Yesterday was arraignment day for Donald J. Trump — former President of the United States.
Washington Post — “Former president Donald Trump pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges that he conspired to overturn the results of the 2020 election, appearing in the federal courthouse that sits just blocks away from where his angry supporters stormed the Capitol in an effort to keep him in power.
Trump, the leading Republican contender in the 2024 presidential race, entered the not-guilty plea before Magistrate Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya — following in the footsteps of hundreds of others charged with crimes as a result of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. According to the D.C. U.S. attorney’s office, 1,077 people have faced federal charges in some way tied to that attack. Trump, the 45th president of the United States, is the 1,078th.
“As to counts one to four, how does Mr. Trump plead?” Upadhyaya asked.
Trump,wearing a blue suit and red tie on what he would later call “a very sad day for America,” raised his head and said, “Not guilty.” In a corner of the courtroom stood a handful of Secret Service agents, a silent reminder that this defendant was unlike any of the others who came before.
The judge reminded Trump that while he would be released, he was required to obey certain conditions, including that he must not violate any laws, must appear in court when required and must not talk to any witnesses about the case, unless it is through an attorney. His next scheduled court appearance is at 10 a.m. Aug. 28 before U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, though the magistrate said he would have the option not to appear in person.
Special counsel Jack Smith, who is handling the investigation of Trump and his inner circle, was in the courtroom during the former president’s court appearance. The two sat about 15 feet apart and did not interact.”
It’s taken far too long to get to this point, but I’m grateful that some accountability for working to overturn an election is much closer.
Over at The “Paper of Record”, their front page is engaged in telling you what didn’t happen yesterday and the ins and outs of the Trump trial strategy. Which won’t be different than any Trump strategy. It would be nice if they could cover this trial without trying to make the continued smash and grab tactics of this man seem normal.
Reuters — “The U.S. economy added the fewest jobs in 2-1/2 years in June, but persistently strong wage growth pointed to still-tight labor market conditions that most certainly ensure the Federal Reserve will resume raising interest rates later this month.
The Labor Department’s closely watched employment report on Friday also showed 110,000 fewer jobs were created in April and May, indicating that higher borrowing costs were starting to dampen businesses’ appetite to continue boosting headcount. There was also a jump in the number of people working part-time for economic reasons last month, in part because their hours had been reduced due to slack work or business conditions.
Nevertheless, the pace of jobs growth remains strong by historical norms and added to data this week showing an acceleration in services sector activity in suggesting that the economy was nowhere near a long-forecasted recession.
“The payroll numbers gave a whiff of weakening, but the labor market remains strong,” said Sean Snaith, the director of the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Economic Forecasting. “By no means is the Fed’s work done. We’re in a protracted battle against inflation, and nothing in today’s report suggests otherwise.””
It’s looking more and more like the Fed got their soft landing. Still — too many Americans have yet to feel this economic improvement and that is a problem.
Over in Florida, they’ve banned the AP Psychology course because of its sexual orientation and gender identity content:
Orlando Sentinel — Florida will not allow public school students to take Advanced Placement psychology because the course includes lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity, topics forbidden by the state, the College Board said Thursday.
The state, however, said the College Board was “playing games” and that the course could be offered. However, the Florida Department of Education had previously told the College Board it would need to sign an “assurance document” that AP psychology, and other AP courses, met Florida laws and rules.
The College Board would not do that and said to offer its course in Florida would mean dropping sexual orientation and gender identity – key topics in a college-level psychology course. As a result, it advised school districts not to make it part of their schedule for the coming school year.
That means the class schedules for thousands of students are likely up in the air now, with school starting Aug. 10 in most districts. About 5,000 students in Central Florida and about 28,000 statewide took AP psychology last year.”
Who is this guy — Rep. Dean Phillips — exactly and why does he think he should primary Biden? Fetterman’s response to Political is choice:
More Good Trouble on the horizon as the two Tennessee state representatives expelled by the GOP leadership earlier this year — Rep. Justin Pearson and Rep. Justin Jones win their seats back in a Special Election.
From The Daily Beast: Professor Cornel West — vying to be the Green Party Presidential candidate — owes the IRS $543,778.78 in back taxes. I get that people get caught up in tough cycles with taxes )and the fines escalate what you owe quickly), but this man is not poor. A Presidential candidate with a longstanding inability to resolve his tax issues has a whiff of a story we already know.
“But materials filed in Mercer County, New Jersey, where West owns a home in the upper-crust college town of Princeton, and in Los Angeles—the location of his personal attorney’s office—reveal a second, secret motif to his hugely lucrative professional life: a failure to pay his own taxes.
These documents show a total of $543,778.78 in outstanding federal tax liens against the professor, activist, and writer.
After repeated emails, calls and text messages from The Daily Beast to the West campaign, to interim campaign manager Jill Stein, and to West himself, the professor sent a one-line response from his personal Gmail account.
“My brother I have asked my accountant to respond to these charges some of which are not true,” West wrote from his iPhone.
However, correspondence from the accountant was not forthcoming, and West did not respond to The Daily Beast’s subsequent requests that he provide documentation that contradicts the public records from New Jersey and California.
These records show that, for all his tirades against the wealthy, in almost every one of the years recorded West owed more in unpaid taxes than the median American household earned. This includes $85,477.02 he shorted the Internal Revenue Service in 2017, $136,916.26 in 2016, $82,396.14 in 2015, $98,818.25 in 2014, $62,367.69, and $77,803.42 way back in 2005. The IRS has not filed a release for any of these liens, meaning they remain open, or have only been repaid inside the last 30 days.”
This is from an IPSOS poll and I don’t believe it. This would have to mean that GOP voters want to win a presidential contest rather than register their membership in a cult:
Washington Post — Senator Joe Manchin is annoyed that Senator Chuck Schumer won’t spend money to help boost Manchin’s profile in WVA where Manchin is getting pummeled over the IRA. Schumer won’t commit to anything until Manchin commits to running again. Manchin himself has more than $10M on hand so it isn’t as though he can’t boost his own image. Frankly, I think Manchin is a Dead Senator Walking in WVA and the longer he plays footsie with No Labels, the fewer friends he has.
What interests you today?
This is something that Delaware should do:
Massachusetts Is Set to Make Communications Free for Incarcerated People