Sounds like a strategy with little to win and a lot to lose. He would be angering the nations giving him all his supplies and giving Russian bots fuel for the “Ukrainian nazi” story.
Is this how we turn against him now? Because he hasn’t spoken out about this other conflict in a whole different region being fought for completely different reasons by unrelated people?
Kevin Wallace has been showing Trump a series of agreements for loans, which state his business is required to maintain a certain net worth and that his financial statements are “true and correct”.
The documents relate to properties like his hotels in DC and Chicago, and all bear Trump’s signature. By signing those documents, Trump was agreeing to those terms.
We’re getting into the weeds now, but also heading towards the crux of the attorney general’s argument - that Trump submitted misleading financial information to banks to secure favourable loans.
One thing that the average person may not be aware of: knowingly signing a bank document that has false information is punishable by 2 years in federal prison. It’s not punished often, usually bank employees who steal money (and sign documents with incorrect totals) and scam business owners (if you say you run a barbershop to get Covid relief funds, but don’t really have one).
This isn’t a criminal trial but he’s clearly using tactics that scammers use.
Ahead of today’s court session, a former federal prosecutor told BBC News that Donald Trump’s team was attacking the judge and the trial because “they know they’ve already lost”.
Renato Mariotti says he expected Trump to try to “deflect responsibility” and blame accountants or other employees for the false valuations of properties.
He says Trump is going to have to “walk a tightrope” giving evidence today, but adds he believes the former president’s legal team have internally “told him they’re going to lose this case”.
“They’re attacking the judge, not to try to convince him, but because they already know they’ve lost and are trying to spin, or add some colour, to a very bad result.” from Renato Mariotti, former federal prosecutor
It’s already been a finding of fact that Trump is guilty of fraud. This isn’t even up for debate and hasn’t been for some time. The only thing to decide is the amount of financial liability Trump is going to suffer for the fraud he committed.
So Trump would’ve known for weeks that he’s lost unless his plan is to redefine win as not lose as much as he could’ve.
I hate to say it, but within minutes of hearing about the attack by Hamas against Israel, the unexpectedness of it, and the scale of it, I asked myself, “Who’s funding this,” and, “Who gains by this?” And my brain replied, “Putin.”
Sure enough within days his puppets in our government (the USofA GOP) start talking about reducing/stopping aid to Ukraine.
It’s more complex than that, Israel and Russia have much more common geopolitical interest than you might expect if you follow analists: in Sirya for example. This while still having opposite positions about Iran. It’s just a mess.
Sure enough within days his puppets in our government (the USofA GOP) start talking about reducing/stopping aid to Ukraine.
I mean, not to say you’re wrong exactly, but that’s not a new thing. Those same people have been demanding the same for a year and a half. Using Israel as their current excuse doesn’t mean much, just that they’re opportunistic shits, which isn’t really news.
Plus Biden’s proposed answer to this was basically just to double down on continuing aid to Ukraine, the aid package he requested for Israel also had a significant sum for Ukraine.
Russia seems determined to relearn the mistakes that lost them the cold war the first time around, that America wipes its ass with more money than you can afford to throw at proxies, and that doing so isn’t even close to its largest military expense.
Israel was bombing Hamas for 15 years. Does your history start at October? Nonetheless this example is about killing civilians instead of the enemy and how it doesn’t accomplish anything.
The most likely intention for the brutality of the terror attack from October was stopping the diplomatic processes between Israel and other Arab countries to establish somewhat normal relations. Putin and Iran are definitely indirect beneficiaries, but there’s no need to create narratives where Hamas is the puppet of Iran or Russia because they did something that was aligned with their own interests.
And there more, including the Map they display during UN assembly calling for “The new middle East” and the agreement they signed with Lebanon, although Hizbollah control the government there. February of this year.
It’s not just Putin, there’s clear alliances forming: Russia, Iran, North Korea, Syria, China. Hamas was financed and trained by Iran, who have themselves been significantly supported by Russia. It seems that all MAD is doing is limiting the growing conflict to a Proxy World War.
Prosecutors were asking him about former Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg.
Weisselberg pleaded guilty and served time for tax fraud related to his work at the Trump Organization.
His name has been brought up frequently throughout the trial and he also testified before Michael Cohen, telling the court he knew Donald Trump was inflating the size of his Manhattan penthouse in Trump Tower.
On the stand, Trump defended his former employee, claiming people “went after him vigorously and violently because he happened to work for me”.
“I feel very badly about that whole situation,” he says.
This is the last one, I promise. It was just too funny to not include here.
Trump attorney Christopher Kise has just said that he may want to mention information barred by the gag order in a motion for a mistrial.
Alina Habba, another Trump lawyer, seems to confirm the team will make the motion and says they want to reference communications between Engoron and his law clerk.
The judge says he’ll allow Trump’s team to make that motion in writing.
“See, I knew there’d be a love fest,” Engoron concludes.
I think Israel right now wants to be Ukraine. Ukraine has won the people’s hearts by fighting so hard despite overwhelming odds. They’re paying with their lives to stop Russia not only from destroying them, but also from invading other parts of Europe.
I’ve heard Israel actually wants sympathy too, and get jealous of the support given to European nations when they get hit by terror attacks or random disasters like the cathedral burning. Israel should understand they are a military base in the middle of the Muslim world. They are percieved as a colony. And seeing the amount of military aid and impunity they recieve from the Europeans and America it’s only strengthened that view.
Well, the naming of the article has sure aged liked milk.
Any pro russian dumbass can point to it (without reading it, of course) and scream: “SEE SEE! THESE EVIL UKRAINIANS WANT TO KILL ALL RUSSIANS 😭😭😭😭” while the article just says they need to focus on security and intelligence which (until now) Israel was known for. The attack shows it wasn’t really true.
Earlier, when the trial resumed after lunch, Trump was being very polite to the court. Now it seems he’s back to his old self.
On the stand, Trump has started to air his complaints with the case once again.
“This case is a disgrace," the former president says. He goes on to claim there is "murder on the streets of New York and the attorney general here is watching every little move”.
During this outburst, Judge Engoron looks ahead with a straight expression and remains silent.
When Trump has finished, Engoron says he defers to the prosecution on how much they want to allow Trump to speak off topic.
Engoron says Trump is a “broken record”, to which Trump replies that the prosecution “keeps asking the same questions, over and over”.
Attorney Kevin Wallace keeps his calm, saying the questioning is “very close to the end”.
Prosecutors are continuing to go through a series of documents with Trump about several loan agreements, including Trump International Hotel in Chicago.
Kevin Wallace is asking Trump about whether statements of financial condition were included in the loan.
Trump is evading the issue of the financial statements and continuing to talk about how much cash and other assets he has.
bbc.co.uk
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