Donald Trump Announces 2016 White House Bid

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Cult leader found dead, mummified with eyes missing
Amy Carlson, leader of the cult 'Love Has Won', was found dead in her trailer home.

Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Publishing date:May 05, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
Amy Carlson, 45, AKA "Mother God", was found dead in her trailer home.
Amy Carlson, 45, AKA "Mother God", was found dead in her trailer home. PHOTO BY AMY CARLSON /FACEBOOK
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Cult members who believed Donald Trump was their leader’s loving father in a past life are now being held on suspicion of their guru’s death.

Cops say the seven members were busted after the mummified body of Love Has Won leader Amy Carlson, 45, a.k.a. “Mother God,” was found dead in her trailer home.

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Her eyes were missing and glitter makeup had been sprinkled on her face.

The body was placed in a shrine and wrapped in Christmas lights.

So far detectives aren’t sure how Carlson died, but suspect she may have ingested colloidal silver.

She had allegedly been selling the substance as a “cure” for COVID-19.


Ryan Kramer, John Robertson, Jason Castillo, Obdulia Franco Gonzalez, Christopher Royer, and Sarah Raymone are being held on counts including abuse of a corpse and child abuse.

Karin Raymond is being held on two counts of child abuse, one count of corpse abuse, and one count of false imprisonment.

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No one has been charged with Carlson’s death.

Police found the body after receiving an anonymous tip.

Saguache County Coroner Tom Perrin told the Daily Beast that he was unable to identify the corpse by fingerprints because the body was too badly decomposed.

It’s believed that Carlson has been dead since March.


Her son said she was was “taking huge amounts of colloidal silver,” and told the Daily Beast “It’s not a great thing, but hopefully this brings an end to the Love Has Won debacle. I hope the damage stops now.”

The cult had been accused of brainwashing followers and stealing their money.

Carlson convinced followers that she had been trying to save humanity for 19 billion years.

bhunter@postmedia.com
On Twitter: @HunterTOSun
View attachment 8303

WHAT THE FUCK DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH TRUMP???
 

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Trump says New York criminal probe is in 'desperate search of a crime'
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Katanga Johnson
Publishing date:May 19, 2021 • 10 hours ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
Former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 28, 2021.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 28, 2021. PHOTO BY JOE SKIPPER /REUTERS
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Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday attacked New York state’s attorney general for launching a criminal probe of his family business, saying he was “being unfairly attacked and abused.”

“There is nothing more corrupt than an investigation that is in desperate search of a crime,” Trump said in a statement, adding that “we will overcome” any attempt at prosecution.


The office of New York Attorney General Letitia James, which has been investigating whether the New York City-based Trump Organization falsely reported property values to secure loans and obtain economic and tax benefits, said on Tuesday its probe was no longer purely civil.

“We are now actively investigating the Trump Organization in a criminal capacity, along with the Manhattan DA,” Fabien Levy, a spokesman for James, said in a statement, using the abbreviation for “district attorney.”


Trump on Wednesday assailed the investigation as politically motivated.

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“The attorney general of New York literally campaigned on prosecuting Donald Trump even before she knew anything about me,” the Republican former president said. James is a Democrat.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance has been investigating Trump’s pre-presidency business dealings for more than two years.

Vance’s office has said in court filings it was investigating “possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct” at the Trump Organization, including tax and insurance fraud and falsification of business records.

Separately, the New York Times reported late on Wednesday that the office of the New York Attorney General had been criminally investigating Allen Weisselberg, the CFO of the Trump Organization, for months over tax issues, and had notified the company about it in a January letter.

The investigators have examined whether taxes were paid on fringe benefits that Trump gave him, including cars and tens of thousands of dollars in private school tuition for at least one of Weisselberg’s grandchildren, according to the newspaper.
 

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'I think Donald Trump is going to flip on (his family)' lawyer Cohen tells MSNBC
Author of the article:postmedia News
Publishing date:May 20, 2021 • 19 hours ago • 1 minute read • 7 Comments
Michael Cohen (left), former personal lawyer for U.S. President Donald Trump.
Michael Cohen (left), former personal lawyer for U.S. President Donald Trump. PHOTO BY DON EMMERT AND BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI /AFP/Getty Images
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Michael Cohen knows Donald Trump well and he believes the former U.S. president will turn on his own family if he needs to save his own skin.

“I think Donald Trump is going to flip on all of them,” Cohen told MSNBC’s Joy Reid. “What do you think about that? Including his children.”


Cohen was formerly vice president of the Trump Organization, which is currently facing a criminal probe and its CFO, Allen Weisselberg, is being investigated for tax fraud.

“I really believe that Donald Trump cares for only himself, and he realizes that his goose is cooked, so when he will be asked about the Trump Organization’s finances he will blame everyone else,” Cohen said.

“See, this is the problem. It’s never, ever Donald Trump. It’s always somebody else … It wasn’t Donald Trump who had the affair (with Stormy Daniels),” Cohen said.

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Former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 28, 2021.
Trump says New York criminal probe is in 'desperate search of a crime'
People walk by Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, N.Y., on Aug. 24, 2018.
New York state probe of Trump Organization is now criminal: AG

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“It wasn’t Donald Trump who directed me to make the payments to Stormy Daniels. It wasn’t Donald Trump who got the benefit of the relationship and the actions. It was Michael Cohen. And I’m the bad guy into it. Why? Because I didn’t take the fall.”

Cohen said when “all of a sudden they turn around and start asking him about his tax returns or about the devaluation of the assets or the way that he took deductions, he will say, ‘I don’t do my taxes. It’s my accountant.'”


“He’s going to turn on his accountant and point the finger,” Cohen said.

“He’s going to say ‘Don Jr. handled that. Ivanka handled that. Melania. Don’t take me. Take Melania,'” Cohen said. “He’s going to tell them to take everyone except for himself.”

The Trump organization is run by Weisselberg and Trump children Donald Jr. and Eric.
 

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U.S. judge dismisses indictment against ex-Trump adviser Bannon, cites pardon
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Jonathan Stempel and Karen Freifeld
Publishing date:May 25, 2021 • 16 hours ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation
Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon exits the Manhattan Federal Court, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, Aug. 20, 2020.
Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon exits the Manhattan Federal Court, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, Aug. 20, 2020. PHOTO BY ANDREW KELLY /REUTERS / FILES
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NEW YORK — Steve Bannon, the onetime top strategist for former President Donald Trump and recipient of a presidential pardon, on Tuesday won dismissal of an indictment accusing him of defrauding donors to a fund to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres in Manhattan said dismissal was “the proper course” in light of the pardon, which Bannon received in the final hours of Trump’s presidency.

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Prosecutors had argued that instead of dismissing the indictment, the judge should merely dismiss Bannon as one of the four defendants. The defendants had been charged in connection with the alleged siphoning of hundreds of thousands of dollars from the $25 million “We Build the Wall” crowdfunding campaign.

But the judge said the pardon was valid, and that even if Bannon did not formally admit guilt “the issuance of a pardon may carry an imputation of guilt; acceptance a confession of it.” Prosecutors had said the pardon “speaks for itself” and provided all the “finality” Bannon was entitled to.

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The office of U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss in Manhattan declined to comment.

Bannon was “thrilled” with the indictment’s dismissal, his lawyer Robert Costello said after speaking with him.

But the judge said the pardon was valid, and that even if Bannon did not formally admit guilt “the issuance of a pardon may carry an imputation of guilt; acceptance a confession of it.”

Prosecutors had said the pardon “speaks for itself” and provided all the “finality” Bannon was entitled to.

The office of U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss in Manhattan declined to comment.


Bannon was “thrilled” with the indictment’s dismissal, his lawyer Robert Costello said after speaking with him.

“She certainly got the result right,” Costello said, referring to the judge. “A pardon doesn’t rewrite history…. But in this case, we’re dealing with a person who is presumed innocent by the Constitution of the United States and whose plea was not guilty, and nothing changes that history either.”

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It was not immediately clear how the dismissal will affect Bannon’s co-defendants, or whether they might try to steer blame toward Bannon as they defend themselves.

The defendants include Brian Kolfage, an Air Force veteran and triple amputee who led the We Build the Wall campaign.

“There is nothing I have to say about the situation,” Kolfage’s lawyer Harvey Steinberg said in an interview. “It is completely out of our hands, and within the Executive Branch’s discretion.”

Bannon, 67, championed the “America First” right-wing populism and fierce opposition to immigration that became hallmarks of Trump’s presidency.
 

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Prosecutor in Trump criminal probe convenes grand jury: report
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Publishing date:May 25, 2021 • 16 hours ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he and first lady Melania Trump depart the White House to board Marine One ahead of the inauguration of president-elect Joe Biden, in Washington, D.C., Jan. 20, 2021.
U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he and first lady Melania Trump depart the White House to board Marine One ahead of the inauguration of president-elect Joe Biden, in Washington, D.C., Jan. 20, 2021. PHOTO BY LEAH MILLIS /REUTERS
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WASHINGTON — Manhattan’s district attorney has convened a grand jury that is expected to decide whether to indict Donald Trump, which indicates he feels he has evidence of a crime by the former president or someone close to him or by his company, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday.

“The panel was convened recently and will sit three days a week for six months,” the Post said, citing two unnamed people familiar with the development.


“It is likely to hear several matters — not just the Trump case — during the duration of its term, which is longer than a traditional New York state grand-jury assignment, these people said.”

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance has been investigating Trump’s pre-presidency business dealings for more than two years.

Vance’s office has said in court filings it was investigating “possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct” at the Trump Organization, including tax and insurance fraud and falsification of business records.

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A spokesman for Vance, Danny Frost, declined to comment on the Post report.

The Post said the move indicates Vance’s investigation has reached an advanced stage and that he believes he has “found evidence of a crime – if not by Trump then by someone potentially close to him or by his company.”

The New York attorney general’s office said a week ago that it had opened a criminal investigation into Trump’s company, increasing the legal risk for Trump and his family.

Attorney General Letitia James has been investigating whether the Trump Organization falsely reported property values to secure loans and obtain economic and tax benefits.

Trump, who left office in January, has denied any wrongdoing.

Last week he attacked James, saying “we will overcome” any attempt at prosecution.
 

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Trump's blog page shuts down a month after launch
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Elizabeth Culliford
Publishing date:Jun 02, 2021 • 4 hours ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
In this file photo former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks to the press as he departs the White House in Washington, D.C., on August 6, 2020.
In this file photo former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks to the press as he departs the White House in Washington, D.C., on August 6, 2020. PHOTO BY OLIVIER DOULIERY /AFP via Getty Images
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Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s blog page, launched last month in the wake of major social media platforms banning him, has been removed from his website.

Trump aide Jason Miller on Wednesday said that the page, which had been called “From the Desk of Donald J. Trump,” would not be returning.


“It was just auxiliary to the broader efforts we have and are working on,” Miller said in an email to Reuters.

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Plans for the Republican former president to launch a social media platform have been teased for months by Trump’s team but with little detail.

“I’m hoping to have more information on the broader efforts soon, but I do not have a precise awareness of timing,” Miller said.

The blog page, which was billed as a place to “speak freely and safely,” served as a one-way means of communication that contained posts from Trump that could be liked and shared to social networks such as Twitter and Facebook from which Trump remains blocked.


A slew of social media platforms barred him following the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol by a pro-Trump mob.

Twitter Inc, which Trump had used frequently, has said its ban is permanent, even if he runs for office again. Before being banned, the businessman-turned-politician had more than 88 million followers.


Facebook Inc’s independent oversight board determined that the company was correct to suspend Trump but criticized it for the ban’s indefinite nature. In May, the oversight board gave Facebook six months to determine a proportionate response to the case.

Alphabet Inc’s YouTube has said it will restore Trump’s channel when it decides that the risk of violence has decreased.
 

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Facebook suspends Donald Trump's account until 2023, shifts rules for world leaders
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Elizabeth Culliford
Publishing date:Jun 04, 2021 • 21 hours ago • 4 minute read • 12 Comments
Former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 28, 2021.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 28, 2021. PHOTO BY OCTAVIO JONES /REUTERS
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Facebook Inc on Friday suspended former U.S. President Donald Trump until at least January 2023 and announced changes to how it will treat world leaders who break the rules on its site.

Facebook had suspended Trump’s account the day after the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot, determining he had incited violence. That suspension will last at least two years from the date of the initial block and would only be lifted if the risk to public safety has receded, Facebook said on Friday.


Trump criticized the decision as a form of censorship and an insult to his voters.

This new timeline denies Republican Trump a major social media megaphone ahead of the November 2022 congressional elections. However, it means he may be able to return to Facebook well before the next presidential election in late 2024.

Trump has been permanently banned by Twitter and remains suspended by Alphabet’s YouTube after the riot. Trump, who this week shut down his recently-launched blog, has teased plans to start his own platform.

“Given the gravity of the circumstances that led to Mr. Trump’s suspension, we believe his actions constituted a severe violation of our rules which merit the highest penalty available under the new enforcement protocols,” Facebook’s head of global affairs Nick Clegg said in the post.

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Facebook’s oversight board, an independent group funded by the company who rule on a small slice of controversial content decisions, in May upheld the company’s unprecedented block on Trump. However, the board ruled it was wrong to make the ban indefinite and called for a “proportionate response.”

In a statement on Friday, Trump slammed the decision and repeated false claims of voter fraud: “Facebook’s ruling is an insult to the record-setting 75M people, plus many others, who voted for us in the 2020 Rigged Presidential Election. They shouldn’t be allowed to get away with this censoring and silencing, and ultimately, we will win. Our Country can’t take this abuse anymore!” Several investigations have not found evidence of election fraud.

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Trump added, “Next time I’m in the White House there will be no more dinners, at his request, with Mark Zuckerberg and his wife. It will be all business!”

Facebook said it would work with experts to decide when the public safety risk had subsided for Trump to be restored to its platforms. It said it would evaluate factors including instances of violence, restrictions on peaceful assembly and other markers of civil unrest.

It also said there would be a set of escalating sanctions that would be triggered if Trump broke further rules that could lead to his permanent removal.


White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki, speaking to reporters, said of Facebook’s decision on Trump that it felt “pretty unlikely that the zebra is going to change his stripes over the next two years, we’ll see.”

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Social media companies have grappled in recent years with how to handle world leaders and politicians who violate their guidelines.

On Friday, the Nigerian government said it had indefinitely suspended Twitter’s activities in the country, two days after the company removed a post from President Muhammadu Buhari that threatened to punish regional secessionists.

In a major reversal that also came as part of Facebook’s Friday responses to its oversight board, Facebook said it was “removing the presumption we announced in 2019 that speech from politicians is inherently of public interest.”

The company said it now would weigh violative content from politicians against the potential risk of harm in the same way it does for all users. It will also disclose when it does use its “newsworthiness” exemption.

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However, a Facebook spokesman confirmed politicians’ posts will remain exempt from third-party fact-checking.

Facebook has come under fire from those who think it should abandon its hands-off approach to political speech, but has also been criticized by those, including Republican lawmakers and some free-expression advocates, who saw the Trump ban as a disturbing act of censorship.

Its decision on Trump and new policy changes could have major ramifications for how Facebook handles rule-breaking world leaders and officials on its services. It said that public figures who violate its rules by inciting or celebrating ongoing violence or civil unrest could be restricted for periods ranging from one month to two years.

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Social media companies have faced calls from some rights groups and activists to be more consistent in their approach to other leaders who have violated or pushed their rules. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Leader Ali Khamenei, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and lawmakers in India’s ruling party have drawn scrutiny.

Facebook also gave some transparency into its standard system on how many “strikes” users can receive before suspensions, which normally last up to 30 days.


The Trump case has been seen as a test for how the company responded to the ruling and recommendations of its recently-established oversight board.

The board also recommended Facebook review its role in the election fraud conspiracy that led to the Jan. 6 siege, which Facebook said it would partially implement through its partnership with academics studying the role it played in the 2020 U.S. elections. Facebook said it was implementing 15 of the 19 board recommendations.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=6Hm6p9ndz9Q
 

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Trump denounces Fauci, China and dangles 2024 prospects in rare public outing
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Makini Brice
Publishing date:Jun 05, 2021 • 22 hours ago • 2 minute read • 17 Comments
Former U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the NCGOP state convention in Greenville, North Carolina, Saturday, June 5, 2021.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the NCGOP state convention in Greenville, North Carolina, Saturday, June 5, 2021. PHOTO BY MELISSA SUE GERRITS /Getty Images
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GREENVILLE — Former President Donald Trump on Saturday sharply attacked U.S. infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci over his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, demanded reparations from China and denounced an investigation into his finances in a speech in North Carolina.

Speaking in Greenville, North Carolina, at the state’s Republican Party convention, Trump joined a chorus of Republican politicians who are criticizing Fauci for asking Americans to wear masks to guard against the virus and who at times has been skeptical of a theory that the virus escaped from a laboratory in Wuhan, China.


Trump called Fauci “not a great doctor but a great promoter” for his frequent television appearances. “But he’s been wrong on almost every issue and he was wrong on Wuhan and the lab also,” Trump said.

The origin of the virus remains hotly contested and remains under study by U.S. intelligence agencies.

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Trump’s own handling of the pandemic, in which nearly 600,000 people in the United States have died and he himself was infected, was a factor in his loss to Democratic President Joe Biden in the November 2020 election.

Trump called on China to pay $10 trillion in reparations to the United States and the world for its own handling of the virus, and he said nations should cancel their debt to Beijing.

Trump’s appearance had all the hallmarks of his signature campaign rallies complete with a musical playlist heavy on Elton John standards.

North Carolina Republican Party Chairman Michael Whatley introduced Trump as “our president,” a nod to the former president’s baseless claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him through voter fraud, which Trump called “the crime of the century.”

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Trump said a criminal investigation launched by the New York attorney general’s office is “the ultimate fishing expedition,” and said it was the latest attempt by Democrats to bring him down after two impeachment sagas when he was president.


“It’s been a five-year witch hunt, hoax after hoax,” said Trump. “They’ll never stop until November of 2024.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James has been investigating whether the Trump Organization falsely reported property values to secure loans and obtain economic and tax benefits.

Trump vowed to help Republicans in 2022 congressional elections and endorsed U.S. Representative Ted Budd for a U.S. Senate seat in North Carolina after his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, said she would not run.

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He appeared to dangle a possible run himself for president in 2024, saying he was looking forward to that year. Advisers say Trump, who faces a potential indictment in New York over his business dealings, has been discussing the possibility of another presidential campaign.

Trump emerged from seclusion for the Saturday event, the first in a planned series of speaking engagements this summer.

“The survival of America depends upon our ability to elect Republicans at every level, starting with the midterms next year,” Trump said.

Lara Trump announced on stage she had considered running for the North Carolina Senate seat but opted not to do so in 2022 in order to care for her young children. But she did not rule out a run in the future.
 

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U.S. accuses man of fraud for posing as Trump family members
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Jonathan Stempel
Publishing date:Jun 08, 2021 • 16 hours ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
In this file photo taken June 26, 2020, then U.S. President Donald Trump looks on during an American Workforce Policy Advisory Board Meeting in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C.
In this file photo taken June 26, 2020, then U.S. President Donald Trump looks on during an American Workforce Policy Advisory Board Meeting in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. PHOTO BY MANDEL NGAN /AFP via Getty Images / Files
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NEW YORK — A Pennsylvania man who impersonated Donald Trump’s teenage son and other members of the former president’s family, and claimed to have once fooled Trump himself, has been charged in Manhattan with defrauding hundreds of supporters of Trump’s re-election.

Federal prosecutors said Joshua Hall, 22, raised thousands of dollars by falsely claiming that Trump’s family backed his work for a political group supporting a second term for Trump.


The group did not exist, and Hall spent money he raised on personal expenses, prosecutors said.

Hall, of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, was arrested on Tuesday and charged with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. He faces up to 22 years in prison if convicted.

A federal public defender representing Hall did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Prosecutors said Hall styled himself on social media as a strong Trump supporter with close ties to Trump’s family, and attracted more than 100,000 followers.

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In one alleged impersonation by Hall last August, Trump’s then 14-year-old son Barron appeared to describe Hall as his “friend and partner” and said, “Josh is an amazing patriot who is doing tremendous things for our great country. He has my COMPLETE AND TOTAL ENDORSEMENT!”

Last December, Hall told The New York Times he was surprised when Donald Trump tweeted thanks to his sister Elizabeth Trump Grau after an article said she had joined Twitter to support his effort to overturn the 2020 election results. The newspaper said the Twitter account that prompted the article was Hall’s.

“I was like, ‘Oh, my goodness. He actually thinks it’s his sister,'” Hall told the newspaper.


Hall also said there was “no nefarious intention” behind the deception, and he was simply trying to rally Trump supporters and “have fun.”

Prosecutors said a crowdfunding website that hosted Hall’s bogus political group closed his account after he failed to show where money he raised was going.
 

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Police did not disperse protesters so Trump could hold photo op: U.S. watchdog report
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Jan Wolfe
Publishing date:Jun 09, 2021 • 18 hours ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation
Riot police chase a man as they rush protestors to clear Lafayette Park and the area around it across from the White House in Washington, U.S. June 1, 2020.
Riot police chase a man as they rush protestors to clear Lafayette Park and the area around it across from the White House in Washington, U.S. June 1, 2020. PHOTO BY KEN CEDENO /REUTERS
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WASHINGTON — A U.S. government watchdog on Wednesday released a report finding that federal police did not clear protesters from a park near the White House last summer so that former president Donald Trump could walk to a nearby church for a photo opportunity.

The report, by the U.S. Interior Department’s inspector general, said U.S. Park Police violently dispersed people from Lafayette Park on June 1, 2020 as part of a plan made earlier in the day for a contractor to install fencing.

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The report stated that U.S. Park Police had begun implementing the fencing plan “several hours” before they knew of Trump’s visit to the park, which occurred later that day.


“We found that the USPP had the authority and discretion to clear Lafayette Park and the surrounding areas on June 1,” the government watchdog said in a summary of its findings. “The evidence we obtained did not support a finding that the USPP cleared the park to allow the President to survey the damage and walk to St. John’s Church.”

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The report recommended U.S. Park Police develop more detailed policies for dispersing crowds, and improve coordination between federal agencies.

The report drew criticism from congressional Democrats, who have faulted federal agents for their use of pepper spray to clear protesters from the square and street.


“I come away from this report skeptical of the version presented here,” said House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raúl Grijalva, a California Democrat, in a statement.

“The Lafayette Square crackdown was played on repeat on televisions around the world and raised serious questions about why heavily armed law enforcement attacked peaceful civilians practicing their constitutional rights,” Grijalva said. “Not only does this report not answer those questions, it doesn’t even seem to acknowledge them.”

Trump called the report an “exoneration” in a statement.

“As we have said all along, and it was backed up in today’s highly detailed and professionally written report, our fine Park Police made the decision to clear the park to allow a contractor to safely install antiscale fencing,” Trump said.
 

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Trump Organization sues New York City for ending golf course contract
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Publishing date:Jun 21, 2021 • 3 hours ago • 1 minute read • Join the conversation
The Trump Golf Links golf club is pictured at Ferry Point in the Bronx borough of New York City, after the city severed several contracts with the Trump Organization in New York, Jan. 14, 2021.
The Trump Golf Links golf club is pictured at Ferry Point in the Bronx borough of New York City, after the city severed several contracts with the Trump Organization in New York, Jan. 14, 2021.
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WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump’s company sued New York City on Monday, accusing it of terminating a golf course contract with the Trump Organization to punish it after Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6.

The lawsuit, filed in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan, says the contract was improperly terminated by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration.

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The Trump Organization has managed the Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point in the Bronx borough since it opened in 2015.

“De Blasio had a had a pre-existing, politically-based predisposition to terminate Trump-related contracts, and the City used the events of January 6, 2021 as a pretext to do so,” according to the lawsuit.

New York City did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, interrupting the formal congressional certification of President Joe Biden’s election victory. The rampage came after Trump gave an incendiary speech to his followers, repeating false claims of a stolen election.


The Trump Organization says the city, in ending the contract, cited the unlikelihood of the company being able to attract a professional tournament to the golf course following the negative publicity surrounding the Capitol riot.

The Trump Organization says the contract did not require it to attract tournaments.

After the attack on the Capitol, the city also ended contracts with the Trump Organization to run two skating rinks and a carousel in Central Park.
 

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Trump joins Toronto-based video platform Rumble ahead of Ohio rally
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Elizabeth Culliford
Publishing date:Jun 26, 2021 • 23 hours ago • 1 minute read • 46 Comments
In this file photo former U.S. President Donald Trump points at the end of a rally to support Republican Senate candidates at Valdosta Regional Airport in Valdosta, Georgia on Dec. 5, 2020.
In this file photo former U.S. President Donald Trump points at the end of a rally to support Republican Senate candidates at Valdosta Regional Airport in Valdosta, Georgia on Dec. 5, 2020. PHOTO BY ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS /AFP via Getty Images
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Former U.S. President Donald Trump joined video platform Rumble on Saturday, the same day he will take the stage at a campaign-style rally in Ohio, his first such event since the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Trump lost his social media megaphone earlier this year when he was blocked by a slew of platforms after his supporters stormed the Capitol. He was permanently banned from Twitter and remains suspended by Facebook until at least 2023 and by Alphabet’s YouTube until the company determines the risk of violence has decreased.

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Trump spokeswoman Liz Harrington told Reuters that joining Rumble was in addition to the former president’s plan to start his own platform, rather than a replacement for this plan. Trump, who earlier this month shut down his recently-launched blog, has not given details on the proposed platform.

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Former U.S. president Donald Trump reacts at his first post-presidency campaign rally at the Lorain County Fairgrounds in Wellington, Ohio, June 26, 2021.
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“It is a great way to reach the American people in a time of unprecedented assault on free speech in our country by Big Tech tyrants,” Harrington said in an email to Reuters.


Rumble Chief Executive Officer Chris Pavlovski confirmed Trump’s verified account had been set up on the site but declined to comment further. Trump advisor Dan Scavino tweeted that Trump’s Ohio rally would be live-streamed on the platform.

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Rumble, which was launched in 2013 by Canadian tech entrepreneur Pavlovski as an alternative YouTube-style site, has become popular with U.S. conservatives.

Billionaire venture capitalist Peter Thiel and J.D. Vance, the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” are investors in the platform.
 

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At Ohio rally, Trump knocks Biden on border, hints at 2024 plans
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Nathan Layne
Publishing date:Jun 26, 2021 • 3 hours ago • 4 minute read • 73 Comments
Former U.S. president Donald Trump reacts at his first post-presidency campaign rally at the Lorain County Fairgrounds in Wellington, Ohio, June 26, 2021.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump reacts at his first post-presidency campaign rally at the Lorain County Fairgrounds in Wellington, Ohio, June 26, 2021. PHOTO BY SHANNON STAPLETON /REUTERS
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WELLINGTON — At his first rally since leaving the White House, former president Donald Trump on Saturday lambasted the Biden administration’s immigration policies and sought to energize Republicans to take back majorities in Congress next year.

Appearing to relish being back in front of thousands of supporters, Trump repeated his false claim that his defeat in the November 2020 election was marred by fraud.

Trump knocks Biden on border, hints at 2024 plans...
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Trump left office in the aftermath of the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters, shortly after a speech in which he urged a crowd to “fight” when then President-elect Joe Biden’s victory was about to be certified by lawmakers.

Trump survived a second impeachment on a charge linked to the violence and has kept broad influence over the Republican Party, in part by leaving open the question of whether he will run for office again in 2024.

He dangled that possibility on Saturday to the crowd.

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“We won the election twice and it’s possible we’ll have to win it a third time. It’s possible,” he said.

Trump won the 2016 election against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. He lost in 2020.

Whether he runs again could be influenced by the outcome of various legal troubles. The Manhattan district attorney’s office has told Trump’s lawyers it is considering filing criminal charges against his family business, the New York Times reported on Friday.

The former president highlighted parts of his regular grievance list at the rally, with particular focus on the rising number of immigrants crossing over the U.S. southern border, an issue Republicans have zeroed in on to rally their voters.


“You have millions of people coming into our country. We have no idea who they are. Joe Biden is doing the exact opposite as we did,” Trump said.

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Biden’s White House has called Trump’s immigration policies inhumane.

While keeping his political plans vague, the former president spoke forcefully in favour of getting his party back in control of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.

“We will take back the House, we will take back the Senate, and we will take back America, and we will do it soon,” he said.

Democrats’ razor-thin majorities in both chambers of Congress will be on the line in the 2022 midterm elections and history favours Republicans’ chances of gaining seats in those contests.

REVENGE ENDORSEMENTS

While Trump has made speeches at Republican events since his defeat, the rally in Ohio, a state he won in 2020, marked a return to the freewheeling mass gatherings that have been critical to retaining the support of his enthusiastic base.

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He campaigned for former White House aide Max Miller, who has launched a primary challenge against Representative Anthony Gonzalez, one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump on a charge of inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol that left five dead, including a Capitol Police officer.

Trump has vowed to campaign against all 10. He endorsed a challenger to Senator Lisa Murkowski, the only one of the seven Senate Republicans who voted to convict him in his January impeachment trial who is up for re-election in 2022.

The Ohio event in Wellington, about 40 miles (64 km) southwest of Cleveland, was the first of three expected public appearances, followed by a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border with Texas Governor Greg Abbott on June 30 and a rally in Sarasota, Florida, on July 3.

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Supporters said they hoped Trump would use such events to help unify the party behind like-minded candidates for Congress.

Trump repeatedly attacked what he called “woke generals,” following an exchange this week in which the top U.S. military officer hit back against a growing conservative movement opposed to teaching certain theories about racism.

“Our generals and our admirals are now focused more on this nonsense than they are on our enemies,” Trump said.

He criticized the media, a regular foil, and tried to co-opt the phrase “Big Lie,” which critics have used to describe his efforts to discredit the 2020 results.

Trump’s repeated false claims of election fraud have taken hold of Republican voters. Some 53% of Republicans believe Trump won the 2020 election and blame his loss on illegal voting, and one quarter of the overall public agreed that Trump won, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.


Rally attendee Tyler Voyik, 64, said he came to the rally to show his support for Trump, who he voted for in 2016 and 2020.

Voyik lives in Ohio but spends a lot of time in Florida. He would support Trump if he got the nomination in 2024 but would prefer Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

“I think he could do better by supporting somebody else, but if he runs I’ll support him,” Voyik said. “If he wins the nomination I’ll support him all the way.”
 

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Trump seeks spotlight at U.S.-Mexico border with attacks on Biden policies
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Julia Harte
Publishing date:Jun 30, 2021 • 45 minutes ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation
People listen to former president Donald Trump's address during a tour to an unfinished section of the border wall on June 30, 2021 in Pharr, Texas.
People listen to former president Donald Trump's address during a tour to an unfinished section of the border wall on June 30, 2021 in Pharr, Texas. PHOTO BY BRANDON BELL /Getty Images
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WESLACO — Former President Donald Trump, in his latest effort to regain the national spotlight, travelled to the U.S.-Mexico border on Wednesday to accuse President Joe Biden of neglecting national security by dismantling border controls.

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Speaking in front of an unfinished section of border wall, Trump said his Democratic successor’s decision to undo his hard-line policies had led to increased illegal immigration and drug smuggling.

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“Biden is destroying our country,” Trump said.

Trump remains one of the most influential figures in Republican politics and has flirted with running for president again in 2024.

His appearance near Weslaco at the southern tip of Texas, his second public event in recent days, had the trappings of a miniature campaign rally as he revived old grievances from his time in office, including his 2020 loss to Biden and questions about Trump’s mental and physical fitness while president.

At least 31 Republicans in the House of Representatives skipped out of work to attend the event and were recognized from the stage by Trump. Texas Governor Gregg Abbott, a fellow Republican and possible 2024 presidential candidate, accompanied Trump on the visit.

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Trump has struggled to maintain a high profile following his loss to Biden in November and after being permanently banned from Twitter and suspended for two years by Facebook for making false claims of election fraud.


An accelerating criminal investigation into his business empire could complicate any return to campaigning. The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that the Manhattan district attorney is expected to charge his company and its chief financial officer with tax-related crimes on Thursday. Trump did not respond to reporters’ questions about the investigation.

Trump’s comments on Wednesday come as arrests at the southwest border have risen to the highest monthly levels in two decades since Biden took office, according to preliminary figures first reported by Reuters.

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Since he took office in January, Biden has reversed many of Trump’s restrictive immigration policies. He halted construction of Trump’s signature border wall and ended a program that forced tens of thousands of migrants to wait in Mexico pending resolution of their U.S. asylum cases.

Republicans have blamed the increased border arrests on more welcoming policies.

They have also signaled that immigration will be a focus of the party’s campaign to retake control of Congress from Democrats in next year’s midterm elections.


Reuters/Ipsos polling suggests their attacks are having little effect. About 10% of 4,420 adults ranked immigration as the nation’s top priority in a June 11-17 poll, down 5 points from a similar survey in April. Among Republicans, 19% listed immigration as a top priority, down 10 points from April.

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Americans’ approval of Biden’s handling of border issues is nearly unchanged over the past few months, with 47% saying they disapproved of his leadership on immigration, while 40% said they approved.

Vice President Kamala Harris, whom Biden has tasked with addressing the root causes of migration from Central America – poverty, crime, corruption, and the effects of climate change – urged officials to focus on practical solutions during her visit to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday.

Democrats called on Republicans in Congress to work with them to overhaul the nation’s immigration laws.

“Anything less is political theater,” Democratic National Committee spokesperson Ammar Moussa said in a statement.
 

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Trump's company and CFO expected to face criminal charges Thursday, source says
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Publishing date:Jun 30, 2021 • 2 hours ago • 3 minute read • 19 Comments
Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg looks on as then-U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, May 31, 2016.
Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg looks on as then-U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, May 31, 2016. PHOTO BY CARLO ALLEGRI/FILE PHOTO /REUTERS
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NEW YORK — Former U.S. President Donald Trump’s namesake company and its chief financial officer are expected to be hit with criminal charges on Thursday by prosecutors in Manhattan, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

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Charges by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance are expected to focus on whether Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg and other officials received perks and benefits such as rent-free apartments and leased cars without reporting them properly on their tax returns, people familiar with the probe have said.


The person familiar with the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Weisselberg and the company are expected to be arraigned on an indictment on Thursday.

Trump’s lawyer Ronald Fischetti told Reuters on Monday that prosecutors suggested that the charges would be related to taxes and fringe benefits and that Trump himself would not be charged in the indictment.

“This will be their first blow,” Fischetti said of the prosecutors, adding that in a meeting with them last week they said they were still pursuing their investigation.

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Mary Mulligan, a lawyer for Weisselberg, declined to comment on possible charges. Vance’s office also declined to comment. Lawyers for the Trump Organization did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Trump, during a trip on Wednesday to Weslaco, Texas near the Mexican border to criticize President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, did not respond to questions shouted by reporters about the criminal charges.

In a statement on Monday, Trump called prosecutors biased and said his company’s actions were “in no way a crime.”

The Trump Organization could face fines and other penalties if convicted.


Charges also could increase pressure on Weisselberg to cooperate with prosecutors, which he has resisted. Weisselberg is a close Trump confidant, making his cooperation potentially crucial to any future case against the former president.

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Court filings, public records and subpoenaed documents have shown that Weisselberg and his son Barry have received perks and gifts potentially worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, including many benefits related to real estate.

The case could be charged as a scheme by the company to pay people off the books in order to hide assets over many years.

One possible charge would be “scheme to defraud,” according to New York attorney Marc Scholl, a former prosecutor in the Manhattan DA’s office.


“‘Scheme to defraud’ is a crime that allows the prosecution to detail a narrative in the indictment describing the criminal conduct and how it originated, no matter how long ago the crime started,” Scholl said.

Prosecutors in Vance’s office accelerated their focus on the Trump Organization’s use of perks and benefits last fall. The office of New York state Attorney General Letitia James, which had also been looking into the Trump Organization, said in May that its probe had turned into a criminal investigation and that it had joined forces with Vance’s office.

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Vance, a Democrat, has in his nearly three-year-old investigation examined an array of potential wrongdoing, including whether Trump’s company manipulated the value of its real estate to reduce its taxes and secure favorable loan terms.

Prior to entering the White House in 2017, Trump put his company into a trust overseen by his adult sons and Weisselberg, who has maintained tight control over its finances. It is unclear what role Trump now has at the company.

The case could also complicate Trump’s political future, as he flirts with a possible 2024 White House run.

Jennifer Weisselberg, the former wife of Barry Weisselberg, has met with prosecutors half a dozen times.

Her lawyer Duncan Levin told Reuters on Wednesday that “over the past half year, Jen has been cooperating with prosecutors. We have turned over a mountain of evidence to them to support these charges. We’re very gratified the DA’s office is moving forward with these charges.”

In an interview with MSNBC, Jennifer Weisselberg said she would be prepared to testify while adding: “My documents at this time are witnesses themselves. They are being used, and they’re being walked through the grand jury panel.”

“We’ve been going through questions pertaining to compensation, perks and taxes just to review how to … inform a grand jury,” she added.
 

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Trump's company, CFO indicted in 'sweeping' tax fraud
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Karen Freifeld and Jonathan Stempel and Jan Wolfe
Publishing date:Jul 01, 2021 • 11 hours ago • 3 minute read • 5 Comments
Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg looks on as then-U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, May 31, 2016.
Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg looks on as then-U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower in Manhattan, New York, May 31, 2016. PHOTO BY CARLO ALLEGRI/FILE PHOTO /REUTERS
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NEW YORK — Donald Trump’s namesake company and longtime financial chief pleaded not guilty on Thursday to what a New York prosecutor called a “sweeping and audacious” tax fraud, arising from a probe into the former U.S. president’s company and its business practices.

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The indictment against the Trump Organization and its chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg is the first in a nearly three-year investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance.

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It could undermine the Trump Organization’s relationships with banks and business partners, and complicate Trump’s political future as the Republican resumes holding rallies and mulls a 2024 White House run.

Trump himself has not been charged. Vance was recently joined in conducting the probe by New York Attorney General Letitia James, a fellow Democrat.

Prosecutors accused the defendants of having since 2005 defrauded tax authorities by awarding “off the books” benefits to Trump Organization executives.

Weisselberg, 73, was charged with concealing $1.76 million of income, including rent for a Manhattan apartment, lease payments for two Mercedes Benz vehicles and tuition for family members, with Trump signing checks for the tuition himself.

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Prosecutors said this enabled Weisselberg, who has worked for Trump for about 48 years, to evade roughly $900,000 in taxes and collect $133,000 in refunds he did not deserve.

“To put it bluntly, this was a sweeping and audacious illegal payments scheme,” Assistant District Attorney Carey Dunne said at the arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court. “This is not a standard practice in the business community, nor was it the act of a rogue or isolated employee.”

The indictment could increase pressure on Weisselberg to cooperate with prosecutors, which he has resisted.

Such cooperation could become crucial to any future case against the former president.

“If the allegations in the indictment are true, this was pants-on-fire tax evasion,” said Daniel Hemel, a tax law professor at the University of Chicago. “It is very hard to believe that this could have happened without the man on top knowing.”

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‘WITCH HUNT’

The 15-count indictment charged the defendants with tax fraud and falsifying business records.

Weisselberg was also charged with grand larceny, which alone carries a maximum 15-year prison term. The Trump Organization could face fines and other penalties if convicted.

Trump released a statement in which he renewed his allegation that Vance was playing politics by targeting him.

“The political Witch Hunt by the Radical Left Democrats, with New York now taking over the assignment, continues,” Trump said. “It is dividing our Country like never before!”

Vance and James attended Thursday’s arraignment.

“This investigation will continue, and we will follow the facts and the law wherever they may lead,” James, who is conducting a related civil probe, said in a statement.

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Weisselberg wore handcuffs as he was led to the courtroom.

He was released without bail and driven away in a black SUV, with an onlooker shouting: “You’re going to prison.”

Alan Futerfas, a lawyer for the Trump Organization, told reporters that the company was “very optimistic” the charges would not significantly hurt its business.

“If the name of this company was something else, I don’t think these charges would have been brought,” he said.

In a separate statement, the Trump Organization said Vance was using Weisselberg as “a pawn in a scorched earth attempt to harm the former president.

“This is not justice; this is politics,” the company said.


BROAD PROBE

Trump’s company operates hotels, golf courses, and resorts around the world.

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Before entering the White House in January 2017, Trump put the organization into a trust overseen by his adult sons Donald Jr and Eric, as well as Weisselberg.

It is unclear what role Trump has now at the company.

Vance’s probe got a boost in February when the district attorney obtained eight years of Trump’s tax returns.

Trump had spent 18 months, including two trips to the U.S. Supreme Court, to keep Vance from seeing them.

Vance has been examining an array of potential wrongdoing, including whether the Trump Organization manipulated the value of its real estate to reduce taxes and secure favourable loan terms.

He has also been examining hush money payments made before the 2016 presidential election to two women who said they had sexual encounters with Trump, which he has denied.

Michael Cohen, a former Trump lawyer who turned against his former boss and has cooperated with Vance’s probe, has said Weisselberg was involved in reimbursing him for payments to one of the women, adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

Jennifer Weisselberg, the former wife of Weisselberg’s son Barry, has been cooperating with Vance’s office, and provided boxes of tax and other financial records.

Vance has been district attorney for 11-1/2 years. He leaves office at the end of the year.
 

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Trump hosts campaign-style rally in Florida as he aims to retain Republican spotlight
Author of the article:Reuters
Reuters
Gabriella Borter
Publishing date:Jul 03, 2021 • 2 hours ago • 3 minute read • 53 Comments
Former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 28, 2021.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Orlando, Fla., Feb. 28, 2021. PHOTO BY OCTAVIO JONES /REUTERS
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SARASOTA — Former U.S. President Donald Trump will hold a rally on Saturday in Sarasota, Florida, his second campaign-style event of the summer as he seeks to retain his hold over the Republican Party and bolster allies ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.

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The rally, billed as a Fourth of July celebration featuring fireworks, is expected to draw several thousand people from across the state which Trump, a Republican, won by more than three percentage points in the 2020 presidential election.


By afternoon, several thousand people wearing red, white and blue had arrived at the Sarasota Fairgrounds for the rally, some wearing Trump 2024 T-shirts and waving American flags.

Trump is likely to berate President Joe Biden, repeat his false claim that he lost the 2020 election due to fraud, and urge his supporters to back his allies in their midterm campaigns as Republicans fight to take back control of Congress from the Democratic Party next year.

Jack Brill, chair of the Republican Party of Sarasota County, said he hoped the former president would use his speech to galvanize his supporters ahead of the midterms and the Florida gubernatorial race.

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“I’m hoping that this will get everybody fired up as we moved forward for our 2022 elections,” Brill said.

The Sarasota event is the latest in Trump’s return to public life after his election loss and the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, which was carried out by his supporters who believed his false claim that the election was rigged.

Some 53% of Republicans believe Trump won and blame his loss on illegal voting, and one quarter of the overall public agreed Trump won, a May 17-19 Reuters/Ipsos poll showed.

Trump held his first comeback rally on June 26 in Wellington, Ohio, where he voiced support for his former White House aide Max Miller’s primary campaign against U.S. Representative Anthony Gonzalez, who had voted to impeach Trump over the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol.

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BUILDUP TO 2024

Trump, 75, has dangled the possibility of running for president again in 2024, and his 2021 rally series marks his effort to keep his base energized and in his camp.

Whether he runs could depend on the outcome of some of the investigations and lawsuits facing Trump.

On Thursday, Trump’s namesake company and its chief financial officer pleaded not guilty to criminal charges brought as part of an investigation by the Manhattan district attorney into suspected tax fraud. Trump has accused the prosecutors of being politically motivated.

Many Republicans see an appealing option for a 2024 party nominee in Florida’s 42-year-old governor, Ron DeSantis. A longtime Trump ally, DeSantis has been at the forefront of Republican-led fights against strict anti-coronavirus lockdowns, racial justice protests and expanded ballot access.

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In a straw poll of potential 2024 candidates at a conservative conference in Denver in June, DeSantis finished ahead of Trump, 74% to 71%.

DeSantis’ office has said the governor is focused on winning re-election in Florida next year, not aspiring to national office.

Lindsay Gordon, a 35-year-old Sarasota resident who works in retail, said it was her third time attending a Trump rally and she was excited to show her support for the former president. She said she hopes Trump runs again, but thought DeSantis might be a better, less-polarizing alternative.

“I think DeSantis would probably have a better opportunity seeing as he’s younger,” Gordon said. “Because he’s still new and fresh there’s still a chance to get people to understand where he’s coming from. There isn’t as much of this negativity.”

DeSantis was not attending Trump’s Sarasota rally, a spokesperson said, since he plans to spend the weekend in Surfside, Florida, where rescuers have spent more than a week searching for survivors in the rubble of a condo building collapse that killed at least 24 people and left scores missing.