In light of the constant barrage of
Russian airstrikes hitting the north-eastern city of Kharkiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has made a plea with international allies to deliver urgently needed air defense systems. "It is quite obvious that the air defense capacities we have in
Ukraine are not enough — and this is clear to all our partners," Zelensky said in his evening video message on Sunday. "We are looking for ways to provide Kharkiv with more air defense," he said, urging all Ukrainian
diplomats and international negotiators to seek agreements for new supplies.
Donald Trump recently filed an "intriguing" letter in his
New York criminal case involving alleged hush money payments, according to a legal analyst on Sunday. Lawfare's Roger Parloff, who recently reported that Judge Cannon had created a "secret docket" in the process of overseeing the Trump case over classified documents, flagged the letter on his
Social Media account. He said the letter was made public on April 3, and filed March 19. "If Trump takes the stand, the People would seek to cross-examine him about '13 different court determinations' about him as well as the 'underlying facts' that led to those," Parloff wrote on Sunday. "We don’t know which prior court findings the People seek to introduce. (If the letter is imprecise, the People might also be seeking to put in other kinds of findings—like the Jan. 6 Committee’s.) In any case, Trump seeks to bar them all." ALSO READ: A criminologist explains why keeping Trump from the
White House is all that matters Parloff further notes that case law in New York "calls for judges to hold a pretrial 'Sandoval' hearing where defendants can find out what evidence of their prior 'criminal, vicious, or immoral acts' the judge would let in if the defendant elects to testify." "The judge is not supposed to allow in acts offered just to show the defendant’s 'bad character' or 'criminal bent.' Also, judges are supposed to avoid deterring the defendant from taking the stand—potentially depriving the jury of material evidence," he wrote. On the other hand, Parloff said, "the judge can let in acts to prove the defendant’s (1) lack of 'credibility, veracity or honesty' or (2) demonstrated willingness to put 'self-interest' above 'the interests of society.'" "Those 2 categories neatly encapsulate virtually Trump’s entire life," he added, before estimating what the judge will ultimately conclude. "My wild guesses are that Judge Merchan would keep out guilty pleas of Trump’s companies (technically not Trump); E Jean Carroll stuff (inflammatory); Trump U (settlement, not adjudication); J6 and Ukraine (inflammatory, cumbersome, not adjudicated)," he said, "but allow in 'persistent fraud' & 'charity fraud' adjudications and most underlying findings." National security attorney Bradley Moss said Trump likely won't testify anyway. "Trump's lawyers have every right to bring this challenge under the relevant case law, but is there anyone who realistically believes Trump would ever take the stand? No way. Not a chance," Moss said. CONTINUE READING Show less The
Washington Post reported on Sunday that former president Donald Trump has privately said he could end Russia’s war in Ukraine by pressuring Ukraine to give up some territory, citing people familiar with the plan. The revelation prompted some criticisms. According to the Post , experts say that Trump's "idea would reward Russian President
Vladimir Putin and condone the violation of internationally recognized borders by force." That seemed to be a popular assumption on social media, as well. ALSO READ: A criminologist explains why keeping Trump from the White House is all that matters Dem House aide Aaron Fritschner said the revealed plan is just giving Putin exactly what he wants. "Donald Trump’s 'secret plan' to end the war in Ukraine is literally to just give Putin everything he wants," Fritschner wrote Sunday. Legal analyst Marcy Wheeler, of EmptyWheel, also weighed in on Trump's plan. "I'm really not sure how this purported Trump plan to give
Russia parts of Ukraine differs from the plan Kilimnik pitched Manafort in 2016," she wrote. "Which is to say any discussion of it should remind that it was part of a seeming quid pro quo back then." MSNBC political analyst Rick Tyler had this to say: "Appeaser Neville Chamberlain Would be proud of Trump’s weakness. Inside Donald Trump’s secret plan to end the Ukraine-Russia war." Columnist Ian Birrell echoed those sentiments: "Trump’s secret plan to end the Ukraine-Russia war turns out to be rewarding Putin by letting him keep all his stolen land in Crimea and Donbas," he wrote on X. "Pitiful." Longtime Trump aide Jason Miller pushed back on the claims made in the
Washington Post piece. " 100%
fake news," he wrote. "A couple random people pop off at Beltway nerdfests and the Washington Post makes it sound like they’re insiders with secret access to the plans. The reality: unless you hear it from
President Trump, it’s just speculation!" CONTINUE READING Show less U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) on Sunday doubled down on her stance that recent earthquakes and eclipses are "signs for those of us who believe" to repent. Raw Story recently reported that Greene on Friday had issued the stern warning on social media after a magnitude 4.8
earthquake rumbled east coast cities from Philadelphia to Boston and three days before a solar eclipse was slated to cross over the northern hemisphere. After receiving plenty of flak for that remark, she decided to double down Sunday. ALSO READ: A criminologist explains why keeping Trump from the White House is all that matters Greene, who received a "community notes" fact check from the X platform for her comment, wrote the following: "Many have mocked and scoffed at this post and even put community notes. Jesus talked about that in Luke 12:54-56. Yes eclipses are predictable and earthquakes happen and we know when comets are passing by, however God created all of these things and uses them to be signs for those of us who believe." That caused even more people to push back in the comments. U.S. Navy veteran Jared Ryan Sears wrote, "So you're doubling down by saying that your God, when forming the universe over 14 billion years ago, planned out that Americans would become more tolerant and accepting of those different than themselves in 2024, something Jesus taught people to do, so God planned a minor New Jersey earthquake and a solar eclipse in order to tell Americans to vote for Trump so that we could usher in an era of hatred, bigotry, and suffering?" "Yeah that makes your initial tweet better," he added with sarcasm. Former State
Senate candidate Christopher Hyre also chimed in: "Stop the nonsense and do something effective with your time. Go pass legislation, spreading fear with the end of times rhetoric WONT go unchecked," he wrote. "The
United States is already divided. We don't need our elected leaders to further that division. Grow up and change your ways." Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) linked to an article on lightning lighting up Lady Liberty. "God created clouds. God created lightning. Lightning struck the Statue of Liberty. Yes clouds are predictable and lightning happens, however God created all of these things and uses them to be signs for those of us who believe," he wrote in satire, adding, "I’m way ahead of [Greene] in seeing signs." CONTINUE READING Show less