Calling shenanigans. Republicans are trying to frame the Indictment as trivial because as Speaker McCarthy says, bathrooms have locks. The Proud Boys threatened to show up but didn’t. Trump steered the helicopter coverage to a Miami Cuban restaurant to get 15 minutes of CNN coverage of a campaign event. 71 counts and counting.
As a registered voter in Palm Beach County, Fla., Bette Anne Starkey knows there is a possibility she could be chosen to serve on a jury in the federal criminal case against former President Donald J. Trump. But even though she is a two-time Trump voter, she cannot really say how she would lean as a juror weighing the case.
Echoing Mr. Trump himself, Ms. Starkey, an 81-year-old bookkeeper, used the phrase “witch hunt” in an interview to describe the federal indictment against the former president, which accuses him of knowingly removing classified documents from the White House. But she also struggles to understand why Mr. Trump did not simply return the documents when asked for them, part of her simmering irritation with the 45th president.
“I’m sick of hearing about all of his shenanigans,” she said.
Her comments reflect the complicated feelings that Mr. Trump can elicit these days even among Republicans who voted for him. But Ms. Starkey is also a reflection of the equally complicated, volatile politics of South Florida, Mr. Trump’s home turf, and the jury pool it offers.
www.nytimes.com/...
Security and safety measures were being prepared by officials in Miami, including police and fire departments, ahead of the hearing to prepare for crowds and protests, said Miami Mayor Francis Suarez at a news conference on Monday. Some roads may be closed in the downtown area, he said.
- The U.S. Marshals and Florida Highway Patrol will also help.
Can I watch live?
Details: Federal court proceedings are not live streamed, and reporters are not allowed to record or transmit audio, photography or video from the courtroom or courthouse.
- Overflow viewing will be available for reporters.
- A federal judge in the Southern District of Florida issued an order on Monday evening prohibiting the use of all cell phones and other electronic equipment inside the courthouse during Trump's arraignment.
Separately, a magistrate in the Southern District of Florida rejected a request by a media coalition to permit a "limited number of photographs and video-recordings in the courtroom and/or the outside corridor" before proceedings begin, citing security concerns.
Of note: A mug shot of Trump was not taken during his first appearance in Manhattan in April. He was fingerprinted.
www.axios.com/...
Ten Republican members of Congress attended a Dec. 21 White House meeting focused on efforts to pressure former Vice President Mike Pence to help overturn the 2020 election, according to the Jan. 6 committee.
Why it matters: The revelation underscores how deep the involvement of some lawmakers were in former President Trump's schemes to overturn the election even after the electoral college met to affirm President Biden's victory.
Driving the news: Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.) said at a hearing on Tuesday that White House visitor logs reveal 10 members were physically in attendance:
- Rep. Brian Babin (R-Texas)
- Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.)
- Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.)
- Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas)
- Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.)
- Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.)
- Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.)
- Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio)
- Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.)
- Now-Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.)
The backdrop: Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson told the panel in closed-door testimony that members "felt that [Pence] had the authority to ... [send] the electors back to the States," according to a court filing from April.
- Hutchinson noted that "they dialed in a few Members over the course of that meeting."
- She mentioned two members – Reps. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) and Debbie Lesko (R-Ariz.) – who were not in the visitor logs cited by Murphy.
www.axios.com/...