Author: Data and Research Manager

U.S. arrests more than a dozen in Capitol riot, among the most made public in a single day

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More than a dozen arrests in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot were announced or unsealed Wednesday, revealing charges against alleged supporters of extremist right-wing groups including the Oath Keepers, Proud Boys and “boogaloo boys” movement, and individuals accused of attacking the property of news media.

The arrests ranked among the most made public in a single day and came as an alleged Oath Keepers member reached an unexpected plea deal with prosecutors in the largest conspiracy case brought against those accused of obstructing Congress as it met to confirm the 2020 election results.

Mark Grods, 54, of Mobile, Ala., became the second from the anti-government group publicly to flip in the 16-defendant conspiracy case and cooperate with prosecutors in the latest sign of movement in the investigation. Continue reading.

Supreme Court decision amps up voting rights battle in Congress

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A controversial 6-3 decision by the Supreme Court on Thursday upholding Republican-backed voting restrictions in Arizona has upped the ante for this year’s voting rights debate in Congress.

It also means that calls to reform the Senate’s rules will only continue to grow, despite recent declarations from Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) that they will not support eliminating or curtailing the filibuster.

Democratic strategists warn the high court’s decision in Brnovich v. DNC, which liberals believe has seriously undermined Section 2 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, opens the door for Republican-controlled state legislatures to get more aggressive in passing restrictions that they believe will have a disproportionate impact on minority voter turnout. Continue reading.

How Trump paying Cohen and Weisselberg’s legal fees could lead to extortion problems: reporter

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Legendary reporter and Trump foe Kurt Eichenwald noted that one of the biggest mistakes Donald Trump made with Michael Cohen could come back to bite him.

When Cohen was first indicted, he recalls the Trump family wrapping their arms around him. He was promised that all of his legal fees would be taken care of. “You are family,” he was told. But after a while, Cohen realized it would come down to him or Trump and he abandoned the president. That’s when Trump stopped paying his legal fees. 

As Eichenwald explained, if Trump does the same thing with Weisselberg, it could add an extortion charge to Trump. Continue reading.

Republicans Oppose More IRS Audits Of Super-Rich Tax Evaders

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A provision in the bipartisan Senate infrastructure bill announced on June 24 would provide for investing more money in enforcement of laws targeting top earners who evade payment of taxes. Republican senators are furious.

Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, the third-ranking member of the minority party leadership, told Axios on Wednesday that “spending $40 billion to super-size the IRS is very concerning.” “Law-abiding Americans deserve better from their government than an army of bureaucrats snooping through their bank statements,” he said.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn warned of “a huge potential for abuse”: “Bigger government results in more waste, fraud, and abuse.” Continue reading.

Garland imposes moratorium on federal executions

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Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday announced a moratorium on federal executions, a shift from the Trump administration, which had resumed the use of the death penalty in federal cases.

Garland said in the memo that the Justice Department would also review its policies and procedures to make sure they “are consistent with the principles articulated in this memorandum.” 

“The Department of Justice must ensure that everyone in the federal criminal justice system is not only afforded the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States, but is also treated fairly and humanely,” Garland said in a statement. “That obligation has special force in capital cases.” Continue reading.

Homeland Security Watchdog Delayed Inquiry, Complaint Says

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The department’s inspector general delayed looking into a retaliation complaint by a former intelligence chief until after the 2020 election, according to officials and a whistle-blower.

The Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general blocked an inquiry into whether senior agency officials demoted an employee who criticized the Trump administration, according to people familiar with the matter and a whistle-blower complaint obtained by The New York Times.

The inspector general, Joseph V. Cuffari, ignored recommendations from his investigators and delayed the inquiry until after the 2020 election, according to officials familiar with the matter and a whistle-blower complaint filed in April.

At issue was whether Brian Murphy, a former intelligence chief at the department, was demoted by its leadership last summer for warning his superiors and Mr. Cuffari’s office that the Trump administration had deliberately withheld reports about the rising threat of domestic extremism — a warning that proved prescient after the Capitol riot on Jan. 6 — and Russia’s attempts to influence the election. Continue reading.

Rep. Dean Phillips’ bipartisanship tested by congressional realities

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His ambition faces fresh test with GOP challenges on infrastructure, voting rights. 

WASHINGTON – Rep. Dean Phillips has his limits, a sense of where he draws the line.

Well into his second term holding a Minnesota congressional seat coveted by Republicans, the idea of bipartisanship in a polarized Washington is crucial for the Democrat. It is a lofty ambition with grim odds, and an ideology facing a fresh test with legislative challenges on infrastructure and voting rights. Shadowing it all are the emotional aftershocks of the violent Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection and former President Donald Trump’s strong influence over the Republican Party that continues to strain those reaching for middle ground.

“The members who I believe bear responsibility for January 6, I will not work with because I believe they are dangerous, plain and simple,” said Phillips, whose district includes large swaths of western Minneapolis suburbs. “And by the way, I don’t think they’d work with me. But that means there are 429 others with whom I’m happy to work with.” Continue reading.

Prosecutors allege a 15-year tax fraud scheme as the Trump Organization and CFO Allen Weisselberg are arraigned on multiple criminal charges

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NEW YORK — Prosecutors charged former president Donald Trump’s business with a 15-year “scheme to defraud” the government and charged its chief financial officer with grand larceny and tax fraud in a Manhattan courtroom Thursday, describing what they said was a wide-ranging effort to hide income from tax authorities.

In charging papers, prosecutors alleged that the Trump Organization effectively kept two sets of books. In one — for internal use — it carefully tallied the value of benefits given to executives as part of their compensation: apartments, cars, furniture, tuition payments, even money for holiday gifts.

But in the documents that the Trump Organization sent to tax authorities, prosecutors said, those benefits were omitted. Prosecutors said the result was that the Trump Organization and its executives avoided taxes on their full compensation: CFO Allen Weisselberg, they said, avoided paying more than $900,000. Continue reading.

Commissioner Chris LaTondresse (Dist. 6) Update: July 2, 2021

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July 2, 2021

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

Due to the holiday weekend, my next Coffee with Chris, which is usually held on the first Saturday of each month, will be in person on Saturday, July 10. We will meet at the Edina Library Conference Room at 10:00 a.m. with coffee to share. To RSVP, click here. I hope to see you there!

Updates in this week’s newsletter:

⛵️ Wayzata Sailing Aquatic Invasive Species Sails: Wayzata Sailing brought together five remarkable artists that worked to highlight this issue through five unique sail designs, funded via Hennepin County AIS grants. 

Continue reading “Commissioner Chris LaTondresse (Dist. 6) Update: July 2, 2021”

Trump Organization Is Charged With Running 15-Year Employee Tax Scheme

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The company was accused of helping its executives evade taxes on compensation by hiding luxury perks and bonuses.

The Trump Organization, the real estate business that catapulted Donald J. Trump to tabloid fame, television riches and ultimately the White House, was charged Thursday with running a 15-year scheme to help its executives evade taxes by compensating them with fringe benefits that were hidden from the authorities.

The Manhattan district attorney’s office, which has been conducting the investigation alongside the New York attorney general, also accused a top executive, Allen H. Weisselberg, of avoiding taxes on $1.7 million in perks that should have been reported as income. Mr. Weisselberg, Mr. Trump’s long-serving and trusted chief financial officer, faced grand larceny, tax fraud and other charges.

“To put it bluntly, this was a sweeping and audacious illegal payments scheme,” Carey Dunne, general counsel for the Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., said during an arraignment in State Supreme Court in Manhattan. Continue reading.