The Jan. 6 committee spent most of its second hearing Monday picking apart Trump’s relentless lies about the 2020 election outcome — lies he pursued despite findings from both his campaign staff and government investigators that the election results were legitimate.
Continue reading “Jan. 6 Committee Zeroes In On Trump’s Big Lie Fundraising”Awkward
There was quite a bit of subtle storytelling and repositioning going on through this morning’s testimony. Perhaps especially from Bill Barr. But there was one moment from Barr that struck me as revealing. During his testimony, Barr was describing the run-up to one visit to the White House when it was clear that Trump wasn’t going to acknowledge he had lost. Barr said that it was getting a bit “awkward.” That’s probably an understatement.
Continue reading “Awkward”What Does Trump Believe?
I was about to respond to this email from TPM Reader JR. But I decided it made more sense to respond here.
Lots being written about the importance of establishing whether Trump “knew” he lost. Greg Sargeant this morning, Slate over the weekend (does Trump really ever “know” anything”) etc etc. I don’t touch criminal law but it seems to me that focus is too narrow. I would think Trump could have had the requisite criminal intent to use illegal means to overturn an election even if he “believed” the election was being stolen from him. That is, if he knew or was wilfully blind to the fact that he or his team were using unlawful means to “contest” the election, wouldn;t that be enough? If he had warnings his words and actions would incite the violence1/6 or were in coordination with plans for the assault on the Capitol, why does it matter whether he “knew” he lost or not?
Like JR, I’m not a lawyer. So I can’t speak to the internal logic of particular case law or legal standards about mens rea and consciousness of guilt. But I think the way to approach this question is to work it from the other side, as it were.
Continue reading “What Does Trump Believe?”Something Doesn’t Fit
Here’s an interesting nugget that puts an added context to Bill Stepien’s appearance before the Jan 6th committee. Stepien is working as an advisor/consultant to the campaign of Wyoming Republican Harriet Hageman, the woman running against Liz Cheney in the House primary in Wyoming. (Wyoming has a single representative in the House.)
Normally this wouldn’t be surprising. A top Republican operative might be working with any number of Republican candidates. But Hageman isn’t any Republican. Her candidacy is inextricably tied to the Big Lie. In fact, it’s run almost entirely as a Trump campaign proxy. And of course, Cheney is literally front and center in the committee’s work.
Continue reading “Something Doesn’t Fit”White Supremacists Deliver Themselves To Cops In A U-Haul
A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
Helpful Racists
On Saturday, police in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho arrested 31 members of the white supremacist Patriot Front who were crammed in the back of a U-Haul truck like racist sardines on the way to allegedly disrupt a Pride event downtown. They’ve been charged with conspiracy to riot.
- An apparent leader of the group helpfully carried with him a seven-page blueprint of their plan laid out in full detail, according to law enforcement.
- A lot of these guys came from out of state, including Texas, Utah, Colorado, South Dakota, Illinois, Wyoming, Washington, Oregon and Virginia, law enforcement said. All to get arrested in a U-Haul.
Incredible gif pic.twitter.com/GhrGscRMDN
— Jason Paladino (@jason_paladino) June 12, 2022
Mo Brooks Mo Problems
Trump dealt Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) an open-handed slap in the face late Friday by endorsing Brooks’ Alabama Senate rival, Katie Britt–even after Brooks pleaded him to #ReEndorseMo.
- But unfortunately for Brooks, Trump hasn’t forgotten how the congressman went “woke” by not wanting to fixate on the 2020 election, which is what had prompted the ex-president to snatch away his endorsement. “Mo has been wanting it back ever since- but I cannot give it to him!” Trump declared on Friday.
- Brooks is unequivocally salty about this. After Trump announced his Britt endorsement, the Alabama congressman tweeted that the ex-president was “the only man in American politics who could get conned by [Senate Minority Leader] Mitch McConnell twice in an Alabama Senate race,” referring to Trump endorsing then-Sen. Luther Strange (R-AL) in the infamous 2017 Alabama special election (where Brooks was a candidate too).
Ex-Trump Campaign Manager To Testify Publicly
Update: The House Jan. 6 Committee has reported that Bill Stepien, Trump’s 2020 campaign manager, has backed out of testifying today due to a family emergency.
The House Jan. 6 Committee announced on Sunday that Bill Stepien, Trump’s 2020 campaign manager, will be testifying during the panel’s next public hearing today.
- Byung J. Pak, the former U.S. attorney in Atlanta who resigned under pressure from Trump, is testifying today, too.
- Here’s who else we’re hearing from today: Former Fox News political editor Chris Stirewalt, GOP-tied election attorney Ben Ginsberg and ex-Philadelphia city commissioner Al Schmidt.
Your Guide To Jan. 6 Panel’s Upcoming Hearings
As you know, the House Jan. 6 Committee’s public hearing last week was just the beginning. Check out our guide on what to expect during the upcoming hearings this month.
Senators Reach Bipartisan Deal On Meh Gun Reform
The 20 Democratic and GOP senators who’ve been working on bipartisan legislation on gun control unveiled a framework for a deal on Sunday, though the language of the bill hasn’t been finalized yet.
- What it includes:
- Extra funding to states to help them pass red flag laws that would let law enforcement temporarily take away firearms from people deemed to be a threat to themselves and others
- Enhanced background checks for buyers under 21
- Extra funding for mental health services and school security
- Crackdowns on gun trafficking, straw purchasing and convicted domestic abusers’ ability to buy firearms
- What it doesn’t include:
- Universal background checks
- Increasing the minimum age required to buy AR-15-style rifles to 21 years old
- Bans on semi-automatic weapons and high capacity magazines
- The 10 Republicans who say they’re on board with the deal: Sens. Roy Blunt (R-MO), Richard Burr (R-NC), Rob Portman (R-OH), Pat Toomey (R-PA), John Cornyn (R-TX), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Mitt Romney (R-UT).
Brookings Institute Prez Resigns Amid FBI Probe
Retired four-star Marine Gen. John Allen resigned as president of the Brookings Institution on Sunday as the FBI investigates his alleged role in a foreign lobbying scheme for Qatar.
Hannity Pitched Potential Hunter Biden Pardon To Trump
One of the texts that the House Jan. 6 Committee released last week included a message from Fox News host Sean Hannity to then-White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany a day after the Capitol insurrection, in which Hannity told McEnany that Trump “was intrigued by the pardon idea!! (Hunter).”
- That “Hunter” referred to Hunter Biden, a source confirmed to the Daily Beast. Hannity had reportedly suggested that Trump give Joe Biden’s son a presidential pardon to “smooth things over” in the aftermath of the attack.
Is Cher Okay?
Someone please check on her.
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He Knows How to Pick’em
You see in the feature story that Bill Stepien, Trump’s 2020 campaign manager after Brad Parscale got canned, is going to be a star witness at the second Jan. 6th committee hearing tomorrow night. I wanted to remind you that Stepien was once a top operative and advisor to Chris Christie. But he fell from grace as part of the Bridgegate scandal back in 2013. When the scandal hit, Christie made Stepien one of the scapegoats. He cut him loose like a dog, as Trump might say. (Stepien himself was never charged with a crime though two of his colleagues were charged and were later convicted, before having their convictions tossed by the Supreme Court.)
Continue reading “He Knows How to Pick’em”Ex-Trump Camp Manager, Ex-US Atty Will Testify Before Jan. 6 Panel On Monday
Former Trump 2020 campaign manager Bill Stepien and Byung J. Pak, former U.S. attorney in Atlanta who Trump attempted to boot before his sudden resignation, are among the newly announced list of five witnesses for the Jan. 6 Select Committee’s public hearing on Monday.
Continue reading “Ex-Trump Camp Manager, Ex-US Atty Will Testify Before Jan. 6 Panel On Monday”Schiff: Jan. 6 Panel Will Show Evidence Of GOPers’ Requests For Pardons From Trump
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), who serves on the Jan. 6 Select Committee, on Sunday said the panel plans to show evidence that GOP members of Congress sought pardons from former President Trump in light of their involvement with efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.
Continue reading “Schiff: Jan. 6 Panel Will Show Evidence Of GOPers’ Requests For Pardons From Trump”Senators Reach Bipartisan Agreement On Modest Gun Restriction Bill
A bipartisan group of senators on Sunday announced a deal on framework of legislation aimed at reducing gun violence that includes funding for mental health and school security. Thus far, 10 Republican senators stated their support of the deal.
Continue reading “Senators Reach Bipartisan Agreement On Modest Gun Restriction Bill”