Manafort juror says one holdout prevented conviction on all 18 counts

nbcnews.

Eleven of the 12 jurors in the Virginia trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort were ready to convict on all 18 counts, but one holdout had reasonable doubt and could not be swayed, a juror said in a televised interview Wednesday night.

"There was one holdout," juror Paula Duncan said in an interview on Fox News.

"We all tried to convince her to look at the paper trail, we laid it out in front of her again and again, and she still said that she had a reasonable doubt," Duncan added. "... We didn't want it to be hung, so we tried for an extended period of time to convince her. But in the end she held out, and that's why we have 10 counts that did not get a verdict."

Todd Starnes: California Dems prepare for crackdown on churches

foxnews.com/opinion

Christians across the nation are expressing grave concerns over a proposed California law that would outlaw speech dealing with certain issues – including homosexuality and gender identity – by clergy members, licensed counselors and others.

Assembly Bill 2943, authored by Democratic Assemblyman Evan Low, would utilize the state’s existing consumer fraud statute to classify gay conversion therapy as a fraudulent practice.

State senators passed the legislation last Thursday and the Assembly is poised to take up a final vote before the bill is sent to Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown’s office.

“The faith community, like anyone else, needs to evolve with the times,” Democratic Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi said during debate on the legislation. “The science is clear. The claim that the First Amendment can be used as a defense for promoting fraudulent conduct is a fallacious argument.”

Dr. Paul Chappell, the pastor of Lancaster Baptist Church and the president of West Coast Baptist College, said there is a groundswell of opposition rising up among Christians and conservatives to the Assembly bill.

“This is an encroachment by the state,” Chappell said on the Todd Starnes Radio Show.“It’s time for Christians all across America to recognize it’s an attack on our faith.”

Trump-hating Democrats who pursue impeachment will be punished by the American voter

foxnewsl

President Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen’s guilty pleas Tuesday are unlikely to result in criminal charges against the president. But the pleas admitting to campaign finance violations could be used by Democrats to try to impeach the president, should they win control of the U.S. House in November.

And what if everything Cohen stated in his guilty plea is true?

Remember former North Carolina Democratic U.S. Sen. John Edwards? Donors paid $1 million to Edwards’ mistress to keep quiet just before the 2008 Democrat presidential primaries when Edwards was a candidate.

Federal prosecutors charged Edwards with campaign finance violations but he was acquitted, largely because the contributions didn’t go directly to his campaign, though Edwards also argued that the payment was meant to hide his extramarital affair from his dying wife. There’s even a name for this sad business – the “mistress loophole.”

There are other problems with the Cohen case that are less concrete but should still be mentioned. Cohen is smarmy, but smarmy or not, he has an incentive to cooperate with prosecutors to get the lightest punishment possible for his crimes.

If Cohen doesn’t cooperate, or maybe even “compose,” he faces the possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison. The fact that Cohen’s lawyer is Clinton-confidant Lanny Davis, and that the judge in the case is Kimba Wood – who was almost Bill Clinton’s attorney general – might raise a few eyebrows as well.

To many Americans, it seems that men like Cohen, former Trump presidential campaign chairman Paul Manafort (who was convicted of tax evasion and bank fraud charges Tuesday), and former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn (who has pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI on highly suspect grounds) have been targeted for prosecution simply because of their association with Donald Trump.

We now live in a country where pundits on the left explicitly hope that people working for President Trump will be prosecuted. In other words, they argue that the selective use of justice is a good thing if it is directed against conservatives or supporters of the president.

That is chilling. Without a concerted effort from the American people to condemn such political prosecutions, things will only get worse.

Anderson Cooper: Cohen basically called Trump a crook

Sean Hannity Melts Down About Hillary Clinton On Day Manafort, Cohen Become Felons

huffingtonpost

Sean Hannity mourned the death of “equal justice under the law” on Tuesday,
riled up that President Donald Trump’s former associates were deemed
guilty of crimes when his Democratic presidential rival Hillary Clinton had not been. 

“Equal justice under the law ... is dead,” Hannity said during his opening monologue.

The Fox News host was responding to reports that Trump’s former campaign
manager Paul Manafort was convicted of eight of 18 charges, including five counts
of tax fraud, in the first trial of special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe. Manafort
faces a maximum of 80 years in prison. The judge declared a mistrial after the
jurors failed to reach a decision on the remaining 10 charges. 

Cohen, Trump’s former personal lawyer, entered into a plea deal with
prosecutors on Tuesday, pleading guilty to eight charges including bank fraud,
tax fraud and campaign finance violations due to his payments of “hush money”
in 2016 to women who said they had affairs with Trump several years earlier.
Cohen said he paid the women at the direction of Trump.

“Cohen and Manafort ― literally prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law
for bank and tax frauds, etc.,” Hannity said. “In today’s two-tiered
justice system, as a Democrat, clearly you can commit financial fraud and
get away with it. By the way, that’s just the tip of the iceberg.”

The host then launched into an attack on Clinton and her use of a private email server while she was secretary of state, saying she “destroyed classified information, which violates the espionage act.” 

“And then you can delete subpoenaed emails ... 33,000 of them and acid-wash your hard drive ... and eliminate the evidence, and have your aide smash up your devices with hammers, and get away with it,” he added.

An FBI investigation into Clinton’s email use concluded in 2016
that there was no evidence that prosecution was warranted.
Then-FBI Director James Comey said there was evidence
of potential mishandling of classified information and referred
the matter to the Justice Department, which closed the investigation
without bringing charges. A State Department inspector general
report concluded that Clinton had violated the government’s policy
on email use but that such violations were not criminal.

Hannity, who was also a client of Cohen’s, told viewers that he
suspected prosecutors “forced” the attorney to say Trump knew about
the hush money payments. He also told his viewers that there were
lessons to learn from Tuesday’s news, including not lying to the FBI
and paying taxes. 

Minister: Trump's statement 'a cause for concern' //

Arutz Sheva News

Agriculture Minister Uri Ariel responded Wednesday to US President Donald Trump's statement Tuesday night that Israel will have to pay a "higher price" in negotiations with the Palestinian Authority "because they won a very big thing," referring to American recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and the transfer of the US embassy.

"The President stressed: 'If there ever will be peace,' I suggest that we examine this 'ever'," said Minister Ariel in an interview with Army Radio.

At the same time, he emphasized Israel must examine the President's remarks carefully. "This isn't a terrible morning, but there is cause for concern regarding Trump," the minister added.

He noted if there is an issue that should be of concern to the government it is the construction of a bridge on the Ayalon Highway on weekends. "There are other times to do the work, and construction on Shabbat is severe, unnecessary, and inappropriate, and the struggle will be shared with the haredim - the Torah is one," concluded Minister Ariel.

Bolton: No 'quid pro quo' in Jerusalem embassy move // Arutz Sheva News

arutz 7

In his opening comments Wednesday, Bolton cited the recent arrest of Iranian agents in the US who were conducting surveillance of Israeli and American Jewish targets, as well as the planned attack by Iranian agents against a gathering in Paris, saying the two cases highlighted “the threat that Iran poses in Europe and the United States.”

Responding to a question from a reporter at the press conference regarding President Trump’s comments Tuesday night that Israel would have to pay a “higher price” in talks with the Palestinian Authority because of the US decision to relocate the embassy to Jerusalem, Bolton played down the statement, saying it did not indicate a change in US policy.

“I don’t think there’s any change in policy. I think the president looked at the recognition of Jerusalem as being Israel’s capital and the inevitable consequence of that – that the US embassy ought to be in the capital city of the country which its accredited as the right and natural thing to do, and it’s not an issue of quid pro quo.

“He’s made the point, I think, several times that this issue has been a hang up in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. And as he said last night as well, he’s taken that issue off the table. As a deal-maker... he would expect that the Palestinians would say, ‘Okay, great – we didn’t get that one, now we want something else.’ We’ll see how it goes.

“But the fundamental point is that this is something that the parties are going to have to agree on.”

Citing former Secretary of State James Baker, Bolton said the US “can’t want peace more than the parties themselves.”

“The real point is, the president did the right thing in moving the embassy to Israel’s capital. And that in and of itself brings reality to the negotiations.”

“It was a very positive step forward not just for Israel, but for the Palestinians as well.”

The NSA later added that a peace deal was not something “the US is prepared to force on anybody.”

Michael Cohen pleads guilty to 8 counts

cnn

Kaminetsy Greenblatt heter

Attachment Theory: How Your Childhood Shaped You

Trump is powerless as his legal fate spins out of his control

cnn

President Donald Trump may no longer control his fate, a plight that helps explain his increasingly volcanic Twitter eruptions.

Trump's persona -- in politics, business and life -- relies on his self-image as the guy who calls the shots, closes deals and forces others to react to the shock moves of a master narrative weaver.

But as a legal web closes around the President, he's in a far weaker position than he would like, a situation especially underlined by the bombshell revelations that White House counsel Donald McGahn has spent 30 hours in interviews with special counsel Robert Mueller.

FORMER FOX NEWS ANALYST SAYS NETWORK 'PROSTITUTES' FOR TRUMP'S AGENDA

newsweek

A retired U.S. Army Lietenant Colonel and former Fox News analyst said employees at the cable news network have become "prostitutes" for President Donald Trump's Washington agenda. 

Update: Fox News issued a statement regarding Peters' comments. "Ralph Peters is entitled to his opinion despite the fact that he’s choosing to use it as a weapon in order to gain attention."

Speaking with CNN's Brian Stelter Sunday, Ralph Peters said Trump "does not respect our system of government" and cherry-picks parts of the Constitution "from which he can choose the most electable items." The retired U.S. Army Lt. Colonel repeatedly criticized Trump as "distinctly un-American" and beholden to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Earlier this year, Peters left Fox News for "assaulting the Constitution." 

How the Catholic Church Keeps Surviving Abuse Scandals

the daily beast.

The news of sex scandal in Pennsylvania is truly sickening. Thousands of victims, hundreds of predatory priests, and what can only be described as a systematic conspiracy to conceal the crimes of those accused. All of which raises the question: How can the Catholic Church survive such a scandal? In fact, in light of previous revelations about sex abuse, how has the church survived so far?

Indian-American Doctor Convicted For Raping Patient Won't Serve Jail Time

ndtv

Indian-American Doctor Convicted For Raping Patient Won't Serve Jail Time

Jurors convicted Shafeeq Sheikh of second-degree sexual assault after a trial that ended this past week.

HOUSTON: An Indian-American doctor from Texas, who was convicted of raping a sedated patient in a hospital, will not serve prison time and, instead, will spend 10 years of probation.

Jurors convicted Shafeeq Sheikh, 46, a former physician at the Baylor College of Medicine, of second-degree sexual assault after a trial that ended this past week.

The crime is punishable by up 20 years in prison, but the Texas jury sentenced Sheikh to 10 years of probation on Friday.

Sheikh will have to register as a sex offender. Unlike most states and the federal government, Texas grants juries the power to set criminal punishments.

The punishment has surprised defense attorneys, disappointed law enforcement and raised concerns from a victims advocacy group, according to media reports.

The jurors had recommended the sentencing, to which visiting Senior District Judge Terry L Flenniken was required to follow by law, according to local media report.

Sheikh was working in night shift at Houston's Ben Taub Hospital in 2013 when a woman was admitted for shortness of breath and wheezing. She was in the hospital overnight and sedated when Sheikh came to her room several times during the night and sexually assaulted her.

The woman said she attempted to get help from a nurse, but the call button would not work.

DNA evidence collected from a rape kit matched the DNA sample of the guilty doctor's cheek swab. But it took two years for charges to be filed against Sheikh.

Architect of bin Laden raid issues stunning rebuke of Trump

cnn

Retired Adm. William McRaven, the man who oversaw the 2011 Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden, issued a stunning rebuke of President Donald Trump's decision to revoke the security clearance of former CIA Director John Brennan on Thursday, defending the former spy chief as "one of the finest public servants I have ever known."

In an op-ed published by the Washington Post, McRaven, a former Navy SEAL who led US Joint Special Operations Command from 2011 to 2014, not only called Brennan "a man of unparalleled integrity," but volunteered to have his own security clearance revoked in an act of solidarity.

"Few Americans have done more to protect this country than John. He is a man of unparalleled integrity, whose honesty and character have never been in question, except by those who don't know him," McRaven wrote.

"Therefore, I would consider it an honor if you would revoke my security clearance as well, so I can add my name to the list of men and women who have spoken up against your presidency," he added.

His comments come just one day after Trump announced his decision to revoke Brennan's security clearance, marking an unprecedented use of a president's authority over the classification system to strike back at one of his prominent critics.

"This action is part of a broader effort by Mr. Trump to suppress freedom of speech & punish critics. It should gravely worry all Americans, including intelligence professionals, about the cost of speaking out. My principles are worth far more than clearances. I will not relent," Brennan tweeted after the announcement.

McRaven, who resigned as chancellor of the University of Texas in Austin earlier this year, is widely respected among the tens of thousands of active and retired special operators and his message will likely resonate within that community.

"Through your actions, you have embarrassed us in the eyes of our children, humiliated us on the world stage and, worst of all, divided us as a nation," McRaven said of Trump.