CNN: ‘Ivanka Trump Testifies in New York Civil Fraud Trial’

Ivanka Trump testifies in New York civil fraud trialSource:CNN covering Donald J. Trump’s 1st daughter Ivanka Trump.

“Ivanka Trump, the eldest daughter of Donald Trump, has taken the stand to testify in the civil fraud trial against her father, her brothers Eric and Donald Jr., and their company.”

From CNN

“Ivanka Trump spent roughly two hours on the witness stand Wednesday in her father’s civil fraud trial, answering questions about her role at the Trump Organization and an apartment she leased in one of her father’s buildings.

The former president’s daughter is no longer a defendant in the case, but she is the final witness the New York attorney general’s office plans to call in its case against Trump, his sons and his business.

The trial is currently in a lunch break.

Here are highlights from her testimony so far:

Questions about financing loans through Deutsche Bank: She was questioned at length about the financing of loans for the Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Florida through Deutsche Bank.
The loans are a key part of the case because they required Trump to submit annual financial statements – and the attorney general alleges those statements were falsified to inflate Trump’s net worth and obtain better loan rates.

AG attorney Louis Solomon showed email communications Ivanka Trump had in shopping around potential financing terms from several lenders to fund Trump Org. for the Doral property. Donald Trump’s financial statements were shared with some of the potential lenders.

Louis Solomon, a lawyer for the attorney general’s office, showed emails during questioning where Ivanka Trump proposed lowering the required net worth for her father under the loan agreement with Deutsche Bank.

The final agreement for the Deutsche Bank loan required Donald Trump, as the guarantor, to maintain a minimum net worth of $2.5 billion.

One earlier draft of the loan terms proposed by the bank required Trump maintain a $3 billion net worth. Ivanka Trump proposed a change to lower the net worth requirement to $2 billion, in an email Solomon showed in court.

Penthouse apartment: She distanced herself from any knowledge of a discrepancy in the value of a penthouse apartment she leased in Trump Park Avenue.
Ivanka Trump had a purchase option on the apartment for $8.5 million, but the value on Trump’s financial statement was $20.8 million, according to the attorney general’s civil complaint.

Solomon asked whether the value of her purchase option was factored into her father’s financial statement.

“As I had told you a year-and-a-half ago, I wasn’t involved in his statement of financial condition, so I can’t say what it took into account or didn’t take into account,” she responded.

Old Post Office project: She acknowledged the General Services Administration asked for “clarification on several matters” about Donald Trump’s financial statements submitted with a bid for the lease on the Old Post Office in Washington.
Ivanka Trump said she recalled going to Washington to make a presentation to GSA on Trump Org. proposal for the building.

She and her father both spoke at the presentation meeting with GSA officials, she said.

“Do you recall that meeting discussing Donald J. Trump financial statements in any way shape or form?” Solomon asked.

“No I don’t recall that,” she said.

Ivanka Trump said she recalled the December 2011 meeting was a big-picture presentation “bringing the project to life.”

“Not financial statements or anything granular like that,” she said.”

From CNN

As I wrote on The New Democrat  yesterday:

“Ivanka was involved in the financing of a major Washington hotel project that the Trump Organization was putting together in in 2015/16. She knows about Trump Org’s finances, at least during that period before her father was elected President and she moved to Washington to work in his White House.

So Ivanka could act like a comatose patient whose just waking up, or someone whose suffering from a concussion. But unless she has a doctor’s note that says she’s too sick to speak truthfully about what she knows, she’s going to have to answer questions about her involvement in the Trump Organization, or plead the 5th.

I guess Ivanka could refuse to answer NYAG’s questions truthfully, or plead the 5th, and be held in contempt. But can you really see Ivanka Trump in an orange, jail suit? I doubt that would be good for her brand either. Again, as they say in reality TV/celebrity TV world. Not my words, necessarily.”

To sum this up and career prosecutor Nick Ackerman already talked about this during the CNN video: NYAG already knows what Ivanka Trump knows about the Trump Organization’s financing of their Washington hotel back in 2015-16, that she apparently made 4 million dollars from and they have the paperwork and documents to prove that.

This is just a matter if Ivanka will acknowledge that under oath, or play braindead, maybe she forgot to bring her memory to the courtroom, etc. But NYAG will have the paperwork with her signature on it, making it clear that she signed off on that paperwork, since she was in charge of that project. And it’s just a question whether or not she honestly acknowledge that under oath, which her brothers already did for their role in Trump Org’s financing, or risk perjuring herself under oath.

You can also see this post on Blogger.

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Alan Dershowitz: ‘Donald Trump Fights Political Trial With Political Answers’

The New Democrat_ Alan Dershowitz_ 'Donald Trump Fights Political Trial With Political Answers'Source:Alan Dershowitz talking about Gaza and Donald Trump’s New York State fraud trial.

Source:The New Democrat

“This is Alan Dershowitz’s video podcast called The Dershow. We discuss politics, law, the constitution and current events.”

From Alan Dershowitz

I’ll cover Gaza, Hamas, and Donald Trump’s New York State fraud trial, in this post, which is what Alan Dershowitz talked about.

As I said a couple weeks ago on The New Democrat Alan Dershowitz sounds like:

“One of those Hippie lawyers from the 1960s and 70s (and he was born in the late 1930s) who made his career defending left-wing militants, who seem like the coolest people in the world, other than being political terrorists who are prone to violence and go by the notion of, “by any means necessary) to accomplish their political objectives. I’m thinking that Alan Dershowitz is a big fan or admirer of the famous left-wing defense attorney William Kuntsler.”

And Mr. Dershowitz even compared Donald Trump’s New York State fraud trial, to the Chicago 7 trial in 1968, with all of these militant, left-wing, radicals, who were charged and prosecuted for trying to incite a riot in Chicago, to protest the Vietnam War, during the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

Mr. Dershowitz doesn’t criticize the fraud case against Donald Trump, probably because he probably knows that DJT is guilty, at least according to the evidence, the documents, and testimony against him. So he instead goes after the prosecutor, who are led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, for being a partisan Democrat. Ignoring all the documents, the bank records, and testimony, that AG James has against Donald Trump.

As far as Gaza, Hamas, and Hamas’s left-wing supporters in Europe and here in America: don’t take any leftist seriously, when they say they’re pro-women, pro-minority, pro-gay, pro anyone who has a history of being discriminated against in America, simply because of their DNA, gender, etc, when they support organizations like Hamas, who have a long record of being against everything that these left-wingers claim to support. I completely agree with Alan Dershowitz on this point.

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CNN: ‘Maggie Haberman Makes Prediction On Ivanka Trump’s Tactic For Testimony’

CNN_ Maggie Haberman Makes Prediction On Ivanka Trump's Tactic For TestimonySource:CNN– political analyst & New York Times national political reporter Maggie Haberman, talking about Donald Trump’s 1st daughter, Ivanka Trump.

Source:The New Democrat

“CNN political analyst Maggie Haberman joins “CNN This Morning” to discuss Ivanka Trump’s upcoming testimony in her father’s New York civil fraud trial.”

From CNN

I think if Ivanka has her way, she won’t say much if anything tomorrow that could possibly hurt her brand (as they say in reality TV/celebrity TV world) or her father Donald. But she’s not going to be in control of the hearing tomorrow. Judge Arthur Engeron and NYAG prosector Kevin Wallace will be in charge here. And prosecutor Wallace will decide what questions are asked of Ivanka and like with her brothers, she’ll have a choice here: answer all the questions as truthfully and honestly as she can, or plead the 5th.

Ivanka was involved in the financing of a major Washington hotel project that the Trump Organization was putting together in in 2015/16. She knows about Trump Org’s finances, at least during that period before her father was elected President and she moved to Washington to work in his White House.

So Ivanka could act like a comatose patient whose just waking up, or someone whose suffering from a concussion. But unless she has a doctor’s note that says she’s too sick to speak truthfully about what she knows, she’s going to have to answer questions about her involvement in the Trump Organization, or plead the 5th.

I guess Ivanka could refuse to answer NYAG’s questions truthfully, or plead the 5th, and be held in contempt. But can you really see Ivanka Trump in an orange, jail suit? I doubt that would be good for her brand either. Again, as they say in reality TV/celebrity TV world. Not my words, necessarily.

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Ben Meiselas ‘Donald Trump INCRIMINATES HIMSELF During Testimony, LAUGHED AT By Prosecutor’

Trump INCRIMINATES HIMSELF during Testimony, LAUGHED AT by ProsecutorSource:Meidas Touch– apparently Judge Arthur Engeron getting a laugh at Donald J. Trump.

Source:The New Democrat

“MeidasTouch host Ben Meiselas reports on the conclusion of the morning testimony by Donald Trump in the New York Attorney General fraud case where Donald Trump threw another tantrum and got laughed at by prosecutors.”

From the Meidas Touch

All this is funny, I guess. Sad and embarrassing I guess would be better words, especially considering that Donald J. Trump was once President of the United States and now because of his own fault, he’s now in a situation where he’s not just embarrassing himself in public, but doing it in front of a New York State judge.

What I’m really interested in here, is that Donald J. Trump admitted to not just signing the false documents that both his sons admitted to last week, but he admitted to fraud over and over, I’m sure hours of worth, under oath. Why? Because he’s under oath.

If DJT loses this case, he’s bankrupt. But if he commits perjury under oath, he’ll not just be prosecuted, but convicted of that as well, which could mean 3-5 years in prison.

So now DJT is in a situation, where his lawyers can’t do a damn thing for him to protect him, either because they’re incompetent (regardless of what Newsmax might say) and don’t know what to do, or because Donald J. Trump was essentially walking out of a vault, with millions of dollars in cash, and caught on the spot trying to leave the bank, by the security guard at the bank. (Apparently DJT knows how to rob a vault, but doesn’t know how to escape the bank undetected) And now has to just live with the consequences of being caught committing bank fraud and losing his case.

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Real Time With Bill Maher: Monologue: Turning Back Time

Real Time With Bill Maher_ Monologue_ Turning Back TimeSource:Real Time With Bill Maher.

Source:The New Democrat

“Bill reacts to the top stories of the week in his Real Time monologue.”

From Real Time With Bill Maher

I guess the two biggest stories, or two to biggest stories this week, (I don’t have a list of the all the big stories this week) have to do not with Hamas so much, as they’re getting their asses handed to them in Gaza by the Israeli military, but the fact that these 15th Century, murderous assholes, who have no respect for women, gays, minorities of all kinds, have an actual base of support from people in America and Europe, by people who claim that they care about women, gays, and minorities.

Imagine someone who says that they’re a vegan, but they eat fish, they don’t drink any alcohol, but, they drink beer, love and respect women, but they support organizations that they don’t and the same thing with gays and minorities: how drunk, high, how crazy, how big of a coma would have to be, to even try to take those folks seriously?

Speaking of 15th Century “freedom fighters”: how about the new Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson. I know I wrote that piece last week on the The New Democrat  arguing that it’s way too early to decide what kind of Speaker MAGA Mike, I mean Speaker Mike Johnson is going to be and we’re only a week later from that.

Every new story so far, (he might be moderating on Ukraine) suggest that MAGA Mike is a freedom fighter from the Civil War or Jim Crow era, who wants to hire a Federal police squad, to lock people up for having consensual sex with someone from the same sex.

MAGA Mike doesn’t even have a bank account, that anyone knows about, at least. What does he do with his taxpayer funded pay checks, that are worth around 5,000 dollars a week? Is this guy the Speaker of the House, or the gen-x version of Reverend Charles J. Southall, who was just convicted of money laundering, who only presides over the House as a 2nd job and career?

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Ben Meiselas: ‘FED UP Judge SMACKS DOWN Donald Trump’s Lawyers in OPEN COURT During Trial’

FED UP Judge SMACKS DOWN Trump’s Lawyers in OPEN COURT During TrialSource:Meidas Touch talking about the Trump kids day in court.

Source:The New Democrat

“MeidasTouch host Ben Meiselas reports on Judge Arthur Engoron calling out Donald Trump’s lawyers for their behavior in attacking his principal law clerk.”

From Meidas Touch

So to sum up the Trump Family’s day in court: the NYAG prosecutors, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, asked both Don Jr. and Eric about these financial documents and reports that NYAG as against Donald Trump, with Don and Eric saying that they have no knowledge of these documents. With the prosecutors coming back and showing them the documents that they personally signed.

So Don JR and Eric who just happened to be President’s of the Trump Organization, at least while their father Donald SR. was President of the United States from 2017-21, were either caught lying, or caught with a bad case of Alzheimer’s that’s so bad, that they probably both need head examinations right now. Considering who Don and Eric’s father is and their past records, if I was a betting man, (which I’m not) I’m willing to bet that both Don and Eric are liars.

What the Trump Family still hasn’t learned, is that court rooms are not a reality TV shows, they’re not Newsmax TV, they’re not Twitter or YouTube. This is real life and every time you speak out and do something during a trial and in court, it can come back to hurt you, because you are held accountable for everything that you do and say in court, regardless of the jurisdiction.

The Trump Family’s Newsmax-MAGA audience that they’re always playing too, is not the audience that’s going to decide their father’s case. But Judge Arthur Engeron, who apparently has a strict no bullshit rule (to be frank) and obviously isn’t a fan of what’s called reality TV today.

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Harry Litman: ‘Mark Meadows’ Legal Moves Reveal LARGER WELL THOUGHT-OUT SCHEME’

Meadows' legal moves reveal LARGER WELL THOUGHT-OUT SCHEMESource:Harry Litman talking about former Donald Trump Chief of Staff and presidential campaign employee, Mark Meadows.

Source:The New Democrat

“According to an October report from ABC News, Mark Meadows testified under the protection of immunity and has met with federal prosecutors several times. Harry breaks down the significance of his immunity as well as his overall legal strategy.”

From Harry Litman

I have another theory here. (And once again, I’m not a lawyer) I’m thinking that Mark Meadows gave the Jack Smith prosecutors enough information, for them to justify them granting him immunity. But then Meadows said he wouldn’t tell them anything else and got the immunity anyway. But now the Jack Smith team can’t use what Meadows told them against him, but everything that he hasn’t already admitted and all the other evidence that they have against him, they can still use against him going forward.

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Amanpour & Company: ‘A Dysfunctional & Destructive Force: Adam Kinzinger On Today’s GOP’

“A Dysfunctional and Destructive Force_” Adam Kinzinger on Today’s GOP _ Amanpour and CompanySource:Amanpour & Company interviewing former U.S. Representative Adam Kinzinger (Republican, Illinois)

Source:The New Democrat

“The Republican Party continues to be plagued by division. The Senate GOP is still split over the question of a tie-in between aid for Israel and funding for Ukraine. Former Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger knows this dysfunction all too well. His new memoir “Renegade” details his service on the January 6 House Select Committee as an outcast in his own party. He joins the show to discuss.”

From Amanpour & Company

Adam Kinzinger, is no moderate or RINO. He was basically the John McCain of the U.S. House of Representatives. And I’m not just talking about a Republican whose willing to take on his own party, including the leadership, which is what then Senator John McCain did both with then President George W. Bush in the mid 2000s when it came to deficit spending and civil liberties, but then his own leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell over ObamaCare and other issues.

Adam Kinzinger is one of the original supporters of the 2003 Iraq War, served in that war, he’s a real deficit hawk, and supporter of property rights. We’re not talking about some wisihy-washy moderate Republican, who served in a district, that had a lot of Democrats in it it. Adam Kinzinger is a true Center-Right, Conservative Republican, who fits in very well in the old Barry Goldwater/Ronald Reagan Republican Party. A political party that’s all but gone now in today’s Donald Trump’s MAGA party.

So when the Adam Kingziner’s of the world, the S.E. Cupp’s of the world, and other old school Conservative Republicans, not just say that there’s something wrong with the modern Republican Party, but they can’t be Republicans anymore, because that party no longer represents their conservative values, you need to take those folks seriously and listen to them.

But if you are part of the Donald Trump cult and see him as nothing more or less than God, or just you are just a political careerist, whose simply looking to hold on to your current job, or obtain more power in the current Republican Party and will do anything that you can to achieve those goals, including sacrificing your own credibility, integrity, and character, then it’s only your career and power that you care about and you’ll do anything to protect that for yourself.

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Harry Litman: ‘Harry Is Back: Donald Trump CAN’T CONTROL His BIG MOUTH

Harry is back_ Trump CAN'T CONTROL his BIG MOUTHSource:Harry Litman talking about Judge’s Tanya Chutkan & Arthur Engoron.

Source:The New Democrat

“Judge Tanya Chutkan denied an amicus brief submitted by the ACLU regarding the gag order. The ACLU, who has publicly denounced the gag order, criticized Chutkan’s use of the allegedly vague verb “target.” In the meantime, Trump has continued to go after Judge Arthur Engoron on social media calling him “unhinged,” “crazy,” and a “political hack.” We’re so happy to have Harry back with his legal analysis!

TALKING FEDS PODCAST is a roundtable discussion that brings together prominent former government officials, journalists, and special guests for a dynamic and in-depth analysis of the most pressing questions in law and politics.”

From Harry Litman

Speaking of avatar’s of liberalism: I don’t think anyone supports the First Amendment more than I do. Almost no one is more liberal when it comes to free speech than I do. Except for people who believe that we have a right to lie under oath, commit false advertising for profit, defaming people for profit, or ordering or inciting violence against other people. And there are people who puts no limits on free speech in America and I don’t doubt that. But even our constitutional rights have some limits, to protect the rights of the innocent in this country.

If you live in Donald Trump’s world, (as of right now, only one person lives on that planet) you believe that you have a right to do anything you want, because in your narcissistic, little, mind, you believe you are above the law, simply because you are Donald J. Trump and the rest of us are just American citizens and mere mortals.

The problem that DJT has, is that he doesn’t operate on his own planet and comes down to Planet Earth everyday to do his business and to operate. Which means that he’s legally obligated to follow the same rules and has the same rights as every other American citizen. And when he violates those rules, he has to pay the same price as everyone else.

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C-SPAN: Senate Minority Leader McConnell On Aid For Ukraine & Israel

McConnell on Aid for Ukraine & IsraelSource:C-SPAN– U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican, Kentucky)

Source:The New Democrat

“Senate Minority Leader McConnell explains why he’s pushing for aid for Israel and Ukraine as members of his own party criticize him for it: “My own view is that we need a to treat all four of these areas: Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and the border.”

From C-SPAN

It’s rare that you see snowstorms in Miami, Florida, hurricanes in Las Vegas, Nevada, sunny days in Seattle, Washington. But it’s also rare that you see me agree with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, whose been the Senate Republican Leader since 2007, after Democrats won Congress back in 2006 and the highest ranking Republican, not just in Congress, but in the entire U.S. Government, twice in the last 16 years. So it’s not like Leader McConnell and I haven’t had any opportunities to even agree on what the whether is like outside, let alone what’s going on in Washington.

But to make a long story shorter: I completely agree with Leader McConnell on the need for a broader foreign aid package. And I believe Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is on board here as well. So their foreign aid package that would include Israel, Ukraine, Taiwan, and our southern border, will pass overwhelmingly in the Senate, whether the Republican House manages to pass anything, let alone their own bill, is another story.

It will be an uphill battle for House Republicans to pass their own bill (to say the least) since House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, will probably lock in all his members against an Israel only aid bill, that might also include funding for the southern border. And new Speaker Mike Johnson could lose 10, perhaps 20 House Republicans, who are up for reelection next year in Democratic leaning districts.

If Democrats, not just in the Senate, but President Biden, House Democrats, as well as Senate Republicans, agree to an Israel only aid bill and perhaps aid to the southern border, the House won’t come back with an Ukraine and Taiwan aid bills. Those bills would be dead because you have a Pro-Putin wing in the House Republican Conference, that’s also pro-Netanyahu, and probably wouldn’t mind seeing the so-called People’s Republic of China, unilaterally invade and occupy Taiwan.

But the Senate passes their broader package and it passes overwhelmingly, it would pass the House as well, if brought to the floor, with most Democrats voting for it, as well as a lot of Republicans. Which might be why new Speaker of the House Mike Johnson doesn’t want a broader package, because he has a Putin wing in his own conference and that bill would pass easily.

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