
Trump accused of ‘witness tampering in real time’ in Georgia election case ahead of expected indictment
Donald Trump has been accused of witness tampering in the Georgia election case where an indictment against the former president is expected this week. “I am reading reports that failed former Lt Governor of Georgia, Jeff Duncan, will be testifying before the Fulton County Grand Jury. He shouldn’t,” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday, before doubling down on his baseless claims about election fraud. “I barely know him but he was, right from the beginning of this Witch Hunt, a nasty disaster for those looking into the Election Fraud that took place in Georgia.” Mr Trump was referring to Geoff Duncan, who served as the second in command to Governor Brian Kemp when Mr Trump was attempting to overturn the 2020 election results in the state. “He refused having a Special Session to find out what went on, became very unpopular with Republicans (I refused to endorse him!), and fought the TRUTH all the way. A loser, he went to FNCNN!” Mr Trump added, seemingly in reference to the news networks Fox News and CNN. Mr Duncan appeared on CNN on Monday saying, “I’m going to refrain from any comment with the exception of saying, which was just pointed out, he did misspell my name”. On Monday, the court website for Fulton County, Georgia posted a document seeming to outline several charges against Mr Trump before it was taken down. The document was removed without explanation. The document was dated 14 August and named Mr Trump. The case was cited as “open”. A spokesperson for the District Attorney’s office told Reuters that the news agency’s report “that those charges were filed is inaccurate. Beyond that we cannot comment”. The news agency reported that the document, two pages in length, includes Violation Of The Georgia Rico (Racketeer Influenced And Corrupt Organizations) Act, Solicitation Of Violation Of Oath By Public Officer, Conspiracy To Commit False Statements and Writings and Conspiracy To Commit Forgery in the First Degree, in addition to other charges. District Attorney Fani Willis has been investigating Mr Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election results in the state and was expected to seek an indictment from a grand jury this week. It would be Mr Trump’s fourth indictment within the span of five months. Former US Attorney Barb McQuade wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that Mr Trump was “witness tampering in real time,” with his statement on Truth Social. MSNBC host Katie Phang added: “This is going to go so very badly for Trump…” Marcus Flowers, a Georgia Democrat, wrote: “He’s trying it! I don’t think it’s going to work well in Atlanta. It ain’t a small town!” Democratic political commentator Bakari Sellers said people “get their bonds denied and revoked for this type of behaviour”. Mr Trump also went on several additional rants against the Georgia grand jury and Ms Willis on Monday as an indictment appeared to be imminent. In one outburst on Monday morning, Mr Trump wrote: “WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE TELL THE FULTON COUNTY GRAND JURY THAT I DID NOT TAMPER WITH THE ELECTION. “THE PEOPLE THAT TAMPERED WITH IT WERE THE ONES THAT RIGGED IT, AND SADLY, PHONEY FANI WILLIS, WHO HAS SHOCKINGLY ALLOWED ATLANTA TO BECOME ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS CITIES ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD, HAS NO INTEREST IN SEEING THE MASSIVE AMOUNT OF EVIDENCE AVAILABLE, OR FINDING OUT WHO THESE PEOPLE THAT COMMITTED THIS CRIME ARE. “SHE ONLY WANTS TO ‘GET TRUMP.’ I WOULD BE HAPPY TO SHOW THIS INFO TO THE G.J.” Read More Trump’s Georgia case presented to grand jury as ex-president may face racketeering charges - latest No matter how many indictments come down, it’s still Donald Trump’s Republican Party 'No Labels' movement says it could offer bipartisan presidential ticket in 2024
1970-01-01 08:00

Nevada Republicans will hold 2024 presidential caucuses on February 8
The Nevada Republican Party will hold its 2024 presidential caucuses on February 8, the party announced Monday.
1970-01-01 08:00

Exclusive: Former Republican legal officials endorse special counsel's speedy trial date proposal in Trump Jan. 6 case
Nearly a dozen Republican-appointed former judges and high-ranking federal senior legal officials on Monday endorsed the January 2, 2024, trial date proposed by special counsel Jack Smith in his 2020 election interference criminal case against Donald Trump.
1970-01-01 08:00

Celsius to Poll Customers on Launching New User-Owned Company
Bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network LLC won court permission to start polling account holders on its proposal to
1970-01-01 08:00

What Is VRAM? Why Games Are Using it More, and How to Optimize Your PC
After many years of being largely an afterthought, VRAM is suddenly a hot topic du
1970-01-01 08:00

Biden administration releases 'legal resources' for colleges in response to Supreme Court's affirmative action decision
The Biden administration is releasing new guidance and "legal resources" for colleges and universities that want to ensure student diversity in the admissions process after the Supreme Court gutted affirmative action in June.
1970-01-01 08:00

Can Donald Trump pardon himself?
Donald Trump has already been indicted three times this year, twice at the federal level. In April, he was arraigned in New York and pleaded not guilty to state charges after receiving an indictment from Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg accusing him of manipulating his business records to conceal hush money payments allegedly made to porn actress Stormy Daniels in 2016 to stop her discussing an extramarital affair they are said to have had in 2006 in time to derail his presidential run. Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith then handed him a federal indictment in May over his alleged mishandling of classified government documents following the conclusion of his one-term presidency and then another in August over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election result, accusing him of conspiracy to defraud the United States, tampering with a witness and conspiracy against the rights of citizens. In both cases, Mr Trump again pleaded not guilty to all charges. But that’s not all. He could be about to face a fourth indictment, this time from Fani Willis, district attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, over his attempts to influence the 2020 vote count in that crucial swing state, which turned blue for Joe Biden and prompted Mr Trump to pressure local secretary of state Brad Raffensperger into helping him “find” the 11,780 ballots he needed to win, a conversation that was recorded and described as “worse than Watergate” by veteran Washington Post journalist Carl Bernstein. While Ms Willis hasn’t confirmed that an indictment will be handed down this week, her earlier statements and security measures surrounding the Fulton County courthouse indicate that movement is imminent in the case. No former or sitting president of the United States has ever been formally charged with a crime before, so for Mr Trump to have received multiple indictments is already history-making, another ignominious claim to fame for the first American commander-in-chief ever to have been impeached twice. The prospect of Mr Trump winning the presidency again in November 2024 and then attempting to use his presidential pardoning powers to excuse himself is a fascinating prospect that could yet become a reality. As president between 2017 and 2021, Mr Trump cheerily used his executive clemency powers to hand out pardons to no fewer than 237 people, from Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio to right-wing content creator Dinesh D’Souza by way of cronies like Steve Bannon, Roger Stone, Michael Flynn, Paul Manafort and George Papadopoulos. Whether he had the authority to pardon himself was a key question at the time he left office in the aftermath of the deadly Capitol riot of 6 January 2021, which, ultimately, never had to be answered because he did not attempt to do so. The broad consensus among legal experts back then was that there was no stipulation in place to actually prohibit such an act but, given that there was no precedent for it either, it would likely be subjected to a lawsuit calling into question its legal validity. While Mr Trump is now a private citizen and therefore has no such powers, he does find himself in the extraordinary position of being thrice-indicted while simultaneously leading the pack for the Republican Party’s nomination to be its candidate for president in 2024, leaving such rivals as Ron DeSantis, Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Tim Scott and Chris Christie eating his dust in the polls. There is nothing in the US Constitution to stop someone from running a presidential campaign while under indictment or even having been convicted of a crime, although its 14th Amendment does prevent anyone from running who has taken an oath of office and thereafter engaged in “insurrection or rebellion” against the country, which could ultimately cause problems for Mr Trump should he be convicted over Mr Smith’s charges pertaining to the Capitol riot. Unless that comes to pass, however, he is free to run for the White House once more. But what would happen if he were to actually win and attempt to use his reinstated pardoning powers for his own benefit is where matters get really knotty. Firstly, presidential pardons are only applicable to federal crimes. While that means he could potentially absolve himself in the classified documents and 2020 election cases brought by Mr Smith, he could not do the same in the indictment brought by Mr Bragg, which is a state affair. Second, the Constitution bans presidents from pardoning themselves from impeachments, meaning any conduct Mr Trump is found guilty of committing in connection with impeachment would not be eligible for a pardon. Third, any pardon would almost certainly result in a Supreme Court case and the court might not be inclined to side with Mr Trump, despite the current conservative majority on its benches. A Justice Department memo from 1974 stated: “Under the fundamental rule that no one may be a judge in his own case, the president cannot pardon himself.” While that memo is not law, it could be used to argue for precedent should the situation go to court. Therefore, if a scenario were to arise in which Mr Trump won the 2024 election but was convicted on charges in the state case (a trial is scheduled for March) or in the federal case relating to the Capitol riot, over which he was impeached, he would not be allowed to pardon himself, likely resulting in a massive and costly legal fight to spare him jail time. If he found himself unable to avoid that outcome, the situation would almost certainly lead to a third impeachment or his removal from office via the 25th Amendment, which allows the Cabinet to remove a president who is unable to perform their duties. There are many duties and trappings of the presidency an incarcerated person would simply not be able to carry out from a prison cell, like the viewing of classified materials, to name just one. We are still very much in hypothetical territory at this point, with any potential conviction for Mr Trump still a long way off and little more than a distant possibility. But the conversations he has started with his latest bid for the presidency have already pushed parts of theoretical US constitutional law far further than many experts ever believed they might live to see. Read More Trump judge demands court hearing as Jack Smith and ex-president spar over protective order – latest Trump-appointed Judge Aileen Cannon sides with Trump again in classified documents case Former Republican official in Georgia subpoenaed over Trump efforts to change election result Trump and Biden tied in hypothetical 2024 rematch, poll finds Prosecutors have started presenting Georgia election investigation to grand jury Hunter Biden's lawyers say gun portion of plea deal remains valid after special counsel announcement Trump assails judge in 2020 election case after she warned him not to make inflammatory remarks
1970-01-01 08:00

Three US military services without Senate-confirmed chiefs for first time in history
Another US military service chief has relinquished command without a Senate-confirmed replacement in place, marking the first time in the Defense Department's history that three services are operating without a confirmed senior military officer in place.
1970-01-01 08:00

Danny Ainge Really Still Bragging About Trades That Never Happened With the Celtics
Danny Ainge nearly pulled off another trade.
1970-01-01 08:00

PayPal Names Intuit’s Alex Chriss CEO, Replacing Schulman
PayPal Holdings Inc. named Alex Chriss chief executive officer, tapping a longtime fintech executive with a focus on
1970-01-01 08:00

Trump wildly inflates size of crowd at Iowa State Fair
Former president Donald Trump inflated attendance numbers of his appearance at the Iowa State Fair, saying he had a record attendance for his campaign stop. Mr Trump gave a press conference at the fairgrounds in Des Moines that was broadcast by Real America’s Voice. “It’s a real honour to be here,” he said. “We have a record that was set. The record is the largest crowd they’ve ever had and I can see that because you can’t get any more people here. I’m very honoured by it, tremendous thing.” Mr Trump attended the state far as he seeks to win the Iowa Caucus, where he came in second place in 2016. Florida Gov Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov Nikki Haley, former vice president Mike Pence and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, among others, also attended the state fair as they attempt to court voters. But all of the candidates significantly trail the former president, who won Iowa in the general election both in 2016 and in 2020 as it has moved from being a battleground to a solidly conservative state. The Des Moines Register reported that the third day of the state fair, on which Mr Trump attended, had 5,000 more people attend than the third day of the 2022 state fair and 118,000 people attended altogether on the third day of the fair. The all-time attendance record for the state record came in 2019 when 1,170,375 attended throughout the entire fair. Mr Trump has regularly inflated attendance numbers for his events. Most notably the day after his inauguration, then-White House press secretary Sean Spicer told reporters incorrectly that Mr Trump’s inauguration had “the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period, both in person and around the globe.” The former president made the appearance as he faces three indictments, two on the federal level and another from New York, as well as a potential indictment from the office of the district attorney for Fulton County, Georgia. Read More Trump heaps praise on anti-Muslim conspiracy theorist as fourth potential indictment looms in Georgia – latest Republicans slam Biden’s blasé response to questions about Maui wildfires
1970-01-01 08:00

Amazon Loses Key Backer Four Years Into Plan to Eliminate Carbon Emissions
Four years into a plan to eliminate its carbon emissions, Amazon.com Inc. has lost a key endorsement from
1970-01-01 08:00