List of All Articles with Tag 'us politics'

A day after Donald Trump's posts on Truth Social were cited by prosecutors in a filing that requested strict rules on how the former president could use evidence, Trump ranted about his mounting legal issues while speaking to a large crowd in Windham, New Hampshire.

California Governor Gavin Newsom mocked Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's proposed debate rules, likening them to crutches and calling him a "joke." Mr Newsom has repeatedly called for Mr DeSantis to debate him on policy issues, with the Florida governor only recently accepting the challenge. Mr DeSantis — who is running against Donald Trump in the GOP's 2024 presidential primary — told Fox News' Sean Hannity on Wednesday that he would duke it out with Mr Newsom, assuming they could reach an agreement on rules. "I'm game, let's get it done, just tell me when and where," Mr DeSantis said. While the ideologically opposed governors did find some common ground — they both agreed to have Hannity act as a moderator and they both listed Georgia as an acceptable host state for the event — Mr Newsom otherwise rejected Mr DeSantis's proposals, Politico reports. The Florida governor's team asked that opening statements be replaced with pre-recorded videos, and that the venue include a live audience rather than a debate in an empty room, according to Politico Playbook. Mr Newsom's spokesperson called the stipulations a "crutch" and laid into Mr DeSantis. “What a joke,” Mr Newsom's spokesperson, Nathan Click, said in a statement. “Desantis’ counterproposal is littered with crutches to hide his insecurity and ineptitude — swapping opening statements with a hype video, cutting down the time he needs to be on stage, adding cheat notes and a cheering section.” He added that "Ron should be able to stand on his own two feet," and that "it's no wonder Trump is kicking his a**." Mr Newsom's rule proposal — which he issued in late July — included no audience, live opening statements, and suggested venues in Georgia, Nevada, or North Carolina. While Mr DeSantis suggested dates spanning the fall — from 19 September through 8 November — Mr Newsom only offered November dates for a possible debate. Read More Ron DeSantis replaces campaign manager as 2024 bid falters Ex-Pence adviser hammers his old boss as ‘unworthy of the presidency’ and endorses Trump DeSantis once again defends slavery curriculum: Enslaved people ‘showing resourcefulness’ developed ‘skills’

The sheriff in the Georgia county where former President Donald Trump is expected to be indicted in connection to his attempts to overturn the presidential election results in the state has said that Mr Trump will receive no special treatment and that a mugshot will be taken “if warranted”. Fulton County Sheriff appeared on CNN on Sunday, saying that “first and foremost, we will follow our own policies and procedures”. “We simply don't ... give any leniency just because of your status. Ultimately, there may be a court order that his lawyers may ask for, there may be some alternate ... processes around it, but we'll stay focused on our policies and procedures. And if a mugshot is warranted, we'll follow that policy and procedure as well,” he added. “We have a lot of high-profile cases here in Fulton County in Atlanta. And so again, we treat everybody equally,” he said. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is expected to indict Mr Trump any day this month in relation to her years-long investigation into the ex-president’s conduct. It’s set to be Mr Trump’s fourth indictment of this year. “The work is accomplished,” Ms Willis recently told local news stations. “We’ve been working for two-and-a-half years. We’re ready to go.” Sheriff Labat told CNN on Sunday that Atlanta police have taken lessons from Mr Trump’s previous arraignments. “We’ve certainly learned from both New York as well as Miami. So, we’ve got a lot of different agencies involved,” he said. “And so ultimately, we’ve created a force multiplier and really just focusing on the moment. So, again, you mentioned roads being closed, and several other security opportunities for us that we keep close to the vest. But other than that, we are standing ready.” Ms Willis has said that she’s been receiving a high number of threats in connection to her work prosecuting Mr Trump. “They’re very grotesque things. We’re on family television. I don’t even know that I like to say all of them but ‘slave whore’ is one of them. I’ve been called pretty much everything but a child of God,” Ms Willis said, according to WSB-TV. “I’m receiving phone calls and emails and communications that are derogatory in nature. They don’t always state what the reason is that their calling. But I’ve probably been called the N word more times in the last two-and-a-half years than most — a hundred people combined,” she added. Sheriff Labat told CNN that “we investigate every threat and she and her team have forwarded us those threats. I’ve received threats personally, both text, cell phone messages ... and e-mails. It’s easy to be a keyboard bully, but our goal is to focus on the safety and security of our community and really stick to the plan”. When asked if the threats are directly connected to Mr Trump, Sheriff Labat said, “Oh, absolutely”. “They mentioned the former president by name in many of them – e-mails, social media, again, including voicemails,” he added. “We’re focusing on all of the courthouse security, the surrounding security and just trying to be prepared as we possibly can,” Sheriff Labat told CNN. Read More Ron DeSantis replaces campaign manager as 2024 bid falters Gavin Newsom rips DeSantis terms for debate: ‘What a joke’ Trump-appointed judge orders Southwest attorneys to take ‘religious liberty training’ from right-wing group Trump rails against ‘bulls***’ charges in latest angry rant over indictment Former Trump lawyer slams ex-president’s latest legal strategy Washington DC grand jury that indicted Trump meets again in sign probe isn’t over

At least one of Donald Trump’s former lawyers appears to have a pretty low opinion of the newest defence that the ex-president’s legal team is trying out for size. Ty Cobb, former White House counsel, was speaking on CNN when he was asked about a whirlwind Sunday morning media tour embarked upon by John Lauro, one of Mr Trump’s currently defence attorneys. On several shows across the major TV networks, Mr Lauro displayed the Trump camp’s newest excuse for the former president’s efforts to pressure various Republican officials to interfere with state or federal election processes on his behalf, including his vice president, Mike Pence. In multiple interviews, Mr Lauro used the same word — “aspirational” — to describe Mr Trump’s urgings for Mr Pence to attempt to halt the Senate’s process certifying the 2020 election that he did to describe a phone call in which the former president was heard urging Georgia officials to “find” thousands of votes for him that did not exist. Mr Cobb was asked by CNN’s Erin Burnett whether there was any First Amendment defence that would come into play when a politician or elected official requests that a subordinate violate the law. “Not at all. I’m not aware of the ‘aspirational’ defence or the free speech defence to a gang leader saying to two of his subordinates, ‘I need you two to please rob a bank for me,’ and they do it. That’s aspirational but it leads to a crime and that’s exactly what Trump did with Pence,” Mr Cobb responded. His analysis appeared to poke a hole cleanly through the argument that the Trump team has made all weekend — that merely encouraging a crime to be committed is not an offence. Mr Trump has pleaded not guilty to all of the 78 criminal charges that the former president is accused of, including the four related to the 2020 election. But the “aspirational” defence appears to be the closest the Trump team has come to acknowledging that the actions the president requested, if carried out, would have been blatantly illegal. DoJ special counsel Jack Smith has argued that Mr Trump conspired to violate the constitutional rights of millions of Americans when he worked to change the results of the 2020 election even after losing all of his court challenges and being told, repeatedly, by his own expert authorities that his claims of election fraud were false. The ex-president is separately charged in two other cases involving classified documents retained from the White House as well as his own hush payments to a porn star in 2016. Despite his professed innocence, his lawyers have said that they expect more charges related to the 2020 election to be handed down in Georgia. His latest criminal indictment has been understood by numerous experts to have been engineered by the Justice Department for speed in the hopes that it will play out, one way or another, before the 2024 presidential election concludes. Mr Trump remains the dominant candidate in the Republican presidential primary. Read More Trump lawyer calls Trump request to Pence for Jan 6 ‘aspirational’ Chris Christie thinks this ex-Trump aide has already flipped Pence says he's now met polling, donor qualifications for first Republican debate Ron DeSantis replaces campaign manager as 2024 bid falters Gavin Newsom rips DeSantis terms for debate: ‘What a joke’ Trump-appointed judge orders Southwest attorneys to take ‘religious liberty training’ from right-wing group

Former president Donald Trump decried the multiple charges and indictments, calling them “bulls***,” during a rally in New Hampshire on Tuesday afternoon. Mr Trump spoke during a rally in the state that holds the first presidential primary and the one that gave him his first primary win in 2016. The twice-impeached and now three-times-indicted former president said that President Joe Biden’s administration indicted him to hamper his 2024 run despite the fact that Attorney General Merrick Garland nominated Special Counsel Jack Smith to handle the probes into Mr Trump independently. “How can my corrupt political opponent, crooked Joe Biden put me on trial during an election campaign that I'm winning by a lot, but forcing me nevertheless to spend time and money away from the campaign trail in order to fight bogus made up accusations and charges,” he said. “So what they're doing, I'm sorry, I won't be able to go to Iowa today. I won't be able to go to New Hampshire today because I'm sitting in a courtroom on bulls**t because his Attorney General charged me,” he said. In response, attendees in Windham proceeded to chant “bulls**t.” Last week, a federal grand jury indicted Read More Pence says he's now met polling, donor qualifications for first Republican debate Thousands in Haiti march to demand safety from violent gangs as killings and kidnappings soar New Hampshire is sued over removal of marker dedicated to Communist Party leader

Former Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday outlined his energy policy plan with the goal to overtake China as the world's top energy producer by 2040.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to freeze a lower court order that bars the government from regulating so-called ghost guns -- untraceable homemade weapons -- as firearms under federal law.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has replaced his campaign manager as he struggles to gain traction in his attempt to take down former President Donald Trump in the fight for the Republican presidential nomination. Campaign Manager Generra Peck will now instead move to the role of chief strategist with James Uthmeier taking on the top post, according to The Messenger. Mr Uthmeier previously held the position of chief of staff in the governor’s office. The shakeup comes not long after the campaign said that Ms Peck’s position was secure. She was in charge of Mr DeSantis’s successful 2022 reelection campaign in Florida but has been criticised by advisers to the governor as well as donors to the campaign after the campaign began to slow and funding started to run out. The campaign has had two rounds of staff and expenses cuts and a revamp of his media strategy to make the governor more available to mainstream outlets. A number of donors and advisers outside the campaign remained unsatisfied, prompting Mr DeSantis to ask Mr Uthmeier last week if he could analyse what issues may be plaguing the campaign and how they may be solved, leading to his hiring as campaign manager. The campaign doesn’t want to refer to the new moves as a “reboot,” The Messenger notes, preferring the word “reload”. “People have written Governor DeSantis’s obituary many times,” Mr Uthmeier told the outlet in a statement. “From his race against establishment primary candidate Adam Putnam, to his victory over legacy media-favored candidate Andrew Gillum [in 2018], to his twenty-point win over Charlie Crist [in 2022], Governor DeSantis has proven that he knows how to win. He’s breaking records on fundraising and has a supporting super PAC with $100 million in the bank and an incredible ground game. Get ready.” Iowa operative David Polyansky will take on the role of deputy campaign manager, leaving his post as an advisor to Never Back Down, the DeSantis-supporting Super PAC. More follows... Read More Florida school board reverses decision nixing access to children's book about a male penguin couple Trump and Biden tied in hypothetical 2024 rematch: poll DeSantis won’t rule out abortion ban but suggests there’s no ‘mileage’ in Congress

The then-leader of the US Coast Guard covered up an explosive investigation four years ago into rapes and sexual assaults at the agency's academy despite prior plans by top officials to come clean about the inquiry, a CNN investigation found.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is replacing campaign manager Generra Peck, ending weeks of speculation about her future leading his struggling White House bid and continuing a shakeup of his 2024 presidential campaign that has lasted for a month.

Former president Donald Trump was hit with his third criminal indictment on 1 August, this one charging him over his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and the subsequent January 6 attack on the US Capitol Building. Following an investigation by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith, a grand jury in Washington, DC, has charged Mr Trump on four counts: conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, conspiracy against rights and obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding. This is the second federal indictment filed against the Republican and the third he has received in total this year. The DC district judge assigned to oversee the case is Tanya Chutkan, a court docket revealed prior to Mr Trump’s arraignment on Thursday 3 August, at which he entered a not guilty plea to all charges. Judge Chutkan is an appointee of former president Barack Obama and was first appointed to the US District Court for the District of Columbia in June 2014. Here’s everything you need to know about the judge assigned to Mr Trump’s case. Who is Judge Tanya Chutkan? Born in Kingston, Jamaica, Judge Chutkan received her BA in Economics from George Washington University and her Juris Doctor (JD) from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was an associate editor of its Law Review and a legal writing fellow, according to her DC District Court biography. After law school, Judge Chutkan worked in private practice for three years, before joining the District of Columbia Public Defender Service (PDS), where she worked as a trial attorney and supervisor. According to her biography, during Judge Chutkan’s time working at the PDS, she argued “several appellate cases and tried over 30 cases, including numerous serious felony matters”. Eleven years later, Judge Chutkan left the PDS and joined the private law firm Boies, Schiller, & Flexner LLP, where she worked for 12 years and specialised in white collar criminal defence. As a district judge, she has become known as one of the toughest judges in the prosecution of the Capitol rioters. One case thar caught everyone’s attention was that of an Ohio couple, Brandon and Stephanie Miller, who climbed through a broken window of the US Capitol and live-streamed a video of themselves inside the building. At the time, the prosecutor asked the Department of Justice (DoJ) to sentence them to home confinement as a part of a 36-month probationary period. Judge Chutkan disagreed with the prosecution’s request and instead sentenced Mr Miller to 20 days in jail and Ms Miller to 14 days in December 2021. At the time, Judge Chutkan said: “They didn’t just walk through a door. They climbed through a broken window… they knew full well of the violence that had preceded their entry. “The fact is that they were part of a mob… that was intent on stopping the lawful transfer of power.” In total, she has already sentenced at least 38 people convicted of Capitol riot-related crimes – and has handed down harsh punishments in these cases. Matt Mazzocco – a Texas mortgage broker who posed for a selfie in front of rioters breaching the building – was sentenced to 45 days in jail by Judge Chutkan with an additional 60 hours of community service in October 2021. Prosecutors had initially recommended three months under home confinement and probation but Judge Chutkan described the recommended sentence as too lenient. “If Mr Mazzocco walks away with probation and a slap on the wrist, that’s not going to deter anyone trying what he did again. It does not, in this court’s opinion, indicate the severity – the gravity of the offences that he committed on January 6,” she said. Judge Chutkan vs Trump Judge Chutkan has also had previous dealings with Mr Trump. In November 2021, Mr Trump filed a lawsuit in the hopes of blocking the National Archives from handing over documents related to the failed insurrection to the House select committee investigating the events of that day. Judge Chutkan rejected Mr Trump’s request and said: “While broad, these requests, and each of the other requests made by the committee, do not exceed the committee’s legislative powers.” She said that Mr Trump had not acknowledged “the deference owed to” President Joe Biden’s determination that the committee could access the materials. “[Mr Trump’s] position that he may override the express will of the executive branch appears to be premised on the notion that his executive power ‘exists in perpetuity,’” Judge Chutkan said. “But presidents are not kings, and the plaintiff is not president.” An Associated Press analysis of court records shows Judge Chutkan has sentenced at least 38 people convicted of Capitol riot-related crimes so far. She is one of two dozen judges in DC who have collectively sentenced almost 600 defendants so far for their roles in the assault on democracy. Additonal reporting from agencies. Read More Live updates: Trump pleads not guilty at arraignment in 2020 election case Trump moans criminal cases are keeping him from the campaign trail: ‘Must be Unconstitutional?’ Who is Jack Smith? The special prosecutor who just indicted Trump again Is Donald Trump going to prison? Judge in Trump election case gets extra protection after ex-president posts about her Trump judge demands hearing as Jack Smith and Trump spar over protective order – live Inside the courtroom, it was clear this indictment is different for Donald Trump

A federal grand jury reconvened on Tuesday for the first time since handing up an indictment last week against former President Donald Trump related to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.