In the fourth week of his so-called hush money trial in New York City, former President Donald Trump rebutted the relentless, breathless and as-salacious-as-possible Big Media coverage with the following summary:
“This isn’t a trial, it’s a political campaign, a witch hunt, just like the highly conflicted and biased judge, Juan Merchan, wanted it to be. I’m sure his political friends and allies, and crooked Joe Biden, in particular, will be thrilled that they are getting away with this corrupt, “ancient,” and highly political attack on his 2024 presidential opponent.
“These eight year old stories, which came out prior to the 2016 election (the voters have already, and loudly, spoken!), and have nothing to do with this fake case, brought by a crooked, Soros backed New York City D.A., Alvin Bragg, should not have been allowed to be used. Virtually every legal scholar and expert call it a sham and disgrace, election interference. It is an insult to American justice!”
From witness David Pecker being swatted on his day of testimony, to Judge Juan Merchan's daughter making millions from all-Democrat clientele, to the storm of jokes set off by the testimony of Stormy Daniels, to the DOJ's hired gun prosecutor, the trial in Manhattan Supreme Court gets more surreal by the day.
Judge Merchan on Monday held Trump in contempt for a second time and warned that he faced imprisonment if he broke the gag order that bars him from publicly commenting on jurors, witnesses and others involved in the case.
Trump said he would rather risk imprisonment than comply with the gag order.
“Frankly our Constitution is much more important than jail,” Trump said to press in the hallway of the Manhattan courthouse. “It’s not even close. I’ll do that sacrifice any day.”
On April 25, the day he took the stand in Trump's trial, former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker was targeted in a fake emergency.
In the previously unreported "swatting" incident, a person using the name "Jamal" claimed in an email to a local newspaper that he had tied up his wife in the basement and killed his wife's lover. Jamal gave the address of the crime as Pecker's home in Greenwich, Connecticut.
The incident report by the Greenwich Police Department said when police were alerted to the email they were already aware of Pecker's home address due to his "being involved in a highly publicized trial." The police said there was no emergency. Pecker was not home at the time but one other person was.
The gag order slapped on Trump by Judge Merchan forbids the former president from speaking about the judge's family.
Those not bound by the gag order are noting that the judge’s daughter, Loren Merchan, is president of Authentic Campaigns, a Chicago-based progressive political consulting firm whose top clients include California Democrat Rep. Adam Schiff, who was the lead prosecutor in Trump’s first impeachment trial.
George Soros-linked Democrats have pumped over $500 million into Loren Merchan's firm, The National Pulse reported.
Alex Soros, the son and chosen successor of billionaire globalist George Soros, met with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and various Arizona Democrats after Whitmer’s political action committee (PAC) and the Arizona Democratic Party contracted Authentic Campaigns as a vendor, according to investigative reporter Laura Loomer.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland demanding documents and information about the Biden Department of Justice's coordination with New York County District Attorney Attorney Alvin Bragg and his politicized prosecution of Trump.
The letter noted that Matthew Colangelo, a former "number three" DOJ official, is a lead prosecutor for Bragg and the case centers on testimony from a convicted felon who had been previously prosecuted by the DOJ.
"Since last year, popularly elected prosecutors—who campaigned for office on the promise of prosecuting President Trump — engaged in an unprecedented abuse of prosecutorial authority: the indictment of a former President of the United States and current leading candidate for that office. Given the perception that the Biden DOJ is assisting in Bragg's politicized prosecution, the Committee is seeking to further understand the scope of Colangelo's employment and his obsession with investigating President Trump," Jordan said.
In his letter to Garland, Jordan stated:
Colangelo's recent employment history demonstrates his obsession with investigating a person rather than prosecuting a crime. At the New York Attorney General's Office, Mr. Colangelo ran investigations into President Trump, leading 'a wave of state litigation against Trump administration policies.' On January 20, 2021, the first day of the Biden Administration, Mr. Colangelo began serving as the Acting Associate Attorney General—the number three official in your department. Upon the confirmation of Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, Mr. Colangelo then served as the Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General. In December 2022, Bragg 'beefed up [his] office' by hiring Mr. Colangelo to fill the void left by the departure of politicized line prosecutors Mark Pomerantz and Carey Dunne. Bragg hired Mr. Colangelo to 'jump-start' his office's investigation of President Trump, reportedly due to Mr. Colangelo's 'history of taking on Donald J. Trump and his family business.' Mr. Colangelo is now a lead prosecutor in President Trump’s trial.Getting to the testimony, Trump White House official Hope Hicks took the stand last week. Fox News legal analyst Gregg Jarrett said the Hicks' testimony "demolishes District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s primary claim against Trump that he paid porn star Stormy Daniels for her silence with the intent to benefit his campaign and, thereby, influence the election by 'unlawful means.' To the contrary, it nicely corroborates the findings of a federal investigation that no crimes were committed, or campaign finance laws broken because there was another purpose for the non-disclosure agreement that Daniels signed."
Hicks testified that Trump’s motive for suppressing salacious stories was to protect his wife, Melania. "Absolutely…I don’t think he wanted anyone in his family to be hurt or embarrassed about anything on the campaign. He wanted them to be proud of him."
Author and former managing editor of Reuters Paul Ingrassia was providing frequent social media updates of the Daniels testimony:
BREAKING: Bragg’s prosecutors questioning Daniels about her STD tests and preferred sex positions. What a sleazy, disgusting trial.
With this political persecution, we are witnessing the execution of due process and rule of law in real time by Biden and his acolytes. What a… — Paul Ingrassia (@PaulIngrassia) May 7, 2024
BREAKING: In a flagrant violation of NY’s rules of evidence and judicial ethics guidelines, the judge is allowing Stormy Daniels to “run wild” with her highly prejudicial testimony, running roughshod over the objections of Trump’s attorneys, and allowing Daniels to vividly…
— Paul Ingrassia (@PaulIngrassia) May 7, 2024
When asked by the prosecution today how she wanted to be addressed in a courtroom she said “Stormy Daniels.” So the “legal name” theory fails. https://t.co/s0paCEQ38Z
— Paul Ingrassia (@PaulIngrassia) May 7, 2024
BREAKING: Prosecutors are now asking Stormy Daniels about her recollections and impressions to the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape that was released in October of 2016
The tape has absolutely no bearing on anything related to this sham trial, and Daniels’ impressions, above… — Paul Ingrassia (@PaulIngrassia) May 7, 2024
“Judge” Merchan loves to say “enjoy your lunch” to everyone once they break every day.
Many of the fake news journalists and government lawyers here are getting a kick out of this sham show trial, which is a colossal waste of taxpayer money and a complete waste of everyone’s… — Paul Ingrassia (@PaulIngrassia) May 7, 2024
