted on X from the Greenbrier Resort.

Israel’s ambassador to the U.S. characterized Schumer’s comments as “unhelpful.”

“Israel is a sovereign democracy. It is unhelpful, all the more so as Israel is at war against the genocidal terror organization Hamas, to comment on the domestic political scene of a democratic ally. It is counterproductive to our common goals,” Ambassador Michael Herzog said in a post on X.

As of mid-afternoon Thursday, Netanyahu had not issued a response on his press office’s web page or X account.

Democratic support

Senate Democrats largely fell in line behind Schumer’s call for new leadership in Israel.

Sen. Patty Murray, the body’s president pro tempore, said she was “grateful” for the majority leader’s speech.

“Netanyahu & his far-right coalition have made clear they oppose a two-state solution, which is the path to lasting peace. Israelis should have the opportunity to choose new leadership through an election,” the Washington Democrat wrote on X.

Ohio Democrat Sherrod Brown, who faces a tough reelection campaign this year, told reporters on Capitol Hill “I think the sooner that Netanyahu is gone, the better.”

Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has for months called for restrictions on U.S. aid to Israel, said Schumer made a “very important point, and that is the people of Israel have got to understand how increasingly isolated they are from the rest of the world community.”

“The Netanyahu government is denying food and humanitarian aid to hundreds of thousands of people who are facing starvation,” the Vermont independent said, referring to Israel’s refusal to open adequate land crossings for aid, which Israel denies. “I hope very much there will be new leadership in Israel.”

“I know there are people who say ‘Well, why is it the business of the United States to get involved in Israeli politics?’ Well, one of the reasons is we have put billions of dollars every single year for many decades in Israel. There’s now legislation, as you know, (for) $14 billion. So what happens in Israel is very much of a legitimate concern for the American people,” Sanders, another leading Jewish lawmaker, said Thursday on Capitol Hill.

U.S. aid to Israel

The $14 billion in proposed additional military assistance passed in the Senate in early February as part of a larger $95 billion foreign aid package for Ukraine and Taiwan.

The proposed aid breaks down to $10.6 billion from the Department of Defense for Israel’s war effort and $3.5 billion from the Department of State to help the nation “reestablish territorial security and deterrence.”

Brown was one of the bill’s original sponsors, along with Tim Scott of South Carolina.

House Republicans have not scheduled a vote on the bill, which would also provide $9.2 billion for humanitarian assistance in Israel and Ukraine.

Israel has been the top recipient of cumulative foreign assistance from the U.S. since its formation in 1948.

To date, the U.S. has provided $158 billion in aid and missile defense funding.

The latest 10-year bilateral agreement between the U.S. and Israel, signed in 2016, promised $38 billion in military aid.

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U.S. House votes to ban TikTok unless it is sold by China-controlled parent https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/13/u-s-house-votes-to-ban-tiktok-unless-it-is-sold-by-china-controlled-parent/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/13/u-s-house-votes-to-ban-tiktok-unless-it-is-sold-by-china-controlled-parent/#respond Wed, 13 Mar 2024 15:17:09 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=15509

In this 2020 photo illustration, the TikTok app is displayed on an Apple iPhone. The U.S. House on Wednesday, March 13, 2024, 352-65 passed a bill that effectively bans TikTok unless the company splits from its Chinese owner ByteDance because of national security concerns. (Photo Illustration by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Citing major national security concerns, the U.S. House on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed a bill that effectively bans TikTok unless the company splits from its Chinese owner ByteDance.

Kentucky roll call

Yea: Barr, Comer, Guthrie, Rogers

Nay: Massie, McGarvey

Click for full roll call

The 352-65 vote occurred just a week after lawmakers introduced the bipartisan proposal and days after the powerful House Committee on Energy and Commerce unanimously advanced the legislation, an unusual speed for the 118th Congress.

The bill required a two-thirds majority because House leadership placed it on the floor under a fast-track procedure called suspension of the rules.

The legislation, dubbed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, now heads to the Senate, where concerns over singling out a private company in legislation may slow momentum.

“The overwhelming vote today is a strong signal to the Senate that they need to act,” Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the Washington Republican who chairs the Energy and Commerce Committee, said after the vote.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said in a statement late Wednesday morning that the body “will review the legislation when it comes over from the House.”

Leaders on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence said they are?“united” in concern about a platform that has “enormous power to influence and divide Americans whose parent company ByteDance remains legally required to do the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party.”

“We were encouraged by today’s strong bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives and look forward to working together to get this bill passed through the Senate and signed into law,” committee chair Mark Warner, a Virginia Democrat, and vice chairman Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, said in a joint statement.

President Joe Biden, whose administration had a hand in crafting the bill, is expected to sign the measure if the upper chamber approves it.

Despite Biden’s support of the bill, his re-election campaign joined TikTok last month as a way to reach Gen Z voters.

‘Hell no’

While broad support swells from both sides of the aisle, the legislation has been met by fierce opposition from TikTok users — totaling some 170 million in the U.S. — and from a coalition of young House lawmakers.

“Not only am I a ‘no’ on tomorrow’s TikTok ban bill, I’m a ‘Hell no,’” Rep. Maxwell Frost, a Democrat representing Florida, said at a Tuesday press conference where he questioned which companies are large enough to acquire TikTok. Frost is the youngest member of Congress at 27.

“Some of us are concerned that there are First Amendment implications here. Americans have the right to view information. … Some of us just don’t want the president picking which apps we can put on our phones.” Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Kentucky?

“Essentially what this bill is doing is setting this whole sale up to fail,” he said.

Forty-nine Democrats joined Frost in opposing the bill Wednesday, including several members of the so-called squad, a group of progressive Democrats that includes Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jamaal Bowman of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Greg Casar of Texas, Summer Lee of Pennsylvania, Cori Bush of Missouri and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.

Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and Washington Democrat Pramila Jayapal voted against the measure, saying in a statement that the “overly rushed” bill “provides an unworkable path to remove TikTok from ownership by a Chinese company, making it a de facto ban.”

Notably, Connecticut Democrat Jim Himes, ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, voted against the legislation.

“I have more insight than most into the online threats posed by our adversaries. But one of the key differences between us and those adversaries is the fact that they shut down newspapers, broadcast stations, and social media platforms. We do not. We trust our citizens to be worthy of their democracy. We do not trust our government to decide what information they may or may not see,” Himes said in a statement after the vote.

The bill’s original sponsor, Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, said he and Himes were in the same security threats hearing Tuesday where intel officials warned against TikTok.

“We had every major Biden administration national security official saying the current ownership structure of TikTok is a security threat. Perhaps Mr. Himes had presidential concerns or constitutional concerns? I don’t know. But I don’t think anyone can make a case that under the current ownership structure TikTok is not a threat,” said Gallagher, chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party.

Calls deluge congressional offices

Users of the wildly popular social media platform flooded lawmakers’ offices with thousands of calls Thursday after the company sent a push notification warning that a ban could be imminent, an argument the company maintains.

The platform attracts user-made videos hitting the areas of politics and news, celebrity gossip, dance trends, recipes, and expensive skin care routines.

“This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it’s a ban. We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement Wednesday.

Supporters from both parties refute that claim.

“The legislation before the Congress does not ban TikTok. It is designed to address legitimate national security and privacy concerns related to the Chinese Communist Party’s engagement with a frequently used social media platform,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, said in a statement Wednesday.

“If enacted, the bill would require divestiture by ByteDance and the sale of TikTok to an American company,” he continued.

Divestiture deadline set?

The bill gives TikTok 180 days to splinter from ByteDance and will make it unlawful for any American app store or web hosting company to distribute or maintain platforms controlled by designated U.S. foreign adversaries.

The social media platform, 100% owned by ByteDance, has long been in the crosshairs of federal and state lawmakers, whom intelligence officials have warned of the possibility of China’s government accessing Americans’ data via the app.

Lawmakers passed legislation in December 2022 banning the app from most federal employee devices. The Montana Legislature banned the app last year, but the law remains tied up in court.

Former President Donald Trump issued an executive order in 2020 banning TikTok unless it broke from ByteDance. This week Trump reversed his position on the platform, telling CNBC that “without TikTok you’re going to make Facebook bigger.”

Wednesday’s passage of the bill represents a rare departure for House Republicans from Trump, the party’s front-runner in the 2024 general election.

But some Republican lawmakers have fallen in line with Trump’s opposition, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, who said on the floor Wednesday before the vote she worries that Congress could open a “Pandora’s box” and target other platforms like X.

Greene said her “free speech” was “restored” when Elon Musk purchased Twitter and reinstated her account.

“This is really about controlling Americans’ data,” said Greene on the floor before the vote.

First Amendment concerns

Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky criticized the bill on the floor prior to the vote, despite saying he believes the bill’s supporters “are sincere in their concerns and in their effort to protect Americans.”

“They describe the TikTok application as a Trojan horse, but there’s some of us who feel that either intentionally or unintentionally this legislation to ban TikTok is actually a Trojan horse,” he said before the vote.

“Some of us are concerned that there are First Amendment implications here. Americans have the right to view information. … Some of us just don’t want the president picking which apps we can put on our phones,” Massie continued.

The bill would empower the president to determine whether a “foreign adversary controlled application” poses a national security threat.

The president would then need to determine, in conjunction with executive branch agencies, if and when the foreign-owned app has undergone a “qualified divestiture,” according to the bill text.

Republicans voting no

Among the 15 House GOP members including Greene and Massie casting ‘no’ votes were: Andy Biggs and David Schweikert of Arizona, Dan Bishop of North Carolina, Warren Davidson of Ohio, John Duarte and Tom McClintock of California, Matt Gaetz and Greg Steube of Florida, Clay Higgins of Louisiana, Nancy Mace of South Carolina, Alex Mooney of West Virginia, Barry Moore of Alabama and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania.

Gallagher said he wanted to clear up “misconceptions” of the bill ahead of the vote.

“It does not apply to American companies,” he said on the floor and later posted on X from his office’s account.

“It only applies to companies subject to the control of foreign adversaries defined by Congress. It says nothing about election interference and cannot be turned against any American social media platform. It does not impact websites in general. The only impacted sites are those associated with foreign adversary apps, such as TikTok.com.”

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Business owners, union leader urge U.S. Senate to move ahead soon on stalled tax package https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/12/business-owners-union-leader-urge-u-s-senate-to-move-ahead-soon-on-stalled-tax-package/ https://www.on-toli.com/2024/03/12/business-owners-union-leader-urge-u-s-senate-to-move-ahead-soon-on-stalled-tax-package/#respond Tue, 12 Mar 2024 23:56:46 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?p=15477

Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, at a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, March 12, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Screenshot from committee webcast)

WASHINGTON — Business owners, CEOs and a steelworkers’ union official urged lawmakers Tuesday to quickly pass a tax policy bill that has been stalled in the U.S. Senate since the end of January.

The witnesses invited to testify on manufacturing taxation before the Senate Committee on Finance told the panel that the proposal, which includes extending and restoring three business tax incentives, is “critical” to growing their businesses.

“The ability of manufacturers to innovate is so important to global competitiveness, and our fear is without appropriate tax incentives to do that, companies will stand still for too long,” Anna Fendley, director of regulatory and state policy for the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based United Steelworkers, testified.

The Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act, which passed the U.S. House in January in an overwhelming bipartisan 357-70 vote, has been touted by both parties as a compromise to? temporarily expand the child tax credit while also temporarily reviving or enhancing tax credits available to small businesses and corporations.

Empty spot in the machine shop

Courtney Silver, a business owner in North Carolina, told the lawmakers that the current law’s phasing-out of an additional tax break on new equipment purchases is “something I think about every day” when walking by an empty spot in her machine shop that she had hoped to fill with a new piece of equipment by now.

“I know the piece of machining technology I would like to invest in. It would decrease our lead times, it would increase our productivity, it would get us into new markets that we’re not currently in, and it would create jobs, highly skilled highly paid jobs in machining,” said Silver, owner and president of Ketchie Inc. in Concord, where her company plays a role in the supply chain by making machine parts for manufacturers.

Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar near Toledo, Ohio, said the company is planning a $400 million investment in a research and development center in the state.

He told Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden that the passage of R&D tax incentives contained in the stalled tax bill would accelerate his company in the race against China’s solar industry.

“If we’re not able to out-innovate, we will not be able to survive the onslaught that we’re facing today. This bill is critical from that standpoint as it relates to R&D and the opportunity to expensing the R&D versus deferring R&D,” Widmar said.

“Plus it’s also very critical to the bonus depreciation that’s enabling a lot of the factory expansions that we’re making right now,” he added, referring to the expiring tax break on business equipment and property purchases that is also a concern for Silver.

“And putting everything off just generates more uncertainty and delay?” Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, asked in a follow-up question.

“Delay and loss of thousands of jobs,” Widmar answered.

‘The time to act is now’

The bill would buy lawmakers time as they stare down a looming tax code negotiation in 2025 when numerous Trump-era provisions wind down, including the child tax credit refund amounts, lowered individual income tax rates and changes to business taxes.

A provision in the proposed tax bill would actually delay a section of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that critics say disadvantages businesses who write off research and development costs.

The 2017 law mandated that businesses to begin gradually writing off domestic research and development costs over five years starting in 2022.

Wyden’s tax legislation, a bicameral bill with Missouri Republican Rep. Jason Smith, would restore companies’ abilities to expense the R&D costs immediately through 2026.

The Wyden-Smith bill would also restore bonus depreciation to 100% until 2026, meaning businesses could claim additional deductions, beyond the allowable amount, on qualifying business purchases and property.

The 100% bonus depreciation initially established in the 2017 tax law has been waning with each passing year and is currently at 60%. It will continue to decrease until 2027 if lawmakers do not restore it in the proposed tax bill.

Silver, who told lawmakers about her delay in an equipment purchase for her machine shop, said the dwindling bonus depreciation is a “roadblock.”

“That changes my return on investment calculation (on the purchase), and it feels like an irresponsible business decision, and it feels too risky. It’s honestly an awful feeling,” she told lawmakers.

GOP unhappy with provision in child tax credit

Movement on the tax bill has stalled as Republican senators remain opposed to a provision that would allow families to temporarily use prior-year income on their tax returns to calculate their child tax credit if their earnings were higher than the current tax year’s.

The GOP lawmakers maintain that allowing families to choose a higher-year income strips the work incentive for middle- and low-income households that seek the credit. Child tax credit proponents refute that argument.

Wyden urged his colleagues that “the time to act is now.”

“I continue to be open to all sides who want to work in good faith to get this done,” he said in his opening remarks during Tuesday’s hearing. “Some of my colleagues understand the urgency here. And let’s understand that this set of policies isn’t going to be on the table in 2025 if this bill stalls out.”

Ranking member Mike Crapo said he doesn’t know “that there’s a stronger advocate in Congress for extending and making permanent” the business tax incentives.

“My hope is that we can get there, sooner than later,” said Crapo, an Idaho Republican. “There are, as everybody knows, some concerns on the Republican Senate side with regard to other provisions in the bill, and my hope is that the Republican Senate can have its voice, we will be able to deal with it, and get something resolved quickly.

“It’s a difficult time, and as almost every single issue in this Congress today, there are difficult battles to deal with. That being said, I don’t disagree with the testimony of any one of you,” he said to the witnesses.

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U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa bids for No. 3 GOP leadership post against Tom Cotton https://www.on-toli.com/briefs/u-s-sen-joni-ernst-of-iowa-bids-for-no-3-gop-leadership-post-against-tom-cotton/ Mon, 11 Mar 2024 20:03:03 +0000 https://www.on-toli.com/?post_type=briefs&p=15384

U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said Monday, March 11, 2024, that she will make a bid for U.S. Senate Republican Conference chair. Ernst is shown speaking during an Iowa GOP reception on May 13, 2023, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa will face Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas in the race to become the next Senate Republican Conference chair, her office confirmed Monday.

Ernst, if elected, would move up one spot in the Senate GOP leadership lineup and be the first woman to hold the position for the party since 1973. Ernst is already No. 4 as chair of the Republican Policy Committee.

Cotton and Ernst both won midterm races in 2014 to help bring a Republican majority to the Senate during former President Barack Obama’s second term. Both are veterans and have served overseas.

An announcement by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky that he would step down from his post in November opened opportunities for a new era of Republican leadership in the upper chamber.

Republican Senate Whip John Thune of South Dakota and Sen. John Cornyn of Texas are jockeying to replace McConnell.

Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, the current Republican Senate Conference chair, announced he will run to replace Thune as whip in the no. 2 spot.

The campaign for leadership began in earnest after McConnell’s announcement and will not conclude until a secret-ballot election in November.

Ernst first told Politico Sunday about her decision to run for the No. 3 leadership job.

Ernst’s office did not provide a statement Monday but told Politico “this is winnable for me.”

The second-term senator and veteran of the Army Reserve and Iowa National Guard would be the second woman ever in the Republican Party to sit as conference chair.

The first to do so, Sen. Margaret Chase Smith of Maine, held the position during the 90th through the 92nd Congresses.

The Republican Party has never elected a woman to the position of majority or minority leader, nor to be whip.

Ernst took office on Jan. 3, 2015 and currently sits as ranking member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, as well as serving as a member of the Armed Services and Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry committees.

Cotton assumed office on the same day and today serves alongside Ernst on the Armed Services Committee. Cotton is the ranking member of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Criminal Justice and Counterterrorism, as well as being a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and Senate Joint Economic Committee.

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