As you know Trump sycophant Jeanine Pirro aka U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia tried to indict six Democratic Senators and Representatives for making and posting a video Trump didn’t like. She failed. Pirro has been racking up quite the losing streak when it comes to carrying out Trump’s retribution. Losing. We know how Trump feels about losing and losers. He hates being perceived as having made a mistake just as much. To him doing so would be showing weakness. So, Trump has a problem. He could, with all the other news just accept defeat and let the news (mostly) fade, or he could try again. Apparently he wants to try again!
The case was a loser. No career prosecutor wanted anything to do with it. Even IF an indictment had been obtained, and even IF there was a conviction it would never hold up on appeal. However Trump’s rage is such that he believes his demand for retribution against those who dared speak literal truth, truth that he doesn’t want spoken led to the sad spectacle of another legal humiliation. Alternet posted an article discussing this and what, if anything will happen next. Common sense dictates Trump let go and allow this to fade into the background noise of Trumpism. However this is Trump we’re talking about. As the linked article notes informed critics seem to agree this case is more a reflection of a dictatorial regime than a valid legal case. If only that was all:
What they do not agree on is whether the decision by a grand jury last week to reject any charges – as well as a separate judicial order halting Pentagon hounding of Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz. – should end the matter. From all reports, Justice, which is silent on the matter, is seeking a new venue to try filing charges before a new grand jury.
Obviously, those inside the insular Donald Trump circle disagree basically with the rest of the world about whether there even is a problem here, never mind criminal charges. Trump himself had called for charges of sedition that could involve hanging for members of Congress to speak their mind in a video.
Well of course Team Trump, at least Trump and the hardest of hard-core fluffers think important people speaking truth that runs counter to what Trump wants merits prison or even death by hanging. What jumps out at me however is that Trump (and Bondi) seem to know their chances of ‘getting’ those who made the video in DC are nil. So they are looking for a way to try in another jurisdiction they think will provide a friendlier (to Trump’s wishes) to at least get an indictment! Pirro has been on quite the losing streak. Poor Trumpty Dumpty. He HATES losing and losers. His problem is he hates being seen as weak just as much and letting go of this would be admitting defeat.
Did I say defeat? Sorry, what I should have said was getting his fat orange ass kicked! If anyone was wondering what the “score” was when the Trump Toadies asked the jurors to render a True Bill (indictment) their response was brutal:
Of course, the grand jurors did not appear publicly to explain the decision. What we know, from sources to news organizations, is that not one voted for indictment on a proposed felony crime that makes it illegal to “interfere with, impair, or influence the loyalty, morale, or discipline of the military or naval forces of the United States,” not the more serious sedition.
ZERO members of the grand jury voted to indict. Even on the lesser charge. The article doesn’t say whether they were asked to vote on the more serious charge of sedition but even the jackasses who failed on the lesser charge likely knew better than to even try! That is one stinging rebuke. I can see why Bondi would advise Trump not to bother having Pirro try again, at least in DC. Of course, DC was the proper jurisdiction so if they try somewhere else, the the reddest jurisdiction with hand-picked MAGAs to indict and then convict at trial as I said it will never hold up on appeal. In addition to the 1st Amendment issues I mentioned the jurisdiction problem would on its own be grounds for reversal. All the while Trump would be doing the political equivalent of publicly hitting himself in the head with a ballpeen hammer.
Let’s remember something important. The video (which didn’t cite Trump or anyone in the administration) simply reminded members of the Armed Forces they were not obligated to carry out illegal orders. The Uniformed Code of Military Justice was quoted. Federal Elected officials, using their authority simply spoke the truth as the 1st Amendment and their Congressional duties allow them to do. For THAT Trump ordered they be put in jail, but a D.C grand jury told Pirro, AG Bondi and by extension Trump to get stuffed.
One last thing. Senator Kelly has come in for special attention in all this. Naval Aviator who served in combat with distinction during a distinguished career, then Astronaut commanding the Shuttle, and now Senator. He’s the kind of guy Trump only wishes he was and Trump can’t stand it. Add in Kelly’s name being sometimes mentioned as a potential Democratic Presidential nominee and Trump knows neither he or a designated successor would win against Kelly. If Kelly did run and get the nomination.
Even little Petey Hegseth who was NOT a line officer in combat hates Kelly for being the real deal. An actual warrior. So Hegseth tried to enact retribution on Trump’s behalf. A federal judge has just slapped down Hegesth/the DOD from trying to reduce Kelly’s retirement rank and therefore service pension. More losing. Remember how Trump used to brag that we’d all get sick of winning so much? He’s LOSING an awful lot lately. Maybe he’ll get sick of LOSING. Ok, so he can talk himself into anything but what’s possible is that other elected Republicans have gotten sick of all the losing. Sick enough to accept a ‘painful cure’ of cutting out the Trump cancer that’s killing their own political prospects, and even conservatism.
Friends, I know everyone begs you for money. I promise, among all those asking for spare change, we are the smallest and the hardest working. We’re a group of old, disabled people, except for one writer in his mid-50s. The rest of us are in our sixties and seventies, and this is a labor of love. All we’re asking for is the chance to keep telling the truth about Trump and help ensure democracy survives. If you can help, please do. Thank you. Ursula
Let’s not forget that any half-decent attorney (meaning anyone fresh out of law school, arguing their very first case) would be able to use Drumpf’s own words against him with regard to what Drumpf is doing: A little thing called “lawfare.” Drumpf spent the better part of his time out of office raging and ranting that he was the “victim of political persecution” and the “victim of lawfare” and, yet, what has he been doing that would NOT qualify as “political persecution” and “lawfare?”
He’s not dealing with a bunch of private company owners and operators trying to collect what Drumpf owed them, knowing that he could keep the courts tied up long enough the people trying to collect their due moneys for Drumpf’s various little projects could wind up declaring bankruptcy or just writing off the loss and learning their lesson in doing business with Drumpf. No. He’s now dealing with politicians–specifically members of Congress–engaged in First Amendment speech. And these aren’t GOPers who’ve planted their mouths firmly on Drumpf’s fat ass, and trembling and quaking in fear at the prospect of a primary challenge so they do his bidding; no, they’re Democrats who literally have NOTHING to lose in facing Drumpf in court (especially as they’ve got the Constitution on their side, even if Drumpf doesn’t want to acknowledge it). Also, what they did doesn’t even come close to the level of “sedition” (quite unlike much of Drumpf’s own actions in the past 13 months).
If he didn’t live in his tiny bubble of lies, misinformation, and spin, he’d know that courts are interested only in facts and truth.
Even, it seems, ‘his’ courts.