Tag: Eric

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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul Slams Lee Zeldin As “The Architect Of The Big Lie”

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New York Governor Kathy Hochul(D) appeared on MSNBC’s 11th Hour (11/04/22) to essentially make her closing argument against her Republican challenger Lee Zeldin in the election slated for this coming Tuesday(11/08/22). You’ll remember Hochul, then Lt. Governor, took over when former Governor Andrew Cuomo was forced to step down amid sexual harassment allegations. Hochul is now seeking election to a full term.

Asked to comment about her challenger, Lee Zeldin, Gov Hochul didn’t mince words, telling New Yorkers that Zeldin was “the architect of the big lie”, which formed the basis of former President Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. She specifically said(0:50): “This is something that needs to come out. Lee Zeldin was described by Donald Trump as a brilliant lawyer. You know why? Because Lee Zeldin had sent text messages right when the question of the presidential election was out there. He sent messages helping strategize on how to create the big lie. So you think about the architect of the big lie, actually undermining our democracy, as well as being out there supporting the insurrectionists, refusing to certify Joe Biden’s election on the same day as the attack on the seat of our democracy. He is so extreme, opposes women’s right to choose, doesn’t support a single bit of gun safety legislation, says he’s tough on crime, but boy, is he soft on guns, so people need to know, that’s who’s running for Governor, trying to hide all that now, like ‘Oh no, he would never do all these things’. Come on, voters in New York are smarter than that.”

Gov Hochul then touched on one of the biggest questions related to Zeldin’s quest for the governorship, and that is, whether it’s all tied to a possible Trump pardon. Gov Hochul specifically said(1:46): “Being so close to Trump though, you got to wonder, does Donald Trump raise money for him, associate with him…Donald Trump is probably sizing up saying, boy, this guy could give me a pardon if he were the Governor.”

Asked whether a Governor Zeldin could derail all the investigations into Trump’s businesses currently being conducted by New York Attorney General Letishia James, Gov. Hochul said(2:26): “Absolutely. Tish James is one tough prosecutor, she’s a great friend, and I know she’s going to go to the mat, but if there’s a conviction, that’s when a Governor has the power to pardon or grant clemency. Donald Trump knows this because he granted a pardon to a guy who went to jail who defeated me for Congress, Chris Collins, so he knows all about how this game is played. Let them do what they want, their dirty tricks, get convicted, but then you got a friend in the Governor’s office who can pardon you. That’s what Donald Trump is banking on, that’s why he’s so supportive of Lee Zeldin, and people need to know that close connection between the two of them. Lee Zeldin was called one of Donald Trump’s earliest and staunchest supporters. That should mean something to New Yorkers.”

The interview then shifted to probably the biggest topic in the New York Governor’s race, and that is, crime. Asked what she has done to combat crime in New York, Gov Hochul said(3:46): “Last January in my state of the state address, January 5th, this is not an election conversion here. January 5th, you can go look at the records, I was talking about how people are feeling insecure, we need to reduce crime, we need to get more guns off the streets. Since I’ve been Governor, we have 8,000 more guns off the streets. Why? Because I took my police force, state police, and said we don’t need to give out as many tickets, let’s get them stopping the guns from flowing into our streets, and for the first time in decades, you have the Governor of New York, working in partnership with the Mayor of New York City…No Governor has spent more money than I have on public safety in history.”

Gov. Hochul also addressed the contentious bail issue, that her challenger Lee Zeldin has used to cast her as weak on crime–criminals getting arrested, only to be released back on the streets due to a lax bail system. Gov Hochul told host Stephanie Ruhle(6:48): “You mentioned the bail laws. The reason the New York state budget, my very first budget was nine days late, I wanted it on time, but I said I’m not leaving here until we deal with the repeat offenders you mentioned, who will keep taking things off the shelves in the drug stores every day, the bail laws now cover them. Anything with a gun, the bail laws now cover them. I gave more powers and discretion to judges and district attorneys than they had before. We made those changes in our law, but they’ve only been in effect a short time.”

Asked whether she thinks the perception that she’s weak on crime is in any way related to her gender, a sexist perception based on New York’s history of “alpha male, macho men” Governors, she responded(7:44): “People ought to know I’m as tough as hell. I’m from Buffalo. My father and grandfather were steel workers, grew up in a big, Irish Catholic, rough and tumble family. There’s no one tougher than I am, and I’ve been through hell and back in this job, and I loved every minute of it. But there’s no one tougher than me, and if anyone thinks that I’m soft on crime, look at what we’ve been doing. We have been aggressive about this, and so I’m breaking the mold perhaps, people haven’t seen a Governor who looks like me, I want to make sure that this becomes the norm. We have the toughest, I am a mother, I’m actually a grandmother, so this is personal to me when people have that fear, so I have my own toughness, but also that compassion and the empathy that perhaps others don’t have.”

The interview then shifted to the “tightening polls” being parroted by Fox News and other rightwing media outlets. Gov. Hochul dismissed these bogus polls as gimmicks commonly employed by Republicans to raise more money for their candidate based on the false perception that they are on the brink of victory. Gov Hochul specifically said, regarding the “tightening polls”(10:43): “All you have to do is see the name Trafalgar. It’s going to show that we’re neck and neck , or that Lee Zeldin is beating me today. Our own polls show that that’s wildly wrong, but you’re making money. You’re getting super billionaire donors like Ron Lauder to dump millions ans millions and millions of dollars in negative ads against me to prop up your election because you gave them a fake poll. Democrats are too honest to do that, we’re not playing that game, and so that’s what’s going on here. I think that is having an effect, but I don’t care, I’m not intimidated by them, by their polls, their money, I have my faith in New Yorkers, and I know they’ll do the right thing. All I need to win on this election, is Democrats turning out. We have enough Democrats, but they get complacent…That’s when you get in trouble. We cannot let that happen.”

Gov. Hochul finished with this powerful message(11:17): “I’m calling on all New Yorkers to stand up, defend your democracy against a Trump-loving, climate change denier, election denier, abortion denier-denying abortion rights, that’s who’s on the ballot. It’s time people understand that.”

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Former AG Holder Re January 6th:”I Think We’re Going To See Indictments Here”

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Former AG Holder on MSNBC’s 11th Hour show (07/15/22)

Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder(Obama) appeared on MSNBC’s 11th Hour w/Stephanie Ruhle(07/15/22) where he dropped a bombshell, telling host Ruhle that his vast experience as a public corruption prosecutor at DOJ, leaves him with a strong “feel” that we will see indictments for Trump’s political allies, and possibly Trump himself, over their efforts to thwart the peaceful transfer of power after Trump lost the 2020 election.

Holder said that as a career public corruption prosecutor, “you get a feel for these things after a while.” For the record, many political pundits and legal analysts have said the same thing on cable TV shows. Reasonable people will agree however, that it is quite different, and highly notable, when it comes from a career public corruption prosecutor like Holder, who recently headed the DOJ.

11th Hour host Stephanie Ruhle:“Merrick Garland, the Attorney General is under huge pressure to act, especially as these hearings unfold. You once had his job…should he act?”

Former AG Holder(video at 0:30):“I think to the extent that I could offer a little advice to the folks at the Justice Department, I would say that maybe you need to find a way in which you can appropriately reassure the American people that the Justice Department is on the case. You know, I was a prosecutor, started my career in the public integrity section, where we looked at, and prosecuted official corruption cases, political corruption cases, and you get a feel for these things after a while. And I got to tell you that on the basis of what I’ve heard, what I’ve read about this whole January 6th matter, I think we’re going to see indictments here. I don’t know if they are going to involve ultimately, the president, but I think those near to him have criminal liability, I think people outside the White House are going to be potentially indicted as well, and as I said, that feel that you get as a public corruption prosecutor makes me think that DOJ is going to ultimately return indictments in connection with the attempt to stop the transfer of power back in January.”

There’s no other way to interpret former AG Holder’s remarks on MSNBC’s 11th Hour other than, his vast experience as a public corruption prosecutor at DOJ gives him total confidence that indictments will be handed out to Trump’s political allies, and possibly Trump himself, for their efforts to thwart the peaceful transition of power following the 2020 election.

One only hopes that when former AG Holder says “people outside the White House”, he’s referring to the likes of Reps Marjorie Taylor Green, Matt Gaetz, or even Senators Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, Mike Lee, or in the case of Texas, AG Ken Paxton and other Texas super Trumpers. As Trump famously says, “We’ll see what happens.”

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Former AG Holder: Americans Should Prepare For An “Ideologically Driven” Supreme Court Not Tethered To Precedent

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Former AG Holder on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports show(05/12/22)

Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder appeared on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports show (05/12/22) to discuss his new book “Our Unfinished March”. During his interview, he was asked about the controversy caused by the leaked draft Supreme Court majority opinion dealing with abortion, to which he gave a very interesting response. He said while the leak itself was a serious issue, the bigger problem Americans need prepare themselves for, is an “ideologically driven” Supreme Court, that will have little regard to precedent–an issue Democrats need to focus on as we approach the midterm elections.

Former AG Holder(video at 0:35):“I think the leak is unprecedented both in its breadth, its scope, and its completeness. We’ve heard rumors before about where the court is going to go, how the justices perhaps were aligned, but never actually seen a draft opinion, and that’s serious. That’s something that needs to be addressed. But what we really need to focus on is what’s contained in that leaked opinion, and where the court appears to be lining up. Looks like they are going to overturn Roe v Wade, inconsistent with the notion that you adhere to precedent that people have relied on over the course of the last 50 years. It’s an attack on the right to privacy, and so the question has to be asked, is it only going to be abortion that is going to be at risk, or is same sex marriage going to be at risk? The regulation of contraception, is that going to be at risk? Even interacial marriage. All of these things are based on the right to privacy, which this opinion in its form as we saw it, really goes after that right to privacy.”

Holder added that people need to get prepared for an “ideologically driven” Supreme Court, that is “not going to adhere to the extent that they should, to precedent.” This is of course very troubling given the weighty issues the high court is getting ready to deal with–affirmative action, gun cases, voting rights, etc. Democrats can capitalize on this Supreme Court issue, but only if they present it in AG Holder’s terms–an untethered high court that threatens many of the legal precedents we have come to rely on. This approach will likely drive more people to the polls this Fall, as opposed to only presenting it as an abortion/reproductive rights issue.

Bottom line folks, Dems sucking at messaging is nothing new. “Leakgate” presents them with an opportunity to drive Dem voters afraid of an untethered Supreme Court, to the polls in record numbers, and bucking the midterm election trend which typically favors the party out of power(GOP). Hopefully Dems will get their Supreme Court messaging right this time around by railing against the MAGA Supreme Court as an affront to all the legal precedents we have come to rely on for decades.

It’s also worth noting that former AG Holder, a self-described “institutionalist”, said that after initially being opposed to a criminal prosecution of former President Trump, he now believes, given the revelations about his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, that he needs to be held accountable. Surely, current AG Garland has to take this seriously, coming from a former prosecutor, who recently held his position.

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Snowden: Govt Making Permanent Record Of Our Private Lives

In a must watch segment on MSNBC’s Last Hour with Brian Williams, Edward Snowden made the bombshell revelation that the current state of big brother surveillance is such that the government is essentially making a permanent record of our private lives. Snowden’s fear is that this information can and will be used against private citizens for intimidation, harassment etc .

Snowden explained to host Brian Williams how the government and some private companies are using our private cell phones against us–absolutely shocking stuff. Snowden said the government now considers hacking into people’s phones a legitimate investigative tool. He says the government will seek out vulnerabilities in your phone’s software to get into(hack) your phone. Once inside, everything you can do with your phone, they can also do remotely. They for example, can video record your living room, your children, your visitors and yeah liberals, even your kinky bedroom activities.

Specifically Snowden said, “Hacking has increasingly become what governments consider a legitimate investigative tool. They use the same methods and techniques as criminal hackers, and what this means is that they will try to remotely take over your device. Once they do this by detecting a vulnerability in the software your device runs such as Apple’s IOS or Microsoft’s Windows, they can craft a special kind of attack code called an ‘exploit’. They then launch this exploit at the vulnerability on your device which allows them to take total control of your device. Anything you can do on that device, the attacker, in this case the government, can do. They can read your email, they can collect every document, they can look at your contact book, they can turn the location services on, they can see anything that is on that phone instantly and send it back home to the mother ship. They can do the same with laptops. “

Another bombshell revelation by Snowden was that in many cases, the government doesn’t even need to hack into our devices, they can get all this information from our good friend Google. Who knew?

And just in case you thought Yours Truly was being facetious earlier with the assertion that the government can record your kinky bedroom activities, listen to Snowden himself explain how easy this is.

Host Brian Williams posed a very important question to Snowden about the usual refrain from law enforcement officials and some members of the public that “If you are not doing anything wrong, you have nothing to worry about.” Snowden says absolutely you should be worried because these seemingly innocent pieces of information the government collects about you daily can be aggregated and used to create a profile of you which the government then shares/sells to private entities who use them to make decisions about you–some of which may not be accurate.

Snowden specifically said, “Our devices are casting all of these records that we do not see being created, that in aggregate seem very innocent. You were at Starbucks at this time, you went to the hospital afterwards, you spent a long time at the hospital. After you left the hospital you made a phone call. You made a phone call to your mother. You talked to her until the middle of the night. The hospital was an oncology clinic. Even if you can’t see the content of these communications, the activity records, what the government calls ‘metadata’, which they argue they do not need a warrant to collect, tells the whole story. And these activity records are being created and shared and collected and intercepted constantly by companies and governments……As they sell these, as they trade these, as they make their businesses on the backs of these records, what they are selling is not information….what they are selling is us……..”

Bottom line folks, there needs to be a debate about big brother surveillance in general and in particular whether the 4th amendment right to privacy even exists anymore given the latest technological advancements. Another legal issue that needs serious attention is the question surrounding warrants. Law enforcement officials, when confronted about these highly invasive techniques often throw out the answer, “we had a warrant” which we all assume makes all their invasive techniques “legal”. The question that is never asked, and for which yours truly would really like to get an answer to is this–Do the judges who supposedly issue these warrants know exactly what they are authorizing law enforcement officials to do with these technologies? Do they for example know that they can be used to record people in their bedrooms, follow people around on a 24-hour basis etc? Are there mechanisms in place to find out if these devices are abused by law enforcement officials? All these are serious questions that need to be addressed for everybody’s sake–law enforcement officials, the courts, and the increasingly suspicious public.

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Trump Family’s Deceptive Trade Practices

A CNN Special Report by Erin Burnett exposed some stunning deceptive practices employed by the Trump family in their real estate dealings. Some of the deceptive statements the Trumps used to lure in real estate investors are borderline criminal fraud. According to the CNN Special Report, the Trump family essentially embarked on real estate projects worldwide and then made false media pronouncements that their properties were sold out in an effort to lure in investors. Non-suspecting investors then pumped money into what they believed were very profitable Trump properties only to be hit by bankruptcy notices resulting in severe losses. The full CNN Special Report titled “The Trump Family Business” is available here but the relevant clip is below

In 2009 Ivanka Trump for example told CBS regarding the Trump Tower Toronto project, “We have projects all over the world that are incredibly successful and that are virtually sold out…from Hawaii to Toronto to Istanbul.” However according to Erin Burnett, bankruptcy papers filed for the Toronto project years later totally contradicted Ivanka’s statement to CBS. Turns out a whopping 75% of the “sold out” Toronto building remained unoccupied.

Similar shocking deceptive practices were also employed at Trump’s SOHO project where Ivanka told reporters in 2008 that 60% of the units had been sold. It later turned out upon further inspection that contrary to Ivanka’s assertion, only 15% of the units had been sold. Even more troubling about the SOHO project is the fact that there were email exchanges between Ivanka and Trump’s eldest son Don Jr showing that the two were willfully lying to investors about the occupancy rates at Trump SOHO. This apparently led to a lawsuit which the Trump family settled with the terms remaining secret.

Bottom line as Erin Burnett’s Special Report points out, a lot of these real estate investors who were lured into investing based on gross misrepresentations by the Trumps, ended up losing large sums of money. These were not just harmless sales gimmicks employed by the Trumps. Even though it is unlikely that any criminal prosecution could be initiated against Trump’s adult children(statute of limitations), the only decent cause of action for them given their current status in society(Presidential children) would be to make a public apology to the investors who got crushed by their deceptive trade practices.

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TrumpSwamp–NY AG Sues Trump Family Over Trump Foundation Corruption

New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood has slapped the Trump family with a $2.8 million lawsuit claiming among other things that the Trumps used the Trump Foundation, a non-profit organization, to conduct “unlawful political coordination with the Trump presidential campaign” and “repeated and willful self-dealing transactions” in violation of both state and federal law.

Interestingly the NY AG in addition to filing the lawsuit also sent referral letters to the Internal Revenue Service(IRS) and Federal Election Commission(FEC) for “further investigation and legal action”

There is nothing in the NY AG’s lawsuit that is particularly shocking, or a “bombshell” as the mainstream media calls it because by now the public is very aware of the corrupt business dealings of the Trump family. To this day the public is still longing to see the elusive Trump tax returns, mostly because people are convinced there are a lot of corrupt business dealings hidden there.

There is however an interesting detail in the NY AG's lawsuit that caught Yours Truly's attention--a handwritten note by Donald Trump directing Trump Foundation staff to settle a legal dispute involving his Mar-a-lago Hotel--a clear cut violation of the law

Straightforward/clear cut violations of the law like these have traditionally provided the mainstream media with an easy opportunity to question politicians and inform the public. In the age of Trump however, even slam dunk media opportunities like these seem to go by the wayside, with the mainstream media either afraid or unwilling to confront Trump. Democrats however have no choice but to confront Trump not only on this clear cut violation of the law but also on the other troubling issues raised by the NY AG lawsuit.

Bottom line TrumpSwamp/Corruption by Trump Admin and Trump family is an issue Dems must push hard during this midterm 2018 campaign season. As you can see from the lawsuit, the state and federal violations are so numerous and flagrant that they are impossible to justify. As Yours Truly has repeatedly stated, there are a lot of Independents and even Republicans out there who are also fed up with TrumpSwamp/Corruption and are shopping for alternative candidates in Midterm 2018. Dems need to be those alternative candidates

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