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‘The bell of stupidity’: Conservative’s Christmas video lampoons Trump’s latest speech
President Donald Trump was supposed to prioritize the economy at a MAGA rally last week — but instead rambled about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and other familiar foes.
In a Christmas-themed video, The Lincoln Project's Rick Wilson (a Never Trump conservative former GOP strategist) and journalist Molly Jong-Fast brutally mocked the speech for failing to get the desired economic message across.
Jong-Fast told Wilson, "Let's talk about how positively b----- the whole thing is. It was meant to be a rally on affordability. Here's what was not discussed: affordability. Here's what was discussed: Marjorie Taylor Greene. He calls her Marjorie Traitor Brown."
Wilson, sounding amused, interjected, "And I'm also intrigued by how she's somehow a leftist."
Jong-Fast told the Never Trumper, "It has really been a week for Trump."
Wilson laid out a variety of ways in which Trump and the MAGA movement are having a bad Christmas, from the Epstein files to the economy.
"There is no unringing this bell of stupidity," Wilson told Jong-Fast. "They have f----- it up. They have made a giant mistake."
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Trump Supreme Court battle could be dismantled by Congress members’ own history
New evidence is emerging that could deal a major blow to President Donald Trump's case for stripping birthright citizenship to the children of immigrants.
The president has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to restore “the original meaning” of the 14th Amendment, which his lawyers argued in a brief meant that “children of temporary visitors and illegal aliens are not U.S. citizens by birth," but new research raises questions about what lawmakers intended the amendment to do, reported the New York Times.
"One important tool has been overlooked in determining the meaning of this amendment: the actions that were taken — and not taken — to challenge the qualifications of members of Congress, who must be citizens, around the time the amendment was ratified," wrote Times correspondent Adam Liptak.
A new study will be published next month in The Georgetown Law Journal Online examining the backgrounds of the 584 members who served in Congress from 1865 to 1871. That research found more than a dozen of them might not have been citizens under Trump’s interpretation of the 14th Amendment, but no one challenged their qualifications.
"That is, said Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia and an author of the study, the constitutional equivalent of the dog that did not bark, which provided a crucial clue in a Sherlock Holmes story," Liptak wrote.
The 14th Amendment states that "all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside," while the Constitution requires members of the House of Representatives to have been citizens for at least seven years, and senators for at least nine.
“If there had been an original understanding that tracked the Trump administration’s executive order,” Frost told Liptak, “at least some of these people would have been challenged.”
Only one of the nine challenges filed against a senator's qualifications in the period around the 14th Amendment's ratification involved the citizenship issue related to Trump's interpretation of birthright citizenship, and that case doesn't support his position.
"Several Democratic senators claimed in 1870 that their new colleague from Mississippi, Hiram Rhodes Revels, the first Black man to serve in Congress, had not been a citizen for the required nine years," Liptak wrote. "They reasoned that the 14th Amendment had overturned Dred Scott, the 1857 Supreme Court decision that denied citizenship to the descendants of enslaved African Americans, just two years earlier and that therefore he would not be eligible for another seven."
"That argument failed," the correspondent added. "No one thought to challenge any other members on the ground that they were born to parents who were not citizens and who had not, under the law in place at the time, filed a declaration of intent to be naturalized."
"The consensus on the 14th Amendment’s citizenship clause has long been that everyone born in the United States automatically becomes a citizen with exceptions for those not subject to its jurisdiction, like diplomats and enemy troops," Liptak added.
Frost's research found there were many members of Congress around the time of the ratification of the 14th Amendment who wouldn't have met Trump's definition of a citizen, and she said that fact undercuts the president's arguments.
“If the executive order reflected the original public meaning, which is what the originalists say is relevant,” Frost said, “then somebody — a member of Congress, the opposing party, the losing candidate, a member of the public who had just listened to the ratification debates on the 14th Amendment, somebody — would have raised this.”
Veteran British actor Maggie Smith dies aged 89: family
Oscar-winning British actor Maggie Smith, a star of stage and screen for more than seven decades, died in hospital in London on Friday, her sons announced.
"It is with great sadness we have to announce the death of Dame Maggie Smith. She passed away peacefully in hospital early this morning, Friday 27th September," Chris Larkin and Toby Stephens said in a statement.
Smith -- a legend of British film and theatre who won a Tony, two Oscars, three Golden Globes and five Baftas -- achieved late-career international fame for her depiction of the Dowager Countess of Grantham Violet Crawley in the hit television series "Downton Abbey".
Born on December 28, 1934, the daughter of an Oxford professor of pathology, Smith made her stage debut in 1952 with the Oxford University Dramatic Society.
She won a best actress Oscar for "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" in 1969 Oscars and for best supporting actress for her depiction of Desdemona in "Othello" in the same year.
"An intensely private person, she was with friends and family at the end," her sons said.
"She leaves two sons and five loving grandchildren who are devastated by the loss of their extraordinary mother and grandmother," they said, adding their thanks for all the "kind messages and support" they had received.
© 2024 AFP
Kamala Harris’ campaign pounces on new ‘bombshell’ J.D. Vance comments
Vice President Kamala Harris's campaign wasted no time pouncing on newly revealed disparaging comments that Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) made about President Donald Trump's economic record in 2020.
In the comments to an unidentified individual, Vance argued that Trump "has just so thoroughly failed to deliver on his economic populism (excepting a disjointed China policy)" and months later predicted to the same individual that Trump would lose the 2020 election to President Joe Biden.
Hours after the remarks were revealed, Harris campaign spokesperson Ammar Moussa put out a statement that hammered Trump's economic record.
ALSO READ: Expert has 'ominous' warning about J.D. Vance endorsing 'spiritual propagandist' of Jan. 6
"It is hard to conceive of a more scathing and definitive rejection of Donald Trump's economic record than his own running mate stating categorically that Trump 'failed' on the economy," Moussa said. "J.D. Vance himself was crystal clear: Donald Trump 'thoroughly failed' to deliver on his economic promises, and is only looking out for himself and his rich donors, not the American people."
The campaign's statement also pointed back to remarks Harris made earlier this week where she described Trump as "one of the biggest losers ever" when it comes to creating manufacturing jobs, as she notes that an estimated 200,000 manufacturing jobs were lost during his tenure.
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Appeals court ‘skeptical’ of Trump’s civil fraud conviction: Reports
A New York appeals court five-judge panel appeared “skeptical” of the civil fraud verdict in the case charging Donald Trump, his company, some family members, and his Chief Financial Officer falsely overvalued and undervalued assets to obtain favorable loan rates and to pay less taxes. Judges appeared to suggest bans had a responsibility to beware.
Judge Arthur Engoron had imposed a $364 million sentence on Trump, which is approaching $500 millions with interest. Judges heard Trump’s appeal on Thursday.
The judges “seemed somewhat skeptical that the civil fraud verdict should hold,” HuffPost reports, “with one judge dubbing it an ‘disturbing’ amount and another suggesting that the ‘sophisticated parties’ Trump and Trump Organization engaged with were obligated to do their due diligence.”
Judges also appeared to suggest New York Attorney General Letitia James may have gone too far.
ALSO READ: Inside Trump and Johnson's shocking new bid to suppress women's votes
“How do we draw a line, or at least put up some guardrails, to know when the AG [attorney general] is operating well within her broad — admittedly broad — sphere … and when she is going into an area that wasn’t intended for her jurisdiction?” Justice John Higgitt asked, The Hill reports.
The Washington Examiner, however, reported it “was not immediately clear where the panel might land once it reached a decision on the case. At times, the panel asked several pointed questions to James’s team of lawyers, while the judges appeared to listen more intently to the defense’s argument at other moments.”
Trump announced a press conference at Trump Tower for Thursday at 4:30 PM, although a topic was not included in the release.
‘Scariest post I’ve ever read’: Residents warned to mark their bodies ahead of hurricane
As Hurricane Helene barrels closer to making landfall off of Florida’s coast, the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office offered residents ignoring evacuation orders a stark warning that stunned many: mark your bodies with a permanent marker so that you can be identified later.
Taylor County, home to 20,000 residents in northern Florida near the Big Bend region, was expected to take a direct hit from the Category 4 storm, according to NBC News. The storm was projected to make landfall Thursday night. Sheriff Wayne Padgett said the county will be “in the dead center of” the storm, the news station reported.
“If you or someone you know chose not to evacuate, PLEASE write your name, birthday and important information on your arm or leg in A PERMANENT MARKER so that you can be identified and family notified,” the Taylor County Sheriff's Office wrote in a social media statement.
The post generated more than 3,000 shares and hundreds of comments ranging from comparisons of Hurricane Katrina before it struck New Orleans in 2005, to fear for those choosing to ride out Helene.
ALSO READ: Inside Trump and Johnson's shocking new bid to suppress women's votes
“It cannot be stressed enough how serious of a situation this is for Florida,” Jordan Hall, an international storm chaser for MyRadar Weather wrote on X.
“This has to be the most scariest post I’ve ever read, prayers for everybody up there,” wrote Florida resident Tyler White in a Facebook comment to the sheriff’s office.
“I felt the same way reading this. Very surreal way to put it,” another Facebook user, Jen Marie, responded.
Another user Traci Elliott chimed in: “Morbid yes but also helpful.”
Dems flooding 3 House races with cash in hopes of gaining majority: report
Democrats are keying on three races — in New York, Florida and Maryland — that they hope can boost Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) chances of gaining a majority, according to a report.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the official campaign arm for House Democrats, is flushing cash into candidates Whitney Fox of Florida, April McClain Delaney in Maryland and John Avlon in New York, Axios reported Thursday.
Fox is running in Florida's 13th Congressional District against incumbent Republican Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who defeated Democrat Eric Lynn in 2022 with 53 percent of the vote in the right-leaning district.
ALSO READ: Inside Trump and Johnson's shocking new bid to suppress women's votes
Meanwhile, Delaney is a former Commerce Department official, lawyer and philanthropist running against Republican Neil Parrott, a former state delegate, in Maryland's 6th Congressional District. The race is expected to be the state’s most competitive congressional race this year, according to Maryland Matters. The district has a very slight Democratic lean.
And Avlon, a former CNN anchor and political commentator, is running for Congress on in New York's 1st Congressional District on Long Island against Republican incumbent Rep. Nick LaLota. That district has a slight Republican lean.
‘How can anyone do this to supporters?’ Expert gives $100K gold Trump watch brutal review
A menswear fashion expert has no time for former President Donald Trump's new line of watches.
Derek Guy, a menswear expert who has contributed to the Washington Post and Esquire, publicly shamed Trump for shilling a $100,000 watches he described as an obvious scam.
"I don't understand how anyone can do this to their supporters," Guy wrote on X. "They play you as a sucker."
Trump the same day announced the release of his Tourbillon watches on Truth Social — where he often shares political messages — in an ad campaign from "your favorite president" standing in front of a row of American flags.
"That's a lot of diamonds," Trump says. "I love gold, I love diamonds."
ALSO READ: ‘Kind of crazy’: Vance’s Ohio neighbors can’t help but notice his Secret Service detail
The Trump Watch website only offers 147 of the Trump Victory Tourbillon then a series of Fight Fight Fight watches that retail at between $499 and $799.
Guy argued this was a blatant attempt to exploit the halo effect, a marketing tactic that creates a false assumption of quality in lower cost items through association to similar high-price ones.
"This crappy $100k watch is a halo product to sell even crappier $500 and $800 non-Swiss steel and gold-plated watches with a cheap automatic movement," Guy wrote.
"The goal here is just to make money, not treat people with respect and offer them something of genuine value."
Guy — who has made a reputation explaining complicated men's fashion in straightforward terms while gently critiquing high profile male fashionistas — changed his tone when it came to discussing Trump.
"Buy watches from established watch brands or independent watchmakers who care more about watches than money," Guy told his followers. "This sort of behavior is genuinely disgusting."
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‘The bell of stupidity’: Conservative’s Christmas video lampoons Trump’s latest speech
President Donald Trump was supposed to prioritize the economy at a MAGA rally last week — but instead rambled about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and other familiar foes.
In a Christmas-themed video, The Lincoln Project's Rick Wilson (a Never Trump conservative former GOP strategist) and journalist Molly Jong-Fast brutally mocked the speech for failing to get the desired economic message across.
Jong-Fast told Wilson, "Let's talk about how positively b----- the whole thing is. It was meant to be a rally on affordability. Here's what was not discussed: affordability. Here's what was discussed: Marjorie Taylor Greene. He calls her Marjorie Traitor Brown."
Wilson, sounding amused, interjected, "And I'm also intrigued by how she's somehow a leftist."
Jong-Fast told the Never Trumper, "It has really been a week for Trump."
Wilson laid out a variety of ways in which Trump and the MAGA movement are having a bad Christmas, from the Epstein files to the economy.
"There is no unringing this bell of stupidity," Wilson told Jong-Fast. "They have f----- it up. They have made a giant mistake."
- YouTube www.youtube.com
Trump Supreme Court battle could be dismantled by Congress members’ own history
New evidence is emerging that could deal a major blow to President Donald Trump's case for stripping birthright citizenship to the children of immigrants.
The president has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to restore “the original meaning” of the 14th Amendment, which his lawyers argued in a brief meant that “children of temporary visitors and illegal aliens are not U.S. citizens by birth," but new research raises questions about what lawmakers intended the amendment to do, reported the New York Times.
"One important tool has been overlooked in determining the meaning of this amendment: the actions that were taken — and not taken — to challenge the qualifications of members of Congress, who must be citizens, around the time the amendment was ratified," wrote Times correspondent Adam Liptak.
A new study will be published next month in The Georgetown Law Journal Online examining the backgrounds of the 584 members who served in Congress from 1865 to 1871. That research found more than a dozen of them might not have been citizens under Trump’s interpretation of the 14th Amendment, but no one challenged their qualifications.
"That is, said Amanda Frost, a law professor at the University of Virginia and an author of the study, the constitutional equivalent of the dog that did not bark, which provided a crucial clue in a Sherlock Holmes story," Liptak wrote.
The 14th Amendment states that "all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside," while the Constitution requires members of the House of Representatives to have been citizens for at least seven years, and senators for at least nine.
“If there had been an original understanding that tracked the Trump administration’s executive order,” Frost told Liptak, “at least some of these people would have been challenged.”
Only one of the nine challenges filed against a senator's qualifications in the period around the 14th Amendment's ratification involved the citizenship issue related to Trump's interpretation of birthright citizenship, and that case doesn't support his position.
"Several Democratic senators claimed in 1870 that their new colleague from Mississippi, Hiram Rhodes Revels, the first Black man to serve in Congress, had not been a citizen for the required nine years," Liptak wrote. "They reasoned that the 14th Amendment had overturned Dred Scott, the 1857 Supreme Court decision that denied citizenship to the descendants of enslaved African Americans, just two years earlier and that therefore he would not be eligible for another seven."
"That argument failed," the correspondent added. "No one thought to challenge any other members on the ground that they were born to parents who were not citizens and who had not, under the law in place at the time, filed a declaration of intent to be naturalized."
"The consensus on the 14th Amendment’s citizenship clause has long been that everyone born in the United States automatically becomes a citizen with exceptions for those not subject to its jurisdiction, like diplomats and enemy troops," Liptak added.
Frost's research found there were many members of Congress around the time of the ratification of the 14th Amendment who wouldn't have met Trump's definition of a citizen, and she said that fact undercuts the president's arguments.
“If the executive order reflected the original public meaning, which is what the originalists say is relevant,” Frost said, “then somebody — a member of Congress, the opposing party, the losing candidate, a member of the public who had just listened to the ratification debates on the 14th Amendment, somebody — would have raised this.”
