Odds and Ends — 15 August 2023
Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, Business, and Debt:
For LEO Power Up Day, I staked 425.57 $LEO.
China Finance Giant’s Missed Payments Alarm Regulators, Markets
Neal Stephenson's Metaverse Vision Is One Step Closer as Lamina1 Blockchain Launches Betanet
Crypto custodian Prime Trust files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
US mortgage delinquency rates have fallen to an all-time low of 3.37%.
— Michael Burry Stock Tracker ♟ (@burrytracker) August 14, 2023
If interest rates ever fall again housing prices will continue to rise.
Big Short 2.0 is incoming. Be ready.
Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:
Mysterious new long Covid symptom identified by scientists
Florida Man:
Ron DeSantis Says He Has “Moved On” And Disney Should Drop Its Lawsuit Against Him
Call it a guess, but The Mouse has no intention of complying with this request.
Newsom vs. DeSantis debate stalling over Fox News audience
Politics:
This might be the big one: Trump indicted on 13 felony charges including racketeering, conspiracy to commit forgery and filing false documents
The Georgia case is unique because in addition to Trump, it also charges a cast of supporting players— from former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to then White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and former Georgia Republican Party Chairman David Shafer.
Also indicted Tuesday were Trump co-defendants: state Sen. Shawn Still; attorneys John Eastman, Sidney Powell, Jenna Ellis, Bob Cheeley, Ray Smith III and Kenneth Chesebro; former assistant U.S. attorney general Jeffrey Clark; GOP strategist Michael Roman; former Coffee County elections supervisor Misty Hampton; former Coffee County GOP chairwoman Cathy Latham; Atlanta bail bondsman Scott Hall; publicist Trevian Kutti; Illinois pastor Stephen Cliffguard Lee; and Harrison Floyd, who briefly ran for a suburban Atlanta U.S. House seat before serving as director of Black Voices for Trump.
Prosecutors Accuse Trump of ‘Criminal Enterprise’ to Overturn Election
Prosecutors describe the ‘criminal enterprise’ as one that operated not only in Fulton County, Ga., but also in other states, including Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, and in the District of Columbia. This underscores the power of a racketeering charge: Ms. Willis did not have to show that all of the acts took place in her jurisdiction.
Read the indictments here.
But wait, there’s more:
Looks like there are an additional 30 unindicted co-conspirators in the Georgia indictment.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) August 15, 2023
Trump Has ‘Blatantly Unlawful’ Tantrum About Georgia Grand Jury Witness
In order to be released on bail in Georgia, the defendant must prove there’s no risk of witness intimidation or the obstruction of the administration of Justice.
— Mueller, She Wrote (@MuellerSheWrote) August 14, 2023
After what Donald posted about former Lt Gov Geoff Duncan today, that’s going to be exceedingly difficult.
“As is the normal process in Georgia law, the grand jury issued arrest warrants for those who were charged. I am giving the defendants the opportunity to voluntarily surrender no later than noon on Friday, the 25th day of August, 2023,” Willis says.
Sheriff in Fulton co says he will post Trump's mugshot, height and weight
— Alex Cole (@acnewsitics) August 15, 2023
Man that is just gonna kill him 😂
Trump’s Greatest Legal Threat Yet
…Georgia is one of the few states where the governor doesn’t have any pardon power. Trump would have to apply for a pardon to an independent board. And he wouldn’t be allowed to do that until he’s already served five years in prison.
Trump Officials Blocked Puerto Rico from Hurricane Aid
The administration of former President Donald Trump obstructed an investigation looking into why officials withheld about $20 billion in hurricane relief for Puerto Rico following the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017, one of the deadliest U.S. natural disasters in over 100 years…
Manhattan Judge Rejects Trump’s Demand That He Recuse Himself from Hush-Money Prosecution
Every GOP candidate for president has two choices:
— Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini) 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@AdamKinzinger) August 15, 2023
1) condemn trump and do it loudly
2) drop out and endorse him.
If you won’t attack the front runner you’re wasting everyone’s time
Trump’s Power Play in New York Case Backfired
For months, critics of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr.’s case have called it weak because the case criminally charges Trump with faking business records—a lowly misdemeanor only bumped up to a felony on a technicality.
Except that Trump’s ploy to move the case to federal court gave a judge there the opportunity to take the first swing. And he used that opportunity to make it clear that the case against Trump is far more serious than it otherwise seems—and that the burden for proving that Trump’s alleged falsification of business records are felonies is low.
He’s having another normal one tonight.
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) August 15, 2023
For someone who sleeps hanging upside down in a closet during the daytime. pic.twitter.com/XaUofTX6De
Trump’s ‘Co-Conspirators’ Starting to Turn on Each Other
When Republicans say "Look at all this red" This is what the population really looks like. pic.twitter.com/joal7O97T7
— Alex Cole (@acnewsitics) August 14, 2023
Why Georgia’s Case Against Trump Could Be So Damaging
A legal tool normally reserved for the Mafia and organized crime could make former President Trump’s next potential indictment his most damaging.
Georgia’s expansive racketeering law — known as RICO — gives prosecutors a powerful tool to pursue charges in their investigation into Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election.
The law — inspired by federal statutes with the same name — allows prosecutors to string together crimes committed by different people toward one common goal.
House Republicans Want Joe Biden to Testify
Yeah, good luck with that.
Far-right populist Javier Milei is the biggest vote-getter in Argentina’s presidential primary
Far-right populist Javier Milei rocked Argentina’s political establishment Sunday by emerging as the biggest vote-getter in primary elections to choose presidential candidates for the October general election in a nation battered by economic woes.
Milei, an admirer of former U.S. President Donald Trump, says Argentina’s Central Bank should be abolished, thinks climate change is a lie, characterizes sex education as a ploy to destroy the family, believes the sale of human organs should be legal and wants to make it easier to own handguns.
Trump’s Georgia Trial Would Likely Be Televised
Judge Rules in Favor of Montana Youths in Climate Case
In the first ruling of its kind nationwide, a Montana state court decided Monday in favor of young people who alleged the state violated their right to a ‘clean and healthful environment’ by promoting the use of fossil fuels.
The court determined that a provision in the Montana Environmental Policy Act has harmed the state’s environment and the young plaintiffs, by preventing Montana from considering the climate impacts of energy projects. The provision is accordingly unconstitutional, the court said.
The win, experts say, could energize the environmental movement and reshape climate litigation across the country, ushering in a wave of cases aimed at advancing action on climate change.
Video shows Texas US Rep. Ronny Jackson berating officers after being wrestled to ground at rodeo
“You are a fucking full-on dick! You better recalculate, motherfucker!”
The Big Difference with the Georgia Case Against Trump
While Trump’s 2024 campaign has predominantly become an extension of his legal defense, any possible trial and conviction in Georgia would be far harder for him to meddle with if he is elected to a second term since presidential powers that could help him interfere with federal cases do not extend to local matters.
Said former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti: “Not only would he not be able to pardon himself, but the pardon process in Georgia means Gov. Kemp would not be able to pardon him either. There’s a pardon board. So it’s a more complicated process. He also would not be able to shut down the investigation in the same way.”
GOP Sees Turnout Disaster Without Trump
Republican strategists are worried that if former President Trump doesn’t secure the GOP’s presidential nomination next year, or if he is kept off the ballot because of his mounting legal problems, it could spell a voter turnout disaster for their party in 2024.
GOP strategists say there’s growing concern that if Trump is not the nominee, many of his core supporters, who are estimated to make up 25 percent to 35 percent of the party base, ‘will take their ball and go home.'
Kansas newspaper says it investigated local police chief prior to newsroom raid
The small-town Kansas newspaper raided by police officers on Friday had been looking into allegations of misconduct against the local chief just months ago, according to the paper's publisher, raising further concerns about the law enforcement officers' motives.
Serendipity:
3 ways AI is transforming music
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Not trying to start an argument with you but I genuinely want to know if you think that Biden is clean and he is just facing retribution from the right? Is that first image Splinterlands?
I doubt that almost any President has been completely clean, but it sure does seem that the gist of Republican attacks on Biden are more about deflection than substance. Maybe there’s a mountain of evidence of nefarious criminal actions, but it’s yet to have been presented. Even suggestions for impeachment seem to so far be based on nothing more than second-hand hearsay.
If anyone has any hard evidence, they’re, so far at least, keeping a tight lid on it.
Yes, it’s from Splinterlands.
cool man. It's nice to get a calm and informed response from someone about things like this. I kind of live in a conservative bubble based on my geography so I try to not get too consumed by groupthink. you and I are political opposites for the most part but I do like the fact that you can disagree with me in a "nice" way.