Archives

Hunter Biden Reaches Deal to Plead Guilty to Misdemeanor Tax Charges

Hunter Biden agreed with the Justice Department on Tuesday to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges and accept terms that would allow him to avoid prosecution on a separate gun charge, a big step toward ending a long-running and politically explosive investigation into the finances, drug use and international business dealings of President Biden’s […]

StephCast T 6-20-23

Charlie Pierce: The Basic Idea of Self-Government Is at Stake

Rest assured, there are already plans in place to turn this country into Argentina under Galtieri, if not Chile under Pinochet. The New York Times has produced a truly scarifying piece of reporting that leaves no doubt what’s at stake in courtrooms right now, and at the polling stations all over the country in 2024. It is no exaggeration […]

Missing Submersible: Vessel Disappears During Dive to the Titanic Wreck Site

A submersible craft carrying five people in the area of the Titanic wreck in the North Atlantic has been missing since Sunday, setting off a search and rescue operation by the U.S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard confirmed Monday that it was searching for the vessel after the Canadian research ship MV Polar Prince lost […]

Judge bars Trump from disclosing — or keeping — evidence in documents case

A federal judge issued a protective order Monday barring former President Donald Trump from disclosing on social media — or keeping — evidence the government is set to turn over to him in the classified documents case. The order prohibits Trump and Walt Nauta, his co-defendant in the criminal case alleging he mishandled national security […]

Trump says his kids won’t serve in his administration if he wins a second term

Former President Donald Trump said Monday he doesn’t want his children to serve in his administration again if he wins a second term in the White House.  “I said, ‘That’s enough for the family,’” Trump told Fox News host Bret Baier. “It’s too painful for the family. My family has been through hell.”  Ivanka Trump […]

Trump’s Latest Excuse: Boxes Of Classified Documents Were Mixed With Golf Shirts

Former President Donald Trump said in a new interview he was reluctant to hand over boxes of classified documents because he was “busy” and needed to sort through them to remove personal items, including golf shirts and shoes. Trump spoke to Fox News’ Bret Baier in an interview that aired Sunday, his first since he […]

StephCast M 6-19-23

Chris Christie says RNC loyalty pledge is a ‘useless idea’

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who’s running for the GOP presidential nomination, on Sunday called the Republican National Committee’s requirement for candidates to pledge support for the eventual nominee a “useless idea.” In an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Christie said “I think the pledge is just a useless idea” when he […]

Donald Trump could try to pardon himself if re-elected, Asa Hutchinson says

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who’s running for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, said Sunday he expects that if former President Donald Trump is re-elected and convicted in the classified documents case, he will try to pardon himself. “I could certainly see Donald Trump doing that. That’s exactly what he would intend if he got […]

Blinken meets with Xi Jinping in bid to ease China tensions on high-stakes visit

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Monday, the second and final day of a high-stakes visit aimed at easing spiraling tensions between the world’s two largest economies. Blinken’s trip to China is the first by a U.S. secretary of state since 2018. He is also the […]

Biden kicks off 1st reelection campaign rally after rolling out major union endorsements

President Joe Biden spoke before an audience of union members in Philadelphia Saturday in what was his first rally since he declared his bid for a second term and comes as his campaign engagements ramp up. Biden begins his 2024 campaign in the same way he kicked off his run in 2020: in front of […]

The Rude Pundit: Get in the Fu**ing Game on Trump’s Indictment, Democrats

President Joe Biden has been very clear: No, motherfuckers, he will not answer your goddamned questions about the federal indictment of former president Donald Trump on 38 counts of just being a fucking cockknob and possibly, but not provably (yet), a traitor. Not only will Biden not answer your questions, he won’t comment on it. […]

SM Happy Hour VideoCast with Jen Kirkman & Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) – 6-16-23

StephCast F 6-16-23

Trump Ignored Lawyers Trying To Get Him Out Of Classified Documents Mess: Report

Former President Donald Trump repeatedly rejected his attorneys’ attempts to see him return classified documents and minimize the legal fallout after he absconded to his private club in Florida with the sensitive material when he left the White House in 2021, according to a report by The Washington Post. The Post, citing seven advisers to […]

Biden announces pledge by ticket sales giants to eliminate hidden fees and show full costs upfront

President Joe Biden announced Thursday that ticket sales giants Ticketmaster and Live Nation have pledged to provide consumers with full pricing upfront, ending surprise fees at checkout during online purchases. Biden convened a roundtable at the White House with companies that have committed to disclose fees to consumers upfront. The event included representatives from Live […]

Pentagon leak suspect Jack Teixeira indicted and accused of mishandling classified documents

A federal grand jury on Thursday indicted Defense Department leak suspect Jack Teixeira on six counts of willful retention and transmission of national defense information. Teixeira, who was arrested in April, is suspected of leaking classified Pentagon documents on Discord, a social media platform primarily used by online gamers, while serving as a Massachusetts Air National […]

StephCast Th 6-15-23

Glenn Kirschner: Walt Nauta’s indictment is a warning to ‘Trump’s Mar-a-Lago mafia’

When news broke Thursday that special counsel Jack Smith decided to indict former President Donald Trump over his classified documents scandal, one of the most intriguing questions was: Would Smith indict only Trump or would he charge a conspiracy that includes the people around Trump who assisted, facilitated or were directly complicit in Trump’s alleged crimes? In other words, would Smith try to […]

Trump Is ‘Scared Sh*tless,’ Ex-Chief Of Staff John Kelly Says

Former President Donald Trump’s ex-chief of staff said the twice-impeached Republican is intimidated by the possibility he may finally face accountability for his actions. “He’s scared shitless,” John Kelly, the chief of staff from 2017 to 2019, told The Washington Post on Tuesday. Trump, now the first president to be federally charged with a crime, […]

House blocks Republican effort to censure Rep. Adam Schiff

The House on Wednesday rejected a GOP-backed effort to censure Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., with almost two dozen Republican lawmakers bucking their party’s attempt to publicly rebuke him. The House voted 225-196 to set aside the resolution, introduced by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., to censure Schiff over his role in the House investigation into […]

Trump announces raising over $6 million since federal indictment news

Former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign said Wednesday that it has raised $6.6 million since news of his federal indictment broke, including more than $4.5 million online. In an announcement, the campaign said an additional $2.1 million came in at a pre-planned fundraiser Tuesday night at Trump’sBedminster golf course in New Jersey. Altogether, that’s a […]

Attorney General Garland emphasizes special counsel’s ‘independence’ in Trump probe

Attorney General Merrick Garland declined to answer questions about the indictment of former President Donald Trump on Wednesday, saying only that his own limited role in the process was spelled out in Justice Department regulations and that special counsel Jack Smith had assembled a team of veteran career prosecutors and agents to examine the facts […]

StephCast W 6-14-23

Biden Gets Big Laughs As He Shades Trump Without Even Using His Name

President Joe Biden on Tuesday cracked a joke about his documents that almost certainly seemed like a reference to Donald Trump, who on Tuesday was indicted on 37 federal charges in his classified documents scandal. Biden spoke about his long relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping, which goes back more than a decade to when […]

Judge allows E. Jean Carroll to amend defamation case against Trump

A federal judge on Tuesday granted a motion by E. Jean Carroll to file an amended defamation suit against former President Donald Trump seeking at least $10 million, based in part on recent comments Trump made on CNN. Carroll made the motion for an amended complaint after Trump called her a “whack job” at a […]

Ohio Republican Vance will hold Justice Dept. nominees in Senate over Trump case

Sen. JD Vance announced Tuesday that he will be putting a procedural hold on Department of Justice nominees in response to the prosecution of former President Donald Trump for allegedly mishandling national defense information. Vance’s office said nominees for positions with the U.S. Marshal Service will be excepted from the Ohio Republican’s move. The announcement […]

Trump pleads not guilty in federal classified documents case

A stone-faced former President Donald Trump entered a not guilty plea Tuesday to charges he lied and schemed to hold on to sensitive national security material that he was supposed to have surrendered when he left the White House. Trump, 76, was indicted last week on 37 federal felony counts, including willful retention of national […]

StephCast T 6-13-23

McCarthy strikes temporary deal with conservative rebels, ending blockade on House floor

Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., struck a temporary deal with a band of 11 conservative rebels Monday, ending a nearly weeklong blockade of the House floor and paving the way for votes this week on a handful of GOP messaging bills. The agreement was announced after a meeting between McCarthy and some of the rabble-rousers who […]

Judge bans electronic devices for media at Trump arraignment courthouse

A federal judge tonight said members of the media will be prohibited from taking cellphones or other electronic devices into the courthouse where Trump is scheduled to be arraigned tomorrow afternoon. “All cellular phones and/or electronic equipment are hereby prohibited for news reporters and other members of the media inside the Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. […]

Trump Arrives In Miami For First Court Appearance Over Documents Charges

Former President Donald Trump arrived in Miami on Monday, a day ahead of his first court appearance on 37 felony charges accusing him of illegally taking highly classified documents from the White House to his Florida club and refusing to return them. Upon arrival, he headed to Miami’s Trump National Doral, where he’s expected to […]

Charlie Pierce: Jack Smith Decided to Let the Trump Indictment Speak For Itself

Jack Smith came out to speak today. (JACK SMITH SPEAKS! Special counsel as Garbo.) And he was as Jack Smithian as Jack Smith could be.  “Our nation’s commitment to the rule of law sets an example for the world. We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone.”  Simple as that, […]

StephCast M 6-12-23

Trump Faces Difficult Odds In Classified Documents Case

Donald Trump faces a formidable task defending against charges that he illegally kept top-secret documents upon leaving the White House in 2021, according to legal experts, who said neither the law nor the facts appear to be on his side. The former U.S. president, who is a candidate to run again in the 2024 election, […]

Facing threats to his speakership, McCarthy takes a ‘YOLO’ approach

If there was a theme for Kevin McCarthy’s jampacked first five months as speaker, it would be this: You only live once. In April, he followed in the footsteps of his political idol, fellow California Republican Ronald Reagan, delivering a major address on Wall Street. Then he hosted Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen at Reagan’s presidential […]

Biden marks Pride Month with celebration on White House South Lawn

 President Joe Biden welcomed hundreds to the White House on Saturday for a delayed Pride Month celebration aimed at showing LGBTQ+ people that his administration has their back at a time when advocates are warning of a spike in discriminatory legislation, particularly aimed at the transgender community, sweeping through statehouses. The event, which the administration described as the […]

Trump, Allies Escalate Attacks On Criminal Case As History-Making Court Appearance Nears

Donald Trump and his allies are escalating efforts to undermine the criminal case against him and drum up protests as the former president braces for a history-making federal court appearance this week on dozens of felony charges accusing him of illegally hoarding classified information. Trump’s Tuesday afternoon appearance in Miami will mark his second time […]

Elie Mystal: The Voting Rights Act Has Survived Another Attempt on Its Life

Yesterday, in a 5-4 ruling, the Supreme Court affirmed Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and ruled that Alabama could be sued over its racially gerrymandered congressional maps. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion for the court, joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson, as well as alleged […]

The Rude Pundit: The Trump Indictment Is Just Embarrassing (Sorry, MAGA Cretins, Not for What You’re Thinking)

Look at this shit. No, not just the boxes of government documents that former President Donald Trump, who is probably already working on bragging that his ass is worth more cigarettes than anyone else’s in the federal pen, hoarded like a deranged squirrel anticipating a long winter. No, look at the bathroom and shower in The […]

StephCast F 6-9-23

SM Happy Hour VideoCast with Jacki Schechner & Frangela 6-9-23

Pat Robertson, broadcaster who helped make religion central to GOP politics, dies at age 93

Pat Robertson, a religious broadcaster who turned a tiny Virginia station into the global Christian Broadcasting Network, tried a run for president and helped make religion central to Republican Party politics in America through his Christian Coalition, has died, the network announced Thursday. He was 93. Robertson died at his home in Virginia Beach, Virginia, […]

Surprise Supreme Court win for Black voters could give Democrats an electoral boost

The Supreme Court’s unexpected affirmation of part of the Voting Rights Act was not just a win for Black voters in Alabama — it could also send new Democrats to Congress in as many as four states, advocates said, as the precedent is applied in similar cases around the country. The court, divided 5-4, struck […]

Trump indicted on 7 charges in classified docs probe

A federal grand jury has indicted Donald Trump on seven criminal charges in connection with his mishandling of more than 100 classified documents that were discovered last year at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, making the twice-impeached former commander-in-chief the first former president to face federal criminal charges. Trump said Thursday night that his attorneys […]

StephCast Th 6-8-23

‘What Kind of Human Being Does That?’: Newsom Warns DeSantis, ‘We Mean Business’ on Potential Kidnapping Charges

NBC News’s Jacob Soboroff sat down with California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) for an interview set to air Thursday morning on Today. In the interview, Newsom doubled down on his strongly-worded criticism of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) and his vow to investigate and potentially prosecute anyone involved in the deceitful shipping of migrants to […]

Conservatives bring the House to a halt as anger at McCarthy’s debt deal remains

A small bloc of conservative bomb-throwers is holding the floor of the House of Representatives hostage, forcing GOP leaders to cancel votes for the rest of the week. For the second straight day, the conservatives blocked several leadership-backed bills from moving forward Wednesday in protest of Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s handling of the debt deal he […]

Steve Bannon Reportedly Subpoenaed In Jan. 6 Grand Jury Probe

Steve Bannon, a longtime supporter and ex-adviser to former President Donald Trump, was subpoenaed in Washington, D.C., by a federal grand jury in an investigation of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, several news outlets reported Wednesday. The subpoena, which was first reported by NBC News, is the latest update in special […]

Trump Told He Is Target Of Criminal Investigation Into Classified Documents: Reports

Federal prosecutors have notified President Donald Trump’s legal team that he is a target of the criminal investigation into his handling of classified documents, according to multiplereports. The move, first reported by The Guardian, reflects a major uptick in the inquiry and comes amid reports that Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith is nearly finished […]

StephCast W 6-7-23

PGA Tour and LIV Golf Agree to Alliance, Ending Golf’s Bitter Fight

The PGA Tour, the dominant force in men’s professional golf for generations, and LIV Golf, which made its debut just last year and is backed by hundreds of millions of dollars in Saudi money, will together form an industry powerhouse that is expected to transform the sport, executives announced Tuesday. The rival circuits had spent […]

Dozens of Secret Service agents have been subpoenaed or appeared before grand jury in Trump docs probe

About two dozen Secret Service agents have been subpoenaed or have appeared before a federal grand jury in Washington that’s looking into former President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents, two sources familiar with the matter confirmed Tuesday. The sources said prosecutors have interviewed agents assigned to Trump’s security detail at his Mar-a-Lago estate in […]

Trump’s ex-chief of staff Mark Meadows testifies to special counsel grand jury: Sources

Former President Donald Trump’s last White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, has testified before a federal grand jury hearing evidence in the special counsel’s investigations into Trump, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News. Sources said that Meadows answered questions on both Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election and Trump’s alleged mishandling […]

Chris Christie jumps into the 2024 GOP presidential race

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie jumped into the 2024 presidential race Tuesday, filing his official paperwork hours before a planned launch event. Christie has been blunt in his criticism of former President Donald Trump, who remains the Republican front-runner in the polls, and he’s likely to continue those lines of attack now that he’s […]

StephCast T 6-6-23

Charlie Pierce: The Trump Georgia Investigation Could Be Turning Into a RICO Investigation

The legal pursuit of El Caudillo del Mar-a-Lago is starting to look like a televised bass-fishing tournament. There’s Team Smith in Washington, and Team James in New York, and Team Willis down there in Georgia. At the moment, Team Smith seems to be in the lead on total weight but, down in Georgia, Team Willis […]

Newsom threatens DeSantis with kidnapping charges after migrants flown to Sacramento

Gov. Gavin Newsom took his feud with Gov. Ron DeSantis to new heights on Monday, seemingly threatening him with kidnapping charges after California officials say South American migrants were sent to Sacramento by the state of Florida as a political stunt. Newsom, a Democrat, cited state kidnapping laws in a tweet to the Florida governor […]

Former Vice President Pence filing paperwork launching 2024 presidential bid in challenge to Trump

Former Vice President Mike Pence is filing paperwork on Monday declaring his campaign for president in 2024, setting up a challenge to his former boss, Donald Trump, just two years after their time in the White House ended with an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and Pence fleeing for his life. Pence, the nation’s 48th vice president, […]

Unproven Biden Bribe Allegation ‘Has Not Been Disproven,’ James Comer Claims After FBI Brief

The FBI privately briefed lawmakers Monday about an unverified tip the bureau received in 2020 that Joe Biden had been involved in a bribery scheme when he was vice president. Republicans have said the source of the allegation is highly credible while admitting they don’t know whether it’s true or not. House Oversight Committee Chair […]

Trump Suggests That Charges Are Imminent In DOJ Probe Of Classified Documents

Former President Donald Trump suggested Monday that he’s close to being charged in the Department of Justice’s investigation into his handling of classified documents. In an online post conveying panic, Trump expressed disbelief that he could be indicted and said he’s innocent of all wrongdoing. “How can DOJ possibly charge me, who did nothing wrong, […]

StephCast M 6-5-23

Texas Becomes Most Populous State To Ban Gender-Affirming Care For Minors

Texas has become the most populous state to ban gender-affirming care for minors after Gov. Greg Abbott signed legislation on Friday. Texas joined at least 18 other states that have enacted similar bans. Every major medical organization, including the American Medical Association, has opposed the bans and supported the medical care for youth when administered […]

Grand jury in Trump classified documents case expected to meet this coming week after hiatus

The federal grand jury that has been hearing evidence in the Justice Department’s investigation of former President Donald Trump’s handling of classified documents is expected to meet again this coming week in Washington, according to multiple people familiar with the investigation. Prosecutors working for special counsel Jack Smith have been presenting the grand jury with […]

Biden signs bipartisan debt ceiling bill to avert government default

President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a bill extending the debt ceiling for two years, averting an economically disastrous debt default ahead of Monday’s deadline. The Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 suspends the public debt limit through January 1, 2025, after the 2024 presidential elections. “If we had failed to reach an agreement on the […]

Kristen Welker will succeed Chuck Todd on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’ in September

NBC News is passing the baton on its long-running Sunday public affairs program “Meet the Press.” Chuck Todd told viewers Sunday he is leaving the moderator’s chair on the 75-year-old program in September. He will hand it off to Kristen Welker, the network’s chief White House correspondent. Welker will be the second female moderator in […]

The Rude Pundit: The Real Mind Virus Is the GOP’s Attack on Reality

There is one question that I don’t see being asked of right-wing politicians when they start talking about all the things they want to ban from the “public” (and I put “public” in quotes because the real public doesn’t actually give a shit about any of this, but a fantasy public that the GOP pretends […]

SM Happy Hour VideoCast with Allison Gill & Paula Poundstone 6-2-23

StephCast F 6-2-23

Trump Says He Doesn’t Know ‘Anything’ About A Tape Of Him Discussing Sensitive Documents

Former President Donald Trump said Thursday he doesn’t “know anything” about a reported tape of him discussing a sensitive military document he allegedly took from the White House. CNN and The New York Times reported Wednesday federal prosecutors had obtained the tape as part of the ongoing investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents. The […]

Senate votes to overturn Biden’s student loan relief program

The Senate voted largely along party lines Thursday on legislation to block President Joe Biden’s student debt relief program after the measure cleared a key procedural hurdle in the chamber. The 52-46 vote to pass the legislation comes a day after senators took a similarly close vote to proceed to the measure, which would repeal […]

Biden ‘fine’ after fall onstage at Air Force Academy graduation

President Joe Biden fell onstage Thursday at the Air Force Academy’s graduation ceremony and is “fine,” a White House aide said. After Biden shook the hands of more than 900 graduates, he turned to head back to his seat and started to motion as if he were going to jog. He then appeared to trip […]

Senate passes debt ceiling bill, sending it to Biden to become law and avert disaster

The Senate voted Thursday night to pass a bill that would extend the debt ceiling for two years and establish a two-year budget agreement on a broad bipartisan vote. The vote was 63-36. Having already cleared the House on Wednesday, it now goes to President Joe Biden, who is expected to sign it and avert […]

StephCast Th 6-1-23

Legal Experts Predict Dire Outcome For Donald Trump After Tape Report

Legal experts foresaw serious consequences for Donald Trump following the reported newly-surfaced recording from July 2021 in which the former president allegedly claimed to have classified documents ― about a possible attack on Iran ― after leaving the White House. CNN’s report Wednesday that federal prosecutors obtained the audio amid special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation […]

Trump captured on tape talking about classified document he kept after leaving the White House

Federal prosecutors have obtained an audio recording of a summer 2021 meeting in which former President Donald Trump acknowledges he held onto a classified Pentagon document about a potential attack on Iran, multiple sources told CNN, undercutting his argument that he declassified everything. The recording indicates Trump understood he retained classified material after leaving the […]

Mike Pence is set to launch his presidential campaign next week

Mike Pence plans to enter the GOP presidential nomination fray June 7 with a campaign video and a kickoff speech in Des Moines, Iowa, according to a person familiar with his launch schedule. The former vice president, a longtime advocate of the priorities of traditional conservatives on social and economic issues, will join the race […]

Biden-McCarthy debt ceiling bill passes the House and will head to the Senate

With overwhelming bipartisan support, the House voted Wednesday to pass the debt ceiling legislation negotiated by Speaker Kevin McCarthy and President Joe Biden, sending it to the Senate with days to spare before a potentially disastrous default. The vote was 314 to 117, with 149 Republicans joining 165 Democrats. The bill would extend the debt […]

StephCast W 5-31-23

Trump Vows to Nullify Part of Constitution by Executive Order ‘On Day One’ of Second Term

Former President Donald Trump promised to nullify a key clause of the Fourteenth Amendment if he is elected president again, though he does not have the authority to do so. Trump has long taken issue with the citizenship clause of the amendment, which states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject […]

DeSantis says he’ll ‘counterpunch’ against Trump attacks after kicking off 2024 campaign in Iowa

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he plans to “counterpunch” against former President Donald Trump’s attacks after kicking off his 2024 campaign in Iowa on Tuesday. The Florida governor implicitly poked fun at his top rival at his first official campaign event. But speaking to reporters after the event, he had plenty to say about Trump, […]

Far-right members, unhappy with debt deal, float threatening McCarthy’s speakership

As criticism builds in Republican ranks over the debt ceiling deal struck by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., and President Joe Biden, some hard-line conservatives have begun floating the idea of toppling the speaker. On a House Freedom Caucus call Monday night, Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo., floated using the motion to vacate, a rule that would allow […]

Biden-McCarthy debt ceiling deal approved by key committee ahead of House vote

A major debt ceiling bill negotiated by President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy passed its first test Tuesday, gaining approval from the Republican-led House Rules Committee and setting up a vote Wednesday in the full chamber. The vote was 7 to 6, with two Republicans — Reps. Ralph Norman of South Carolina and […]

StephCast T 5-30-23

Charlie Pierce: Texas House Says Attorney General Ken Paxton Should Be Impeached and Removed

The shebeen is going dark until Tuesday, barring any major events, like, say, indictments of former presidents*, out of respect for the spirit of Memorial Day. So a new feature is born: Out On The Weekend In The Laboratories Of Democracy. We begin the latter semi-regular weekly survey in Texas where, as far as Attorney […]

Congress has days to OK debt limit deal before default: Timeline of what’s next

A critical deal to raise the nation’s debt ceiling was announced over the weekend, and lawmakers in Washington now face one week to pass the bill in both chambers of Congress before the predicted deadline when default would begin. Unless the $31.4 trillion borrowing limit is increased, the U.S. will run out of cash to […]

Impeachment trial of Texas AG Ken Paxton to begin no later than August 28

A historic impeachment trial in Texas to determine whether Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton should be permanently removed from office will begin no later than August in the state Senate, where the jury that would determine his future could include his wife, Sen. Angela Paxton. Setting a schedule was one of the last orders of business lawmakers took […]

At least 16 dead, dozens injured in shootings across the U.S. over Memorial Day weekend

Shootings across the U.S. left at least 16 people dead and dozens more injured over Memorial Day weekend. The gun violence occurred at beaches, high schools and motorcycle rallies, among other locations, across at least eight states. The victims were teenagers to people in their 60s. The weekend concluded as it began — with gunfire. […]

Russia issues arrest warrant for Sen. Lindsey Graham

Russia’s Interior Ministry on Monday issued an arrest warrant for U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham following his comments related to the fighting in Ukraine. In an edited video of his meeting on Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that was released by Zelenskyy’s office, Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, noted that “the Russians are dying” […]

Donald Trump Marks Memorial Day With Unhinged, All-Caps Rant

Donald Trump predictably made Memorial Day all about himself on Monday. The former president began a post on his Truth Social platform innocuously enough when he wished a “happy Memorial Day to all.” But it then devolved into a ranting screed as he continued: “But especially to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the […]

Biden urges Congress to pass debt ceiling deal

President Joe Biden on Sunday night celebrated a bipartisan “compromise” to raise the nation’s debt ceiling and avert a historic default that could upend the economy. In a brief speech from the White House’s Roosevelt Room, Biden urged Congress to move swiftly to pass the deal, brokered with House Republicans led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy, […]

SM Happy Hour VideoCast with Jen Kirkman & Fred Guttenberg 5-26-23

StephCast F 5-26-23

Debt ceiling negotiators ‘making progress,’ Biden says even as deal remains elusive

Seeking to strike a reassuring tone despite days of negotiations, President Joe Biden said Thursday afternoon that he’s had several “productive conversations” with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and their teams are “making progress” on debt ceiling talks as the country inches closer to default. “I’ve made it clear time and again: Defaulting on our national […]

Mar-A-Lago Workers Moved Boxes Of Papers Before An FBI Visit: Reports

Two employees at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort moved boxes of papers around the property a day before FBI agents and a federal prosecutor visited in their effort to recover classified documents, multiple media outlets reported Thursday. The Washington Post first reported that a maintenance employee at the Florida club told federal prosecutors he […]

Supreme Court delivers blow to wetlands protections in win for Idaho landowners

The Supreme Court on Thursday significantly weakened a landmark water pollution law by ruling that an Idaho couple’s property does not include wetlands subject to federal oversight under the law. The ruling, in which all the justices agreed in the outcome but differed on the legal reasoning, concluded that Mike and Chantell Sackett’s land does […]

Oath Keepers founder sentenced to 18 years in Jan. 6 seditious conspiracy case

The founder of the far-right Oath Keepers has been sentenced to 18 years in federal prison in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol following his conviction on seditious conspiracy. The sentence for Stewart Rhodes is the longest imposed on a Jan. 6 defendant to date. In a politically-charged speech in the courtroom […]

StephCast Th 5-25-23

Tina Turner, trailblazing ‘Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll’ who dazzled audiences worldwide, dies at 83

Tina Turner, the exuberant, heel-stomping, wild-haired rock goddess who sold out stadiums, earned a dozen Grammy Awards and won the adoration of fans around the world in an electrifying music career spanning five decades, died Wednesday at her home near Zurich after a long illness, according to her publicist. She was 83. “With her, the […]

Fitch puts U.S.’ AAA on rating watch negative

Fitch Ratings, a top credit rating agency, put the United States’ AAA long term foreign currency issuer default rating on negative watch on Wednesday evening. “The Rating Watch Negative reflects increased political partisanship that is hindering reaching a resolution to raise or suspend the debt limit despite the fast-approaching x date (when the U.S. Treasury exhausts […]

Jan. 6 rioter who put his feet on desk in Pelosi office sentenced to 4.5 years in prison

The Arkansas man who was photographed on Jan. 6, 2021, with his feet on a desk in then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office was sentenced Wednesday to four and a half years in prison. Federal prosecutors had asked the judge to sentence Richard “Bigo” Barnett to more than seven years for his actions before, during and after […]

Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign launch melts down in Twitter glitches

The start of a much-anticipated Twitter event in which Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis planned to announce his 2024 Republican presidential bid was repeatedly disrupted Wednesday when Twitter’s servers apparently could not handle the surge in traffic. The app crashed repeatedly as Twitter users tried to listen to the event where Twitter owner Elon Musk joined DeSantis […]

StephCast W 5-24-23

Trump’s N.Y. criminal trial will begin in March 2024, halfway through presidential primaries

Former President Donald Trump made a virtual appearance in New York criminal court Tuesday for the first time since pleading not guilty last month to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. A stern-looking Trump appeared before Judge Juan Merchan on video to hear the terms of a protective order barring him from publicly disclosing […]

Driver who crashed near White House told officials he was prepared to kill Biden and ‘seize power’

The 19-year-old Missouri man accused of deliberately driving a rented box truck into a White House barrier allegedly told authorities that he admires Nazis and wanted to “seize power” and “kill the president,” court documents released Tuesday show. Sai Varshith Kandula, of Chesterfield, Missouri, rented the U-Haul truck Monday night immediately after flying from St. […]

‘Work requirements’ emerge as flashpoint in debt ceiling, spending talks

As Washington struggles to reach a debt ceiling deal with little more than a week until potential default, a key hangup in the negotiations is turning out to be — “work requirements.” A long-sought effort by Republicans to impose stricter conditions on recipients of Medicaid and other federal assistance programs is now front-and-center in the […]

Ron DeSantis will launch 2024 presidential campaign during Twitter event with Elon Musk

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will launch his 2024 presidential campaign during a social media event with Elon Musk on Wednesday night, multiple sources familiar with the matter told ABC News. DeSantis will declare he is seeking the Republican nomination during a live, audio-only Twitter Spaces event at 6 p.m. ET Wednesday, the sources said. The […]

StephCast T 5-23-23

GOP Rep. James Comer Implies Biden Family Probe Is Really About Helping Trump In 2024

Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) on Monday inadvertently implied that House Republicans’ high-profile investigation into President Joe Biden’s family members and their finances is actually about helping Donald Trump win the presidency in 2024. Comer, who is leading the GOP’s probe as chair of the House oversight and accountability committee, appeared to say the quiet part […]

E. Jean Carroll seeks ‘very substantial’ new damages after Trump called her a ‘whack job’ in CNN town hall

Writer E. Jean Carroll on Monday asked a judge to update her still pending original defamation lawsuit against former President Donald Trump to add a new claim after he trashed her as a “whack job” during his CNN town hall earlier this month. In a court filing late Monday, Carroll attorney Roberta Kaplan said her […]

Driver detained after truck crashes into security barriers near the White House

A driver was detained after a truck crashed into security barriers near the White House on Monday night, officials said. The white U-Haul box truck crashed into the barriers on the north side of Lafayette Square, at 16th Street, just before 10 p.m. ET. The Secret Service said the incident, which took place just a […]

Biden and McCarthy hold a ‘productive’ debt ceiling meeting, but no deal yet

A meeting between President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Monday afternoon to discuss a path forward to avert a debt limit breach failed to yield a deal, but both sides agreed that talks were “productive.” “We don’t have an agreement yet, but I did feel the discussion was productive in areas that […]

StephCast M 5-22-23

Harry Litman: Why Special Counsel John Durham’s report takes so long to say so little

Rarely has a government report taken so long — in years and pages — to tell the public so little as Special Counsel John Durham’s report to the Department of Justice this week. When then-Atty. Gen. Bill Barr appointed Durham to investigate the department’s probe of connections between Russia and Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, Trump […]

Biden, McCarthy To Meet Monday For Debt Limit Talks

Debt ceiling talks were set to resume Sunday evening as Washington races to strike a budget compromise along with a deal to raise the nation’s borrowing limit and avert an economy-wrecking federal default. President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy spoke by phone Sunday while the president was returning home on Air Force One […]

The Rude Pundit: In the UK, They Banned Knives When Knife Crime Rose

As an American, it’s easy to be cynical about knife crime in the United Kingdom. I’m here right now, and already I’ve seen multiple TV news segments about all the stabbings and threats of stabbings with knives and machetes. When I saw a BBC report with the chyron “Knives: can we end the violence?” my […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast with Cliff Schecter & Frank Figliuzzi

StephCast F 5-19-23

Disney scraps plan for new Florida campus amid DeSantis feud

Disney has abandoned plans to open up a new employee campus in Lake Nona, Florida, amid rising tensions with the state’s governor. Citing “changing business conditions” and the return of CEO Bob Iger, Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney’s parks, experiences and products division, penned a memo to employees Thursday, announcing that the company will not move […]

Sen. Dianne Feinstein suffered previously undisclosed complications from shingles

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., experienced more complications than were publicly disclosed from a recent case of shingles that left her absent from Washington for nearly three months. Feinstein, 89, had also suffered from Ramsay Hunt syndrome, which occurred when shingles spread to her head and neck, and a case of encephalitis, which is swelling of […]

GOP witnesses undermined Jan. 6 cases with conspiracy theories, FBI says

Two of the three self-proclaimed FBI whistleblowers who testified before a House subcommittee Thursday lost their security clearances because their conduct in Jan. 6 cases brought into question their allegiance to the U.S., a bureau official wrote in a letter to members of Congress this week. A third FBI employee, a special agent who did […]

StephCast Th 5-18-23

‘She Ain’t Worth It’: Ocasio-Cortez Zings Taylor-Greene As Lawmakers Go At It

Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) got into a shouting match outside the Capitol on Wednesday. The two yelled until Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) stepped in to defuse the situation by taking a shot at Greene. “She ain’t worth it, bro,” Ocasio-Cortez said, tapping Bowman on the shoulder. “She ain’t worth it, […]

Biden says he’s ‘confident’ US will avert default as he departs for foreign trip

President Joe Biden on Wednesday said he is “confident” the U.S. will avert default, expressing optimism a crisis could be avoided as he left for a foreign trip even as debt ceiling negotiations were coming down to the wire. “I’m confident that we’ll get the agreement on the budget that America will not default,” Biden […]

House GOP refers George Santos expulsion resolution to Ethics panel

The House voted Wednesday evening to refer a Democratic-sponsored resolution to expel Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., to the Ethics Committee. By referring the matter to the House Committee on Ethics, which has been investigating Santos since early March, Republicans for now avoided a vote on the resolution itself, which was introduced Tuesday by Rep. Robert […]

StephCast W 5-17-23

Democratic congressman introduces resolution to expel Rep. George Santos

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., introduced a resolution on the House floor Tuesday afternoon to expel GOP Rep. George Santos. “I rise to give notice of my intent to raise a question of the privileges of the House. … Rep. George Santos be, and hereby is, expelled from the House of Representatives,” he said. House Republicans […]

Man Slipped Undetected Inside Home Of White House National Security Adviser

An unknown man managed to slip undetected inside the home of White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, according to two people familiar with the incident. The U.S. Secret Service is investigating. The door was apparently unlocked, and the intruder was able to get inside Sullivan’s home around 3 a.m. last month, the people said. […]

Biden Shortens Asia Trip To Deal With GOP Debt Ceiling Demands

A White House effort to counter China’s increasing influence in the western Pacific on Tuesday became the first casualty of Republican attempts to make honoring the U.S. debt contingent on cutting medical and food benefits for welfare recipients. President Joe Biden’s aides for weeks had been touting his planned visit to Papua New Guinea as […]

North Carolina Republicans Override Veto, Allowing 12-Week Abortion Ban To Become Law

North Carolina Republicans successfully killed Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of a 12-week abortion ban on Tuesday, paving the way for the restriction to soon become law. When the legislature held an override vote on Tuesday, every Republican voted for the 12-week abortion ban in the Senate, 30-20, and the House, 72-48 ― confirming that […]

StephCast T 5-16-23

Person looking for Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly attacks staffers with baseball bat

A person looking for Virginia Rep. Gerry Connolly allegedly attacked two of his staffers with a metal baseball bat at his district office Monday, the congressman said in a statement. Connolly, a Democrat, said the individual was taken into police custody and the two staffers who were injured were taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening […]

Woman Sues Rudy Giuliani, Saying He Coerced Her Into Sex, Owes Her $2 Million In Unpaid Wages

A woman who says she worked as an off-the-books employee for Rudy Giuliani during his stint as Donald Trump’s personal lawyer alleges in court papers that the former New York City mayor coerced her into sex and owes her nearly $2 million in unpaid wages. Noelle Dunphy said in the lawsuit that she was Giuliani’s […]

Giuliani accused of offering to sell Trump pardons for $2 million each in new lawsuit

A woman who said she worked for Rudy Giuliani during the last two years of the Trump administration alleged in a wide-ranging lawsuit that Giuliani, the former president’s personal attorney, discussed selling presidential pardons and detailed plans to overturn the 2020 election results. In a 70-page complaint filed in state court in New York on […]

Trump-era special counsel issues report criticizing FBI for launching Trump-Russia investigation

The special counsel who spent four years investigating the Trump-Russia probe accused the FBI of acting negligently by opening the investigation based on vague and insufficient information in a sweeping 300-page report made public Monday. Special counsel John Durham, named by then-Attorney General William Barr to examine the origins and conduct of the investigation into […]

Charlie Pierce: Oops, Rep. James Comer Seems to Have Misplaced His Biden ‘Informant’

Did you leave him in the car? Did you look in the pockets of yesterday’s jeans? Have you checked between the cushions of the sofa? These people are unbelievable. “You have spoken with whistleblowers,” [Maria Bartiromo] said. “You also spoke with an informant who gave you all of this information. Where is that informant today? Where […]

StephCast M 5-15-23

Ron DeSantis tiptoes around Iowa as Trump cancels visit amid tornado threat

It was supposed to be a clash of 2024 GOP presidential primary titans in Iowa on Saturday, but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had the state to himself — meeting with voters at several stops — as the threat of tornadoes forced former President Donald Trump to cancel an outdoor rally. DeSantis, seizing on Trump’s absence, […]

U.S. Border Crossings Down 50% After Title 42 Expired: Mayorkas

The number of crossings along the U.S. southern border has dropped by 50% since pandemic-related asylum restrictions expired on Thursday, contradicting earlier fears that there would be a surge, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said Sunday. U.S. Border Patrol counted roughly 6,300 crossings on Friday and 4,300 on Saturday, down from more than 10,000 before […]

‘We can’t track down the informant’: James Comer says he lost top witness in Biden investigation

Rep. James Comer (R-KY) revealed on Sunday that Republicans had lost track of a top witness in the investigation of President Joe Biden and his family. During an interview on Fox News, host Maria Bartiromo asked Comer about evidence he had of Biden’s alleged corruption. “You have spoken with whistleblowers,” she noted. “You also spoke […]

The Rude Pundit: A Brief Observation on the Verdict Declaring Donald Trump Sexually Assaulted E. Jean Carroll

There was a time in the not-so-distant past when it was just fine to sexually harass and assault women. Slapping a woman on the ass was supposed to be taken as a compliment. Discussion about women’s looks and their fuckability was a constant in workplaces. And by “fuckability,” I mean “rapeability” because it didn’t matter […]

SM Happy Hour VideoCast with Billy West & Dana Goldberg 5-12-23

StephCast F 5-12-23

Migrants wait for chance to enter U.S. after end of pandemic-era restrictions

Cheers and applause broke out as migrants prepared to cross the border into El Paso, Texas, hours after the lifting of pandemic-era restrictions on Friday. Once across, men and women, some in hoodies and sweaters to guard against the chilly desert night air, walked in single file to a U.S. Border Patrol van. A man […]

Feinstein returns to the Senate Judiciary Committee, helping advance Biden judges

One day after making a long-anticipated return to Congress, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., attended her first Judiciary Committee meeting on Thursday after a monthslong absence following a shingles diagnosis in February. With Feinstein’s “aye” votes, Democrats were able to send three additional judicial nominees to the Senate floor for consideration on party-line votes: Charnelle Bjelkengren […]

E. Jean Carroll Considering Suing Trump Again In Wake Of CNN Town Hall: Attorney

Former President Donald Trump’s “whack job” remarks – and others – about E. Jean Carrollmay lead to another defamation lawsuit as her lawyer revealed that “everything’s on the table” in the wake of a CNN town hall event that’s been panned by media figures both inside and outside of the network. Carroll spoke to The […]

StephCast Th 5-11-23

Sen. Dianne Feinstein returns to Capitol Hill, casts her first votes since February

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., cast her first two votes on the Senate floor Wednesday afternoon after a nearly three-month absence due to health issues. Upon her arrival on Capitol Hill, she was assisted into a wheelchair and greeted by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. Feinstein told reporters that she feels “much better.” She did […]

Alabama senator on white nationalists in the military: ‘I call them Americans’

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., appeared to defend white nationalists in a recent interview by suggesting they should not be barred from serving in the military, prompting his office to clarify the remarks. In an interview published this week by Birmingham-based radio station WBHM, Tuberville criticized the state of the military and said Democrats were to blame. […]

George Santos Is Charged With Fraud and Lying in 13-Count Indictment

For months, Representative George Santos seemed to possess a Teflon-like resistance to repercussions, even as questions mounted over his income, campaign finances and rags-to-riches life story. Mr. Santos, a first-term Republican representing Long Island and Queens, gave numerous speeches on the House floor and appeared to relish his growing notoriety. Just in the last month, […]

Five Takeaways From Trump’s Unruly CNN Town Hall

Donald Trump is still Donald Trump. His 70 minutes onstage in New Hampshire served as a vivid reminder that the former president has only one speed, and that his second act mirrors his first. He is, as ever, a celebrity performance artist and, even out of office, remains the center of gravity in American politics. CNN’s […]

StephCast W 5-10-23

Impasse persists after Biden and congressional leaders hold ‘tense’ meeting on debt ceiling

President Joe Biden and congressional leaders failed to resolve the impending default crisis at a contentious meeting in the Oval Office on Tuesday afternoon, but they plan to meet again Friday. Each side accused the other of being unreasonable, and Biden — for the first time — said after the meeting that there have been […]

Justice Department Charging Rep. George Santos In Federal Probe: Report

The Department of Justice has filed criminal charges against Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), CNN is reporting. The charges haven’t been announced, but the controversial member of Congress is expected to appear as soon as Wednesday at federal court in New York’s Eastern District. A request for comment to Santos’ office was not immediately returned. ABC […]

Tucker Carlson says he’ll launch new show on Twitter

Conservative commentator and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson is launching a new version of his show on Twitter, he said Tuesday. Speaking in a nearly three-minute video posted on the platform, Carlson gave few details about the show and offered a familiar criticism of the news media. Carlson called the platform the “last big […]

Trump found liable for sexually abusing and defaming E. Jean Carroll in civil trial and is ordered to pay $5 million

A New York jury found former President Donald Trump liable Tuesday for sexually abusing writer E. Jean Carroll in a Manhattan department store in the 1990s but not liable for her alleged rape.  The jury awarded her $5 million in damages for her battery and defamation claims. Asked on its verdict sheet whether Carroll, 79, […]

StephCast T 5-9-23

E. Jean Carroll was ‘exactly’ Donald Trump’s type, her lawyer says in closing arguments

E. Jean Carroll was “exactly” Donald Trump’s type, and the former president didn’t show up at her civil trial accusing him of rape because “he knows what he did” to her, her attorney alleged in closing arguments Monday in Manhattan federal court. Speaking to the six-man, three-woman jury, Roberta Kaplan played a video of the […]

Trump prohibited from posting evidence in hush money case to social media, judge rules

The New York state judge presiding over the criminal hush money case against Donald Trump issued an order Monday restricting the former president from posting about some evidence in the case on social media. Judge Juan Merchan largely sided with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg by limiting what Trump can publicly disclose about new evidence […]

Biden to meet with congressional leaders on debt ceiling as default looms

President Joe Biden and congressional leaders — including the two top Republicans — will meet Tuesday in the Oval Office to open negotiations to head off an impending default crisis, although neither side expects the summit to make much progress.  With the Treasury Department saying the government will run out of money as soon as […]

Texas mall shooter ranted against Jews, women and racial minorities on apparent social media page

A social media page appearing to belong to a gunman who killed eight people at a Dallas-area outlet mall had shared extremist beliefs with rants against Jews, women and racial minorities posted since September, as well as posts about struggling with mental health. Mauricio Garcia, 33, maintained a profile on the Russian social networking platform OK.ru, […]

StephCast M 5-8-23

Greg Abbott Says Focus Is ‘Mental Health Problems,’ Not Gun Reform, After Texas Shooting

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said the state would focus on addressing “mental health problems” behind gun violence, but didn’t address calls for gun reform after another devastating mass shooting at a shopping center this weekend. Eight people were killed and at least seven others injured at an outlet mall in Allen, Texas, on Saturday […]

Investigators Looking Into Possible White Supremacist Views Of Texas Mall Gunman

Federal officials were looking into whether the gunman who killed eight people at a Dallas-area mall expressed an interest in white supremacist ideology Sunday as they work to try to discern a motive for the attack, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official cautioned the investigation is in its early stages. Federal […]

Trump Fails To Make Deadline To Testify In Rape Trial

Former President Donald Trump rejected his last chance Sunday to testify at a civil trial where a longtime advice columnist has accused him of raping her in a luxury department store dressing room in 1996. Trump, a Republican candidate for president in 2024, was given until 5 p.m. Sunday by U.S. District Judge Lewis A. […]

Eight victims believed to be migrants killed when they’re struck by a vehicle while waiting at bus stop in a Texas border city

Eight people waiting at a bus stop in a Texas border city were killed and a dozen more were injured early Sunday when a vehicle rammed into them, officials said. The victims, who are believed to be migrants, were at a stop near a Catholic Charities facility in Brownsville known as the Ozanam Center, a […]

Prosecutors seek 25-year prison sentence for Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes

The Justice Department is seeking 25 years in prison for Stewart Rhodes, the Oath Keepers founder convicted of seditious conspiracy for what prosecutors described as a violent plot to keep President Joe Biden out of the White House, according to court papers filed Friday. A Washington, D.C., jury convicted Rhodes in November in one of […]

8 Trump ‘fake electors’ have accepted immunity in Georgia election probe, attorney says

Eight of the so-called “fake electors” in Georgia who were allegedly involved in efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election in the state have accepted immunity in the Fulton County probe into the matter, according to their lawyer. In a court filing in the case on Friday, an attorney who represents 10 of […]

King Charles III and Queen Camilla crowned: Highlights from the coronation

King Charles III was crowned monarch of the United Kingdom of Britain and Northern Ireland on Saturday, in a ceremony steeped in a millennium of tradition and pageantry. Shouts of “God Save the King!” were heard, trumpets blared and gun salutes rang out after the Archbishop of Canterbury placed the crown on Charles’s head at […]

9 dead and 3 in critical condition after mass shooting at Texas outlet mall

Nine people, including the suspect, are dead after a shooting Saturday at a Dallas-area outlet mall, authorities said. Seven people died on scene at Allen Premium Outlets and two more were pronounced dead at a hospital, Allen Fire Department Chief Jonathan Boyd said. Three people remained in critical condition on Saturday night and four were […]

SMHH VideoCast with Noel Casler & Victor Shi – 5-5-23

StephCast F 5-5-23

Four Proud Boys members found guilty of seditious conspiracy in Jan. 6 trial

Four members of the far-right Proud Boys organization were found guilty Thursday of seditious conspiracy in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Enrique Tarrio, Joseph Biggs, Ethan Nordean and Zachary Rehl were found guilty of the rare charge of seditious conspiracy under a Civil War-era statute. Dominic Pezzola, another member of […]

StephCast Th 5-4-23

StephCast W 5-3-23

StephCast T 5-2-23

StephCast M 5-1-23

First Republic Bank is taken over by FDIC and sold to JPMorgan in third major bank failure of 2023

First Republic Bank has been taken over by federal regulators and will be sold to JPMorgan — making it the third major bank to go under in less than two months.  The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) ) announced simultaneously Monday morning that it had seized the bank and that JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank […]

The suspect in a Texas mass shooting vanishes, and authorities have ‘zero leads’

A man suspected of using an AR-15 rifle to kill five neighbors execution-style continued to elude an army of law enforcement hunting for him outside Houston over the weekend. Authorities said Sunday afternoon that Francisco Oropesa, 38, appeared to have slipped past a 2-mile dragnet of more than 150 law enforcement officers in Cleveland, Texas, […]

Top moments from the White House Correspondents’ dinner

President Joe Biden joked about a range of topics at the White House Correspondents’ dinner on Saturday but struck a serious tone as he called for the release of wrongfully detained Americans abroad. The annual dinner, hosted inside the Washington Hilton, drew thousands of guests in support of freedom of the press, something Biden called […]

SM Happy Hour VideoCast with Hal Sparks & Angelo Carusone 4-28-23

StephCast F 4-28-23

Donald Trump Grunts And Moans As Crowd Goes Wild In Bizarre Campaign Moment

Donald Trump had one of his weirdest campaign moments yet as he updated an anti-trans rant that included a series of grunts as he imitated a woman lifting weights. “I will tell you another thing that people can’t even believe: I will keep men out of women’s sports, OK?” the former president told a cheering […]

Writer E. Jean Carroll spars with Trump lawyer from witness stand: ‘I was raped’““`

Writer E. Jean Carroll, who alleges in a lawsuit that Donald Trumpraped her in the 1990s in a New York department store, was questioned Thursday by a lawyer for the former president who repeatedly suggested her claim was made up. “You were supposedly raped?” Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina asked Carroll early in his cross-examination. “I […]

DeSantis dismisses Disney lawsuit over loss of self-governance as ‘political’

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday brushed off a lawsuit by the Walt Disney Co. over the revocation of its Orlando-area theme park’s self-governing privileges as politically motivated. “I don’t think the suit has merit. I think it’s political,” DeSantis said during a news conference in Jerusalem as part of a trip his office described […]

Pence testifies before federal grand jury investigating Trump’s role in Jan. 60

Former Vice President Mike Pence appeared Thursday before the federal grand jury convened as part of the special counsel investigation into former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss and remain in power, according to a source familiar with the matter. The testimony is a significant development in the special counsel’s probe, […]

Th 4-27-23

Tucker Carlson Drops First Video After Fox News Ouster

Tucker Carlson released a video on Wednesday addressing his firing from Fox News several days prior. During the video, which was published to Carlson’s Twitter account, the former Fox News host said he realized after stepping “outside the noise for a few days” how “unbelievably stupid most of the debates you see on television are,” […]

House GOP narrowly passes bill to raise debt limit and cut spending; White House called it ‘ransom’

House Republicans on Wednesday narrowly passed a bill to increase the nation’s debt ceiling while cutting federal government spending — and while the legislation has no prospect of becoming law, GOP leaders hope it will help force negotiations with Democrats. The proposal, known as the Limit, Save, Grow Act, passed 217-215, with four Republicans joining […]

Disney sues Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and officials over ‘targeted campaign of government retaliation’

Disney filed a lawsuit Wednesday in U.S. District Court against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and various Florida officials over a campaign the company alleges was “patently retaliatory, patently anti-business, and patently unconstitutional.” The lawsuit follows the state oversight board’s decision to void “publicly noticed and duly agreed development contracts which had laid the foundation for […]

Trump ‘raped me’: E. Jean Carroll testifies about alleged attack at trial

Writer E. Jean Carroll took the witness stand for her lawsuit against former President Donald Trump on Wednesday, telling jurors: “I’m here because Trump raped me.” When she stepped forward with her allegations in 2019, Trump “lied and shattered my reputation, and I’m trying to get my life back,” Carroll said in her testimony at […]

StephCast W 4-26-23

Sen. Ted Cruz’s Jan. 6 Scheming Exposed In Newly Unveiled Recording

In a recorded conversation with Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) laid out a plan to create a “commission” to help him overturn the 2020 election to keep Donald Trump in the White House. “I think that the country deserves to have a credible assessment […]

Opening statements conclude in Trump’s trial over E. Jean Carroll’s rape allegation

E. Jean Carroll, the writer who says Donald Trump raped her in a New York City department store in the 1990s, sued the former president because “she wants to get her life back,” her attorney said in opening statements Tuesday. “Donald Trump assaulted her in 1996 and defamed her when she said she made it […]

Chief Justice Roberts declines to testify at Senate’s Supreme Court ethics hearing

Chief Justice John Roberts on Tuesday declined an invitation from a high-ranking Democratic senator to testify at a congressional hearing on ethics rules for members of the Supreme Court. In a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Roberts suggested that his participation could pose a threat to judicial independence. “Testimony before the […]

Biden tells unions he will ‘finish the job’ in first speech since 2024 announcement

Hours after announcing his 2024 bid, President Joe Biden promised in a union hall speech on Tuesday to deliver for American workers if re-elected, pitching his economic vision for the country and swiping at Republicans. Biden’s remarks to the North America’s Building Trades Unions at the Washington Hilton were punctuated by chants of “Four more […]

StephCast T 4-25-23

Charlie Pierce: At Least Fox Let Tucker Carlson Go With a Respectful Ruthlessness

There was a great disturbance in the Force on Wednesday. Don Lemon gets the gate at CNN, which genuinely seems to be floundering under current leadership. (Gayle King and Charles Barkley? This is a chemistry experiment guaranteed to make the cat disappear.) And, over at Fox, Tucker Carlson gets shuffled out the door without even […]

Montana transgender lawmaker silenced for third day; protesters interrupt House proceedings

As Republican leaders in the Montana legislature doubled down on forbidding Rep. Zooey Zephyr from participating in debate into a second week, her supporters on Monday interrupted proceedings in the House by chanting “Let her speak!” Zephyr, a first-term Democrat from Missoula, wanted to speak about a proposal that would restrict when children could change […]

E. Jean Carroll lawsuit against Trump for defamation, battery set for trial on Tuesday

Jury selection is scheduled to begin Tuesday in a civil trial stemming from a lawsuit filed by advice columnist and author E. Jean Carroll against former President Donald Trump.  Carroll says Trump raped her in a New York City department store in the mid-1990s and defamed her when she went public with the story in […]

Georgia prosecutor to reveal charging decisions in Trump probe this summer

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said Monday that she’ll announce charging decisions stemming from her probeinto possible interference in the 2020 election by former President Donald Trump and his allies as early as mid-July. Willis said the charging decisions will be revealed during the state Superior Court’s fourth term, which begins July 11 and […]

Broadcast bloodbath: Tucker Carlson, Don Lemon are out in major media shake-up

Fox News host Tucker Carlson and CNN host Don Lemon both abruptly exited their cable outlets on Monday following a series of controversies, marking a seismic shift in the media landscape. Just hours before Fox News announced Carlson’s departure in a statement, the network was still promoting his primetime show, indicating just how sudden the […]

StephCast M 4-24-23

GOP candidates pitch Iowa evangelicals with promises to restrict transgender and abortion rights

More than a half-dozen Republicans who are or may be running for president took their pitches to religious conservatives at an Iowa cattle call on Saturday that’s long been one of the premier stops on the GOP primary calendar. Before a 1,000-person crowd at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition’s spring kickoff, a bevy of […]

Supreme Court allows abortion pill to stay on the market for now

The Supreme Court on Friday allowed the most commonly used abortion pill in the U.S. to remain widely available. The court blocked in full a decision by Texas-based U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk on April 7 that had invalidated the Food and Drug Administration’s longtime approval of mifepristone and handed a sweeping victory to abortion opponents. Two of the […]

Trump operatives considered using breached voting data to decertify Georgia’s Senate runoff in 2021

In mid-January 2021, two men hired by former President Donald Trump’s legal team discussed over text message what to do with data obtained from a breached voting machine in a rural county in Georgia, including whether to use it as part of an attempt to decertify the state’s pending Senate runoff results.  The texts, sent two […]

The Rude Pundit: The Pleasure of Watching Ron DeSantis Implode

There was never a chance in heaven or hell that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who looks like a 1980s shop teacher who gets off on breaking the birdhouses the kids make to prove “you can’t build shit, you little pussy,” was going to win the Republican nomination for president. I mean, put aside that Donald […]

SM Happy Hour Videocast with Jaime Harrison & Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) – 4-21-23

StephCast F 4-21-23

MSNBC Airs Newly-Released 2020 Audio of Ted Cruz Explaining to Fox’s Maria Bartiromo ‘Demonstrable Facts’ Are Needed to Prove Election Fraud

Ari Melber aired a recording of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) telling Fox host Maria Bartiromo that evidence would be required to prove claims about voter fraud in a court of law. Bartiromo was one of the several Fox hosts and guests who falsely claimed or suggested the 2020 presidential election was rigged against then-President Donald […]

Mike Lindell ordered to pay $5M for losing ‘Prove Mike Wrong’ election data challenge

Mike Lindell has to pay $5 million for losing his “Prove Mike Wrong” 2020 election challenge, an arbitration panel has ruled. In a decision dated Wednesday, the panel found software developer Robert Zeidman had won Lindell’s 2021 contest challenging experts to prove that data he had was not from the 2020 election, and directed the […]

Biden set to make re-election bid official next week

President Joe Biden is preparing to make his intention to seek a second term official next week, with advisers planning to launch his re-election campaign as soon as Tuesday, three sources familiar with the plans said. Even as advisers have said for months that no formal timetable had been settled on to launch Biden’s 2024 […]

StephCast Th 4-20-23

Biden Blasts GOP ‘Wacko Notions’ Amid Debt Limit Standoff

President Joe Biden lambasted Republicans’ emerging trade-off plans to raise the nation’s debt limit only in exchange for spending cuts and other policy concessions on Wednesday, declaring that GOP lawmakers are threatening a historic default on U.S. obligations “unless I agree to all these wacko notions they have.” His remarks in a union hall speech […]

IRS agent wants whistleblower protections to discuss ‘preferential treatment’ in Hunter Biden probe

An IRS special agent said to be involved in the federal investigation into Hunter Biden’s taxes is seeking whistleblower protections to provide sensitive disclosures about the probe to Congress. Mark D. Lytle, a lawyer for the unnamed IRS employee, wrote in a letter Wednesday to a bipartisan group of lawmakers that he represents a “career […]

Marjorie Taylor Greene prohibited from speaking at hearing after calling DHS secretary ‘a liar’

A House committee formally silenced Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., on Wednesday after she lobbed accusations at the homeland security secretary during his congressional testimony. Democrats on the GOP-led Homeland Security Committee twice sought to strike remarks made by Greene at the hearing, one in which she accused a Democratic member of having an extramarital […]

Supreme Court delays action on abortion pill ruling

The Supreme Court on Wednesday delayed making a decision that could prevent patients from obtaining the abortion pill mifepristone in the mail by extending a temporary block on a lower court ruling. In a brief order issued by Justice Samuel Alito, the court said the hold, first announced last week, would be extended two more […]

StephCast W 4-19-23

John Fetterman Returns to Work, Immediately Trolls Right-Wing ‘Fringy Fringies’

Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) returned to work this week after his treatment for depression and quickly engaged in one of his favorite diversions: trolling his critics on the right. Last month, some conservatives on social media claimed Fetterman had been replaced by a body double while undergoing inpatient treatment at Walter Reed hospital. Fetterman, who […]

Senate Democrats eye a hearing on Clarence Thomas as Republicans shrug off gift revelations

Key Senate Democrats are considering a hearing about Supreme Court ethics in the wake of revelations that Justice Clarence Thomas received previously undisclosed gifts and luxury travel from billionaire Republican donor Harlan Crow. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the chair of the Judiciary Committee, said the “20 years of gift travel on yachts and […]

Republicans block Senate Democrats’ push to replace Feinstein on Judiciary panel

Senate Republicans blocked a request Tuesday by Democrats to temporarily replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein on the Judiciary Committee while the 89-year-old Californian recovers from illness. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer asked for unanimous consent to swap out Feinstein for Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., saying that Feinstein “made her wish clear” to be removed “until she returns […]

Fox News and Dominion reach $787.5 million settlement in defamation lawsuit

Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems reached a $787.5 million settlement agreement Tuesday afternoon, the parties announced, narrowly heading off a trial shortly after the jury was sworn in. “Fox has admitted to telling lies,” John Poulos, Dominion’s CEO, said at a news conference after the trial ended. Justin Nelson, lead attorney for Dominion, told […]

StephCast Tu 4-18-23

GOP Senators Won’t Help Replace Dianne Feinstein On Judiciary Committee

If Democrats believed Republicans would help them easily solve their Dianne Feinstein dilemma, they’re in for some disappointment. A pair of Republicans who serve on the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee made clear they won’t vote to replace the 89-year-old California Democrat on the panel as she has requested due to health issues that have kept […]

StephCast M 4-17-23

Clarence Thomas has for years claimed income from a defunct real estate firm

The misstatements, which began when a family business transferred its holdings to another company, are part of a pattern that has raised questions about how the Supreme Court justice views his obligation to accurately report details about his finances to the public.

SMHH VideoCast with Noel Casler

StephCast F 4-14-23

Clarence Thomas’ real estate sale is ‘a clear violation of government ethics law’: ProPublica reporter

Fresh off reports that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas accepted luxury travel and accommodations from billionaire GOP megadonor Harlan Crow without any disclosure, a new report reveals Thomas also sold Crow his family home without disclosing it — which experts say is a much more clear-cut violation of federal ethics laws. ProPublica reporter Josh Kaplan, […]

Marjorie Taylor Greene Claims Intel Leaker Was Arrested Because He’s ‘White, Male, Christian’

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) defended Jake Teixeira, 21, on Thursday, just hours after he was arrested for allegedly leaking highly sensitive military documents online. Teixeira, a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman serving since 2019, held the highest-level security clearance possible for top-secret information military information and he allegedly shared highly sensitive national defense documents with […]

U.S. officials arrest 21-year-old Air National Guardsman suspected of leaking classified documents

WASHINGTON — Jack Teixeira, a 21-year-old member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard was arrested Thursday, a U.S. law enforcement official confirmed to NBC News, in connection to the investigation of classified documents that were leaked on the internet. U.S. officials had been searching for the source of the leak, which exposed potentially hundreds of […]

StephCast Th 4-13-23

Democrat Justin J. Pearson reinstated to the Tennessee Legislature

Memphis-area officials voted Wednesday to reinstate Justin J. Pearson to the Tennessee Legislature after Republicans expelled him last week for protesting gun violence on the chamber floor. The seven members of the Shelby County Board of Commissioners present for the vote unanimously approved Pearson’s reinstatement during a special meeting in Memphis. Board members suspended the […]

Special counsel focuses on Trump fundraising off false election claims

Federal prosecutors probing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol have in recent weeks sought a wide range of documents related to fundraising after the 2020 election, looking to determine if Trump or his advisers scammed donors by using false claims about voter fraud to raise money, eight people familiar with the new […]

Witnesses Asked About Trump’s Handling of Map With Classified Information

Federal investigators are asking witnesses whether former President Donald J. Trump showed off to aides and visitors a map he took with him when he left office that contains sensitive intelligence information, four people with knowledge of the matter said. The map has been just one focus of the broad Justice Department investigation into Mr. […]

StephCast W 4-12-23

Former Trump adviser Stephen Miller appears at D.C. federal court where Jan. 6 grand jury meets

WASHINGTON — Former Trump adviser Stephen Miller arrived Tuesday at the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., and was seen entering the area where the grand jury tied to special counsel Jack Smith’s Jan. 6 investigation meets. Neither Miller nor his attorney responded when asked what the former aide was doing there. The grand jury […]

‘You Need to Get Out of Here’: CNN Reports Disturbing Details From Live-Streamed Attack on Louisville Bank

New details have emerged about the footage aired by the Louisville shooter when he live-streamed his attack on the Old National Bank.Connor Sturgeon, a 25-year-old former employee of the bank, was identified as the suspect who killed five people and wounded eight more on Monday morning. The motive behind the shooting remains unclear, though police […]

Bragg Sues Jim Jordan in Move to Block Interference in Trump Case

The Manhattan district attorney on Tuesday sued Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio in an extraordinary step intended to keep congressional Republicans from interfering in the office’s criminal case against former President Donald J. Trump. The 50-page suit, filed in federal court in the Southern District of New York, accuses Mr. Jordan of a “brazen and […]

StephCast T 4-11-23

Charlie Pierce: No One on the Right Seems Willing to Control the Violence

I’m getting the feeling that one of these wrap-ups is going to turn into another semi-regular weekly survey around the shebeen. One of our regulars is a place called The Tennessee Holler, a progressive news site in that benighted state. Naturally, the Holler has been following closely the current dust-up in the Tennessee legislature over gun reform laws. Accordingly, […]

Biden signs bill ending Covid national emergency

President Joe Biden on Monday signed into law a Republican-backed resolution that immediately terminates the coronavirus national emergency first declared in March 2020. The measure ends the national emergency a month earlier than the Biden administration had planned. A separate public health emergency tied to Covid will remain until May 11. Biden had signaled his […]

Louisville gunman kills at least 5 and injures others in bank shooting, police say

A gunman opened fire at a bank in downtownLouisville on Monday, killing at least five people — including a close friend of Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear — and injuring nine others, authorities said. The gunman was identified as Connor Sturgeon, 25, who police said was an employee of Old National Bank on East Main Street, […]

Judge’s abortion pill decision embraces extreme language and ideology of anti-abortion movement, experts say

U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s decision to put the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the abortion drug mifepristone on hold has thrown future access to medication abortion into question nationwide and laid the foundation for a high-stakes Supreme Court battle.  The ruling, issued Friday, is set to go into effect at the end of […]

Ousted Tennessee legislator Justin Jones reinstated after Nashville council vote

The Nashville Metropolitan Council voted Monday to return Justin Jones to the state Legislature after he was removed last week by Republicans for protesting gun violence on the House floor. The 36 council members at Monday’s meeting unanimously supported reinstating Jones. The council had suspended its rules to allow an immediate vote instead of holding […]

StephCast M 4-10-23

Tenn. lawmaker Justin Pearson expects to soon be reappointed after unprecedented expulsion

Former Tennessee state Rep. Justin Pearson said Sunday he expects to be quickly reappointed after what he called his “unprecedented” expulsion for participating in a raucous, unrecognized gun violence protest on the Legislature floor. “I do hope to continue to serve District 86 in the reappointment,” Pearson, a Memphis Democrat, told ABC “This Week” co-anchor […]

Democrats condemn Texas abortion pill ruling and the Trump judge who issued it

Congressional Democrats quickly condemned the decision Friday by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, to suspend the Food and Drug Administration’s longtime approval of the key abortion pill mifepristone, while top Republicans in Congress have yet to weigh in. Kacsmaryk has given the government a week to appeal his […]

Trump lawyer says there are no more classified documents at Mar-a-Lago

Trump lawyer James Trusty said Sunday that there are no more classified documents at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. In an interview on “Meet the Press,” Trusty was asked by NBC News’ Chuck Todd whether he can be certain there are no classified documents or copies of documents at Mar-a-Lago following reportsthat […]

William Barr: Trump Charges Will Bolster Him In Primaries, Hurt Him In General Election

William Barr, Donald Trump’s former attorney general, said he believes Trump’s legal troubles are likely to bolster him during the Republican primaries but “greatly weaken” him during the 2024 general election, which Barr said the former president cannot win. “He’s already, I think, a weak candidate that would lose, but I think this sort of […]

The Rude Pundit: A Note to Breathless Conservatives… Bill Clinton Was Almost Indicted in 2001, But He Cut a Deal

Lemme lay some history on you conservative motherfuckers now that you’re losing your shit over Donald Trump’s indictment on a shit-ton of felonies for financial chicanery. I mean, beyond the furious masturbatory screams of “election interference” and “unprecedented” and “partisan politics” and other things that simply aren’t assertions of Trump’s innocence, just about the stupidest […]

StephCast F 4-7-23

SMHH VideoCast with Jill Wine-Banks and Elie Mystal

Progressive lawmakers renew call for impeachment of Justice Thomas

Progressive representatives on Thursday called for the impeachment of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas shortly after a ProPublica report detailed how he took lavish trips funded by a Republican billionaire donor that he did not disclose. “This degree of corruption is shocking — almost cartoonish,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., wrote on Twitter. “Thomas must be impeached.” Progressive […]

DA Bragg calls House GOP subpoena an ‘unprecedented campaign of harassment’

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Thursday accused House Republicans of trying to “undermine” his office’s criminal case against former President Donald Trump through an “unprecedented campaign of harassment and intimidation.” “Repeated efforts to weaken state and local law enforcement actions are an abuse of power and will not deter us from our duty to […]

Biden White House largely blames Trump admin for troubled U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan

The White House released a report Thursday about the decisions made regarding the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, including the bombing at the Kabul airport that killed 13 U.S. service members. The 12-page report by the National Security Council summarizes the administration’s assessment of the withdrawal and largely blames former President Donald Trump’s administration for […]

Tennessee GOP expels 2 Black Democratic lawmakers for anti-gun violence protests. A white legislator survived her vote.

Republican legislators in Tennessee voted Thursday to expel two Black Democrats from the state House over their protests on the chamber floor against gun violence last week, while a vote to expel a third, white Democratic representative fell short. It’s the first time in state history that Tennessee House members have been expelled for alleged […]

StephCast Th 4-6-23

Judge willing to force Rupert Murdoch to testify in Fox News-Dominion trial

A Delaware judge said he’s inclined to force Fox Corp. executives Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan Murdoch to testify live in the defamation suit against Fox News and Fox Corp. Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis said Wednesday at a public hearing that lawyers for Dominion Voting Systems would need to issue trial subpoenas to force […]

Anti-Vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Plans To Challenge Biden In 2024

Democrat Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-vaccine activist and scion of one of the country’s most famous political families, is running for president. Kennedy filed a statement of candidacy Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission. The 69-year-old’s campaign to challenge incumbent President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination is a long shot. Self-help author Marianne […]

Pence will not fight the order that he testify before special counsel grand jury

Former Vice President Mike Pence will not appeal a federal judge’s order that he testify in the special counsel’s probe of former President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 election, his adviser announced Wednesday. The decision not to fight the order could provide special counsel Jack Smith with remarkable access to one of the key people with critical […]

Elie Mystal: Trump’s Indictment Is a Slap on the Wrist, but Accountability Has to Start Somewhere

It finally happened: Former president Donald Trump was charged this afternoon with 34 counts of falsifying business records by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. In a spectacle that played out almost entirely behind closed doors, but was still carried on television news like Trump was flying to the moon to be arraigned by Xenomorphs, Trump surrendered voluntarily […]

StephCast W 4-5-23

‘A very dark cloud’: Trump tears into all the investigations he faces in post-arrest speech

Just hours after he left his fingerprints in a Manhattan courthouse and on American history, former President Donald Trump returned to his home turf at the Mar-a-Lago club here and proclaimed that he is being unjustly persecuted by prosecution. “They can’t beat us at the ballot box, so they try to beat us through the […]

Progressive Brandon Johnson wins Chicago mayor’s race

Brandon Johnson will be the next mayor of Chicago, NBC News projected Tuesday, marking a stunning turn for a staunch progressive and former teacher whose campaign leaned into messages of racial and economic disparities and who overcame blowback over past comments about decreasing police funding. Johnson defeated the well-financed, tough-on-crime moderate Paul Vallas, a former […]

Liberals gain control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court for the first time in 15 years

Janet Protasiewicz, a judge on the Milwaukee County Circuit Court, has won a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, NBC News projects, giving liberals their first majority on the state’s highest court in 15 years. Protasiewicz defeated conservative Dan Kelly, a former state Supreme Court justice, on Tuesday in what became the most expensive state […]

Trump pleads not guilty after arrest and arraignment in hush money case

Donald Trump pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to his alleged role in hush money payments toward the end of his 2016 presidential campaign — the first time a former president has had to plead to criminal charges.  The indictment was unsealed in a proceeding before Judge Juan […]

StephCast T 4-4-23

Charlie Pierce: Alvin Bragg Is the Law

After a full night and morning digesting The Latest News, I have come to one important conclusion: That any and all political noise out of Washington concerning the events in New York should be treated as completely irrelevant to the criminal charges in New York. And the noise is already at decibels only dogs can hear. From […]

Abortion Rights And Democracy Are On The Line TODAY In Wisconsin Court Race

Wisconsinites are set to elect a new justice to the state’s Supreme Court on Tuesday. State Supreme Court races are often sleepy affairs, not least in Wisconsin, where they occur in the springtime ― months away from elections with greater turnout. But this particular race has extraordinarily high stakes, eliciting an accordingly larger share of […]

Nashville school shooter planned the attack for months, according to journals police found

The shooter in last week’s deadly attack at a private Christian school in Nashville planned it for months, police said Monday. Audrey Hale outlined plans “to commit mass murder at The Covenant School” in journals police found in the shooter’s car and bedroom after the March 27 attack that killed six people, the Metropolitan Nashville […]

Trump indictment update: Judge rules no video cameras allowed in court

Judge Juan Merchan will allow five pool still photographers to snap for several minutes before the arraignment formally starts, according to a decision issued Monday night. No video cameras will be allowed, though Judge Merchan conceded, “That this indictment involves a matter of monumental significance cannot possibly be disputed. Never in the history of the […]

Trump set to be arrested and appear in New York criminal court

Donald Trump is set to appear in criminal court in New York City on Tuesday to be arraigned on dozens of charges related to hush money payments — the first time in American history a former president will face criminal charges. Trump is expected to appear at the courthouse at 100 Centre St. in lower […]

StephCast M 4-3-23

Trump To Deliver Remarks Tuesday Night In Florida After His Arraignment

Former President Donald Trump will deliver remarks Tuesday night in Florida after his scheduled arraignment in New York on charges related to hush money payments, his campaign announced Sunday. Trump will hold the event at his Mar-a-Lago club after returning from Manhattan, where he is expected to voluntarily turn himself in. He is expected to […]

Justice Department Has New Evidence In Trump Classified Documents Probe: Report

The Justice Department has gathered new evidence in its investigation into former President Donald Trump’s removal of classified documents from the White House that may point to possible obstruction, The Washington Post reported Sunday. Sources familiar with the matter told the newspaper investigators are homing in on whether Trump attempted to impede the government’s efforts […]

As Trump Arraignment Looms, New York City Braces for a Day of Tumult

Even for a city accustomed to celebrity appearances, the two-day visit during which Donald J. Trump is expected be arraigned in Manhattan is likely to be a striking spectacle: There will be protests and celebrations, an all-hands-on-deck police presence and a crush of media attention on the moment in which the first American president is […]

John Fetterman speaks publicly for first time since hospitalization, treatment for depression

Sen. John Fetterman is speaking publicly for the first time since he entered the hospital in February with severe depression, saying in an interview on “CBS Sunday Morning” that he looks forward to returning to work later this month. Fetterman, D-Pa., said he also looks forward to “being the kind of dad and the kind […]

The Rude Pundit: Republicans Don’t F***ing Care About Your Children Dying

It’s pretty fucking simple: If you won’t do anything at all about the number one cause of deaths in children and teenagers in this stupid country, you don’t get to say you care about children. It really is that easy. No matter what policies you support, good or shitty, you are a fucking fraud if […]

SM Happy Hour Podcast with Michael Steele & Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) – 3-31-23

StephCast F 3-31-23

Trump Releases Furious Statement On Grand Jury Indictment

Former President Donald Trump reacted angrily on Thursday to news that he had been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury on unknown charges linked to a hush money payment made to an adult film actor. The 2024 candidate is now the first U.S. president in history to be criminally charged. “These Thugs and Radical Left […]

Judge strikes down Obamacare provisions requiring insurers cover some preventive care services

A federal judge in Texas has struck down Affordable Care Act provisions that require health insurers to provide some free preventive care services. The ruling could jeopardize coverage nationwide for people relying on the health care law for preventive services, such as screenings for cancer, as well as HIV drugs. In the decision, U.S. District […]

Trump’s 2024 Republican presidential rivals jump to his defense after indictment

Donald Trump’s rivals for the Republican presidential nomination jumped to his defense Thursday after he was indicted by a grand jury in Manhattan, a sign of the former president’s continued power within the party. Many of his declared or potential rivals were quick to assert that the potential prosecution was merely about politics rather than […]

Trump indicted in hush money probe, the first time a former president faces criminal charges

A grand jury in New York City voted Thursday to indict Donald Trump — the first time a former U.S. president has faced criminal charges. The historic indictment comes in a case centered on $130,000 in payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the closing days of the 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels claimed she […]

StephCast Th 3-30-23

Hannity Tells Trump Putin Is ‘Evil’ After the Former President Says ‘I Got Along with Him Great’

Former President Donald Trump boasted he “got along” with Vladimir Putinbefore Sean Hannity said the Russian president is “evil.” Trump declined to join the Fox News host in that assessment. Wednesday’s Hannity aired the third and final installment of the host’s interview with the former president at Mar-a-Lago. In one segment, Hannity rattled off the […]

Pope Francis to spend several days in hospital after complaining of breathing difficulties, Vatican says

Pope Francis was admitted to a Rome hospital after complaining of breathing difficulties in recent days, the Vatican said Wednesday after canceling his meetings for the next two days. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said medical checks had been carried out on the pontiff at the Gemelli hospital, where Francis underwent surgery in 2021. “In recent […]

Tensions flare over gun violence after House Democrat calls Republicans ‘cowards’ as they walk by

A heated debate erupted on Capitol Hill when Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a former middle school principal, yelled at his GOP colleagues Wednesday and repeatedly called them “cowards” for not supporting stricter gun measures in the wake of the Nashville school shooting. The exchange between Bowman, D-N.Y., and Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., occurred just outside […]

The Nashville school shooter fell into an emotional spiral after the recent death of a close friend, ex-classmate says

Audrey Hale struggled to cope with the death of a close friend in the months before the rampage that killed six people at a private Christian school, those who knew the school shooter said Wednesday. The 28-year-old, who attacked The Covenant School on Monday, was devastated by the death in August of Sydney Shere Sims in […]

StephCast W 3-29-23

Fox tries to stop Rupert Murdoch from testifying in person at the Dominion trial

Lawyers for Fox News were met with skepticism Tuesday when they argued that Fox Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch should be excused from testifying in court as part of Dominion Voting Systems’ $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit against the company. At a hearing in Delaware Superior Court, Judge Eric Davis said he’d received a letter from Fox […]

The Man Who Leads Senate Prayer Is Fed Up With ‘Thoughts And Prayers’

After another mass shooting took the lives of six people, including three 9-year-old children, at a Nashville, Tennessee, school, Senate Chaplain Barry Black used his opening prayer to urge lawmakers to take action. “Lord, when babies die at a church school, it is time for us to move beyond thoughts and prayers,” Black said as […]

GOP Rep. Tim Burchett Admits ‘We’re Not Going To Fix’ School Shootings

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-Tenn.) managed to shock even the most jaded social media users on Monday with his candid remark on school shootings. “We’re not going to fix it,” he told reporters just hours after a shooter wielding two “assault-style” rifles and a pistol killed three students and three adults at a private Christian school […]

Federal judge orders Pence to testify in special counsel probe investigating Trump

A federal judge has ordered former Vice President Mike Pence to comply with a subpoena in the investigation into former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, according to a source familiar with the decision. The ruling from Judge James Boasberg, the chief judge of U.S. District Court for the District of […]

StephCast T 3-28-23

Biden Repeats Plea For Assault Weapons Ban In Wake Of Nashville Shooting*

President Joe Biden once again called on Congress to pass a bill that would ban assault-style weapons in the wake of a shooting at a Nashville grade school that left three children and three adults dead on Monday. “We have to do more to stop gun violence. It’s ripping our communities apart,” the president said […]

Kevin McCarthy says House ‘will be moving forward’ with TikTok legislation

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said Sunday that lawmakers “will be moving forward” with legislation to address national security concerns surrounding TikTok after the social media giant’s CEO faced hours of hostile questioning before a congressional panel last week. “It’s very concerning that the CEO of TikTok can’t be honest and admit what we already […]

In his return to Fox News, Trump labels the Manhattan DA’s probe a ‘new way of cheating in elections’

Former President Donald Trump returned to Fox News on Monday night and aired a host of grievances about investigations he’s facing, mail-in voting and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in his first interviewwith the network since legal filings showed network leaders privately condemning him. There was no hint of the acrimony detailed in those communications, made […]