November 14, 2024

Thursday, November 14, 2024. Annette’s News Roundup.

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What special prosecutor Jack Smith may have in mind.

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Illegalities and other shocking Trump related matters of note.

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Businessman behind one of the biggest medical frauds in history tipped to run Senate

Pro-Trump Rick Scott, whose private hospital chain had to pay out $1.7bn, had emerged as the MAGA choice for majority leader.

Happy to say, Scott, the corrupt MAGA Senator from Florida, lost in a secret ballot by Republican Senators, even though Trump side-kick Elon Musk had tweeted, “Rick Scott for Set Majority Leader!”

Scott had made clear that he would have agreed to Trump’s demand that the Senate GOP leader agree to recess appointments, which would effectively let Trump fast-track his nominees and appointments without needing Senate approval. Thune made no such agreement with the devil.

So far, we still have a government with separation of powers.

As I texted to Eve yesterday, “I never was so happy for a right wing white man to be chosen in my life.”

I am still worried about what that “little secret” Speaker Mike Johnson has with Trump.

The Senate is not the only possible source of a call to “ recess” of the Congress. Under clause 12(b) of rule I, the Speaker or chair of the Committee of the Whole may declare an emergency recess when notified of an imminent threat to the safety of the House. Recesses also may be declared by the Speaker pursuant to authority granted by the House by privileged motion.

Privileged business relates to the order or priority of business before the House and is defined in House rules and precedents as business that has precedence over the regular order of business and so may supersede or interrupt other matters that might be called up or pending.

One more thing.

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The third term “joke.”

When President-elect Donald J. Trump met with House Republicans on Wednesday morning, he suggested he might need their help to try to circumvent the Constitution and run for a third term in the future — a comment that was met with laughter by his friendly audience.

“I suspect I won’t be running again unless you say, ‘He’s so good we’ve got to figure something else out,’ ” Mr. Trump told Republicans, who appeared to take it as a joke.

One Democrat is moving quickly to make sure that cannot happen. Representative Dan Goldman of New York plans on Thursday to introduce a resolution clarifying that the Constitution’s two-term limit for presidents applies even if the terms are not consecutive. It asserts that the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution, which states that a person who has been elected president twice cannot run again, “applies to two terms in the aggregate” and leaves no loophole.

In other words, Mr. Trump — who served from 2017 to 2021 and is slated to assume the presidency again in January — could not seek another term in the future.

Mr. Goldman’s resolution, which was obtained by The New York Times, also reaffirms that the 22nd Amendment applies to Mr. Trump.

There is little chance that Speaker Mike Johnson, Republican of Louisiana, would bring such a resolution to the floor for a vote.

But Mr. Goldman’s resolution is an early indication of how Democrats may try to hold Mr. Trump accountable and defend democratic institutions with Republicans headed toward full control of Congress and few guardrails remaining to rein him in. Introducing the measure allows Mr. Goldman to draw public attention to Mr. Trump’s statements, which he calls “anti-democratic and authoritarian.”

Mr. Trump’s comment on Wednesday was not the first time he has hinted that he might like to stay in the White House past his next term. In July, he told attendees of a conservative Christian event that they “won’t have to vote anymore” if he won the election, noting: “it’ll be fixed so good, you’re not going to have to vote.”

In May, while speaking to the National Rifle Association, Mr. Trump mused out loud: ‘‘I don’t know, are we going to be considered three-term or two-term? Are we three-term or two-term if we win?’’

His remarks about serving more than two terms go back years. In 2020, when he was still in office, Mr. Trump told supporters at a rally in Nevada: ‘‘We’re going to win four more years in the White House. And then after that, we’ll negotiate, right? Because we’re probably — based on the way we were treated — we are probably entitled to another four after that.”

His allies have made similar statements. Representative Lauren Boebert, Republican of Colorado, said in a statement celebrating her own victory in a new district that “we must rally behind President Trump to secure his third term.” While some Republicans speculated that Ms. Boebert was referring in that statement to her belief that Mr. Trump won the 2020 election, her comment and others like it have made Mr. Goldman and other Democrats concerned that Republicans don’t actually see Mr. Trump’s musings as a joke at all.

In a statement, Mr. Goldman called on Democrats and Republicans alike to “stand by the oath we all took to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and confirm the Congress’ commitment to this principle.” (New York Times)

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Thinking about what to do myself, about X and about the Roundup.

This 👇happened yesterday. It raises an issue important.

The Guardian will no longer post on Elon Musk’s X from its official accounts

I cite posts on X every day. They are much simpler to post on the newsletter than full articles. They also often appear much sooner there.

I am also considering when to take a pause (now until after the inauguration?) or even to shut the Roundup down. I want to help keep you, dear readers, informed but I don’t want to be stuck relaying Trump’s despicable actions with any frequency. That is why currently I am assuming mostly that you see most of those yourself, though some are too egregious not to merit comment.

I try to focus on what those allied with us do to stop him, what else is being done to limit his damage and what we ourselves can do.

The Guardian made a choice. 👇 I will make one soon too. What would you like me to do?

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Reactions to Trump nominees.

Matt Gaetz as Attorney General.

Fact to keep in mind. If one Republican votes with the Democrats on the Committee, the report can still be released.

One more thing. Or two.

Watch the videos.

Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence.

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Wondering about the Pennsylvania Senate Race?

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Your daily reminder

Trump is a convicted felon.

On May 30th, he was found guilty on 34 felony counts by the unanimous vote of 12 ordinary citizens.

The Convicted Felon Donald J. Trump was scheduled to be sentenced on July 11th and September 18th. He will now be sentenced on November 26.

In a decision issued November 12th, Judge Merchan granted the stay until Nov. 19. He gave the prosecution until then to file an outline of appropriate next steps.

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Something to cheer your soul.

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