The Donald Trump Score Card

Never miss an opportunity to profiteer and price gouge

 

Can A Former President Be Impeached? The Precedent For Trump's Senate Trial
Paul Blumenthal
Reporter, HuffPost
January 25, 2021

Can A Former President Be Impeached? The Precedent For Trump's Senate Trial

excerpt:

"First of all, Trump was impeached by the House on Jan. 13 while he was still in office. Belknap had resigned his seat hours before the House impeached him and the Senate still held it had jurisdiction. If anything, this puts even more weight on the constitutionality of a Senate trial for Trump’s second impeachment.

Second, what Trump is accused of doing is far worse than any action committed by any government official who faced impeachment in the past. And most of what he did to merit impeachment is part of the public record. He lied about the potential for fraud with mail-in voting. Then when he lost he pointed to his lies about mail-in voting to falsely claim that he won the election. He then attempted to pressure state-level and local Republican officials to invalidate the election results or, in the case of Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, to “find” votes that would make him the winner or else face prosecution.

When these efforts were rebuffed, he considered purging the Department of Justice in order to install a lackey who would bring lawsuits based on lies to invalidate election results in enough states for Trump to claim victory. He ultimately did not go through with this plan.

Instead, he summoned his supporters to Washington for a rally on Jan. 6, the day Congress would open, count and certify the electoral college results. He lied to them again by saying that Vice President Mike Pence, as the President of the Senate, had the sole power to invalidate electoral college certificates and count others backing Trump. And then when they were gathered by the White House, he told them to march on the Capitol as the electoral college certification proceedings were underway."

 

Can A Former President Be Impeached? The Precedent For Trump's Senate Trial

excerpt:

"These actions occurred because Trump’s time in office was running out. He had lost the election, but the extended lame-duck period from November to January enabled him to attempt to overturn the election result and install himself in office as an unelected ruler. Stating that he cannot be impeached because he committed these acts so close to his departure from office looks like a greenlight for any future president to try this again."

 

An interpretation of the Constitution that it doesn't permit an impeachment trial after a president has left office would permit a person to escape from being prohibited by a U.S. Senate trial from running for office again. A president could commit an impeachable act such as treason, resign (or allow term to expire shortly thereafter), escape an impeachment conviction, and run for office again (assuming he or she wasn't convicted of felonies after leaving office).

 

"We are in the midst of a fundamental debate about the future and direction of our world. We’re at an inflection point between those who argue that, given all the challenges we face — from the fourth industrial revolution to a global pandemic — that autocracy is the best way forward, they argue, and those who understand that democracy is essential — essential to meeting those challenges...Democracy will and must prevail. We must demonstrate that democracies can still deliver for our people in this changed world. That, in my view, is our galvanizing mission.”
President Biden

 

Trump's rioters are facing more serious charges.


Capitol Rioters Facing Felonies And Other Serious Charges

excerpt:

"WASHINGTON — Bruno Cua, an 18-year-old from Milton, Georgia, was already facing serious charges when he was arrested on Feb. 6 in connection with the insurrection at the US Capitol a month earlier. He was accused not only of illegally entering the Capitol but also of assaulting police and of obstructing Congress’s efforts to certify the presidential election, which are felony crimes.

But it only got worse for Cua when a federal grand jury in Washington, DC, returned an indictment four days later. On top of the original set of charges, the grand jury bumped up misdemeanor counts he’d faced for entering the Capitol to felonies, citing evidence that he’d carried a “deadly and dangerous weapon” — in his case, a baton. The addition of a “weapons enhancement” meant the maximum sentence he faced for those counts jumped tenfold, from one year in prison to 10.

Cua is one of a growing number of defendants charged in the insurrection seeing their felony counts — and potential prison time — stack up as the investigation presses on. Other defendants only charged with misdemeanors when they were arrested are now facing felonies post-indictment. Acting US Attorney Michael Sherwin in Washington had told reporters one week after the assault on the Capitol that the early rounds of arrests on misdemeanor charges were “only the beginning,” and promised more “significant charges” once prosecutors took these cases before a grand jury. New court documents in cases such as Cua’s show how that’s taking shape."

 

Watkins thought she wouldn't be arrested for the Capitol riot.


Oath Keeper Jessica Watkins Didn't Expect Capitol Riot Arrest

excerpt:

"WASHINGTON — Three days after allegedly joining a mob that descended on the US Capitol on Jan. 6, Jessica Watkins wrote in a text that she’d been following the FBI’s investigation as it unfolded and wasn’t concerned about being arrested.

“Seems they’re only interested in people who destroyed things,” Watkins texted fellow Ohio resident Bennie Parker, 70, on Jan. 9, according to messages quoted by prosecutors in recently unsealed court documents. According to prosecutors, Parker and his wife, Sandra Parker, 60, accompanied Watkins to Washington D.C. and into the Capitol on Jan. 6. “I wouldn’t worry about them coming after us,” Watkins allegedly added.

Just over a week later, Watkins was arrested in Ohio. An Army veteran and member of the Oath Keepers, a right-wing militia organization that focuses recruitment on the military and law enforcement, Watkins was accused of joining a conspiracy of Oath Keepers members who planned in advance for violence on Jan. 6 and descended on the Capitol in an “organized and practiced fashion.” She and two others were indicted on Jan. 27."

 

Oath Keeper Jessica Watkins Didn't Expect Capitol Riot Arrest

excerpt:

"According to the Justice Department, Meggs also informed his group in advance of Jan. 6 that they did not need to bring their own weapons because a "quick reaction force" would be 10 minutes away. Last week prosecutors said that Caldwell had at one point discussed plans to use a boat to ferry weapons across the Potomac River to Washington, a city that prohibits most firearms.

"Trump said It’s gonna be wild!!!!!!! It’s gonna be wild!!!!!!! He wants us to make it WILD that’s what he’s saying. He called us all to the Capitol and wants us to make it wild!!! Sir Yes Sir!!! Gentlemen we are heading to DC pack your shit!!” Meggs posted on Facebook in late December, according to prosecutors.

FBI documents unsealed on Thursday included images from a surveillance camera at a Virginia hotel that prosecutors say show Meggs and his wife with Watkins and Crowl early in the morning on Jan. 6, as well as photos of them outside the Capitol.

Prosecutors also alleged that surveillance footage inside the Capitol captured several members of the group as part of a line, or “stack,” of people wearing military fatigues and helmets who moved together into the Capitol. Caldwell was not among them, but allegedly participated in planning their trip to DC, communicated with other people about strategizing to bring weapons, and sent messages about participating in the assault. Prosecutors have conceded that he was not a dues-paying member of the Oath Keepers but have forwarded evidence that he was in close communication with the group’s leadership. Caldwell, for his part, has denied all the charges against him."

 

Oath Keeper Jessica Watkins Didn't Expect Capitol Riot Arrest

excerpt:

"Prosecutors seem particularly concerned about the potential destruction of evidence in the case. The new indictment charges both Caldwell and Young with tampering with documents, a form of obstruction. Caldwell is accused of retracting and deleting messages containing photographs on Facebook soon after the Capitol insurgency, while Young is accused of deleting his Facebook account entirely on Jan. 8."

 

.

Lock her up

 

Pennsylvania cop charged in Capitol riot: 'FBI may arrest me ..lol' - CNNPolitics

excerpt:

""The FBI may arrest me ..lol," Fischer told the associate, according to court documents.

Fischer has been charged with four federal crimes: obstruction of law enforcement, unlawful entry into a restricted building, obstructing Congress and violent conduct in the Capitol.

A lawyer for Fischer wasn't listed in his court docket as of Friday evening.

Several other members of law enforcement have previously been charged in connection with the insurrection. US Capitol Police announced this week that six of its officers were suspended with pay and 29 others were placed under investigation for their actions at the riot.

At least 230 people have been charged by the Justice Department in the Capitol attack."

 

Trump portrayed the rioters as victims who had been unfairly treated for so long.

After the riot had been in progress for hours, Trump told the rioters not to play into the hands of those in Congress, as if the members of the Congress who were attacked were abusing the rioters.

Trump's upside-down mindset is similar to a rioter who knocked down a female police officer who went unconscious and later told her, "Why did you get in our way?"



What we know about the Capitol riot arrests - CBS News

excerpt:

"How many have been charged?

A DOJ spokesperson told CBS News that as of Friday, federal authorities had charged approximately 234 people. CBS News has reviewed the charging documents of 224 federal defendants, 62 of whom have been indicted, whose cases have been made public in federal court.

Common charges

The FBI told CBS News last week that 40 people have been arrested for assault on law enforcement officers. The crime carries penalties ranging from one to 20 years, depending on the circumstances of the assault."

 

What we know about the Capitol riot arrests - CBS News

excerpt:

"How many have served in the military?

At least 20 of those arrested are veterans and three are currently enlisted in the military — two in the Army Reserve and one in the National Guard — according to military service records and court documents obtained by CBS News.

Of those 20, 10 have served in the U.S. Marines, seven served in the Army, two served in the Navy and one served in the Air Force."

 

What we know about the Capitol riot arrests - CBS News

excerpt:

"How many worked in law enforcement?

At least four people worked as law enforcement officers at the time they allegedly took part in the riot, and all have since left their jobs. Houston police officer Tam Dinh Pham and Monmouth County correctional police officer Marissa Suarez both resigned after they were arrested, and two Virginia police officers were fired after prosecutors charged them for their alleged conduct at the Capitol. Additionally, a firefighter from Florida was also arrested for his participation in the riot.

How many have extremist affiliations?

Authorities have connected at least 31 alleged rioters to extremist groups, including the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, Three Percenters, Texas Freedom Force and the conspiracy group QAnon."

 

by rich assholes like him.

 

And don't forget, Barr and the other Republican cronies did not think he could be investigated or charged while in office. That means whatever the Biden DOJ does with him, has to be now.

 

Yes, and it supports everything I posted here during the past few years on HF about racist Marines.

 

Stormy, I think it’s the army too. Not so much the Air Force, or Navy.

 

That was when we actually had a judicial system, and presidents, instead of an oligarchy that half the country insists needs a dictator. The supreme court won't even look at Donald Duck's tax returns, because money is what put them all in their positions of authority, and money is the only thing left running the damned country.