Tired of ads? Want to support our progressive journalism? Click to learn more.LEARN MORE
Enjoy good journalism?
… then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has slashed advertising rates, and we need your help. Like you, we here at Raw Story believe in the power of progressive journalism. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and legal efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. And unlike other news outlets, we’ve decided to make our original content free. But we need your support to do what we do.
Raw Story is independent. Unhinged from corporate overlords, we fight to ensure no one is forgotten.
We need your support in this difficult time. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click to donate by check.
Value Raw Story?
… then let us make a small request. The COVID crisis has slashed advertising rates, and we need your help. Like you, we believe in the power of progressive journalism — and we’re investing in investigative reporting as other publications give it the ax. Raw Story readers power David Cay Johnston’s DCReport, which we've expanded to keep watch in Washington. We’ve exposed billionaire tax evasion and uncovered White House efforts to poison our water. We’ve revealed financial scams that prey on veterans, and efforts to harm workers exploited by abusive bosses. We need your support to do what we do.
Raw Story is independent. You won’t find mainstream media bias here. Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Invest with us in the future. Make a one-time contribution to Raw Story Investigates, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you.
  |  |
Report typos and corrections to: corrections@rawstory.com.
Trump's final address ridiculed as only Newsmax airs it: 'Tomorrow can't come soon enough'
January 19, 2021
President Donald Trump made a final address from the White House Tuesday that sang his own praises and celebrated himself and the achievements he thinks he was able to conjure while in office. He wished the incoming administration well without saying the names of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Trump has refused to accept his loss, continuing to shout at aides over the weekend that he won. But as he stepped to the podium on Tuesday, the outgoing president said his final "bye."
<p>Unfortunately for Trump, his video was released at the same time that President-elect Joe Biden arrived in Washington. The only network that covered his speech was Newsmax. </p><p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="758f09ee1d4806c92bd3153584c7ded2" id="a1b4f"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351640460301897728"><div style="margin:1em 0">Only Newsmax is airing Trump's farewell video https://t.co/AZQQco6jS7</div> ā Jeremy Barr (@Jeremy Barr)<a href="https://twitter.com/jeremymbarr/statuses/1351640460301897728">1611091172.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p><p>The slate of absurd claims of success and celebrations of himself drew fast criticism and condemnations from those online. See their comments below: </p><p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a5d0fd31e33ef59623460e901c573a42" id="fbc4a"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351642560490516480"><div style="margin:1em 0">More Americans will unnecessarily die and the country will suffer in other ways because Trump deprived Biden and alā¦ https://t.co/wEldjrIHKr</div> ā Michael Beschloss (@Michael Beschloss)<a href="https://twitter.com/BeschlossDC/statuses/1351642560490516480">1611091673.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7a261b27eb1f68a627ee5ddb482b1641" id="25b2f"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351644375646838786"><div style="margin:1em 0">Trump, who lied about the election results for two months and held just a handful of public events after losing, saā¦ https://t.co/RmYKYwv1as</div> ā Kyle Griffin (@Kyle Griffin)<a href="https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/statuses/1351644375646838786">1611092106.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="d595b2e1d1ab2cad929ca20329ba26a1" id="88208"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351641962776993797"><div style="margin:1em 0">It really should be noted more often that literally everyone around Donald Trump knows heās committed crimes whileā¦ https://t.co/WGZBgjHw3g</div> ā Jason Karsh (@Jason Karsh)<a href="https://twitter.com/jkarsh/statuses/1351641962776993797">1611091530.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a5af63ec2507b4506f398cd0c744b8af" id="f837f"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351642191291162626"><div style="margin:1em 0">The Bidens have landed at Joint Base Andrewās and being welcomed! What is striking how Donald Trump is in his feelā¦ https://t.co/EehF1ZX7jO</div> ā AprilDRyan (@AprilDRyan)<a href="https://twitter.com/AprilDRyan/statuses/1351642191291162626">1611091585.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="f110ca61a3d71b20a49393748309a461" id="6abbd"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351643889229328394"><div style="margin:1em 0">Pres Trump in final address ignores the role he played in encouraging the mob to storm the Capitol. He does not apoā¦ https://t.co/yW1PYVglXI</div> ā Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche Alcindor)<a href="https://twitter.com/Yamiche/statuses/1351643889229328394">1611091990.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="73b1bb079dcd9cbfb65cfa3def5f62a7" id="26734"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351645254634631174"><div style="margin:1em 0">āWe did what we came here to do and so much more,ā President Trump says in his farewell address, where he thankedā¦ https://t.co/cX00uIe75d</div> ā David Begnaud (@David Begnaud)<a href="https://twitter.com/DavidBegnaud/statuses/1351645254634631174">1611092315.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="69a1fee07007a18830625626b314d1de" id="824f3"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351643680503980039"><div style="margin:1em 0">With his farewell speech, Trump has given the pundit class one more chance to declare that this is the day Trump became president.</div> ā Sam Stein (@Sam Stein)<a href="https://twitter.com/samstein/statuses/1351643680503980039">1611091940.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="230fd03ea2b482098f55c4c0fc2c3b3e" id="54369"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351645317444341760"><div style="margin:1em 0">Ludicrous? Unreal? Help me find the right word. #Trump in farewell address says āabove all we reasserted the sacredā¦ https://t.co/TXcRoYhCLE</div> ā John King (@John King)<a href="https://twitter.com/JohnKingCNN/statuses/1351645317444341760">1611092330.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="b98df641e869ad654fa067d043c1cbd2" id="d7ea1"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351644509252288518"><div style="margin:1em 0">While there are several references to the new administration, Trump does not mention Biden by name in his farewellā¦ https://t.co/7vmkd6DNl3</div> ā Kaitlan Collins (@Kaitlan Collins)<a href="https://twitter.com/kaitlancollins/statuses/1351644509252288518">1611092138.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="dfbc02bae59a29a4d4f0f89f6803559b" id="1dace"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351646879256231936"><div style="margin:1em 0">Nothing encapsulates the smallness and isolation of Trump's final days as President more succinctly than pre-tapingā¦ https://t.co/aM6CMwHhWA</div> ā Tommy Vietor (@Tommy Vietor)<a href="https://twitter.com/TVietor08/statuses/1351646879256231936">1611092703.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="8cc77ac96130ab73e9dbc61b2b39a35a" id="9cd1e"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351640798480261127"><div style="margin:1em 0">This 20 minute farewell video from Trump is going right in my NO THANKS folder.</div> ā Jeremy Newberger (@Jeremy Newberger)<a href="https://twitter.com/jeremynewberger/statuses/1351640798480261127">1611091253.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e9b7e9909e5fe8230ae9ddc8512efdf0" id="22abd"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351641149832884227"><div style="margin:1em 0">I have a response to Trump's horrible, distasteful and pathetic farewell video that I didn't watch: https://t.co/ddQvK0tZtm</div> ā Amee Vanderpool (@Amee Vanderpool)<a href="https://twitter.com/girlsreallyrule/statuses/1351641149832884227">1611091337.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="5ac81d8a30b17298fccbe3e0e2d8a7a8" id="bf7a7"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351649935771385856"><div style="margin:1em 0">Wow, after bragging for years about how much of "the wall" had been built, Trump literally admitted in his farewellā¦ https://t.co/eGQlCxm16F</div> ā įįYįTIį (@įįYįTIį)<a href="https://twitter.com/illtakethecrypt/statuses/1351649935771385856">1611093431.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ac4ffb99ab5d50f832683e5f1b66e104" id="37aa8"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351649916519669763"><div style="margin:1em 0">*Trump giving his farewell address* āš¼ https://t.co/Sbdjxc5ZUz</div> ā David š° (@David š°)<a href="https://twitter.com/davidgarcia_/statuses/1351649916519669763">1611093427.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="0415f94e30e5fda09f6cfc297431e544" id="b4b21"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351649881753051139"><div style="margin:1em 0">Watching that Trump farewell video. "I was the first ever outsider to win the presidency", he says, forgetting he tā¦ https://t.co/kWXJlSisw7</div> ā Paris Stilton (@Paris Stilton)<a href="https://twitter.com/montague90/statuses/1351649881753051139">1611093418.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="b2cb9b6fc73b3aee87e88128e6846a09" id="0f806"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351649862350229506"><div style="margin:1em 0">In Trumpās farewell speech he claims that ā...millions were lifted from poverty in just a few short years.ā Anybody fact checked that yet?</div> ā Jaelen Elizabeth (@Jaelen Elizabeth)<a href="https://twitter.com/jaelizabeth7/statuses/1351649862350229506">1611093414.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="d5bcc1d2debe0544362972ed5bc03459" id="601b5"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351649879303610369"><div style="margin:1em 0">In his farewell address Trump celebrated the tariffs his Administration put into place. After all this time he stilā¦ https://t.co/U7X3yWRXca</div> ā John Mountjoy (@John Mountjoy)<a href="https://twitter.com/JohnJMountjoy/statuses/1351649879303610369">1611093418.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="75d50ee4a59d813ceb2b05555790ad80" id="e732b"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351650748455645189"><div style="margin:1em 0">Didn't. Even. Hug. A. Flag.</div> ā A.J. Bauer (@A.J. Bauer)<a href="https://twitter.com/ajbauer/statuses/1351650748455645189">1611093625.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="24820142fabddd64c4c1be483613756c" id="034de"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351649764744589313"><div style="margin:1em 0">Trumps farewell address is meant for him alone. To watch every night before he goes to bed.
For its full of lies.</div> ā Lloyd da Stable Genius (@Lloyd da Stable Genius)<a href="https://twitter.com/my_lmg/statuses/1351649764744589313">1611093391.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p><br/></p>
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="cfb6e33b484cd760f365f7e8db6f18e6" id="f434c"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351649744704196611"><div style="margin:1em 0">Just suffered through tRumpās farewell speech, š¤®. I actually have a headache from arguing with the tv. Tomorrow canā¦ https://t.co/yyQPqJjkbE</div> ā Barbara Gabbard (@Barbara Gabbard)<a href="https://twitter.com/bgabby63/statuses/1351649744704196611">1611093386.0</a></blockquote></div>
CONTINUE READING
Show less
Mike Pence posts farewell photos in good-bye message ā but excludes any of Donald Trump
January 19, 2021
Vice President Mike Pence posted his own farewell to Twitter on Tuesday afternoon with a slate of photos of himself and his family while in office. But one person was missing: the president.
<div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="0b82545b0c3ba39d2929e219922656f9" id="a2629"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1351643974046507016"><div style="margin:1em 0">No pictures with Trump. So messy. https://t.co/FUouHBf10r</div> ā The Lincoln Project (@The Lincoln Project)<a href="https://twitter.com/ProjectLincoln/statuses/1351643974046507016">1611092010.0</a></blockquote></div>
<p>Pence, who is scheduled to be at the inauguration representing the Trump administration on Wednesday, announced that he was unable to attend the president's departure party. </p><p>The White House sent out invitations to Trump supporters begging that they attend the event at Joint Base Andrews as Trump waves farewell to Washington. It's unknown if the Trump supporters will leave their rioting downtown to attend the event. </p><p>After Trump departs and Biden is sworn in, every former president, except Trump, will join in laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington Cemetary. </p>
CONTINUE READING
Show less
Defeated GOP congressman appears to be in major financial trouble as he faces DOJ probe
January 19, 2021
Things continue to look grim for ex-Rep. Ross Spano. The Justice Department is still investigating the Florida Republican for campaign finance irregularities and he ultimately lost his Congressional seat in an August primary.
Now, in a sign that Spano's 2021 might not be much better than his 2020, his campaign revealed that it's heavily in legal debt with close to no money in the bank to pay it off.
<p>Spano's campaign revealed in <a href="https://docquery.fec.gov/pdf/422/202101189405152422/202101189405152422.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">paperwork filed</a> with the federal government Monday that it owes more than $128,000, with about half of that total promised away to law firms representing him in the campaign finance probe stemming from allegations he took tens of thousands of dollars in loans from two friends and then illegally personally loaned that money to his campaign in 2018. </p>
<p>What's more, the campaign revealed it only has about $23,000 left in the bank, after several dismal fundraising quarters preceding his primary loss, according to Federal Election Commission records.</p>
<p>The main reason he has almost no campaign money left is that he had to basically empty his campaign account after he lost the primary to Lakeland City Commissioner Scott Franklin, who dispatched Spano in a close primary and went on to win the congressional seat in November against a Democrat. Franklin was sworn into office earlier this month.</p>
<p>The FEC filing revealed that Spano returned some $150,000 to donors, something he had to do to avoid committing another potential campaign finance violation, said Brett Kappel, a campaign finance expert at the Washington, D.C.-based law firm, Harmon Curran. </p>
<p>When donors contribute money to a campaign, they have to designate whether it's for a primary election or a general election. The FEC mandates this because donors are limited in the amount of money they can give. Individuals can give $2,800 in the primary and that same amount again in the general, while political action committees can give $5,000 per each election. </p>
<p>But often, donors give that money well in advance of the general election. Unfortunately for Spano, he didn't make it that far in the process in 2020, so he had to give money back to donors who had earmarked it to be used for the general election, lest he anger FEC regulators any further.</p>
<p>"It basically wiped out his campaign," Kappel said. "He lost in the primary, so he had to give back all the money he had received that was designated for the general elections ā all the individual contributions and all the PAC contributions."</p>
<p>Some of those donors who received refunds included billionaire Home Depot founder and GOP megadonor Bernard Marcus and his wife Billi; Manhattan real estate investor Steven Roth; Heritage Foundation trustee Barb Gaby; and Las Vegas casino moguls Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta. The list also includes House Minority Whip Steve Scalise's Eye of the Tiger PAC, and PACs representing Honeywell, FedEx and national credit unions.</p>
<p>The problem is that doesn't leave him enough money to repay his debts. The former congressman, his campaign manager, and a D.C.-based ethics attorney who has represented Spano in his campaign finance probes did not respond to emails requesting comment about how he plans to pay down the debt.</p>
<p>Spano, who practiced law before entering politics and is still registered with the Florida bar (though the group did announce it was investigating him last year amid the campaign finance probe), could pay his debt out of his own pocket. He could also raise money from donors with the express purpose of paying down his debt, though that tends to be a hard sell for donors after a congressman is no longer in office.</p>
<p>Still, it's fair to wonder whether the law firms will ever be repaid for their work on his behalf. Other campaigns, after all, have incurred massive legal or consulting debts that they haven't repaid for years, most famous among them, Newt Gingrich, who still owes more than $4 million in fees from his failed 2012 presidential run, and Fox News personality "Judge Jeanine" Pirro, whose campaign was more than $850,000 in debt when she cut short her 2006 bid for the Republican nomination to challenge then-Democratic Sen. Hillary Clinton in New York.</p>
<p>That has led to the phenomenon of "zombie campaigns," or campaign committees that continue filing reports with the FEC years after the candidate is no longer running for office because the FEC won't let them close their accounts until they pay off their debts.</p>
<p>Spano's campaign reported owing more than $24,000 to the D.C. firm Berke Farah, which represents members of Congress in ethics matters, and more than $22,000 to the Orlando office of Holland and Knight. The campaign also owes $18,000 to a Florida political consulting firm.</p>
<p>The campaign's largest creditor, however, is still Spano himself. The campaign reported that it owes Spano nearly $60,000, after he loaned that amount to campaign in 2018.</p>
<p>That money, and other loans like it, were the things that got Spano in hot water in the first place. The day before the 2018 election, the <a href="https://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2018/11/05/so-where-exactly-did-ross-spano-get-more-than-100000-in-his-bid-for-congress/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tampa Bay Times reported</a> that he may have illegally accepted $180,000 in personal loans from two friends and then passed it off as a personal loan to his campaign committee, an arrangement that is forbidden under campaign finance law.</p>
<p>Since later 2018, Spano's defense in the matter has been that he and his friends entered into the financial arrangement on bad advice from campaign consultants. He reported paying back the loans, and has repaid himself some of the money from his campaign.</p>
CONTINUE READING
Show less
Trending
Latest
Videos
Copyright © 2021 Raw Story Media, Inc. PO Box 21050, Washington, D.C. 20009 | Masthead | Privacy Policy | For corrections or concerns, please email corrections@rawstory.com.