The filing digs into District Judge Aileen Cannon’s logic on a number of areas, pointing to many of the same issues in a ruling legal scholars largely panned as troubling.
Friday, September 9, 2022
Donald Trump Rages as DOJ Appeals Special Master Decision
https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-rages-doj-appeals-special-master-decision-1741317
"So now the FBI & Biden Department of 'Justice' leakers are going to spend Millions of Dollars, & vast amounts of Time & Energy, to appeal the Order on the 'Raid of Mar-a-Lago Document Hoax,' by a brilliant and courageous Judge whose words of wisdom rang true throughout our Nation, instead of fighting the record setting corruption and crime that is taking place right before their very eyes," Trump said in the post.
Thursday, September 8, 2022
Israel advances plan to build 700 units in new east Jerusalem settlement
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-716500
Israel’s government advanced a plan to build as many as 700 new apartment units in a suburb of Jerusalem that opponents say encroaches on a Palestinian village that straddles the country’s contested pre- and post-1967 lines.
The Jerusalem planning and building committee on Monday approved a plan for a new neighborhood called Givat Shaked, which would include high-rise buildings that come right up to the edge of Beit Safafa — a village that was split from 1948 until 1967, when Israel captured east Jerusalem in the Six-Day War.
Republicans Want Donald Trump for 2024, Even if He's Indicted: Poll
https://www.newsweek.com/poll-shows-republicans-want-donald-trump-2024-even-if-indicted-1740831
Approximately 61 percent of Republicans said they'd support the former president if he were indicted, compared to 20 percent of independents and 8 percent of Democrats. The survey of 1,236 adults was conducted between August 29 and September 1 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 points.
"Former President Trump is losing the battle with public opinion over whether he did anything wrong by taking government documents to Mar-a-Lago," said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion. "But his core support remains intact regardless of the results of the investigation."
Senate Republicans point fingers as majority hopes slip
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/3631583-senate-republicans-point-fingers-as-majority-hopes-slip/
More broadly, Senate Republicans are concerned that Trump’s legal troubles are consuming too much of the national spotlight, diverting public attention from what they want to make the 2022 midterm election about: President Biden’s economic record.
Barr says DOJ ‘getting very close’ to having enough evidence to indict Trump
Former Attorney General William Barr said on Wednesday that he believes the Justice Department is “getting very close” to having enough evidence to indict former President Trump.
He said on Fox News that government investigators need to consider if they will be able to make a “technical” case against Trump for his handling of sensitive documents the FBI found at his Mar-a-Lago home last month.
“I think they’re getting very close to that point, frankly,” Barr said.
Wednesday, September 7, 2022
A Ruling Untethered to the Law
Cannon’s opinion, by contrast, is so deeply flawed that it’s hard to know where to begin a critique. Let’s start with the unequal application of the law. Although Trump wallows in feigned claims of persecution, in fact he has been privileged by the Justice Department, and now Cannon, in a manner unheard of for any other defendant. Every defendant would relish the opportunity to delay a criminal investigation by having a court enjoin the government from investigation, but that never happens. The time-honored recourse for someone aggrieved by a search is not to have an unelected judge unilaterally decide to enjoin the constitutionally delegated power of the executive branch to investigate and prosecute. The defense remedy is in a post-indictment motion to suppress evidence from a search.
Arizona Republican secretary of state candidate wrong about ‘fake’ mail ballots
Finchem said, "In Arizona, we have flood the zone with fake ballots."
Although he did not explain his definition of "fake ballots," Finchem’s description suggests that ballots are mailed out en masse to voters that did not request them. But that’s now how it works — and there’s no evidence of pervasive fraud or fakery.
Finchem’s statement is an inaccurate and ridiculous summation that could discourage voter participation in a legitimate process. We rate this claim Pants on Fire!
‘Deeply Problematic’: Experts Question Judge’s Intervention in Trump Inquiry
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/05/us/trump-special-master-aileen-cannon.html
A specialist in separation of powers, Peter M. Shane, who is a legal scholar in residence at N.Y.U., said there was no basis for Judge Cannon to expand a special master’s authority to screen materials that were also potentially subject to executive privilege. That tool is normally thought of as protecting internal executive branch deliberations from disclosure to outsiders like Congress.
Barr: Justice Department should appeal 'deeply flawed' ruling approving special master in Trump documents case
https://edition.cnn.com/2022/09/06/politics/bill-barr-special-master-doj-trump/index.html
Former Attorney General William Barr on Tuesday said the decision by a Florida judge to grant former President Donald Trump's request for a special master to review the documents seized by the FBI from Mar-a-Lago is "deeply flawed" and urged the Justice Department to appeal it.
"The opinion, I think, was wrong, and I think the government should appeal it. It's deeply flawed in a number of ways," Barr said during a Fox interview Tuesday.
The Trump ‘special master’ ruling violates the principle that no-one is above the law
Cannon’s ruling has to rank high in the annals of the worst reasoned judicial decisions in American history. Even former Trump Attorney General Bill Barr called it “deeply flawed.” If it signals that judicial Trumpism has spread more broadly than we thought, there may be danger ahead to our entire system of equal justice.
Judge's ruling for Trump is astonishing
All of this means that the order is extremely vulnerable to being overturned on appeal, assuming the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals panel hearing it consists of at least two unbiased judges inclined to follow the law.
Military prosecutors nix plea deal for officer facing over 70 counts of sex crimes
The Military Prosecution on Wednesday announced it had backed away from a plea deal signed with an officer accused of filming his female subordinates while nude without their knowledge, following opposition from many of the victims.
Police in Kuwait shut down shop selling magen david necklaces
Legal action has been taken against a shop in Kuwait after it sold accessories bearing Jewish symbols.
The Gulf state’s Ministry of Trade and Industry has ordered the closure of a shop in the coastal city Salmiya, as the sale of items containing the Star of David was deemed illegal.
A post to the Ministry’s official Twitter profile on 27 August said that an arrest had been made due to the “displaying and selling of accessories bearing slogans that violate the public order of the state.”
Steve Bannon Says 'They Will Have To Kill Me' In Response To New Indictment
https://www.newsweek.com/steve-bannon-fraud-indictment-trump-new-york-1740482
In the 2020 case, Bannon and several other people were accused of defrauding people who contributed to a $25 million "We Build The Wall" campaign, which promised to construct a barrier across the southern U.S.-Mexico border.
In a statement released to several journalists, Bannon suggested the charges against him are politically motivated and somehow linked to George Soros, the Jewish billionaire philanthropist who is often the target of right-wing conspiracy theories.
Fact checking claims January 6 was not an armed insurrection
https://edition.cnn.com/2021/07/28/politics/armed-insurrection-january-6-guns-fact-check/index.html
US Capitol Police Sgt. Aquilino Gonell told Kinzinger that "(c)ommon things were used as weapons, like a baseball bat, a hockey stick, a rebar, a flagpole -- including the American flag -- pepper spray, bear spray."
The rioters "had all these items," Gonell said, "used to attack us. Those are weapons."
As CNN has reported, rioters also used knives, stolen police shields, a stun gun, fire extinguisher and more. Hand-to-hand combat led to more than a dozen officers being sent to the hospital, some of whom had bone fractures and concussions.
CNN, MSNBC slam Trump-appointed judge, accuse her of corruption after special master appointment
The conversation continued on over on "Morning Joe," where the show discussed the Trump court ruling at length. Former top Obama official Neal Katyal, described the judge’s ruling as a "grafted on solution." He also suggested that the ruling looked like it was meant to "protect their guy" or at the very least, "delay justice."
New York Jewish school secretly kept on staffer who ‘resigned’ over abuse scandal
A Jewish day school in New York secretly continued to employ a staff member whose resignation it had previously announced in the fallout of a child sex abuse scandal that rocked the community a year ago.
The secret employment of the Schechter School of Long Island’s director of student life Mike Hirsch was orchestrated by SSLI’s head of school Scott Sokol and associate head of school Ofra Hiltzik, one current and two former employees of the school confirmed to The Times of Israel.
Barr calls special master ruling on Mar-a-Lago documents ‘deeply flawed’
Former Attorney General William Barr said Tuesday that a federal judge’s order to appoint a special master to review classified and top-secret documents that were allegedly kept at former President Trump’s Florida residence was a “deeply flawed” decision.
Barr told Fox News host Martha MacCallum that he doesn’t believe the special master ruling will change the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) case against Trump.
“The opinion was wrong, and I think the government should appeal it,” Barr said, noting that process could take several months to resolve. “It’s deeply flawed in a number of ways. I don’t think the appointment of a special master is going to hold up, but even if it does, I don’t see it fundamentally changing the trajectory” of the case, he added.
Trump says he should be reinstated as President
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11182863/Trump-says-reinstated-President.html
Trump jumped onto the offensive Monday, once again ripping law enforcement, in a possible allusion to the FBI's handling of information about Hunter Biden's laptop.
'Now that the FBI and DOJ have been caught in a massive and determinative Election Rigging Scam, are they going to change the results of the 2020 Presidential Election? They should!!!' Trump wrote.
Tuesday, September 6, 2022
Russian State TV Host Says 'All Our Hope' Placed in 'Beloved' Donald Trump
https://www.newsweek.com/russian-tv-praises-trump-putin-1740156
The footage begins with a clip of Trump addressing crowds being shown and then cuts to state TV host Evgeny Popov, who says: "Trump is an incredible guy." After another cut, a panel discussion is shown in which Moscow State University Professor Vitaly Tretyakov said: "I believe there is no real need for us here to rip the masks off European politicians and American ones, to a certain extent—except for our beloved Trump, in whom we place all of our hope that he might sober up America." There is another cut in the footage and state TV host Olgra Skabeeva says, apparently referring to Trump: "As always, our candidate doesn't let us down. We need to support him."
Israeli military admits ‘highly probable’ IDF soldier mistakenly killed journalist Shireen Abu Akleh
The Israeli army admitted on Monday that it is “highly probable” Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was killed by an Israeli soldier.
The official probe found that Abu Akleh was likely mistakenly shot by an Israeli soldier while under fire who was using a telescopic scope and misidentified her as an armed Palestinian gunman. The Israel Defense Forces maintains it cannot rule out the possibility that Abu Akleh was killed by Palestinian gunfire, but it admits it is more likely an Israeli soldier was responsible.
Trump’s Lawyers Might Think They Just Won. They Still Botched the Case.
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/09/06/trumps-lawyers-special-master-indictment-00054926
Trump might not care that he contradicts himself in his efforts to swing public opinion. But no competent attorney would conduct themselves this way. The consequences might be severe. The DOJ is weighing potential criminal charges against Trump, and it is apparent that a key “plus factor” considered by DOJ is the obstruction of its investigation by Trump and his team. Until now, Trump has found his way out of or around legal problems by relying on questionable attorneys and their aggressive tactics. But that was completely counterproductive here and Trump may pay a very significant price for not seeking the advice of competent lawyers who understood how to manage a complex federal criminal defense case like this one.
Judge's Ruling on Special Master for Donald Trump Ripped by Legal Experts
Norm Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute alleged in a tweet that Cannon "engaged herself in obstruction of justice" simply by taking the case—which was originally overseen by a magistrate judge who presides in a jurisdiction near Mar-a-Lago, closer than Cannon herself.
Man refusing religious divorce for his wife cries ‘fake news’
https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/man-refusing-religious-divorce-for-his-wife-cries-fake-news-599460
The man whose mother’s burial was delayed in Israel over his alleged refusal to give his wife a religious divorce said reports that he had changed his mind are “fake news.”
He identified himself as Yisrael Meir Kin in an English-language video released to the religious news website Arutz Sheva. He appears in the video with a tear in his shirt, as is traditionally worn during the week of shiva after a close relative dies. He released a similar video in Hebrew to Israel’s Channel 13.
His mother’s body arrived in Israel on Monday night. A Tuesday morning burial was scheduled, but did not take place until hours later, reportedly until he agreed to give the religious divorce, or get. Kin did not travel to Israel for the burial, reportedly because he could have been arrested for get refusal.
Monday, September 5, 2022
Does Viral Photo Show 'Nazi' Wedding in Ukraine?
https://www.newsweek.com/fact-check-does-viral-photo-show-nazi-wedding-ukraine-1739898
While the photo of the event is real, the image has been manipulated to include a Ukrainian flag in the background.
A reverse search of the image shows that it in fact predates Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The colours on the flag have been digitally altered, with the original picture (dating as far back as 2017, though it could be older) showing a black-and-yellow flag.
The original image was posted at least as far back as October 17, 2017 on the Russian meme aggregator website Yaplakal, but has since been shared on other sites and platforms, including as a debunk.
Tucker Carlson is wrong. Firearms, other weapons were found at the Capitol on Jan. 6
Court documents, video evidence and news coverage show that several defendants present at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, had firearms — and dozens more wielded knives, bats and other real and makeshift weapons.
Incantation and darchei Emori
Yosef Ometz (3 Nichush and signs) In Sefer HaYirah it is written, “Do not say any incantation”, and in a number of places the Torah prohibits doing so. We in fact are not to utilize signs (Simon) except what Chazal say. Therefore if a person is going to start a mitzvah such as beginning the study a new gemora or to start educating his son in Torah, he should not say I will wait until Rosh Chodesh – even though it says in Shulchan Aruch that there is a custom to begin things on Rosh Chodesh because even though incantations are prohibited signs are allowed. It seems to me that it is best to br strict to fulfil the mitzva of Tamim Tehiyu with your G-d. We find written in Sefer Chasidim (59) that this custom is not the proper path because a person might die within the month and thus miss the mitzva. And furthermore a person who was never concerned with this should not adopt this practice while those who are particular to observe it, Satan is there to oppose him. And because a person can’t always keep his concerns it will lead to problems. He also notes that the critical factor is the degree of concern as we see non-Jews who name their children after their fathers during the father’s lifetime – and no harm results. In contrast Jews are particular not to do this. The Rokeach in his commentary to Yechezkeil notes that this that Chazal say that only those who are particular will it effect him. That means all those things that people typicallly say that they are particular to do this is called the magic of living concern. Therefore all those things which people are concerned to do which involve either doing or avoiding a specific action are in fact violating a severe prohibition as Rabbeinu Yonah wrote in Shaarei Tshuvah and was also stated by Sefer Chasidim (59) who also notes a number of prohibited incantations. I will mention just one of them since it is not rare in modern times. He states, “those who make an oath not to eat the head of an animal or not to eat the intestines of an animal this is darchei Emori (prohibited nonJewish activity). The issue of incantations that are common now it is not necessary to write about them. I will just give a general rule. All those things which don’t have a natural mechanism and are not explicitly permitted in a sefer – are prohibited. Similarly those medicines which are called segulos are permitted as are lachashim – as long as they actually work.
Sunday, September 4, 2022
In QAnon Renaissance, Conspiracists Feast on Trump-Biden War of Words
https://www.newsweek.com/qanon-renaissance-conspiracists-feast-trump-biden-war-words-1739709
A QAnon Telegram channel with nearly 150,000 followers posted on Thursday after Biden's speech that "THEY WANT POLITICAL WARS. THEY WANT YOU DIVIDED," alongside "Q."
On Saturday, another QAnon Telegram channel with nearly 300,000 followers predicted a "false flag" operation following Biden's speech and the FBI's investigation into whether Trump improperly stored classified information at his Mar-a-Lago residence.
Bill Barr: The facts show the Feds were being ‘jerked around’ by Trump
https://www.politico.com/news/2022/09/02/bill-barr-trump-fbi-mar-a-lago-00054716
Barr called the “whole idea of a special master a bit of a red herring” and a “waste of time.” He said the only documents his legal team may want to insulate the government from are those related to his “private lawyer communications, him as an individual and his outside lawyers.” He added that there doesn’t “appear to be much of this material.”
GOP Is 'Dangerous,' Former Pence Adviser Defends Biden's Anti-MAGA Speech
https://www.newsweek.com/gop-dangerous-former-pence-adviser-defends-bidens-anti-maga-speech-1739665
Olivia Troye, an ex-adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence, defended President Joe Biden's anti-MAGA speech on Saturday amid GOP backlash.
"He wasn't criticizing Republican voters, which I've seen a lot of talk about that. What he's saying is that this extreme faction...is dangerous," she said.
Even within the Republican Party, there are many people who agree with Biden's sentiments and oppose the Trump-aligned wing of the party, Troye added.
"Many of us agree. There are many of us Republican voters who are not the right-wing crazy that is taking over the party that is damaging, I would say, to the party," she said. "We don't identify with that at all. And I think as long as they continue to do this, they will lose."
How Trump Taught Everybody to Be Obnoxious and Cruel
Oz’s communications handlers, like those of the Arizona Republican Party, forgot one of the timeless rules of political invective: One can get away with a lot if the insult is leavened by originality, intelligence or humor — or ideally all three.
A recent example with none of those was especially cringeworthy. “What does a dog-cleaner have in common with Kathy Hoffman?” chortled the Arizona GOP in its official Twitter feed. “They are both groomers.”
Donald Trump: What we learned from his rally in Pennsylvania
Donald Trump: What we learned from his rally in Pennsylvania
Speaking to thousands of supporters in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, the ex-president accused Mr Biden of weaponizing the FBI against him.
The raid was "one of the most shocking abuses of power by any administration in American history", Mr Trump claimed.
He was in the state to promote two Republican candidates.
Dr Mehmet Oz is running for the US Senate, and state Senator Doug Mastriano is in the race to become Pennsylvania's next governor.
Both spokeonly briefly - as always, the rally on Saturday night was really about one person: the headliner.
Agudath Israel Files Amicus Brief in YU Pride Alliance v. Yeshiva University
https://agudah.org/agudath-israel-files-amicus-brief-in-yu-pride-alliance-v-yeshiva-university/
Today, Agudath Israel of America filed an amicus curiae (friend of the court) brief asking the US Supreme Court to issue an emergency stay pending appeal, to prevent Yeshiva University from being compelled to recognize an LGBTQ+ club.
The case, YU Pride Alliance v. Yeshiva University, pits four students and alumni, who attended Yeshiva University (YU) well aware of its religious character, against their school. YU Pride claims that Yeshiva University must accept its club under the New York City Humans Rights Law (NYCHRL) – widely considered one of the most sweeping such protection laws in the country. Yeshiva University counters that a religious exemption, which is found in the actual law, and is protected by the First Amendment, means it cannot be forced to run its private school against its own religious convictions. YU Pride was successful in its legal bid at the lower court in New York, hence the need for an emergency appeal now to the Supreme Court.
Trump brands Biden ‘enemy of the state,’ says FBI raid was an ‘abuse of power’ = Republican approach to unity?!
Donald Trump branded Joe Biden an “enemy of the state” Saturday, as he hit back at the US president’s assertion that the Republican and his supporters are undermining American democracy and slammed last month’s FBI raid of his Florida home.
Making his first public appearance since the August 8 raid, Trump said the search was a “travesty of justice” and warned it would produce “a backlash the likes of which nobody has ever seen.”
Lindsey Graham Says Trump's Personality May Cost Him 2024 Election
https://www.newsweek.com/lindsey-graham-says-trumps-personality-may-cost-him-2024-election-1739676
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina says that if former President Donald Trump get his party's nomination in 2024, he may face trouble if the race becomes a "personality contest."
Speaking to reporter Steve Sedgwick on CNBC Saturday, the Trump ally had praise for the former president, saying he "could be" the best Republican presidential candidate, calling Trump a "consequential president." Trump, so far, has not announced his candidacy.
"I think a strong American president, unpredictable, is a good thing as long as you keep it within the boundaries. His problem is personal, his policies have stood the test of time but has he worn the American people out in terms of his personality? Time will tell. But I'll say this, after the Biden presidency, if there's a policy debate in 2024, I like his chances. If it's a personality contest, he'll be in trouble," Graham said.
Saturday, September 3, 2022
Common steroids used for asthma, allergies linked to brain decline, study finds
https://edition.cnn.com/2022/08/30/health/oral-inhaled-steroids-brain-changes-wellness/index.htm
lTaking oral or inhaled glucocorticoids, a type of steroid used to curb inflammation in asthma and other autoimmune disorders, may be linked to damaging changes in the white matter of the brain, a new study found
Scrutiny builds over FBI’s discovery of empty folders at Mar-a-Lago
Among the material allegedly seized from former President Trump’s home were numerous empty folders that once contained classified information or intel designated to be returned to the military, renewing questions over fallout from the potential mishandling of records and if they have since been recovered.
In an inventory from the Justice Department unsealed by a judge Friday, the government detailed that interspersed with Trump’s personal belongings were 48 empty folders with classified banners as well as another 42 empty folders that were labeled “return to staff secretary/military aide,” according to the filing.
Donald Trump Slams 'Weak and Pathetic' Bill Barr as Dispute Ramps Up
https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-slams-weak-pathetic-bill-barr-dispute-fbi-raid-1739620
Donald Trump has hit back at his former Attorney General Bill Barr, branding him a "a weak and pathetic RINO [Republican in name only]" on his Truth Social website.
The attack followed Barr's Fox News appearance on Friday, during which he said the FBI's Mar-a-Lago raid was likely "reasonable" based on the available evidence.
Barr also said if Trump mass-declassified secret documents, as he has claimed, that would be "almost worse than taking the documents."
Torah, Slavery and the Jews
https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/305549/jewish/Torah-Slavery-and-the-Jews.htm
The greatest force in the emancipation of slavery in colonial times were the "Society of Friends," also known as the "Quakers." Historians discuss the phenomena of the Quakers in the context of the "Hebraizing of Christianity." Again, their leaders were deeply influenced by readings of the Kabbalah in translation and by humanists who had learned their ideas from rabbinic sources.
Bill Barr Pushes Back as Fox News Host Suggests FBI Trump Raid Avoidable
https://www.newsweek.com/bill-barr-pushes-back-fox-news-fbi-mar-lago-raid-donald-trump-1739559
"People say this was unprecedented, but it's also unprecedented for a president to take all this classified information and put them in a country club," Barr said on Friday. "How long is the government going to try to get that back?"
"They were deceived on the voluntary actions taken. They then went and got a subpoena, they were deceived on that," he added. "The facts are starting to show that they were being jerked around and so how long do they wait?"
Friday, September 2, 2022
Joe Biden Compared to Adolf Hitler by Trump Loyalists
"Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic," he said.
"I want to be very clear, very clear upfront. Not every Republican, not even a majority of Republicans, are MAGA Republicans. Not every Republican embraces their extreme ideology.
"I know because I've been able to work with these mainstream Republicans. But there's no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans. And that is a threat to this country."
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