Day: February 16, 2024

Judge Engoron Bans Trump From Doing Business In N.Y. For 3 Years, Must Pay More Than $354M

Judge Arthur Engoron attends the closing arguments in the Trump Organization civil fraud trial at New York State Supreme Court in the Manhattan borough of New York City, January 11, 2024. Trump's legal team will deliver closing arguments January 11 in the fraud case after the judge barred the former president from using the trial finale as an election campaign grandstand. (Photo by SHANNON STAPLETON / POOL / AFP) (Photo by SHANNON STAPLETON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Judge Arthur Engoron attends the closing arguments in the Trump Organization civil fraud trial at New York State Supreme Court in the Manhattan borough of New York City, January 11, 2024. (Photo by SHANNON STAPLETON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

OAN’s Sophia Flores
UPDATED 12:47 PM – Friday, February 16, 2024

SEE: https://www.oann.com/newsroom/judge-engoron-bans-trump-from-doing-business-in-n-y-for-3-years-must-pay-more-than-354m/; republished below in full, unedited, for informational, educational, & research purposes: 

Judge Arthur Engoron heard deliberations and made his final say in the New York courtroom, declaring that 45th President Donald J. Trump is liable, an expected decision by the liberal judge.  

The Friday verdict, which was revealed in a 92-page ruling, stated that Trump has to pay at least $354 million in the civil fraud trial.

Additionally, Trump is banned from conducting business in New York and serving as an officer or director at any New York corporation or legal entity for three years.

Trump and the Trump Organization is also banned from applying for loans from any financial institution registered with the New York Department of Financial Services for three years.

Additionally, Trump’s two adult sons, Eric and Donald Trump Jr., are ordered to pay $4 million each for what Judge Engoron referred to as “personal profits from the fraud.” The court similarly banned the two from serving as an officer or director of any New York corporation or other legal entity for two years.

Former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg was fined $1 million.

This trial was initiated by New York Attorney General Letitia James. James accused Trump, his two adult sons, and his top executives of inflating the Trump organization’s net worth in order to gain financial perks, such as better loans from banks.  

When James first sued Trump in the fall of 2022, she asked the judge to penalize Trump $250 million for “inflating his net worth in order to retain better loans.” However, her number later rose to $370 million in January, as she believed that throughout the trial, “he gained all of his money unlawfully.”

This is a breaking story. Check back for updates.

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Biden Unfit for Oval Office: Speaker Johnson Shuts Down Senate Bill, Blasts President

In a bold move that underscores his commitment to America First principles, Speaker Johnson has put a stop to a Senate bill that sought to funnel billions in foreign aid, sidestepping critical domestic issues such as border security. This special report dives into the fiery press conference where Johnson didn't just shut down the bill but also blasted President Biden for his mishandling of classified information and overall incompetence. Johnson's stance sends a clear message: American leadership must prioritize the needs of its people over international aid. This report unpacks the implications of Johnson's actions, the reactions it has sparked, and what this means for the future of American policy and leadership. Don't miss our Final Thought, where we tie everything together, revealing why this moment is crucial for every American.

The Fed Now Admits Banks Are At Risk, Major Crisis Unfolding As We Speak

Decades of growth fueled by low interest rates and easy credit have come to an abrupt halt. With a staggering 2.7 trillion dollars in commercial real estate loans held by U.S. banks, predominantly managed by smaller regional institutions accounting for approximately 80 per cent of the total, concerns are mounting regarding their resilience in the face of impending challenges. According to analysts at Goldman Sachs, a significant portion of this debt is slated to mature, with over 2.2 trillion dollars due by the close of 2027. These apprehensions were further heightened following the unexpected loss of 252 million dollars reported by New York Community Bancorp in the last quarter, a stark departure from the 172 million dollars profit recorded in the fourth quarter of 2022. The company attributed this downturn to a notable surge in loan losses, particularly in the realm of commercial real estate financing. The repercussions of this concerning trend reverberated through the financial markets, as evidenced by a significant decline in the bank's shares, plummeting nearly 50 per cent over the past five trading sessions. Concurrently, the U.S. Regional Bank index experienced a notable 7 per cent drop during the same period. Investors find themselves grappling with a familiar sense of unease as apprehensions mount over the looming specter of a crisis in the 20 trillion-dollar commercial real estate market. Unlike previous downturns centered around interest rate volatility, the current turmoil stems from fundamental challenges ingrained within the industry. Decades of growth fueled by accommodative monetary policies and accessible credit have ground to a halt, with office and retail property valuations embarking on a downward trajectory since the onset of the pandemic. The U.S. Federal Reserve's efforts to curb inflation through interest rate hikes have further compounded the sector's woes, particularly impacting its credit-dependent nature.

Lies, Damn Lies, and Hamas-linked CAIR’s Statistics

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SEE: https://www.jihadwatch.org/2024/02/lies-damn-lies-and-hamas-linked-cairs-statistics; republished below in full, unedited, for informational, educational, & research purposes:

Edward Ahmed Mitchell, the Deputy Executive Director of the Hamas-linked Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), was on television recently. During his interview on the English language Turkish Radio and Television World broadcast, Mitchell said that the majority of Americans support a ceasefire in Gaza.

Over 70% of Americans support a ceasefire one way or another…President Biden is out of step with the American people.

Since he does not cite his sources, it is up to us to determine to what he might be referring. A good guess would be a survey from a group called Data for Progress, which Rashida Tlaib touted on her X feed. That survey claims that 66% of all likely voters support a ceasefire in Gaza. However Data for Progress does report that 80% of Democrat voters support the idea of a ceasefire.

Maybe Mr. Mitchell got confused.

Meanwhile, how reliable a source for information is Data for Progress? According to their website:

Data for Progress is a progressive think tank and polling firm arming movements with the tools they need to fight for a more equitable future. Led by a team of policy and data experts, we produce quality polling, data-based messaging, and policy generation for progressive causes, campaigns, and candidates.

This “data-based messaging…for progressive causes” results in what is known as Earned Media, or simply – free publicity. Data for Progress has used their Earned Media to:

  • “Using Earned Media to Get Progressive Ideas Into the Mainstream “
  • “Shaping the Biden Administration’s Coronavirus Response”
  • “Shaping Climate Policy”
  • “Today, the Interior Department is led by the first-ever Native American Cabinet secretary — someone who is fighting for our public lands and defending the sovereignty of Native nations: Madame Secretary Deb Haaland. Our Vice President of policy and strategy Julian Brave NoiseCat led a sophisticated inside-outside strategy utilizing writing, earned media, organizing, advocacy, social media, and lots of memes to help make the case for Haaland’s appointment and confirmation.”
  • “Our polling showed the public that D.C. statehood is popular”
  • “When the mainstream media hammered Biden’s Afghanistan pullout, we showed that withdrawal was popular with voters”
  • “Fetterman’s campaign, happy with Data For Progress’s ability to churn out quick polls affirming their candidate’s popularity”
  • “Three days later, Sean McElwee’s (Data for Progress founder) senior staff asked him to step down.

“There was no cinematic climax, McKenzie Wilson told me afterward, no one thing that made everyone decide it was time for him to go. It was everything: the midterm polls, the connection to Bankman-Fried, the betting, and the perception that a bettor like Sean might be tempted to tweak the Data For Progress polls to improve his odds. “I know that’s not the case,” she said. “But it doesn’t matter what I think.” What mattered was that the organization’s credibility was bound to Sean’s now-tarnished reputation.”

Nicholas Grossman at the Daily Beast looked at several polls and said on February 12:

Do Americans Want a Ceasefire in Gaza? It Depends

Polls show support for an end to the bloodshed, but things like cutting off U.S. aid to Israel and accepting Hamas’ continued rule over Gaza are far less popular.

As one might expect, it was the way Data for Progress wrote the questions that introduced bias into the results.

The red argument is realistic, acknowledging that a permanent ceasefire now would “keep Hamas in power,” threatening “another attack against Israel,” while continuing the war in an effort to defeat Hamas means “more civilian casualties in Gaza.” The blue argument, however, is a hopeful hypothetical, envisioning a “deal between Hamas and Israel to end the violence on both sides and release all hostages.”

Mutual agreement, no more fighting, and all hostages freed. That sounds great, but no one knows how to get it.

It would not be surprising if CAIR were aware of Data For Progress. CAIR also specializes in Earned Media. Last year, 2023, CAIR was on TV 666 times. This year, as of February 13, 2024, CAIR has been on TV 81 times, clashing with people as they go.

CAIR is way too comfortable with attacking people on TV.

  • CAIR called the mayor of Orland Park, Illinois “ignorant.”
  • Even though CAIR is Hamas, they get to call Nancy Pelosi “delusional.”
  • The Wall Street Journal is “Right-wing.”
  • After a Palestinian demonstrator committed a hate crime by attacking a pro-Israel demonstrator, CAIR blamed the victim for the attack.
  • Minneapolis mayor Jacob Fry is “making politically calculated decisions and playing identity politics against Palestinian lives.”

The example from Glenside Middle School in Illinois shows how the Data For Progress methodology may be in CAIR’s future. A girl was attacked at the school. Although the middle school found no evidence of racial, religious, or cultural bias in their investigation of the assault, which was captured on cellphone video, CAIR wants a hate crime charge to be brought in the case.

Furthermore, the CAIR spokesperson says that since October 7, CAIR has received 200 complaints about incidents in basic schools. To Maggie Slavin, CAIR’s Operations Manager at CAIR-Chicago, that indicates that hate and bias is being spread inside of homes, and communities.

CAIR’s numbers are not going to lead directly to your home. They will have the government do that.

CAIR is going to take a more quantitative approach to measuring Islamophobia at the state level.

We reassess CAIR’s vision for this work as well as initiate work on a state-specific tool to quantitatively assess Islamophobia, in order to better address the demands of the current moment.

Since the Islamophobia Network has been defeated, it must be the U.S. government who is driving the latest wave of Islamophobia. Policy makers need to do something about the hate coming from inside your home.

After all, the statistics don’t lie.

Tlaib refuses to condemn Hamas for rape of Israeli women

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SEE: https://www.jihadwatch.org/2024/02/tlaib-refuses-to-condemn-hamas; republished below in full, unedited, for informational, educational, & research purposes:

The barbarians aren’t at the gates. They’re in Congress. But Tlaib can’t condemn Hamas’ behavior because she supports Hamas, and because the sexual use of infidel women is allowed in the Qur’an (4:3, 4:24, 23:1-6, 33:50, 70:30).

“Tlaib ‘present,’ as House votes unanimously to condemn Hamas for rape,” by Menachem Wecker, JNS, February 14, 2024:

The U.S. House of Representatives voted unanimously, 418-0, to condemn Hamas terrorists for rape and sexual violence on Oct. 7.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), a progressive member of the “Squad” who has a long history of antisemitic comments, voted “present,” as the House passed H.Res.966 on Wednesday.

“The brutality was planned and calculated,” Frankel added. “Sadly, Hamas’s savagery has been met with a shrug—and even denial—from many corners of the world. Our resolution loudly and clearly condemns all rape and forms of sexual violence as weapons of war, including those acts committed by Hamas terrorists on and since Oct. 7.”

Frankel introduced the resolution, which received 200 co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle, with Reps. Mario Díaz-Balart (R-Fla.), Kathy Manning (D-N.C.) and Jen Kiggans (R-Va.).

The resolution condemns all rape and sexual violence “as weapons of war,” including those Hamas committed on and after Oct. 7; calls on all countries to criminalize rape and sexual assault and hold both state and non-state armed groups accountable for such attacks; and tells international groups to “unequivocally condemn the barbaric murder, rape, sexual assault and kidnapping by Hamas and other terrorists on and since Oct. 7 and hold accountable all perpetrators.”

It also reaffirms the U.S. government’s “support for independent, impartial investigations of rape and sexual violence committed by Hamas on and since Oct. 7” and “reaffirms its commitment to supporting survivors of rape and sexual violence, including those brutalized on and since Oct. 7.”…

Guilt-Tripping Our Way to Self-Destruction

How we ended up here.

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SEE: https://www.frontpagemag.com/guilt-tripping-our-way-to-self-destruction/; republished below in full, unedited, for informational, educational, & research purposes:

Everywhere we turn, the country looks like it is falling apart. Crime is out of control. Millions of illegal immigrants are pouring across our borders. Our schools are more interested in cultivating gender dysphoria and a proclivity for porn in our children than in educating them. The press routinely censors the truth at the behest of the government, which also increasingly prosecutes (or opts not to) based on political party affiliation. In sport after sport, biological males who have decided to “identify” as female are taking awards away from actual biological women, and we’re told that we must indulge their delusions.

Americans are asking themselves, how did we get here on earth?  And even more urgently, how do we turn things around?

Most, if not all, the major societal problems we are confronting today are a direct result of abandoning the principles underpinning American culture. In fact, we have been guilt-tripped into abandoning them, and we are reaping the consequences.

The current immigration crisis is an example of this catastrophe.

It is estimated that between 6 and 10 million people have crossed the southern border of the United States since Joe Biden took office in January 2021. One of the lynchpins of American governance has been the rule of law — the concept that our government fairly and uniformly enforces laws. Additionally, our Declaration of Independence and our Constitution are explicit that our government was instituted to protect Americans and our rights.

This administration has utterly abandoned both fundamental principles and millions of Americans are willing to let them get away with it.

But it’s worse than that. The United States is a big country; we could probably absorb 10 million people. It isn’t the raw numbers; it’s the policies in place when the millions of migrants arrive. There was a time when immigrants were expected to assimilate, learn English, and support themselves and family members or other dependents via gainful employment — to abide by our laws.

No more. Now, they pour across the border and receive free phones, welfare payments, housing and food, education, and health care, all courtesy of the American taxpayer. Those who import drugs and traffic women and children do so with impunity. There are disturbingly large numbers of drunk driving instances involving illegal immigrants, and in most cases the perpetrators have no insurance. When they commit violent crimes — like the group that violently assaulted police officers in New York City last week — they flip America the middle finger. Migrants who commit crimes know that they will be released in the unlikely event that they are arrested. If they happen to be tried and convicted, they won’t be deported. If they are deported, nothing will happen if they return.

Why is this happening? We have been guilt-tripped into accepting that demanding integration into American society is insufficiently “multicultural” and that America is an exploitative nation that somehow “owes” the world’s poor billions of dollars that must, therefore, be extracted from American taxpayers.

American schools provide more examples. Each week brings more amateur videos of violent behavior by students. Social media commentator Marina Medvin posted on X earlier this week a list of 53 Illinois schools at which no  student — not a single one — was grade proficient in math. Most of them were in Chicago. These dismal results are not limited to Illinois by any means. Oregon recently eliminated the requirement that high school students be proficient in reading, English, and math in order to graduate. Many colleges have eliminated entrance exams.

Why is this happening? Because we have allowed ourselves to be guilt-tripped into believing that demanding appropriate behavior and insisting upon objective academic standards is “white privilege,” and that we must expiate our collective guilt as a nation by excusing the violence and catastrophic failures permeating our schools.

In states like California, Illinois and New York, shoplifting has become epidemic. Flash mobs steal thousands of dollars’ worth of inventory and are not prosecuted. Retailers across the country lost $112 billion just in 2022. Homelessness has been allowed to explode in our major cities, contributing to crime, disease and filth that would have been unimaginable in America just 20 or 30 years ago. Stores and other retail establishments are closing in the downtowns of major cities due to theft, crime and generally unlivable conditions.

Why is this happening? Because we have been guilt-tripped into believing that involuntary commitment of the mentally ill isn’t “compassionate” and that enforcing shoplifting laws protecting property is “systemic racism.”

Men now insist that they can become women — and vice versa; minor children and staggering numbers of preteen and teenage girls with clear mental illness are being railroaded into chemical sterilization and surgical mutilation. Teachers think it is appropriate to discuss their sexual proclivities with grade-schoolers and expose them to pornography.

Why is this happening? Because Americans have been silenced by buzzwords like “cisprivilege,” “heteronormative,” and “transphobic.”

Enough.

Suppose these crises have been facilitated by our silence and our willingness to be cowed into submission. In that case, they can be addressed when we refuse to be cowed, when we refuse to be silent, when we refuse to use the nonsense lingo that activists demand be injected into everyday parlance; when we stop apologizing for the sins and imperfections of those who lived generations ago; and when we vigorously defend the principles that represent the best of America.

Those principles built this country. Abandoning them will destroy it.

Hamas Member Reveals That Organization’s Goal is Not Just to Free ‘Palestine’

Can the leftist/Islamic alliance survive Hamas’ universalist mission?

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SEE: https://www.frontpagemag.com/hamas-member-reveals-that-organizations-goal-is-not-just-to-free-palestine/; republished below in full, unedited, for informational, educational, & research purposes:


Virtually every political and media analyst in the Western world agrees that Hamas is a national liberation movement, dedicated to freeing Palestine from an alleged Israeli occupation. Most also assume that if the Palestinians are given a state, Hamas’ mission will end, and the organization will fade away. A video that surfaced Saturday, however, suggests that all of that analysis, despite being nearly universally accepted, is false.

The video is of a hijabed woman, identified as “Elham, Member of Hamas, Planner of a Suicide Bombing,” explaining matter-of-factly that “we don’t only fight against occupation. Our goal is to spread Islam to all, everywhere.” This suggests that Hamas would not be satisfied with a Palestinian state, but would continue its war against the diminished Israel that would remain after the creation of a Palestinian state until the remainder were Islamized as well. What’s more, Elham’s statement amounts to a declaration of war against every state that is not governed under Islamic law.

Of course, there is no indication that Elham speaks for Hamas as a whole. However, many other Hamas spokesmen have said essentially the same thing. Last December, Fathi Hammad, a member of Hamas’ Political Bureau, also spoke of Hamas as having a universal mission beyond the destruction of Israel. He explained that “the [Palestinian] people have been soldiers throughout history. They are now preparing to liberate Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque, and I am saying this loud and clear: [The Palestinian people] are preparing to establish the Caliphate, with Jerusalem as its capital city, Inshallah. Jerusalem will not only be the capital city of Palestine as an independent state – it will be the capital city of the Islamic Caliphate.”

In Sunni Islamic theology, an Islamic caliphate is a supranational state that commands the allegiance of all Muslims worldwide, transcending nationality and ethnicity. Thus Hammad, like Elham, sees Hamas as far more than just a movement dedicated to the destruction of Israel. Another Hamas official, Mahmoud Al-Zahar, explained in a December 2022 interview that Hamas’ universal mission would eventually bring it into war with Christianity:

When we speak about the Army of Jerusalem and the Battle of the Promise of the Hereafter, we are not talking about liberating our land alone – but we believe in what our Prophet Muhammad said: “Allah drew the ends of the world near one another for my sake, and I have seen its eastern and western ends. The dominion of my nation would reach those ends that have been drawn near me.” The entire 510 million square kilometers of Planet Earth will come under [a system] where there is no injustice, no oppression, no treachery, no Zionism, no treacherous Christianity, and no killings and crimes, like those being committed against the Palestinians, and against the Arabs in all the Arab countries – in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and other countries.

If Hamas is going to bring the entire 510 million square kilometers of Planet Earth are going to come under the domination of Islam, Hamas is essentially declaring war against the entire planet with the exception of Sharia states. Leftists who are expressing their support for Hamas and hatred for Israel these days are likely neither to know nor care that Hamas has these aspirations, as they simply cannot imagine a world in which their Muslim allies would turn against them.

Yet it is already happening. We have seen Muslims in the U.S. leading protests against the trans madness being forced upon children in schools, and in Gaza in October 2023, a Muslim sheikh, Mohammed Saleem Ali, declared during a sermon at the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount that he did not want any “allyship” from “Queers For Palestine,” thank you very much: “Our Muslim Palestinian people will not accept a single homosexual openly declaring his abomination. Will you allow a single homosexual in the land of Jerusalem and Palestine? Will you allow that? No. Our people will not allow there to be institutions that promote this abomination on the blessed and pure land of Palestine. They will not allow any omission or change to the laws of the shari’a, nor will they accept curricula that go against the laws of Islam.”

Can the leftist/Islamic alliance survive both Hamas’ universalist mission and its hostility to sexual deviance and perversion? In a word, no.

Impeach Biden for Obstruction of Justice

New report shows Biden interfered into investigations of himself, his son and Trump.

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SEE: https://www.frontpagemag.com/impeach-biden-for-obstruction-of-justice/; republished below in full, unedited, for informational, educational, & research purposes:


The Mueller report suggested that former President Trump could be charged with obstruction of justice because of his decision to fire former FBI Director James Comey and alleged pressure on Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to fire Mueller. Now a report has emerged that Biden is planning to fire Attorney General Merrick Garland over special counsel investigations.

While the media made much of the obstruction of justice allegations at the time, it’s shown little interest in its own reporting which implicated Biden in multiple instances of obstruction of justice.

A recent Politico report described Biden complaining that Attorney General Merrick Garland did not stop Special Counsel Hur from editing out mentions of his diminished mental capacity in his report, that Garland should not have allowed a special counsel to look into his son’s misconduct and finally that Garland had failed to schedule a trial of former President Trump quickly enough.

As a result, Politico reported that Biden would oust Garland if he gets a second term.

Not only was Biden interfering with supposedly independent investigations of himself and his son, but even into criminal proceedings aimed at his likely opponent in the presidential race. The interference has become crude and overt enough that it now includes media leaks threatening the job of his attorney general for not sufficiently protecting him from investigations.

And for not doing enough to schedule his presidential opponent’s trial before the election.

Troublingly, the report describes Biden complaining in “recent weeks” that Garland took too long to move on trying Trump. And in mid-January, Garland unexpectedly told CNN that “the cases were brought last year, the prosecutor has urged speeding trials with, with which I agree, and it’s now in the hands of the judicial system, not in our hands.”

It appears now that the attorney general was not just talking to CNN, but to President Biden.

If the Politico report is true, this is deeply corrupt behavior that meets the standard for impeachment. A pattern of interfering in his own investigations is obstruction of justice, but interfering to speed up a criminal case against his opponent so that a trial takes place before an upcoming election is abuse of power. Both are extremely impeachment worthy charges.

Impeachment proceedings moved forward against former President Nixon over obstruction of justice charges related to the coverup of Watergate. Former President Bill Clinton actually was impeached on obstruction of justice grounds and finally former President Trump was impeached for the first time on obstruction of justice charges. The precedents point to impeaching Biden.

These reports come after multiple denials by the White House, by Attorney General Garland and other administration figures that there was any political interference in the investigations.

“Since he took office and consistent with his campaign promise that he would restore the independence of the Justice Department when it comes to decision-making in criminal investigations, President Biden has made clear that this matter would be handled independently by the Justice Department, under the leadership of a U.S. Attorney appointed by former President Trump, free from any political interference by the White House. He has upheld that commitment.” the Biden administration claimed after whistleblowers described efforts by the Department of Justice to sabotage their investigation into Hunter Biden.

The independence has been exposed as a sham and the documented interference with the Hunter Biden investigation could have come from the Justice Department under pressure from the Attorney General or other administration figures because Joe Biden was protecting his son.

House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan had already announced an obstruction of justice investigation into Biden over allegations that he had interfered in the Hunter Biden investigation and the revelations in the Politico article that Biden had sought to pressure not just one investigation but three and to do so at the level of the attorney general’s office are likely to provide more fuel for an obstruction of justice case.

“We are facing obstruction like has never been demonstrated in the history of congressional investigations,” Rep. Comer had argued.

According to the Politico report, anger at Special Counsel Hur’s report by “Biden and his closest advisers” led them to “put part of the blame on Garland, who they say should have demanded edits to Hur’s report.” While Attorney General Garland could have tried to edit or suppress the report, Congress would have demanded unredacted copies and the leaked copies would have been an even bigger scandal. Garland appears to have understood this even when Biden did not.

Biden also charged that Garland should not have “empowered a special counsel to look into his son” claiming that “the stress could send Hunter Biden spiraling back into addiction.”

Most damagingly, Biden recently took to grumbling “to aides and advisers that had Garland moved sooner in his investigation into former President Donald Trump’s election interference, a trial may already be underway or even have concluded” apparently out of concern that the trial might not take place before the presidential election for maximum political advantage.

As a result, “most of the president’s senior advisers do not believe that the attorney general would remain in his post for a possible second term.”

Clearly the Biden team expects more legal troubles or assaults in a possible second term and believes that Attorney General Garland is spending too much time protecting himself from the fallout and not doing enough of their dirty work. That does not bode well for the next four years.

While there are no indications that Biden has directly pressured Garland, the constant mentions of the subjects to top aides and advisors, followed by media leaks, are meant to have the same effect while providing plausible deniability. They also convey a message to anyone who wants to be Garland’s possible successor of the expectations of the office that he or she hopes to assume.

When the president expresses his unhappiness to aides, they are expected to act on it. And the question is, beyond media leaks, what actions did they take to pressure Garland on the three investigations? That is the question on which Biden’s impeachment may depend.

Despite efforts to portray Biden as a disinterested party who was watching the investigations unfold without interfering with them, the Politico report shows that he was highly invested in them, closely monitoring them and sending strong signals of what he wanted to see done with them. These are evidence of obstruction of justice and a severe abuse of power.

And they cannot go unpunished.