Category: Trump Administration

Trump’s PAC collected $75 million this year, but so far the group has not put money into pushing for the 2020 ballot reviews he touts

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Former president Donald Trump’s political PAC raised about $75 million in the first half of this year as he trumpeted the false notion that the 2020 election was stolen from him, but the group has not devoted funds to help finance the ongoing ballot review in Arizona or to push for similar endeavors in other states, according to people familiar with the finances.

Instead, the Save America leadership PAC — which has few limits on how it can spend its money — has paid for some of the former president’s travel, legal costs and staff, along with other expenses, according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the group’s inner workings. The PAC has held onto much of its cash.

Even as he assiduously tracks attempts by his allies to cast doubt on the integrity of last year’s election, Trump has been uninterested in personally bankrolling the efforts, relying on other entities and supporters to fund the endeavors, they said. Continue reading.

Pennsylvania decertifies county voting system following private company audit promoted by pro-Trump state senators

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Pennsylvania’s acting secretary of state has decertified a county’s voting system for future elections after it was subjected to a review by a private company in an effort promoted by a group of state senators supporting former president Donald Trump’s baseless claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

Acting secretary of state Veronica W. Degraffenreid said in a statement Wednesday that Wake TSI’s examination of the Fulton County ballots earlier this year violated the state’s election code.

Pennsylvania is the second state where officials have decertified election equipment because of questionable audits requested by Republicans. Arizona’s Maricopa County said in June that it will replace voting equipment that was turned over to a private contractor for a Republican-commissioned review of the 2020 election. Continue reading.

Pelosi says GOP antics won’t stop Jan. 6 panel’s work

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday said the panel looking into the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol “will not let” GOP “antics stand in the way” of the investigation, offering her first detailed remarks on her rejection of two Republican lawmakers for the committee.

“It’s my responsibility as Speaker of the House to make sure we get to the truth on this, and we will not let their antics stand in the way of that,” Pelosi said at a press conference on Thursday.

Drama unfolded on Wednesday after Pelosi announced that she was rejecting two of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) five nominees, Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Jim Banks (R-Ind.). Continue reading.

‘Like Nixon drunk rambling’: Anderson Cooper shocked by new Trump recording blaming Capitol police for Jan. 6

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Reporters Carol Leonnig and Phil Rucker’s new book, I Alone Can Fix It, ends with a conversation with Donald Trump where he rattles off a random slate of conspiracy theories from attacking the 86 judges who wouldn’t rule in his favor to the Supreme Court.

But one major part of the recording has Trump saying that the whole ordeal was the fault of the Capitol Police because they “ushered” the protesters inside the building. Nothing of the sort happened, so it’s unclear where Trump got his information. Protesters used poles and stole police shields to break windows and doors in an effort to get into the building. 

“We want to understand what did you want when you said ‘go up there’?” Leonnig says in the recording, referring to Trump saying that he was going to march with the crowd to the Capitol. Continue reading.

Barr told Trump to his face ‘you’re going to lose’ because he was humiliating himself at COVID briefings: book

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Carol Leonnig and Phil Rucker’s new book I Alone Can Fix It contains some stories about former Attorney General Bill Barr using surprisingly blunt language to convince former President Donald Trump to stop doing daily coronavirus briefings.

“I feel you are going to lose the election,” Barr told Trump in April 2020 as the virus was killing more Americans, according to the reporters. “I feel you are actually losing touch with your own base.”

Some of the Trump fans that Barr had talked to when traveling had confided in him that they were bothered by Trump’s petty squabbles with his perceived enemies when they needed him. They, like most Americans, wanted steady leaders that could steer the country through the pandemic and bring back the economy. Continue reading.

Audio: Trump says he spoke to a ‘loving crowd’ at Jan. 6 rally

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The former president described the atmosphere on Jan. 6 as largely friendly and peaceful in an exclusive interview for the new book ‘I Alone Can Fix It’

When former president Donald Trump sat down for an interview in late March at his Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach, Fla., he described the events of Jan. 6 as largely peaceful and his supporters as friendly, saying the audience he addressed at a rally on the Ellipse before the attack on the U.S. Capitol was a “loving crowd.”

Five people later died after thousands of his supporters beat back police to storm through barricades and charge inside the Capitol, and hundreds of lawmakers and their staffers were forced to scramble for safety. But Trump, speaking in an exclusive interview for the new book “I Alone Can Fix It,” said the mob was “ushered in” by police.

“Personally what I wanted is what they wanted,” he said of the crowd. “They showed up just to show support because I happen to believe the election was rigged at a level like nothing has ever been rigged before.” Continue reading.

Ivanka Trump & Her Adult Siblings Say Goodbye to Secret Service Protection

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Ivanka Trump and her adult siblings, Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump and Tiffany Trump are all waking up today with a much different reality than the last four years — no Secret Service protection. After any typical administration, the family members of the outgoing president see their security detail ended as the change of power happens, but not with the Trump family. Donald made sure that they had an extra six months — all at the American taxpayers’ expense.

The change happened on Tuesday at 12:01 p.m. ET for Donald’s adult children and their spouses, per National Zero. The next Trump family member to lose their security will be son Barron, who has it until March 2022 when he turns 16 years old. (Donald and Melania are protected for life.) Former Vice President Mike Pence and wife Karen also saw the end of their Secret Service protection, but their extra six months are par for the course for an outgoing VP — it wasn’t a Trump decision.

The costs associated with Donald’s extended family were quite extraordinary during his administration. According to Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington (CREW), the final two years of Trump’s time in office required 3,249 protected trips for the Secret Service. In comparison, the Obamas had 933 trips with security detail over seven years. So the move that the former president made to extend protection for his adult children only added to an already high tab. Continue reading.

Weapon arguments made during hearing for former Rocky Mount officer charged in Jan. 6 riot

The federal hearing for a former Rocky Mount police officer accused of violating the conditions of his bond ended Wednesday morning without a ruling from the judge.

Thomas “T.J.” Robertson and another former Rocky Mount officer, Jacob Fracker, face federal charges for participating in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. On June 30, prosecutors filed a motion to revoke Robertson’s bond after a search of his Ferrum home found firearms and explosive devices. Prosecutors contend Robertson violated the conditions of his release.

Wednesday’s hearing took place in Washington, D.C., with Robertson appearing in person. Robertson’s attorney, Mark Rollins, said the former police officer is being held in Central Virginia Regional Jail in Orange County because he personally knows most of the police in Southwest Virginia. Continue reading.

‘Always whispering devilish ideas in the king’s ear’: Gen. Milley had a low opinion of Stephen Miller, new book says

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Gen. Mark Milley appears to not have been a fan of former Trump White House advisor Stephen Miller and thought of him as “a Rasputin character, always whispering devilish ideas in the king’s ear,” according to an excerpt from a new book documenting Trump’s last days in office. 

According to Business Insider, the highlighted excerpt comes from the new book “I Alone Can Fix It: Donald J. Trump’s Catastrophic Final Year.”Authored by Washington Post reporters Carol Leonnig and Phillip Rucker, the book sheds light on some of Milley’s concerns, and based on the writers’ reporting, the top-ranking general had shared his concerns about Miller with his aides.

Per the publication:

“Milley likened Miller to the villainous Grigori Rasputin, an influential Russian political figure also called the “Mad Monk,” who held significant influence over the last Tsar, Nicholas II, and his family. The self-professed holy man was later murdered by aristocrats.” Continue reading.

Jim Jordan actually tries to blame Democrats for the Jan. 6 attack

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U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) attacked nearly half of American adults Wednesday, falsely claiming Democrats “normalized anarchy,” after Speaker Nancy Pelosi refused to allow him on the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack.

Jordan suggested because Democrats supported the Black Lives Matter protests against police killing of unarmed Black people, Trump supporters had every right to break federal laws, damage federal property, attempt to overturn an election, and threaten the lives of duly-elected House and Senate representatives, and the vice president of the United States.

Jordan insisted the “fundamental question” the January 6 Select Committee should investigate is not who lied to the American people, who incited the insurrection, and the attempted coup — but “why wasn’t there a proper, proper security presence at the capitol that day.” Continue reading.