Special Counsel Jack Smith: Judgement Day (one way or the other)

[Kendra]

Seems there's some speculation on DeadLine WH that Rudy's meeting with the Special Counsel was maybe a proffer session. Not confirmed that I've seen.

[Kendra]

Cross posting.

NEW: the Rudy meeting was a proffer session. Methinks he set this up to see if he could avoid indictment or lessen potential charges. Remember how Rudy said he had an “insurance policy” if trump turned on him?

[RVInit]

So maybe Rudy does still have a little bit of his brain left? I'm guessing he has the goods, he was right in the middle of everything.

[Kendra]

DeadLine WH did a deep dive on this at the start of the show. Might have to rewatch, but IIRC, it was mentioned Rudy's attorney is very good, and perhaps knew when to

Still,

[Kendra]

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/worl ... 66597.html

The Department of Justice is prepared to seek indictments against multiple figures in former president Donald Trump’s orbit and may yet bring additional charges against the ex-president in the coming weeks, The Independent has learned.

According to sources familiar with the matter, the department has made preparations to bring what is known as a “superseding indictment” — a second set of charges against an already-indicted defendant that could include more serious crimes — against the ex-president, and could do so in a number of different venues, depending on how prosecutors feel the case they have brought against him in a Florida federal court is proceeding.

The Independent understands that prosecutors’ decision on whether to seek additional charges from a grand jury — and where to seek them — will depend in part on whether they feel the Trump-appointed district judge overseeing the case against him in the Southern District of Florida, Aileen Cannon, is giving undue deference to the twice-impeached, now twice-indicted former president.

[raison de arizona]

[Kendra]

.
@nytimes
and
@cnn
report the Trump grand jury in SFL is still issuing subpoenas.

@AndrewFeinberg
reports a superseding indictment is possible.

Just remember, it's always darkest just before it goes pitch black.

[Kendra]

https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/29/politics ... index.html

A senior campaign official for Donald Trump was allegedly shown a classified map by the former president during a meeting at his New Jersey golf club after Trump left office, according to a source familiar with the matter.

The campaign adviser, Susie Wiles, has spoken to federal investigators numerous times as part of the special counsel’s Mar-a-Lago documents probe, multiple sources told CNN.

Wiles is not named in Jack Smith’s indictment of Trump, but a source familiar with the matter identified her as the “representative of his political action committee” who is referenced in the indictment.

During her interviews, sources say that prosecutors repeatedly asked Wiles about whether Trump showed her classified documents. They also inquired about a map and whether she had any knowledge regarding documents related to Joint Chiefs Chairman, Gen. Mark Milley, one source added.

The indictment alleges that Trump showed classified documents to people on two separate occasions.

[northland10]

So maybe Rudy does still have a little bit of his brain left? I'm guessing he has the goods, he was right in the middle of everything.

His use may only be good for the GJ. Credibility in a trial could be a major issue. Trump's team may have some issues with their judgment (they work for Trump), but even they could tear Rudy down without breaking a sweat.

I suppose if the prosecution was able to rip into their own witness to show how much of a lying POS he is and then moved the jury to see that very focused part where they can take his word because it aligns with other evidence, that might make it harder for the defense to destroy him as a witness because the prosecution has already torn him down. They have to focus on that one focused spot and only that. Granted, IANAL so such a strategy may be better for TV than an actual courtroom.

[raison de arizona]

So maybe Rudy does still have a little bit of his brain left? I'm guessing he has the goods, he was right in the middle of everything.

His use may only be good for the GJ. Credibility in a trial could be a major issue. Trump's team may have some issues with their judgment (they work for Trump), but even they could tear Rudy down without breaking a sweat.

I suppose if the prosecution was able to rip into their own witness to show how much of a lying POS he is and then moved the jury to see that very focused part where they can take his word because it aligns with other evidence, that might make it harder for the defense to destroy him as a witness because the prosecution has already torn him down. They have to focus on that one focused spot and only that. Granted, IANAL so such a strategy may be better for TV than an actual courtroom.

What if he has TAPES though???

[Chilidog]

So maybe Rudy does still have a little bit of his brain left? I'm guessing he has the goods, he was right in the middle of everything.

Rudy is the kind of sneaky little shit that would screw his own cousin and find a way to normalize it.

[AndyinPA]

Oh, you went there.

[Foggy]

What if he has TAPES though???

The tapes must be analyzed for alcohol, Viagra, and other substances.



But yes, without receipts, Rudy has zero value as a witness for either side. After the performance of his deposition we saw recently, you wouldn't want him as a witness for your side of a lawsuit. To use official legal jargon, the man is a mental bental, and godonlyknows if he even understands what he's saying, but he says a lot of it.

Whew.

[Sam the Centipede]

Ya don't think Rudy-doody would even be useful at the Court of the Bun-Dogs, testifying in the case of Taitz v. All Decent Americans?

I am confident that Four Seasons Lanscaping could support him with legal advice.

[Maybenaut]

Ya don't think Rudy-doody would even be useful at the Court of the Bun-Dogs, testifying in the case of Taitz v. All Decent Americans?

I am confident that Four Seasons Lanscaping could support him with legal advice.

Looking back, of all the whackadoodle stuff that happened during the election lawsuit BS, this is by far the funniest.

[raison de arizona]

Are the walls closing in?

Former Trump campaign official cooperating with special counsel in 2020 election interference probe

Former Donald Trump campaign official Mike Roman is cooperating with prosecutors from special counsel Jack Smith’s team in the ongoing criminal probe related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN.

One of the sources said that the agreement, known as a proffer agreement, means that Roman may not have to appear before the grand jury but could instead speak to prosecutors in a more informal setting. Under such an agreement, prosecutors generally agree not to use those statements against them in future criminal proceedings.

Roman, who received a grand jury subpoena months ago and had his phone seized, was involved in efforts to put forward slates of fake Trump electors following the 2020 election.

Investigators have recently zeroed in on the efforts to put forward alternate slates of electors in seven states Trump lost and the role of lawyers who were working for the former president after the 2020 election, multiple sources have said.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/29/politics ... sel-probe/

[Kendra]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... e95a&ei=11

CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins scooped that Special Counsel Jack Smith’s team is drilling down on the bonkers Oval Office meeting at which, among other things, Trump entertained the idea of declaring martial law to hold on to power.

The reporting team of Collins, Zachary Cohen, Paula Reid, Sara Murray, and Katelyn Polantz dropped a report Thursday night detailing the investigative thread that Smith’s probe is pulling on — namely, the now-infamous December 18, 2020 meeting at which Mike Flynn, Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, and others floated zany and dangerous ideas to Trump.

On Thursday night’s edition of CNN Primetime, Collins opened the show by breaking her exclusive reporting on Smith’s ever-expanding probe:

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

[RTH10260]

Trump’s Lingering Appeal Over Pence’s Jan. 6 Testimony Dismissed

Zoe Tillman
Fri, 7 July 2023 at 9:03 pm CEST·

(Bloomberg) -- A federal appeals court tossed out what remained of Donald Trump’s unsuccessful legal fight to stop his former vice president-turned-rival Mike Pence from testifying about efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

A panel of the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit issued a sealed order on Friday granting a request by Special Counsel Jack Smith’s office to dismiss the case, rebuffing opposition by Trump’s lawyers.

The parties aren’t named in the public docket, but Bloomberg News previously confirmed information about the litigation.

Pence testified before a grand jury in Washington in late April in the federal probe being run by Smith’s office after Trump failed to convince the DC Circuit to temporarily stop it while the former president appealed on the merits. A lower court judge rejected Trump’s executive privilege challenge to the subpoena for Pence’s appearance.

That initial order in April didn’t end the appeal, but it signaled that Trump was unlikely to win. All of the briefs in the case are sealed, but the public docket shows that after Pence appeared, the government asked the court to dismiss the case. Trump’s attorneys asked to keep the case active.

Pence separately challenged the subpoena, raising novel issues about whether he was entitled to a legislative privilege against being forced to testify, given that he presided over the joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021, to certify the 2020 election results.

He did not pursue an appeal after US District Chief Judge James Boasberg ruled that Pence was entitled to some level of constitutional protection but that didn’t “cover the vast majority of what the special counsel seeks to ask him about.”

The legal fight unfolded as Pence prepared to launch his 2024 Republican presidential campaign. Trump had already declared his candidacy in November, which led to Smith’s appointment as special counsel.

A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately return a request for comment. A spokesperson for Smith’s office declined to comment.

The case was before Judges Karen LeCraft Henderson, appointed by former President George H.W. Bush; Trump appointee Justin Walker; and Bradley Garcia, appointed by President Joe Biden. The public docket entry for Friday’s order doesn’t indicate that a member of the panel dissented.




https://uk.news.yahoo.com/trump-lingeri ... 21350.html
(original: Bloomberg)

[RTH10260]

[RTH10260]

Ex-DOJ official: Michigan interview shows Jack Smith targeting pro-Trump "broad national conspiracy"
DOJ building "mother of all election conspiracy cases that could be charged in any one jurisdiction," analyst says

By TATYANA TANDANPOLIE
PUBLISHED JULY 13, 2023 12:34PM (EDT)

Prosecutors on special counsel Jack Smith's team interviewed Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson for "several hours" in March as part of the ongoing federal investigation into efforts to interfere with the 2020 presidential election, Benson told CNN Wednesday.

"[The interview] really underscored, I think, the depth through which the federal prosecutors are looking into everything and the seriousness with which they're taking what occurred and the quest for justice to ensure it doesn't happen again," Benson told CNN's Kaitlan Collins Wednesday evening.

Though Benson did not disclose specific details about the interview — including whether she was asked about former President Donald Trump or if Smith was present — she did reveal that prosecutors focused on, among other subjects, "the impact of the misinformation on [election workers'] lives and the threats that emerged from that from various sources."

"Myself and the election officials who have – at request or simply because we have a story tell – have been speaking to authorities, I think it's really a reflection of our desire to ensure that the law is followed, and where there's evidence of wrongdoing, there's justice that is served," Benson said.

She added that she is "willing to speak with anyone," including the grand jury, "about what we endured."

"If and when we are requested, we'll be a part of any proceedings that require my testimony," Benson said, adding that "it's important for the American public to know that what occurred in 2020 was really detrimental to who we are as Americans."

Benson's interview with federal prosecutors is the third recent meeting between Smith's team and officials in key battleground states that Trump and his allies targeted in efforts to subvert the results of the 2020 election reported in recent weeks. CNN reported that Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger met with prosecutors last month in connection to the probe, and former Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers told Collins last week that he was interviewed by investigators seeking information relevant to the federal inquiry a few months ago.




https://www.salon.com/2023/07/13/ex-doj ... onspiracy/

[Kendra]

FWIW, Benson was on DeadLine WH today talking about this.

[Kendra]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics ... 6b998&ei=9

New York Times correspondent and CNN analyst Maggie Haberman said ex-President Donald Trump is “very upset” that Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump have cooperated in investigations against him minutes after Haberman broke the scoop that Kushner testified for Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation.

Haberman and Michael Schmidt broke the news late Thursday afternoon that Kushner testified to a federal grand jury about Trump’s state of mind following the 2020 election in order to try and establish “corrupt intent” on Trump’s part.

Haven't seen a link yet, but I heard on the teevee this morning that Hope Hicks was also in to the grand jury, and just last month. All the talking heads say getting this far inside the inner circle and locking in testimony is key to wrapping up and deciding on charges.

[Kendra]

I'll post a link when I see it, but over on MSNBC/DeadLine WH, they're saying ABC is reporting that a trump employee has received a target letter, presumably over the surveillance videos, and how they were handled. Some speculation on air if Smith is trying to flip someone, etc.

[sugar magnolia]

I'll post a link when I see it, but over on MSNBC/DeadLine WH, they're saying ABC is reporting that a trump employee has received a target letter, presumably over the surveillance videos, and how they were handled. Some speculation on air if Smith is trying to flip someone, etc.

https://abcnews.go.com/US/target-letter ... =101234029