Deplorables of the (Indictment) Week
Plus: What is Mike Pence up to?
“U.S. Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya reminded Trump during the arraignment proceedings that bribing, influencing or retaliating against witnesses is a crime.” The Hill.
Let’s take a pause from the doom loop of Nothing Matters Punditry, to note how much yesterday mattered.
The former president of the United States was arrested (for the third time), booked, arraigned, warned against committing more crimes, and released on his own recognizance. He now faces 78 separate felony charges and potential prison sentences that measure in centuries rather than decades. (Literally: The maximum sentences on all the charges would put him behind bars for 641 years.)
That doesn’t count the civil lawsuits for fraud, defamation, and sexual assault. Or what’s coming from Georgia.
This may be a false positive, but nota bene: “About half of US Republicans could spurn Trump if he is convicted, Reuters/Ipsos poll shows.”
The two-day Reuters/Ipsos poll asked respondents if they would vote for Trump for president next year if he were "convicted of a felony crime by a jury." Among Republicans, 45% said they would not vote for him, more than the 35% who said they would. The rest said they didn't know.
Asked if they would vote for Trump if he were "currently serving time in prison," 52% of Republicans said they would not, compared to 28% who said they would.
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For all his bluster, Trump is not handling this well, pleading on Truth Social for the Supreme Court to intervene:
CRAZY! My political opponent has hit me with a barrage of weak lawsuits, including D.A., A.G., and others, which require massive amounts of my time & money to adjudicate. Resources that would have gone into Ads and Rallies, will now have to be spent fighting these Radical Left Thugs in numerous courts throughout the Country. I am leading in all Polls, including against Crooked Joe, but this is not a level playing field. It is Election Interference, & the Supreme Court must intercede. MAGA!
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In today’s Bulwark:
Trump’s Bogus Defenses — Ben Wittes and me.
Happy Friday.
Pence leans in
What’s the former veep up to? After months of on-and-off-hot-and-cold rhetoric about January 6, Pence has been taking a much stronger line in recent days.
How can you tell he’s serious? There’s merch.
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Meanwhile:
“Trump’s Lead in Iowa Is Less Dominant, Poll Shows” - The New York Times
“Chris Christie visits Ukraine, highlighting GOP divide over U.S. role” - The Washington Post
Deplorables of the Week
We have an unusually robust list this week.
On Substack yesterday, I asked for reader input and got more than 800 nominations. But a reminder: The list is incomplete because it doesn’t include the Lifetime Deplorables, like DJT, MTG, Tucker, or some of the other usual suspects. Rudy is also now firmly in the permanent Hall of Deplorable Shame.
And, frankly, there is neither world enough nor time to chronicle all of the batshittery. But let’s try (in no particular order):