Flotsam and Jetsam - Well, Now We Know What the Alleged Crime Was

@seanmdav  This is both satire  and also exactly what
 the corrupt New York judge has told jurors.

Alvin Bragg's Manhattan trial of President Trump went to closing arguments yesterday. The defense took about 2.5 hours first, and in it's 4.5+ hours, the prosecution finally revealed what crime it used to boost 34 expired misdemeanor accounts of alleged faulty record keeping into felonies, supposed interference in the federal election, a crime the FEC had already investigated and declined to charge. So much for the principle of being told what you are being charged with prior to preparing, let alone presenting the defense. Althouse, "Todd Blanche, the defense lawyer, says his closing argument will take about two and a half hours, and..." "... Joshua Steinglass, the prosecutor, responds that his will be between four and four and a half hours. The judge says that means we may or may not finish at 4:30, and that he will ask the jurors if they can stay late in order to finish closing arguments if necessary." And yes, they stayed late. Jacob Sullum at Reason  Prosecutors Say Trump Tried to 'Hoodwink the American Voter,' Which Is Not a Crime. "Closing arguments in the former president's trial highlight the mismatch between the charges and the "election fraud" he supposedly committed." Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, 'MVP of Liars': Trump Closing Argument Hammers Cohen, Prosecution.   MxM News, Closing arguments begin in New York v. Trump as former president rips case as "election hunting". Jonathan Turley@JonathanTurley "Before the jury entered, the judge told the parties not to go into the law, “that will be my job.” That is precisely what worries many of us. Merchan has proven a minimalist judge giving the defendant the bare minimum of protections at every turn..." Twitchy does a good job of assembling Turley increasing incredulous tweets, Prof. Turley Gives Ringside Coverage to the Tire Fire of Bragg’s Closing Arguments in the Trump Trial. Ace, Judge Merchan Violates the Constitution Again, Instructs Jury That They Don't Need to be Unanimous About Which Mystery Crime Constitutes the Legal Predicate for the Trump Prosecution "Hey, hit Trump with a gag order about mentioning this in his appeal. "His appeal might endanger Merchan and his Democrat whore daughter."" Paul Mirngoff at the Ringside considers the question Will a conviction of Trump by that New York jury hurt his electoral chances? and decides not. Capt. Ed differs, "I'm not quite so sure that this will have no impact. It recalculates matters for "double never" voters who nonetheless feel compelled to vote for one of the two major nominees, perhaps by reducing the number who actually will cast a vote at all. But I'm increasingly convinced that this is going to be an academic question, as I suspect the likeliest outcome in Manhattan is a hung jury."

KT at Hat Hair is astonished the  Biden Campaign Brought Robert De Niro to Trash Trump Outside the Courthouse. Cutie Pavlich at TownHall, 'Unhinged': The Biden Campaign Held a Press Conference and It Was a Train Wreck. Nick Arama at RedState has  HOT TAKES: Let the Mockery Begin of Insane Biden Effort at Trump Trial—and How It May Help Trump.  Dan McLaughlin@baseballcrank, "Explain to me how, under Sheppard v Maxwell, a criminal defendant's right to a fair trial isn't violated when THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES sponsors a press conference outside the courthouse, the day before the jury begins deliberations, to demand a conviction." Joe Concha@JoeConchaTV "DeNiro wears a large mask walking outside years post-Covid only to take it off while speaking while surrounded by other people. Ludicrous speed already reached this week." Ace, Biden Makes It Clear That the Persecutions Are Political and Coordinated by the White House. "The Biden campaign arranged a stunt press conference from outside the courtroom where the fake Trump trial is taking place featuring anger junkie and has-been Robert DeNiro. Subtle as a car crash." From the Wombat's  In The Mailbox: 05.28.24 (Morning Edition) Twitchy: What Judge Merchan Told Parties About “Not Going Into The Law” Before Trump Jury Sounds Shady AF, Robert De Niro’s Batshit Rant At Biden Campaign Presser Outside NYC Court Only Helps Trump,

Meanwhile down in Florida, Jack Smith's case against Trump for keeping presidential records continues to go south. Hat Hair cites the AP, Judge Cannon Nixes Jack Smith Bid for New Gag Order on Trump -- For Now.  Capt. Ed notes "Smith has done some sloppy work in his haste to bring this case and to shut Trump up. Expect the Protection Racket Media to excoriate Cannon -- again -- but Smith seems to be the party that repeatedly doesn't adhere to procedure and process." NewsMax, Florida Docs Judge Threatens Jack Smith With 'Sanctions'. Ace, Judge Cannon Blasts Democrat Prosecutor Jack Smith For Unprofessionalism in Seeking Gag Orders on Trump "Jack Smith, in a nakedly political move, demanded that Judge Cannon hit Trump with a gag order for... tweeting that FBI agents were permitted to shoot to kill in executing the search warrant. That is true. They were so authorized. It's true that this is a routine boilerplate instruction, and that Trump wasn't home, but it is true that they had permission to shoot to kill if they encountered resistance in executing the warrant. Trump's statements are protected first amendment speech, even if his claims are contentious. In no world does a prosecutor have any business seeking a gag order to stop a presidential candidate from making politically-charged claims. Except when the prosecutor is just a campaign worker for Biden 2024. Politico whines about Judge Cannon, yet again."

At the Right Scoop, WATCH: Actor Dennis Quaid reveals he’s voting for Trump!WATCH: Actor Dennis Quaid reveals he’s voting for Trump! “I was ready not to vote for Trump until what I saw is – more than politics I see a weaponization of our justice system and a challenge to our Constitution.” He goes on to suggest that Trump the most investigated person in the history world and said “and they haven’t been able to really get him.” The teaser clip ends with Quaid saying “people might call him an asshole, but he’s my asshole.” Capt. Ed, "The "weaponization of our justice system" is certainly plain to see, especially in Manhattan. Robert De Niro's meltdown outside the Trump trial adds to that impression, as does the Biden campaign's very bad decision to use the trial to promote Biden. The whole enterprise in New York looks cooked. Because it is." Matt Vespa at Town Hall thinks this Anti-Trump Account Should Have Never Posted This Tweet About De Niro and Famous GOP Actors From the Wombat's  In The Mailbox: 05.28.24 (Morning Edition), Don Surber: Trump train keeps a-rollin.

John Hinderacker wonders will they Dump Biden?  "In a normal year, you would say this is a hopeless picture for the Democrats. But they have a lifeline: Biden, or whoever they might choose to replace him, gets to run against Donald Trump, whom half the country wouldn’t vote for under any circumstances, and who–no matter how absurd the charges against him may be–is likely about to be branded a “convicted felon.” It is hard to see how either candidate can win."  Capt. Ed, "...but the real problem is ... what's the alternative? In a scenario where Biden doesn't willingly withdraw, the only viable option for Dems is Kamala Harris. Only 17% of Dems want her as the alternative, though." Hat Hair's KT is down on Biden's Please Clap Moment at West Point. David Strom at Hat Hair is Shocked: Vox Got It Right? "No, Eric, you are right this time. And yes, you should be worried about Biden and the possibility that younger folks might defect to the Republican Party over the longer term, too. It happened under Reagan. Could it happen this time? Who knows."

Ace sees possible Witness Tampering? Joe Biden Drops In For Surprise Visit on Beau Biden's Ex-Wife and Hunter's Former Slam-Piece Hallie Biden, Just Before Trial In Which She Will be a Key Witness, "And when I say "key" witness I mean like a "key" of cocaine, like they used to say on Miami Vice. "Hunter Biden started banging Hallie Biden shortly after -- at least, the official story is "shortly after" -- Beau Biden died due to being exposed to burn pits while leading top secret commandos in Ukraine." MxM News reports Joe and Hunter Biden used Sandy Hook memorial service to set up secret meeting with Chinese, documents reveal. At RedState, Sister Toldja has a  Report: Lunden Roberts Has an August Surprise for Joe and Hunter Biden, a tell-all book.  Matt McDonald@mattjpfmcdonald "Lunden Roberts, the Arkansas stripper with whom Hunter Biden fathered a love child, is releasing a memoir with Skyhorse. The book will be released on August 20 — the Tuesday of the Democratic National Convention (what a coincidence!).

Dan Greenfield at Front Page reveals  A Pakistani Government Official Was One of Biden’s Largest Donors "And the man behind the Congressional Pakistan Caucus." Jazz Shaw at Hat Hair details how Foreign Nationals are Infiltrating US Military Bases at an Alarming Rate and how Schumer admits Yes, We Want to Make All Illegal Migrants Into Voters.

Althouse, probably an RFK Jr. voter, "I have a visceral reaction against, against the attacks on those statues. There were heroes in the Confederacy who didn’t have slaves..." ""... and, you know, I just, I just have a visceral reaction against destroying history. I don’t like it. I think we should celebrate who we are. We should celebrate the good qualities of everybody. … If we want to find people who were completely virtuous on every issue throughout history, we would erase all of history...." Said RFK Jr., quoted in "RFK Jr. had a ‘visceral’ reaction to tear-downs of Confederate statues/Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on a podcast that he doesn’t think 'it’s a good, healthy thing for any culture to erase history'" (WaPo)."

At Twitchy, THIS Is Nuts (and Honestly Really Scary) --> TSA Agent Targets Conservative (Jan 6) Passenger

At Hat Hair, 'Trans' Activist Teaches Viewers About His 'Marshmallow Wand Removal' While Sitting at Disney

Althouse, "[Richard] Dreyfuss took to the stage in a house dress to a background track of Taylor Swift’s Love Story, shaking his hips suggestively and..." "From "'We deeply regret the distress': cinema apologises for Richard Dreyfuss comments at Jaws screening/The actor took to the stage in a dress backed by Taylor Swift’s Love Story, then reportedly made a number of sexist and transphobic comments" (The Guardian)." Capt. Ed, We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat to Hate the Media Enough. From Hollywood in Toto, Jerry Seinfeld: ‘I Miss a Dominant Masculinity’.

The TaxProf cites the WSJ: Civil Rights And Antisemitism At Columbia. Joanna Jacobs hears Yale wants science profs to 'promote DEI through teaching'. Jonathan Turley, Professor Accuses UCLA of “Torturing” Pro-Palestinian Protesters, by not feeding the people who occupied a building. Herr Professor Jacobson at LI, ”Data Analysis Confirms That Anti-Israel Protests “are overwhelmingly an elite college phenomenon” "Nate Silver re Washington Monthly protest data analysis: “Of course the stereotype was that these protests were concentrated at expensive elite colleges but I didn’t realize the rather extreme extent to which that’s actually true.”" Campus Reform reports the  University of Nevada hosts multiple segregated graduations. Segregation now, segregation forever! John Sexton at Hat Hair hears Harvard Decides to Shut Up and Teach. 

Althouse hosts "School choice programs have been wildly successful under DeSantis. Now public schools might close." "A headline at Politico. Subhead: "The Republican governor’s school choice programs may serve as a model for other GOP-leaning states across the country.""

Hat Hair's KT, Senator Demands Answers: Was the American Flag Banned from a National Park?

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Out Of The Cellar up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.