Glory to Ukraine!
Glory to the defenders of Ukraine and all of modern civilization!
- Another loss for Trump in court, a decision that Trump, however, is not rushing to fully implement
- Red carpet and honors for the world’s chief communist
- Dmytriev flew to the USA again
▶ The 47th president suffered another defeat in court. But he is not going to give up.
After hearings held on Wednesday afternoon, at 1:30 AM Thursday, Judge Timothy Kelly issued a preliminary decision on the joint lawsuit by CNN, MS NOW, and Politico against Trump, the White House Chief of Staff, the Director of the Secret Service, and the White House Communications Director. The judge ordered that the White House must immediately restore the accreditation of these media outlets’ journalists and reinstate their access passes.
The media had filed a lawsuit because Trump revoked their accreditation and decided not to allow them into the White House.
The judge ruled that since the three media outlets are likely to win their case, their rights should be immediately restored. The judge allocated 14 days for the consideration of the case on its merits.
However, it’s not that simple. This is evident from the timeline of events that occurred after the court’s decision.
At 8:30 AM Thursday, journalists from the three media outlets attempted to enter the White House. They were not allowed in, and Secret Service officers confiscated their passes. The attorney representing the three media outlets filed a motion with the court for immediate hearings due to the defendants’ non-compliance with the court’s decision. The judge sent a request to the White House for explanations.
At 10:20 AM, a response came from the White House stating that the court’s decision had been implemented. This was not true, as journalists were still not allowed into the White House, and the document sent from the White House to the court was incorrectly prepared, which the judge immediately pointed out to the defendants.
At 12:20 PM, the court received a new document from the White House, again claiming that the court’s decision had been implemented. Shortly after this, around 1:00 PM, the journalists’ passes were returned, and they were allowed into the White House.
However, this is not the end of the story.
In the evening, CNN and MS NOW journalists were not allowed to attend the state dinner hosted by Trump at the White House in honor of the Chinese leader Xi.
Thus, the court decision is not being fully implemented.
Meanwhile, the solidarity among journalists and TV channels manifested a few days ago has not weakened. The combined television pool of CNN, Fox News, ABC, NBC, and CBS, which covers all events at the White House using shared cameras (including all the TV shows hosted by Trump in the Oval Office and elsewhere), continued its boycott and is not covering events at the White House related to Xi Jinping’s state visit to the USA. The channels stated that they will not resume the pool’s activities until they receive official confirmation from the White House that the status of CNN and its journalists has been restored.
I’ll answer questions about what a judge can do if their decision is not complied with. A judge has several tools. Harvard University professor and leading constitutional law expert Laurence Tribe explained them in separate interviews with CNN and MS NOW.
A judge can find the defendants guilty of contempt of court and impose a daily fine, which can increase each day, and which must be paid until the court’s decision is fulfilled.
A judge can also refer the matter to the Department of Justice to initiate a criminal case against the defendants for contempt of court.
Since Trump’s Department of Justice is unlikely to initiate such a criminal case, a judge can appoint a special independent prosecutor to initiate the case and present the charges in court.
Meanwhile, if the president has immunity from criminal prosecution, the chief of staff, the director of the Secret Service, and the White House communications director do not.
And if a judge rules that they must pay fines until the court’s decision is fully implemented, they will have to pay.
This leads to several conclusions.
Trump, once again making an impulsive decision to break the law and shut journalists out of the White House, has once again portrayed himself as a capricious, hysterical child.
Refusing to comply with the court’s decision and deceiving the court demonstrates what he will do in the future with lawsuits against himself and how he will comply with court decisions related to matters like elections.
The Justice Department lawyers representing the White House in court, presenting absurd arguments that journalists were barred from the White House in the interest of national security (in these “interests,” Trump is building a ballroom and planning a triumphal arch at the White House; presumably, in these “interests,” he reduced the National Security Council staff from 200 to 20), risk losing their licenses at some point (licenses to practice law are issued by independent state bar associations).
▶ At the invitation of Trump, the main communist of the planet, Xi Jinping, arrived in Washington on a state visit. The 47th president gave the guest an unprecedented reception. According to American protocol, presidents do not greet foreign guests at the airport. The ceremonial reception of foreign heads of state on state visits always takes place at the White House. The last exception to this rule was in 1962 when President John Kennedy met the visiting Prime Minister of the closest ally, the United Kingdom’s Harold Macmillan, at the airport.
But Trump has his own “protocol”. It is defined by a love for dictators. And a very large, immeasurable love for the biggest dictators. A love and envy for their power, which the 47th himself would like to possess. There is no allied country with whose leader Trump has not quarreled or publicly insulted unless that leader is a representative of far-right forces.
But to two big dictators, “strongmen” in the understanding of the 47th, he pays special honors, greeting at the airport on the red carpet either Putin in Anchorage or Xi Jinping in Washington.
There are no expectations in the US regarding this visit. No matter how many times Trump repeats that he has “wonderful relations with President Xi”, meaning the US and China have wonderful relations, the US and China are and will remain fundamental geopolitical rivals. The meetings between US and Chinese leaders are no different from meetings between American presidents and Khrushchev or Brezhnev. These are meetings to manage confrontation, to avoid mistakes that could lead to military conflict.
Trump proclaims himself a fighter against communism. But he fights against an imaginary communism, labeling American Democrats as communists and Marxists. Yet in front of the real main communist of the world, Trump humbles himself, thus humiliating the US.
Trump’s trip to the airport to meet Xi is a humiliation for the US. Trump’s refusal to sell $14 billion in weapons to Taiwan to appease Xi is not just a humiliation for the US, but actions directly contrary to US interests. Actions in the interests of communist China.
And some believe in some “hellish” sanctions under the Graham law, in tariffs on imports from China because it buys Russian oil… One cannot, as an adult, believe in fairy tales. It distracts from reality.
▶ Meanwhile, Putin’s emissary Dmitriev has again flown to the US. He plans to meet with Witkoff and Kushner again. Obviously, he will once again talk to them about the $12 trillion that Trump and their friends will “earn” from business projects in Russia. Just need to end the war. Naturally, end it on Russian terms. That is, with Ukraine’s capitulation. And Witkoff and Kushner are supposed to help with this. And then immediately there will be $12 trillion.
Reuters reports that “economic cooperation between Russia and the United States, as well as energy issues and the peaceful settlement of the situation in Ukraine will be on the agenda of Dmitriev’s negotiations” in New York. That is, at the forefront are precisely those $12 trillion. And “peaceful settlement” according to Putin. The issue of energy is interesting. It may include a request to lift sanctions from Russian oil companies and shadow fleet ships. But does Dmitriev understand, and do Vitkoff and Kushner understand, that according to the Graham Act, sanctions imposed on Russia cannot be lifted without Congress’s consent (this is the only real effective provision of the law)? I’m not sure they understand this. It’s least likely that Dmitriev will discuss what’s called an energy truce. Unless Putin suddenly decided that the strikes on his refineries are costing him too much.
It’s shameful, all of it. Red carpets and humiliations before dictators. Very shameful.
There are 849 days left until the end of the story called “Fear: Trump in the White House” © (the title of Bob Woodward’s book published in 2018).
Thank you to everyone who read. Take care of yourself and your loved ones. Take care of each other, help each other. Good health to everyone.
Ultimately, what happens in the world depends on us. On whether we fight against evil, whether we do Good, whether we remain mere spectators, passively waiting and believing that someone somewhere will decide something for us, or battle against evil and do everything possible for Good to prevail.
We must not allow evil to win. The victory of evil will mean the end of the world we live in. We cannot allow this. Especially now.
Ukrainian Friends, I embrace and love all of you. Take care of each other, I urge you strongly.
Ukraine is and will always be.
And evil will be defeated and punished. And it certainly will be.
