US President Donald Trump will leave Washington, D.C. on the morning of January 20 shortly before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, with a grand ceremony being planned for his departure, according to media reports.
............Flying in Air Force One for the last time, the President will go to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, where he will reportedly live his post-presidential life.
Companies and institutions are shunning President Trump and some associates after the attack on the U.S. Capitol. The Trump family business, built on luxury hospitality, is contemplating a reinvention.
In the span of four days, President Trump’s family business has lost its online store, the buzz from Mr. Trump’s promotional tweets about its luxury resorts and bragging rights as host to one of the world’s most prestigious golf tournaments.
The mob attackon Congress last week by Mr. Trump’s supporters has spurred a reckoning for the Trump Organization by businesses and institutions, at a scale far greater than his previous polarizing actions.
And the Trump brand, premised on gold-plated luxury and a super-affluent clientele, may not fully recover from the fallout of his supporters violently storming and vandalizing the U.S. Capitol, hospitality analysts say and some people close to the business acknowledge. Other companies linked with the Trumps, including Deutsche Bank, the president’s largest lender, and Signature Bank, are also seeking distance from him and his business.
The backlash is part of a broader shunning of Mr. Trump and his allies unfolding in the wake of the deadly assault on the Capitol. Schools stripped the president of honorary degrees, some prominent Republicans threatened to leave the party and the New York State Bar Associationannounced it had begun investigating Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, which could lead to his removal from the group.
As House Democrats introduced an article of impeachment on Monday, more than a dozen big businesses vowed to withhold certain political donations. Coca-Cola said it would pause donations from its political action committee, saying in a statement that “these events will long be remembered and will factor into our future contribution decisions.” Marriott, the giant hotel chain, said it would pause donations from its political action committee “to those who voted against certification of the election,” a reference to the congressional Republicans who joined Mr. Trump’s false claims of election fraud. Morgan Stanley and AT&T said they, too, would suspend contributions to those lawmakers.
The Trump Organization had already been facing considerable financial challenges. Many of its golf and resort properties had been losing money, and the pandemic had forced it to close some restaurants and bars and drastically reduce hotel occupancy, including at its hotel a few blocks from the White House. And with more than $300 million in debt coming due in the next few years that the president has personally guaranteed, there had been some urgency for the company to line up new deals.
While such an array of challenges would spell doom for just about any hospitality brand, executives of the Trump Organization said they planned on cashing in on Mr. Trump’s global fame with overseas branding deals.
“There has never been a political figure with more support or energy behind them than my father,” Eric Trump, the president’s son, who helps run the family business, said in a statement on Monday.
The family is also already considering starting a media outfit that would cater to Mr. Trump’s tens of millions of supporters, an effort that gained some urgency last week when Twitter and Facebook barred the president from their platforms.
“There will be no shortage of incredible opportunities in real estate and beyond,” Eric Trump said.
Before becoming president, Mr. Trump had cycled through many lines of business, including casinos, an airline and reality television. Some ventures were wildly successful, while others were colossal failures. But they revealed his ability to camouflage his wares and capitalize on opportunities, even when his name appeared irreparably tarnished.
This time, the challenges are steeper. The fallout began on Thursday, when the e-commerce provider Shopify said it had terminated online stores affiliated with the president.
The biggest blow came on Sunday, when the P.G.A. of America announced it would stripMr. Trump’s New Jersey golf club of a major tournament.
Mr. Trump was said to be “gutted” by the P.G.A. decision, according to a person close to the White House, as he had worked personally for years to push the tournament executives to hold events at his courses.
In a statement that hinted at a potential legal challenge, the Trump Organization called the decision “a breach of a binding contract,” adding that “they have no right to terminate the agreement.”
The P.G.A. Championship, scheduled for May 2022, was the ultimate golf-world trophy for the Trump brand, which over the last two decades has assembled an international collection of golf courses and resorts that now collectively represent about a third of the company’s revenue, according to the most recent financial disclosure report.
The tournament itself is not a major source of profit, but hosting an internationally recognized event is enormously valuable for marketing. It also would have bestowed greater legitimacy on Mr. Trump and his brand, which includes 16 golf clubs around the world.
“It has become clear that conducting the P.G.A. Championship at Trump Bedminster would be detrimental to the P.G.A. of America brand,” Jim Richerson, the P.G.A. of America president, said in a video statement.
The loss associated with the cancellation is difficult to calculate, but it will be very large and last for years, said Jay Karen, chief executive of the National Golf Course Owners Association.
“You have millions of avid golfers who have a proverbial bucket list,” tied to major tournaments like the P.G.A. Championship, he said. “If you had a major coming to you and it was pulled from you, that would certainly sting.”
In an email to members on Monday, the golf club said, “We have had a wonderful partnership with the P.G.A. of America and share your disappointment on their decision.”
The damage is expected to continue as various companies and industries reassess their relationship with Mr. Trump and his family business.
Mr. Trump’s hotels, like the Trump National Doral near Miami, had already lost many of the major corporate conferences after he made disparaging remarks about Muslims and Mexicans, among others, during his first presidential campaign, and his comments after a deadly rally by white supremacists in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017 suggestingthat “there is blame on both sides.”
But the fallout from the attacks last week will be steeper and longer lasting, analysts and people familiar with the company said. Some members of the president’s golf clubs are reassessing whether to keep their memberships because of possible protests and vandalism, one of the people said.
David J. Sangree, a hotel industry consultant from Ohio, said that Mr. Trump’s role in the attack on the Capitol would further undermine the company’s efforts to appeal to affluent customers who were not Trump supporters.
“This is a big negative,” Mr. Sangree said. “There’s no question they’re going to lose more events because many groups are saying, ‘We don’t want to be associated with this brand.’”
Even plans to launch a Trump media platform will face obstacles. If Mr. Trump seeks to forge a new conservative news network, or join an existing one like OAN or Newsmax, corporate advertisers are hardly guaranteed to support him.
“There’s only so much that My Pillow guy can subsidize,” said Jon Klein, the former president of CNN U.S., referring to Mike Lindell, the chief executive of My Pillow who is an outspoken supporter of the president. “It’s suddenly a lot more daunting a proposition than it was a week ago for OAN and Newsmax.”
Hah articles of impeachment to be filed against Sleepy Joe next week!
BREAKING: Newly-elected Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene announces to Newsmax TV's Greg Kelly that "On behalf of the American people - on January 21st I will be filing articles of impeachment against Joe Biden." - via Greg Kelly Reports weekdays at 7PM ET on Newsmax TV
Georgia Man Charged In U.S. Capitol Attack Dies By Suicide
ATLANTA (NEXSTAR) — A man arrested following last week’s storming of the Capitol has died, according to a report from 11 Alive.
Christopher Stanton Georgia, of Alpharetta, Georgia, was charged with attempting to “enter certain property, that is, the United States Capitol Grounds, against the will of the United States Capitol Police.”
According to 11 Alive, the Fulton County Medical Examiner ruled his death a suicide.
According to police reports, Georgia and others were arrested hours after Wednesday’s events after violating the District-wide curfew. Officers reportedly asked them to leave the property, and they were taken into custody when they refused.
A police report shows Georgia’s death as “under investigation,” according to 11 Alive.
Prosecutors have brought dozens of cases after the deadly attack at the U.S. Capitol, and they promise more charges are to come as investigators work to identify more members of the pro-Trump mob.
Investigators are combing through thousands of tips, photos, videos and social media accounts to collect evidence against the attackers who overran the Capitol to stop the certification of Democrat Joe Biden as the next president.
Authorities predict hundreds of criminal cases will ultimately be filed. They are considering sedition charges against some of the rioters.
House Democrats introduce impeachment resolution, charging Trump with 'incitement of insurrection'
(CNN) -- House Democrats formally introduced their resolution to impeach President Donald Trump on Monday, charging him with "incitement of insurrection" for his role in last week's riots at the US Capitol.
The impeachment resolution that the House is poised to vote on later this week is the Democrats' first step toward making Trump the first president in history to be impeached twice.
The single impeachment article, which was introduced when the House gaveled into a brief pro-forma session Monday. points to Trump's repeated false claims that he won the election and his speech to the crowd on January 6 before pro-Trump rioters breached the Capitol. It also cited Trump's call with the Georgia Republican secretary of state where the President urged him to "find" enough votes for Trump to win the state.
"In all this, President Trump gravely endangered the security of the United States and its institutions of Government," the resolution says. "He threatened the integrity of the democratic system, interfered with the peaceful transition of power, and imperiled a coequal branch of Government. He thereby betrayed his trust as President, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States."
The resolution also cited the Constitution's 14th Amendment, noting that it "prohibits any person who has 'engaged in insurrection or rebellion against' the United States" from holding office.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told House Democrats onSunday eveningthat the House would proceed with bringing an impeachment resolution to the floor this week unless Vice President Mike Pence moves to invoke the 25th Amendmentwith a majority of the Cabinet to remove Trump from power.
Pelosi's letter was the first time she explicitly said that the House would take up impeachment on the floor this week, though it was clear that House Democrats have rapidly coalesced around an impeachment resolutionin the days following the riots at the Capitol where five people died, including a US Capitol Police officer.
Democrats on Monday sought to take up a resolution from Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland on Monday urging Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer asked for unanimous consent to bring up the resolution, but West Virginia GOP Rep. Alex Mooney objected to the request. Pelosi has said the Democrats will move to bring the resolution for a floor vote on Tuesday.
Democrats are calling on Pence to respond within 24 hours, she said. If that does not happen, Democrats will bring their impeachment resolution to the floor.
Timing of an impeachment vote is still fluid, though the expectation is it would happen on Wednesday or Thursday.
The impeachment resolution was introduced by Democratic Reps. David Cicilline of Rhode Island, Raskin and Ted Lieu of California.
Cicilline tweeted Sunday evening that the resolution now has more than 200 co-sponsors, nearly all of the Democratic caucus. The resolution would likely go to the House Rules Committee before it's brought to the floor.
The level of unity in the Democratic caucus is being driven by the visceral reaction to what happened on January 6, when lawmakers had to be evacuated from the House and Senate chambers with rioters banging on the doors outside as the insurrectionists tried to stop the counting of votes to affirm President-elect Joe Biden would become President on January 20.
Pelosi said in an interview on CBS' "60 Minutes"that she liked the idea of invoking the 25th Amendment "because it gets rid of him," but explained, "one of the motivations people have for advocating for impeachment" is to prevent Trump from holding office again.
"There's strong support in the Congress for impeaching the President a second time," she said.
House Democrats are holding a caucus-wide call on Monday to discuss their path forward.
House Republicans have urged Democrats not to move forward with impeachment, arguing that such a move would be divisive in the face of Biden's calls for unity. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is also holding a conference call with the GOP conference Monday, according to a source familiar.
Still, there's been little to slow momentum toward impeachment since Wednesday. Two Senate Republicans, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Pat Toomeyof Pennsylvania, have called on Trump to resign in the wake of the insurrection at the Capitol.
One of the biggest issues surrounding House Democrats' impeachment push is what it means for the opening days of the Biden administration, because Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has indicated he won't call the Senate back from recess for a trial before it's slated to reconvene on January 19, which would make the start of the trial January 20 -- Biden's inauguration.
A Senate impeachment trial would grind the chamber to a halt, unable to confirm nominees or enact legislation in the opening days of Biden's presidency.
One option being considered is waiting until later to send the articles to the Senate: House Democratic Whip James Clyburn said on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday the House might wait until after Biden's first 100 days in office before sending the impeachment articles to the Senate to begin the trial.
Parler has now been booted by Amazon, Apple and Google, and it may have to go offline temporarily
(CNN Business) Parler, the alternative social media platform favored by conservatives, now finds itself virtually homeless on the internet as Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOGL) have all booted it from their platforms in a span of a little more than 24 hours.
Amazon will remove Parler from its cloud hosting service, Amazon Web Services, Sunday evening, effectively kicking it off of the public internet after mounting pressure from the public and Amazon employees.
The decision, which goes into force on Sunday at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time, will shut down Parler's website and app until it can find a new hosting provider. BuzzFeed News was first to report the move. Parler is an alternative social network popular with conservatives and has been heavily used by supporters of President Donald Trump, including some who participated in Wednesday's US Capitol unrest.
In a letter obtained by CNN Business that was sent to Parler Chief Policy Officer Amy Peikoff on Saturday, Amazon Web Services said that in recent weeks it has reported 98 examples to Parler of "posts that clearly encourage and incite violence." The letter includes screenshots of several examples.
"We've seen a steady increase in this violent content on your website, all of which violates our terms," AWS wrote. "It's clear that Parler does not have an effective process to comply with the AWS terms of service."
The letter continued: "AWS provides technology and services to customers across the political spectrum, and we continue to respect Parler's right to determine for itself what content it will allow on its site. However, we cannot provide services to a customer that is unable to effectively identify and remove content that encourages or incites violence against others. Because Parler cannot comply with our terms of service and poses a very real risk to public safety, we plan to suspend Parler's account."
The sweep threatens to cut Parler off from its entire audience. Not only will new users be unable to find Parler on the internet's two largest app stores, even those who've already downloaded the app will be unable to use it because it will be unable to communicate with Parler's servers on AWS.
Indeed, Parler CEO John Matze warned that the deplatforming could lead to service interruptions.
After Amazon boots the company from its web hosting service, Parler's website could be offline for as long as a week while "we rebuild from scratch," Matze said in a post on his platform.
"We will try our best to move to a new provider right now as we have many competing for our business," Matze continued.
Matze accused Amazon of trying to "completely remove free speech off the internet."
The revelation of Amazon's decision came soon after Apple removed Parler from its app store. "[T]here is no place on our platform for threats of violence and illegal activity," the iPhone maker said of its move.
Apple notified Parler of its decision in a message that said it had violated the company's app store terms.
"The processes Parler has put in place to moderate or prevent the spread of dangerous and illegal content have proved insufficient," Apple told Parler. "Specifically, we have continued to find direct threats of violence and calls to incite lawless action in violation of Guideline 1.1 - Safety - Objectionable Content."
Apple's notice said Parler's responses to an earlier warning were inadequate, including Parler's defense that it had been taking violent rhetoric on its platform "very seriously for weeks" and that it had a moderation plan "for the time being," according to Apple.
"Parler has not taken adequate measures to address the proliferation of these threats to people's safety," Apple said in a statement to CNN Business. "We have suspended Parler from the App Store until they resolve these issues."
Matze wrote in a message on his platform that Apple "will be banning Parler until we give up free speech, institute broad and invasive policies like Twitter and Facebook and we become a surveillance platform by pursuing guilt of those who use Parler before innocence."
"They claim it is due to violence on the platform," Matze wrote of Apple, whom he also accused of being a "software monopoly," a particularly relevant attack right now given an ongoing antitrust suit against Apple from Fortnite maker Epic Games. "The community disagrees as we hit number 1 on their store today."
Matze promised to share "more details about our next plans coming soon as we have many options."
Twitter bans high-profile QAnon accounts in wake of Capitol Hill attack
Twitter banned on Friday the accounts of Gen. Michael Flynn, lawyer Sidney Powelland a host of other supporters of thebogus QAnon conspiracy theory embraced by many of President Donald Trump's most avid fans. The move comes just a day after the social network lifted a lock on the president's account for inflammatory tweets in the wake of a pro-Trump mob storming the Capitol.
Her ruling came shortly after prosecutors in Arizona walked back sweeping statements they made just a day earlier in their memo seeking detention, claiming the government had “strong evidence” that the “intent of the Capitol rioters was to capture and assassinate elected officials in the United States government.”
MAGA mob rioters smeared their own feces throughout the Capitol and 'tracked brown footprints' in several hallways during violent siege
Senator Chuck Schumer's staffers found out on Thursday that some rioters had defecated in the Capitol, a source says
They are believed to have defecated in one of the bathrooms after breaching the Capitol before 'tracking' their excrement in multiple hallways in the building
Brown footprints were found in parts of the Capitol hallways
The feces left behind was just some of extensive damage caused by the mob when they stormed the Capitol in a violent siege that has left five dead
Harrowing images show shattered windows, graffiti-covered statues and teargas stains lining the walls of the historic building
Some of the MAGA mob rioters who stormed the US Capitol smeared their own feces throughout the building and left brown 'footprints' in their wake.
Senator Chuck Schumer's staffers found out on Thursday that some rioters had defecated in the Capitol, a source told the New York Daily News.
They are believed to have defecated in one of the bathrooms after breaching the Capitol before 'tracking' their excrement in multiple hallways in the building.
Brown footprints were found in parts of the Capitol hallways.
'It looked like they tracked it around,' the source said.
The feces left behind was just some of extensive damage caused by the mob when they stormed the Capitol in a violent siege that has left five dead, including a Capitol Police officer who is believed to have been hit over the head with a fire extinguisher during the riot.
Harrowing images show shattered windows, graffiti-covered statues and teargas stains lining the walls of the historic building.
Bags filled with zipties, bullet holes, dirty footprints and toppled furniture were seen scattered across the US legislature.
The Capitol sustained significant damage as hordes of rioters kicked down doors and climbed scaffolding to gain entry.
Nancy Pelosi's office was also vandalized, with draws pulled out and papers strewn across the floor. Multiple protesters uploaded photos to social media of them mockingly posing for selfies at her desk.
The rampage that has shocked the world and left the country on edge forced the resignations of three top Capitol security officials over the failure to stop the breach.
It led lawmakers to demand a review of operations and an FBI briefing over what they called a 'terrorist attack.' It is also prompting a broader reckoning over Trump's tenure in office and what comes next for a torn nation.
Protesters were urged by Trump during a rally near the White House to head to Capitol Hill where lawmakers were scheduled to confirm Biden's presidential victory.
The mob swiftly broke through police barriers, smashed windows and paraded through the halls, sending lawmakers into hiding.
One protester, US Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt, was shot to death by Capitol Police, and there were dozens of arrests.
Three other Trump supporters died after 'medical emergencies' related to the breach.
Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick later died from injuries he suffered during the ordeal. The Capitol Police said in a statement that Sicknick was fatally injured 'while physically engaging with protesters'.
It is believed a protester hit him over the head with a fire extinguisher.
Sicknick, like those in the mob, was a Trump supporter, according to his social media pages.
The rioter, who broke into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) office, stole a letter from her desk and flaunted it in the hours following the chaos. He was identified by Matthew Rosenberg of the New York Times as Richard “Bigo” Barnett, a 60-year-old Gravette, Arkansas resident. He went viral Wednesday afternoon after Rosenberg shared statements, along with a video clip, of Barnett admitting to stealing the letter.
"I didn't steal it," Barnett told Rosenberg on camera. "I put a quarter on her desk, even though she ain't f**king worth it, and I left her a note on her desk that says 'Nancy, Bigo was here you bitch.'"
Capitol Police officer on life support after pro-Trump riot, union official says
(CNN) A Capitol Police officer is on life support Thursday night after a mob of President Donald Trump's supporters stormed the US Capitol a day before, according to Capitol Police union chair Gus Papathanasiou.
CNN reported Thursday evening, citing three sources, that the officer had died. One of CNN's sources said that Capitol Police officers were gathered and told that the officer had passed away.
Papathanasiou told WUSA -- a local Washington, DC, television news station -- that the officer died. Later Thursday, the Capitol Police released a statement stating no officers had died as a result of Wednesday's riot.
Papathanasiou retracted his statement to WUSA and told CNN the officer was still on life support.
"He had a stroke. I think he's on life support. We've got some misinformation on that. He's on life support from what I'm hearing," Papathanasiou told CNN.
One woman was shot and killed by Capitol Police as the crowd breached the building and three others suffered medical emergencies that proved fatal.Shortly after 1 p.m. ET Wednesday hundreds of pro-Trump protesters pushed through barriers set up along the perimeter of the Capitol, where they tussled with officers in full riot gear, some calling the officers "traitors" for doing their jobs.
About 90 minutes later, police said demonstrators got into the building and the doors to the House and Senate were being locked. Shortly after, the House floor was evacuated by police. Vice President Mike Pence was also evacuated from the chamber, where he was to perform his role in the counting of electoral votes.
An armed standoff took place at the House front door at about 3 p.m. ET, and police officers had their guns drawn at someone who was trying to breach it.
As a result of the episode, US Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund is resigning. He said in a statement earlier Thursday that Capitol Police and other law enforcement officers were "actively attacked" with metal pipes and other weapons.
"They were determined to enter into the Capitol Building by causing great damage," Sund said.
"The violent attack on the U.S. Capitol was unlike any I have ever experienced in my 30 years in law enforcement here in Washington, D.C.," he added. "Maintaining public safety in an open environment -- specifically for First Amendment activities -- has long been a challenge."
Still, lawmakers say they are perplexed at the lack of preparedness among law enforcement given that it had been known for weeks that Trump was promoting a rally he said was aimed at preventing the certification of Biden's win.
Rep. Mike Quigley, an Illinois Democrat who was locked in the House chamber during an armed standoff between Capitol Police and a rioter, praised the officers who were in the building that put their lives on the line, but made clear that they were outnumbered and law enforcement was under prepared.
"The Capitol Police I was around did an amazing job under difficult circumstances," Quigley told CNN. "My concern wasn't with how valiant the Capitol Police were. It was that an hour before the debate started, I looked at the throngs of people surrounding different sections of the Capitol and said, we don't have enough security."
Quigley added: "I'm no expert in security, but you can tell we were out-manned in an hour before the debate," referring to Congress' proceedings to certify Biden's win.
Supreme Court rejects Texas' and Trump's bid to overturn election
(CNN) The Supreme Court on Friday rejecteda bid from Texas' attorney general -- supported by President Donald Trump -- to block the ballots of millions of voters in battleground states that went in favor of President-elect Joe Biden.
The court's order, issued with no public dissents, to dismiss the challenge is the strongest indication yet that Trump has no chance of overturning election results in court, and that even the justices whom he placed there have no interest in allowing his desperate legal bids to continue.
The Electoral College will convene Monday to affirm Biden's win.
The lawsuit, brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a staunch Trump ally, sought to sue Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin -- which all went for Biden -- and invalidate their election results. And this week, with his options narrowing, Trump, accompanied by the support of several Republican attorneys general and GOP lawmakers, cranked up pressure to have the Supreme Court weigh in.
"From a legal perspective, the fat lady has sung," said Steve Vladeck, a CNN Supreme Court analyst and University of Texas Law professor.
Trump and his legal team -- hamstrung by a series of coronavirus diagnoses among lawyers who had traveled across the country advocating on behalf of Trump's case -- have for weeks pushed increasingly desperate appeals and baseless conspiracy theories about his second term being stolen.
"The Supreme Court really let us down. No Wisdom, No Courage!," Trump tweeted around midnight. Mike Gwin, a spokesman for Biden's campaign, said the decision was "no surprise."Paxton, calling the court's order "unfortunate," vowed to fight on.
"I will continue to tirelessly defend the integrity and security of our elections and hold accountable those who shirk established election law for their own convenience," he said in a statement.
Republican election lawyer Ben Ginsberg said Trump's crusade to undermine the election's results through rhetoric and court challenges "put a huge stress test on our democracy."
"The Republicans who did follow Donald Trump really have an obligation now to make the country strong again, to heal the chinks that Donald Trump tried to put in the foundation of the country and the democracy," Ginsberg told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on "The Situation Room."
Texas denied for lack of standing
The court's order Friday night was unsigned, and court did not provide a vote count, but there were no dissents to the order made public.
In its short order, the court said that Texas had not demonstrated that it had the legal right to bring the suit because it had not demonstrated a "judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections."
The order states: "The State of Texas's motion for leave to file a bill of complaint is denied for lack of standing under Article III of the Constitution. Texas has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections. All other pending motions are dismissed as moot."
Trump and 17 States Back Texas Bid to Undo His Election Loss at Supreme Court
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump and 17 U.S. states on Wednesday threw their support behind a long-shot lawsuit by Texas seeking to overturn his election loss by asking the U.S. Supreme Court to throw out the voting results in four states.
Trump, defeated by President-elect Joe Biden in the Nov. 3 election, filed a motion with the court asking the nine justices to let him intervene and become a plaintiff in the suit filed on Tuesday by Republican-governed Texas against Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
If the justices let Trump join the lawsuit, it would create the extraordinary circumstance of a sitting U.S. president asking the top American court to decide that the millions of votes cast in the four states did not count. The Republican president lost to Biden in the four election battleground states after winning them in the 2016 election.
Writing on Twitter, Trump said, "This is the big one. Our Country needs a victory!"
In a separate brief, lawyers for 17 states led by Missouri's Republican Attorney General Eric Schmitt also urged the justices to hear the case.
Election law experts have said the Texas lawsuit stands little chance of success and lacks legal merit.
The lawsuit, the latest in a series of election challenges brought by Trump's campaign and supporters that so far have failed in numerous courts, was brought by Ken Paxton, the Republican attorney general of Texas and an ally of the president.
In addition to Missouri, the states joining Texas were: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and West Virginia. All of the states were represented by Republican officials in the filing. All but three of the states have Republican governors.
Trump has falsely claimed he won re-election and has made baseless allegations of widespread voting fraud. Election officials at the state level have said they have found no evidence of such fraud.
Officials from Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin have called the lawsuit a reckless attack on democracy. It was filed directly with the Supreme Court rather than with a lower court, as is permitted for certain litigation between states.
The New York Times, quoting an unnamed source familiar with the discussion, reported that Trump has asked Republican U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas to argue the case if the Supreme Court agrees to hear it.
'ZERO CHANCE'
"Both procedurally and substantively, it's a mess," Justin Levitt, an election law professor at Loyola Law School in California, said of the Texas lawsuit. "There's zero chance the court agrees to take the case."
The Texas suit argued that changes made by the four states to voting procedures amid the coronavirus pandemic to expand mail-in voting were unlawful. Texas asked the Supreme Court to immediately block the four states from using the voting results to appoint presidential electors to the Electoral College.
Biden has amassed 306 electoral votes - far higher than the necessary 270 - compared to Trump's 232 in the state-by-state Electoral College that determines the election's outcome. The four states contribute a combined 62 electoral votes to Biden's total.
Texas also asked the Supreme Court to delay the Dec. 14 date for Electoral College votes to be formally cast, a date set by law in 1887.
The Supreme Court's 6-3 conservative majority includes three justices appointed by Trump. Before the election, Trump said he expected its outcome to be decided by the Supreme Court.
Democrats and other critics have accused Trump of aiming to reduce public confidence in U.S. election integrity and undermine democracy by trying to subvert the will of the voters.
Trump's filing with the court said the four states "conducted the elections according to unauthorized rules," adding that it was "not necessary for the Plaintiff in Intervention (Trump) to prove that fraud occurred" to have the election results thrown out.
Trump brought his motion in his personal capacity, rather than through the U.S. Justice Department or his campaign.
Trump is represented by John Eastman, a conservative legal scholar who drew criticism for falsely questioning whether Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is eligible to serve as vice president because her immigrant parents were born outside the United States.
Good riddance to this POTUS turned pariah!
US President Donald Trump will leave Washington, D.C. on the morning of January 20 shortly before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration, with a grand ceremony being planned for his departure, according to media reports.
https://www.business-standard.com/article/international/donald-trump-to-fly-to-florida-shortly-before-joe-biden-s-inauguration-121011600158_1.html
An Urgent Reckoning for the Trump Brand
Companies and institutions are shunning President Trump and some associates after the attack on the U.S. Capitol. The Trump family business, built on luxury hospitality, is contemplating a reinvention.
In the span of four days, President Trump’s family business has lost its online store, the buzz from Mr. Trump’s promotional tweets about its luxury resorts and bragging rights as host to one of the world’s most prestigious golf tournaments.
The mob attack on Congress last week by Mr. Trump’s supporters has spurred a reckoning for the Trump Organization by businesses and institutions, at a scale far greater than his previous polarizing actions.
And the Trump brand, premised on gold-plated luxury and a super-affluent clientele, may not fully recover from the fallout of his supporters violently storming and vandalizing the U.S. Capitol, hospitality analysts say and some people close to the business acknowledge. Other companies linked with the Trumps, including Deutsche Bank, the president’s largest lender, and Signature Bank, are also seeking distance from him and his business.
The backlash is part of a broader shunning of Mr. Trump and his allies unfolding in the wake of the deadly assault on the Capitol. Schools stripped the president of honorary degrees, some prominent Republicans threatened to leave the party and the New York State Bar Association announced it had begun investigating Mr. Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, which could lead to his removal from the group.
As House Democrats introduced an article of impeachment on Monday, more than a dozen big businesses vowed to withhold certain political donations. Coca-Cola said it would pause donations from its political action committee, saying in a statement that “these events will long be remembered and will factor into our future contribution decisions.” Marriott, the giant hotel chain, said it would pause donations from its political action committee “to those who voted against certification of the election,” a reference to the congressional Republicans who joined Mr. Trump’s false claims of election fraud. Morgan Stanley and AT&T said they, too, would suspend contributions to those lawmakers.
The Trump Organization had already been facing considerable financial challenges. Many of its golf and resort properties had been losing money, and the pandemic had forced it to close some restaurants and bars and drastically reduce hotel occupancy, including at its hotel a few blocks from the White House. And with more than $300 million in debt coming due in the next few years that the president has personally guaranteed, there had been some urgency for the company to line up new deals.
While such an array of challenges would spell doom for just about any hospitality brand, executives of the Trump Organization said they planned on cashing in on Mr. Trump’s global fame with overseas branding deals.
“There has never been a political figure with more support or energy behind them than my father,” Eric Trump, the president’s son, who helps run the family business, said in a statement on Monday.
The family is also already considering starting a media outfit that would cater to Mr. Trump’s tens of millions of supporters, an effort that gained some urgency last week when Twitter and Facebook barred the president from their platforms.
“There will be no shortage of incredible opportunities in real estate and beyond,” Eric Trump said.
Before becoming president, Mr. Trump had cycled through many lines of business, including casinos, an airline and reality television. Some ventures were wildly successful, while others were colossal failures. But they revealed his ability to camouflage his wares and capitalize on opportunities, even when his name appeared irreparably tarnished.
This time, the challenges are steeper. The fallout began on Thursday, when the e-commerce provider Shopify said it had terminated online stores affiliated with the president.
The biggest blow came on Sunday, when the P.G.A. of America announced it would strip Mr. Trump’s New Jersey golf club of a major tournament.
Mr. Trump was said to be “gutted” by the P.G.A. decision, according to a person close to the White House, as he had worked personally for years to push the tournament executives to hold events at his courses.
In a statement that hinted at a potential legal challenge, the Trump Organization called the decision “a breach of a binding contract,” adding that “they have no right to terminate the agreement.”
The P.G.A. Championship, scheduled for May 2022, was the ultimate golf-world trophy for the Trump brand, which over the last two decades has assembled an international collection of golf courses and resorts that now collectively represent about a third of the company’s revenue, according to the most recent financial disclosure report.
The tournament itself is not a major source of profit, but hosting an internationally recognized event is enormously valuable for marketing. It also would have bestowed greater legitimacy on Mr. Trump and his brand, which includes 16 golf clubs around the world.
“It has become clear that conducting the P.G.A. Championship at Trump Bedminster would be detrimental to the P.G.A. of America brand,” Jim Richerson, the P.G.A. of America president, said in a video statement.
The loss associated with the cancellation is difficult to calculate, but it will be very large and last for years, said Jay Karen, chief executive of the National Golf Course Owners Association.
“You have millions of avid golfers who have a proverbial bucket list,” tied to major tournaments like the P.G.A. Championship, he said. “If you had a major coming to you and it was pulled from you, that would certainly sting.”
In an email to members on Monday, the golf club said, “We have had a wonderful partnership with the P.G.A. of America and share your disappointment on their decision.”
The damage is expected to continue as various companies and industries reassess their relationship with Mr. Trump and his family business.
Mr. Trump’s hotels, like the Trump National Doral near Miami, had already lost many of the major corporate conferences after he made disparaging remarks about Muslims and Mexicans, among others, during his first presidential campaign, and his comments after a deadly rally by white supremacists in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017 suggesting that “there is blame on both sides.”
But the fallout from the attacks last week will be steeper and longer lasting, analysts and people familiar with the company said. Some members of the president’s golf clubs are reassessing whether to keep their memberships because of possible protests and vandalism, one of the people said.
David J. Sangree, a hotel industry consultant from Ohio, said that Mr. Trump’s role in the attack on the Capitol would further undermine the company’s efforts to appeal to affluent customers who were not Trump supporters.
“This is a big negative,” Mr. Sangree said. “There’s no question they’re going to lose more events because many groups are saying, ‘We don’t want to be associated with this brand.’”
Even plans to launch a Trump media platform will face obstacles. If Mr. Trump seeks to forge a new conservative news network, or join an existing one like OAN or Newsmax, corporate advertisers are hardly guaranteed to support him.
“There’s only so much that My Pillow guy can subsidize,” said Jon Klein, the former president of CNN U.S., referring to Mike Lindell, the chief executive of My Pillow who is an outspoken supporter of the president. “It’s suddenly a lot more daunting a proposition than it was a week ago for OAN and Newsmax.”
A lot more at https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/11/business/trump-brand-capitol-mob.html
Hah articles of impeachment to be filed against Sleepy Joe next week!
Georgia Man Charged In U.S. Capitol Attack Dies By Suicide
ATLANTA (NEXSTAR) — A man arrested following last week’s storming of the Capitol has died, according to a report from 11 Alive.
Christopher Stanton Georgia, of Alpharetta, Georgia, was charged with attempting to “enter certain property, that is, the United States Capitol Grounds, against the will of the United States Capitol Police.”
According to 11 Alive, the Fulton County Medical Examiner ruled his death a suicide.
According to police reports, Georgia and others were arrested hours after Wednesday’s events after violating the District-wide curfew. Officers reportedly asked them to leave the property, and they were taken into custody when they refused.
A police report shows Georgia’s death as “under investigation,” according to 11 Alive.
Prosecutors have brought dozens of cases after the deadly attack at the U.S. Capitol, and they promise more charges are to come as investigators work to identify more members of the pro-Trump mob.
Investigators are combing through thousands of tips, photos, videos and social media accounts to collect evidence against the attackers who overran the Capitol to stop the certification of Democrat Joe Biden as the next president.
Authorities predict hundreds of criminal cases will ultimately be filed. They are considering sedition charges against some of the rioters.
https://cbs4indy.com/news/georgia-man-arrested-in-capitol-riot-dies-by-suicide/
House Democrats introduce impeachment resolution, charging Trump with 'incitement of insurrection'
(CNN) -- House Democrats formally introduced their resolution to impeach President Donald Trump on Monday, charging him with "incitement of insurrection" for his role in last week's riots at the US Capitol.
The impeachment resolution that the House is poised to vote on later this week is the Democrats' first step toward making Trump the first president in history to be impeached twice.
The single impeachment article, which was introduced when the House gaveled into a brief pro-forma session Monday. points to Trump's repeated false claims that he won the election and his speech to the crowd on January 6 before pro-Trump rioters breached the Capitol. It also cited Trump's call with the Georgia Republican secretary of state where the President urged him to "find" enough votes for Trump to win the state.
"In all this, President Trump gravely endangered the security of the United States and its institutions of Government," the resolution says. "He threatened the integrity of the democratic system, interfered with the peaceful transition of power, and imperiled a coequal branch of Government. He thereby betrayed his trust as President, to the manifest injury of the people of the United States."
The resolution also cited the Constitution's 14th Amendment, noting that it "prohibits any person who has 'engaged in insurrection or rebellion against' the United States" from holding office.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told House Democrats on Sunday evening that the House would proceed with bringing an impeachment resolution to the floor this week unless Vice President Mike Pence moves to invoke the 25th Amendment with a majority of the Cabinet to remove Trump from power.
Pelosi's letter was the first time she explicitly said that the House would take up impeachment on the floor this week, though it was clear that House Democrats have rapidly coalesced around an impeachment resolution in the days following the riots at the Capitol where five people died, including a US Capitol Police officer.
Democrats on Monday sought to take up a resolution from Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland on Monday urging Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer asked for unanimous consent to bring up the resolution, but West Virginia GOP Rep. Alex Mooney objected to the request. Pelosi has said the Democrats will move to bring the resolution for a floor vote on Tuesday.
Democrats are calling on Pence to respond within 24 hours, she said. If that does not happen, Democrats will bring their impeachment resolution to the floor.
Timing of an impeachment vote is still fluid, though the expectation is it would happen on Wednesday or Thursday.
The impeachment resolution was introduced by Democratic Reps. David Cicilline of Rhode Island, Raskin and Ted Lieu of California.
Cicilline tweeted Sunday evening that the resolution now has more than 200 co-sponsors, nearly all of the Democratic caucus. The resolution would likely go to the House Rules Committee before it's brought to the floor.
The level of unity in the Democratic caucus is being driven by the visceral reaction to what happened on January 6, when lawmakers had to be evacuated from the House and Senate chambers with rioters banging on the doors outside as the insurrectionists tried to stop the counting of votes to affirm President-elect Joe Biden would become President on January 20.
Pelosi said in an interview on CBS' "60 Minutes" that she liked the idea of invoking the 25th Amendment "because it gets rid of him," but explained, "one of the motivations people have for advocating for impeachment" is to prevent Trump from holding office again.
"There's strong support in the Congress for impeaching the President a second time," she said.
House Democrats are holding a caucus-wide call on Monday to discuss their path forward.
House Republicans have urged Democrats not to move forward with impeachment, arguing that such a move would be divisive in the face of Biden's calls for unity. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is also holding a conference call with the GOP conference Monday, according to a source familiar.
Still, there's been little to slow momentum toward impeachment since Wednesday. Two Senate Republicans, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, have called on Trump to resign in the wake of the insurrection at the Capitol.
One of the biggest issues surrounding House Democrats' impeachment push is what it means for the opening days of the Biden administration, because Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has indicated he won't call the Senate back from recess for a trial before it's slated to reconvene on January 19, which would make the start of the trial January 20 -- Biden's inauguration.
A Senate impeachment trial would grind the chamber to a halt, unable to confirm nominees or enact legislation in the opening days of Biden's presidency.
One option being considered is waiting until later to send the articles to the Senate: House Democratic Whip James Clyburn said on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday the House might wait until after Biden's first 100 days in office before sending the impeachment articles to the Senate to begin the trial.
https://www.abc57.com/news/house-democrats-would-impeach-trump-for-incitement-of-insurrection
Parler has now been booted by Amazon, Apple and Google, and it may have to go offline temporarily
(CNN Business) Parler, the alternative social media platform favored by conservatives, now finds itself virtually homeless on the internet as Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOGL) have all booted it from their platforms in a span of a little more than 24 hours.
Amazon will remove Parler from its cloud hosting service, Amazon Web Services, Sunday evening, effectively kicking it off of the public internet after mounting pressure from the public and Amazon employees.
The decision, which goes into force on Sunday at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time, will shut down Parler's website and app until it can find a new hosting provider. BuzzFeed News was first to report the move. Parler is an alternative social network popular with conservatives and has been heavily used by supporters of President Donald Trump, including some who participated in Wednesday's US Capitol unrest.
In a letter obtained by CNN Business that was sent to Parler Chief Policy Officer Amy Peikoff on Saturday, Amazon Web Services said that in recent weeks it has reported 98 examples to Parler of "posts that clearly encourage and incite violence." The letter includes screenshots of several examples.
"We've seen a steady increase in this violent content on your website, all of which violates our terms," AWS wrote. "It's clear that Parler does not have an effective process to comply with the AWS terms of service."
The letter continued: "AWS provides technology and services to customers across the political spectrum, and we continue to respect Parler's right to determine for itself what content it will allow on its site. However, we cannot provide services to a customer that is unable to effectively identify and remove content that encourages or incites violence against others. Because Parler cannot comply with our terms of service and poses a very real risk to public safety, we plan to suspend Parler's account."
The sweep threatens to cut Parler off from its entire audience. Not only will new users be unable to find Parler on the internet's two largest app stores, even those who've already downloaded the app will be unable to use it because it will be unable to communicate with Parler's servers on AWS.
Indeed, Parler CEO John Matze warned that the deplatforming could lead to service interruptions.
After Amazon boots the company from its web hosting service, Parler's website could be offline for as long as a week while "we rebuild from scratch," Matze said in a post on his platform.
"We will try our best to move to a new provider right now as we have many competing for our business," Matze continued.
Matze accused Amazon of trying to "completely remove free speech off the internet."
The revelation of Amazon's decision came soon after Apple removed Parler from its app store. "[T]here is no place on our platform for threats of violence and illegal activity," the iPhone maker said of its move.
Apple notified Parler of its decision in a message that said it had violated the company's app store terms.
"The processes Parler has put in place to moderate or prevent the spread of dangerous and illegal content have proved insufficient," Apple told Parler. "Specifically, we have continued to find direct threats of violence and calls to incite lawless action in violation of Guideline 1.1 - Safety - Objectionable Content."
Apple's notice said Parler's responses to an earlier warning were inadequate, including Parler's defense that it had been taking violent rhetoric on its platform "very seriously for weeks" and that it had a moderation plan "for the time being," according to Apple.
"Parler has not taken adequate measures to address the proliferation of these threats to people's safety," Apple said in a statement to CNN Business. "We have suspended Parler from the App Store until they resolve these issues."
Apple's decision followed a similar move by Google on Friday to drop Parler from the Google Play Store.
Matze wrote in a message on his platform that Apple "will be banning Parler until we give up free speech, institute broad and invasive policies like Twitter and Facebook and we become a surveillance platform by pursuing guilt of those who use Parler before innocence."
"They claim it is due to violence on the platform," Matze wrote of Apple, whom he also accused of being a "software monopoly," a particularly relevant attack right now given an ongoing antitrust suit against Apple from Fortnite maker Epic Games. "The community disagrees as we hit number 1 on their store today."
Matze promised to share "more details about our next plans coming soon as we have many options."
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/09/tech/parler-suspended-apple-app-store/index.html
VIDEO: Ashli Babbitt in the Capitol leading up to her shooting.
MAGA mob rioters smeared their own feces throughout the Capitol and 'tracked brown footprints' in several hallways during violent siege
Senator Chuck Schumer's staffers found out on Thursday that some rioters had defecated in the Capitol, a source says
They are believed to have defecated in one of the bathrooms after breaching the Capitol before 'tracking' their excrement in multiple hallways in the building
Brown footprints were found in parts of the Capitol hallways
The feces left behind was just some of extensive damage caused by the mob when they stormed the Capitol in a violent siege that has left five dead
Harrowing images show shattered windows, graffiti-covered statues and teargas stains lining the walls of the historic building
Some of the MAGA mob rioters who stormed the US Capitol smeared their own feces throughout the building and left brown 'footprints' in their wake.
Senator Chuck Schumer's staffers found out on Thursday that some rioters had defecated in the Capitol, a source told the New York Daily News.
They are believed to have defecated in one of the bathrooms after breaching the Capitol before 'tracking' their excrement in multiple hallways in the building.
Brown footprints were found in parts of the Capitol hallways.
'It looked like they tracked it around,' the source said.
The feces left behind was just some of extensive damage caused by the mob when they stormed the Capitol in a violent siege that has left five dead, including a Capitol Police officer who is believed to have been hit over the head with a fire extinguisher during the riot.
Harrowing images show shattered windows, graffiti-covered statues and teargas stains lining the walls of the historic building.
Bags filled with zipties, bullet holes, dirty footprints and toppled furniture were seen scattered across the US legislature.
The Capitol sustained significant damage as hordes of rioters kicked down doors and climbed scaffolding to gain entry.
Nancy Pelosi's office was also vandalized, with draws pulled out and papers strewn across the floor. Multiple protesters uploaded photos to social media of them mockingly posing for selfies at her desk.
The rampage that has shocked the world and left the country on edge forced the resignations of three top Capitol security officials over the failure to stop the breach.
It led lawmakers to demand a review of operations and an FBI briefing over what they called a 'terrorist attack.' It is also prompting a broader reckoning over Trump's tenure in office and what comes next for a torn nation.
Protesters were urged by Trump during a rally near the White House to head to Capitol Hill where lawmakers were scheduled to confirm Biden's presidential victory.
The mob swiftly broke through police barriers, smashed windows and paraded through the halls, sending lawmakers into hiding.
One protester, US Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt, was shot to death by Capitol Police, and there were dozens of arrests.
Three other Trump supporters died after 'medical emergencies' related to the breach.
Capitol Police Officer Brian D. Sicknick later died from injuries he suffered during the ordeal. The Capitol Police said in a statement that Sicknick was fatally injured 'while physically engaging with protesters'.
It is believed a protester hit him over the head with a fire extinguisher.
Sicknick, like those in the mob, was a Trump supporter, according to his social media pages.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9126409/MAGA-mob-rioters-smeared-POO-Capitol.html
Die is cast........Congress has finalized Biden's Win; congrats btw to the Dems for taking control of the senate as well.
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/01/06/politics/2020-election-congress-electoral-college-vote-count/index.html
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-georgia-winner/democrats-take-control-of-u-s-senate-as-they-win-second-race-in-georgia-idUSKBN29B2TV
OMG, Trump supporters have stormed Capitol building, really is 无法无天!!!!!!
Electoral College makes it official: Biden won, Trump lost
https://apnews.com/article/electoral-college-confirm-joe-biden-win-2d4fd7368d8fd6cb47ff0b2cc206271a
Supreme Court rejects Texas' and Trump's bid to overturn election
(CNN) The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a bid from Texas' attorney general -- supported by President Donald Trump -- to block the ballots of millions of voters in battleground states that went in favor of President-elect Joe Biden.
The court's order, issued with no public dissents, to dismiss the challenge is the strongest indication yet that Trump has no chance of overturning election results in court, and that even the justices whom he placed there have no interest in allowing his desperate legal bids to continue.
The Electoral College will convene Monday to affirm Biden's win.
The lawsuit, brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a staunch Trump ally, sought to sue Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin -- which all went for Biden -- and invalidate their election results. And this week, with his options narrowing, Trump, accompanied by the support of several Republican attorneys general and GOP lawmakers, cranked up pressure to have the Supreme Court weigh in.
"From a legal perspective, the fat lady has sung," said Steve Vladeck, a CNN Supreme Court analyst and University of Texas Law professor.
Trump and his legal team -- hamstrung by a series of coronavirus diagnoses among lawyers who had traveled across the country advocating on behalf of Trump's case -- have for weeks pushed increasingly desperate appeals and baseless conspiracy theories about his second term being stolen.
"The Supreme Court really let us down. No Wisdom, No Courage!," Trump tweeted around midnight. Mike Gwin, a spokesman for Biden's campaign, said the decision was "no surprise." Paxton, calling the court's order "unfortunate," vowed to fight on.
"I will continue to tirelessly defend the integrity and security of our elections and hold accountable those who shirk established election law for their own convenience," he said in a statement.
Republican election lawyer Ben Ginsberg said Trump's crusade to undermine the election's results through rhetoric and court challenges "put a huge stress test on our democracy."
"The Republicans who did follow Donald Trump really have an obligation now to make the country strong again, to heal the chinks that Donald Trump tried to put in the foundation of the country and the democracy," Ginsberg told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on "The Situation Room."
Texas denied for lack of standing
The court's order Friday night was unsigned, and court did not provide a vote count, but there were no dissents to the order made public.
In its short order, the court said that Texas had not demonstrated that it had the legal right to bring the suit because it had not demonstrated a "judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections."
The order states: "The State of Texas's motion for leave to file a bill of complaint is denied for lack of standing under Article III of the Constitution. Texas has not demonstrated a judicially cognizable interest in the manner in which another State conducts its elections. All other pending motions are dismissed as moot."
More at https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/11/politics/supreme-court-texas-trump-biden/index.html
Sleepy Joe and Kum My Lanjiao have been jointly named TIME magazine's 'Person of The Year', really pengz.
Trump and 17 States Back Texas Bid to Undo His Election Loss at Supreme Court
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump and 17 U.S. states on Wednesday threw their support behind a long-shot lawsuit by Texas seeking to overturn his election loss by asking the U.S. Supreme Court to throw out the voting results in four states.
Trump, defeated by President-elect Joe Biden in the Nov. 3 election, filed a motion with the court asking the nine justices to let him intervene and become a plaintiff in the suit filed on Tuesday by Republican-governed Texas against Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
If the justices let Trump join the lawsuit, it would create the extraordinary circumstance of a sitting U.S. president asking the top American court to decide that the millions of votes cast in the four states did not count. The Republican president lost to Biden in the four election battleground states after winning them in the 2016 election.
Writing on Twitter, Trump said, "This is the big one. Our Country needs a victory!"
In a separate brief, lawyers for 17 states led by Missouri's Republican Attorney General Eric Schmitt also urged the justices to hear the case.
Election law experts have said the Texas lawsuit stands little chance of success and lacks legal merit.
The lawsuit, the latest in a series of election challenges brought by Trump's campaign and supporters that so far have failed in numerous courts, was brought by Ken Paxton, the Republican attorney general of Texas and an ally of the president.
In addition to Missouri, the states joining Texas were: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and West Virginia. All of the states were represented by Republican officials in the filing. All but three of the states have Republican governors.
Trump has falsely claimed he won re-election and has made baseless allegations of widespread voting fraud. Election officials at the state level have said they have found no evidence of such fraud.
Officials from Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin have called the lawsuit a reckless attack on democracy. It was filed directly with the Supreme Court rather than with a lower court, as is permitted for certain litigation between states.
The New York Times, quoting an unnamed source familiar with the discussion, reported that Trump has asked Republican U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas to argue the case if the Supreme Court agrees to hear it.
'ZERO CHANCE'
"Both procedurally and substantively, it's a mess," Justin Levitt, an election law professor at Loyola Law School in California, said of the Texas lawsuit. "There's zero chance the court agrees to take the case."
The Texas suit argued that changes made by the four states to voting procedures amid the coronavirus pandemic to expand mail-in voting were unlawful. Texas asked the Supreme Court to immediately block the four states from using the voting results to appoint presidential electors to the Electoral College.
Biden has amassed 306 electoral votes - far higher than the necessary 270 - compared to Trump's 232 in the state-by-state Electoral College that determines the election's outcome. The four states contribute a combined 62 electoral votes to Biden's total.
Texas also asked the Supreme Court to delay the Dec. 14 date for Electoral College votes to be formally cast, a date set by law in 1887.
The Supreme Court's 6-3 conservative majority includes three justices appointed by Trump. Before the election, Trump said he expected its outcome to be decided by the Supreme Court.
Democrats and other critics have accused Trump of aiming to reduce public confidence in U.S. election integrity and undermine democracy by trying to subvert the will of the voters.
Trump's filing with the court said the four states "conducted the elections according to unauthorized rules," adding that it was "not necessary for the Plaintiff in Intervention (Trump) to prove that fraud occurred" to have the election results thrown out.
Trump brought his motion in his personal capacity, rather than through the U.S. Justice Department or his campaign.
Trump is represented by John Eastman, a conservative legal scholar who drew criticism for falsely questioning whether Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is eligible to serve as vice president because her immigrant parents were born outside the United States.
https://www.usnews.com/news/top-news/articles/2020-12-09/trump-vows-to-intervene-in-texas-election-case-before-supreme-court
Great news - the coronavirus just made Trump's swine lawyer Rudy Giuliani its bitch!
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/06/world/covid-19-coronavirus
Looks like Trump has finally conceded.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-us-2020-55052640
Tucker Carlson: Time for Sidney Powell to show us her evidence
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/tucker-carlson-rudy-giuliani-sidney-powell-election-fraud