Trump returns to court for New York fraud trial: Live updates

Donald Trump was back in court on Thursday at the Trump Organization’s New York fraud trial, in his ninth appearance at the courthouse. As the trial nears its conclusion, Mr Trump will testify again on Monday — still under a gag order after a judge denied an attempt to fast-track an appeal.

Before lunch, there was a testy exchange between defence expert witness Eli Bartov and a lawyer for the attorney general’s office in which accusations of paid testimony and fabricated fraud allegations were hurled. In a lighter moment, the former president stopped to speak with the courtroom sketch artists and, inspecting their work, noted he should lose some weight.

Meanwhile, in the federal election case against Mr Trump, his lawyers have filed an appeal against Judge Tanya Chutkan’s denial of a motion to dismiss under presidential immunity. They have also asked for a stay in proceedings that could potentially delay the trial from its March start date.

Elsewhere, as 10 pro-Trump fake electors in Wisconsin settled a civil case against them for their part in an attempt to overturn the 2020 election results, a grand jury in Nevada indicted six Republicans for a similar scheme.

Key Points

• Full story: Trump tells court artists he should lose weight as he returns to his fraud trial

• Trump says he will be a dictator ‘on day one’ if elected

• Six Republicans in Nevada charged in fake elector scheme to overturn Trump’s loss

• Judge denies Trump’s attempt for quick appeal on gag order

• Trump’s ‘co-opted’ GOP should lose House majority, says Cheney

• Coming up next week: Rudy Giuliani’s defamation trial

Jan 6 rioter tries more traditional route to getting into Congress

06:30 , Oliver O'Connell

A New York man who took part in the January 6 Capitol riot is running for the Long Island and Queens congressional seat that was represented by ex-Rep George Santos until his expulsion.

At his trial, Philip Sean Grillo made the bizarre admission during his testimony that he didn’t know that Congress convened inside the US Capitol.

The Queens resident was found guilty on Tuesday of obstruction of an official proceeding – a felony – in relation to the riot that temporarily ground the certification of President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory to a halt.

Grillo was also found guilty of several misdemeanours such as entering restricted grounds and disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, a DoJ press release stated. He was detained on 23 February 2021.

Jan 6 rioter running for Santos’ House seat made jarring comment about Congress

As he’s jailed for 11 years, ex-police chief charged over Jan 6 riot spouts conspiracies

04:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Former California police chief Alan Hostetter went on a conspiratorial rant moments before a federal judge sentenced him to more than 11 years in prison for conspiring to bring weapons to the US Capitol during the January 6 riot.

The 58-year-old, who represented himself at trial, told the court on Thursday that the January 6 insurrection was an “obvious set up” that was faked by “crisis actors,” and claimed that Ashli Babbitt, a rioter killed by a police officer at the Capitol, was actually still alive.

Josh Marcus reports.

Ex-police chief charged in Jan 6 riot spouts conspiracies as he’s jailed for 11 years

Who won the fourth Republican debate?

03:30 , Oliver O'Connell

A few weeks after the Iron Bowl, Republican presidential candidates descended on Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to tussle for the second-place spot in the race for the White House.

NewsNation hosted the fourth and final 2023 debate of the 2024 primary campaign, none of which frontrunner Donald Trump has attended. Florida Gov Ron Desantis and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy launched attacks at former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley while all but ignoring Mr Trump.

Ms Haley aggressively pushed back on broadsides while also continuing her feud with Mr Ramaswamy, whom she called “scum” in their last face-off. She emerged from the debate mostly unscathed, and her campaign has racked up key endorsements and donations recently. Still, Mr Trump’s position as the clear frontrunner remains unchanged, and the debate amounts to a campaign for runner-up.

With the Iowa caucuses a month away, the clock is running out for any of these candidates to prove they can at least put up a formidable fight against Mr Trump, let alone challenge President Joe Biden.

Here are the winners and losers from the fourth GOP primary debate.

DeSantis says his favourite president is... Calvin Coolidge?

02:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis surprised some when asked during the fourth Republican debate who he would draw inspiration from as president and his response was President Calvin “Silent Cal” Coolidge.

Mr DeSantis chose the 30th president as his lodestar on Wednesday night while former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie picked President Ronald Reagan, the 40th commander-in-chief, while former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley went all the way back to the first, citing President George Washington. Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy pointed to Thomas Jefferson, the third president.

Mr Coolidge got his nickname “Silent Cal” for his reserved and quiet manner in social situations, with at least two people allegedly reacting to his death with questions like “How can they tell?” and “How do they know?”

Gustaf Kilander has the story.

DeSantis says his favourite president is Calvin Coolidge at GOP debate

Will Trump go to prison?

01:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Love him or loathe him, America wants to know!

Will Donald Trump go to prison?

Jamaal Bowman censured for setting off US Capitol fire alarm

00:30 , Oliver O'Connell

The House has voted to censure New York Rep Jamaal Bowman for setting off a fire alarm in a US Capitol office building without there being an emergency.

The vote fell almost exclusively on party lines, with 214 members voting to censure Mr Bowman and 191 members voting against it. Three Democrats voted to censure Mr Bowman, including Jahana Hayes of Connecticut, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire and Marie Gluesenkamp-Perez of Washington.

Mr Bowman defended himself in a speech on the House floor on Wednesday evening, saying that the resolution showed how unserious House Republicans are.

Read the full article

C is for Covfefe: The ABCs of Donald Trump

Thursday 7 December 2023 23:30 , Kelly Rissman

Donald Trump is well-known for a lot of things: his divisiveness, his career in real estate, The Apprentice, his lawsuits, for being the only president to be impeached twice. But perhaps nothing has infiltrated society more than Mr Trump’s unique linguistic style.

Whether he’s posting on Truth Social, speaking at a campaign rally, or testifying in court, Mr Trump never seems to be at a loss for words — and sometimes, he even makes up new ones.

From uttering gaffes to tweeting typos (like “covfefe”) to misreading words (like “Nambia”) to dismissing his opponent with a harsh nickname, his terminology quickly turns iconic.

Here, The Independent offers a dictionary guide to the Mr Trump’s most memorable phrases:

C is for Covfefe: The ABCs of Donald Trump

Trump town hall trumped in ratings by Newsom-DeSantis and GOP debate

Thursday 7 December 2023 22:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Uh oh... 😬

John Bowden writes:

Donald Trump is not the candidate he was in 2016.

Don’t just take it from Ron DeSantis.

The former president appeared for a town hall with Fox’s Sean Hannity on Tuesday, a day before the fourth GOP primary debate attended by his lower-polling rivals for the 2024 Republican nomination. But while Mr Trump remains in clear control of the Republican primary electorate, according to all available polling, he is objectively not pulling the same kind of audiences and presenting the same kind of spectacle that he could during his first presidential run.

Read on to find out how the three broadcasts stacked up:

Trump’s Fox News town hall drew in lower ratings than DeSantis-Newsom debate

Coming up next week: Rudy Giuliani’s defamation trial

Thursday 7 December 2023 22:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Justice Beryl Howell, the federal judge overseeing Rudy Giuliani’s trial to determine damages after defaming the mother-daughter election workers from Georgia, has posted the rules for next week’s trial.

Her filing also includes a summary of the case:

This is a civil case. Plaintiffs, Ruby Freeman and Wandrea ArShaye (“Shaye”) Moss, claim that Defendant Rudolph W. Giuliani defamed them, intentionally inflicted emotional distress on them, and engaged in a conspiracy with others to do the same.

Plaintiffs served as election workers at the State Farm Arena in Fulton County, Georgia during the 2020 presidential election. Mr. Giuliani is the former mayor of New York City, an attorney who has practiced law for decades, and a current media personality with his own radio shows and podcasts. Mr. Giuliani headed the Trump Campaign legal team during former President Donald J. Trump’s unsuccessful bid for re-election in 2020, and was part of the campaign to undermine the legitimacy of that election in battleground states like Georgia.

Mr. Giuliani publicly and falsely accused plaintiffs of committing various acts of election fraud, including: illegally excluding poll watchers under false pretenses; sneaking in and hiding illegal ballots in suitcases under tables; illegally counting ballots multiple times; and passing a USB drive with the intent of changing the vote count in the voting tabulation devices. Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss allege that Mr. Giuliani’s actions have caused them to suffer and continue to suffer extensive emotional and reputational harm, including because Mr. Giuliani’s actions made them targets for profane and vile threats.

The Court has already determined that Mr. Giuliani is liable for defamation per se, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and civil conspiracy, and that Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss are entitled to receive compensation, including in the form of punitive damages, for Mr. Giuliani’s willful conduct. The only issue remaining in this trial is for the jury to determine any amount of damages Mr. Giuliani owes to Plaintiffs for the damage caused by his conduct.

Read the full filing here.

Here’s Alex Woodward’s most recent report outlining the case:

Election workers who sued Giuliani awarded default judgment in defamation case

Thursday 7 December 2023 21:55 , Oliver O'Connell

We just several minutes trying to figure out how to ask Mr Barkov what a “misstatement” is “from an accounting perspective,” with both the judge and attorney general’s counsel trying to come up with a better way to ask.

“It’s hard to find a synonym but that’s what it’s called, a misstatement,” Judge Engoron said.

Mr Bartov answered by saying essentially that a misstatement… is a misstatement. The answer is important because a misstatement could indicate fraud. Mr Bartov said he believes that “there was no evidence of intentional misstatements, i.e., fraud,” which again, the attorney general’s office is saying falls way outside the bounds of his testimony. He can’t speak to “intent”.

After more back-and-forth debate on intent, court concludes for the day.

The trial resumes at 10am on Friday.

NY fraud trial: Bartov to resume testimony tomorrow

Thursday 7 December 2023 21:38 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports from the courtroom:

We’re getting to the end of today’s testimony and it looks like Mr Bartov will be back on the stand tomorrow.

The New York attorney general’s team has once again objected to testimony that goes “beyond the scope of what the witness was qualified for” as well as what he was asked about.

Judge Engoron agrees. He’s been inclined to let testimony roll over into tangents without interrupting for the sake of the defence’s argument when they inevitably appeal everything.

That also means cross-examination from NY AG Letitia James’ team [perhaps without Trump watching?] will also have to wait until tomorrow.

Trump is no doubt ready to declare, again, incorrectly, that he has won the case when Judge Engoron has already ruled he is liable for fraud.

As he’s jailed for 11 years police chief charged over Jan 6 riot spouts conspiracies

Thursday 7 December 2023 21:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Former California police chief Alan Hostetter went on a conspiratorial rant Thursday moments before a federal judge sentenced him to over 11 years in prison for conspiring to bring weapons to the US Capitol during the January 6 riot.

The 58-year-old, who represented himself at trial, told the court the January 6 insurrection was an “obvious set up” that was faked by “crisis actors,” and claimed that Ashli Babbitt, a rioter killed by a police officer at the Capitol, was actually still alive.

The former chief of the La Habra Police Department was convicted in July on four felony counts, including conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and carrying a dangerous or deadly weapon onto Capitol grounds.

Josh Marcus reports.

Ex-police chief charged in Jan 6 riot spouts conspiracies as he’s jailed for 11 years

Full story: Trump tells court artists he should lose weight as he returns to his fraud trial

Thursday 7 December 2023 21:00 , Oliver O'Connell

There are only two defence witnesses left in Donald Trump’s fraud trial, and the former president is one of them.

He returned to New York County Supreme Court on Thursday for the first time in more than a month, but not as a witness. He sat with his attorneys inside Judge Arthur Engoron’s courtroom in lower Manhattan to watch testimony intended to bolster his defence – his first courtroom appearance since leaving his own chaotic day on the witness stand on 6 November.

After a morning break, Mr Trump paused to chat with two courtroom sketch artists seated behind the team of lawyers for New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose fraud lawsuit against the former president, his two oldest sons and their chief business associates launched a trial that is now in its 10th week.

The artists, hired by news organisations to capture the inside of the no-photos-allowed courtroom, got his approval. “Nice,” he said.

He told them “it looks like I need to lose some weight” as he gestured to his neck, they told The Independent.

Continued...

Trump tells court artists he should lose weight as he returns to his fraud trial

Media threatened with criminal charges in second Trump presidency

Thursday 7 December 2023 20:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s campaign of retribution and political prosecution is not merely “rhetoric” but a “dead serious” threat to his opponents and the media, according to his own allies.

On his War Room podcast on Tuesday, former White House adviser and far-right activist Steve Bannon asked Trump loyalist Kash Patel whether he can “deliver the goods” and “get rolling on prosecutions” should Mr Trump win election in 2024.

“And I want the Morning Joe producers that watch us and all the producers to watch us – this is not just rhetoric. We’re absolutely dead serious,” Bannon said.

Alex Woodward reports.

Trump allies threaten criminal charges against media if elected

NY fraud trial: Court takes afternoon break

Thursday 7 December 2023 20:33 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s legal team is all smiles as they leave the courtroom during a brief afternoon break, Alex Woodward reports. Today’s testimony appears to be exactly what they wanted to hear from the witness.

Meanwhile, the Trump 2024 campaign sent out an email blast falsely claiming that the former president has been forced to attend court.

Patriot,

In just 39 days, the first vote of 2024 will be cast in Iowa.

But instead of being in Iowa today, President Trump was forced into a courtroom in New York City to defend himself from a $250 million vicious witch hunt incited by Crooked Joe’s Democrats.

This is Election Interference – plain and simple. It’s a sad day for our country. But even during these dark times, President Trump will NEVER SURRENDER our mission to save America.

NY fraud trial: Trump’s court appearance draws attention to expert witness

Thursday 7 December 2023 20:24 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports from the courtroom:

All this testimony in blunt terms is meant to bolster Team Trump’s long-running defence that the way the statements of financial condition were created, and how banks treated them, was business as usual, and the attorney general’s office has been fishing for fraud where there is none.

The attorney general’s team hasn’t interrupted, letting Mr Bartov spout off on the case and allegations in testimony that veers off course from the questions he’s asked.

NY AG counsel Kevin Wallace said: “At some point, the witness needs to follow the rules like everyone else.”

Judge Engoron agreed. He turned to the professor and reminded him he was not in a classroom or lecture hall.

“You need to answer questions,” he said.

Mr Bartov is one of the first witnesses to explicitly say, in Trump-friendly terms, that the case should be thrown out, so it’s easy to see why Trump picked this day of all days to attend, drawing media to the courtroom to hear it.

But there aren’t that many reporters here. It’s the usual crowd.

Jan 6 rioter running for George Santos’ House seat made jarring comment about Congress on day of attack

Thursday 7 December 2023 20:15 , Oliver O'Connell

A New York man who took part in the January 6 Capitol riot is running for the Long Island and Queens congressional seat that was represented by ex-Rep George Santos until his expulsion.He stormed the halls of Congress to, in his words, “stop the steal.” He was found guilty of felony obstruction this week.

The Independent’s Gustaf Kilander has more from Washington:

Jan 6 rioter running for Santos’ House seat made jarring comment about Congress

NY fraud trial: Expert witness says ‘impossible’ for any bank to make decisions on financial statements alone

Thursday 7 December 2023 19:58 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports from the courtroom:

Eli Bartov is repeatedly stating that it would be “impossible” for any financial institution to make any kind of decision about financial terms on financial statements alone.

“It’s impossible to argue … that Deutsche Bank, or any bank, or any lender, would make decisions on the basis of the statement of financial condition,” he said. “They should close the book on this case.”

Donald Trump has notably been more relaxed and in a better mood today than his eight other court appearances.

Mr Bartov has called the case and charges “absurd” and “obvious” and all kinds of other adjectives that the former presdient has echoed in his own statements about the case.

Meanwhile, he has also said the statements of financial condition contain an “awesome” amount of information. He said he’s never seen a statement that “provides so much detail and is so transparent” as one of the statements he’s shown on the stand.

Trump allies rushed to defend his ‘day one’ dictatorship. Critics are warning against ‘normalised fascism’

Thursday 7 December 2023 19:45 , Alex Woodward

Trump was offered a chance to shut down warnings about his increasingly violent and authoritarian vision for his potential administration. Instead, he embraced it.

During an event on Fox News billed as a town hall on Tuesday, host Sean Hannity gave him a chance to clarify that “under no circumstances, you are promising America tonight, you would never abuse power as retribution against anybody.”

“Except for day one,” Mr Trump replied.

His supporters and campaign have framed his comments as a joke to attack his critics, a defence that has tried to rewrite and undermine his own words and actions over the last several months, including his explicit promises of a campaign of retribution and political vengeance against his rivals.

Trump allies defend his ‘day one’ dictatorship: ‘All he needs’

‘Most obnoxious blowhard in America’

Thursday 7 December 2023 19:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Chris Christie branded Vivek Ramaswamy the “most obnoxious blowhard in America” as he angrily slammed his Republican rival during the party’s latest debate.

The former New Jersey governor lost his cool and attacked Mr Ramaswamy over his stance on ending Russia’s unprovoked war in Ukraine, claiming he wanted to appease Vladimir Putin and trusted Moscow over China.

“That’s not my deal, that’s not my deal,” Mr Ramaswamy said in response to the allegation.

“You do this every time,” countered Mr Christie as he wagged his finger towards him.

“Don’t interrupt me, I don’t interrupt you,” he continued as Mr Ramaswamy said “Go ahead send those kids to die” in reference to young American soldiers sent overseas.

“You do this at every debate. You go out on the stump and say something, all of us see it on video, we confront you on the debate stage, you say you didn’t say it and then you back away,” Mr Christie said.

As Mr Ramaswamy accused him of “spewing nonsense” Mr Christie, growing visibly more annoyed, loudly replied, “I’m not done yet.”

Read the full interaction between the two at last night’s debate

As Trump appeals denial of motion to dismiss, is his federal election trial start date also in jeopardy?

Thursday 7 December 2023 19:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump is appealing the decision by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan to reject his attempt to dismiss the federal election interference case on the grounds of presidential immunity.

In addition to appealing Judge Chutkan's denial of his motion to dismiss, the former president has moved for a stay of all district court proceedings pending resolution of his appeal. If the judge does not grant a stay within seven days, Mr Trump requests a temporary stay of administrative proceedings while he pursues relief from the Court of Appeals.

Such an appeal could be the one thing that delays the trial. While Judge Chutkan is determined to start on 4 March 2024, but a stay could push things back. While the Circuit courts move quickly, appeals courts do not.

Further time could be added if the appeal goes all the way to the Supreme Court. A March start date is starting to look ambitious.

Trump tells court sketch artists he should lose weight

Thursday 7 December 2023 18:57 , Alex Woodward

After walking back inside the courtroom during a morning break, Trump paused to chat with two courtroom sketch artists seated behind the attorney general’s team.

The artists, hired by news organisations to capture the inside of the no-photos-allowed courtroom, told The Independent that he approved their work. “Nice,” he said.

He also pointed to a sketch of himself, saying “it looks like I need to lose some weight” as he gestured to his neck, they told The Independent.

Trump continues to claim he is being ‘sarcastic’ when he makes gaffes

Thursday 7 December 2023 18:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump has once again argued that his increasing number of gaffes is simply an expression of sarcasm.

The former president has repeatedly raged at the suggestion that he, at the age of 77, is not as sharp as he used to be.

During a Fox News town hall on Tuesday night, Mr Trump said: “I’ll say our real president is Barack Hussein Obama – they’ll say ‘he doesn’t know who the president is, he thinks it’s Barack Hussein’ – no, I’m being sarcastic.”

Just last week, Mr Trump claimed that he deliberately mixes up Joe Biden and Barack Obama’s names as he angrily denied that he is “cognitively impaired”.

Read on...

Trump doubles down on claim that his gaffes are sarcastic

Will Trump go to prison?

Thursday 7 December 2023 18:00 , Oliver O'Connell

America wants to know...

Will Donald Trump go to prison?

Witness fires back at lawyers for the New York attorney general: ‘Shame on yourself'

Thursday 7 December 2023 17:52 , Alex Woodward

A defence witness for Trump and his co-defendants snapped at counsel with the office of New York attorney general after suggesting that he was merely being paid to say what Trump’s team wanted.

“You make up allegations that never existed,” said NYU accounting professor Eli Bartov.

“I’m here to tell the truth,” he said. “Shame on yourself, talking to me like that.”

Judge Arthur Engoron told Mr Bartov to settle down before breaking the courtroom for lunch.

The hearing will resume this afternoon. Stay tuned with The Independent.

Just in: New York appeals court extends pause of pretrial ruling in fraud case

Thursday 7 December 2023 17:47 , Alex Woodward

A state appeals court on Thursday has declined to stop Donald Trump’s fraud trial, extending an earlier decision that allows the case to continue while blocking key sanctions outlined in Judge Arthur Engoron’s blockbuster pretrial ruling.

Trump, meanwhile, is back in court for the first time in a month t owatch testimony from the second-to-last defence witness.

The former president is the final witness. He’ll return to the stand on Monday.

Just in: Trump will try to dismiss election subversion case in appeals court

Thursday 7 December 2023 17:21 , Alex Woodward

The federal judge overseeing Donald Trump’s election subversion case roundly rejected his attempts to dismiss the charges on the grounds of presidential immunity.

Now, his lawyers tell the judge they’ll appeal that ruling.

Read why US District Judge Tanya Chutkan rejected his motion last week:

Judge in Trump election conspiracy case rules he does not have presidential immunity

Another challenge to Trump’s 2024 eligibility filed in Oregon

Thursday 7 December 2023 17:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Another legal challenge to Donald Trump’s eligibility has been filed, this time in the state of Oregon.

As with the other cases, it seeks to disqualify him from state ballots under section 3 of the 14th Amendment: “This is an action to prevent Donald J Trump … from appearing on the 2024 presidential primary or general election ballots because, having sworn an oath to support the Constitution of the United States, he has “engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof” and is therefore disqualified from public office.”

You can read the full filing here.

And here’s Alex Woodward’s reporting on the Colorado case, which has now reached the state’s Supreme Court:

Can Colorado’s highest court kick Trump off the ballot?

‘What is GAAP?'

Thursday 7 December 2023 17:10 , Alex Woodward

“Generally accepted accounting principles” provide the framework for creating statements of financial condition, the documents that are at the heart of the case against Trump and his business.

His sons and co-defendants Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump testified that they didn’t know much about GAAP. Neither did Ivanka Trump.

In his taped deposition earlier this year, NYU accounting professor Eli Bartov said he told Trump’s legal team that he also is “not really familiar” with GAAP.

Before he resumed his testimony after a morning break, giant screens next to the witness stand showed a slide titled “Financial reporting and GAAP” with definitions of what that is, exactly.

The attorney general’s office objected to that. Trump attorney Chrtiopher Kise called the slide “just for lack of a better word a teaching aid.”

“What we don’t want is for this to be up on the screen during witness testimony,” AG counsel Louis Solomon said.

The screens were off when Bartov returned, and the first question from Trump attorney Jesus Suarez was “what is GAAP?”

Trump chats with courtroom sketch artists

Thursday 7 December 2023 17:05 , Alex Woodward

On his way back into the courtroom following a morning break, Trump stopped to chat with the two courtroom sketch artists. I’m a bit too far away to make out what he was saying, but he was smiling with them and gestured to their canvases.

He then took his seat with his defence attorneys to hear more testimony from Eli Bartov, an accounting professor at NYU.

Key takeaways from the fourth GOP primary debate

Thursday 7 December 2023 17:00 , John Bowden

The fourth Republican debate is over, and what did we learn? Not much, beyond how little these people seem to like each other.

Wednesday night’s showdown in Alabama touched on issues which previous debates skipped over — most glaringly, the GOP’s culture war against transgender Americans. But the main feature of the last meetup of the four underdog Republican candidates seems to have been the animosity which spilled out into view at multiple points.

Obviously, the frontrunner, Donald Trump, was once again absent. So none of this really mattered in the grand scheme of the 2024 Republican primary; he is the wide favourite to win the nomination, and remains so after tonight. But what tonight’s debate really did was illustrate the greater state of the modern Republican Party, and what kind of candidate everyone who is not Donald Trump, the Republican insiders, believe their party wants to see — if not now, then in 2028.

With that in mind, let’s take a look at the last Republican debate of the year, and probably the election cycle, as we prepare for the Iowa caucuses next month:

Key takeaways from GOP debate: Ramaswamy branded a ‘blowhard’ and Haley under attack

Watch: Trump speaks at morning break after initial testimony from Bartov

Thursday 7 December 2023 16:47 , Oliver O'Connell

Watch: Christie says Trump unfit for presidency due to age and temperament

Thursday 7 December 2023 16:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Voices: Chris Christie is spot on calling Trump ‘he who shall not be named’

Thursday 7 December 2023 16:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Andrew Feinberg writes:

Asked by ex-Fox News star turned NBC News flameout turned right-wing podcast host Megyn Kelly about his dismal approval ratings among the Republican voters who he would need to successfully court in order to displace former president Donald Trump as the party’s nominee in next year’s election, Mr Christie pointed out — quite accurately — that the bizarre scene playing out at the University of Alabama on NewsNation television network was a ridiculous farce.

Not only was Mr Trump snubbing the Republican National Committee-sanctioned debate for the fourth time this election cycle, but three-quarters of the also-rans who were on the stage that night seemed content to attack each other as if Mr Trump didn’t exist.

Read on...

Chris Christie’s Harry Potter reference to Trump was spot on

Expert witness: ‘There is no evidence whatsoever of any accounting fraud'

Thursday 7 December 2023 16:29 , Oliver O'Connell

It is starting to become apparent as to why Donald Trump chose to be here in court and why Christopher Kise said the New York Attorney General’s office is “terrified” of Mr Bartov’s testimony.

The NYU professor is telling the court that he went through NY AG Letitia James’s complaint “allegation by allegation” to “try to find at least something, some proof, that would provide some basis” for the charges.

“Most of their claims were simply unsupported,” he said. “My main finding is that there is no evidence whatsoever of any accounting fraud.”

Judge Engoron pauses to note that there were “certainly things the professor said that were not responsive to the question” but he’s not blocking testimony.

Kevin Wallace with the NY AG’s office notes that he gave an “extensive speech about the complaint with no discussion with actual evidence” and said his testimony so far has some “relevance issues” that don’t acknowledge any of the evidence presented thus far, not to mention the judge’s pretrial judgment that found defendants liable for fraud based on the complaint itself.

NY fraud trial: Judge overrules objections from NY AG’s office

Thursday 7 December 2023 16:20 , Alex Woodward

Eli Bartov, who was twice asked to speak slower by Judge Engoron, is asked about his credentials to establish him as an expert witness for the defence.

According to his deposition transcript, Mr Bartiv was initially tapped as an expert witness to talk about GAAP (though he said “I am not really familiar with GAAP”) and had been paid, at that time, roughly $370,000 from both the Trump Organization and Save America PAC to participate, based on an hourly rate of $1,350.

It’s not unusual for expert witnesses to be paid for their testimony, but noting that the money is coming from the company being sued and the GOP frontrunner’s campaign. Other witnesses have had similar arrangements.

After some objections from the NY AG’s office to Mr Bartov’s ability to speak to credit analysis, he is accepted as an expert witness and questioning from Trump lawyer Jesus Suarez gets underway.

After another objection from the AG’s office, Mr Bartov is briefly excused.

“There have been more objections to this witness over the last 10 minutes … which tells me that they’re terrified of this witness,” Trump attorney Christopher Kise says.

Louis Solomon, a counsel with the AG’s office, blurts out: “C’mon.”

Judge Engoron overruled the objections and questioning resumes.

Watch: Heated back and forth between Ramaswamy and Kilmeade on Fox & Friends over Ukraine

Thursday 7 December 2023 16:12 , Oliver O'Connell

Full story: Six Republicans in Nevada charged in fake elector scheme to overturn Trump’s loss

Thursday 7 December 2023 16:00 , Oliver O'Connell

A grand jury in Nevada has voted to indict six Republicans, including the party’s state chair, after they falsely pledged the state’s electoral votes to Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

Nevada’s Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford announced felony charges on Wednesday, marking another round of state-level criminal charges against participants in a so-called “fake elector” plot that sought to overturn Joe Biden’s victory, a scheme central to federal and state charges against the former president.

“When the efforts to undermine faith in our democracy began after the 2020 election, I made it clear that I would do everything in my power to defend the institutions of our nation and our state,” Mr Ford said in a statement.

“We cannot allow attacks on democracy to go unchallenged,” he added. “Today’s indictments are the product of a long and thorough investigation, and as we pursue this prosecution, I am confident that our judicial system will see justice done.”

Alex Woodward reports for The Independent.

Six Republicans in Nevada charged in fake elector scheme to overturn Trump’s loss

Analysis: Can Colorado’s highest court kick Trump off the ballot?

Thursday 7 December 2023 15:45 , Oliver O'Connell

A legal effort to disqualify Donald Trump from Colorado’s ballots in 2024 elections could end up in front of the US Supreme Court after arguments in front of the state’s highest court on Wednesday.

The case in Colorado is among dozens of legal challenges across the country that throw Mr Trump’s eligibility into question, pointing to a constitutional amendment that prohibits anyone who “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” from holding public office.

Alex Woodward has been following the course of the case for The Independent.

Can Colorado’s highest court kick Trump off the ballot?

Watch: Court gets underway with Trump at defence table

Thursday 7 December 2023 15:21 , Oliver O'Connell

NY AG’s office wants to avoid repetitive testimony from Bartov

Thursday 7 December 2023 15:15 , Alex Woodward

The New York Attorney General’s office doesn’t want testimony from Eli Bartov, the NYU accounting professor who’s coming up shortly, “repeating subject matters already covered” by other expert witnesses.

“Having two experts testifying the same way … on the same issues … is quite frankly a waste of time,” says Kevin Wallace with the NY AG’s office.

Bartov is now on the stand and sworn in and Trump attorney Jesus Suarez is questioning him, and going over his qualifications.

Trump seated in court as proceedings get underway

Thursday 7 December 2023 15:11 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump is seated in Justice Arthur Engoron’s courtroom awaiting the testimony of NYU professor Eli Bartov.

The former president is seated between his attorneys Alina Habba and Christopher Kise. Eric Trump, his second son and co-defendant, is dutifully sitting nearby.

Frank Runyeon of Law360 notes: “Bartov once testified at trial for Attorney General Letitia James during her ill-fated lawsuit against Exxon.

“Bartov's 2019 testimony did not go so well. He repeatedly misidentified Exxon as ‘Enron’, frustrating the judge and attorneys.”

Analysis: Republicans know January 6 is a political loser. So they’re trying to rewrite history

Thursday 7 December 2023 15:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Eric Garcia writes:

Nearly three years since the violence, Republicans are seeking to rewrite the narratives around January 6 to frame it either as a normal peaceful protest in part of the American tradition or as a set-up by federal law enforcement. It also comes as the de facto leader of the party, Mr Trump, has said if he is re-elected, he would pardon inmates, even as he faces a federal investigation for his role in the riot and efforts to overturn the election.

Read more...

Republicans know January 6 is a political loser. So they’re trying to rewrite history

Live: Watch Trump’s arrival at court

Thursday 7 December 2023 14:41 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump on his way to courthouse in Lower Manhattan

Thursday 7 December 2023 14:30 , Oliver O'Connell

The former president posted on Truth Social:

Heading to a Witch Hunt with a Crooked Judge and a Bats..t CRAZY (and Racist!), A.G. This case was decided against me before it even started. WE WON AT THE APPELLATE DIVISION, BUT HIGHLY POLITICAL AND DISRESPECTFUL JUDGE ENGORON REFUSES TO HONOR THEIR ORDER!

NY fraud trial: What to expect today in court

Thursday 7 December 2023 14:28 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward reports from Lower Manhattan:

There are only two defence witnesses left in Donald Trump’s fraud trial, and the former president is one of them.

He’s expected to return to New York County Supreme Court on Thursday for the first time in more than a month, but not as a witness. He’s expected to sit with his attorneys at the defence table inside Judge Arthur Engoron’s courtroom in lower Manhattan, where he will watch testimony for the first time since he left the court after his own time on the witness stand last month.

On Thursday, he will be watching testimony from the second-to-last defence witness, Eli Bartov, a New York University accounting professor.

Trump is scheduled to return to the court on Monday, where he will be sworn in to testify a second and final time as his legal team wraps up its defence in a case that threatens his family business and its real estate empire.

The trial, now in its 10th week, is expected to conclude next week. The judge is likely to issue a final judgment by the end of January.

Trump’s appearance on Thursday also marks his first time in court since a gag order that blocks him from disparaging court staff was upheld by an appeals court after court filings revealed the scale of death threats and abusive messages sent to Judge Engoron and his chief clerk following Trump’s social media attacks.

His attorneys have tried to appeal to the state’s highest court, but a judge on Monday denied his attempt to fast-track arguments, effectively ensuring that Trump will remain under the gag order during his appearance on Thursday, his testimony on Monday, and any remaining business in the trial next week.

In a filing to a state appeals court on Wednesday, attorneys for Judge Engoron warned that “the only potential harm” with overturning the gag order “is the risk of violence” against his staff.

“Any purported harm to Mr Trump’s (and his co-petitioners’) First Amendment rights is risible,” they wrote.

“Given the totality of the circumstances here, including the very real risk of harm to court staff, this Court should find that Justice Engoron exercised his discretion and authority in issuing the narrow gag orders and that such orders have not interfered with petitioners First Amendment rights.”

A lawsuit from New York Attorney General Letitia James accuses Trump, his two adult sons and their chief associates under the Trump Organization umbrella of defrauding financial institutions with grossly inflated estimates of his net worth and assets over a decade.

Judge Engoron’s pretrial judgment already found the defendants liable for fraud, so the trial will determine what damages they could face, and whether the attorney general succeeds on other claims in the lawsuit, including insurance fraud and conspiracy.

The defence team has introduced several expert witnesses over the last several weeks to testify about the Trump Organization’s business practices, including defence around how he created the statements of financial condition – the allegedly fraudulent documents sent to his financiers – and how the valuations of his properties in those documents were more like an art form, not a science.

Exit McCarthy, stage right

Thursday 7 December 2023 14:25 , Oliver O'Connell

Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy has announced his retirement from Congress after he was ousted from the top job in the House of Representatives just several weeks ago.

“I have decided to depart the House at the end of this year to serve America in new ways,” he wrote in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

Beginning the piece by calling himself an “optimist” Mr McCarthy went on to note that he spent 17 years representing the same congressional seat where he once was “denied an internship”.

“Only in America,” he wrote. “I helped lead Republicans to a House majority—twice. We got more Republican women, veterans and minorities elected to Congress at one time than ever before. I remained cheerfully persistent when elected speaker because I knew what we could accomplish.”

On 3 October, Mr McCarthy became the only speaker in US history to be removed following the filing of a motion to vacate.

Gustaf Kilander has the full story.

Kevin McCarthy to retire weeks after being ousted as House speaker

Trump only needs one day as dictator, allies say

Thursday 7 December 2023 14:05 , Oliver O'Connell

Alex Woodward writes:

His supporters heard his comments loud and clear.

“‘Dictator Trump’ is nothing more than a MEME. But, I was thinking about it, and ‘Dictator Trump’ doesn’t sound so bad. I honestly wouldn’t mind. Sounds like a good way to Make America American again,” wrote far-right activist and failed congressional candidate Laura Loomer, whose social media posts routinely appear on Mr Trump’s Truth Social account.

“One day is all he needs,” added far-right influencer Jack Posobiec.

On The Donald forum, users called for “brutal iron fist Trump” and a Trump “that will give us the blood of the corrupt.”

“One day is all he needs, then the left will be totally wiped off the planet like scum to bleach,” another user wrote.

Read on...

Trump allies defend his ‘day one’ dictatorship: ‘All he needs’

Hunter Biden still pushing for public testimony

Thursday 7 December 2023 13:45 , Oliver O'Connell

President Biden’s son Hunter Biden is again pushing to give evidence before the House Oversight Committee in a public hearing to avoid having his testimony selectively leaked or misrepresented by Republican committee members.

In a letter to the panel’s chair, Representative James Comer, Mr Biden’s attorney Abbe Lowell said Mr Comer, who last week claimed that witnesses before his committee did not have a choice to give public testimony during a first appearance, had actually offered Mr Biden the choice of an open hearing during a 31 October appearance on a podcast hosted by right-wing personality Benny Johnson.

Mr Lowell noted that Mr Comer had told Johnson that witnesses before his committee can be brought in for “depositions or committee hearings, whichever they choose,” and that he’d also said on 13 September that Mr Biden was “more than welcome to come in front of the committee”.

Andrew Feinberg reports from Washington, DC.

Hunter Biden still pushing for public testimony as House subpoena deadline looms

Trump claims again he’s being ‘sarcastic’ when he makes gaffes

Thursday 7 December 2023 13:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump has once again argued that his increasing number of gaffes is simply an expression of sarcasm.

The former president has repeatedly raged at the suggestion that he, at the age of 77, is not as sharp as he used to be.

During a Fox News town hall on Tuesday night, Mr Trump said: “I’ll say our real president is Barack Hussein Obama – they’ll say ‘he doesn’t know who the president is, he thinks it’s Barack Hussein’ – no, I’m being sarcastic.”

Just last week, Mr Trump claimed that he deliberately mixes up Joe Biden and Barack Obama’s names as he angrily denied that he is “cognitively impaired”.

Read the full article

Trump allies threaten to go after media if he returns to White House

Thursday 7 December 2023 12:45 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s campaign of retribution and political prosecution is not merely “rhetoric” but a “dead serious” threat to his opponents and the media, according to his own allies.

On his War Room podcast on Tuesday, former White House adviser and far-right activist Steve Bannon asked Trump loyalist Kash Patel whether he can “deliver the goods” and “get rolling on prosecutions” should Mr Trump win election in 2024.

“And I want the Morning Joe producers that watch us and all the producers to watch us – this is not just rhetoric. We’re absolutely dead serious,” Bannon said. “The deep state, the administrative state, the fourth branch of government never mentioned in the Constitution, is going to be taken apart, brick by brick, and the people that did these evil deeds will be held accountable and prosecuted, criminal prosecutions.”

Alex Woodward reports.

Trump allies threaten criminal charges against media if elected

Pence added to the witness list for Trump’s Georgia election trial

Thursday 7 December 2023 12:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Former Vice President Mike Pence has been added to the witness list for former President Donald Trump’s election interference trial in Georgia.

Prosecutors added Mr Pence to the list of those who could be called to testify at trial, CNN reported citing sources with knowledge of filings still under seal.

Mr Pence, who recently dropped out of the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has appeared before a federal grand jury in the investigation led by Special Counsel Jack Smith into Mr Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election, which the ex-president falsely argues was stolen. But the former vice president, Indiana governor and congressman has so far not played a large part in the Georgia proceedings.

While witness lists filed by the prosecutors in Georgia’s Fulton County haven’t been made public and are still under seal, CNN points to sources saying that the newest iteration of the witness list included about 150 names, with Mr Pence being one of them.

Read more...

Mike Pence added to witness list for Trump’s Georgia election trial

Why didn’t Eric Trump testify at fraud trial on Wednesday?

Thursday 7 December 2023 11:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s attorneys are set to wrap up the case for the defence in his civil fraud trial in New York next week, with the former president set to be the final witness, giving testimony for the second time at the trial.

His son Eric Trump was also set to take the stand again on Wednesday in his capacity as executive vice president of the Trump Organization overseeing the management and operation of the global real estate empire.

Unexpectedly on Tuesday, though, Trump family attorney Clifford Robert told the court that the defence “has decided not to call” Eric to the stand. He offered no explanation.

It was not until Tuesday evening that former president Trump stepped forward with an explanation as to why Eric would not be appearing in court again.

Trump reveals why son Eric won’t testify again at fraud trial

Analysis: Was the DeSantis campaign doomed from the start?

Thursday 7 December 2023 10:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Ron DeSantis entered the Republican primary this spring as the preeminent challenger to former President Donald Trump and as the heir apparent taking on the old guard.

The Florida governor was “Trump without the baggage,” a far-right fighter ready to rumble with the “radical left” and govern more productively than the chaotic reality TV star, blustering real estate mogul and grievance-filled showman.

In a race against the oldest president in US history, being born in the late 1970s instead of the mid-1940s would also be helpful. Part of the thinking was that Mr DeSantis could win the White House by simply standing next to President Joe Biden on the debate stage and not looking old.

But was his floundering campaign always inevitable? Was Mr DeSantis always too awkward to be president?

Click here to read Gustaf Kilander’s report.

Thursday 7 December 2023 09:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump claims his bizarre gaffes are sarcastic

Dictator for a day: Those Trump comments in full

Thursday 7 December 2023 08:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump has said he will be a dictator “just for day one” of his presidency if he is re-elected amid a spate of grim warnings over consequences if the twice-impeached president wins the 2024 elections.

Mr Trump appeared to duck the question twice during a Fox News townhall on Tuesday when Sean Hannity categorically asked him to say that he will not abuse presidential powers if he wins the elections.

Shweta Sharma reports:

Trump says he will be a dictator ‘on day one’ if elected president again

Thursday 7 December 2023 06:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump suggests ‘vicious’ people will bring Biden down

Jack Smith wants to use Trump’s embrace of rioters at his DC trial

Thursday 7 December 2023 04:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Federal prosecutors have given notice that they plan to introduce evidence of former president Donald Trump’s embrace of and support for charged and convicted January 6 rioters as a way to demonstrate what he intended to happen when a riotous mob of his supporters stormed the US Capitol to prevent certification of his 2020 election loss.

In a court document filed on Tuesday, prosecutors working under special counsel Jack Smith said that some of the evidence they intend to present is from before or after the criminal conspiracy in which the ex-president is charged with participating, but stressed that the evidence is admissible under rules allowing the government to use it to “establish his motive, intent, preparation, knowledge, absence of mistake, and common plan”.

In particular, prosecutors say they will use evidence that predates the alleged conspiracy at issue to demonstrate Mr Trump’s “encouragement of violence,” including his now-infamous exhortation to the extremist group known as the Proud Boys that they should “stand back and stand by” during his 29 September 2020 debate with now-president Joe Biden.

Read more...

Prosecutors want to use Trump’s embrace of rioters at his DC trial

Biden says he’s ‘note sure’ he’d run if Trump wasn’t running

Thursday 7 December 2023 03:30 , Oliver O'Connell

President Joe Biden has told a group of Democratic donors on Tuesday that he might not have decided to stand for re-election at 81 years of age if former president Donald Trump wasn’t seeking to reclaim the presidency in next year’s general election.

Mr Biden, the oldest person to ever serve as America’s chief executive, is looking to be elected to serve another four-year term in the White House, which would end when he is 86 years old. He announced his candidacy for re-election in April, approximately six months after Mr Trump launched his campaign for the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination against the man he lost to three years ago.

The 46th president’s advanced age has led a small number of Democrats to call for him to stand aside in favour of a younger, presumably more vigorous candidate who, in his critics’ telling, would easily best Mr Trump.

But while speaking at a fundraiser outside Boston on Tuesday, Mr Biden said Mr Trump’s persistence on the political scene is why he is not stepping aside in favour of a new generation.

“If Trump wasn’t running, I’m not sure I’d be running. But we cannot let him win,” he said.

Andrew Feinberg filed this report from Washington, DC.

Speaker Johnson admits to protecting Jan 6 rioters from charges

Thursday 7 December 2023 02:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson appeared to admit that he is protecting people who breached the halls of Congress on January 6 from potential prosecution from the US Department of Justice.

Mr Johnson has pledged the release of thousands of hours of raw footage from the attack on the US Capitol, fulfilling a promise to far-right members of his party who have downplayed the riots and accused federal law enforcement of selectively prosecuting political opponents who stormed the halls of Congress.

“We have to blur some faces of persons who participated in the events of that day because we don’t want them to be retaliated against, and to be charged by the DOJ, and to have other, you know, concerns and problems,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

Read the full article here

Gaetz accuses media of ‘greenlighting’ Trump assassination

Thursday 7 December 2023 01:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Far-right Florida Rep Matt Gaetz has claimed that the press is “green-lighting” the assassination of former President Donald Trump by reporting on what a second Trump term would look like.

On Monday, Mr Gaetz tweeted “They’re obviously green-lighting assassination” and included a screenshot from a Washington Post op-ed by Post Opinions contributing editor Robert Kagan bearing the headline “A Trump dictatorship is increasingly inevitable. We should stop pretending”.

Responding to Mr Gaetz, Condé Nast Legal Affairs Editor Luke Zaleski noted that “There is nothing you can say or do to confront Maga gaslighting that won’t be met with more MAGA gaslighting”.

“They’ll say anything to make themselves the victim and hero in everything. And there is nothing you can say to do anything about it. That is the MAGA gaslighting paradox,” he added.

Gustaf Kilander has the story.

Matt Gaetz accuses media of ‘greenlighting’ Trump assassination

Poll: Trump dominating GOP field as rivals sputter

Thursday 7 December 2023 00:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Ahead of the fourth GOP debate in Alabama, Donald Trump is in his most comfortable polling position yet.

The ex-president remains atop the GOP field in a major way, having consolidated support from six in 10 Republican voters nationally according to a NewsNation/Decision Desk HQ poll released on Monday. Though Mr Trump will not appear this Wednesday for the debate held by NewsNation alongside his GOP fellows, his decision to skip the 2023-24 debate cycle appears to not have hurt his chances in the slightest.

Indeed, the poll shows few pieces of good news for his opponents. Mr DeSantis and Ms Haley are statistically tied, at 11 and 10 per cent respectively, while the former president’s base of support appears to trust him more on the most important issues to voters this year, including the economy.

John Bowden has the details.

Poll shows Donald Trump dominating GOP field as rivals sputter

Alarm as Trump calls on supporters to ‘go into’ cities and ‘watch’ elections

Wednesday 6 December 2023 23:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s call to his supporters to “guard” and “watch” ballot counting in cities with large Black populations has raised alarms among elections officials and voting rights advocates bracing for more threats to elections fuelled by his bogus narrative of widespread fraud.

During a rally in Ankeny, Iowa on Saturday, the leading candidate for the 2024 Republican nomination for president justified his demands to “go into” cities with the same baseless allegations that surrounding the 2020 presidential election.

He falsely claimed that “they cheated like hell, they know it, and you’ll never find out all the ways but we don’t need all the ways,” adding that the “most important part of what’s coming up is to guard the vote.”

“The most important part of what’s coming up is to guard the vote, and you should go into Detroit, and you should go into Philadelphia, and you should go into some of these places – Atlanta – and you should go into some of these places, and we gotta watch those votes when they come in,” he said.

Read more...

Trump’s call to ‘go into’ cities and ‘watch’ elections sounds alarms

What have Trump’s Republican rivals said about him?

Wednesday 6 December 2023 22:30 , Oliver O'Connell

The field of Republican candidates has winnowed significantly since the beginning of the campaign, going from eight hopefuls appearing on the stage during the first primary debate to just four in the fourth showdown.

The frontrunner by a wide margin is former President Donald Trump, who has declined to appear at any of the debates so far, but his reticence to argue his case hasn’t had any impact on his strong primary poll numbers.

The four top remaining challengers have all used different tactics to take on Mr Trump.

Biotech entrepreneur and anti-woke author Vivek Ramaswamy has been mimicking him while at times struggling to explain why he’s running against a man he has called “the best president of the 21st century”.

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has been creative in finding different ways to call Mr Trump a wildly incompetent and dangerous criminal.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has argued that he would be a more competent, and most importantly, younger, version of the ex-president who would be able to run again in 2028.

Former South Carolina Governor and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley initially instituted the “pro-having it and pro-eating it” cake policy of disgraced former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson when it came to Mr Trump, attempting to remain on the fence and not annoy either Republicans supportive or critical of the former president. More recently, she has become slightly more outspoken in her criticism.

Here’s a rundown of what each of them have said about Mr Trump

Analysis: Nikki Haley’s star is rising. But can she catch up to Trump?

Wednesday 6 December 2023 22:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Nikki Haley is known for a lot of firsts — the first Asian American woman to serve as governor in US history, the first Indian American member of a presidential Cabinet, the first woman of colour to run for the GOP nomination — but will she become the first woman to serve as US president?

Few think so.

On paper, Ms Haley is arguably the ideal GOP candidate. She boasts impressive foreign policy experience amid the bloody conflict in Ukraine and the war between Israel and Hamas. She is the only woman in the race, giving her a sophisticated position to discuss reproductive rights as Republicans struggle to appeal to voters following the demise of Roe v Wade. Still, the 51-year-old can’t seem to catch up to Mr Trump. Ms Haley’s candidacy demonstrates a larger problem with the 2024 Republican race — no one can touch him.

However, some have argued that her path to the White House isn’t as far-reaching as it once was, as her star has risen in recent weeks.

Kelly Rissman reports.

Nikki Haley’s star is rising. But can she catch up to Trump?

Democrat megadonor donates to Haley to help thwart Trump

Wednesday 6 December 2023 22:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Just a week after JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon urged even liberal Democrats to help Nikki Haley’s campaign to give Republicans an alternative to Donald Trump, one Democrat megadonor has done just that.

Reid Hoffman, the billionaire co-founder of LinkedIn, donated $250,000 to a super PAC supporting the former UN ambassador’s 2024 campaign to be the GOP nominee in 2024.

The New York Times confirmed the donation had been made with Dmitri Mehlhorn, a political adviser to Mr Hoffman.

Mr Mehlhorn told the outlet that the pro-Haley super PAC SFA Fund Inc was specifically asked if it would take money from a Democrat who actively supports President Joe Biden, and they said yes.

Read more...

Democrat megadonor gives to Nikki Haley super PAC to help thwart Trump

Full story: Trump fake electors in Wisconsin settle lawsuit and agree Biden won in 2020

Wednesday 6 December 2023 21:45 , Oliver O'Connell

A group of 10 Republicans who acted as “fake electors” in the 2020 presidential election and signed official-looking paperwork claiming Donald Trump won Wisconsin have settled a lawsuit against them.

They have agreed to withdraw their inaccurate filings, acknowledge Joe Biden won the presidency and not serve as presidential electors in 2024 or in any election where Trump is on the ballot.

The 10 fake electors will send a statement to the government offices that received the Electoral College votes saying that their actions were “part of an attempt to improperly overturn the 2020 presidential election results”.

Electors are people appointed to represent voters in presidential elections. The winner of the popular vote in each state determines which party’s electors are sent to the Electoral College, which meets in December after the election to certify the outcome.

This is the first time that pro-Trump fake electors have agreed to such a deal. Republicans in two other states — Michigan and Georgia — face criminal charges for similar actions and investigations are underway in three more states — Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico.

Continue reading the full article

Wednesday 6 December 2023 21:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump claims his bizarre gaffes are sarcastic

Analysis: Republicans know January 6 is a political loser. So they’re trying to rewrite history

Wednesday 6 December 2023 21:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Eric Garcia writes:

Nearly three years since the violence, Republicans are seeking to rewrite the narratives around January 6 to frame it either as a normal peaceful protest in part of the American tradition or as a set-up by federal law enforcement. It also comes as the de facto leader of the party, Mr Trump, has said if he is re-elected, he would pardon inmates, even as he faces a federal investigation for his role in the riot and efforts to overturn the election.

Read more...

Republicans know January 6 is a political loser. So they’re trying to rewrite history

Full story: Six Republicans in Nevada charged in fake elector scheme to overturn Trump’s loss

Wednesday 6 December 2023 20:35 , Oliver O'Connell

A grand jury in Nevada has voted to indict six Republicans, including the party’s state chair, after they falsely pledged the state’s electoral votes to Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

Nevada’s Democratic Attorney General Aaron Ford announced felony charges on Wednesday, marking another round of state-level criminal charges against participants in a so-called “fake elector” plot that sought to overturn Joe Biden’s victory, a scheme central to federal and state charges against the former president.

“When the efforts to undermine faith in our democracy began after the 2020 election, I made it clear that I would do everything in my power to defend the institutions of our nation and our state,” Mr Ford said in a statement.

“We cannot allow attacks on democracy to go unchallenged,” he added. “Today’s indictments are the product of a long and thorough investigation, and as we pursue this prosecution, I am confident that our judicial system will see justice done.”

Alex Woodward is following this developing story for The Independent.

Six Republicans in Nevada charged in fake elector scheme to overturn Trump’s loss

Why didn’t Eric Trump testify in New York today?

Wednesday 6 December 2023 20:33 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s attorneys are set to wrap up the case for the defence in his civil fraud trial in New York next week, with the former president set to be the final witness, giving testimony for the second time at the trial.

His son Eric Trump was also set to take the stand again on Wednesday (6 December) in his capacity as executive vice president of the Trump Organization overseeing the management and operation of the global real estate empire.

Unexpectedly on Tuesday though, Trump family attorney Clifford Robert told the court that the defence “has decided not to call” Eric Trump to the stand. He offered no explanation.

It was not until Tuesday evening that former president Trump stepped forward with an explanation as to why Eric would not be appearing in court again.

Read the full article

Nevada grand jury indicts six in 2020 ‘fake electors’ plot

Wednesday 6 December 2023 20:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Developing story...

Wednesday 6 December 2023 20:10 , Oliver O'Connell

Trump suggests ‘vicious’ people will bring Biden down

Jack Smith wants to use Trump’s embrace of rioters at his DC trial

Wednesday 6 December 2023 19:50 , Oliver O'Connell

Federal prosecutors have given notice that they plan to introduce evidence of former president Donald Trump’s embrace of and support for charged and convicted January 6 rioters as a way to demonstrate what he intended to happen when a riotous mob of his supporters stormed the US Capitol to prevent certification of his 2020 election loss.

In a court document filed on Tuesday, prosecutors working under special counsel Jack Smith said that some of the evidence they intend to present is from before or after the criminal conspiracy in which the ex-president is charged with participating, but stressed that the evidence is admissible under rules allowing the government to use it to “establish his motive, intent, preparation, knowledge, absence of mistake, and common plan”.

In particular, prosecutors say they will use evidence that predates the alleged conspiracy at issue to demonstrate Mr Trump’s “encouragement of violence,” including his now-infamous exhortation to the extremist group known as the Proud Boys that they should “stand back and stand by” during his 29 September 2020 debate with now-president Joe Biden.

Andrew Feinberg has the full story.

Prosecutors want to use Trump’s embrace of rioters at his DC trial

‘We cannot let him win’ says Biden as he tells donors he’s not sure he’d run if Trump wasn’t

Wednesday 6 December 2023 19:30 , Oliver O'Connell

President Joe Biden has told a group of Democratic donors on Tuesday that he might not have decided to stand for re-election at 81 years of age if former president Donald Trump wasn’t seeking to reclaim the presidency in next year’s general election.

Mr Biden, the oldest person to ever serve as America’s chief executive, is looking to be elected to serve another four-year term in the White House, which would end when he is 86 years old. He announced his candidacy for re-election in April, approximately six months after Mr Trump launched his campaign for the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination against the man he lost to three years ago.

The 46th president’s advanced age has led a small number of Democrats to call for him to stand aside in favour of a younger, presumably more vigorous candidate who, in his critics’ telling, would easily best Mr Trump.

But while speaking at a fundraiser outside Boston on Tuesday, Mr Biden said Mr Trump’s persistence on the political scene is why he is not stepping aside in favour of a new generation.

“If Trump wasn’t running, I’m not sure I’d be running. But we cannot let him win,” he said.

Continue reading the full article

Poll: Trump dominating GOP field as rivals sputter

Wednesday 6 December 2023 19:10 , Oliver O'Connell

Ahead of the fourth GOP debate in Alabama, Donald Trump is in his most comfortable polling position yet.

The ex-president remains atop the GOP field in a major way, having consolidated support from six in 10 Republican voters nationally according to a NewsNation/Decision Desk HQ poll released on Monday. Though Mr Trump will not appear this Wednesday for the debate held by NewsNation alongside his GOP fellows, his decision to skip the 2023-24 debate cycle appears to not have hurt his chances in the slightest.

Indeed, the poll shows few pieces of good news for his opponents. Mr DeSantis and Ms Haley are statistically tied, at 11 and 10 per cent respectively, while the former president’s base of support appears to trust him more on the most important issues to voters this year, including the economy.

John Bowden reports.

Poll shows Donald Trump dominating GOP field as rivals sputter

Gaetz accuses media of ‘greenlighting’ Trump assassination

Wednesday 6 December 2023 18:50 , Oliver O'Connell

Far-right Florida Rep Matt Gaetz has claimed that the press is “green-lighting” the assassination of former President Donald Trump by reporting on what a second Trump term would look like.

On Monday, Mr Gaetz tweeted “They’re obviously green-lighting assassination” and included a screenshot from a Washington Post op-ed by Post Opinions contributing editor Robert Kagan bearing the headline “A Trump dictatorship is increasingly inevitable. We should stop pretending”.

Responding to Mr Gaetz, Condé Nast Legal Affairs Editor Luke Zaleski noted that “There is nothing you can say or do to confront Maga gaslighting that won’t be met with more MAGA gaslighting”.

“They’ll say anything to make themselves the victim and hero in everything. And there is nothing you can say to do anything about it. That is the MAGA gaslighting paradox,” he added.

Read on...

Matt Gaetz accuses media of ‘greenlighting’ Trump assassination

Has Trump deflecting from Hannity’s dictator questions opened the door for GOP rivals to attack?

Wednesday 6 December 2023 18:30 , Oliver O'Connell

During his Fox News town hall with Sean Hannity on Tuesday night, Donald Trump twice appeared to duck questions as to whether he would become a dictator if he were to win the White House again in 2024, before saying he would be a dictator “just for one day” on entering office.

Has this created an opening for his primary rivals at tonight’s Republican debate? Will they take the bait?

Politico reports that tonight the moderators plan to force the candidates to face up to the fact they are running against Donald Trump even if he isn’t there.

“I think in one of the first debates they took an hour for anybody to even say his name, which is ridiculous. He’s the person they all have to beat. You’re not running against Joe Biden right now, candidates, you’re running against Donald Trump,” NewsNation’s Elizabeth Vargas told Politico.

“Because otherwise, up there just criticizing Joe Biden, you’re basically all surrogates for Donald Trump,” she added.

“His pronouncements of late about mass deportations or removing Obamacare — there are a lot of things that he has said that are ripe for dissection and discussion and debate,” Vargas said.

Vargas is moderating alongside talk radio host Megyn Kelly and Washington Free Beacon editor-in-chief Eliana Johnson.

Answering their questions are four candidates — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy.

‘All he needs’ say Trump allies as they defence his ‘day one’ dictatorship comment

Wednesday 6 December 2023 18:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump was offered a chance to shut down warnings about his increasingly violent and authoritarian vision for his potential administration. Instead, he embraced it.

During an event on Fox News billed as a town hall on Tuesday, host Sean Hannity gave him a chance to clarify that “under no circumstances, you are promising America tonight, you would never abuse power as retribution against anybody.”

“Except for day one,” Mr Trump replied.

His supporters and campaign have framed his comments as a joke to attack his critics, a defence that has tried to rewrite and undermine his own words and actions over the last several months, including his explicit promises of a campaign of retribution and political vengeance against his rivals.

Alex Woodward reports.

Trump allies defend his ‘day one’ dictatorship: ‘All he needs’

As fourth debate looms, here’s what the GOP candidates have said about Trump

Wednesday 6 December 2023 18:10 , Gustaf Kilander

The field of Republican candidates has winnowed significantly since the beginning of the campaign, going from eight hopefuls appearing on the stage during the first primary debate to just four in the fourth showdown.

The frontrunner by a wide margin is former President Donald Trump, who has declined to appear at any of the debates so far, but his reticence to argue his case hasn’t had any impact on his strong primary poll numbers.

The four top remaining challengers have all used different tactics to take on Mr Trump.

Biotech entrepreneur and anti-woke author Vivek Ramaswamy has been mimicking him while at times struggling to explain why he’s running against a man he has called “the best president of the 21st century”.

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has been creative in finding different ways to call Mr Trump a wildly incompetent and dangerous criminal.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has argued that he would be a more competent, and most importantly, younger, version of the ex-president who would be able to run again in 2028.

Former South Carolina Governor and UN Ambassador Nikki Haley initially instituted the “pro-having it and pro-eating it” cake policy of disgraced former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson when it came to Mr Trump, attempting to remain on the fence and not annoy either Republicans supportive or critical of the former president. More recently, she has become slightly more outspoken in her criticism.

Here’s a rundown of what each of them have said about Mr Trump:

Where the Republican candidates stand on Donald Trump

Voices: Trump is telling us exactly what he’ll do and we should believe him

Wednesday 6 December 2023 17:57 , Oliver O'Connell

Ahmed Baba writes:

In a conversation with Fox News anchor Sean Hannity, Donald Trump made an autocratic admission.

Hannity asked Trump, “To be clear, do you, in any way, have any plans whatsoever if re-elected president, to abuse power, to break the law, to use the government to go after people…”

Trump cut Hannity off, interjecting with, “You mean like they’re using right now.” This is an Orwellian tactic Trump has been using, falsely projecting his own behavior onto his opponents. Trump notably didn’t deny he would do what Hannity asked; instead, he obfuscated for minutes before making a revelatory comment.

Hannity asked again, trying to throw Trump an alley oop. “Under no circumstances, you are promising America tonight, you would never abuse power as retribution against anybody?”

Trump replied: “Except for day one.” The audience chuckled.

Continue reading:

Trump is telling us exactly what he’ll do and we should believe him

Hunter Biden still pushing for public testimony

Wednesday 6 December 2023 17:45 , Oliver O'Connell

President Biden’s son Hunter Biden is again pushing to give evidence before the House Oversight Committee in a public hearing to avoid having his testimony selectively leaked or misrepresented by Republican committee members.

In a letter to the panel’s chair, Representative James Comer, Mr Biden’s attorney Abbe Lowell said Mr Comer, who last week claimed that witnesses before his committee did not have a choice to give public testimony during a first appearance, had actually offered Mr Biden the choice of an open hearing during a 31 October appearance on a podcast hosted by right-wing personality Benny Johnson.

Andrew Feinberg reports.

Hunter Biden still pushing for public testimony as House subpoena deadline looms

Full story: Kevin McCarthy to retire weeks after being ousted as House speaker

Wednesday 6 December 2023 17:25 , Oliver O'Connell

Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy has announced his retirement from Congress after his ouster from the top job in the House of Representatives just a few weeks ago.

“I have decided to depart the House at the end of this year to serve America in new ways,” he wrote in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

Beginning the piece by calling himself an “optimist” Mr McCarthy went on to note that he’s a the “son of a firefighter” and that he spent 17 years representing the same congressional seat where he once was “denied an internship”.

Gustaf Kilander reports from Washington, DC.

Kevin McCarthy to retire weeks after being ousted as House speaker

Trump allies threaten to come after media if he is re-elected

Wednesday 6 December 2023 17:05 , Oliver O'Connell

Donald Trump’s campaign of retribution and political prosecution is not merely “rhetoric” but a “dead serious” threat to his opponents and the media, according to his own allies.

On his War Room podcast on Tuesday, former White House adviser and far-right activist Steve Bannon asked Trump loyalist Kash Patel whether he can “deliver the goods” and “get rolling on prosecutions” should Mr Trump win election in 2024.

“And I want the Morning Joe producers that watch us and all the producers to watch us – this is not just rhetoric. We’re absolutely dead serious,” Bannon said.

Alex Woodward has the full story.

Trump allies threaten criminal charges against media if elected

Watch: Kevin McCarthy announces he is leaving Congress

Wednesday 6 December 2023 16:46 , Oliver O'Connell

Wednesday 6 December 2023 16:44 , Oliver O'Connell

...and Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene is not happy about it.

Rep Matt Gaetz was similarly fretting about the Republican majority at the weekend.

Matt Gaetz frets about precarious Republican majority after George Santos exit

Kevin McCarthy is leaving the House of Representatives

Wednesday 6 December 2023 16:27 , Oliver O'Connell

After reaching his goal of becoming Speaker of the House at the start of the year before being ousted from the role by members of his own party in October, California Republican Rep Kevin McCarthy is leaving Congress.

“I have decided to depart the House at the end of this year to serve America in new ways. I know my work is only getting started.”

Mr McCarthy made the announcement in an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal.

Wisconsin’s Trump fake electors settle lawsuit and agree Biden won in 2020

Wednesday 6 December 2023 16:16 , Oliver O'Connell

A group of 10 Republicans who acted as “fake electors” in the 2020 presidential election and signed official-looking paperwork claiming Donald Trump won Wisconsin have settled a lawsuit against them.

The Washington Post reports that they have agreed to withdraw their inaccurate filings, acknowledge Joe Biden won the presidency and not serve as presidential electors in 2024 or in any election where Trump is on the ballot.

This is the first time that pro-Trump fake electors have agreed to such a deal. Republicans in two other states (Michigan and Georgia) face criminal charges for similar actions and investigations are underway in three more states (Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico).

The lawsuit was filed by two of the state’s rightful electors who sought up to $200,000 from each of the fake Trump electors. There is no financial component to the settlement.

Lawyer Kenneth Chesebro, the so-called architect of the “fake electors” scheme to keep Donald Trump in power, reached a plea deal in Georgia and is now cooperating with authorities in Nevada.

The Biden electors in Wisconsin are continuing their lawsuit against two attorneys who assisted the Wisconsin Republicans — Mr Chesebro and Jim Troupis, a former Dane County judge who led Trump’s recount efforts in the state.