A Lightning Round (02.29.24)

Supreme Court delay, McConnell steps down, Hunter Biden shoots back and Trump pleads poverty

Photo by Kent Nishimura of the NYT

On this odd leap year day, let’s cover odd happenings in our legal system and politics.

The Supreme Court grants review of Trump’s immunity appeal

The Supreme Court has decided to hear Trump’s appeal from the D.C. Circuit decision that found he had no absolute presidential immunity against criminal prosecution. This is a bad development not because the question is a close one, but because it threw the entire calendar into chaos. The move will delay Trump’s January 6 criminal trial by months, making it increasingly unlikely the trial will happen before the election.

Legal observers, from liberals to traditional conservatives, are blasting the decision. After all, there was no need for the Court to take this case because the D.C. panel’s decision was clear and its legal reasoning irrefutable. A president who is free to do whatever he likes without fear of legal repercussions—even to order Seal Team 6 to kill his political opponent—is a dictator, not a president. If the outcome of his appeal is already clear, the only thing that the Court’s decision really does is prevent the trial from moving forward while the case is pending. 

The impact of that stay, however, is everything.

The stay took five justices to impose, and we can guess who is among them. While admittedly the Court could have made the process even more time consuming and arduous, because it did modestly expedite review of the matter, it still counts as a political gift to Trump. As Joyce Vance noted, Trump will be entitled to some 88 days of trial prep time, which Judge Chutkan promised would be restored from the moment the calendar restarts. Jack Smith had estimated the trial could take three months, though it’s possible he could slim it down to get it done faster, but there are limits to what he can do.

Under this calendar, by the time the trial even gets going, the GOP presidential nomination will be Trump’s. If it drags far into the fall, many voters will have already cast ballots. And Trump’s lawyers will almost certainly seek a halt to the trial, or otherwise move to have it begin after the election so that the DoJ isn’t seen as putting a finger on the scales during the voting.

The only way a trial could happen in time is if the Court rules very rapidly after it hears argument, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. 

Mitch McConnell is stepping down as Senate Minority Leader 

McConnell surprised the world with his announcement that he is stepping down as GOP Senate leader come November. The man who did more to undermine our democracy, stack our Supreme Court and strip fundamental rights away from millions of Americans will not be missed—except for the disturbing fact that he is still likely better than his successor, who no doubt will be a shill for Trump. The Orange Guy’s hold on his party is now nearly complete.

McConnell made it clear what his reasons for relinquishing power are. Specifically, his views on national security, including importantly his strong support for Ukraine, are now wholly out of step with where his party stands under Donald Trump.

“Believe me, I know the politics within my party at this particular time,” said the 82-year old McConnell. “I have many faults. Misunderstanding politics is not one of them.”

The party that once stood for a strong national defense and opposition to dangerous autocrats like Vladimir Putin is now weak and isolationist, led by a man who literally invited Russia to attack NATO allies if they didn’t pay their share of defense costs. It is a stunning reversal that carries huge implications for the standing of the U.S. with its allies and worldwide. It also signals to our enemies that the best way to destroy American resolve and undermine its strength is to find useful idiots and allies from within the ranks of the Republican Party.

Each of the likely successors to McConnell has now endorsed Donald Trump for president.

Hunter Biden testifies

The much ballyhooed testimony of Hunter Biden before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday was a bust. This day had been anticipated for months, with promises by Committee Chair James Comer (R-KY) that the corruption of the “Biden Crime Family” would be revealed. Instead, the GOP again had no new evidence and raised no new arguments to support its baseless claims against the Bidens. The impeachment inquiry that it launched against the sitting president is now on life support.

Unlike GOP witnesses when they appeared before Congress, the younger Biden felt no need to plead the Fifth. He also made it clear that his business dealings had nothing whatsoever to do with his father, and the Republicans were unable to produce evidence to the contrary. 

With their own star witnesses now exposed as Russian and Chinese assets, the GOP had better fold up its impeachment tent. “You have trafficked in innuendo, distortion and sensationalism — all the while ignoring the clear and convincing evidence staring you in the face,” Hunter Biden said in a prepared statement. “You do not have evidence to support the baseless and MAGA-motivated conspiracies about my father because there isn’t any.”

For its part, the press finally appears to be pushing back forcefully against unsupported claims by unscrupulous GOP House members. When Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) went on CNN to push more lies about the Bidens, anchor Boris Sanchez cut him off. 

“There’s $20 million that flowed there. You saw these accounts,” Burchett said. Sanchez immediately shot back, “That’s incorrect sir, the bank records don’t reflect that … they don’t specifically say — I looked at the bank records — they don’t say that Joe Biden got any money from them. Have you read the bank records? Cause they don’t list Joe Biden’s name.”

Burchett asked Sanchez if he was going to let him speak. Sanchez replied, “I’m not going to let you say things that aren’t true, sir.”

Trump claims he can’t post the appeal bond

Donald Trump now claims he is unable to come up with the money to post a bond covering the more than $450 million civil fraud judgment against him. He had asked that judgment be stayed and for permission to post just a fraction of that, just $100 million, claiming that coming up with the full amount was “impossible.” Judge Anil Singh denied his request, and he refused to stay judgment, which will require Trump to put up the full bond.

The judge is allowing Trump to seek lenders willing to help him with that bond. Even if he finds a company willing to do this, it no doubt will require big collateral, perhaps in the form of property assets.  

Trump will appeal the judge’s ruling to a five judge appellate panel. If he can’t find help coming up with the bond, he may have to fire sale properties or the Attorney General could seize Trump properties to satisfy the judgment. 

Bottom line is, Trump is in big financial straits, and appears not to be as wealthy as he had claimed. 

Some final thoughts

Before I end today’s lightning round-up, a few words on the first story I led with. Whether the extremist justices on the Court are acting intentionally to help Trump, or whether they are simply arrogant and insist that they must have the final say over something like presidential immunity, the result is the same: a delay here is a denial of the right of U.S. voters to know whether they are choosing a felon convicted of violating federal laws.

I hope and trust that the fact that Trump may succeed in escaping justice should he be elected will motivate Democrats and other fair minded Americans to the polls. If we message this correctly, it will be a rallying cry like nothing else. 

Our democracy is on the line, and there is no cavalry coming with this Supreme Court blocking its path. They will keep him on the Colorado ballot, and they will delay his January 6 trial so far that it is unlikely to be resolved before November. 

And while it’s likely that Trump will be convicted of 34 state felonies in Manhattan sometime in April, that may not be enough to sway voters on the idea that he is an existential threat to our democracy because he was convicted of federal crimes for trying to steal it. Falsifying business records is wrong and it’s criminal, but it doesn’t carry the same gravitas of overturning an election.

So it’s up to us. We the people are ultimately the ones who must keep Trump from power. And with the House and the Senate GOP now firmly in Trump’s grip, the stakes are higher than ever.