TrumpPutingate III: the beginning of the end

#3,651
#3,651
OuterBanksVol said:
Oh my. FEC violation by Trump heating up. He looks guilty as **** here, and now Cohen's admission may force them to launch investigation.

Once again, Cohen's language has been parsed, and now I agree it can be interpreted that Cohen did not actually make the $130 K payment himself...

"...Cohen’s carefully worded statement said: “I used my own personal funds to facilitate a payment of $130,000 to Ms. Stephanie Clifford. Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford, and neither reimbursed me for the payment, either directly or indirectly.”

But Cohen’s statement admitted only that he used his personal funds for facilitating the payment, not the payment itself. The facilitation, Noble said, could simply have been the cost of setting up a Delaware Limited Liability Corporation through which, according to the Wall Street Journal, the payment was made.

Cohen’s statement did not specifically say whether he also made the actual payment, leaving open the possibility that others — Trump himself, a friend, a corporation or even a foreign national — may have put up the funds."

Michael Cohen screwed up with Stormy Daniels statement, ex-FEC lawyer says
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Ahhh...from the author who Steele leaked to.

Anyhow, so is Cohen going to jail or even better, is it impeachment time?
 
#3,652
#3,652
Fine Op-ed piece...

Trumps tweets recently do have an air of desperation. Sad!

"...Aside from the blizzard of lies, one is struck by how frantic Trump sounds. The number and looniness of the tweets arguably exceed anything he has previously done. His conduct reaffirms the basic outline of an obstruction charge: Desperate to disable a Russia probe that would be personally embarrassing to him, he has tried in many ways to interfere with and end the investigation. In doing so, he, at the very least, has abused his office. In turning on his inquisitors rather than to the job of protecting America from Russian influence, he confirms his peculiar fidelity to Vladimir Putin and reminds us he continues to violate his oath of office. There is no doubt he has, based on what we already known, committed actions constituting an abuse of his office. What, if anything special counsel Robert S. Mueller III intends to do about it remains to be seen. Trump’s meltdown over two days is likely to re-raise questions about his mental stability and temperamental fitness to govern."


https://www.washingtonpost.com/blog...-card-e:homepage/story&utm_term=.4b110d36cf07
 
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#3,653
#3,653
OuterBanksVol said:
Fine Op-ed piece...

Trumps tweets recently do have an air of desperation. Sad!

"...Aside from the blizzard of lies, one is struck by how frantic Trump sounds. The number and looniness of the tweets arguably exceed anything he has previously done. His conduct reaffirms the basic outline of an obstruction charge: Desperate to disable a Russia probe that would be personally embarrassing to him, he has tried in many ways to interfere with and end the investigation. In doing so, he, at the very least, has abused his office. In turning on his inquisitors rather than to the job of protecting America from Russian influence, he confirms his peculiar fidelity to Vladimir Putin and reminds us he continues to violate his oath of office. There is no doubt he has, based on what we already known, committed actions constituting an abuse of his office. What, if anything special counsel Robert S. Mueller III intends to do about it remains to be seen. Trump’s meltdown over two days is likely to re-raise questions about his mental stability and temperamental fitness to govern."


https://www.washingtonpost.com/blog...-card-e:homepage/story&utm_term=.4b110d36cf07
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He has placed his ego above country. Shameful to watch the hero worship of such a narcissistic fool.
 
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#3,654
#3,654
OuterBanksVol said:
More FEC stuff... penalties/ potential crimes...

"Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen, apparently paid Daniels off by setting up a shell corporation called Essential Consultants LLC, apparently for the sole purpose of handling this bribe. Even though Cohen used this method to work outside the campaign itself, Ryan argued, the money "was a payment for the purpose for influencing the 2016 presidential election" and therefore the Trump campaign was required to report it as a campaign expenditure. Failure to do so could constitute a violation of campaign finance law and could even be a crime, particularly if Trump or his campaign deliberately hid the expenditure from the FEC.

An even more interesting question is where that money came from. As Ryan pointed out, it's not just that failure to report the source itself could constitute a violation of the law. The donation itself could be illegal, depending upon its source. If Trump paid the hush money directly from his own pocket, that's not illegal — candidates have a legal right to spend as much of their own money as they wish running for federal office. But if that money came from the Trump Organization or a third party, that could violate laws preventing corporate donations or donations exceeding strict individual limits to campaigns.

...The Edwards trial ended in one acquittal and mistrials on five other counts, but the whole situation demonstrates that the DOJ, at the very least, does indeed consider hush money paid through outside channels to cover up personal indiscretions as campaign donations. That should make it more difficult for either the FEC or the DOJ to simply brush off the complaint from Common Cause.

The FEC has a legal obligation to vote on whether or not to open an investigation into Trump in response to this complaint. If it fails to open an investigation, Common Cause would then have a legal right to sue. But the hope is that the federal government acts consistently with its approach to the Edwards investigation. If the FEC opens an investigation, all evidence gathered will eventually be made available to the public, so even if Trump faces no legal penalties, the public will potentially find out more about where the $130,000 to pay Daniels off came from."

Trump’s porn-star payoff may have been illegal: Will it matter? - Salon.com
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Since Trump didn't accept federal matching funds I don't think he is bound by all of the typical FEC rules.
 
#3,656
#3,656
Funny how media libs dimz are spewing anything and everything out now, since the false lying narrative is dead and gone. Love to see them get desperate, think they got him... which goes nowhere, then start spewing rumors 'sources' for something else.

In the space of 3 weeks, major networks said:

-North Korea is really a beautiful place
-Kim Jong Un's sister is a diplomatic genius
-"Anglo-American" is a racist dogwhistle
-Christians are mentally ill
-NRA members are mentally ill

What's next?


DWYcTp9U8AINE18.jpg
 
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#3,657
#3,657
OuterBanksVol said:
I've seen this stated... nowhere. The laws are designed to prevent exactly what happened.
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Why do you see "may have" and "could have" in the headlines of all of these articles?

I've done some research and candidates not accepting matching funds are not subject to many of the spending and contribution limits but I can't find where this particular situation is addressed.
 
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#3,659
#3,659
hog88 said:
Why do you see "may have" and "could have" in the headlines of all of these articles?

I've done some research and candidates not accepting matching funds are not subject to many of the spending and contribution limits but I can't find where this particular situation is addressed.
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Exxxactly. Spot on. Bingo!
 
#3,661
#3,661
hog88 said:
Why do you see "may have" and "could have" in the headlines of all of these articles?

I've done some research and candidates not accepting matching funds are not subject to many of the spending and contribution limits but I can't find where this particular situation is addressed.
Click to expand...

Your argument is kaput, Hog:

"...As Trump’s personal attorney, Cohen was an agent of then-candidate Trump. The timing and circumstances of the $130,000 payment to Daniels make it appear that the hush money was paid to Daniels in an effort to influence the election. Any payment by a person such as Cohen on behalf of or in consultation with a candidate to influence an election is an in-kind “contribution” to the candidate under campaign finance law subject to a $2,700 limit and disclosure requirements."

Common Cause – Trump Attorney Appears to Have Made Illegal Contribution to Trump Campaign With Hush Money Payment to Stormy Daniels

And

https://na01.safelinks.protection.o...67IeB2e/0NBeNtrqep+5WjDHuSkz1dZZ4=&reserved=0
 
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#3,662
#3,662
zeppelin128 said:
They will be along shortly to sweep this away and blame Obama for stuff.
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There’s literally nothing to sweep away. The guy clearly said “it was all me”. Some commentators are simply speculating and trying to pretend as if he was vague about something. He could’ve been more clear.
 
#3,663
#3,663
AirVol said:
Speaking of FEC laws. Does the DNC and HRC get a free pass?

Fusion GPS scandal: Clinton, DNC broke campaign finance law with dossier funding, complaint says | Fox News
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No. FEC should go after them if they did wrong. BUT unlike Trump, they did not HIDE the payment to Steele. See the following:

According to the Post, that money was routed from the Clinton campaign and the DNC through the law firm Perkins Coie and described on FEC reports as legal services.

Responding to the revelations, Clinton’s former campaign spokesman Brian Fallon compared the project to the kind of “oppo research” that “happens on every campaign.”

But the Campaign Legal Center described the FEC reporting as “misleading.”

“Payments by a campaign or party committee to an opposition research firm are legal, as long as those payments are accurately disclosed,” Fischer said. “But describing payments for opposition research as ‘legal services’ is entirely misleading and subverts the reporting requirements.”
 
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#3,664
#3,664
OuterBanksVol said:
Your argument is kaput, Hog:

"...As Trump’s personal attorney, Cohen was an agent of then-candidate Trump. The timing and circumstances of the $130,000 payment to Daniels make it appear that the hush money was paid to Daniels in an effort to influence the election. Any payment by a person such as Cohen on behalf of or in consultation with a candidate to influence an election is an in-kind “contribution” to the candidate under campaign finance law subject to a $2,700 limit and disclosure requirements."

Common Cause – Trump Attorney Appears to Have Made Illegal Contribution to Trump Campaign With Hush Money Payment to Stormy Daniels

And

https://na01.safelinks.protection.o...67IeB2e/0NBeNtrqep+5WjDHuSkz1dZZ4=&reserved=0
Click to expand...

Well, if it turns out he violated campaign finance law he should be punished as others have been.
 
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#3,666
#3,666
luthervol said:
LA Times: Former Trump aide Gates to testify against Man - CNNPolitics

Former Trump presidential campaign aide Rick Gates has agreed to testify against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and will plead guilty to fraud related charges, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Once a plea deal is in place, Gates would become yet another known cooperator in Mueller's sprawling probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
It would also increase the pressure to cooperate on Gates' co-defendant Paul Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman, who has pleaded not guilty to Mueller's indictment and is preparing for a trial on alleged financial crimes unrelated to the campaign. Gates pleaded not guilty on October 30 alongside Manafort.
Click to expand...

damn it loother..... can you post a news source other than CNN? There is more than one out there.
 
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