Trump Corruption

CNN reports: A California Superior Court judge has ordered President Donald Trump to pay $44,100 to Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels, to reimburse her attorneys’ fees in the legal battle surrounding her nondisclosure agreement. The judge’s order was issued Monday but posted online Friday by Clifford’s attorneys. Clifford, an adult-film actress who says she had an affair with …

The New York Post reports: David Pecker has pulled out of American Media for good. The 68-year-old media tycoon — whose 20-year reign as the owner of the National Enquirer got mired in scandals over “catch and kill” tactics to bury damaging stories about President Trump — has stepped down as chief executive. Pecker is exiting as part of a …

Here’s what really happened: The DNC did not omit “under God” from the pledge, nor did they forbid its use. In fact, during every recitation of the pledge before each night’s events — the 2020 DNC lasted four nights — the phrase “under God” was included. Political conventions are sprawling events. In addition to the “main events” that take place …

Reuters reports: The White House said on Friday it strongly opposes a bill backed by congressional Democrats addressing U.S. Postal Service policies ahead of the Nov. 3 election and would recommend President Donald Trump veto it. The White House Office of Management and Budget said in a statement that the House of Representatives bill “would arbitrarily give USPS $25 billion …

Politico reports: In a private meeting inside Trump Tower days before his inauguration, Donald Trump told a group of civil rights leaders something most Republicans wouldn’t dare publicly acknowledge: lower turnout among Black voters did, in fact, benefit him in the 2016 presidential election. “Many Blacks didn’t go out to vote for Hillary ‘cause they liked me. That was almost …

CNN reports: Donald Trump ally Kris Kobach said in an interview last year that he had spoken with the President three times about the private border wall project that is currently at the center of a federal fraud investigation, and that Trump was “enthusiastic” about the project and it carried his blessing. Speaking on an episode of the “We Build …

The Associated Press reports: Attorney General William Barr said he would be “vehemently opposed” to any attempt to pardon former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, after the president suggested he might consider it. The attorney general’s comments in an interview with The Associated Press come days after President Donald Trump said he would “look at” whether to pardon Snowden, …

Law & Crime reports: A federal judge in New York City denied President Donald Trump‘s request to enjoin an order that allows Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance to subpoena the 45th president’s tax returns and other financial records on Friday morning. On Thursday, Southern District of New York (SDNY) District Judge Victor Marrero issued a lengthy ruling that dismissed Trump’s …

“I am not going to back down. This is a political hit job. Everybody knows I love a fight. I was called ‘honey badger’ for many years. You know, ‘Honey badger doesn’t give.’ “So, I’m in this for the long haul. I’m in this for the fight. I’m going to continue to fight.  This was to stop and intimidate people …

The Associated Press reports: Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, pressed by senators over mail delivery disruptions, said Friday he was unaware of changes that sparked a public uproar, but his responses raised fresh questions about how the Postal Service will ensure timely delivery of ballots for the November election. DeJoy told senators he has zero plans to restore blue mailboxes and …

USA Today reports: The head of the U.S. Postal Service will testify before the Republican-controlled Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Friday morning. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy will address concerns over the latest changes to the agency, which include service delays until after the November election. On Monday, DeJoy will testify before the House Oversight Committee. Things just …

CNN reports: President Donald Trump on Thursday said he would send law enforcement officials to polling locations to guard against voter fraud in November’s election, although it’s not clear he has the authority to do so. “We’re going to have sheriffs, and we’re going to have law enforcement, and we’re going to have, hopefully, US attorneys, and we’re going to …

The Washington Post reports: Hours before former vice president Joe Biden accepts the Democratic presidential nomination, President Trump held a rally in this key swing state where he took aim at his rival’s record and accused him of having “abandoned” Pennsylvania — even though Biden was only 10 when his family moved to Delaware for his father’s job. “He left,” …

The Associated Press reports: An effort to qualify Kanye West for the ballot in Montana as a presidential candidate has fallen short, the secretary of state’s office said Thursday. Only 3,972 signatures out of nearly 8,800 turned in were deemed valid, state officials said. West needed 5,000 to qualify as an independent candidate. It wasn’t clear who was behind the …

Law & Crime reports: Former Trump 2016 campaign guru and White House advisor Steve Bannon made his first court appearance on Thursday afternoon after being arrested for wire fraud and money laundering earlier in the day. The arraignment was a pro forma session that largely passed uneventfully–with the defendant consenting to various procedural asks posed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Stewart …

CNN reports: The president who complains about censorship by Twitter wants to censor people himself. On Thursday, the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to overturn a lower court’s decision and grant President Donald Trump the ability to block his critics on Twitter. The petition seeks to revive a case decided by a New York federal judge in 2018. At …

CBS News reports: President Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., is seeking to distance himself from the “We Build the Wall” crowdfunding campaign after former White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon and three others were arrested and charged with defrauding donors. A spokesperson for Trump Jr., whose name is listed on the organization’s website as having endorsed it, said he had …

From an exhaustive report published today by Forbes: A new report from the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence offers a damning portrait of the people Donald Trump chose as his partners for potential projects in Russia. They include individuals with alleged connections to the mob, to Vladimir Putin and to human trafficking. The group would comprise an extraordinary list …

ABC News reports: President Trump sought to distance himself from Stephen Bannon on Thursday following the former White House chief strategist’s arrest, with Trump saying he hasn’t dealt with Bannon in a “long” time and calling a fundraising project for which Bannon and three others were indicted “inappropriate.” “I feel very badly. I haven’t been dealing with him for a …

The New York Times reports: A federal judge on Thursday rejected President Trump’s latest effort to block the Manhattan district attorney from obtaining his tax returns, dismissing Mr. Trump’s arguments that the prosecutor’s grand jury subpoena was “wildly overbroad” and issued in bad faith. The ruling by Judge Victor Marrero of Manhattan Federal Court is the latest turn in a …