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Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

I turned on the TV coverage of CNN for Tyler Robinson's court appearance. Laura Coates is unwatchable in my opinion. I remembered from the Sean Diddy Combs verdict watch that she was so prosecutor-oriented, I had to turn it off. Same thing happened today. She was a live guest on the coverage and started out with how the state didn't need to prove anything other than probable cause and what a low burden that is. Of course, that's true, but why lead with that? One of CNN's correspondents was on just before her and he was completely impartial and just gave facts. For example, he said Robinson is not going to be in the courtroom, but he'll appear by video from the jail. He explained the evidence the state might introduce. All in a neutral stance. I think it's fine to take sides when there are two analysts on at the same time with opposing viewpoints, but when you are on alone, you should be neutral. At least that's how I viewed it during my 12 years as a TV analyst.

Again, this is an open thread, all topics welcome. And no speaking ill of the recently departed, including their character, views or politics. Thanks everyone.

Bad Bunny, who is finishing up a two month residency in Puerto Rico where he sold out 30 shows, is about to embark on a world tour of Latin America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. He excluded concerts in the U.S. on the tour, as he explains, because of ICE raids. He explains inin a recent interview: [More...]

Our last open thread is full. Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

What I'm following: Marco Rubio in Mexico, and his comments at a press conference after announcing yet another "task force" will be formed to fight drug traffickers. This one will include Mexican and American officials. Rubio calls it an "implementation force" -- a force that will act to fulfill Donald Trump's plan to murder suspected gang members who are believed to be involved with importing drugs or chemicals to the U.S.

Trump and Mario think it's legal to order the U.S. military to blow up a boat in international waters because intelligence sources said there were gang members and drugs aboard, headed to the U.S. Mario says: [More...]

Vanity Fair's editorial staff is considering a protest walk-out if Melania Trump is put on the magazine's cover.

Get ready for a deluge of mainstream media coverage of the non-present spouse of the man who has a desk in the oval office. She's written a book, has a photo-journal coming out, and Trump will pull out all the stops to make sure she gets a slew of coverage.

Republicans want to change the name of the Kennedy Centers Opera House to bear Melania's name. The measure passed a House Committee but seems to be in limbo.

My reaction: Ick.

More ick: Trump brought back Jared Kushner for a meeting on Gaza. Another sign that Trump's plan is to give Kushner's company the contract to build Gaza into the Middle-Eastern Riviera, perhaps named after Donald? With Ivanka doing the decorating? [More...]

Everything about Donald Trump this week has been an "ick".

The media is all over his health issues. The Irish Star has been unrelenting.

• The ick spots on his hands may be from IV needles. Since they have now been seen on both hands, clearly the bruises are not from handshaking.
• Another ick: His swollen hand and ankles (edema)
• Ick: His orange makeup observed on his shirt collar as he was filmed on TV
• Ick: His thinning hair and gaunt-looking face (they could signal disease or maybe he's just taking a GLP-1 drug like Ozempic). Here is his face in 2019.

[More...]

Time fo a new open thread. The floor is yours, you pick the topics. All topic welcome.

Donald Trump, along with his immigration henchman, Stephen Miller, continue their rampage through America to make their target goal of arresting 3,000 people a day and deporting one million people a year, come hell or high water.

But score one today for the all of us who are not busy enforcing the law for Trump or answering the booty call ICE and Homeland Security are making to retired employees to come back and help their arrest and deportation efforts. A federal judge in Washington, DC has just put a halt to Trump's revised "expedited removal" process under which ICE can detain, arrest and deport people, including an expansive group of recent arrivals, without providing them with their due process right to a hearing before a judge. The Judge's decision is here.

The new regulation (available here)claims that expanded expedited removal will be more cost-effective and make our communities safer.

[More...]

In other news this week:

DOJ fired prosecutor Maureen Comey. Anyone know why? Was it because of her father, because of something she did in the Ghislaine Maxwell trial, or something she did in the Sean Combs trial?

Donald Trump has been diagnosed with venous insufficiency.

Ten reasons Emil Bove should not be a federal judge. But let's not blame his actions as a defense lawyer, which he was for all of five minutes. There's enough in his actions while a federal prosecutor to shut him out.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Donald Trump has felt the pressure the past two weeks, from all sides over AG Bondi's decision not to release additional files regarding Jeffrey Epstein's purported "list of clients" and the investigation into his death while in pretrial detention. It began as a rumbling from from hard-core, radical-right MAGA supporters who love conspiracy stories, the more out-there the better. But it since has spread to other Republicans and even woken up sleepy Democrats.

The Dems initial reaction was "Who cares?", there's more important things to care about." Now that they sense a crack in Trump's armor, they are banging their plates on the table, joining the cacaphony.

There's an old saying, that some credit to Benjamin Franklin and others to a writer named Sanford in 1373, the essence of which is, "When you lay down with dogs, you get up with fleas". Trump laid down plenty with Epstein during the early 90's. And now he's catching the fleas. He deserves them. [More...]

Yesterday, with less than two full days of deliberations under their belt, jurors in the Sean "Diddy" Combs trial sent a note to the judge saying they had reached a verdict on four of the five counts against Combs. They said they were unable to agree on count 1, the RICO (Organized Crime) conspiracy charge. The note said more than one juror was intransigent in their position. The judge told them to keep at it. The jury returned this morning and quickly sent the Judge a note that they had reached an agreement on Count 1.

The jury acquitted Combs on the three most serious counts (the RICO conspiracy and two sex trafficking charges) and convicted him on the much less serious "Mann Act" counts -- transporting or aiding and abetting the transport of an individual across state lines with the intent having the transported person engage in prostitution. The named victims were Cassie Ventura in Count 3 and "Jane" in Count 5.

The full jury instructions are here. When the verdict was read, Combs and his family and legal team were all elated and relieved. Gone is the threat of life in prison, or anything close to it. [See section below the fold for the parties' respective preliminary sentencing guideline calculations, which range from 15 to 21 months (defense) and 57-71 months (government)].

The defense immediately asked for bail pending sentencing. The Judge told the parties to submit arguments in writing by 1:00 pm. He set a hearing for later today at 5:00 pm.

At the hearing, the Judge denied bond.[More...]

Only in Trump’s alternate reality version of America would Congress pass a bill where money is taken from the poor to pay the taxes of the rich.

If I were near a computer I’d be playing REM’s Everybody Hurts.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome. Back Soon!

Update: Video added.

Former F.B.I. Director James Comey was escorted to the Secret Service offices today for a voluntary interview about a social media post he wrote:

On Thursday, the former FBI head posted a photo of the numbers “86 47” spelled out by shells on a beach he said he came across. Comey quickly took down the post after Republicans and Trump allies said he was calling for the president’s assassination.

“I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence,” Comey said of the number “86,” which can refer to something being tossed away or taken out. The corresponding “47” matches Trump’s current term in office as the 47th president. “It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.”

Legal experts on the First Amendment interviewed by CNN seem unanimous that there's no criminal case to be made here. [More...]