‘What the hell is a Blizzard?’: Trump reveals he’s never been to a Dairy Queen
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Donald Trump headlined the first of a two-day conference hosted by the right-wing political activist group Turning Point USA alongside far-right lawmakers, candidates and pundits including Tucker Carlson and Matt Gaetz.
The former president’s rambling speech Saturday night condemned the investigations and criminal charges against him as he told Ron DeSantis to “go home to Florida,” accusing his rival for the Republican presidential nomination of ‘ignore the governor’s office.
Meanwhile, DeSantis’ campaign reported raising more than $20 million in the first six weeks of his campaign, but about a dozen staffers were recently laid off as his poll numbers outpace those of the former president
Trump’s remarks came as his legal team is pushing Georgia courts to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis from investigating him for election interference and to overturn the final report of a special purpose grand jury recommending indictments against those in the Trump circle.
Attorneys filed similar motions in both the Georgia Supreme Court and Fulton County Superior Court after a grand jury was sworn in to hear evidence about attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
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After Losing Immunity in E Jean Carroll Case, Trump Gets Angry About ‘Crooked’ DOJ.
Ms. Carroll is suing Trump to deny that he sexually assaulted her in Manhattan in the 1990s. In 2019, while serving as president, Trump said that Ms. Carroll was “not my type” and that the alleged assault “never happened”.
If a federal employee is sued for defamation for actions related to their job, the DOJ can step in as a defendant and effectively stop the suit so that the federal government cannot be sued for defamation.
Abe Asher explains why Mr. Trump can no longer rely on the federal government to defend him.
Oliver O’ConnellJuly 15, 2023 01:45
Why Casey DeSantis matters to the 2024 race
But is her rising profile enough to overturn her husband’s campaign? Some have criticized him to the bone, literally, while others think he’s a vital asset to the DeSantis campaign.
Oliver O’ConnellJuly 17, 2023 08:45
Order limiting Biden administration’s contact with social media companies put on hold by court
A federal appeals court on Friday temporarily halted a lower court’s order that limited executive branch officials’ communications with social media companies about controversial online posts.
Lawyers for the Biden administration had asked the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans to stay the preliminary injunction issued July 4 by U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty. Doughty himself had refused a request to put his order on hold pending the appeal.
The 5th Circuit’s brief order on Friday stayed Doughty’s order “until further court orders.” He asked that arguments in the case be scheduled on an expedited basis.
Oliver O’ConnellJuly 17, 2023 06:45
Tucker Carlson and Pence face off over Ukraine
Tucker Carlson appeared to lose his temper with Mike Pence on Friday after the 2024 presidential candidate refused to back down from his support for arming Ukraine’s defense forces.
Andrew Feinberg themes:
They spent about half of their discussion arguing about Mr. Pence’s view of the nearly 18-month war, which the former vice president described in harsh terms based on his two visits to the region.
Addressing the Turning Point conference Saturday night, Carlson continued his attacks on the former president and pushed a Ukraine narrative that has shaped an element of the Republican Party and its base while also winning praise from Russian state media.
“If you’re a Christian leader and Christians are going to jail for their views, you have to say something,” Carlson said, retrieving a misleading narrative that accuses Ukrainian Jewish leader Volodymyr Zelensky of persecuting Christian priests. “And if you don’t, you’re not much of a Christian leader.”
“How grateful we are for Tucker Carlson to reveal real snakes … who don’t have our best interests in mind,” said right-wing commentator Benny Johnson, amid laughs at viral clips of President Biden and “boos” aimed at Mr Pence.
Alex WoodwardJuly 17, 2023 04:45
Tim Scott agrees with Tucker Carlson’s dismissal of the Russia threat
Republican Sen. Tim Scott or South Carolina appeared to agree with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson’s assertion that Mexico poses a greater threat to the United States than Russia at a 2024 campaign forum .
Oliver O’ConnellJuly 17, 2023 02:45
Former Secret Service agent ‘not surprised’ by White House cocaine find
A day after the Secret Service came to the end of its investigation into the presence of cocaine in the White House, former Secret Service agent Evy Poumpouras said she was not surprised that the drug was able to enter.
Oliver O’ConnellJuly 17, 2023 12:45 AM
Far-right pundits and lawmakers evangelize and crown Trump and Tucker at Turning Point conference in Florida
On the stage at the two-day conference of an influential activist group, far-right conspiracy theorists, Republican presidential candidates and members of Congress veered toward Christian nationalist evangelicalism, the adjacent QAnon conspiracy, and a bleak picture of an America in rapid decline under Democratic leadership. .
Guest speakers at Turning Point USA’s inaugural Turning Point Action Conference in Florida repeatedly denied the existence of transgender people, claimed that support for Ukraine is based on a lie, and characterized President Joe Biden as a frail and incapable and the most corrupt politician. Of all time.
And they professed their allegiance to both Donald Trump, who delivered rambling remarks in prime time on July 15, and Tucker Carlson, the former Fox News pundit hailed by Turning Point guests as the key figure who can articulate his long list of grievances.
More from this weekend’s conference:
Alex WoodwardJuly 17, 2023 00:00
Trump praises the federal judge he appointed to now oversee the Mar-a-Lago case
Donald Trump appointed US District Judge Aileen Cannon to the Southern District of Florida in 2020.
Now, she is overseeing the federal case against him accused of illegally withholding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left the White House.
His legal team has also pressed the judge to continue the trial as it seeks to delay the case indefinitely. The filing is pending Judge Cannon’s decision.
When asked Sunday Morning Futures on Fox News if he thinks the judge will grant the motion, the former president said he didn’t know.
“I know he is a very respected judge. A very smart judge and a very strong judge,” he said.
“I am very proud to have appointed her,” he added. “But she’s very smart and very strong, and she loves our country. We need judges who love our country to do the right thing.”
Alex WoodwardJuly 16, 2023 11:45 p.m
Turning Point’s straw poll places Ramaswamy, not DeSantis, as the second choice if Trump is out.
Turning Point Action attendees did not pick Ron DeSantis as the No. 2 candidate for the Republican nomination in a weekend poll.
Despite being asked to pick a different candidate than the first round, which went overwhelmingly for Trump, attendees also picked Trump as #2.
But Vivek Ramaswamy, a Trump booster who told the crowd he was not running “against” any candidate, received 51.2 percent of second-choice votes.
Alex WoodwardJuly 16, 2023 11:14 p.m
Unsurprisingly, Trump dominates the Turning Point Action straw poll
With the exception of the candidates running against him (save for Vivek Ramaswamy, a Trump booster who said he’s not running “against” anyone), speaker after speaker at the Turning Point Action conference pledged their loyalty to Donald Trump.
The results of a poll are no surprise, then, with the former president obtaining 85.7% of the votes of the attendees.
Ron DeSantis, considered his main challenger for the 2024 nomination, received 4.3 percent.
Top choices for Trump’s running mate include failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake (30.8%), US Representative Byron Donalds (24%) and Mr Ramaswamy (22%).
Alex WoodwardJuly 16, 2023 11:10 p.m
