DL Open Thread: Friday, March 31, 2023

My thoughts on the Trump indictment. More specifically, the reaction to it.  I don’t get this gnashing of teeth that this is the ‘weakest case’.  It’s merely the first case that reached the point of being ready for indictment.  You can’t view the case in isolation.  There will almost certainly be an indictment in Georgia.  I have no idea what Garland will do, but we could be looking at one from the Justice Department.  These are in addition to all the civil suits that are percolating.  Bottom line:  It was a righteous indictment, and it’s only the beginning.  Stop rending those garments, garments ain’t cheap.  Death by a thousand cuts is the least Trump deserves.

50 Years Of Trump Dodging The Law:

Already, Trump’s statements about the Daniels case have followed a pattern he set as far back as 1973, when federal prosecutors accused Trump and his father, Fred, a prominent New York City apartment developer, of turning away Black people who wanted to rent from them. In that case, Trump first denied the allegation, then said he didn’t know his actions were illegal, and then, through his lawyer, accused the government of conducting a bogus “Gestapo-like investigation.”

This time, Trump initially said he’d never had any sexual relationship with Daniels or that, as he told friends privately, Daniels was not his type. Then, he said he didn’t know Daniels had been paid $130,000 to remain silent about their alleged relationship, which he denies existed. And then he said that perhaps he had known about the payment, but that he never ordered his attorney, Michael Cohen, to make it.

Trump’s attitude toward law, lawyers and the notion of legal jeopardy closely tracks his approach to business, politics and personal relationships: He has said that he believes in instinct and gut over expertise and rules, that any publicity is good publicity, and that most Americans admire successful people even when — or especially when — they skirt the rules.

Trump’s confidence that he can finesse legal proceedings stems from two sources: his father, who cultivated close ties with Democratic Party officials and well-connected lawyers, and New York power broker Roy Cohn, a lawyer — later disbarred for fraud and misrepresentation — who taught the young Trump how to turn tables on prosecutors.

That old playbook might work.  He’s for sure not learning a new playbook now.  Sourcing indicates as many as 34 counts of business fraud.  Many great tweets.  This is my early favorite:

“The booking officer saluted me with tears in his eyes and said Mr. President, these are most magnificent manliest hands I have ever fingerprinted”.

Whack-Job Judge Strikes Down Much Of Obamacare.  Even the right-wing Supreme Court has overruled him on Obamacare before.  But check this out:

A federal district court judge in Texas has gutted a core healthcare protection that Americans have enjoyed for more than a decade: a government mandate guaranteeing cost-free preventative services. Under the ruling, cancer screenings, pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for preventing HIV, and care for pregnant people may soon become a lot more expensive. The Biden administration will appeal the decision—but there’s no guarantee that higher courts, packed with far-right appointees, will overturn today’s ruling.

One of the critical benefits in President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act was the guarantee that insurance would cover preventative care free of charge—no copay, no deductibles. This preventative care mandate made it much more likely that people who are struggling financially can access essential care to preserve their health and catch diseases early.

But Judge Reed O’Connor, a George W. Bush appointee, ruled Thursday that the preventative care mandate is unconstitutional. Under the decision, the list of services that could become out of reach for many people is long, and, aside from the latest recommendations on life-saving cancer screenings, HIV prevention, and prenatal care, also includes physical therapy for the elderly, Type 2 diabetes screening, smoking cessation, childhood vision tests, among other medical interventions.

O’Connor is a go-to judge for conservatives trying to undo Democratic policies, and this is not the first time he has tried to weaken Obamacare. In 2018, he ruled the entire law unconstitutional in an opinion ridiculed for its tortured logic; the Supreme Court eventually overruled him. O’Connor has kneecapped other Democratic policies, including multiple rules to protect transgender people from discrimination, and ruled in favor of allowing sex discrimination on religious grounds.

Illinois Native Americans Likely To Succeed With Repatriation Bill:

For more than 30 years, tribal nations have been asking the state of Illinois and its state-run institutions to return the remains of their ancestors for reburial within the state. For just as long, Illinois has made that nearly impossible.

But now, legislation moving through the Illinois General Assembly would finally pave the way for the remains of thousands of Native Americans to be repatriated.

“Hey, Buddy, Do Ya Wanna Buy A Mansion Real Cheap?”  Filthy-rich Angelenos trying to sell mega-mansions before Wealth Tax on property transfers takes place.  We should do something like this in Delaware.  They wanna bolt to Florida? Fine.  Give the state some multi-million dollar parting gifts:

As the clock ticks down to the start of Los Angeles’ new “mansion tax”, the city’s real estate market is offering some deadline deals.

The new tax, designed to raise public funds to prevent homelessness in one of the most expensive housing markets in the country, imposes a 4% tax on property sales between $5m and $10m, and a 5.5% tax on sales over $10m.

Voters approved the tax in November, amid a growing humanitarian crisis that has left more than 28,000 people unhoused and living outside in Los Angeles. Real estate interests are now fighting the new law in court, arguing that it violates California’s constitution.

They’ll probably win. Because the rights of billionaires are protected while the rights of the homeless are not.

Some properties that might have been priced in the low $5m range are now being marketed at $4.9m, just under the tax cutoff, with buyers agreeing to pay a property’s closing costs instead of the sellers, said Ken Fields, a Los Angeles real estate attorney.

With pricier properties, “There has definitely been a push to sell before the deadline to avoid the tax,” he said. “I can think of several deals where the sellers have termination rights if the transaction doesn’t close by the deadline.”

Proponents of the new wealth tax are not impressed. “Multimillionaires are giving away luxury cars to get out of a tax that helps people sleeping in their cars,” Peter Dreier, an urban policy expert, told the LA Times.

Fuckers.

Good News: Delaware Deadly Weapons Proponents Lose In Court.  For now:

A federal judge this week denied Delaware gun groups a preliminary injunction in their lawsuit seeking to block legislation that bans assault weapons and high-capacity firearm magazines.

The lawsuit centers on two pieces of the legislation. The first is the law that now makes it illegal to make, sell, purchase or possess assault-style weapons, including AK-47s and AR-15s. The legislation does grandfather currently owned weapons and protects owners from being misidentified as those breaking the law and grants certain exceptions for law enforcement and military members.

In November, the groups filed for a preliminary injunction against the two laws, looking for the judge to temporarily block the legislation from going into effect until the court made a decision in the case. The groups cited that Delawareans’ rights were being violated under the Second and 14th Amendments.

Judge Richard Andrews wrote in his decision that the gun groups “failed to meet their burden” of proving two necessary factors: The likelihood of success on the merits and irreparable harm in the absence of a preliminary injunction. 

What do you want to talk about?