Trump Corruption

USA Today reports: A day after Democrats officially took over the House of Representatives – and one lawmaker profanely called for impeachment – President Donald Trump accused his newly empowered opponents of only wanting to remove him from office. Trump did not identify the inspiration for his impeachment tweet, but it came the morning after a new Democratic member of …

CNBC reports: The White House just announced press secretary Sarah Sanders will hold a surprise briefing this afternoon. The tweet from Sarah Sanders came at 4:07 p.m. ET. She said the briefing would start at 4:10 p.m. It’s now 4:25 p.m. but the press is assembling in the briefing room.

Raw Story reports: California Democrat Rep. Brad Sherman is expected to file articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump when Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) convenes the newly Democratic-dominated House on Thursday. According to the Los Angeles Times, Sherman, who attempted to file the articles in 2017, will find a more receptive audience following the midterm elections that saw the Democrats …

Real Clear Politics reports: Trump legal team spokesman Rudy Giuliani joins the Brian Kilmeade Show on WABC radio to talk about the Mueller probe and related items. About those investigating the president, Giuliani said there are some “out of control Hillary people” on the team. “I’m not saying Weissmann needs to go to a psychiatrist,” he said about one of …

The Hill reports: President Trump’s former personal attorney denied a report Thursday that gave weight to an unverified claim that Cohen took a trip to Prague in summer 2016 to meet with Russian officials. Cohen, who has been cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference since this summer, tweeted that he had never been to the Czech …

Government Executive reports: Even as much of the federal government grinds to a halt, Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort still needs tents for the winter party season—and taxpayers are footing at least $54,000 of the bill. According to government spending data, Grimes Events & Party Tents Inc. of Delray Beach, Florida was paid $54,020 by the U.S. Secret Service on December 19 …

“I’ve got evidence that the FBI and Mueller’s team are now harassing my family. They’re doing door knocks on my stepson, they’re parking surveillance vans with two agents in it outside the places where various members of my family work. My children have done nothing wrong. My wife — I’ve been married to for 27 years. And now, what are …

The Rising reports: Rudy Giuliani has an unmistakable New Year’s message for special counsel Robert Mueller: It is time for the chief investigator in the Russia case to be investigated in 2019. “Mueller should be investigated for destruction of evidence for allowing those text messages from Strzok to be erased, messages that would show the state of mind and tactics …

McClatchy reports: A mobile phone traced to President Donald Trump’s former lawyer and “fixer” Michael Cohen briefly sent signals ricocheting off cell towers in the Prague area in late summer 2016, at the height of the presidential campaign, leaving an electronic record to support claims that Cohen met secretly there with Russian officials, four people with knowledge of the matter …

NBC News reports: The Trump Foundation and the Trump Organization shared much more than President Donald Trump’s last name. And that’s why, experts said, the New York state investigations into the charity could envelop the president’s namesake business. “Nothing but overlap here. It all was held so tightly by he and his family members,” NBC News/MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner, …

Talking Points Memo reports: The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals froze a lawsuit accusing Trump of violating the constitution’s emoluments clause, after DOJ attorneys asked for a halt to their appeal, saying that the ongoing government shutdown will prevent them from doing their work. “The Department does not know when funding will be restored by Congress,” DOJ attorneys representing Trump …

“There doesn’t seem to be any strategic rationale for the decision. And if there’s no strategic rationale for the decision then you have to ask, why was the decision made? People around the world are asking this and some of our friends and our allies in the Middle East are asking, did Erdogan blackmail the president? Was there a payoff …

Time Magazine reports: Outgoing Sen. Bob Corker criticized Donald Trump on Twitter Sunday after the President lashed out at the Tennessee Republican. In a series of tweets, Trump claimed that Corker abandoned a plan to run for a third Senate term because the President would not endorse him. The President then falsely stated that the senator was responsible for the …

The Hill reports: Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), the incoming chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, says Democrats will subpoena special counsel Robert Mueller’s report if President Trump tries to invoke executive privilege to keep it secret. “I’m prepared to make sure we do everything possible so that the public has the advantage of as much of the information as it …

The Observer reports: In his latest get-rich scheme, Roger Stone is now selling rocks emblazoned with his autograph to defray his Russia-related legal bills. Unfortunately for the political operative, sellers of political memorabilia appraised his signature as worthless, and unlikely to collect any real value in the future. “In historical terms, I suspect he will wind up as a minor …

The New York Daily News reports: The House Intelligence Committee voted Thursday to give Robert Mueller the official transcript of an interview it conducted with Roger Stone, marking the most decisive step yet that the special counsel is prepping to indict the mercurial Trump loyalist. Mueller, who is investigating possible collusion between Russians and the Trump campaign ahead of the …

CNN reports: Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker has consulted with ethics officials at the Justice Department and they have advised him he does not need to recuse himself from overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, a source familiar with the process told CNN Thursday. The source added Whitaker has been in ongoing discussions with ethics officials since taking the …

CNN reports: Former Attorney General William “Bill” Barr, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Justice Department, reached a decisive and controversial conclusion that Trump’s interactions with ex-FBI Director James Comey would not constitute obstruction of justice, according to a copy of a newly released June 2018 memo to senior Justice officials. The fact that Barr weighed in on such …

The Associated Press reports: A New York judge has signed off on a deal to close President Donald Trump’s embattled charity and give about $1.7 million in remaining funds to other nonprofits. Justice Saliann Scarpulla approved the deal late Wednesday, triggering the start of a court-supervised process for putting the Trump Foundation out of business. New York’s attorney general and …

The Washington Post reports: Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), the incoming chairman of the House Oversight Committee, fired off more than 50 letters Wednesday seeking documents on a wide array of issues, including Ivanka Trump’s email practices, the Trump administration’s policy of family separations at the border, and its handling of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. The move underscored plans …