Trump loses bid for presidential immunity in E Jean Carroll defamation suit: Live

Donald Trump cannot assert presidential immunity from a defamation lawsuit by writer E Jean Carroll, who accused him of rape, an appeals court ruled, dealing the former president another legal setback.

The ruling upholds a federal judge’s decision to reject his claim of immunity, finding Mr Trump had waited too long to raise it as a defence. The trial will now go ahead on 16 January 2024.

The former president has pursued a similar immunity defence in his federal criminal case in which he is accused of unlawfully trying to overturn his loss in the 2020 presidential election. The Supreme Court has agreed to a request from special counsel Jack Smith to hear the case on an expedited basis.

These latest legal developments come as Mr Trump’s civil fraud trial is wrapping up in Lower Manhattan while his ex-lawyer Rudy Giuliani’s defamation trial is underway in Washington, DC.

Meanwhile, Mr Trump has unveiled his latest range of digital trading cards on Truth Social, which he is calling the “MugShot Edition” including the notorious booking photograph of him taken at Fulton County jail. Buy all of them and you will also receive a piece of the suit he wore…

Key Points

• Trump loses bid for presidential immunity in E Jean Carroll’s defamation suit

• Jack Smith asks US Supreme Court to rule on Trump immunity — and quick

• Trump hawks mug shot NFTs and pieces of suit in latest cash-in

• Giuliani defamation trial: Election worker targeted by former mayor’s lies is afraid for her life

• Supreme Court to hear case on Jan 6 obstruction of justice charges

• Trump lawyers file motion calling for pause in Jan 6 proceedings pending appeal

Trump suggests he has ruled out a settlement in fraud trial case

16:19 , Alex Woodward

In a post on his Truth Social, Trump claimed the just overseeing his fraud trial “tried to get me to settle” the case.

His all-caps barrage hours before his trial is expected to close revived familiar attacks against Judge Arthur Engoron and New York Attorney General Letitia James, calling the case against him a “total hit job”.

He wrote: “WE KEEP ASKING FOR DISMISSAL, BUT THE TRUMP HATER (JUDGE) WON’T LET IT GO. AN INSULT TO AMERICA! HE RULED THAT I WAS A FRAUD BEFORE HE EVEN SAW THE CASE, THEN TRIED TO GET ME TO SETTLE. A TOTAL HIT JOB.”

NY fraud trial: Defence cross examination for final witness begins shortly

16:12 , Alex Woodward

A final witness in Trump’s fraud trial will face cross examination from the former president’s attorneys later this morning after his legal team asked a judge extra time to prepare their questions.

The witness, Cornell professor Eric Lewis, is the second of two rebuttal witnesses from the attorney general’s team.

The trial will resume at 11:45am ET, with Trump’s attorneys expected to launch a fierce round of questioning.

NY fraud trial: No love lost between defence and plaintiff counsels

16:05 , Oliver O'Connell

Counsel for the New York attorney general’s office Kevin Wallace is trying to get expert witness Eric Lewis to rebut the defence’s analysis of financial statements and GAAP compliance, but Trump attorney Christopher Kise is objecting to just about every single thing.

“That’s not rebuttal. That’s just testimony,” Kise said.

Wallace is furious: “This is an insane standard.”

He can barely get an answer out of Mr Lewis.

Kise is getting snippy, saying to Wallace: “Petulant outbursts don’t really play well in a courtroom.”

Full story: Supreme Court to hear January 6 cases that could affect Trump

16:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Eric Garcia reports:

The US Supreme Court will hear a case of a January 6 defendant that could potentially affect former president Donald Trump’s legal battles.

The Supreme Court will hear the case of Joseph Fischer, who was charged for his role in the riot at the US Capitol on January 6. Prosecutors also charged Edward Lang and Garrett Miller on similar counts, specifically with one count of obstructing an official proceeding since they disrupted the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.

All three of the men argue that Mr Fischer could not have obstructed a congressional proceeding because of the fact that Mr Fischer arrived at the Capitol after Congress had already recessed.

Read more...

Supreme Court to hear January 6 cases that could affect Trump

Giuliani defamation trial: Some defamatory statements came from ‘strategic communications plan'

15:53 , Oliver O'Connell

Expert witness Dr Ashlee Humphreys tells the jury that she analysed the reach and reputational harm of 16 statements Judge Howell ruled defamatory earlier this year. She then calculated an estimated cost to repair that reputational harm.

Between 3 December 2020 and 22 December 2020, she found 91 instances of defamatory statements and more than 50 emotional harm statements made about Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss by Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump or the Trump campaign.

Some of these statements came from Giuliani’s “strategic communications plan”:

In examining the reach of Giuliani’s statements, Dr Humphreys estimates that a single 23 December 2020 episode of his podcast generated between 584,000 and 806,000 impressions online.

NY fraud trial: Trump attorney ‘disrupting’ final testimony with objections, says NY AG counsel

15:35 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports from the New York State Supreme Court:

Judge Arthur Engoron is seated and notes that we’ll be back for oral arguments on 11 January 2024, “but in a strange way, I’m gonna miss this trial,” he says. “It’s been an experience.”

Trump attorney Christopher Kise has objected to just about every answer from the second rebuttal witness and the trial’s final witness Eric Lewis, an accounting professor at Cornell SC Johnson College of Business.

New York Attorney General counsel Kevin Wallace shouts back to Kise that Mr Lewis was already qualified by the judge to testify as an expert yesterday.

“But not in the real world,” Kise fires back.

“At this point, he’s just disrupting the exam,” Wallace says. “This is out of order. This is ridiculous.”

Mr Lewis has basically just been explaining what an “estimated current value” is. He is asked to rebut previous defence testimony about… drumroll… GAAP! and whether financial statements are compliant with those guidelines if they rely on certain valuation methods.

And who is ultimately responsible for that compliance?

Trump, Mr Lewis says.

Biden says world leaders keep telling him ‘You can’t let Trump win’

15:30 , Joe Sommerlad

Foreign leaders keep on imploring Joe Biden not to let Donald Trump win next year’s presidential election, according to the man himself.

At a fundraising event in Philadelphia this week, the 81-year-old said he had faced private entreaties to beat Mr Trump at every single global summit he had attended recently.

“There’s not an international event that I’ve attended – not one – where the rest of the world doesn’t come up to me – leaders, no matter what country they’re from – and say, ‘You can’t let him win. You can’t let him win,” Mr Biden told his audience.

Biden says world leaders keep telling him ‘You can’t let Trump win’

Giuliani defamation trial: Expert witness testifies to reach and harm of former mayor’s statements

15:24 , Oliver O'Connell

The jury in the defamation trial of Rudy Giuliani in Washington, DC, is hearing from Dr Ashlee Humphreys, a professor of integrated communications at Northwestern University who analyzed the reach of Giuliani's defamatory statements.

She is admitted as an expert witness over the objections of Giuliani’s attorney.

Dr Humpreys analysed the reach and reputational harm of 18 statements made by Giuliani that Judge Howell ruled defamatory earlier this year.

She then calculated an estimated cost to repair that reputational harm. Her previous trial work includes E Jean Carroll’s defamation case against Donald Trump.

Dr Humphreys tells the court that reputation has both moral and economic value saying they can be quantified, as can the effort and money to repair them.

Asked if someone who becomes well-known can go back to being anonymous, she replies no.

Further, her research has found that false political information spreads up to three times faster than true information, so the reach in this case is huge.

Another legal setback as Trump loses bid for presidential immunity in E Jean Carroll’s defamation suit

15:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump cannot assert presidential immunity from a defamation lawsuit by writer E Jean Carroll, who accused him of rape, a US appeals court ruled on Wednesday, dealing the former president another legal setback.

The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan upheld a federal judge's decision to reject the former president’s claim of immunity, finding Mr Trump had waited too long to raise it as a defence.

His lawyers in the case, Michael Madaio and Alina Habba, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

Ms Carroll in the lawsuit sought at least $10m in damages from Mr Trump over comments he made in June 2019, when he was president, after she first publicly accused him of raping her in a Manhattan department store dressing room in the mid-1990s.

The then-president denied knowing Ms Carroll, said she was not his "type," and that she made up the rape claim to promote her upcoming memoir.

The former Elle magazine columnist sued in November 2019, but Mr Trump waited until December 2022 before asserting that absolute presidential immunity shielded him from her lawsuit. Under this, a president has complete immunity from many types of civil lawsuits while in office.

In June, US District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan rejected Mr Trump's bid to dismiss Ms Carroll's case and later refused to let him raise an immunity defence, citing the delay in seeking to invoke it and the public interest in accountability.

The 2nd Circuit on Wednesday said those decisions were correct.

"A three-year-delay is more than enough, under our precedents, to qualify as 'undue,'" a three-judge panel wrote in its opinion.

Mr Trump's appeal was heard on an expedited basis, ahead of a scheduled 16 January 2024, trial.

He has pursued a similar immunity defence in his federal criminal case in Washington in which he is accused of unlawfully trying to overturn his loss in the 2020 presidential election.

In a statement, Robbie Kaplan, attorney for Ms Carroll said: “We are pleased that the Second Circuit affirmed Judge Kaplan’s rulings and that we can now move forward with trial next month on January 16.”

Ms Carroll has already won one civil trial against Mr Trump. In May, a jury in a second lawsuit awarded her $5m for sexual assault and defamation after the former president last October again denied her accusations. He is appealing that verdict.

On 6 September, Judge Kaplan ruled that the jury's findings in May applied to Carroll's first lawsuit, making Mr Trump's denial defamatory. That left for trial only the issue of how much money Trump should pay Ms Carroll in damages.

Reuters

More details: SCOTUS to weigh challenge to Jan 6 obstruction charge

14:53 , Reuters

The US Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to decide whether a defendant arrested in connection with the 6 January 2021, attack on the Capitol can be charged with obstructing an official proceeding in a dispute with potential implications for one of Republican former President Donald Trump's four criminal cases.

The justices took up an appeal by a January 6 defendant after a federal appellate court allowed charges against him under a US law that makes it a crime to obstruct or impede an official proceeding, based on accusations that he assaulted police as Congress met to certify Democrat Joe Biden's 2020 election victory over Trump.

At least 315 people have been charged by the US Justice Department with obstructing an official proceeding in connection with the January 6 attack. The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in the case in the coming months and issue a ruling by the end of June.

NY fraud trial: Trump offers his usual calm, measured take as testimony wraps

14:50 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump has offered his usual calm, measured take on how his New York civil fraud trial has gone as testimony wraps up.

Regular readers may have noticed how this has evolved over the course of the 11 weeks of the trial, to the point that this is almost a greatest hits collection of the former president’s Truth Social rants — even gradually drifting into all-caps...

Our expert witness was incredible in court today. Won every single point, with strength, but grace. It wasn’t even close. The A.G.’s people had NO ANSWERS! This highly respected expert said this case is a disgrace, should never have been brought, and should be dropped immediately - that my financials are the best he has ever seen as an expert. They should be ashamed. They’ve got nothing other than a corrupt Attorney General, who ran on, “I will get TRUMP,” and a Trump Hating Radical Left Judge, who may be crazy. NO JURY, NO VICTIM, A NEVER USED FOR THIS PURPOSE STATUTE, A TOTALLY DISCREDITED STAR WITNESS WHO ADMITTED HE LIED DURING HIS TESTIMONY, WHICH WOULD HAVE CAUSED ANY OTHER JUDGE IN THE COUNTRY TO THROW OUT THIS BIDEN ATTACK ON HIS POLITICAL OPPONENT. WE KEEP ASKING FOR DISMISSAL, BUT THE TRUMP HATER (JUDGE) WON’T LET IT GO. AN INSULT TO AMERICA! HE RULED THAT I WAS A FRAUD BEFORE HE EVEN SAW THE CASE, THEN TRIED TO GET ME TO SETTLE. A TOTAL HIT JOB. MAR-a-LAGO AT $18,000,000???

Supreme Court to hear case on Jan 6 obstruction of justice charges

14:38 , Oliver O'Connell

The Supreme Court will hear a case on the use of obstruction of justice charges to prosecute January 6 rioters.

The case could upend charges related to the Capitol riot against hundreds of people, including Donald Trump.

Election worker targeted by Rudy Giuliani’s lies is afraid for her life

14:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward and Oliver O’Connell have this on the ordeal suffered by Shaye Moss, the Georgia election worker whose life was turned upside down by Rudy Giuliani.

Election worker targeted by Rudy Giuliani’s lies is afraid for her life

Trump claims he was ‘joking’ when he made ‘dictator’ comments

14:00 , Oliver O’Connell

As Donald Trump continues to face vocal condemnations after refusing to deny that he would be a “dictator” during his second term, the former president is turning to a familiar excuse to explain his eyebrow-raising remarks.

The ex-president has been at the centre of a small firestorm since his appearance last Wednesday on Fox News for a town hall-style interview with Sean Hannity, his counter-programming for the fourth GOP presidential debate. During that interview, a visibly flustered Hannity was left sputtering after Mr Trump’s off-colour quip about whether he would act with authoritarian tendencies if returned to power.

“Under no circumstances, you are promising America tonight, you would never abuse power as retribution against anybody?” Hannity asked the former president, kicking off the exchange.

John Bowden reports on what was said next...

Trump resorts to old excuse over his ‘dictator’ comments – he was ‘joking’

NBC demands Trump campaign takes down fake clip

13:35 , Oliver O’Connell

NBC News has reportedly demanded that Donald Trump’s campaign remove a video that has been doctored to abuse his Republican presidential nominee rivals.

The video, shared last month on social media, shows footage of NBC News correspondent Garrett Haake introducing a segment ahead of the third GOP debate – which Mr Trump once again did not attend.

As the clip cuts from Mr Haake to footage of the candidates, Mr Haake’s voice appears to continue, making disparaging comments about the GOP hopefuls.

NBC News demands Trump campaign takes down fake clip

Full story: SCOTUS to examine Trump’s ‘presidential immunity’ claim

13:15 , Oliver O’Connell

The US Supreme Court has agreed to expedite consideration of special counsel Jack Smith’s request for a decision on Donald Trump’s “immunity” claim in his election subversion case that the former president wants dismissed.

An answer would mark the first time the nation’s highest court has weighed in on the criminal prosecutions of the former president, who was charged in a grand jury indictment for his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Hours after Mr Smith’s request on Monday, justices agreed to expedite the case. Mr Trump has until 4pm on Wednesday 20 December to respond.

Read on...

Trump’s ‘presidential immunity’ claim will be tested at the Supreme Court

Ron Johnson’s baseless election fraud claims called out by CNN host

12:55 , Oliver O’Connell

Wisconsin Republican senator Ron Johnson was called out on CNN after pushing baseless claims about Democrats having taken similar actions to Republicans who put forward fake electors in 2020.

On Monday night, Mr Johnson was asked about Republicans in his state who falsely claimed they were electors for then-president Donald Trump in the 2020 election.

The senator responded by claiming that Democrats have done the same thing “repeatedly in all kinds of different states”.

When asked to provide an example, he was unable to do so, simply telling anchor Kaitlan Collins to “check the books”.

Yeesh.

Read the full article

Jimmy Kimmel mocks Trump for ‘shameless’ move to flog suit he wore in mug shot

12:35 , Joe Sommerlad

Here’s more on Donald Trump’s latest digital trading cards offer, which was utterly ridiculed by the late night host on Tuesday night.

“Wow. What is going on?!?” Mr Kimmel asked, before labelling Mr Trump the “most shameless person in the history of the world”.

“By summer, you’ll be able to buy his adult diapers out of a vending machine,” he joked.

Jimmy Kimmel mocks Trump for ‘shameless’ move to flog suit he wore in mug shot

DeSantis blames Trump for Satanic display at Iowa state capitol

12:15 , Joe Sommerlad

Also during his town hall appearance last night, Mr DeSantis pointed the finger of blame at Donald Trump over the appearance of a controversial Satanic display inside the Iowa state capitol building.

At one point during last night’s broadcast, CNN host Jake Tapper asked Mr DeSantis about the display, which has sprung up in Des Moines in recent days.

The governor – who is trailing Mr Trump in the polls – blamed the former president, saying that the Trump administration gave the Satanic Temple free rein to be regarded as a religion.

“So it’s interesting. I heard this and then I was like, well, how did it get there? Is that even a religion? And lo and behold, the Trump administration gave them approval to be under the IRS as a religion,” he said.

“So that gave them the legal ability to potentially do it.”

He added: “So I don’t know what the legislature, how they analysed it, but it very well may be because of that ruling under Donald Trump that they may have had a legal leg to stand on.

“My view would be that that’s not a religion that the founding fathers were trying to create. But I do think that IRS ruling, I was really surprised to see that they did that.”

Mr Tapper pointed out that this “doesn’t necessarily mean the government supports it, but they did grant it”.

DeSantis blames Trump for satanic display at Iowa state capitol

DeSantis says it’s more important for US to back Israel than Ukraine

11:55 , Joe Sommerlad

Republican presidential candidate and Florida governor Ron DeSantis has said that supporting Israel in its war against Hamas is more important than supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia.

At a CNN town hall event on Tuesday night, the Republican presidential hopeful argued that funding Israel‘s military was a better use of Americans’ tax dollars, according to The Hill.

“For me, that’s an easy answer,” Mr DeSantis said. “It’s the state of Israel because they are our strongest ally in the Middle East.

“We have a relationship with them that’s like no other, and they have the whole world against [them]. They require the United States to be there to stand with them as a friend.”

He added: “You know, Ukraine has all of Europe. These European countries need to start pulling their weight. They don’t meet their Nato dues.”

DeSantis says it’s more important for US to back Israel than Ukraine

Senate Democrats call on Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from weighing Trump’s ‘presidential immunity’ plea

11:35 , Joe Sommerlad

More on the US Supreme Court’s decision on whether Donald Trump’s “presidential immunity” claim stands up now, as Senate Democrats argue that Justice Clarence Thomas should recuse himself from the matter because of his wife Ginni’s outspoken support for Mr Trump’s election fraud narrative.

“There are so many unanswered questions about the relationship of the justice and his family with the Trump administration that I think in the interests of justice, he should recuse himself,” Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Dick Durbin said on Tuesday as he raised the conflict of interest concern.

“If we say certain people are above the law, I believe it diminishes values in this country,” he added.

Durbin and his colleagues appear not to have much faith in Chief Justice John Roberts’ willingness to enforce ethical or recusal guidelines among members of the court.

“When they came back with their supposed code of conduct, it didn’t address recusal like we did in the bill that we passed,” Durbin added, referring to the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal and Transparency Act, which the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced in July.

Text messages emerged in the wake of the deadly Capitol riot of 6 January 2021 sent by Ginni Thomas to Mr Trump’s then-chief of staff Mark Meadows in which she expressed support for the mob laying siege to the DC legislative complex.

Hawaii Democrat Mazie Hirono also called for Thomas to stand aside while Utah Republican Mike Lee called the opposition’s partiality fears “absurd”.

Trump campaign was warned ‘fake elector’ scheme posed legal risks

11:15 , Joe Sommerlad

Donald Trump’s advisers were warned that criminal charges could arise from the “fake elector” scheme carried out in several states as part of the bid to overturn Joe Biden’s election win in 2020, according to documents handed over to investigators by former Trump lawyer Kenneth Chesebro and seen by The Detroit News.

Chesebro, who pleaded guilty to one felony charge related to the plot in October, raised concerns about the language used by the Trump team in certificates declaring him as the true winner of the vote in the key swing state of Pennsylvania.

“Mike, I think the language at the start of the certificate should be changed in all the states,” Chesebro wrote in a text message to Mike Roman, the Trump campaign’s director of election day operations, which brought the reply. “I dont [sic]. F*** these guys.”

Chesebro did ultimately succeed in watering down the claim on election certificates in Pennsylvania and New Mexico but not elsewhere.

Tucker Carlson would need divine intervention to be Trump’s running mate

10:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson said God would have to “yell” at him before he would consider joining Donald Trump‘s presidential campaign as a running-mate.

Carlson was speaking at a fundraiser for the American Principles Project in Virginia and was asked by an audience member about a report published in Axios claiming that Melania Trump wanted him to join her husband on his 2024 ticket.

“God would have to yell at me very loud,” he told the audience, according to The Messenger.

Tucker Carlson reveals what would need to happen for him to be Trump’s running-mate

Trump lawyers file motion calling for pause in Jan 6 proceedings pending appeal

10:17 , Joe Sommerlad

Donald Trump’s lawyers have called on US district court judge Tanya Chutkan, overseeing his January 6 case, to pause the proceedings against their client while his appeal is pending, according to Fox News.

Judge Chutkan ruled earlier this month that Mr Trump is not immune to federal prosecution over the Capitol riot and wrote, witheringly, that the fact of his being president at the time “does not confer a lifelong ‘get-out-of-jail-free’ pass”.

“Former presidents enjoy no special conditions on their federal criminal liability,” she said. “Defendant may be subject to federal investigation, indictment, prosecution, conviction, and punishment for any criminal acts undertaken while in office.”

The move asking for a pause comes in the wake of Jack Smith’s request that justices on the US Supreme Court come to quick decision on Mr Trump’s  “presidential immunity” plea.

Mr Trump’s team were angered by Mr Smith’s intervention, saying in a statement: “There is absolutely no reason to rush this sham to trial except to injure President Trump and tens of millions of his supporters. President Trump will continue to fight for Justice and oppose these authoritarian tactics.”

What role does Twitter play in Trump’s election conspiracy case?

09:45 , Oliver O'Connell

When and where Donald Trump used Twitter while a mob of his supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6 will be used as key evidence in the former president’s trial on criminal conspiracy charges, according to federal prosecutors.

Monday’s court filing outlining three expert witnesses who are expected to testify at trial include people who work with geolocation data on mobile devices – including phones that belonged to Mr Trump and others at the White House – and who have previously mapped the movement of rioters who breached the Capitol grounds and halls of Congress.

One potential witness “plotted the location history data for Google accounts and devices” among people who joined then-President Trump’s rally at the Ellipse before marching to the Capitol.

Their testimony “will describe and explain the resulting graphical representations of that data, and it will aid the jury in understanding the movements of individuals toward the Capitol area during and after” Mr Trump’s speech that day, according to prosecutors.

Another expert will discuss data that was extracted from White House cell phones, including Mr Trump’s, as well as images on those phones and the websites visited on them, according to prosecutors.

That witness also “identified the periods of time during which the defendant’s phone was unlocked and the Twitter application was open on January 6.”

Read the full article

Trump hawks mug shot NFTs and pieces of suit in latest cash-in

09:42 , Joe Sommerlad

Donald Trump is back doing what he knows best: selling magic beans to the gullible.

In his latest posts on Truth Social, the former president offers up his latest range of digital trading cards just in time for Christmas, now emblazoned with his notorious mug shot taken at Fulton County jail back in August.

But that’s not all! He’s also throwing in a genuine sample of the fabric from the suit he wore to his Georgia arraignment AND the chance to meet him for a “Gala Dinner” at Mar-a-Lago.

“Due to the great Excitement and Success of my previous TRUMP DIGITAL TRADING CARDS, we’re doing it again – The MugShot Edition, available RIGHT NOW,” he writes.

“Plus, buy 47 cards and get a piece of the suit I wore for the ‘Mugshot Photo,’ and also get an invite to a Gala Dinner with me at Mar-a-Lago! Don’t wait, they’ll go FAST (I believe!). I’m happy if you’re happy. Have fun. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!”

Folks, you’d be crazy not to accept this once-in-a-lifetime offer while stocks last.

Run, don’t walk, to your nearest retailer!

Amid terrible ratings for incumbent, Trump leads Biden in key swing states

08:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Former president Donald Trump leads incumbent Joe Biden in both Georgia and Michigan, polling by CNN has found.

Mr Trump leads Mr Biden in Georgia by 49 to 44 per cent and in Michigan by 50 to 40 per cent. Survey respondents in both states hold negative views of Mr Biden’s policies, job performance, and sharpness.

In Michigan, 10 per cent said they don’t support either candidate. Mr Trump’s lead is increased by voters who say they didn’t vote in 2020 – this group breaks for the former president by 26 points in Georgia and by 40 in Michigan. Respondents who say they voted in 2020 reported having broken for Mr Biden in the last election but they now lean in Mr Trump’s direction in both swing states. Mr Biden is currently retaining fewer of his 2020 supporters compared to Mr Trump.

While Mr Trump faces the challenge of getting politically disengaged people to turn up to the polls, Mr Biden is confronted with having to convince those who backed him in the past to do so again, despite their negative views of his leadership.

Trump leads Biden in swing states amid terrible ratings for incumbent

Man arrested for allegedly threatening to assassinate Vivek Ramaswamy

06:45 , Oliver O'Connell

A man has been arrested after allegedly threatening to kill Vivek Ramaswamy and his supporters at an event on Monday, according to newly released court records.

The suspect, 30-year-old Tyler Anderson, was first reported to police by the Republican presidential hopeful’s staff last week after he allegedly responded to one of the campaign’s texts about an upcoming campaign event.

“We are grateful to law enforcement for their swiftness and professionalism in handling this matter and pray for the safety of all Americans,” Ramaswamy campaign spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement shared with The Independent.

Read the full article

Weeks before caucuses, Trump hits new high in Iowa polls

04:45 , Oliver O'Connell

A new poll shows that a majority of likely Iowa caucusgoers support former president Donald Trump, with Florida governor Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley trailing significantly.

The new NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll shows that 51 per cent of Republicans back the four-times-indicted-twice-impeached former president ahead of the 15 January caucus.

Mr Trump’s support has grown since October, when 43 per cent of likely caucusgoers backed him, it reveals.

Trump hits new high in Iowa poll weeks before caucuses

‘America will burn’ if Trump is jailed before election

03:45 , Oliver O'Connell

NewsNation GOP debate host Megyn Kelly has a dire prediction for American politics should Donald Trump face actual consequences for any of the more than 90 felony charges he now faces in court.

Kelly spoke to far-right gadfly Glenn Beck this past week after she was part of the team moderating the fourth and final Republican primary debate of 2023; a handful have just been scheduled to occur over January and February.

In her conversation with Beck, Kelly explained that she thought there would be violence in the streets were Mr Trump to be convicted and imprisoned before the 2024 election occurs next November.

Megyn Kelly says ‘America will burn’ if Trump is jailed before election

Report: Trump contacted ex-Mar-a-Lago employee turned witness

02:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump and his associates allegedly repeatedly contacted a former Mar-a-Lago employee who knew of key conversations and moments in the federal classified documents case against the former president.

According to multiple human sources and other material accessed by CNN, Mr Trump took a rare step and reached out to the employee a few days after he quit working at the Florida estate to inquire why he was leaving.

Mr Trump’s associates later allegedly offered the former employee free tickets to a golf tournament.

The former employee, who later told the federal special counsel’s office investigating the documents case about the communications, even allegedly got an offer from Mr Trump’s lawyer for assistance in finding legal representation, with the lawyer mentioning in a voicemail that he was aware the former employee had been subpoenaed to provide information to a grand jury.

The Independent has contacted the Justice Department and a lawyer for the former president in the documents case for comment.

Read the full article

Full details: Trump’s ‘presidential immunity’ claim will be tested at the Supreme Court

01:45 , Oliver O'Connell

The US Supreme Court has agreed to expedite consideration of special counsel Jack Smith’s request for a decision on Donald Trump’s “immunity” claim in his election subversion case that the former president wants dismissed.

An answer would mark the first time the nation’s highest court has weighed in on the criminal prosecutions of the former president, who was charged in a grand jury indictment for his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Hours after Mr Smith’s request on Monday, justices agreed to expedite the case. Mr Trump has until 4pm on 20 December to respond.

The former president has argued that he is protected from prosecution for crimes committed while in office, citing “presidential immunity” that the federal judge overseeing the case has rejected. He has appealed that ruling.

Mr Smith’s team with the US Department of Justice asked for the justices to determine “whether a former President is absolutely immune from federal prosecution for crimes committed while in office or is constitutionally protected from federal prosecution when he has been impeached but not convicted before the criminal proceedings begin.”

“The United States recognizes that this is an extraordinary request,” according to the filing. “This is an extraordinary case.”

Read the full article

How prosecutors could use Trump’s Twitter evidence in his election conspiracy case

01:15 , Josh Marcus

When and where Donald Trump used Twitter while a mob of his supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6 will be used as key evidence in the former president’s trial on criminal conspiracy charges, according to federal prosecutors.

Monday’s court filing outlining three expert witnesses who are expected to testify at trial include people who work with geolocation data on mobile devices – including phones that belonged to Mr Trump and others at the White House – and who have previously mapped the movement of rioters who breached the Capitol grounds and halls of Congress.

Read more...

How prosecutors could use Trump’s Twitter evidence in his election conspiracy case

Biden says world leaders keep telling him ‘You can’t let Trump win’

00:45 , Josh Marcus

Foreign leaders have repeatedly implored Joe Biden not to let Donald Trump win next year’s US election, the president has claimed.

At a fundraising event in Philadelphia on Monday, the 81-year-old said he had faced private entreaties to beat Mr Trump at every single global summit he had attended, according to the Associated Press.

“There’s not an international event that I’ve attended – not one – where the rest of the world doesn’t come up to me – leaders, no matter what country they’re from – and say, ‘You can’t let him win. You can’t let him win,” Mr Biden reportedly told the audience.

The remarks came as multiple polls showed Mr Trump dominating rivals for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination next year, with support from as many as six in ten GOP voters.

Io Dodds reports.

Biden says world leaders keep telling him ‘You can’t let Trump win’

‘I’m in a dark place’: Election worker targeted by Rudy Giuliani’s lies is afraid for her life

00:27 , Josh Marcus

Life for Shaye Moss turned upside down after Rudy Giuliani made life hell for her family.

Three years after spreading a lie that the election worker in Georgia manipulated ballots to rig the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump’s former attorney listened to her in person for the first time as she described the abuse she endured, the pain she lives with, and the overwhelming anxiety she continues to experience.

She testified from the witness stand in a federal courtroom on Tuesday as part of a jury trial that will determine how much Mr Giuliani owes Ms Moss and her mother Ruby Freeman for his defamatory statements in the volatile aftermath of the 2020 election.

He was already found liable for defaming the mother-daughter pair of election workers, whose lives were bombarded with racist threats and harassment fuelled by false claims amplified across social media and right-wing media networks.

Alex Woodward and Oliver O’Connell have the details in their full report.

Election worker targeted by Rudy Giuliani’s lies is afraid for her life

ICYMI: Giuliani spews defamatory claims about election workers outside defamation trial

Tuesday 12 December 2023 23:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Rudy Giuliani stands accused of once again defaming election workers Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, whom he falsely accused of changing votes during the counting of the 2020 election.

Attorneys for the election workers argued in a filing late Monday that the former Trump lawyer and New York mayor crafted arguments with his lawyer that went against the court’s previous ruling that Mr Giuliani’s defamatory statements about the election workers were false.

The legal filing from the attorneys for the mother and daughter points to an ABC News report in which Mr Giuliani said he “told the truth” about the election workers “changing votes”. He added that he shouldn’t be held accountable because of “other people overreacting”.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

Rudy Giuliani spews defamatory claims about election workers outside defamation trial

NBC News demands Trump campaign takes down fake clip

Tuesday 12 December 2023 22:45 , Oliver O'Connell

NBC News has reportedly demanded that Donald Trump’s campaign remove a video that has been doctored to abuse his Republican presidential nominee rivals.

The video, shared last month on social media, shows footage of NBC News correspondent Garrett Haake introducing a segment ahead of the third GOP debate – which Mr Trump once again did not attend.

As the clip cuts from Mr Haake to footage of the candidates, Mr Haake’s voice appears to continue, making disparaging comments about the GOP hopefuls.

The video was later confirmed to be a parody, and had been audio deceptively edited, sources close to the demands by NBC told Semafor.

Read on...

NBC News demands Trump campaign takes down fake clip

Tuesday 12 December 2023 22:13 , Oliver O'Connell

And with that, the Giuliani defamation trial wraps for the day.

Day three will begin at 9.15am ET tomorrow.

Giuliani defamation trial: Video depositions continue

Tuesday 12 December 2023 22:09 , Oliver O'Connell

The jury is being played the video deposition of Jenna Ellis, who recently struck a plea deal with the Fulton County DA for her involvement in that case.

The video is Ms Ellis repeatedly pleading the fifth to questions.

If you have $4,600 to spare, perhaps consider donating to charity instead

Tuesday 12 December 2023 22:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Mike Bedigan reports:

Donald Trump has offered fans the chance to buy a “historic” gift for loved ones this Christmas – a piece of the suit worn while taking his now infamous mugshot – for the bargain price of $4,600.

On Tuesday, the former president announced that a new series of his digital trading cards, titled The Mugshot Edition, was now on sale.

When customers purchase 47 of the digital trading cards, featuring various patriotic pop art depictions of Mr Trump – at $99 a pop – they will also be gifted a special physical card.

That card will feature a strip of material taken from the suit worn by Mr Trump when he was formally arrested in Fulton County, Georgia, on 24 August. The resulting picture was the first-ever mugshot of a United States president.

Continued...

Trump is giving away pieces of suit worn in his mug shot – with a $4,600 catch

Tuesday 12 December 2023 21:37 , Oliver O'Connell

Next up, the jury is shown deposition excerpts from Christina Bobb who says she was put in touch with Giuliani after the 2020 election by Chanel Rion of One America News.

A text is shown in which Giuliani asks her on 4 December 2020 to send Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers a copy of the Georgia surveillance video showing Ms Moss and Ms Freeman exchanging ginger mints.

In her message to Bowers, she refers to it as proof of “illegal ballot stuffing”.

Guliani defamation trial: Video depositions shown to jury

Tuesday 12 December 2023 21:33 , Oliver O'Connell

Two Trump World video depositions are shown to the jury after Ms Moss’s testimony concludes.

The first is from former NYPD commissioner Bernie Kerik and concerns a strategic communications plan shared by Giuliani's team that targeted Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss by name.

Kerik eventually shared the plan with the January 6th Committee.

Jurors are also shown a tweet from Kerik falsely accusing the two plaintiffs of electoral misconduct.

Tuesday 12 December 2023 21:26 , Oliver O'Connell

A second rebuttal witness takes the stand despite objections from Kise. Judge Engoron says he will allow questioning to proceed for now.

Eric Lewis, an accounting professor at Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, is objected to on the grounds he’s not a certified public accountant and does not have any research work or published articles or books, according to the defence team.

On the stand, Professor Lewis says he does, in fact, conduct academic research, before listing his qualifications.

Tuesday 12 December 2023 21:20 , Oliver O'Connell

In cross-examination by the Trump legal team, Mr Sneddon tells Chris Robert that he didn’t remember who defendant Jeff McConney was until he was contacted recently by the New York AG’s office, and that he didn’t know the inaccurate 30,000 square footage figure for the triplex was an issue until told about it.

Tuesday 12 December 2023 21:16 , Oliver O'Connell

As questioning continues, we learn that it was former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg who gave Mr Sneddon the false square footage of the Trump penthouse.

NY fraud trial: Rebuttal witnesses

Tuesday 12 December 2023 21:13 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports:

As expected from the morning session, Donald Trump’s team really doesn’t want rebuttal witnesses to mention anything that relates to previous testimony.

Earlier, Trump attorney Christopher Kise was furiously objecting to the judge’s consideration of rebuttal witnesses from the New York attorney general’s office, and now, after the NY AG’s team introduces Kevin Sneddon, a former Trump International Realty executive who can talk about the size of Trump’s triplex penthouse, Mr Kise again stands up to object.

As we all know by now, the penthouse was falsely valued based on having 30,000 square footage. It’s actually less than 11,000.

Who came up with that valuation, and under whose direction, and for what reason? Those haven’t been answered – yet...

Tuesday 12 December 2023 20:58 , Oliver O'Connell

On redirect, plaintiffs’ attorney John Langford begins by asking Ms Moss if she would like to be working now, to which she responds that in an ideal world, she would still be working at “the only job I've known” but no longer has a sense of purpose.

“Most days now I pray that God does not wake me up and I just disappear.”

She continues by saying she rarely goes out, and if she does, she is never alone. Security accompanies her even in Washington to attend the trial.

Langford asks her what she thinks Giuliani meant when he compared her to a bank robber and says she and her mother were passing USB sticks like “vials of heroine or cocaine”.

“That’s what he thinks when he looks at Black people,” she responds.

Giuliani shakes his head as he sits at the defence table.

Trump resorts to old excuse over his ‘dictator’ comments – he was ‘joking’

Tuesday 12 December 2023 20:40 , Oliver O'Connell

But is anyone laughing?

John Bowden reports:

As Donald Trump continues to face vocal condemnations after refusing to deny that he would be a “dictator” during his second term, the former president is turning to a familiar excuse to explain his eyebrow-raising remarks.

The ex-president has been at the centre of a small firestorm since his appearance last Wednesday on Fox News for a town hall-style interview with Sean Hannity, his counter-programming for the fourth GOP presidential debate. During that interview, a visibly flustered Hannity was left sputtering after Mr Trump’s off-colour quip about whether he would act with authoritarian tendencies if returned to power.

Read on...

Trump resorts to old excuse over his ‘dictator’ comments – he was ‘joking’

Giuliani defamation trial: Moss says harassment continues

Tuesday 12 December 2023 20:27 , Oliver O'Connell

Ms Moss says that the harassment continues.

People have found her new home and sent her cut-up clippings of her face.

That was just a few months ago. She's blocked people from being able to message her on Facebook, she blocked on LinkedIn, and she signed up for DeleteMe. They even went after her Pinterest.

Sibley asks if she or her mother have had it worse, to which Ms Moss replies that it’s “like two people getting jumped, and deciding who got jumped worse”.

Asking about her mental health and diagnosis, Sibley questions whether there is anything in her medical records that attributes it to Giuliani.

“It started with Trump and his homeboys... his allies.”

Cross-examination concludes and the court goes on a short break.

NY fraud trial: Defence rests (for real)

Tuesday 12 December 2023 20:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports:

Donald Trump’s legal team has officially rested its case in their client’s fraud trial – but lead attorney Chris Kise is asking the judge for a fourth time (or fifth?) for a directed verdict, arguing that there is “no evidence of fraud, no victims, no damage”.

They’ll submit this in writing but Judge Arthur Engoron is likely to shoot that down, again.

“There’s no way I’m going to grant that, but [you can] send me something,” the judge says.

“This is a colossal waste of resources,” New York attorney general’s office counsel Kevin Wallace tells Justice Engoron. “We already have a 45-page PowerPoint presentation on a directed verdict from Mr Kise."

“This is silly,” he says.

The trial moves on to the NY AG’s rebuttal witnesses.

Giuliani defamation trial: Defence cross-examines Moss

Tuesday 12 December 2023 20:10 , Oliver O'Connell

Giuliani’s lawyer Joseph Sibley asks about the details of the settlement reached by One America News with Ms Moss and Ms Freeman.

Ms Moss says they “recanted their lies” and had to post the truth as many times and as for as long as the false claims were up.

Asked if other election workers at the State Farm Arena were targeted by threats, she says the entire staff was “tormented” by picket lines with confederate flags, and some has things thrown at them.

Ms Moss is asked if Giuliani ever said anything about the plaintiffs’ race. She responds: “He assumed we were all Dems because we were Black.”

Sibley asks if Ms Moss believes the defendant intended for her and her mother to receive racist messages.

“He didn't go onto BET Nightly News to spread his lies... he went to places where he knew his people would hear.”

Asked if she had any evidence that Giuliani intended there to be violence against them, Ms Moss says that he said their homes should be searched and they should be locked up “so the world thought they should do it for him”.

Sibley asks: “The racist messages we saw earlier and have heard throughout the trial could just as easily have been caused by the Gateway Pundit, correct?"

Ms Moss says people were parroting Giuliani's words and his false claims.

Report: Trump contacted ex-Mar-a-Lago employee turned witness

Tuesday 12 December 2023 20:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump and his associates allegedly repeatedly contacted a former Mar-a-Lago employee who knew of key conversations and moments in the federal classified documents case against the former president.

According to multiple human sources and other material accessed by CNN, Mr Trump took a rare step and reached out to the employee a few days after he quit working at the Florida estate to inquire why he was leaving.

Mr Trump’s associates later allegedly offered the former employee free tickets to a golf tournament.

The former employee, who later told the federal special counsel’s office investigating the documents case about the communications, even allegedly got an offer from Mr Trump’s lawyer for assistance in finding legal representation, with the lawyer mentioning in a voicemail that he was aware the former employee had been subpoenaed to provide information to a grand jury.

The Independent has contacted the Justice Department and a lawyer for the former president in the documents case for comment.

Josh Marcus reports.

Trump contacted ex-Mar-a-Lago employee turned witness, report claims

NY fraud trial: Trump defence rests case (almost)

Tuesday 12 December 2023 19:43 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports:

Donald Trump’s defence has almost rested its case, after several weeks of testimony from a series of accounting and real estate experts that Trump’s attorneys hoped would boost their defence of the former president.

Eli Bartov, an NYU accounting professor who was paid nearly $900,000 for his testimony by the Trump Organization and Trump’s presidential campaign, repeatedly stated that banks drew their own analysis of Trump’s financial state that was not based on his statements of financial condition – the allegedly fraudulent documents at the centre of the case.

In a final round of questioning, Trump attorney Jesus Suarez showed Mr Bartov a Deutsche Bank credit report that tells lending officers to use their own judgment to make adjustments to their clients’ numbers.

“They were performing an independent analysis based on their judgments and assumptions” and did not use Mr Trump’s, Mr Bartov said.

Lawyers with the office of the New York attorney general are expected to present two rebuttal witnesses before this phase of the trial comes to a close.

However, before we get there the defence wanted to move some documents into evidence which is not to the liking of the NY AG’s office — they claim they are being sandbagged.

“All of these documents were on the plaintiffs’ exhibit list,” Trump attorney Christopher Kise tells the court.

“We don’t want more time..we want the defendants to rest their case,” Kevin Wallace of the AG’s office says. “The defendants, if they don’t have a witness, they should be resting.”

Giuliani defamation trial: ‘Maybe the truth needs to be screamed just as loud and just as many times as the lies'

Tuesday 12 December 2023 19:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Sibley says The Gateway Pundit was the first to post the State Farm Arena video of Ms Moss and Ms Freeman. He asks how they're different from Giuliani.

Ms Moss replies: “They're no different. They're all on the same hate train together. It was just Mr Giuliani driving the bus picking up these people and spreading lies.”

Asked why she is seeking such a large financial award from Giuliani, she says: “I want to vindicate myself. I want to receive some type of justice for everything me and my family have been through.”

Sibley asks what steps Ms Moss has taken to try and restore her reputation, to which she replies: “It’s kind of hard to do when extremely powerful people are still spreading lies about you.”

Ms Moss also says: “I'm sure by hitting someone in the pockets... that will definitely leave an impression for the next person who tries to spew lies about the next election worker.”

“I cannot personally repair my reputation at the moment because your client is still lying on me and ruining my reputation. Like, how could you work in law if everyone is saying you’re a horrible lawyer?” says Ms Moss

Sibley responds: “You’d be surprised, actually.”

“Maybe the truth needs to be screamed just as loud and just as many times as the lies.”

ICYMI: Supreme Court will look at Trump’s claim of presidential immunity

Tuesday 12 December 2023 19:30 , Oliver O'Connell

The US Supreme Court has agreed to expedite consideration of special counsel Jack Smith’s request for a decision on Donald Trump’s “immunity” claim in his election subversion case that the former president wants dismissed.

An answer would mark the first time the nation’s highest court has weighed in on the criminal prosecutions of the former president, who was charged in a grand jury indictment for his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Hours after Mr Smith’s request on Monday, justices agreed to expedite the case. Mr Trump has until 4pm on 20 December to respond.

Alex Woodward reports.

Trump’s ‘presidential immunity’ claim will be tested at the Supreme Court

Tuesday 12 December 2023 19:17 , Oliver O'Connell

Cross-examination of Ms Moss by Sibley begins with Giuliani’s lawyer saying: “My client, as you heard last night, likes to talk a lot. Unfortunately.”

They discuss the video footage of Ms Freeman, mother of Ms Moss and co-plaintiff, handing her a ginger mint. Giuliani falsely claimed it was a USB drive that was somehow being used to throw the election to Joe Biden.

Sibley asks if Ms Moss can understand how a layperson would look at a video of a box being pulled from under a desk and ballots being scanned multiple times and think something was going on.

There is an objection which Judge Howell sustains. She notes that it deals with issues that have already been resolved.

Giuliani defamation trial: Judge addresses last night’s comments to media

Tuesday 12 December 2023 19:04 , Oliver O'Connell

After returning from lunch, Judge Beryl Howell addresses Giuliani’s remarks to the media last night in which he claimed he had not defamed the plaintiffs and the allegations of electoral fraud were correct. The jury has not been brought back in yet.

"Mr Sibley has a hard job," Judge Howell said of Giuliani’s lawyer before asking if the defendant plans to claim on the stand that his false statements about the plaintiffs are true.

Sibley says that his client should be able to defend himself.

“Who knows what he believed when, because we have no discovery of that!” Judge Howell says, once again pointing out how Giuliani has disregarded the case. "We're in the situation we're in because of your client."

She adds: “That's a decision that was made after multiple opportunities to respond to discovery. So that's water under the bridge for you all.”

Because of Giuliani's actions, it's tough to know whether he knew he was flat-out lying, or if he was just acting recklessly by pandering to an audience who wanted to eat that up, says the judge.

“In some ways, I feel like I'm saving him from himself,” says Judge Howell, instructing Giuliani and his lawyer that he should not be testifying that the lies he told about the two election workers were true.

Hunter Biden asks judge to toss federal gun charges

Tuesday 12 December 2023 19:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Hunter Biden is asking a judge to toss his federal gun charges, arguing that prosecutors have broken a deal previously struck in the case and that Special Counsel David Weiss is bending to the will of Republican critics.

The embattled son of President Joe Biden was hit with three felony gun charges in Delaware in September over a gun purchase in October 2018 when he was in the grips of drug addiction.

Prosecutors allege that Hunter Biden unlawfully possessed a Colt Cobra 38SPL revolver for 11 days, after he falsely claimed on a gun purchase form that he didn’t use drugs.

Under federal law, an unlawful drug user cannot legally possess a firearm.

Rachel Sharp has the details.

Hunter Biden asks judge to toss federal gun charges

‘The most historically significant artifact in United States history’ will not be in the Smithsonian

Tuesday 12 December 2023 18:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Former President Donald Trump is selling pieces of the suit he wore for his mugshot in Fulton County, Georgia, where he has been indicted for his alleged attempts to overthrow the results of a democratic election.

He describes it as “the most historically significant artifact in United States history” which is quite the oversell and really disses anything they have in the Smithsonian.

Kaitlan Collins calls out Ron Johnson over baseless election fraud claims

Tuesday 12 December 2023 18:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Wisconsin Republican Senator Ron Johnson was called out on CNN after pushing baseless claims about Democrats having taken similar actions to Republicans who put forward fake electors in 2020.

On Monday night, Mr Johnson was asked about Republicans in Wisconsin who falsely claimed that they were electors for then-President Donald Trump in the 2020 election.

The senator responded by claiming that Democrats have done the same thing “repeatedly in all kinds of different states,” but when asked to provide an example, he was unable to do so, simply telling anchor Kaitlan Collins to “check the books”.

Gustaf Kilander reports.

Ron Johnson called out by CNN host for baseless election fraud claims

Jimmy Kimmel gives perfect response to George Santos’ demand for $20,000 over Cameo prank

Tuesday 12 December 2023 18:15 , Oliver O'Connell

“Can you imagine if I get sued by George Santos for fraud?” joked Mr Kimmel, who said the stunt aimed to test what Mr Santos would be willing to say for money.

Martha McHardy has the story:

Jimmy Kimmel’s perfect response to George Santos’ demand for $20,000 over Cameo prank

Tuesday 12 December 2023 17:55 , Oliver O'Connell

Before the court breaks for lunch, Ms Moss says the lies continue to impact her life, explaining that if a vehicle follows her she has to stop because she panics. If she goes to get her nails or hair done she has to be the last client of the day. She has anxiety attacks at her son’s football games.

“I don't like going anywhere. I don't like that feeling. It's like a serious fear. I'm crying hysterically. I just can't take that fear,” she tells the jury.

“I can't get beyond the feeling that someone is going to act upon what they're messaging me, because they never stop. They never stop.”

“It just feels like I am trapped under somebody's boot... It feels like I'm in a dark place and I'm surrounded by lies and conspiracies. Like I'm surrounded by a swamp of loneliness and sadness and negativity,” Ms Moss says. “I still feel like I'm in that cycle of eat, sleep, cry, look online."

Tuesday 12 December 2023 17:42 , Oliver O'Connell

There is an objection from Giuliani’s attorney Joseph Sibley. Judge Howell overruled the objection, but Sibley asked to see how Ms Moss knew about what Giuliani said last night.

Giuliani defamation trial: Moss describes therapy and impact on family

Tuesday 12 December 2023 17:39 , Oliver O'Connell

Ms Moss tells the jury she eventually sought treatment and was diagnosed with acute stress disorder but avoided therapists for a long time.

Eventually, in 2022, she went back to therapy and was diagnosed with major depressive disorder and acute stress. She says she's still struggling with those issues.

“I don't know if I'll be in therapy forever. I hope not. I pray not.”

The harassment was not just of Ms Moss and her mother Ruby Freeman. She tells court about how a group of people barged into her grandmother's home looking for her, saying they were going to make a citizen's arrest on her and her mother.

Her then 14-year-old son was using her old cell phone as a hotspot to connect to the internet to do online classes because of the pandemic, but once Giuliani’s lies were broadcast, people found her number and were constantly calling and messaging, which knocked him offline.

Ms Moss says she tried to explain to him what was going on. He had heard the abusive messages on her phone and wanted to protect her. His schoolwork suffered and he ended up failing every class.

She is asked if Mr Giuliani has ever apologised to her, to which she replies no.

Ms Moss is then asked if he is still spreading lies about her.

“Yes, he was still spreading lies last night,” she replies.

NY fraud trial: Defence expert cross-examination concludes

Tuesday 12 December 2023 17:16 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports from Lower Manhattan:

The cross-examination of the expert witness for the defence Eli Bartov has concluded at the New York State Supreme Court.

Mr Bartov had suggested that Trump had enough cash to self-finance the Trump Doral golf course redevelopment. He rejected a line of questioning about that as too hypothetical.

When Donald Trump Jr testified, attorneys put up a slide showing that the Trump Organization “invested $250m into renovating every inch of the property”.

How could Trump have done that if he self-financed?

“If he hypothetically self-financed the loan he might’ve taken a different course of action,” Mr Bartov said. “It’s too many hypotheticals to figure out what he could have done if he self-financed.”

Mr Bartov also said he read Judge Arthur Engoron’s summary judgment and found it “very informative”.

“I think I have a very general understanding of the ruling,” he said.

Notably, Mr Bartov served as a witness for the New York Attorney General’s office in a 2019 case against Exxon.

Louis Solomon shows him a court ruling from that case, finding that Mr Bartov’s testimony was “unpersuasive” and “flatly contradicted by the weight of the evidence”.

Mr Bartov said he wasn’t aware of that document. That was the last question from the NY AG’s office.

There will be another round of questioning from Trump’s attorneys before he’s dismissed.

Tuesday 12 December 2023 17:10 , Oliver O'Connell

Ms Moss says: “Before December 2020 my life was lit. My life was great. I was always out. I was very sociable. I wasn't worried about going out alone.”

“I’m like a hermit crab now,” she adds, saying she is anxious, no longer goes out, has gained a lot of weight from stress-eating, and cries all the time.

Describing the death threats both she and her mother have received she begins to cry and says she is “extremely scared” and “always scared”.

Asked what she is most scared of, she chillingly replies: “I'm most scared of my son finding me and my mom hanging in front of our house or having to get news at school that I was killed. That's what I'm most afraid of.”

Ms Moss adds that the situation led to tend of a 10-year relationship and that she has lost friends because she doesn’t want people to get hurt for being associated with her.

“I’ve just secluded myself,” she says.

“My worst nightmare is I will open my door to go to work... and there will be a crowd with nooses and pitchforks. And they're there to get me.”

Giuliani defamation trial: Moss describes becoming a pariah at work

Tuesday 12 December 2023 17:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Plaintiff Shaye Moss tells the jury she became a pariah at work after Giuliani’s false accusations and became fearful someone would attack her on the three-block walk to the office.

She was embarrassed at the comments people would make about her and her mother at commissioner’s meetings repeating Giuliani’s false claims.

Working at the county elections office eventually became untenable. She became so desperate to leave she applied at Chick-fil-A and was ready to cook fries for minimum wage if that's what it took. She had previously been making approximately $35,000 before taxes.

However, during the Chick-fil-A interview, she was shown an article about her.

Looking for that last-minute Christmas gift? Trump has you covered...

Tuesday 12 December 2023 16:43 , Oliver O'Connell

Yes, he’s selling pieces of the suit he wore when he had his mugshot taken at the Fulton County Jail...

No, really.

Due to the great Excitement and Success of my previous TRUMP DIGITAL TRADING CARDS, we’re doing it again - The MugShot Edition, available RIGHT NOW. Plus, buy 47 cards and get a piece of the suit I wore for the “Mugshot Photo,” and also get an invite to a Gala Dinner with me at Mar-a-Lago! Don’t wait, they’ll go FAST (I believe!). I’m happy if you’re happy. Have fun. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!