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January 6 Hearings Live

It is a good thing that the Secret Service has promised to cooperate fully with the January 6 committee and that their people will testify. We are all waiting anxiously to hear what Tony Ornato, Robert Engel, and Trump's driver on Jan 6 will have to say. It has been reported that they will set the record straight on what really happened, not the second hand testimony that Cassidy Hutchinson gave. Now we are getting somewhere. Truth at last. They will tell us all about those deleted text messages, too.

Wait. They've all lawyered up.

Tony Ornato, Robert Engel Lawyer Up as Secret Service Scrutiny Intensifies​

 
Well they file an appeal at sentencing and this same judge determines whether or not Bannon should be released pending appeal if 1) Bannon is not a danger to the public or likely to flee and 2) the appeal is not for the purpose of delay and raises a substantial question of law or fact likely to result in reversal.
I’m just dying to hear what substantial question might be raised that this judge has not already shot down.
 
thehill.com

Retired generals, admirals in op-ed: Trump’s Jan. 6 actions were ‘dereliction of duty’

Former President Trump’s actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection constituted a “dereliction of duty” that endangered American democracy, a group of seven retired four-star generals and admira…
thehill.com thehill.com
Former President Trump’s actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection constituted a “dereliction of duty” that endangered American democracy, a group of seven retired four-star generals and admirals said in a New York Times op-ed Thursday.

“When a mob attacked the Capitol, the commander in chief failed to act to restore order and even encouraged the rioters,” the former military leaders, who served Democratic and Republican presidents, wrote.

In the op-ed, retired four-star Gens. Peter Chiarelli, John Jumper and Johnnie Wilson and retired Adms. James Loy, John Nathman, William Owens and Steve Abbot called out Trump for his inaction on Jan. 6 and consideration of using the military in schemes leading up to that day.

Ahead of Jan. 6, the op-ed authors wrote, Trump’s allies “urged him to hold on to power by unlawfully ordering the military to seize voting machines and supervise a do-over of the election,” flouting the balance of civilian control of the military.

When Trump did not call the National Guard to respond with the Capitol under siege, he ignored an “urgent need” for his intervention, the retired generals and admirals argued.
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John Bolton says he ‘helped plan coups d’etat’ in other countries | John Bolton | The Guardian
JB worked as a national security adviser for the Trump Admin for a while, but he could not stomach the Trump Admin threatening to cut off military aid to Ukraine if that country does not investigate Joe Biden's son Hunter for corruption. Bolton Book Says Trump Held Up Ukraine Aid for Biden Investigation

In an interview with CNN, he said "While nothing Donald Trump did after the election, in connection with the lie about the election fraud, none of it is defensible, it’s also a mistake as some people have said including on the committee, the commentators that somehow this was a carefully planned coup d’etat to the constitution." and "That’s not the way Donald Trump does things. It’s rambling from one half-vast idea to another plan that falls through and another comes up."

A good assessment. One has to ask how the Republican Party puts up with him, instead of kicking him upstairs into some sort of figurehead role with some nominal underlings doing the real work of leadership.

Back to the interviewer. Host Jake Tapper responded "One doesn’t have to be brilliant to attempt a coup."

Then JB continued with "I disagree with that, as somebody who has helped plan coups d’etat, not here, but you know, other places. It takes a lot of work and that’s not what [Trump] did. It was just stumbling around from one idea to another." and "Ultimately, he did unleash the rioters at the Capitol, as to that there’s no doubt, but not to overthrow the constitution, to buy more time to throw the matter back to the states to try and redo the issue." and "And if you don’t believe that you’re going to overreact, and I think that’s a real risk for the committee, which has done a lot of good work."

JT then return to JB's statement about involvement in planning coups. JB: "I’m not going to get into the specifics." JT: "Successful coups?"

JB: "Well, I wrote about Venezuela in in the book and it turned out not to be successful." and "Not that we had all that much to do with it, but I saw what it took for an opposition to try and overturn an illegally elected president and they failed. The notion that Donald Trump was half as competent as the Venezuelan opposition is laughable."
In his newsletter, The Racket, Jonathan M Katz, author of the book Gangsters of Capitalism, said: “The United States has indeed sponsored and participated in lots of coups and foreign government overthrows, dating back to the turn of the 20th century [and] Bolton was personally involved in many of the recent efforts – in Nicaragua, Iraq, Haiti and others”.

But, Katz added: “Generally, officials do not admit that sort of thing on camera.”
The Room Where It Happened review: John Bolton fires broadside that could sink Trump
Read more

Katz wrote: “Keep in mind that throughout the 2019 crisis, Bolton insisted that the Trump administration’s support for … Guaidó … was anything but a coup. He literally stood in front of the White House at the height of the affair and told reporters: “This is clearly not a coup!”
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Back in April 2019, JB: "We recognize Juan Guaidó as the legitimate interim president of Venezuela." and "And just as it’s not a coup when the president of the United States gives an order to the Department of Defense, it’s not a coup for Juan Guaidó to try and take command of the Venezuelan military." and "We want as our principal objective the peaceful transfer of power but I will say again, as [Trump] has said from the outset, and Nicolas Maduro and those supporting him, particularly those who are not Venezuelan, should know, all options are on the table."

Then,
On CNN, Tapper said: “I feel like there’s like this other stuff you’re not telling me.”

Bolton said: “I think I’m sure there is.”
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Some video:

Justin Baragona on Twitter: "Jake Tapper: "One doesn’t have to be brilliant to attempt a coup."
John Bolton: "I disagree with that. As somebody who has helped plan coup d’etat, not here, but other places, it takes a lot of work." (vid link)" / Twitter

Justin Baragona on Twitter: "Jake Tapper follows up on John Bolton's past coup planning.
Bolton: "I’m not going to get into the specifics, but--"
Tapper: "Successful coups?"
Bolton brings up the failed Venezuelan coup, prompting Tapper to add: "I feel like there’s other stuff you’re not telling me." (vid link)" / Twitter

Justin Baragona on Twitter: "Here's our writeup of John Bolton just casually humblebragging about planning coups in other countries, suggesting that Donald Trump himself couldn't plan a coup because "it takes a lot of work" and "that's not what he did." (link)" / Twitter

Some different link, however.
 
lpetrich said:
A good assessment. One has to ask how the Republican Party puts up with him, instead of kicking him upstairs into some sort of figurehead role with some nominal underlings doing the real work of leadership.
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One word? Money. That was already addressed in several threads here and in the 1/6 committee hearings.
article said:
In the three weeks after the November election, Trump's team and the Republican National Committee together raised $207 million by claiming election fraud and seeking support to fight the 2020 results, in which Democrat Joe Biden prevailed over Trump by more than 7 million votes. And even as Trump's election challenges faltered, an additional $80 million poured into their accounts, according to the latest campaign disclosure reports filed with the Federal Election Commission.
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link

We've known this for quite a while. The GOP sold out to a fake fraud accusation for money. Trump's supporters were idiots and they were pumping cash to Trump to investigate an election that Trump never investigated.

lpetrich said:
Back to the interviewer. Host Jake Tapper responded "One doesn’t have to be brilliant to attempt a coup."

Then JB continued with "I disagree with that, as somebody who has helped plan coups d’etat, not here, but you know, other places. It takes a lot of work and that’s not what [Trump] did. It was just stumbling around from one idea to another." and "Ultimately, he did unleash the rioters at the Capitol, as to that there’s no doubt, but not to overthrow the constitution, to buy more time to throw the matter back to the states to try and redo the issue." and "And if you don’t believe that you’re going to overreact, and I think that’s a real risk for the committee, which has done a lot of good work."
Click to expand...
Meanwhile the Nazis took over Germany, Mussolini Italy. These people were not the creme de la creme.

Also, fuck John Bolton. What, Scaramucci not available? This is political whore crap that cable news is big on.
 
Before Trump was banned from Twitter, I took to calling him "Schrodinger's taint". This is largely because whatever political stance he takes, there is a tweet or a video of him saying something the exact opposite.

But the Jan 6 committee has discovered a few things Trump will never say. Particularly to his disciples rubes. Here's a list:

"I'm asking you to leave the Capitol now and go home in a peaceful way,"

"I want to be very clear: You do not represent me. You do not represent our movement."

"I am outraged and sickened by the violence, lawlessness and mayhem,"

"You belong in jail,"

"I am directing the Department of Justice to ensure all lawbreakers are prosecuted to the full extent of the law. We must send a clear message — not with mercy but with JUSTICE. Legal consequences must be swift and firm."

What a true patriot.
 
Justice Dept. investigating Trump’s actions in Jan. 6 criminal probe People familiar with the probe said investigators are examining the former president’s conversations and have seized phone records of top aides - Gifted link

The Justice Department is investigating President Donald Trump’s actions as part of its criminal probe of efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, according to four people familiar with the matter.

Prosecutors who are questioning witnesses before a grand jury — including two top aides to Vice President Mike Pence — have asked in recent days about conversations with Trump, his lawyers, and others in his inner circle who sought to substitute Trump allies for certified electors from some states Joe Biden won, according to two people familiar with the matter. Both spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.

The prosecutors have asked hours of detailed questions about meetings Trump led in December 2020 and January 2021; his pressure campaign on Pence to overturn the election; and what instructions Trump gave his lawyers and advisers about fake electors and sending electors back to the states, the people said. Some of the questions focused directly on the extent of Trump’s involvement in the fake-elector effort led by his outside lawyers, including John Eastman and Rudy Giuliani, these people said.


In addition, Justice Department investigators in April received phone records of key officials and aides in the Trump administration, including his former chief of staff, Mark Meadows, according to two people familiar with the matter. That effort is another indicator of how expansive the Jan. 6 probe had become, well before the high-profile, televised House hearings in June and July on the subject.
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So, in February 2021, DHS watchdog asks for Secret Service texts.
article said:
The Department of Homeland Security’s watchdog agency, which in February 2021 requested all Secret Service text messages sent around Jan. 6, 2021, the day of the Capitol riot, withdrew the request five months later, according to an email obtained by the top Democrats on two House committees.
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In June 2021, a lesser person in DHS reverses that request.
article said:
On July 27, 2021, DHS Deputy Inspector General Thomas Kait sent an email telling Jim Crumpacker, a senior official at DHS, “Jim, please use this email as a reference to our conversation where I said we no longer request phone records and text messages from the USSS relating to the events of January 6th,” referring to the U.S. Secret Service.
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article said:
The missing text messages have now called into question not only whether the Secret Service took steps to actively obscure the investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, but also why Cuffari did not alert Congress about the missing text messages sooner.
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Cuffari was appointed by Trump. Kait is also linked to withholding information on investigation of domestic violence and sexual misconduct of department law enforcement agencies.
NY Times said:
The final version of the domestic violence report, published in November 2020, retroactively narrowed the scope of the inquiry and made no reference to the cases of officers who were found by their agency to have committed domestic violence.

“We did not include findings on disciplinary decisions where such findings might appear to second-guess deciding officials’ disciplinary decisions,” the published report noted in an appendix.

Senior aides in the inspector general’s office later made similar objections to material in the draft report on sexual misconduct. Tom Kait, a deputy inspector general, directed staff members to remove a section of the draft detailing how agencies in the department often charged employees accused of sexual harassment or sexual misconduct with generic offenses — “conduct unbecoming,” for example — rather than offenses related to sexual activity.
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The conspiracy continues to grow more and more discomforting. That the Secret Service needed to erase all of their messages, to erase evidence of whatever some of their involvement was on January 6th is very disturbing.
 
www.nbcnews.com

Justice Department sues ex-Trump aide Peter Navarro to produce White House emails

Last December, the National Archives became aware that Navarro had used a personal email account to send and receive official emails while an adviser to the president, the complaint alleges.
www.nbcnews.com www.nbcnews.com
The Department of Justice is suing former Trump White House aide Peter Navarro in an effort to compel him to produce emails from a personal account that he allegedly used to conduct official White House business....Navarro did not copy his official White House account on the email exchanges, nor did he forward the email chains to his White House account, a violation of the Presidential Records Act...The National Archives reached out to Navarro asking him to turn over the missing records, but he never responded, according to the complaint.
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Hmmmm... someone using personal email accounts to handle government business. Where have I heard that before? Too bad he didn't have any prior examples as a guideline...
 
Just another genius who will succeed at leading other geniuses to their own peril.
 
ZiprHead said:
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For starters, it is FORMER President Trump. Though it at least does appear Lauren got someone to spell check her tweets for a change.

And she's right about one thing. It IS "game on." The House will soon have Trump's tax records, and we'll find out what he was so desperate to keep hidden all these years. The January 6th Committee (and I'm guessing the DOJ) has Alex Jones texts, and the FBI has boxes and boxes of evidence against FORMER President Trump.

The severity of this can be measured precisely by the volume of the screaming on the right wing. They're whining like the QAnon Shaman when he found out there was no vegan option in jail.
 
Trump considered a military coup: Would he have gotten away with it? | Salon.com - "Some Trump allies urged him to declare martial law. Brennan Center expert on the nightmare scenario after that"
One question that demands much more public attention than it has gotten is how close Donald Trump came to invoking the Insurrection Act, declaring martial law, or to using other presidential emergency powers in an effort to nullify the 2020 election. In the weeks and days before Election Day, military and other national security leaders publicly sounded the alarm through editorials, interviews and other means that the Trump regime might try to order the armed forces to intervene on his behalf. That such figures would feel the need to declare that they were loyal to the Constitution, and not to a particular political leader, is almost unprecedented in American history.

...
To discuss this urgent question and others, I recently spoke with Elizabeth Goitein, co-director of the Brennan Center's Liberty & National Security Program and a senior practitioner fellow at the University of Chicago's Center for Effective Government. ...

In this conversation, Goitein details various scenarios through which Trump could have declared a "national emergency," perhaps including martial law, as a way of remaining in power — and discusses whether that gambit would ultimately have worked. The president of the United States, she explains, has access to immense powers in a time of national emergency, many of which are secret and not subject to any effective oversight from Congress or the courts.
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"If I do this, what do I have to lose?": New documents show Trump feared no consequences for a coup | Salon.com - "New court filings from the Jan. 6 committee demonstrate Trump thought he'd get away with his crimes"

House coup plotters stand firm — but DOJ and the Jan. 6 committee are closing in | Salon.com - "Rep. Scott Perry was up to his eyeballs in the Trump plot, and remains defiant. Will he really get away with it?"

“The coup attempt is ongoing”: Ex-Trump lawyer John Eastman still trying to overturn 2020 election | Salon.com - 'Eastman pushed top Wisconsin Republican Robin Vos to "nullify" results and “reclaim" electors awarded to Biden'
 
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