The Justice Department’s Jan. 6 investigation just expanded — in a dramatic way. Dozens of current and former aides to Donald Trump have been subpoenaed for testimony and documents about the actions of the former president and his team in the weeks before and during the attack on Congress. Some, like top aide Boris Epshteyn, had their phones confiscated. It is the first concrete step taken by the Justice Department to focus the agency’s January 6 investigation around the White House and the president, rather than just the uprising itself. Meanwhile, in a new court filing, Donald Trump’s lawyers speculated that documents marked “classified” found at Mar-a-Lago may not have been classified at all — and argued that even if they were, the Trump has an “absolute right”. to access them under the Presidential Records Act. The filing is the latest volley in a back-and-forth between the Trump team and the Justice Department in the race for the special master to be appointed to review documents seized during the Aug. 8 search of the former president’s Florida home. . .
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Trump aide Boris Epstein’s phone seized as Justice Department ramps up probe Jan. 6
Dozens of associates and former advisers to Donald Trump were just subpoenaed as part of the Justice Department’s ongoing January 6 investigation. The investigation now formally concerns the actions of the former president and his top aides during the attack on Congress and in the weeks leading up to it. The New York Times reported on the calls late Monday afternoon. Some members of Mr Trump’s inner circle, including Boris Efstein, had their phones confiscated. The development is an important step for the Justice Department and the first real concrete step to push the agency’s investigation beyond simply prosecuting the hundreds of people involved in the attack itself. Read more from The Independent’s Andrew Feinberg:
Justice Department ramps up investigation Jan. 6 with 40 subpoenas to Trump aides
The Justice Department’s investigation into the January 6 attack is entering a new and more active phase John Bowden September 12, 2022 11:02 p.m 1663018530
Jan. 6 panel may call Trump and Pence to testify when they meet this week, report says
Lawmakers in the Jan. 6 committee will discuss whether to call Donald Trump and/or Mike Pence to testify when they meet in person on Capitol Hill tomorrow. CNN first reported Monday that the question of whether to ask the former president and vice president to testify will be on the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting. The committee continues to gather evidence as it prepares for a second round of public hearings to be held later this month. Neither man has received formal requests to testify so far, which would be an unprecedented step for a congressional committee. But that could change given their very central role in trying to swing the 2020 election. Read more in The Independent by John Bowden:
The Jan. 6 panel may call Trump to testify when they meet this week, the report said
The investigation has been going on for months with statements from other witnesses John Bowden September 12, 2022 10:35 pm 1663015579
Tucker Carlson’s Guest Claims Ukraine Near Defeat – Despite Surprising Successes Against Russian Invaders
Even as Ukrainian forces make gains in and around Kharkiv, reclaiming hundreds of square miles of territory in the process, some right-wing US commentators are trying to cast doubt on Ukraine’s prospects of continuing to fight. Retired Colonel Douglas McGregor made one such attempt on Fox News Tonight’s Tucker Carlson, claiming things were going “very, very badly” for Kiev forces. Carlson himself has denied being pro-Russian, telling a conference in July that he “doesn’t really care one way or the other” what Putin does in Ukraine. Read more from the Independent’s Graeme Massie:
Tucker Carlson’s guest claims Ukraine close to defeat – despite successes against Russia
The country’s armed forces pushed back Russian troops from an area in the country’s northeast around Kharkiv
John Bowden 12 September 2022 21:46 1663012500
Democratic poll lead ahead of midterms could be very wrong again, election expert warns
With Democratic candidates leading or close to their Republican rivals in many states, a polling expert for The New York Times is warning that their voters may see a “blue mirage” on the horizon. “This warning sign is flashing again: Democratic Senate candidates are beating expectations in the same places where polls overestimated Biden in 2020 and Mrs. Clinton in 2016,” Nate Cohn said. He warns that continued biases in the polls may once again give Democrats a sense of early victory when, in reality, the races are much closer. “It raises the possibility that the apparent strength of Democrats in Wisconsin and elsewhere is a mirage — an artifact of persistent and unexplained polling biases,” warns Cohn. Read more in the Independent:
Blue mirage? Pollster Warns Democrats’ Midterm Leads May Be Overblown
Nate Cohn Says Forecasters Could Fall Into Same Trap As 2016 And 2020 John Bowden September 12, 2022 8:55 pm 1663010122
Senators call for probe into fake Mar-a-Lago heiress seen posing with Trump before secret documents raid
Senators are calling for an investigation into the bizarre story of a woman who allegedly ingratiated herself with Donald Trump and his Mar-a-Lago guests by fabricating her entire life story. The woman, Inna Yashchyshyn, is accused of impersonating Anna de Rothschild, a fictitious socialite and heiress from the famous European banking family, who allowed her to mingle with the former president as well as Senator Lindsey Graham at Mar-Trump. a-Lago resort. She was even present when (it is now known) Mr. Trump stored documents marked “top secret” and other levels of classification, apparently without the consent of the National Archives, at the resort. Read more from The Independent’s Graig Graziosi:
Senators demand investigation into fake Mar-a-Lago heiress seen posing with Trump
Lawmakers demand answers after woman’s bluff at golf resort John Bowden September 12, 2022 8:15 pm 1663008322
White House confirms Trump not invited to Queen Elizabeth’s funeral
Donald Trump will not attend the Queen’s funeral. Neither does any other living president of the United States, except Joe Biden. This is the official announcement from the White House, which confirmed the details of the British government’s invitation on Monday. Read more from The Independent’s Andrew Feinberg:
White House confirms Trump not invited to Queen Elizabeth’s funeral
The British government’s invitation does not allow President Joe Biden to bring any of his predecessors with him John Bowden September 12, 2022 7:45 pm 1663006522
Dr Oz’s leading supporter is confident he will win
The man who gets credit for convincing Donald Trump to endorse Dr. Mehmet Oz in the Pennsylvania Senate race has a message for the media: Don’t believe the polls. Conservative Philadelphia talk show host John Fredericks says Dr Oz has been beaten like no other Senate candidate and is set to rebound to beat Democrat John Fetterman in November. Democrats are keen to win the open seat as they try to retain the Senate, while Republicans will likely require it if they want to flip the upper chamber. Read more from The Independent’s Andrew Buncombe: John Bowden September 12, 2022 7:15 pm 1663004417
Trump told aides he would ‘never leave’ White House after 2020 loss
Maggie Haberman’s new book, Confidence Man, reveals an aspect of Donald Trump’s efforts to stay in office after his defeat that has never been reported. According to Haberman, who shared the details with CNN on Monday, the former president told at least two of his aides that he planned to stay in the White House after Jan. 6 regardless of how the Electoral College voted. He had bluntly insisted the exact opposite in a news interview around the same time. “We’re never leaving… How can you leave when you’ve won an election?” asked one, according to the book. Read more in the Independent:
Trump told aides he would ‘never leave’ White House after 2020 defeat, new book claims
Despite public claims to the contrary, the former president is said to have voiced the possibility of defying Biden to the end John Bowden September 12, 2022 6:40 p.m 1663002047
Fox: “Is he pro-antifa?”
In a discussion earlier this morning about Joe Biden’s recent remarks calling the Maga movement “quasi-fascist” — a comment that angered right-wing commentary — host Harris Faulkner raised the curious idea that being an “anti-quasi-fascist” can bring the Democrats to the side of “antifa”. The supposed threat of violence from organized anti-fa protesters is a constant trope of Fox News commentary on the left, but antifa is not actually a cohesive, organized group or entity. And the nebulous application of the term is useful for hosts who want to equate the openly organized and sometimes deadly violence staged by some Trump supporters with the protests that rocked American cities in the summer of 2020. John Bowden September 12, 2022 6:00 p.m 1662999862
Trump golfs in Virginia as media melts into speculation
Donald Trump was spotted by AP photographers at his Sterling, Virginia, property just outside the Washington area on Monday. His otherwise unusual exit came amid a frenzy of media speculation surrounding the sudden, unannounced trip to the Capital Region, with many openly speculating that the former president was going to meet with DoJ officials or was involved in some other situation arising from the multitude of criminals. investigations that now surround him and his allies. Read more from The Independent’s Gino Spocchia:
