Wow. A rough day, and after a not very good night’s sleep. I laid down for a late afternoon nap, but instead of a half-hour to an hour it was two and a half hours before I woke up. Turned the TV back on so I could listen while I made dinner and DAY-UM! A helluva lot can go down in a short time!
Naturally, I’ve been spending the evening tending to PZ admin stuff while also trying to get up to speed on the superseding indictment filed in the National Security case down in FL, more commonly known as the “documents” case. (I hate, just hate calling it a mere documents or even classified documents case – this is National Security at stake) Seems like Trump and his sidekick Walt Nauta have a new pal who will be joining them at the defense table. Mar A Lago maintenance guy Carlos De Oliveira (I’ll call him Carlos D from here on), he of drain the pool into the server room fame is now a co-defendant and will be arraigned soon.
Carlos D is someone the govt. had dead to rights. They gave him every opportunity to flip on Trump, including a visit to his home for a last chance interview. He was reminded he didn’t have to talk to them or do so without a lawyer present. But he did. And he LIED. This by the way was after everyone knew they were in the legal crosshairs. However, he’d apparently been assured that Trump had him covered, including for the cost of a Trump paid for lawyer. I guess he thought he was home free when he wasn’t indicted along with Trump & Nauta. Who knows what the hell this idiot was thinking? It doesn’t matter now – he had his chance to cut a deal (and probably a very, very good one) and blew it.
There’s speculation he might tonight be rethinking that choice to stick with Trump. On the other hand, his lawyer is paid for by Trump’s PAC. Oh, and to put a cherry on top it seems he’ll be sharing a lawyer with another Trump co-defendant. Conflict of interest? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
Well, interesting as all that is and believe me the details of Carlos D’s antics in this “speaking indictment” are something to behold, as the title suggests there are some details NOT being talked about so much that I find particularly intriguing. There’s a good write up by The Guardian you can read at this link. Let’s start with someone referred to in the indictment as “Employee #4.” This is apparently Mar A Lago IT Director Yuscil Taveras. We don’t know for sure (yet) but that’s how it seems. He’s not been indicted (that we know of – who knows if there’s one under seal?) and while he maybe didn’t come forward voluntarily like he should have if he didn’t lie or try to cover for Trump (and others) when questioned I doubt he’ll face charges. As long as he testifies. Fully and truthfully. And, let’s face it. He’d be smart to do so because he can’t be sure who else Jack Smith has got waiting in the wings. It appears he’s covering his own butt by telling investigators all he knows. So if reporting is correct, Taveras is the mysterious Employee #4 and he’s going to be bad news for the TIT – the Trump Indicted Trio. (Sorry folks – I couldn’t resist) There’s still some mystery/questions but at least we’ve got some idea of this “Employee #4” but keep an eye out because I think we’ll be hearing plenty more over time.
That brings us to a deeper mystery. Who is Employee #5? And just what have they provided to Smith’s team that gets the fact they are “there” in the first place? That my friends is something that’s barely gotten a mention this evening. However the fact such a person is cited tells me two things. First, those indicted and Carlos D too had better be looking over their shoulders. Walt and Carlos in particular. Second, while there’s an “Employee #5” cited in the indictment who else might have sat down and spilled all to the prosecutors?
Trump might be hiring lawyers for his co-defendants and others to cover his own butt. Lawyers who will ignore their duties under the Cannon of Ethics and put Trump’s interests before that of their actual clients they will ostensibly be representing in court. Hey, it’s not like Trump hasn’t already hired (and lost) lawyers who wound up needing their own freaking lawyers. But here’s something to watch out for. Nauta/his lawyer is already making noises about wanting a separate trial. Frankly, a credible case can be made that Nauta and now Carlos D CAN’T get a fair trial with Trump sitting there as a co-defendant.
It does however open up some interesting possibilities. They could well find themselves on trial (especially Carlos D) before Trump. Convictions, or a trial going so badly it was obvious they will in fact be convicted because they ain’t Trump and jury nullification for THEM isn’t going to happen might cause a sudden change of heart. Sure, there will be time in prison for making the govt. work so hard to gain their cooperation BUT it will be greatly reduced if they flip on the boss. And if late in the game they do a Cassidy Hutchinson and dump their Trump paid for lawyers for someone who only has THEIR interests at stake it’s going to be very, very bad news for Trump.
Here’s the best part since I’m purely into speculation. Let’s say Nauta, and even Carlos D band together and push, HARD for a separate trial. And TRUMP fights like hell to keep all three of them in the same trial. I for one think that might, just might get one or both of them thinking and within months to decide it would be better to take the financial hit and go out and get their own lawyer.
I’d love to see more talk about not just Employee #4, but Employee #5. Because the more “Employee # whatevers are out there the more the wheels will be turning in the heads of Trump’s co-defendants. And maybe their lawyers too. They are after all seeing what’s been happening to other lawyers who didn’t do their jobs the way they should have but instead did Trump’s bidding!
Lots to think about isn’t it?
“On the other hand, his lawyer is paid for by Trump’s PAC. Oh, and to put a cherry on top it seems he’ll be sharing a lawyer with another Trump co-defendant. Conflict of interest? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?”
Based solely on the courtroom dramas I’ve seen (but I can’t imagine they’d deviate from reality this far) but I think it IS allowable–though certainly advised against–for several people to share a single lawyer if all involved are accused of the same crime. On shows like the “Law & Order” franchise, the DAs are always advising defendants sharing the same attorney that it might be in their best interest to seek their own counsel before the trial begins but, ultimately, if the defendants are absolutely assured that each one’s fate is “equally important” to the defense attorney, they’ll “stick together till the bitter end” (on most of those shows, however, at least one of the defendants finds out he’s going to be scapegoated and, by that point, his fate is sealed and “his” attorney decides–or is reminded by the folks paying him–that at least one of his multiple clients is much less important than the others).
On the other hand, sometimes one defense attorney is demonstrably better than the other, like in ‘My Cousin Vinnie”.
Agreed about not calling Trump’s traitorous misdeeds a mere “documents” case. Call it what it is: an espionage case, against a criminal who was, once upon a (horrible) time, president of the United States.
Agreed Jarvis.