Post by mhbruin on Nov 23, 2022 6:47:05 GMT -8
Dad, are we pyromaniacs? Yes, we arson.
Update on Witch Hunt #1
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the release of Donald Trump's tax returns to a House of Representatives committee, handing a defeat to the Republican former president who had called the Democratic-led panel's request politically motivated.
The justices denied Trump's Oct. 31 emergency application to block a lower court's ruling that upheld the Ways and Means Committee's request for his tax records as a justified part of the panel's legislative work. No justice publicly dissented from the decision.
The committee, which has sought six years of Trump's tax records spanning 2015 to 2020, will have little time to complete its work related to the returns before a Republican takeover of the House. Republicans secured a narrow majority following the Nov. 8 midterm elections and take control of the House - and the committee - in January.
Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal said the Supreme Court's action upholds the principle of congressional oversight.
"This rises above politics, and the committee will now conduct the oversight that we've sought for the last three and a half years," Neal said in a statement.
Update on Witch Hunt #2
A federal appeals court appeared deeply skeptical Tuesday that former President Donald Trump was entitled to challenge an FBI search of his Florida estate or to have an independent arbiter review documents that were seized from the home.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, including two Trump appointees, repeatedly suggested Trump was seeking special treatment in asking that the “special master” conduct an independent inspection of records taken in the Aug. 8 search of Mar-a-Lago.
“Other than the fact that this involves a former president, everything else about this is indistinguishable from any pre-indictment search warrant,” said William Pryor, the court’s chief judge, a George W. Bush appointee.
He added: “We’ve got to be concerned about the precedent that we would create that would allow any target of a federal criminal investigation to go into a district court and to have a district court entertain this kind of petition and interfere with the executive branch’s ongoing investigation.”
The judges indicated through their questioning that they were likely to side with the Justice Department, which has sought an immediate end to a special master review process that it says has unnecessarily delayed its investigation into the presence of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. It was not immediately clear when the court might rule.
Update on Witch Hunt #3
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham on Tuesday appeared before a Georgia grand jury investigating efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Prosecutors in Fulton County, who are investigating efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to subvert the results of the 2020 election in the Peach State, had long wanted to question Graham about calls he made to Georgia election officials after the presidential election, as well as his interactions with the Trump campaign, according to court documents.
“Today, Senator Graham appeared before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury for just over two hours and answered all questions. The Senator feels he was treated with respect, professionalism, and courtesy. Out of respect for the grand jury process he will not comment on the substance of the questions,” Graham’s office said in a statement.
Update on Witch Hunt #4
Donald Trump reported losses on his tax returns every year for a decade, including nearly $700 million in 2009 and $200 million in 2010, his longtime accountant testified Tuesday, confirming long-held suspicions about the former president’s tax practices.
Donald Bender, a partner at Mazars USA LLP who spent years preparing Trump’s personal tax returns, said Trump’s reported losses from 2009 to 2018 included net operating losses from some of the many businesses he owns through his Trump Organization.
“There are losses for all these years,” said Bender, who was granted immunity to testify at the company’s criminal tax fraud trial in Manhattan.
The short exchange amounted to a rare public discussion of Trump’s taxes — which the Republican has fought to keep secret — even if there was no obvious connection to the case at hand.
A prosecutor, Susan Hoffinger, questioned Bender briefly about Trump’s taxes on cross examination, at one point showing him copies of Trump tax paperwork that the Manhattan district attorney’s office fought for three years to obtain, before moving on to other topics.
Update on Witch Hunt #1
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the release of Donald Trump's tax returns to a House of Representatives committee, handing a defeat to the Republican former president who had called the Democratic-led panel's request politically motivated.
The justices denied Trump's Oct. 31 emergency application to block a lower court's ruling that upheld the Ways and Means Committee's request for his tax records as a justified part of the panel's legislative work. No justice publicly dissented from the decision.
The committee, which has sought six years of Trump's tax records spanning 2015 to 2020, will have little time to complete its work related to the returns before a Republican takeover of the House. Republicans secured a narrow majority following the Nov. 8 midterm elections and take control of the House - and the committee - in January.
Ways and Means Chairman Richard Neal said the Supreme Court's action upholds the principle of congressional oversight.
"This rises above politics, and the committee will now conduct the oversight that we've sought for the last three and a half years," Neal said in a statement.
Update on Witch Hunt #2
A federal appeals court appeared deeply skeptical Tuesday that former President Donald Trump was entitled to challenge an FBI search of his Florida estate or to have an independent arbiter review documents that were seized from the home.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, including two Trump appointees, repeatedly suggested Trump was seeking special treatment in asking that the “special master” conduct an independent inspection of records taken in the Aug. 8 search of Mar-a-Lago.
“Other than the fact that this involves a former president, everything else about this is indistinguishable from any pre-indictment search warrant,” said William Pryor, the court’s chief judge, a George W. Bush appointee.
He added: “We’ve got to be concerned about the precedent that we would create that would allow any target of a federal criminal investigation to go into a district court and to have a district court entertain this kind of petition and interfere with the executive branch’s ongoing investigation.”
The judges indicated through their questioning that they were likely to side with the Justice Department, which has sought an immediate end to a special master review process that it says has unnecessarily delayed its investigation into the presence of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago. It was not immediately clear when the court might rule.
Update on Witch Hunt #3
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham on Tuesday appeared before a Georgia grand jury investigating efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Prosecutors in Fulton County, who are investigating efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to subvert the results of the 2020 election in the Peach State, had long wanted to question Graham about calls he made to Georgia election officials after the presidential election, as well as his interactions with the Trump campaign, according to court documents.
“Today, Senator Graham appeared before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury for just over two hours and answered all questions. The Senator feels he was treated with respect, professionalism, and courtesy. Out of respect for the grand jury process he will not comment on the substance of the questions,” Graham’s office said in a statement.
Update on Witch Hunt #4
Donald Trump reported losses on his tax returns every year for a decade, including nearly $700 million in 2009 and $200 million in 2010, his longtime accountant testified Tuesday, confirming long-held suspicions about the former president’s tax practices.
Donald Bender, a partner at Mazars USA LLP who spent years preparing Trump’s personal tax returns, said Trump’s reported losses from 2009 to 2018 included net operating losses from some of the many businesses he owns through his Trump Organization.
“There are losses for all these years,” said Bender, who was granted immunity to testify at the company’s criminal tax fraud trial in Manhattan.
The short exchange amounted to a rare public discussion of Trump’s taxes — which the Republican has fought to keep secret — even if there was no obvious connection to the case at hand.
A prosecutor, Susan Hoffinger, questioned Bender briefly about Trump’s taxes on cross examination, at one point showing him copies of Trump tax paperwork that the Manhattan district attorney’s office fought for three years to obtain, before moving on to other topics.