This diary is meant to be both informative, and sardonic.
As Mr. Trump rests comfortably and illegally at his Mar a Lago home, and planes fly above, telling him what a special president he was, the rest of us are wondering just when, (WHEN!!!!!) will something be done about all his illegal activity???
This will take time.
So, cool yer jets!
Remember, as president, Trump had some extra-special-presidential-ways of staving off prosecutions. So, some facets of these ongoing investigations have been hampered.
No longer, though.
Charges aren’t imminent as Trump departs Washington. But losing the election in November meant Trump also will lose what presidential protections he had when he’s replaced by Joe Biden at noon. Among those he claimed: that a sitting president cannot be charged with a crime.
January 21, 2021
Donald Trump returned to private life on Wednesday after spending four years as America's president -- and is now dealing with legal crises that are catching up to him.
"The law firm that handled the tax affairs of Donald Trump and his company during his presidency said it would stop representing him and his business," The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. "The firm, Morgan Lewis & Bockius, is currently wrangling with the New York attorney general's office over documents related to its work for the former president's business, the Trump Organization. Led by Democratic Attorney General Letitia James, the office is conducting a civil-fraud probe into Mr. Trump's financial dealings."
Trump was represented by Sheri Dillon, a partner at the firm.
BY DEBRA CASSENS WEISS
JANUARY 21, 2021, 10:49 AM CST
“We have had a limited representation of the Trump Organization and Donald Trump in tax-related matters,” a Morgan Lewis spokeswoman told Law.com, Bloomberg Law and Thomson Reuters Legal. “For those matters not already concluded, we are transitioning as appropriate to other counsel.”
Law360 reports on one ongoing matter—a probe seeking information on whether the Trump Organization inflated the value of property donated for a conservation easement to claim a higher tax deduction.
On Tuesday, Judge Arthur Engoron of New York ordered Morgan Lewis to produce documents that he had reviewed and marked as “not privileged” in the tax probe by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
[...]
Morgan Lewis’ announcement that it was dropping Trump and his business as clients comes after other law firms and businesses also distanced themselves from the former president.
Seyfarth Shaw decided to dump Trump businesses as clients earlier this month. Alston & Bird has also announced it will not work with Trump in the future after representing him in a business dispute last year, according to Law.com.
So, Uh, Is Trump Gonna Go to Jail?
And others questions you have about presidential immunity, and what will happen after DJT heads to Florida.
[...]
His four years in office have been polluted with scandal after scandal, including two impeachments, alleged collusion with Russia, trying to interfere with 2020 presidential election results, and ultimately making history (in the bad way) by having the most number of suits filed against him in any presidency (140!).
[...]
To understand what might be in store for Trump and his alleged activity after he leaves office this week, Cosmopolitan spoke to attorney Danya Perry
So, is presidential immunity a thing?
Presidential immunity is a thing, but it’s not as all-encompassing as it sounds. “Broadly speaking, presidential immunity provides absolute protection to a sitting president from civil litigation for official acts taken while he—and, someday, she—is president. The Supreme Court has clarified that the president does not, however, enjoy absolute immunity from civil litigation for conduct that predated his presidency,” says Perry. That means Trump could still go down for any illegal activity he was involved with before he took office. “In 2020, the Court further ruled that the president is subject to subpoenas for criminal prosecution for personal conduct, just like anyone else.”
So what’s up with the cases that have already been filed against him?
“There are a number of active lawsuits pending against Mr. Trump in his individual capacity, including most famously two defamation suits brought by women who have accused him of sexual assault,” says Perry. “In both cases, he has argued that he is immune from the pursuit of these actions during his presidency. Those arguments will go away on January 21 unless the president is impeached and convicted sooner.”
Trump could still go down for any illegal activity he was involved with before he took office.
Ditto for the civil and criminal investigations that are ongoing in New York. Last August, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a motion to compel Eric Trump and others to comply with an investigation into the the Trump Organization's financial dealings. Trump’s own former lawyer, Michael Cohen, has also filed a lawsuit against the Trump Organization for millions of dollars owed in legal fees.
So, yeah, there’s a lot waiting for Trump come Thursday. “As soon as Mr. Trump leaves office, his claims of immunity go away with him and he may be pursued to the full extent of the law,” says Perry.
New York Attorney General Letitia James won her office, campaigning against (alleged) Trump criminality. She has been very vocal about it.
Except for lately………
But she did poke her head out of her office to make a statement, last Tuesday:
Donald Trump, now out of office, faces a slew of civil and criminal investigations now that he doesn’t have the same legal protections afforded to a sitting president.
And one of his biggest legal challengers is New York State Attorney General Letitia James.
“No one is above the law, including the most powerful individual in this office, and that is former President Donald Trump. Four years of chaos and confusion — but no more,” James told NY1.
[...]
“Our investigation is civil in nature and in the event we uncover criminal conduct, it will change the posture of the case and we could pursue the possibility of criminal actions against individuals who might be involved in the wrongdoings,” James said.
She is working with the Biden team to reverse Trump administration policies on the Census count, immigration and the environment.
James pointed to a number of actions by the Trump administration that negatively impacted New Yorkers, including Trump’s labeling of New York City as an “anarchist city,” which robbed it of certain grants, and a tax law that capped local and state tax deductions.
In the two years she’s been in office, James’ office has filed 76 lawsuits against the Trump administration, of which it has won over 80%.
“It’s important that we stand up for the interests and the rights of New Yorkers,” she said.
And here she is, last Thursday:
“Our investigation is ongoing,” James said in an interview Thursday.
“We're in the midst of document discovery. We have interviewed a number of individuals, including Eric Trump and others. And our investigation has no bearing on whether or not Donald Trump is the President."
[...]
James is looking into whether the Trump Organization misrepresented the value of its assets. It is a civil investigation — for now.
“If in fact we uncover any criminal conduct, that will change the posture of our investigation,” she said. “So there is a possibility that there might be a criminal probe similar to that which is currently being conducted by the Manhattan District Attorney."
Speaking of the Manhattan DA………this, from last Thursday:
Vance last year won a Supreme Court decision granting him access to eight years of Trump’s financial records. But the case remains tied up in court, with the Supreme Court now weighing a final Trump appeal.
Still, Vance’s investigation is only heating up. He’s reportedly interviewed employees of Trump’s lender, Deutsche Bank, and his insurance broker, Aon. He also reportedly hired a financial consulting firm to help dissect Trump’s finances, and just last week interviewed Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney.
[...]
Meanwhile, D.A. Vance hasn't said whether he’s running for re-election this year, which means if he brings criminal charges against Trump, it could be left to his successor to prosecute the case.
www.ibtimes.com/...
Vance’s office has reportedly interviewed a number of former Trump associates, including his former attorney Michael Cohen, who is familiar with the organization’s business practices. Cohen had pleaded guilty to violating campaign finance laws in connection to Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign. Vance has investigated alleged hush-money payments Cohen made to adult-film star Stormy Daniels and a Playboy model Karen McDougal before the 2016 election. Cohen claims Trump directed him to pay the two women.
Prosecutors have also reportedly talked to Deutsche Bank AG, which lent the Trump Organization more than $300 million.
Vance has hired the financial firm FTI Consulting to analyze Trump’s financial statements and potentially serve as an expert witness.
The New York Times' investigation in September found that his 2010 tax refund was at the center of an audit dispute. In 2022, Trump will have a $100 million tax payment due in connection to a $72.9 million tax refund he received in 2010. He reportedly could face paying another $100 million if he loses a tax dispute.
Much more great information on Vance’s investigation and prospects, here:
news.bloomberglaw.com/…
By SARAH CHAYES, BEN CLEMENTS AND RON FEIN
JAN. 13, 2021
[...]
First, Trump’s role in the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol must be examined. The president’s rallying cries that day to his supporters to “fight like hell” and “we’re going to the Capitol” to “show strength” may equate to participation in numerous federal crimes, including inciting rebellion, seditious conspiracy and violent entry into the Capitol. Worse, initial reports suggest that his administration may have delayed other agencies from intervening as the Capitol was breached. Whether Trump’s role is framed as conspiracy, inducement or otherwise, a serious investigation into possible grounds for prosecution is warranted.
The assault came just days after Trump’s phone call pressuring Georgia’s secretary of state to “find 11,780 votes” to overturn the presidential election outcome in that state. The call almost certainly violated federal law; indeed, two members of Congress have already sent a criminal referral to the FBI.
That’s just January.
Earlier, Trump was identified as an unindicted co-conspirator in the successful federal prosecution of Michael Cohen, his former personal lawyer, for campaign finance crimes. Separately, special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s report laid out overwhelming evidence of a multifaceted effort to obstruct justice. Mueller refrained from spelling out the obvious because of Department of Justice policy against prosecuting a sitting president. But for that policy, Trump almost surely would have been prosecuted. And the policy itself no longer applies once the president’s term is over.
Separately, the inspector general in the office of the director of national intelligence sent a criminal referral to the FBI alleging possible violations of federal laws “related to a telephone call on July 25, 2019, between President Donald J. Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.” Trump’s attempted trade of U.S. policy for a spurious investigation led to his impeachment. Although the Senate — a political body rendering an inherently political decision — declined to convict and remove the president from office, that doesn’t immunize him from later criminal prosecution. President Clinton, who faced a similar situation albeit on far less serious charges, avoided indictment only by making a deal with prosecutors.
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Merrick Garland, assuming he is confirmed as attorney general, should neither order that the department prosecute Trump nor that it not prosecute him. Rather, Garland should establish an independent task force to coordinate federal investigations relating to evidence of Trump’s misconduct. That would ensure that such probes would go forward without political interference and without distracting the rest of Justice Department.
Justified federal investigations can be handled with sensitivity and professionalism, making it clear that no one — not even a former president — is above the law.
Georgia Secretary of State Bradley Raffensperger has stated (rightly) that he cannot be the one who would prosecute Trump over his January extortion call to him, with the intent of getting GA in his column for the 2020 election. He, being involved in the call, isn’t the proper one to invesitgate.
January 4th, 2021 — ATLANTA — Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said he will discuss the phone call he received from President Donald Trump last weekend with the Fulton County District Attorney and state election board to determine if the president broke any laws when he asked Raffensperger to find enough votes to overturn the results of November’s election.
Channel 2 investigative reporter Justin Gray independently obtained a copy of the call over the weekend. During it, the president does the vast majority of the talking, pressuring Raffensperger to change the results of the election.
“Did you think the president did anything improper or even possibly illegal in his conversation with you on that call?” Gray asked Raffensperger in a one-on-one interview on Monday.
“I’m an engineer, not a lawyer, so I’ll leave all that to the lawyers,” Raffensperger said.
So, he’s left it to…………..a very powerful lawyer named Fani Willis, District Attorney for Fulton County GA.
The Fulton County district attorney is weighing an inquiry into possible election interference and is said to be considering hiring an outside counsel.
- Published Jan. 15, 2021Updated Jan. 18, 2021
ATLANTA — Prosecutors in Georgia appear increasingly likely to open a criminal investigation of President Trump over his attempts to overturn the results of the state’s 2020 election, an inquiry into offenses that would be beyond his federal pardon power.
[...]
Some veteran Georgia prosecutors said they believed Mr. Trump had clearly violated state law.
“If you took the fact out that he is the president of the United States and look at the conduct of the call, it tracks the communication you might see in any drug case or organized crime case,” said Michael J. Moore, the former United States attorney for the Middle District of Georgia. “It’s full of threatening undertone and strong-arm tactics.”
He said he believed there had been “a clear attempt to influence the conduct of the secretary of state, and to commit election fraud, or to solicit the commission of election fraud.”
The White House declined to comment.
[...]
Mr. Banzhaf and other legal experts say Mr. Trump’s calls may run afoul of at least three state criminal laws. One is criminal solicitation to commit election fraud, which can be either a felony or a misdemeanor.
There is also a related conspiracy charge, which can be prosecuted either as a misdemeanor or a felony. A third law, a misdemeanor offense, bars “intentional interference” with another person’s “performance of election duties.”
“My feeling based on listening to the phone call is that they probably will see if they can get it past a grand jury,”
said Joshua Morrison, a former senior assistant district attorney in Fulton County who once worked closely with Ms. Willis. “It seems clearly there was a crime committed.”
He noted that Fulton County, which encompasses much of Atlanta, is not friendly territory for Mr. Trump if he were to face a grand jury there.