Trump said North Korea 'called up a couple of days ago' — turns out he was talking about South Korea's President Moon
March 5, 2018, 9:11 PM ET
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'Dumpster fire': Devin Nunes ruthlessly mocked over Truth Social's 'garbage' defamation suit
May 30, 2023
Former Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA), now heading up former President Donald Trump's Truth Social platform, is creating a legal "dumpster fire" for his company with new lawsuits directed at journalists, wrote legal analyst Liz Dye for Above The Law.
"Regular readers of this column will recall that Devin Nunes is a prolific filer of garbage defamation suits, against various news outlets, social media companies, and random Twitter cows," wrote Dye. "He’s usually accompanied on these outings by his clownshoes lawyer Stephen Biss, and indeed, Biss is along for these two suits, chaperoned by local counsel Jason Kobal, head of a two-lawyer shop whose website is tampaworkcomplaw.com."
All of these lawsuits have ended in failure. One particular blow came last month, when a Trump-appointed judge tossed out his lawsuit against Esquire for an article on how his family uses undocumented labor at their dairy farm — ruling the evidence was clear that the story's allegation was true.
Now, Dye wrote, under Nunes' leadership, Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), which runs Truth Social, is filing similarly flimsy lawsuits against The Guardian and The Washington Post.
"TMTG is in the midst of trying to take itself public via a SPAC known as Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC). But the deal appears to be seriously in jeopardy, with the SEC, FINRA, and the Justice Department investigating DWAC. There are also reports that DWAC’s recently ousted CEO Patrick Orlando, who met with Trump before DWAC’s founding, made it clear from the jump that taking TMTG public was the entire reason for founding the SPAC, a gross violation of SEC rules," reported Dye. "In March, The Guardian’s Hugo Lowell reported that TMTG is under investigation for possible money laundering in relation to an $8 million loan from a company whose main business appears to be processing payments for webcam pornography in the former Soviet Union."
TMTG's lawsuit against The Guardian claims that "Defendants published and republished egregious statements online and via social media (Twitter) that falsely accused or implied that Nunes engaged in or aided and abetted money laundering." In reality, Dye noted, the article only mentioned Nunes twice, one of which was to include his denial of the allegations — and the lawsuit was filed in state court in Florida despite none of the defendants being in Florida.
This was soon followed up by another TMTG lawsuit against the Post, for reporting that the DOJ is investigating a $240,000 finder's fee in the acquisition deal that was allegedly never revealed to shareholders in violation of the law — and, wrote Dye, the suit was released on the same day that "DWAC filed notice that it was in danger of being delisted from NASDAQ due to failure to file a timely quarterly report, and that it had 'identified an error related to the accounting for certain expenses in the previously issued financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2022' and thus its financial statements from last year 'should no longer be relied upon.'"
"The Guardian case is set for conference before Judge Stephen Walker in September, and the Post case has been assigned to Walker, but no hearings have yet been scheduled," concluded Dye. "So it may be a few months before we find out if Nunes can do for TMTG what he managed to do for his own family. We’re all rootin’ for ya, little cowpoke!"
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'Clown car': MAGA Republicans blasted for threatening to 'tank economy to help Trump win'
May 30, 2023
Some members of the most far-right group of House Republicans, the Freedom Caucus, admitted Tuesday their goals are to defeat the debt ceiling agreement, thereby killing the economy, which some of them believe would then help Donald Trump win back the White House in 2024.
Many of the House Freedom Caucus members are tied to the January 6, 2021 insurrection, by various methods, including supporting efforts to overturn state elections and spreading false claims about the results of the 2020 presidential election.
U.S. Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) in Tuesday’s Freedom Caucus’s press conference pointed to the portion of the debt ceiling agreement, brokered by President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy, which says the nation’s debt limit will not have to be raised until 2025. Outraged, Congressman Bishop admitted Republicans had wanted to have another debt ceiling fight next year, which would, he claimed, help a Republican presidential candidate win the White House.
Surrounded by far-right Republican Representatives Byron Donalds, Lauren Boebert, Chip Roy, Freedom Caucus chair Scott Perry, former Freedom Caucus chair Andy Biggs, and others, Bishop angrily complained, “And what does the device of two years do?”
“It removes the issue from the national conversation during the presidential election to come. How could you more successfully kneecap any Republican President than to take that issue out of his or her hands?” Bishop asked, fully and freely admitting the GOP is trying to use the levers of government, and the U.S. and even global economy, to put a Republican back in the White House, regardless of cost to the American people.
As he spoke Rep. Boebert’s head was nodding in agreement.
Sirius XM host and journalist Dean Obeidallah blasted the North Carolina Republican: “GOP Dan Bishop says quiet part out loud: MAGA wanted to use debt ceiling in 2024 to tank economy to help Trump win.”
Freedom Caucus chair Scott Perry, who the Select Committee on the January 6 Attack reportedly saw as “central” to its investigation, also spoke at Tuesday’s press conference.
“We’ve asked for Janet Yellen’s figures. And with all due respect, she comes with zero credibility to the discuss,” Perry claimed, falsely. “We don’t believe her figures, we’ve asked to see her figures.”
And he admitted Freedom Caucus members “will be absolutely opposed to the deal and will do everything in our power to stop it.”
Calling it a “bad deal…that we all campaigned to put an end to,” Freedom Caucus member Lauren Boebert also spoke at the press conference, declaring, “There is nothing real in this bill to enforce. In short, tomorrow’s bill is a bunch of fake news and fake talking points.”
U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) called the debt ceiling deal “crap.”
“Washington is doing it again,” Rep. Donalds declared, apparently attacking his own party since Republicans have the majority of the House seats.
“While you were celebrating Memorial Day, all of our men and women who gave their lives for this great nation, and you were spending time with your family and your friends, this town was cutting another crap deal that’s going to put you more in debt with no real changes whatsoever.”
“Washington is lying, again,” said Donalds.
Republican turned Democrat, attorney Ron Filipkowski mocked the extremist GOP lawmakers.
“The Freedom Caucus members just climbed out of their clown car, and are upset that their cult leader won’t be able to run for president on a crashed economy,” he tweeted.
“Wait,” tweeted Seth Kaplan, the managing editor for Fox affiliate stations in the Twin Cities. “He wants to help ensure a catastrophic economic situation just so it can be a talking point during the 2024 election? Please tell me I’m misinterpreting.”
Earlier this month journalist Jay Bookman observed, “So basically, the debt ceiling crisis is just another version of the Jan. 6 insurrection: Give us what we want, or we’re going to tear the whole damn thing down.”
Reps. Scott Perry, Dan Bishop, Byron Donalds, Lauren Boebert, Andy Biggs, and other Freedom Caucus members earned a “very poor” grade by the Republican Accountability Project, which has been tracking Republicans in the wake of the 2021 insurrection.
Among the criteria for earning a “very poor” grade include signing the Supreme Court amicus brief “that sought to nullify votes cast in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Georgia,” (Boebert and Donalds were not in Congress at the time to sign to that brief.)
Also, objecting “to the certification of Electoral College votes from at least one state,” making “public statements that cast doubt on the legitimacy of the 2020 election,” voting “to hold Trump accountable via impeachment or conviction,” voting “to create an independent commission to investigate the January 6th insurrection,” and voting “to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress.”
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A freak injury will sideline a House Democrat from this week’s debt ceiling deal vote.
Rep. Angie Craig (D-Minn.) suffered an ankle injury Monday evening while doing yard work, her office said in a statement.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy expects the full House to vote on the deal on Wednesday.
The 51-year-old third-term congresswoman was diagnosed with a bimalleolar fracture and a dislocated ankle after she tripped while doing yard work, Craig’s Chief of Staff Nick Coe said in a statement Tuesday.
“While getting some yard work done at him in Minnesota on Monday evening, Rep. Craig tripped and injured her ankle. She was transported to a local hospital where she was diagnosed with a bimalleolar fracture as well as a dislocated ankle,” the statement said.
“She is scheduled to undergo surgery to repair the ankle on Thursday. Her physician has advised her not to fly in advance of the surgery or immediately after. As a result, Rep. Craig will miss votes in Congress this week related to the Bipartisan Budget Agreement.”
IN OTHER NEWS: South Carolina liquor store owner charged with murder after shooting 14-year-old in the back
Craig is Minnesota’s first openly LGBTQ+ member of Congress and the first lesbian mother to serve in Congress.
Her partner is Cheryl Greene.
"Rep. Craig and Cheryl are grateful to the Prior Lake Police and Fire Departments who responded to the incident, and Rep. Craig looks forward to getting back to work for the people of the Second District as soon as possible," Coe’s statement said.
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