A federal judge in Florida has sanctioned Donald Trump and his lawyer nearly $1m for suing former secretary of state Hillary Clinton over claims that she and others rigged the 2016 presidential election.
“This case should never have been brought,” wrote Judge Donald M Middlebrooks of the Southern District of Florida in his order. “Its inadequacy as a legal claim was evident from the start.”
Judge Middlebrooks said the sanctions were warranted because the former president had exhibited a “pattern” of misusing the courts for his political agenda. “Intended for a political purpose, none of the counts of the amended complaint stated a cognizable legal claim,” he wrote.
The judge ruled that Mr Trump and his lawyer Alina Habba would be jointly liable for $937,989 in sanctions.
Meanwhile, the former president angrily reacted to the failure of the Supreme Court to identify the source of the Roe v Wade decision leak that sparked outrage last year.
He shockingly called for the jailing of the Politico reporter, publisher, and editor who broke the story in an effort to force them to identify the source of the leak.
Key points
Trump and his lawyer fined nearly $1m for Hillary Clinton lawsuit
04:24 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
A federal judge in Florida on Thursday sanctioned former president Donald Trump and his legal team nearly $1m for filing a “frivolous” lawsuit against Hillary Clinton and others.
Mr Trump, in the suit filed against the former Democratic presidential candidate Ms Clinton and others, alleged that they tried to rig the 2016 election by falsely accusing his campaign of links to Russia.
“This case should never have been brought,” wrote Judge Donald M Middlebrooks of the Southern District of Florida in his order. “Its inadequacy as a legal claim was evident from the start.”
Read more here.
Judge fines Trump almost $1m for abusing court system ‘for political purpose’
Trump’s lawyers were fined in November
05:19 , Alisha Rahaman Sarkar
Former president Donald Trump’s lead counsel in the case, Alina Habba, and another lawyer were asked to pay $50,000 in a penalty to the court and $16,274 in legal fees to one of the defendants.
The lawsuit against Hillary Clinton and other defendants was thrown out by the judge, who called the case a “two-hundred-page political manifesto”.
“The pleadings, in this case, contained factual allegations that were either knowingly false or made in reckless disregard for the truth,” wrote Judge Donald Middlebrook in his order.
Capitol rioter who propped his feet on Pelosi’s desk voices regrets in court
04:30 , Oliver O’Connell
The man who propped his feet on Nancy Pelosi’s desk as a mob stormed the halls of Congress has testified in his own defence after facing eight counts, including felony charges, tied to his widely photographed role in the Capitol riots.
Richard “Bigo” Barnett – whose defence attorneys compared him to “everyone’s crazy redneck uncle from out of town” – admitted to the jury on 19 January that he “probably shouldn’t have put my feet on the desk”.
Alex Woodward is following the trial.
Capitol rioter who propped his feet on Pelosi’s desk testifies in his own defense
9/11 survivor condemns Marjorie Taylor Greene’s new homeland security role
03:30 , Oliver O’Connell
A 9/11 survivor has condemned the appointment of Majorie Taylor Greene to a key House security committee – pointing out the Republican congresswoman long denied the attacks happened and instead peddled wild conspiracy theories.
Andrew Buncombe spoke with a woman who escaped from the 80th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center.
9/11 survivor condemns Marjorie Taylor Greene’s appointment to homeland security
Pompeo accuses Haley of scheming with Jared and Ivanka to grab Trump VP role
02:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is taking swings at numerous former Trump administration officials as the 2024 GOP primary nears and the Republican Party prepares for an all-out battle over who will have the honour of running against Joe Biden.
His new book, Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love, contains several passages in which Mr Pompeo disparages his former colleagues including Nikki Haley, Donald Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations. Excerpts of the book were obtained by The Guardian ahead of its publication next week.
John Bowden reviewed what he wrote.
Mike Pompeo accuses Nikki Haley of trying to snatch vice president role, book claims
US hits debt ceiling – here’s what that means
01:30 , Oliver O’Connell
The United States hit its debt limit on Thursday, which triggered the US Treasury Department to take “extraordinary measures” to ensure that the country could fulfill its debt obligations.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen sent a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Thursday warning that her department would begin taking “extraordinary measures”. She told Mr McCarthy that the US will be “unable” to fully invest the portion of the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund that is not immediately required to pay beneficiaries.
She also told him that she would begin a “debt suspension period” starting on Sunday and continuing into 5 June 2023.
Eric Garcia has the details.
US has hit the debt ceiling – here’s what that means
Report: Special counsel pressing Trump officials on Russia probe documents
00:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Investigators working for Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith have reportedly questioned multiple ex-Trump administration officials about the fate of a large tranche of classified documents pertaining to the FBI probe into Russia’s campaign of interference in the 2016 election.
A report by Murray Waas, a freelance investigative reporter and former National Journal staff writer, wrote on Wednesday that “at least three” figures in Mr Trump’s inner circle have been pressed by prosecutors on whether Mr Trump took “thousands of pages” of documents from the White House — including many bearing classification markings — with an eye towards making them public in attempt to discredit the Justice Department’s probe into alleged ties between his 2016 campaign and the Russian Federation.
Andrew Feinberg reports.
Special counsel pressing Trump officials on Russia probe documents, report says
Active duty US Marines charged over Jan 6 riot
00:00 , Oliver O’Connell
Three US Marines have been charged with participating in the January 6 riots after one of them posted photos from inside the US Capitol to their Instagram account.
Bevan Hurley has the story.
Three active duty US Marines charged over Jan 6 riot
Trump demands arrest of ‘slime’ Supreme Court leak reporter
Thursday 19 January 2023 23:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Former president Donald Trump reacted to the Supreme Court’s announcement that a monthlong investigation failed to uncover who leaked a draft of last year’s opinion overturning Roe v Wade to Politico by suggesting that the journalists who published the draft — and their bosses — be jailed until they turn over a name.
Andrew Feinberg has the full story.
Trump demands arrest of ‘slime’ Supreme Court leak reporter
If Mar-a-Lago is so secure, how did Nick Fuentes get in?
Thursday 19 January 2023 22:45 , Oliver O’Connell
Josh Dawsey of The Washington Post notes that for all the assertions by former president Donald Trump about how secure and fortified his home at the Mar-a-Lago Club is, just last month his own advisers said — in his defence — that Mr Trump has dinner with white supremacist Nick Fuentes because he did not know who he was and no-one had checked his ID at the gate.
Judge denies Navarro effort to dismiss contempt of Congress case
Thursday 19 January 2023 22:15 , Oliver O’Connell
A federal judge has denied Trump adviser Peter Navarro’s attempt to dismiss the contempt of Congress case against him.
In doing so, US District Court Judge Amit Mehta said Mr Navarro had failed to prove that former president Donald Trump wanted him to assert executive privilege over his potential testimony — a key claim that Mr Navarro has long maintained justified his decision to ignore the Janaury 6 select committee’s subpoena
Judge Mehta also gutted most of the defences that Mr Navarro plans to offer.
Trump to speak at CPAC in March
Thursday 19 January 2023 22:00 , Oliver O’Connell
The Conservative Political Action Committee has announced that Donald Trump will be a featured speaker at their March conference in National Harbor.
Trump’s ‘big political speech’? Remarks at Judicial Watch’s Annual Roundtable
Thursday 19 January 2023 21:45 , Oliver O’Connell
Given that Judicial Watch is the host of the dinner, expect to hear a lot more about the complaints he voiced in this morning’s video about the US having two systems of justice.
However, as HuffPost points out, as a tax-exempt charity, Judicial Watch is not supposed to engage in politics at all by law.
Having a 501(c)(3) tax exemption allows donors to deduct their gifts to the group but also prohibits it from engaging in politics.
Jill Farrell, Judicial Watch’s communications director, told HuffPost she had no concerns about Mr Trump’s planned remarks at a “private” event that is not permitting news media coverage.
“This is not a campaign speech,” she said. “There is no ‘there’ there.”
George Santos mocked after saying he had helped ‘reduce’ dogs
Thursday 19 January 2023 21:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Embattled Republican Representative George Santos faced mockery as he denied claims that he ripped off a veteran who needed health care for his dying service dog, after the New York congressman mistakenly tweeted he “reduced” the number of dogs.
Mr Santos responded to a story in Patch.com wherein military veteran Richard Osthoff accused Mr Santos of taking money from a GoFundMe to pay for Mr Osthoff’s dog Sapphire’s tumor and using it “for other dogs.” Sapphire ultimately died in 2017 and Mr Osthoff could not afford her euthanasia or cremation.
But Mr Santos vehemently denied any such accusation.
Eric Garcia has the story.
George Santos mocked after saying he helped ‘reduce’ dogs while denying accusations
Trump calls for arrest of Roe v Wade leak reporter after Supreme Court fails to find source
Thursday 19 January 2023 21:03 , Oliver O’Connell
Former president Donald Trump has reacted angrily to the failure of the Supreme Court to identify the source of the leak of the Roe v Wade decision that sparked outrage last year.
He shockingly called for the jailing of the reporter, publisher and editor who broke the story in an effort to force them to identify the source.
Mr Trump posted on Truth Social:
The Supreme Court has just announced it is not able to find out, even with the help of our “crack” FBI, who the leaker was on the R v Wade scandal. They’ll never find out, & it’s important that they do. So, go to the reporter & ask him/her who it was. If not given the answer, put whoever in jail until the answer is given. You might add the publisher and editor to the list. Stop playing games, this leaking cannot be allowed to happen. It won’t take long before the name of this slime is revealed!
He added in a separate post:
Arrest the reporter, publisher, editor – you’ll get your answer fast. Stop playing games and wasting time!
Hard-liners, Santos rewarded with committee seats by House GOP
Thursday 19 January 2023 20:45 , Oliver O’Connell
The most far-right House Republicans, early opponents of Speaker Kevin McCarthy and even embattled new Rep. George Santos all are in line for coveted committee assignments. Some are set to serve on the high-profile oversight committee investigating President Joe Biden’s administration.
Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Paul Gosar of Arizona will get to serve on committees now that Republicans have dislodged Democrats from the majority. When Democrats were in charge, both lawmakers were booted from their assignments for being too extreme.
Santos, who has acknowledged lying to New York voters about his past, has picked up two committee assignments.
Read on:
House GOP rewards hard-liners, Santos with committee seats
Supreme Court internal probe did not identify Dobbs ruling leaker
Thursday 19 January 2023 20:15 , Oliver O’Connell
A monthslong investigation by the Marshal of the Supreme Court has failed to determine who leaked a draft version of the court’s decision overturning Roe v Wade to Politico last year, the court said on Thursday.
In a statement, the court said the leak of Justice Samuel Alito’s draft opinion in Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization was “one of the worst breaches of trust in its history” and “a grave assault on the judicial process,” but the person who provided the draft to a pair of reporters for the Washington, DC-based publication has not yet been identified despite the Marshal’s best efforts.
Andrew Feinberg has the latest from Washington, DC.
Supreme Court says internal probe hasn’t found leaker of Dobbs ruling
Former Trump-backing GOP candidate appears in court in New Mexico shooting case
Thursday 19 January 2023 19:52 , Oliver O’Connell
A failed GOP candidate accused of orchestrating a series of drive-by shootings at the homes of Democratic elected officials in New Mexico’s largest city made his first appearance in court Wednesday.
Solomon Peña appeared via video shackled as the judge explained he would be held without bond pending a detention hearing scheduled for next month.
Read on:
New Mexico GOP candidate appears in court in shooting case
ICYMI: Trump bemoans ‘two standards of justice’, demonstrates knowledge of garage floors
Thursday 19 January 2023 19:27 , Oliver O’Connell
In a new campaign-style video address, former president Donald Trump bemoans what he sees as two standards of justice in the US — one for him and the general public, and one for the “corrupt political class”.
Mr Trump trotted out many of the gripes he has voiced about the investigation into the trove of classified documents recovered from his Palm Beach home (which he maintains is “ultra-secure” despite operating as a members club) and what he sees as the “white-glove” treatment of President Joe Biden after the discovery of a small number of documents at an office and in his garage (”which was probably very wet and damp as many garages are”).
The former president also criticised special counsel Jack Smith who is investigating on behalf of the “Injustice Department” claiming Mr Biden has weaponised the department against him.
Watch below:
George Santos denies competing as drag queen in Brazil
Thursday 19 January 2023 19:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Freshman Republican congressman George Santos has moved to deny reports that he performed in drag competitions under the name “Kitara” while living in Brazil over a decade ago.
Mr Santos remains under fire over a series of alleged untruths concerning his background, which arose from a New York Times investigation alleging that he had fabricated a number of key details about his past.
Joe Sommerlad reports.
George Santos denies competing as drag queen named ‘Kitara’ in Brazilian pageants
Trump boasts he kept classified folders as ‘cool’ keepsakes
Thursday 19 January 2023 18:45 , Oliver O’Connell
Donald Trump insisted on Wednesday that many of the documents marked “classified” taken from Mar-a-Lago — of more than 300 in total — were in fact empty folders marked “classified” that he had taken as keepsakes.
John Bowden has the story.
Trump boasts he kept classified folders as ‘cool’ keepsakes in TruthSocial rant
Lara Trump classified documents discussion devolves into conspiracy theories
Thursday 19 January 2023 18:30 , Oliver O’Connell
The daughter-in-law of former President Donald Trump held a discussion about Joe Biden’s retention of classified documents from his time as vice president this week which quickly devolved into conspiracies about allies of Mr Biden.
Lara Trump hosted a podcast discussion with ex-Trump administration official Lynne Patton and Turning Point USA contributor Erin Elmore where the three quickly agreed that there was a nefarious conspiracy afoot behind the discovery of documents at Mr Biden’s Wilmington home and a DC think tank linked to him. The comments were first reported by RawStory.
John Bowden has the story.
Lara Trump’s show devolves into conspiracies over Joe Biden’s classified papers
E Jean Carroll: Trump says he never read book accusing him of rape
Thursday 19 January 2023 18:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Former President Donald Trump said he has never read any part of a book in which the columnist E Jean Carroll accused him of raping her in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s, according to court records unsealed Wednesday.
The former president was questioned under oath in October by lawyers for Ms Carroll, who is suing the Republican. During his five-and-a-half-hour deposition, Mr Trump said he hasn’t read Carroll’s book, What Do We Need Men For? and didn’t see excerpts of it in a New York magazine article when the book was released in 2019.
Read on:
Donald Trump says he never read book accusing him of rape
Oath Keepers saw Capitol riot as ‘moment to celebrate’ prosecutor says
Thursday 19 January 2023 18:00 , Oliver O’Connell
The Capitol riot was the culmination of weeks of preparation and a moment of triumph for the Oath Keepers, a federal prosecutor said Wednesday in closing argument in the second seditious conspiracy trial against members of the far-right extremist group.
Prosecutor Louis Manzo told jurors that Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes, who was convicted in an earlier trial, began pushing to stop the transfer of power from then-President Donald Trump to Democratic challenger Joe Biden almost immediately after the 2020 election, and that members of Rhodes’ group took up the cause.
Read on:
Prosecutor: Riot was ‘moment to celebrate’ for Oath Keepers
Jan 6: Capitol rioter who propped his feet on Pelosi’s desk regrets ‘crass’ note he left
Thursday 19 January 2023 17:45 , Oliver O’Connell
The man who propped his feet on Nancy Pelosi’s desk as a mob stormed the halls of Congress has testified in his own defense after facing eight counts, including felony charges, tied to his widely photographed role in the Capitol riots.
Richard “Bigo” Barnett – whose defense attorneys compared him to “everyone’s crazy redneck uncle from out of town” – admitted to the jury on 19 January that he “probably shouldn’t have put my feet on the desk”.
Alex Woodward is following the trial.
Capitol rioter who propped his feet on Pelosi’s desk testifies in his own defense
Trump preparing return to Twitter and Facebook
Thursday 19 January 2023 17:30 , Oliver O’Connell
Donald Trump is preparing to return to Twitter and Facebook, a report states.
As the 2024 race for the White House gets underway, the former president is set to once again use some of the largest and most influential social media platforms after he was booted from them following the January 6 insurrection, according to NBC News.
Gustaf Kilander has the story.
Trump preparing return to Twitter and Facebook
Don Jr under fire for ‘hateful’ reaction to Alec Baldwin Rust charges
Thursday 19 January 2023 17:15 , Oliver O’Connell
Donald Trump Jr has come under fire for his “hateful” reaction to Alec Baldwin’s Rust charges.
Gustaf Kilander reports on what he said and how people reacted.
Trump Jr under fire for ‘hateful’ reaction to Alec Baldwin charges
Pompeo accuses Haley of trying to snatch vice president role from Pence
Thursday 19 January 2023 16:52 , Oliver O’Connell
Ex-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is taking swings at numerous former Trump administration officials as the 2024 GOP primary nears and the Republican Party prepares for an all-out battle over who will have the honour of running against Joe Biden.
His new book, Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love, contains several passages in which Mr Pompeo disparages his former colleagues including Nikki Haley, Donald Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations. Excerpts of the book were obtained by The Guardian ahead of its publication next week.
John Bowden took a look at what Mr Pompeo wrote.
Mike Pompeo accuses Nikki Haley of trying to snatch vice president role, book claims
Classified documents: DeSantis simultaneously attacks Trump and Biden
Thursday 19 January 2023 16:32 , Oliver O’Connell
Ron DeSantis took a swipe at both President Joe Biden and ex-president Donald Trump at a press conference on Wednesday.
The Florida governor was asked by a reporter for his reaction to the ongoing story resulting from the finding of White House records dating back from when Joe Biden was vice president at two separate locations – his house in Delaware, and at a DC think tank.
Mr DeSantis responded with a statement seemingly swiping at both of his potential 2024 rivals, decrying any mismanagement of classified material as wrong while claiming that Democrats and Mr Biden’s supporters were trying to hold the current president to a lower standard.
John Bowden reports.
DeSantis simultaneously attacks Trump and Biden over classified document stashes
Trump bemoans ‘two standards of justice’ in US in video rant about documents probe
Thursday 19 January 2023 16:19 , Oliver O’Connell
In a new campaign-style video address, former president Donald Trump bemoans what he sees as two standards of justice in the US — one for him and the general public, and one for the “corrupt political class”.
Mr Trump trotted out many of the gripes he has voiced about the investigation into the trove of classified documents recovered from his Palm Beach home (which he maintains is “ultra-secure” despite operating as a members club) and what he sees as the “white-glove” treatment of President Joe Biden after the discovery of a small number of documents at an office and in his garage (”which was probably very wet and damp as many garages are”).
The former president also criticised special counsel Jack Smith who is investigating on behalf of the “Injustice Department” claiming Mr Biden has weaponised the department against him.
Watch below:
Report says Jack Smith pressing Trump officials on Russia probe documents
Thursday 19 January 2023 16:01 , Oliver O’Connell
Investigators working for Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith have reportedly questioned multiple ex-Trump administration officials about the fate of a large tranche of classified documents pertaining to the FBI probe into Russia’s campaign of interference in the 2016 election.
A report by Murray Waas, a freelance investigative reporter and former National Journal staff writer, wrote on Wednesday that “at least three” figures in Mr Trump’s inner circle have been pressed by prosecutors on whether Mr Trump took “thousands of pages” of documents from the White House — including many bearing classification markings — with an eye towards making them public in attempt to discredit the Justice Department’s probe into alleged ties between his 2016 campaign and the Russian Federation.
Andrew Feinberg has the details.
Special counsel pressing Trump officials on Russia probe documents, report says
