Could a Re-Elected Trump Really Dismiss the Cases Against Him?
Plus: The Walz Pick and America’s Urban-Rural Divide
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PATRICK FREY: Could a Re-Elected Trump Really Dismiss the Cases Against Him?
Former US President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump arrives to speak during a campaign rally at the New Holland Arena in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on July 31, 2024. (Photo by JOE LAMBERTI/AFP via Getty Images)
LEGAL EXPERTS EVERYWHERE AGREE: If Donald Trump becomes president in 2025, he can simply order the federal criminal cases against him to be dismissed forever.
There is good reason to believe that legal experts everywhere are wrong about this.
Once a case is filed, the final decision on dismissal is made by the courts, not the prosecutor. For example, in California in 1981, the Los Angeles district attorney asked a judge to dismiss murder charges against Angelo Buono, the Hillside Strangler. A superior court judge said no, and appointed the attorney general’s office to prosecute Buono, who was convicted of murder and died in prison. The judge, Ron George, went on to become the chief justice of California.
Ilyse Hogue: Trump’s Making an Aggressive Play for Aggrieved Young Men. Dems Should Take Notice.
WHEN 23-YEAR-OLD GAMER ADIN ROSS presented Donald Trump with a Rolex watch in a first-of-its-kind livestreamed interview on the platform Kick Monday, a tiny subset of the internet descended into blows over whether it was a campaign finance violation or not.
The rest of the approximately 600,000 people watching thought it was hilarious and cool.
And that, unfortunately, is a major problem for Democrats—the majority of whom were likely oblivious to the whole episode.
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JILL LAWRENCE: The Walz Pick and America’s Urban-Rural Divide
AND THE WINNER of the Democratic veepstakes is . . . Tim Walz, who makes perfect sense. He’s a popular, plainspoken, moderate Midwestern governor, a former teacher, a football coach, a gun owner who hunts pheasant and turkey, and a 24-year National Guard member who flipped a rural Republican congressional district in 2006 and won it six times. Also, here’s a photo of him holding a piglet.
Vice President Kamala Harris chose the second-term Minnesota governor as her running mate for all those reasons and more. What’s really telling is that her two other reported finalists were also popular moderates who made perfect sense: Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, a decorated naval aviator and former astronaut with tough border views and bipartisan appeal, and Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, known for his working-class outreach, support for school vouchers, and getting a section of I-95 reopened twelve days after it collapsed.
DENNIS AFTERGUT: Clarence Thomas Oopsies Again: Yet Another Trip He Failed to Report
SURPRISE: SUPREME COURT JUSTICE CLARENCE THOMAS has failed yet again to disclose free private jet travel for him and his wife—in this case, a round-trip luxury flight between Hawaii and New Zealand that they took in 2010. Once again, it was gifted to him by Dallas billionaire Harlan Crow, most likely on his high-end Bombardier Global 5000 private jet.
The disclosure, reported in the New York Times and elsewhere on Monday, came via information that Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) obtained from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency. Senator Wyden referred to it in a letter he sent Monday to Crow’s lawyers. It sought more information that they and Crow had failed to provide the Senate Finance Committee that Wyden chairs.
🚨OVERTIME🚨
Happy Tuesday! We’re still acclimating to the Queen City, doing various chores and joining the wonderful library system, but happy to be here. When I was my girls age, my favorite book was The True Story of Smokey the Bear by Jane Watson. I took it out so many times the librarian (whom my late mom replaced) told me I couldn’t take out the book anymore. Harsh, but the right call. Coincidentally, today is Smokey’s 80th birthday.
Congrats to Gov. Walz! Truthbetold, I was more of a Shapiro guy because I saw him up close on the trail when he ran in 2022. His speech tonight in Philadelphia was great. Walz will be a great choice, too. If you’re wondering how he voted when he was a Congressman, here’s his record, where he was one of the most effective legislators, which in the minority party, is not easy to do. Former House GOP colleague Charles Djou thinks he’ll make a “good Vice President.”
The FBI searched a Congressman’s home… Rep. Andy Ogles, a Tennessee Republican who emerged from obscurity after his Santos-style hijinx.
Meanwhile, in the local paper… “Couches, dolphins and eyeliner: Debunking and confirming JD Vance rumors”
..and also in the Buckeye state… Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s efforts to purge the rolls is ensnaring naturalized citizens (Cleveland Scene).
Where Facebook's AI Slop… Comes From (404 Media).
Why the global financial markets… are selling off (Alex Wilhelm, Cautious Optimist).
Tech support questions? Email members@thebulwark.com. Questions for me? Respond to this message.
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Dennis Aftergut and Jill Lawrence’s essays make the most sense to me. Aftergut is bringing up a now-familiar tune of SC corruption in the actions (omissions) of Thomas. Keep hammering on people like him.
Anyone still sighing after Shapiro, please get over it. He is an excellent Governor in his first term and he has a future as a Presidential candidate. ALL the candidates that Harris considered would have been good choices. I think Walz will surprise everyone.
Isn't the real question - how much can the GOP cheat with the help of the corrupt SCOTUS, Congress, Federalist Society of unethical lawyers, and Leonard Leo?
We are battling vs corruption that the following fraternities support - The GOP, The Congressional fraternity, SCOTUS, and the Federalist Society Fraternity. They all support election denial and violent insurrection by the minority party - because it's good for legal fees?
How many abortions do you think were stopped by the billions of dollars invested in legal fees in all the states? Maybe 200 babies to unwed and single mothers that can't afford rent and food?