• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • Comment
  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Not all heroes wear capes.

Every one of the “Roberts Six” lied to get on the court.

Boeing: repeatedly making the case for high speed rail.

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

Everyone is in a bubble, but some bubbles model reality far better than others!

I’m just a talker, trying to find a channel!

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

Innocent people don’t delay justice.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

The revolution will be supervised.

Michigan is a great lesson for Dems everywhere: when you have power…use it!

Cole is on a roll !

Donald Trump, welcome to your everything, everywhere, all at once.

There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

I desperately hope that, yet again, I am wrong.

Israel is using food as a weapon of war. Unforgivable.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

…and a burning sense of injustice to juice the soul.

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

rich, arrogant assholes who equate luck with genius

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

Mobile Menu

  • Four Directions Montana
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • COVID-19 Coronavirus
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • 2024 Elections
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • Targeted Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Politics / Trump Indictments / No Reason Given (Open Thread)

No Reason Given (Open Thread)

by WaterGirl|  March 25, 202411:37 am| 182 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads, Politics, Trump Indictments

FacebookTweetEmail

No reason given, but to me it looks like “no one is above the law” isn’t exactly true, if you read the fine print.

Here is the ruling. https://t.co/1oRTjOJNau

— Mueller, She Wrote (@MuellerSheWrote) March 25, 2024

Hopefully Omnes or one of our other BJ attorneys will be able to explain why it isn’t what it appears to be. I certainly hope they can.

Full text:

No Reason Given

Open thread.

Update:  This is the clearest summary I have seen yet.

 

Update:

Financial fraud: Appellate grants in part his motion for a stay of asset seizures by lowering the bond requirement to $175 million. He has 10 days to post it and cannot borrow from NY Institutions. The full judgment ($464M + interest) stands pending appeal.

Election…

— Jack E. Smith ⚖️ (@7Veritas4) March 25, 2024

.

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Monday Morning Open Thread: Holi Hai!
Next Post: Meet the Press Flap (Open Thread) »

Reader Interactions

  • Commenters
  • Filtered
  • Settings

Commenters

No commenters available.

  • Anoniminous
  • Anonymous At Work
  • Anotherlurker
  • B1naryS3rf
  • Barbara
  • Baud
  • Bill Arnold
  • Butch
  • Cacti
  • cain
  • Captain C
  • catclub
  • Chip Daniels
  • Chris Johnson
  • davek319
  • debit
  • dirge
  • Dorothy A. Winsor
  • Doug R
  • EireIAm
  • Eolirin
  • FelonyGovt
  • Frankensteinbeck
  • geg6
  • Geminid
  • Jackie
  • JBWoodford
  • Jeffro
  • Josie
  • karen marie
  • Ksmiami
  • Lapassionara
  • Layer8Problem
  • Leto
  • lowtechcyclist
  • Madeleine
  • Mai Naem mobile
  • Major Major Major Major
  • Manyakitty
  • Mel
  • Melancholy Jaques
  • Mike in NC
  • Miss Bianca
  • Mr. Bemused Senior
  • mrmoshpotato
  • Old Man Shadow
  • Old School
  • Omnes Omnibus
  • prostratedragon
  • Quadrillipede
  • Quinerly
  • Randal Sexton
  • RandomMonster
  • rikyrah
  • Ruckus
  • rumpole
  • schrodingers_cat
  • Scott P.
  • scottharris
  • Scout211
  • sdhays
  • Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony
  • Steve in the ATL
  • Sure Lurkalot
  • TBone
  • TeezySkeezy
  • The Thin Black Duke
  • Thor Heyerdahl
  • Tony G
  • trollhattan
  • UncleEbeneezer
  • Villago Delenda Est
  • WaterGirl
  • West of the Rockies
  • wjca

Filtered Commenters

No filtered commenters available.

    Settings




    Settings are saved immediately; press X to close the box.

    182Comments

    1. 1.

      geg6

      March 25, 2024 at 11:41 am

      This is totally fucked up.  Does this say what I think it does?  That everything except the monitor is stayed, pending the pennies on the dollar disgorgement, until the appeal is adjudicated?  WTAF?!?!?!

      Reply
    2. 2.

      B1naryS3rf

      March 25, 2024 at 11:42 am

      Two systems of justice, blah blah blah. I’m not at all surprised. There are powerful vested interests at all levels who want this fucker back in the big chair.

      Reply
    3. 3.

      Randal Sexton

      March 25, 2024 at 11:43 am

      Feh.  After he is convicted of something and sentenced to X years,  he gets to bargain it down to 0.369 * X years, for REASONS .   (0.369 = 175/474)

      Reply
    4. 4.

      Frankensteinbeck

      March 25, 2024 at 11:44 am

      @geg6:

      pending the pennies on the dollar disgorgement

      Dunno.  $175 million is a Hell of a lot, apparently more than Trump has, but he might be able to get a loan that big in 10 days.

      Reply
    5. 5.

      debit

      March 25, 2024 at 11:44 am

      I feel like I’m living in a GRRM series where the shittiest people do the worst things and never suffer a single second of remorse or pay for the things they’ve done in any way. And the last novel where justice and/or karma might happen is never going to be finished.

      Reply
    6. 6.

      Melancholy Jaques

      March 25, 2024 at 11:45 am

      The only consolation is that interest is running on the judgment.

      The appeals will take, what, three years at least?

      Reply
    7. 7.

      Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

      March 25, 2024 at 11:45 am

      I’m not surprised. He had appealed. On the news, they said they might defer collection of the full amount until the appeals were dealt with.

      Reply
    8. 8.

      Frankensteinbeck

      March 25, 2024 at 11:46 am

      What does ‘perfecting the appeal’ mean?

      Reply
    9. 9.

      Omnes Omnibus

      March 25, 2024 at 11:47 am

      Reposted from below: I think we can take the reduction in the bond amount as a sign that the court of appeals thinks that the penalty was probably too high and will reduce it. The ten days of extra time are likely to be because Trump would have been looking for a half a billion and people who would not consider that might consider $175 million.* The rest of the stay is pretty standard.

      Judgments get reduced on appeal quite often. I would not get overly concerned about this. It isn’t the best news, but I don’t think it is something nefarious.

      *I hope not.

      Reply
    10. 10.

      B1naryS3rf

      March 25, 2024 at 11:49 am

      If one of us owed the government $200, they’d spend untold dollars collecting it, but this motherfucker gets cut a break…again. Doesn’t matter if he just keeps delaying justice, they can hold scary figures over his head forever, he laughs and mocks us.

      Reply
    11. 11.

      scottharris

      March 25, 2024 at 11:49 am

      @Frankensteinbeck: it means he has to file his appellate brief no later than July 8 so the case can be argued in September 2024. Otherwise, he could have delayed filing his appellate brief (delaying oral argument and decision)

      Reply
    12. 12.

      Mr. Bemused Senior

      March 25, 2024 at 11:51 am

      Meanwhile [WaPo gift link, the hush money trial]

      At a hearing to ostensibly determine whether prosecutors engaged in misconduct, the judge sounded far more concerned that the former president’s legal team was making scurrilous and unfounded accusations.
      Merchan told Blanche that the latest dispute fit what he called “a pattern where I read certain information, and then I hear your interpretation of that and it’s really different from my interpretation. And this has been frankly going on for months.”

      Reply
    13. 13.

      lowtechcyclist

      March 25, 2024 at 11:52 am

      The bummer is having to wait another ten days to see if he can come up with $175M.  I was really looking forward to seeing the hammer fall TODAY. Or at least seeing how he was going to miraculously produce $464M.

      Reply
    14. 14.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 11:55 am

      I am not giving these fuckers any more of my attention today.  It’s rainbows and butterflies for me for the rest of the day.  TCM here I come.

      Even better: Dishing with Julia is on. Her boeuf bourguinon episode.

      Reply
    15. 15.

      Scout211

      March 25, 2024 at 11:56 am

      @Omnes Omnibus: Judgments get reduced on appeal quite often. I would not get overly concerned about this. It isn’t the best news, but I don’t think it is something nefarious.

      Thank you. It’s very helpful to put the legal aspects of this apellate ruling into perspective.

      I very much appreciate your comments here.

      Reply
    16. 16.

      Jeffro

      March 25, 2024 at 11:57 am

      I’m so fucking sick of this.

      We should have thrown him into a dark dungeon on the morning of Jan 7th, and been done with him.

      Reply
    17. 17.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 11:57 am

      @Mr. Bemused Senior: It’s not a hush money trial, it’s election interference.  The hush money was part of the scheme to interfere with the election, as was the false paperwork which engender the 43 or so felony counts.

      No need for us to use their framing, which lets people blow it off because who cares if he slept with a hooker.

      Not yelling at you, just a the press that pushes the framing as hush money.  I don’t think we need to help them along. :-)

      Reply
    18. 18.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 12:00 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      So EVERYTHING was stayed?

      It’s not just the monetary amount that was stayed?

      The only good news is that he got a shorter clock in filing the appeal?

      Reply
    19. 19.

      Mr. Bemused Senior

      March 25, 2024 at 12:01 pm

      @WaterGirl: well, to be fair, it was the fraudulent payment that is the first act. I used the short hand, but I take your point and I agree, the motivation was the election.

      Reply
    20. 20.

      UncleEbeneezer

      March 25, 2024 at 12:02 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus: Thank you for weighing in with a reality-check.  I’m trying to stop building up Christmas Day expectations for the one, final day/moment of Judgement/Justice, on this stuff, for the sake of my sanity and to avoid despair.  I try to assume there will be some sort of wrinkle to every big event, when it comes to Trump’s legal affairs.

      Reply
    21. 21.

      Omnes Omnibus

      March 25, 2024 at 12:02 pm

      @WaterGirl: Most things were stayed.  Again, not unusual in an appeal.

      Reply
    22. 22.

      UncleEbeneezer

      March 25, 2024 at 12:06 pm

      @TBone: Wise decision.  The only thing we can do to undercut the attempts to manufacture constant disappointment/outrage is to recognize it for what it is and tap out.  Better for our spirits and mental health, which is ultimately better for our ability to be productive in our efforts to defend Democracy, re-elect Biden etc.

      Reply
    23. 23.

      Eolirin

      March 25, 2024 at 12:06 pm

      @WaterGirl: Not a lawyer but that seems normal to me? Everything should have been stayed except the financial monitoring if it was going to appeal, I would think. Because the appeal could reverse the judgment, you wouldn’t want the penalties to go through before that’s concluded. Reversing the penalties could be messy if not impossible.

      My understanding is that if Trump can post the new lower bond amount he gets to appeal. If he can’t, and he still only has 10 days to do so, he doesn’t and then the stay goes away because the appeal goes away.

      Reply
    24. 24.

      Butch

      March 25, 2024 at 12:06 pm

      Every place I’m looking the reaction is anger.  Do the courts know?  Do they think they’re immune from public opinion?  I guess the answer is yes.

      Reply
    25. 25.

      Lapassionara

      March 25, 2024 at 12:06 pm

      I’ll be interested to see TIFG’s reaction. Will he be grateful? Does he know how to express gratitude? Or will he keep whining?

      Reply
    26. 26.

      Baud

      March 25, 2024 at 12:09 pm

      @Eolirin:

      No, he gets to appeal regardless.

      Reply
    27. 27.

      Melancholy Jaques

      March 25, 2024 at 12:12 pm

      @Butch:

      Yes they are and for the most part they are supposed to be.

      Reply
    28. 28.

      Melancholy Jaques

      March 25, 2024 at 12:15 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      I did not follow of Trump’s cases very closely, so I’m curious what his assignments of error will be.

      The NY Appellate Division will certainly understand that their ruling on liability will apply to the very large NY financial community. Damages, on the other hand, who knows?

      Reply
    29. 29.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 12:16 pm

      @UncleEbeneezer: Julia is an absolute delight.  She lifts my spirits every time!

      Reply
    30. 30.

      Villago Delenda Est

      March 25, 2024 at 12:16 pm

      Justice is being delayed, yet again.

      Reply
    31. 31.

      Scott P.

      March 25, 2024 at 12:17 pm

      Every place I’m looking the reaction is anger.

       

      Then you are looking in the wrong places. There are plenty of rage-merchants on the left that want to make you angry in the same way Fox News does to the right, for the same self-serving reasons. Switch them off.

      Reply
    32. 32.

      Eolirin

      March 25, 2024 at 12:18 pm

      @Baud: I thought New York law precluded appeals if the bond was not posted?

      Reply
    33. 33.

      Leto

      March 25, 2024 at 12:20 pm

      @TBone: So the FX channel has a slate of movies on today that I really like. Currently playing is Jumanji. Also camping a rare NPC is my video game, so watching the movie on one screen while waiting for the prompt on my other. Beats giving this turd any more mental space.

      Reply
    34. 34.

      Sure Lurkalot

      March 25, 2024 at 12:20 pm

      In a few weeks I have to send money to the IRS for 2023 actual and 2024 estimated taxes. This isn’t the first time I have shouted to myself, “why the fuck should I?” The amount is a grain of sand in a desert compared to the sums of money the Trumps of this country have kept for themselves by fraud, deception, unjust enrichment and unbridled greed (the last of which might not be illegal but a disease curable by taking away the source of addiction).

      Reply
    35. 35.

      Omnes Omnibus

      March 25, 2024 at 12:20 pm

      OT:  UN passes an immediate ceasefire resolution.

      Reply
    36. 36.

      Baud

      March 25, 2024 at 12:20 pm

      @Eolirin:

      I don’t know for sure about New York, but usually the only purpose of the bond is to prevent execution of the judgment against assets. It’s not required for an appeal.

      Reply
    37. 37.

      Melancholy Jaques

      March 25, 2024 at 12:21 pm

      @Eolirin:

      No, the first appeal is a right. The bond is only to delay enforcement of the judgment. The appellant must first apply to the trial court the, if not successful, to the appellate court. It is all pretty normal, as is the long time it takes to resolve appellate cases.

      Reply
    38. 38.

      Baud

      March 25, 2024 at 12:21 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      👍

      Reply
    39. 39.

      geg6

      March 25, 2024 at 12:22 pm

      @Eolirin:

      That’s not how I understand it.  If he doesn’t post the $$, the appeal can go ahead, but the penalty can go forward.  And it’s his problem if he wins the appeal and all his money is gone.

      Reply
    40. 40.

      RandomMonster

      March 25, 2024 at 12:23 pm

      @Lapassionara:I’ll be interested to see TIFG’s reaction. Will he be grateful? Does he know how to express gratitude? Or will he keep whining?

      He only knows whining.

      Reply
    41. 41.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 12:23 pm

      @Leto: 👍

      Bon appetit everybody!

      Reply
    42. 42.

      debit

      March 25, 2024 at 12:24 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:  That’s good news!

      Reply
    43. 43.

      EireIAm

      March 25, 2024 at 12:24 pm

      He gets 10 extra days to post bond, but his criminal trial is going ahead on April 15th.

      Reply
    44. 44.

      Doug R

      March 25, 2024 at 12:24 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus: I’m thinking they realized he probably only has about $175 TOTAL unencumbered at least within NY/NJ/DC.

      Reply
    45. 45.

      Anonymous At Work

      March 25, 2024 at 12:26 pm

      Places are listing the appeal as lifting the portion of the judgement removing the defendants from serving as a corporate officer.  HOWEVER, this just stays that portion pending appeal, which is correct.  Once the judgement went into effect, TFG would have trouble operating the TO’s shell companies, etc. because he’d not be part of them and they’d run into operating difficulties and start losing (more) money.

      Overall, this reads like “We expect a Chapter 13 restructuring to occur after you lose the appeals.”

      Reply
    46. 46.

      Doug R

      March 25, 2024 at 12:26 pm

      @WaterGirl: So now I’m hearing Stormy says she was relieved when they offered her the payment because it meant they weren’t going to kill her.

      Reply
    47. 47.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      March 25, 2024 at 12:27 pm

      @EireIAm: The criminal trial is for a different crime, right? I’m so confused.

      Reply
    48. 48.

      wjca

      March 25, 2024 at 12:27 pm

      @Butch: Every place I’m looking the reaction is anger.  Do the courts know?  Do they think they’re immune from public opinion?  I guess the answer is yes.

      You might want to consider two things:

      1) “everywhere I’m looking” is a far cry from “everywhere”.  And not just because you don’t inflict Faux News on yourself.  It might be worth a quick look at places where self-styled moderates hang out.  You may distain them, but they represent a big chunk of the electorate.

      2) as Omnes pointed out above (@Omnes Omnibus: ) , actions like this are pretty routine.  What the appeals court has done may, in their experience, very much constitute equal treatment — that is, what would typically happen regardless of who the defendant is.

      Reply
    49. 49.

      Ruckus

      March 25, 2024 at 12:28 pm

      Guys, really!

      This is a guy who has “money.” But not nearly that much money. This is a guy that lies about money (and how much he has) as easily as he breathes. Possibly easier. He’s lived his entire life trying to be something he’s never been nor ever will be. I believe the word egomaniac applies here. He is THE prime example that there are things that money cannot buy. And as Omnes states, this is not unusual. Is it somewhat disheartening? Sure. He’s earned some pretty large penalties for being himself. IANAL so I have no idea if this is normal but he doesn’t have the money, and will extremely likely never have the money. If he sold off every single piece of property his name is on, he wouldn’t have the money. He’s lied about what he is and how much money he’s got, his entire life. It’s a disease and it affects him and everyone in his circle. Which many seem to be within, because enough people once voted for him to be something he was once again incapable of being.

      Reply
    50. 50.

      Bill Arnold

      March 25, 2024 at 12:28 pm

      Not gonna Pollyanna this one. This will be perceived as a win by the Trump Cult, and it kinda is.
      At least
      (1) The court monitoring of his finances is still in place, which will cramp financial shenanigans.
      (2) His financial maneuvering room will be cramped by two large allegedly secured bonds, if he manages to get somebody to do this reduced one.  Even if some hostile-to-the-USA entity is doing the “securing”, that still has costs, including possible disclosure and being “owned”(a servant relationship) by somebody else.
      (3) He’s on the record for being too cash-poor, and maybe too poor, and maybe distrusted by people looking at collateral, and therefore unable to secure the larger bond; he can brag all he wants (and he has already) about how he could have, but that will be perceived by most as the BS that it is.

      Reply
    51. 51.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 12:29 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      See, this is what I like about coming here. On reddit, you’ll get a lot of shit and we have someone here who can tell us what is norm and what is batshit. Thanks Omnes, much appreciated.

      Reply
    52. 52.

      TeezySkeezy

      March 25, 2024 at 12:30 pm

      Hm.

      Reply
    53. 53.

      Eolirin

      March 25, 2024 at 12:31 pm

      @geg6: Got it.

      As another question to the legal folk, if the monitor discovers additional financial malfeasance, that can get tried separately?

      Reply
    54. 54.

      Jackie

      March 25, 2024 at 12:31 pm

      Hush money trial will begin on April 15 – aka Tax Day lol

      A Manhattan judge ruled that Donald Trump’s “hush money” criminal trial will begin on April 15 with jury selection, the New York Times reports.

      “That hearing was bad news for Trump and not only because of the new trial date. That’s twice now that the judge, Juan Merchan, has seemed impatient with his lawyers, and seen through their attempts at delay and distraction. If the judge keeps the lawyers on this tight a leash during the trial itself, the former president will be in trouble.”

      Reply
    55. 55.

      Old Man Shadow

      March 25, 2024 at 12:32 pm

      In a country where the poor and marginalized can be murdered with near impunity by the police simply for the “crime” of existing, this constant deference to a shitty human being because he’s allegedly rich and was powerful really cranks the rage up to 11.

      Reply
    56. 56.

      Anoniminous

      March 25, 2024 at 12:32 pm

      What is not being said is appellate courts will reduce the judgement if the convicted has the money to buy the lawyer(s) to appeal.  With the right connections and enough buck-a-roonies you can skip the argy-bargy and just buy the judge. If you’re one of the 78% of Americans living from paycheck to paycheck you’re fucked.

      Reply
    57. 57.

      Steve in the ATL

      March 25, 2024 at 12:33 pm

      Hopefully Omnes

      @Scout211:

      I very much appreciate your comments here.

      @UncleEbeneezer:

      @Omnes Omnibus: Thank you for weighing in

      WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!

      Reply
    58. 58.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 12:33 pm

      @Scott P.: The anger is because for anyone else who isn’t rich – we would have had to suffer the consequences. But Trump is literally proving the Prosperity Gospel as true.

      Reply
    59. 59.

      mrmoshpotato

      March 25, 2024 at 12:33 pm

      @debit:

      I feel like I’m living in a GRRM series where the shittiest people do the worst things and never suffer a single second of remorse or pay for the things they’ve done in any way. And the last novel where justice and/or karma might happen is never going to be finished. 

      I have a feeling you just described Game of Thrones.  Oh I would’ve turned that off in a New York minute.

      Reply
    60. 60.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 12:34 pm

      Election Interference trial to begin April 15th

      Reply
    61. 61.

      Omnes Omnibus

      March 25, 2024 at 12:34 pm

      @Steve in the ATL: I wonder about that myself.

      Reply
    62. 62.

      Omnes Omnibus

      March 25, 2024 at 12:36 pm

      New York Times Pitchbot

      @DougJBalloon

      I just watched several episodes of “Dog the Bounty Hunter”. Here’s how I think Trump can make bail today….(1/23)

      Reply
    63. 63.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 12:37 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus: The fact that the U.S. abstained tells a LOT.

      Reply
    64. 64.

      schrodingers_cat

      March 25, 2024 at 12:37 pm

      I wonder how many peddlers of doom on the left are on Kremlin’s payroll. They want us to feel frustrated and then disengage from politics. Focusing on all the minutaie  of the Orange One’s many cases is not a fruitful endeavor IMHO

      Thanks to BJ lawyers for keeping it real.

      Reply
    65. 65.

      wjca

      March 25, 2024 at 12:38 pm

      @Steve in the ATL: WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!

      From some perspectives, that we prefer a little reality to blind rage.  Unlike, say TIFG’s cultists.  And, apparently, some on the other end of the spectrum as well.

      Reply
    66. 66.

      Baud

      March 25, 2024 at 12:38 pm

      @cain:

      What does it tell?

      Reply
    67. 67.

      Thor Heyerdahl

      March 25, 2024 at 12:38 pm

      https://mastodon.social/@GottaLaff/112157257564638829 (I’ve done the bolding)

      @[email protected]
      Via Lisa Rubin:

      Yes, #Trump got his bond reduced to $175 mil. But guess what? The court denied his motion to stay provision of the judgment forbidding him from borrowing from finan institutions registered or chartered in NY state

      That matters because his legal team previously told a judge on panel that staying that provision was integral to his ability to obtain a bond. & without a stay of that provision, will Trump have to post his own cash w/in next 10 days? Watch this space #legal

      Reply
    68. 68.

      geg6

      March 25, 2024 at 12:39 pm

      @Scott P.: ​
       
      People have every right to be pissed over this. Do you think you’d get this kind of deference? How about a working class black single mother?
      Fuck this shit. I give up on the justice system. We don’t have one. Justice is apparently for rich assholes only. Forget it if you are a normal person.

      Reply
    69. 69.

      rumpole

      March 25, 2024 at 12:40 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus: What’s really troubling about it is not the result so much, but the lack of explanation.   Abba’s brief is terrible, but the one thing that the AG said that (IMO) was dumb was to suggest to the appellate court that they had no authority to stay execution of the bond unless that was crystal clear.  (Apparently, it’s not and if it is there’s truly something rotten afoot).

      Engoron’s ruling was very careful: as much as he could, he relied on the credibility of witnesses to shape the record to prevent his being overturned. I don’t know if there’s any merits-based-tea-leaf reading to be done.  But if you look at the cases that she cites in her brief (Sauter is a good example) what she’s asking for is not out of bounds, but that’s a case under the federal rules.  There, the defendant was dead to rights under the Sherman Act, but the bond would have killed his business before the appeal ran out.  The court reduced the amount and imposed conditions: much like here, as the monitoring should prevent looting.

      If the discretion exists per the CPLR (and it burns my ass to say this), the appellate court probably got the law right here.  But it would have helped its credibility a lot to issue a full written opinion explaining its reasoning.

      Reply
    70. 70.

      trollhattan

      March 25, 2024 at 12:41 pm

      Evidently Wimpy had it correct the whole time: “I will gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamberder today.”

      I’m starting with the folks holding the 2nd on the house, then rounding back to the 1st folks. Hope they like doggie chew toys.

      Reply
    71. 71.

      Scout211

      March 25, 2024 at 12:41 pm

      @Steve in the ATL: WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!

      LOL. Well, we all hang out on an almost top 10,000 blog on the regular.  Does that answer your question?

      Reply
    72. 72.

      Leto

      March 25, 2024 at 12:42 pm

      @Steve in the ATL:

      WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!

      Apes strong together!

      Reply
    73. 73.

      Jackie

      March 25, 2024 at 12:42 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus: I take some comfort that TIFG be given ten extra days to find $175M, probably means he doesn’t have that amount in cash on hand. So TIFG is still going to be holding out his MAGA hat begging for alms.

      If after 10 days TIFG still can’t come up with the bond will be telling. As in his billionaire acquaintances don’t think TIFG’s going to win the presidency come Nov so there’s no incentive for them to throw away their own money.

      Reply
    74. 74.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 12:42 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

       

      thanks for the explanation.

      Reply
    75. 75.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 12:43 pm

      This has been on my mind for awhile.

      Can anyone answer this.

      Where is Imma?

      Did he announce that he was leaving BJ?

      Reply
    76. 76.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 12:44 pm

      @Thor Heyerdahl: 💙 thank you.  Not watching on TV or anywhere but here today.

      Reply
    77. 77.

      Cacti

      March 25, 2024 at 12:44 pm

      Crime/misconduct pays when you’re rich and white.

      There has never been a time this wasn’t so in this country.

      Reply
    78. 78.

      Omnes Omnibus

      March 25, 2024 at 12:45 pm

      @rikyrah: I see him on Twitter quite often.

      Reply
    79. 79.

      EireIAm

      March 25, 2024 at 12:46 pm

      @Dorothy A. Winsor: Yup, totally different. I think that’s the Stormy Daniels hush money trial. The one that the FBI tried to screw over by dropping 20K+ records on the defense last week or something.

      Reply
    80. 80.

      dirge

      March 25, 2024 at 12:47 pm

      @Thor Heyerdahl: The court denied his motion to stay provision of the judgment forbidding him from borrowing from finan institutions registered or chartered in NY state

      This is incorrect, unless I’m somehow misreading the text of the court order  in the post above.

      Reply
    81. 81.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 12:47 pm

      @Baud: U.S. relations with Israel ain’t that great – usually the U.S. vetoes any resolution from the UN preferring to work with Israel directly.

      Reply
    82. 82.

      Ksmiami

      March 25, 2024 at 12:47 pm

      @Jeffro: yep. I think America is beyond broken at this point. And I doubt we’ll ever get back to normal

      Reply
    83. 83.

      Anoniminous

      March 25, 2024 at 12:49 pm

      Left wing rage merchants stop coal companies from sending 8 year olds into the mine shaft to contract Black Lung Disease.

      Right wing range merchants do this.

      Note the similarity

      Reply
    84. 84.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 12:49 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      do you have his twitter handle? Wanna look him up

      Reply
    85. 85.

      Eolirin

      March 25, 2024 at 12:50 pm

      @Ksmiami: Authoritarism, but just from our side, isn’t a solution to the brokenness of America ffs.

      Reply
    86. 86.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 12:52 pm

      @cain: There is this as well:

      Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu had earlier threatened to cancel a planned delegation to Washington if the US did not exercise its veto.

      Reply
    87. 87.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 12:54 pm

      @Anoniminous:

      It would be nice if you added a content warning for that link  some of us may not have the mental health function to see such imagery.

      Reply
    88. 88.

      UncleEbeneezer

      March 25, 2024 at 12:55 pm

      What is also going unmentioned here is that Trump requested a stay on his criminal trial for Prosecutorial Misconduct and that stay was DENIED.  Very good news.  And it can’t be appealed.

      Reply
    89. 89.

      wjca

      March 25, 2024 at 12:56 pm

      @cain: usually the U.S. vetoes any resolution from the UN preferring to work with Israel directly.

      This resolution passing is basically an attention step.  A smack up side the head that US support is close to disappearing, if they don’t get with the (humanitarian aid at minimum, and probably the ceasefireas well) program.  A big escalation over just telling them we’re losing patience.

      Reply
    90. 90.

      Anoniminous

      March 25, 2024 at 12:57 pm

      @schrodingers_cat: ​

      Since you are so knowledgeable about the US Left you should be able to provide a brief discourse about the uses of IWW Direct Action tactics during the CIO organizing drives in the 1930s and how the IWW connection was used to smear the CIO as “under the control of Moscow.”

      Reply
    91. 91.

      Eolirin

      March 25, 2024 at 12:57 pm

      @Anoniminous: Left wing rage merchants don’t stop shit. They actively get in the way of the people doing the work to make things better.

      Reply
    92. 92.

      trollhattan

      March 25, 2024 at 12:58 pm

      @cain:

      He’s such a pissy little tinpot dictator. Too bad his pissiness is getting 10s of thousands killed.

      Reply
    93. 93.

      Eolirin

      March 25, 2024 at 12:59 pm

      @Anoniminous: You are engaging in a category error. 

      Reply
    94. 94.

      schrodingers_cat

      March 25, 2024 at 12:59 pm

      @Anoniminous: I have no idea what your comment means.

      Reply
    95. 95.

      Manyakitty

      March 25, 2024 at 1:01 pm

       

      @Omnes Omnibus: thanks for this. Hope you’re right, as I’m using your take to talk myself and some non-juicers off the ledge right now.

      Reply
    96. 96.

      Ruckus

      March 25, 2024 at 1:02 pm

      @debit:

      The shittiest people DO do the worst things. That’s what makes them the shittiest people.

      And sure $175 million is not $474 million but that was never going to fly. Because he doesn’t have it, and no one is going to give it to him, which still wouldn’t be enough if they did because that’s not a gift, I believe it would be a payment. What would he owe someone who gave him that much? And even if he sold off his properties, who is going to pay him a half a billion in a very few days, with zero expectations of getting not one dime in return?

      This is a human being who seems to think that everything in his life revolves around his monetary valuation. (And in his case it actually might because what else has he got to show?)

      Reply
    97. 97.

      Manyakitty

      March 25, 2024 at 1:03 pm

      @WaterGirl: AGREED! Message discipline matters.

      Reply
    98. 98.

      Mai Naem mobile

      March 25, 2024 at 1:04 pm

      I’m disappointed but I still don’t think he can come up with the $175M, especially with the judge being  the master of TFG’s companies. I don’t think he can come up with much more than $20M and I have a feeling that would be a stretch. He also needs to keep on paying the lawyers for all the other cases which at the least will eat up all the GOP fundraising proceeds. Dumbass should have sold a lot of his properties while he was POTUS. He could have sold them to foreign companies who thought they could curry favor with him and then actually not do anything for them. He’s just a really crappy crappy businessman who’s learned nothing from past financial mistakes.

      Reply
    99. 99.

      FelonyGovt

      March 25, 2024 at 1:05 pm

      Unfortunately, it’s ever thus, that the wealthy can engage in lengthy, costly litigation, waging a war of attrition and delaying the ultimate result for years. As Omnes explained, large awards are often reduced on appeal. I try not to get too involved in the minutiae of TIFG’s various legal matters, too jubilant about the initial awards or results, or too down about things like this.

      Reply
    100. 100.

      Mai Naem mobile

      March 25, 2024 at 1:06 pm

      I think the Dems really need to hammer home the message about TFG being a national security risk with all his debts. It’s a big win even if all it accomplishes is Haley voters staying home.

      Reply
    101. 101.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 1:07 pm

      @Ruckus: campaign funds (RNC+), GoFundMe and other constant money begs.  Plus the shit $ that’s still under the radar re: espionage/Pooty.

      Reply
    102. 102.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 1:07 pm

      @Mai Naem mobile: 👍

      Reply
    103. 103.

      JBWoodford

      March 25, 2024 at 1:08 pm

      @RandomMonster: With barely perceptible apologies to DJ Khaled and T-Pain:

      All he does is whine, whine, whine

      No matter what

      Got grievance on his mind

      He can never get enough

      And every time he step up to the mic stand everybody gorge rise up….

      Reply
    104. 104.

      Captain C

      March 25, 2024 at 1:11 pm

      @cain: I think Bibi may have gotten the message that the Biden Administration is beyond tired of his shit.

      Reply
    105. 105.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 1:13 pm

      Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) posted at 11:54 AM on Mon, Mar 25, 2024:
      .@ElonMusk gets his case thrown out of court. Judge rules that the purpose of the suit by the self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist” was “punishing the Defendants for their speech.” https://t.co/ZMraKe5fuN
      (https://x.com/JuddLegum/status/1772306036814164314?t=iY_ZNQTLl8CVDMEM4dVKHA&s=03)

      Reply
    106. 106.

      Old Man Shadow

      March 25, 2024 at 1:13 pm

      @cain: “Please don’t threaten us with a good time.”

      Reply
    107. 107.

      sdhays

      March 25, 2024 at 1:13 pm

      @Ruckus: Why should his ability to pay have anything to do with the amount he owes?

      Reply
    108. 108.

      Leto

      March 25, 2024 at 1:13 pm

      @FelonyGovt:

      large awards are often reduced on appeal

      Then the laws need to be rewritten to reflect this new reality of: it doesn’t matter that the trial judge is following the current guidelines, we’re just going to make up shit as we go. Did the trial judge follow the legal guidelines established in award of damages? If yes, then proceed with the judgement. If no, adjust. Idk, this is a frustration that most of us have because again… it’s opaque and it’s not equal justice. Same ole same ole.

      Reply
    109. 109.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 1:14 pm

      BRICS (@BRICSinfo) posted at 11:54 AM on Mon, Mar 25, 2024:
      JUST IN:  President Donald Trump calls for peace between Israel and Gaza.”

      “We’ve got to get to peace, you can’t have this going on. Israel has to be very careful because you’re losing a lot of the world, a lot of support.”

      https://t.co/raNBuyAmuH
      (https://x.com/BRICSinfo/status/1772306066438545827?t=D-92ZFQhHQKCqb1DxZq0qg&s=03)

      Reply
    110. 110.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 1:14 pm

      UH HUH

       

      Citizens for Ethics (@CREWcrew) posted at 0:00 PM on Mon, Mar 25, 2024:
      Allies of Leonard Leo have mounted an offensive against DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb, the man investigating Leo’s dark money network.

      The campaign—led by conservative media, members of Congress and other AGs—just goes to show Leo’s massive influence. https://t.co/JNdJ0GJdS9
      (https://x.com/CREWcrew/status/1772307575070986384?t=XiHnCSWaNx4dDAbgrmFVLA&s=03)

      Reply
    111. 111.

      RandomMonster

      March 25, 2024 at 1:14 pm

      @JBWoodford: Nice!

      Reply
    112. 112.

      FelonyGovt

      March 25, 2024 at 1:17 pm

      @rikyrah: He’s unbelievable. Didn’t he say just days ago that American Jews who vote for Democrats are disloyal and “should be ashamed” of ourselves because we’re not showing sufficient support for Israel. Got it.

      Reply
    113. 113.

      Josie

      March 25, 2024 at 1:17 pm

      @dirge: ​
       Nope. I read it over several times to be sure, and you are correct.

      Reply
    114. 114.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 1:20 pm

      Tennessee Senate Democrats (@TNSenateDems) posted at 10:01 AM on Thu, Mar 21, 2024:
      NEW: Senate Republicans passed their bill to vacate @TSUedu’s board of trustees. Tennessee’s only public HBCU has been underfunded by $2B over time.

      Sen. @CharlaneOliver says this meddling may also disrupt the college’s presidential search by discouraging good candidates.
      https://t.co/f2ExXXvttj
      (https://x.com/TNSenateDems/status/1770828113024323688?t=_JTmhkxamkleMiJ-nkaswQ&s=03)

      Reply
    115. 115.

      Baud

      March 25, 2024 at 1:21 pm

      @rikyrah:

      He probably thinks Biden is about to accomplish something and wants to take credit.

      Reply
    116. 116.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 1:21 pm

      @Doug R: Wowser, I haven’t heard that.

      Reply
    117. 117.

      Melancholy Jaques

      March 25, 2024 at 1:23 pm

      @Bill Arnold:

      There is nothing about this that is a win for Trump.

      Reply
    118. 118.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 1:24 pm

      @rikyrah: Thank you!

      Every time I see it called the hush money trial it feels like I am being poked in the eye.

      Reply
    119. 119.

      Anotherlurker

      March 25, 2024 at 1:25 pm

      @RandomMonster: In light of this slap in the face to all but MAGATS, The Orange Traitor will be strutting and crowing like a Bantam Cock on Viagra.

      The IRS is coming after me for $300.00 but this scumbag gets handled with kid gloves .

      2 tiered justice, indeed.

      Reply
    120. 120.

      Mr. Bemused Senior

      March 25, 2024 at 1:25 pm

      @WaterGirl: I will be careful going forward.

      Reply
    121. 121.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 1:27 pm

      @rikyrah: I talked with Imm maybe 3 weeks ago?  He is well, his son is well, I don’t believe he’s made any decision to leave BJ.  Just busy, I think.

      But I will ping him again.

      Reply
    122. 122.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 1:28 pm

      @Old Man Shadow:

      Bibi is probably taking up throwing ketchup at the walls now too after hearing about the abstain vote. ;-)

      Coupled with the sanctions on settlers  – I think the Israeli probably get that we are collectively sick of Bibi.

      Reply
    123. 123.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 1:29 pm

      @rikyrah:

      President Donald Trump calls for peace between Israel and Gaza.”

      Fixed – and fuck this title that makes it look like he’s presidential and still president.

      Reply
    124. 124.

      Jackie

      March 25, 2024 at 1:29 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      It’s not a hush money trial, it’s election interference.

      Absolutely! The MSM needs to remind TIFG of that “little tidbit” along with their viewers/readers. HE WAS THE ONE INTERFERING WITH THE 2016 ELECTION – and him whining about this trial is his ONUS!

      Reply
    125. 125.

      Mai Naem mobile

      March 25, 2024 at 1:30 pm

      This is the piece by the lawfare guy who wrote about Aileen Cannon’s clerks resigning. There’s more nuance in the story beyond the ‘Aileen Cannon’s clerks resigning!!!’ headline.  https://davidlat.substack.com/p/clerking-for-judge-aileen-cannon-why-clerks-quit

      Reply
    126. 126.

      cain

      March 25, 2024 at 1:31 pm

      @rikyrah: They are losing their collective minds and going full on totalitarian freakout.

      Reply
    127. 127.

      FelonyGovt

      March 25, 2024 at 1:32 pm

      @WaterGirl: Please do tell him he’s missed. I’ve been wondering about him as well.

      Reply
    128. 128.

      Ruckus

      March 25, 2024 at 1:33 pm

      @Leto:

      Beats giving this turd any more mental space.

      You give this turd any mental space?

      And yes I do know/understand he is in the public eye because of the crappy 4 yrs he served as whatever the hell he was supposed to be, wasn’t it the leader of something? I mean bang up job he did.

      Reply
    129. 129.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 1:34 pm

      @Mr. Bemused Senior: I hope you know that you don’t need to be careful just because I said something.

      But if you agreed with my thinking, then I will be very happy if you decide you want to use the election interference framing instead of the lazy media’s framing.

      Reply
    130. 130.

      Leto

      March 25, 2024 at 1:35 pm

      @Ruckus: we’re all here talking about him, so yes, he’s in our mental space. Trying to keep it as minimal as possible. Time to walk the dog.

      Reply
    131. 131.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 1:36 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      THANKS.

      Glad to hear that nothing is wrong with Little Imma.

      Reply
    132. 132.

      davek319

      March 25, 2024 at 1:39 pm

      Reprinted from Digby, if anyone missed it. Stakes. Not odds. FTFNYT. Guardrails are made of paper and bamboo.

      Someone sent me this yesterday:

      The basic premise is that the guardrails of US democracy are so strong that Trump couldn’t turn the US into a dictatorship even if he had 2 more terms.
      This is hopelessly naïve. Let’s break it down.
      First, a history lesson. The Weimar Republic lasted precisely 51 days between moustache-guy being named Chancellor and the Enabling Acts. Masha Gessen warned in 2016 in “Rules for Surviving Autocracy” “Your institutions will not save you.”
      “The system is too strong” is silly. The Philippine constitution was a near exact copy of the US constitution after WWII. Dictator Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law in 1972 using many of the same rationales used by MAGA (leftist plots, need for an autocrat)
      The article blows off several crucial elements in the danger. First (and already discussed briefly) is the vulnerability of the system to subversion. Trump / MAGA / Heritage plan to replace most senior Federal employees with True Believers(tm) via schedule F.
      President Trump has the constitutional right to replace any military leadership he wants with Mike Flynn and Jerry Boykin clones: Christian Nationalists who would happily purify the nation with fire, believing they are the sword of Jesus.
      Trump would also have the absolute right to invoke the Insurrection Act, which most legal scholars say isn’t challengeable at SCOTUS. Combine that with replacement of all the senior leaders (civil and military) at the DoD with True Believers… Yeah, you’re catching on.
      As has been noted, mass round ups of immigrants will require mass mobilization of the military, and invocation of the Insurrection Act. There’s also a high probability Trump will use the military to put down protests against his administration.
      I also haven’t even touched on the DoJ, FBI, and other agencies being weaponized against his political enemies and the public. Which he absolutely intends to do, and will likely succeed at using regular appointments and Schedule F.  washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/…
      Next, you have intent. This article presumes that the Trump administration would try to do everything 100% legally.
      Oh my sweet summer child. This is the man claiming that the President can literally use SEAL Team 6 to kill his enemies as long as the Senate doesn’t convict.
      The Christian Nationalist organizations behind Project 2025 have been broadcasting for years that their plan is to seize power for generations and remake the country. They believe abortion is worse than the Holocaust and slavery combined, and that this is their last chance.
      They think that because the US is secularizing, particularly Gen Z, they must seize power quickly and totally. They are terrified of losing everything in 2028. Trump wants to die in office to avoid legal repercussions and to enrich his family.
      Thus, both are highly motivated to move quickly and definitively to end American democracy by any means necessary in order to ensure that they, or their guys, stay in power permanently. And this means moving quickly and decisively to break the system, not work within it.
      This POLITICO article suggests a number of institutions that will save us: Media, The Judiciary, and local authorities such as Cities, Mayors, Governors.
      In reality, none of those is a major impediment in the eyes of a Trump administration.
      First, I’ll lead with the obvious: with true believer military leaders and the Insurrection Act, you can basically take anyone into custody to sideline them. Which includes the Media, the Judiciary, and Local Authorities.
      The belief that the media will save us is laughable. The one that has consistently sugar coated what Trump is doing? That figured out that printing genocidal rhetoric about immigrants and trans people is profitable, so they do? The media that is actively dying?
      And, assuming that they don’t kiss the ring, and that Trump doesn’t cow them by using the DoJ to harass organizations or sue them out of existence or shut them down with the Insurrection Act, let’s assume that the media survives and publishes anti-Trump stuff. What then?
      It only affects Trump if he’s voted out of office or removed via popular revolution. And, this being a coup by fascists, they already have a plan for. There is ZERO intent to have free and fair elections after 2024.
      And if protests spread, they can always simply ride them out like Lukashenko did in Belarus. Or, if they’re serious enough to threaten the regime, they’ll already have the military leadership in place to shoot or arrest them all, Tiananmen-style
      Stalin is quoted as saying “The Pope? How many divisions as he got?” implying that the Pope had no means to enforce anything. So too with SCOTUS.
      If leaders at the DoJ, FBI, DoD, etc… are loyal to Trump and the MAGA movement first, SCOTUS basically loses their ability to enforce ANYTHING. Which is why the top priority of Project 2025 is to find loyalist replacements for the top 54,000 people in government.
      This doesn’t explore the interesting hardball ways Trump can get courts to issue rulings he likes even without packing them (eg targeting justices or their kids with DoJ and IRS investigations. Or targeting their kids and grandkids. Or taking them into protective custody)
      When you sum it all up, Trump has at least three or four completely viable ways to sideline the judiciary that basically cannot be countered. (military arrest, ignoring their rulings, using the government against them and their families).
      The POLITICO article might argue back that the GOP wouldn’t DARE! This goes too far. To which I reply: this movement is led by religious fanatics who believe they are on a divine mission, and that anything they do is excused by saving all those souls and babies.
      You might as well expect the Iranian Mullahs or the Taliban in Afghanistan to suddenly decide that democracy and human rights have an intrinsic value greater than their vision for a Godly country. Democracy has no value, and the ends justify the means.
      Which brings me to the Governors, Cities, and Mayors argument. Again, none of these are insurmountable. Indeed, they’re relatively easy to circumvent if you think like a dictator who has the entire might of the government behind them, no morals, and are on a mission from God
      If state and local officials refuse to comply, simply declare them to be in rebellion or secession, scoop ’em up with law enforcement or the military, and replace them with loyalists who will run things “until the Insurrection is over”.
      What about protests and resistance in cities? It is my contention that Trump, and the people behind him, believe they can kill or imprison their way out of popular unrest. They’re planning on building internment camps capable of processing 11 million immigrants.
      There’s going to be plenty of room for political opponents, should they need it. But they believe they won’t because most of the time, protests fizzle out and come to nothing if ignored long enough. How much did the protests of 2020 actually achieve?
      Most protests can safely be ignored because they are ultimately powerless to replace the leaders backed by the military and law enforcement. It is only when those two turn on dictators that the regime falls (Ceaușescu in Romania).
      This is why the top priority of Project 2025 is to fill every significant position in government with fanatiker. So that when they are executing orders to crush opposition, everyone says, yes.
      So, if the protests in cities (by some miracle) don’t fizzle out, and do become a real threat to the regime, when the order to liquidate them Tiananmen-style comes everyone with a gun working for the government says “yes”. This is what Trump is preparing for.
      I have even argued that his depraved little heart wants this outcome in order to show the world he’s boss, he’s a tough guy, and must be taken seriously. He’s a bully and a thug at heart, and he threatens his way out of everything.
      In the end, the POLITICO article is wrong for a lot of reasons. The institutional and traditional guardrails can be easily circumvented using multiple means. The GOP already has plans to facilitate all the guardrails, and the intent is clearly there.
      The specific guardrails described in the article are not special: each can be bypassed very quickly and easily by a movement that has no use for democracy, religious goals that require ending democracy, and a non-negotiable goal to seize power permanently.
      It’s like a murder of a country or a democracy: we see that they have the motive (Christian Nationalist vision for the US requires that democracy die), the means (replacing everyone + Insurrection Act + ignoring the courts), & the opportunity (amoral Trump as President)
      We have intent, and boy howdy have they telegraphed this one. Between Project 2025, Claremont, and Trump’s statements about how he will use the DoJ and DoD clearly show that he’s comfortable using these tools to achieve his goal of creating an effective dictatorship.
      Last, we have the belief that they will get away with it. Competitive Autocracies rarely, if ever, fall. They are extremely stable. History tells us that if they seize power, it is unlikely anything can take it away.
      They believe the left is pacifistic enough that rebellion won’t be likely. They also know that the left values democratic processes enough that they can be convinced to keep participating in rigged / unfair elections they cannot win. (see: Hungary)
      This is why I tell you again: should Trump win, everything I have at hand tells me that the US’s plunge into Russian or Hungarian-style despotism will be more rapid than you can possibly image, because Heritage and the right already have planned it all out.

        

      Reply
    133. 133.

      West of the Rockies

      March 25, 2024 at 1:40 pm

      This is a annoying.

      But it is ultimately just noise.

      He will lose and die soon enough.

      We need to GOTV, stay alert, fight-fight-fight.

      Don’t get overwhelmed and manipulated to distraction from the goal.   Eyes on the prize.

      Reply
    134. 134.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 1:41 pm

      Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) posted at 11:10 AM on Mon, Mar 25, 2024:
      Spokesperson for New York AG James:

      “Donald Trump is still facing accountability for his staggering fraud. The court has already found that he engaged in years of fraud to falsely inflate his net worth and unjustly enrich himself, his family, and his organization. The $464…
      (https://x.com/kylegriffin1/status/1772294923489833270?t=9PYWn4736SZD-u1u8KCvSA&s=03)

      Reply
    135. 135.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 1:41 pm

      Bob Cesca (@bobcesca_go) posted at 11:19 AM on Mon, Mar 25, 2024:
      Trump just did to the state of New York what he’s done to countless subcontractors: claiming poverty and getting away with paying a fraction of what’s owed. It’s been 40+ years of this scam, and yet stupid people keep falling for it.
      (https://x.com/bobcesca_go/status/1772297261482971546?t=iO2N-xNk_ABi_nsl1Ujl5w&s=03)

      Reply
    136. 136.

      Major Major Major Major

      March 25, 2024 at 1:44 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      Reposted from below: I think we can take the reduction in the bond amount as a sign that the court of appeals thinks that the penalty was probably too high and will reduce it. The ten days of extra time are likely to be because Trump would have been looking for a half a billion and people who would not consider that might consider $175 million.* The rest of the stay is pretty standard.

      Judgments get reduced on appeal quite often. I would not get overly concerned about this. It isn’t the best news, but I don’t think it is something nefarious.

      This seems to be lawyerly consensus on bluesky as well.

      Reply
    137. 137.

      Madeleine

      March 25, 2024 at 1:45 pm

      @rikyrah: thanks for asking about Imma and the Immp. I miss him,too, and hope he’s busy in good ways.

      Reply
    138. 138.

      Barbara

      March 25, 2024 at 1:47 pm

      @geg6: So can you put your mindset in a non-Trump universe and understand why that outcome might not be strictly fair?

      Ever since I realized that the majority of the damages in this case are punitive, I assumed that the amount would eventually be scaled back.

      Reply
    139. 139.

      prostratedragon

      March 25, 2024 at 1:48 pm

      @rikyrah:  Isn’t he busy today?

      Reply
    140. 140.

      trollhattan

      March 25, 2024 at 1:51 pm

      @West of the Rockies: He will lose and die soon enough.

      I, uh, you mean today? If not today, then not soon enough.

      Reply
    141. 141.

      Baud

      March 25, 2024 at 1:54 pm

      @trollhattan:

      I blame Biden.

      Reply
    142. 142.

      Mike in NC

      March 25, 2024 at 1:55 pm

      We’ve seen over and over and over again how evil scum like Fat Bastard can get away with anything if they can pay somebody off.

      Reply
    143. 143.

      Old School

      March 25, 2024 at 1:55 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      It’s not a hush money trial, it’s election interference.  The hush money was part of the scheme to interfere with the election, as was the false paperwork which engender the 43 or so felony counts.

      While that’s true, I assume calling it the “hush money” trial is more to differentiate the New York election interference trial from the Georgia election interference trial.

      Reply
    144. 144.

      Chip Daniels

      March 25, 2024 at 1:57 pm

      One of the things that wealth purchases, is an endless buffet of second chances, makeup tests, special exceptions, and waivers that normal people don’t get.

      Which is why it is so outrageous when someone starts wanking on about meritocracy and complaining about affirmative action.

      Reply
    145. 145.

      Jackie

      March 25, 2024 at 1:59 pm

      Heh. One of the talking heads on TV reminded viewers that TIFG’s whining about the Election Interference trial is interfering with his ability to campaign, by needing to be in court four day a week, but that TIFG has only held a couple of rallies TOTAL. Unlike Biden, who’s been out across the country multiple times in the last 30 days.

      TIFG is BROKE, the RNC is broke, so he can’t AFFORD to hold his precious rallies – in part, I suspect, because venues and cities are requiring him to pay upfront to cover costs – including additional police protection.

      Reply
    146. 146.

      Dorothy A. Winsor

      March 25, 2024 at 2:00 pm

      @cain: I had the same reaction to a “news” organization giving Trump that title

      Reply
    147. 147.

      Jackie

      March 25, 2024 at 2:01 pm

      And TIFG’s vengeance continues:

      “Donald Trump wants a Republican to mount a primary challenge to Rep. Laurel Lee, the lone member of Florida’s congressional delegation to endorse Gov. Ron DeSantis in his unsuccessful bid for president,” Politico reports.

      Reply
    148. 148.

      rikyrah

      March 25, 2024 at 2:03 pm

      @Jackie:

      TIFG is BROKE, the RNC is broke, so he can’t AFFORD to hold his precious rallies – in part, I suspect, because venues and cities are requiring him to pay upfront to cover costs – including additional police protection.

       

      Yep. cause he has a series of unpaid bills from rallies from when he was President.

      Reply
    149. 149.

      geg6

      March 25, 2024 at 2:03 pm

      @Ruckus: ​
       
      “And sure $175 million is not $474 million but that was never going to fly. Because he doesn’t have it, and no one is going to give it to him”

      So what makes him any different than anyone else who can’t pay a judgment or bail? No one in the court system gives a crap it those people can’t pay. Judgment happens to them. But apparently the very rich get a break no one else gets if they can’t pay?

      Reply
    150. 150.

      Omnes Omnibus

      March 25, 2024 at 2:05 pm

      I am going to walk away from the internet now.

      Reply
    151. 151.

      geg6

      March 25, 2024 at 2:10 pm

      @Barbara:

      No.  No I can’t.  Fuck this shit.  So glad I decided during undergrad that I really didn’t want to be a lawyer because I would be quitting at this point.  There is no justice in this country.  None.  Why bother?

      Reply
    152. 152.

      karen marie

      March 25, 2024 at 2:10 pm

      @TBone: I’ve been watching the Anti-Chef on youtube. He does a lot of Julia’s recipes. It’s amazing and funny. Kind of like the pictures of perfect food next to pictures of reality.

      Reply
    153. 153.

      UncleEbeneezer

      March 25, 2024 at 2:16 pm

      @Old School: It’s also true.  It is a case of Falsifying Business Documents (the actual charges in indictment) to conceal his Campaign Finance violation from voters.  So it really is both a Hush Money and an Election Interference case.  The former being the means for attempting to achieve the latter.

      Maybe the best way to frame it is as a “Hush Money To Interfere With An Election” case.

      Reply
    154. 154.

      karen marie

      March 25, 2024 at 2:17 pm

      @Butch: Do you really want courts of law making decisions based on feelings? I don’t.

      The Thursday afternoon Lawfare videos are terrific at providing an understanding of the sausage making. I ignore the loud complaints of the uninformed.

      Reply
    155. 155.

      Geminid

      March 25, 2024 at 2:20 pm

      @Jackie: Virginia 5th CD Rep. Bob Good endorsed DeSantis, and Trump henchman Chris LaCivita said that by the time they got through with him, Good would be “unelectable.”

      Good already has a strong primary challenger in state Senator John McGuire. Kraven McCarthy is backing McGuire because Good was one of the 8 Republicans who helped vote McCarthy out of the Speaker’s chair.

      The primary is in June. It’s an R+8 or 9 district* so unfortunately, Democrats probably won’t capitalize on this fight. Fun to watch though.

      * VA05 extends from Charlottesville and Albemarle County south to the North Carolina line.

      Reply
    156. 156.

      Ruckus

      March 25, 2024 at 2:20 pm

      @TBone:

      Yes – and it still isn’t working for him is it?

      This is a person that values money above ALL else. Not working out all that well for him is it?

      @sdhays:

      What?

      If he does not have the ability to pay, how does he satisfy the judgement? This is a legal judgement, he’s in trouble if he doesn’t pay. As it should be. But if he doesn’t have the money, he can’t pay the judgement, unless someone lends/gives him money. And he’s an old fart. Older than this old fart. He is never going to “earn” the money, likely never going to find the money, and so what happens next if he can’t pay this rightful judgement? A monetary penalty? That he won’t be able to pay? How does that solve anything? He thinks he can get away with anything.

      Listen, I have nothing for him. I don’t feel sorry for him, I do not like or approve of him nor his crapola. I think he is and always has been a worse than useless human being.

      To answer your question – if he does not have the ability to pay, he cannot satisfy the judgement. And he’s the 8 yr old, in a what, a 78 yr old body that thinks his shit doesn’t stink nor that he should have to do things that other humans have to do when they screw up and get caught. He’s not in any way special.

      And on that note, how many people do you know that have had to pay a fine for doing the level of crap that he has? I’ve worked in professional sports, traveled around this country, on occasion had to deal with people who thought their shit didn’t stink. They are wrong, 100% of the time, it does. It always does. SFB is no different, not one bit. He has screwed up, on a reoccurring basis, just by being himself. He has screwed over other people and has zero remorse or concept that he actually done so. He seems to think he is above the law and above common decency – and he isn’t. He got caught and is in the fuck around and find out stage. He likely will never admit that but what likely is pissing him off is that he does actually know, and the penalty is not insignificant.

      Reply
    157. 157.

      sdhays

      March 25, 2024 at 2:21 pm

      @Jackie: As others have said before, there are other reasons Trump may not be getting in front of that many crowds these days.

      Even if they can afford them, someone needs to organize them, and they’re all tripping over themselves trying to protect Trump’s ASSets rather than run a campaign. But even more critical: his dementia is getting worse, so his minions want to keep his public exposure for long periods of time to a minimum.

      Reply
    158. 158.

      Old Man Shadow

      March 25, 2024 at 2:41 pm

      @geg6: There is no such thing as justice. No karma. No god. No Judge.

      Bad people get breaks because of privilege. Good people get shot multiple times at a traffic stop and then get slandered in the media as deserving it.

      He will die free. He will get a biography from the official press that is reverential. He may even become president dictator next year. Probably get airports or highways or schools named after him. Maybe even a few statues because that is how America works

      And during all of that, innocent people and children will die in mass shootings. Young women will be killed by abusive lovers and husbands. Young Black men and women will continue to be shot by police or railroaded from school to prison. Migrants will be denied help and sent away from America. Homeless people will still suffer without help.

      Reply
    159. 159.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 2:52 pm

      @Old Man Shadow:

      You don’t know the future any more than I do.

      But I do know that what you’ve written is doom porn, and anyone who buys into that won’t do a fucking thing to work toward making sure that’s not the future.

      Self-fulling prophesy.

      No thanks.

      Reply
    160. 160.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 2:54 pm

      This is the clearest summary I have seen yet:

      Update:

      Financial fraud: Appellate grants in part his motion for a stay of asset seizures by lowering the bond requirement to $175 million. He has 10 days to post it and cannot borrow from NY Institutions. The full judgment ($464M + interest) stands pending appeal.

      Election…

      — Jack E. Smith ⚖️ (@7Veritas4) March 25, 2024

      Reply
    161. 161.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 2:55 pm

      @WaterGirl: The part you can’t see (after show more) is:

      Election interference/Hush money: Judge Merchan DENIES his motion for prosecutorial misconduct and sets jury trial on April 15th.

      Reply
    162. 162.

      catclub

      March 25, 2024 at 2:58 pm

      That stay order is very confusingly written. I thought items 2-5 were being enforced by the order, but now I think they are stayed.

       

      I think a clear version would be:  If a bond of $175M is paid in ten days, then the following terms of the judgement are stayed pending appeal:  items 2-5.

      Reply
    163. 163.

      Mel

      March 25, 2024 at 3:03 pm

      @TBone: I hear that!

      I’m making rice pudding and a chicken potpie and then hunkering down to watch “The Reluctant Traveler”. Comfort activities for trying times.

      Reply
    164. 164.

      The Thin Black Duke

      March 25, 2024 at 3:11 pm

      I think it’s vital to our mental health to recognize there’s no One Weird Trick that’s gonna take out Trump before November. Each of us will do what we can because– unfortunately–we also recognize that surrender is not an option.

      Reply
    165. 165.

      Quinerly

      March 25, 2024 at 3:17 pm

      @rikyrah:

      I have been wondering too.

      Reply
    166. 166.

      Tony G

      March 25, 2024 at 3:21 pm

      @Frankensteinbeck: I wonder whether that deadbeat can come up with a bond for $175 million.  If he can’t, then I guess that the appeals court will lower it again.  This insane court ruling is a good illustration of the fact that the corruption in this country isn’t limited to the “red states”.  The courts and other institutions of the government are totally corrupt throughout the country.

      Reply
    167. 167.

      Chris Johnson

      March 25, 2024 at 3:29 pm

      If he also can’t come up with $175 million it’s a moot point whether he could have come up with half a billion, isn’t it?

      The thing from apparently Digby, above, was sure interesting and speaks to fascist intent. I would just add this ONE little teeny detail… to execute on that, they have to use loyal Trump FAMILY MEMBERS. Fucking everywhere. They have to cover firstly the Republican Party like a blanket, then the country: all the Eric Trumps and Kari Lakes and so on and on, all of them, dredge the gutters to come up with enough of them, and then they’ve got to perform.

      They have to execute, using Trump and his people as the only available weapon.

      I’m sorry, I don’t buy that it’s a real threat. These people are evil, but they absolutely suck.

      I’m with Omnes (and Jack Smith, apparently). This is the stupidest time imaginable to panic, unless you’re Trump.

      Reply
    168. 168.

      Layer8Problem

      March 25, 2024 at 3:39 pm

      @Chris Johnson:  I’d be more worried if the other side had a lot more post-WWI Weimar style Freikorps instead of flabby cosplay militia guys and unctuous religious nuts.  Yeah, worrisome, but not impossible to counter.

      Reply
    169. 169.

      Old Man Shadow

      March 25, 2024 at 3:40 pm

      @WaterGirl: I don’t know the future, but he’s slithered out of consequences this far and the system sure as fuck seems to want to help him continue to do so and appears stacked that way.

      You and I both know ordinary people don’t get treated with kid gloves by the “justice” system like this.

      Reply
    170. 170.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 3:45 pm

      @karen marie: I will check that out, thank you!  Julia’s penchant for being casual about mistakes and flair for silliness is part of what is endearing to me and anything “anti” is right up my alley 😉

      Reply
    171. 171.

      TBone

      March 25, 2024 at 3:50 pm

      @Mel: that’s some serious comfort food yum!

      Reply
    172. 172.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 3:50 pm

      @Old Man Shadow: I agree that the special treatment of Trump is maddening, and goes against everything the US is supposed to stand for.

      But that’s a far cry from the dystopian future you described, and I for one am not ready to give up and go rock in the corner.

      Reply
    173. 173.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 3:52 pm

      I think this is a good way to look at it.

      He has to post $175 million to ward off asset seizures. He caught a break. Not a win.

      The full judgment stands pending adjudication of his appeal.

      — Jack E. Smith ⚖️ (@7Veritas4) March 25, 2024

      Reply
    174. 174.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 3:54 pm

      And this:

      Made this point just now to @SarahLongwell25 while recording our @BulwarkOnline pod: If I were the NYAG’s office, I’m not sure I wouldn’t be pleased with the Appellate Division’s order cutting back Trump’s bond to $175 million. The reason is that if Trump can actually bond that…

      — George Conway (@gtconway3d) March 25, 2024


      .

      That of course assumes Trump can post the $175m. But if he can’t, the State isn’t any worse off than it otherwise would have been—it would have to chase Trump around for the full amount ….

      — George Conway (@gtconway3d) March 25, 2024

      Reply
    175. 175.

      WaterGirl

      March 25, 2024 at 3:56 pm

      @WaterGirl: Full text of George Conway tweet above:

      Made this point just now to SarahLongwell25 while recording our @BulwarkOnline pod:

      If I were the NYAG’s office, I’m not sure I wouldn’t be pleased with the Appellate Division’s order cutting back Trump’s bond to $175 million.

      The reason is that if Trump can actually bond that much of the judgment, then the State of New York is guaranteed the ability to collect at least that much if it wins the appeal—without having to send lawyers around the country chasing Trump’s assets down, which would be a time-consuming, costly, and difficult process.

      Reply
    176. 176.

      Miss Bianca

      March 25, 2024 at 4:00 pm

      @The Thin Black Duke: I’m with you on this one.

      Reply
    177. 177.

      Layer8Problem

      March 25, 2024 at 4:03 pm

      @WaterGirl:  ” . . . I for one am not ready to give up and go rock in the corner.”

      And boy do they want us to.  Discouragement and morale-breaking beats riot suppression and “insurgent” round-ups.

      Reply
    178. 178.

      Old Man Shadow

      March 25, 2024 at 4:06 pm

      @WaterGirl: Well, he might not win this November.

      But given the other people certain parts of this country has “honored”, it doesn’t seem like much of a stretch to imagine a statue put up in Florida or Texas naming a high school after him.

      Nor does it seem unreasonable to assume the media that continues to normalize and treat Republican extremists like reasonable politicians will give Trump a haigiography whenever the fuck Death stops killing kids with cancer and mass shootings and collects Trump.

      It’s not fucking right. Hence there isn’t a natural order of justice in this universe. Nothing is fair.

      We try to impose some small bit of order, some little corner of what we consider to be good and fair and right on the universe and it feels as if our best efforts still fail more often than not.

      The fact that this asshole, this traitor, this abyss of a human soul is in the position where we even have to worry about him gaining power again is fucking rage inducing as is the inability of our government to hold him accountable.

      Yeah, he still have to pay 175 million, but that seems more within his reach and the process gets dragged out by years while he edges closer to escaping without penalty.

      Reply
    179. 179.

      lowtechcyclist

      March 25, 2024 at 5:51 pm

      @cain: Fine with me!

      Reply
    180. 180.

      Quadrillipede

      March 25, 2024 at 6:01 pm

      @Mai Naem mobile: I’m disappointed but I still don’t think he can come up with the $175M

      Hmm, failing to post $175M might arguably more damaging for the “reputation” of a “billionaire” than failing to post $450M. I guess all this popcorn should be good for another ten days.

      On a more serious note, looks like it’s going to be the vote in November that finally drives a wooden stake through this orange vampire’s heart…

      I hope he’s degenerated into full-on Führer-in-the-bunker Downfall raging incoherence by that point. I heard that’s playing really well in the swing state suburbs atm.

      Reply
    181. 181.

      Manyakitty

      March 25, 2024 at 6:30 pm

      @The Thin Black Duke: absolutely.

      Reply
    182. 182.

      dirge

      March 25, 2024 at 6:35 pm

      @Old Man Shadow: It’s not fucking right. Hence there isn’t a natural order of justice in this universe. Nothing is fair.

      Surely you’re not just figuring this out now.

      Reply

    Leave a Comment

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    If you don't see both the Visual and the Text tab on the editor, click here to refresh.

    Clear Comment

    To reply to more than one person, click the X to save & close the box.

    Primary Sidebar

    Recent Comments

    • NotMax on COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: April 17, 2024 (Apr 17, 2024 @ 6:33am)
    • raven on COVID-19 Coronavirus Updates: April 17, 2024 (Apr 17, 2024 @ 6:25am)
    • ColoradoGuy on Cold Grey Pre-Dawn Open Thread: Fading Neom Dreams (Apr 17, 2024 @ 6:24am)
    • NotMax on Cold Grey Pre-Dawn Open Thread: Fading Neom Dreams (Apr 17, 2024 @ 6:20am)
    • p.a. on On The Road – BillinGlendaleCA – The Milky Way Reimagined. (Apr 17, 2024 @ 6:11am)

    🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

    Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
    Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

    Balloon Juice Posts

    View by Topic
    View by Author
    View by Month & Year
    View by Past Author

    Balloon Juice Meetups!

    All Meetups
    Talk of Meetups – Meetup Planning
    Proposed BJ meetups list from frosty

    Fundraising 2023-24

    Wis*Dems Supreme Court + SD-8
    Virginia House Races
    Four Directions – Montana
    Worker Power AZ
    Four Directions – Arizona
    Four Directions – Nevada

    Featuring

    Medium Cool
    Artists in Our Midst
    Authors in Our Midst
    Positive Climate News
    War in Ukraine
    Cole’s “Stories from the Road”
    Classified Documents Primer

    Calling All Jackals

    Site Feedback
    Nominate a Rotating Tag
    Submit Photos to On the Road
    Balloon Juice Mailing List Signup
    Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
    Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)

    Fix Nyms with Apostrophes

    Balloon Juice for Ukraine

    Donate

    Twitter / Spoutible

    Balloon Juice (Spoutible)
    WaterGirl (Spoutible)
    TaMara (Spoutible)
    John Cole
    DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
    Betty Cracker
    Tom Levenson
    David Anderson
    Major Major Major Major
    ActualCitizensUnited

    Political Action 2024

    Postcard Writing Information

    Balloon Juice for Four Directions AZ

    Donate

    Balloon Juice for Four Directions NV

    Donate

    Site Footer

    Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

    • Facebook
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Comment Policy
    • Our Authors
    • Blogroll
    • Our Artists
    • Privacy Policy

    Copyright © 2024 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

    Insert/edit link

    Enter the destination URL

    Or link to existing content

      No search term specified. Showing recent items. Search or use up and down arrow keys to select an item.
        Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

        Email sent!