The Tiny Scandals and Trials

[ti-amie]

And the fallout begins.

[ti-amie]

[Ribbons]

Sadly, I don't have the time or the budget to sponsor 43 cockroaches (you have to purchase them one by one) to feed to the San Antonio critters. But I did name three after my two senators (Marsha Blackburn and Bill Haggerty) and Governor HVAC:

https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/31/us/name- ... index.html

[ponchi101]

Serious. What charges or under what circumstances can Tiny be sued in a civil or criminal court for the actions of Jan 6th? Mitch is SO brave...

This is what the USA Congress and Senate have become. All the subpoenas delivered during the investigations? Ha. And now this acquittal? Ha. The entire body is a joke.

[ti-amie]

Nancy did all she could. I wish Schumer had her cojones.

[ti-amie]

[ti-amie]

[Togtdyalttai]

She'll be fine. Alaska's system makes it so that she's almost a shoo-in.

The system is basically a jungle primary like California (and some other states), but the top 4 advance instead of the top 2. Then the general election is ranked choice voting. So say there's a hardcore Trump supporter, a Democrat, and a Libertarian running against her in the general election. You can be sure most of the Democrats will have her as their second choice, but the Trump supporters likely would have her second as well.

[dryrunguy]

I am at loss as to why anyone thought there might be a different result.

[JazzNU]

"Could the Democrat led DOJ pretty pretty please do what we GOP Senators didn't have the balls to do" - Mitch the Spineless Turtle

[ponchi101]

I am at loss as to why anyone thought there might be a different result.

I don't think anybody thought it might have been different. But that still does not mean that a lot of people are surprised. This was not a smoking gun case. This was the corpse on the floor, the gun smoking, in the hand of the perpetrator, filmed by CCTV.
The spinelessness of the GOP, you have to admit, is something to behold. And it is not even because it is a cult; Mitch shows a different kind of cowardice that perhaps may be even more repulsive: that of the political manipulator. He comes first, the party comes second, country maybe third.

[ti-amie]

From Legal Twitter:

Daniel Goldman:

Short thread on impeachment witnesses:

First, let’s remember that this case had unusual and powerful evidence in the public record. If you are prosecuting a bank robbery and you have the surveillance camera footage, you don’t need witnesses to tell you what happened.
1/

Second, the only areas where witnesses could help was confirming what the circumstantial evidence already showed about Trump’s knowledge and intent, both before and after the riot. Mgrs did great job of using his own tweets to show his knowledge but witnesses could confirm.
2/

The case was really strong as is but new witness testimony would very likely become the sole focus of the media and the public. For that reason, it is especially important to avoid taking risks with witnesses a) who are adverse to you and b) whose testimony is unknown.
3/

Since the only witnesses that would be helpful are ones close to Trump, executive privilege would invariably be an issue. If a witness is not cooperative, s/he would likely fall back on EP to avoid testifying. Hashing that out would take months.
4/

The reality is that Trump has created a dynamic through the Ukraine whistleblower and Ukraine witnesses where his domestic terrorist supporters threaten violence against witnesses against him. This fear is real and it is a huge problem. This should be everyone’s focus.
5/

Managers tried to find witnesses who a) could provide direct evidence about Trump’s state of mind, b) who were willing to testify and were cooperative so no surprises and no litigation, and c) who would do no harm to the already strong case.
6/

Beutler’s public statement was very helpful because it confirmed Trump’s sociopathic disregard for the line of succession in the Capitol. That was very helpful. Beutler endured open witness intimidation from colleagues and probably others — that should be the story.
7/

Finally, @RepRaskin is right that if their powerful case did not convince 67 to convict, nothing would. Why dilute their case, delay the trial, potentially put people in harm’s way or endure lengthy litigation, only to get marginally more info about facts that everyone knows?
8/

Trump’s requests to call Pelosi or 100 witnesses were empty threats — they didn’t have a single witness who could have helped them. That should not have been a factor. But if they were smart, they could have made the witnesses look lopsided and unfair if they didn’t get any.
9/

It was the right call to proceed as they did. They got important evidence at no cost that bolstered an already strong case. Witnesses were not necessary to the case and witnesses purely for witnesses sake is bad strategy. The outrage should be at the witness intimidation.

END

[dryrunguy]

I am at loss as to why anyone thought there might be a different result.

I don't think anybody thought it might have been different. But that still does not mean that a lot of people are surprised. This was not a smoking gun case. This was the corpse on the floor, the gun smoking, in the hand of the perpetrator, filmed by CCTV.
The spinelessness of the GOP, you have to admit, is something to behold. And it is not even because it is a cult; Mitch shows a different kind of cowardice that perhaps may be even more repulsive: that of the political manipulator. He comes first, the party comes second, country maybe third.

It permanently cements the reality that nothing will ever stick to this man. At least in the political arena. I put the chances of anything sticking to him in the criminal justice arena about about 100/1.

Meanwhile, are we taking early bets on who wins the Republican nomination in 2024? Don Jr, Ivanka, Eric, or Jared?

[Suliso]

I'm fairly convinced Trump will fade. Let's resume this discussion in a year or two...

[ponchi101]

Hope you are right. But this man craves the spotlight too much. He will not fade because he simply could not accept that.