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‘Brazen Criminality’: Allegations of ‘Quid Pro Quo’ Fly After Border Czar’s Admission

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President Donald Trump’s “border czar,” Tom Homan, appeared on Fox News with Eric Adams on Friday morning in a lighthearted yet pointed exchange. As the pair and the hosts laughed, Homan made it clear that the deal struck with the New York City mayor comes with specific obligations for Adams. After Homan’s remarks aired, some critics argued that his comments suggest an explicit — and potentially unlawful — quid pro quo.

“If he doesn’t come through,” Homan chortled — but in what some viewed as a clear on-camera warning — “I’ll be back in New York City. And we won’t just be sitting on the couch. I’ll be in his office, up his butt, demanding, ‘Where the hell is the agreement we made?’”

Many across the nation were stunned this week when a senior U.S. Department of Justice official ordered the acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Danielle Sassoon, to drop all federal corruption charges against Mayor Adams. The shock continued when an eight-page letter that Sassoon — a Trump appointee — had written, was released. It explained in detail what appears to be a rock-solid case against Adams, how it would be a violation of her oath not to continue the prosecution, and that the government “does not have a valid basis to seek dismissal.” It  also exposed a possibly unlawful deal the feds made with the mayor.

READ MORE: Trump Admin Orders Immediate Mass Firing of Some Federal Workers — 200,000 Possibly at Risk

Sassoon alleged a “quid pro quo” in her letter, addressed to newly sworn-in Trump Attorney General Pam Bondi.

“Rather than be rewarded, Adams’s advocacy should be called out for what it is: an improper offer of immigration enforcement assistance in exchange for a dismissal of his case. Although Mr. Bove disclaimed any intention to exchange leniency in this case for Adams’s assistance in enforcing federal law, that is the nature of the bargain laid bare in Mr. Bove’s memo. That is especially so given Mr. Bove’s comparison to the Bout prisoner exchange, which was quite expressly a quid pro quo, but one carried out by the White House, and not the prosecutors in charge of Bout’s case.

Sassoon resigned rather than drop the charges, CNN reported, and five other top officials quickly followed her, resigning in protest.

Some have called it the “Thursday Night Massacre,” a reference to the Watergate-era when, in 1973, President Richard Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox. In what was called the “Saturday Night Massacre,” Richardson resigned rather than fire Cox. Nixon then ordered Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Cox. He also refused, and resigned.

But in this “Thursday Night Massacre,” three times as many top officials resigned, exposing the deep distaste for what some deem corruption.

READ MORE: ‘Corruption’ Claims Fly Over Musk’s Modi Meeting as Trump Shrugs: ‘I Don’t Know’

Acting deputy attorney general Emil Bove “directed prosecutors to drop the case ‘as soon as is practicable’ in a two-page memo Monday,” CNN reported. “His memo cited the fact that the prosecution ‘unduly restricted Mayor Adams’ ability to devote full attention and resources to the illegal immigration and violent crime’ – making clear the political motivations behind the decision.”

Homan’s and Adams’ appearance on Fox News’ usually upbeat “Fox & Friends” show Friday morning did not appear to help the Trump administration, the U.S. Department of Justice, Homan, or Adams.

“This is just sheer brazen criminality by DOJ,” declared former federal and state prosecutor Ron Filipkowski, editor-in-chief of MeidasTouch News. “Adams gets federal corruption charges dropped not because there isn’t overwhelming evidence, but because he agrees to help Homan round up migrants. And Homan says the charges will be refiled if Adams doesn’t ‘come through.'”

Politico’s Emily Ngo, who posted video of the exchange between Homan and Adams (below,) wrote, “Thinly veiled Homan warning to Adams.” Veteran journalist John Harwood responded, “not veiled at all.”

“Nice of Trump’s border czar to confirm on TV the quid-pro-quo that Trump’s DOJ said this week did not exist,” noted HuffPost reporter Arthur Delaney.

“This is insane,” declared journalist Séamus Malekafzali. “They’re just out in the open saying this was a quid pro quo where the Mayor of New York has to do everything Trump says on immigration or he is going to jail.”

“Nothing like a quasi-hostage video on live television,” noted politics reporter Jake Lahut, a contributor to Wired and The Columbia Journalism Review.

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: ‘Palpable Harm’: Hegseth Slammed for ‘Screwup’ of ‘Biggest Foreign Policy Issue’

 

 

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‘Lame Duck’ Trump Loses Major Battle in Indiana: ‘Not Even Close to Being Close’

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President Donald Trump’s efforts to compel Indiana lawmakers to enact a mid-decade congressional map that could have wiped out all of the Hoosier State’s Democratic seats in the U.S. House of Representatives has failed.

“Republicans hold a 40-10 advantage in the state Senate but still rejected Trump’s pressure,” The Washington Post reported. HuffPost called it a “a furious pressure campaign by Trump.”

“Indiana’s proposed congressional map goes down in flames in the state Senate, 31-19,” Votebeat managing editor Nathaniel Rakich observed. 26 votes were needed for the new maps to have been adopted.

Politico reported that the “failed vote is the culmination of a brass-knuckled four-month pressure campaign from the White House on recalcitrant Indiana Republicans that included private meetings and public shaming from Trump, multiple visits from Vice President JD Vance, whip calls from Speaker Mike Johnson and veiled threats of withheld federal funds.

RELATED: ‘Shakedown’: Outrage Over Claim of Trump Plan to Defund Indiana in Map Clash

“Not even close to being close,” noted Bloomberg Government’s Jonathan Tamari. “I certainly did not predict the Indiana state Senate as a hotbed of Trump resistance.”

“Trump’s such a lame duck that he is getting his a– kicked by the Indiana State Senate,” remarked former Obama senior advisor Dan Pfeiffer.

Journalist Todd Zwillich called it a “Wholesale rejection” of a “threat” from the conservative Heritage Action.

Aaron Fritschner, deputy chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), noted that Trump “didn’t just lose that vote, he got blown out.”

Lesson for national Republicans,” wrote Jessica Riedel of the Brookings Institution. “You don’t have to sell out every principle and publicly worship Trump. Really, you can just do things. And you should ask why it took some state legislators in Indiana to finally stand up for common sense governance.”

You do, unironically and in earnest, have to hand it to the Indiana GOP for not giving in to the threats on their lives etc.,” declared Everytown Senior Director of Communications Max Steele. “Trump is a duck getting lamer by the day. Hopefully this emboldens others to do what’s right.”

READ MORE: ‘Where Is Antifa Headquartered?’: FBI Official Struggles Defending Top Threat Label

 

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‘Shakedown’: Outrage Over Claim of Trump Plan to Defund Indiana in Map Clash

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Heritage Action and President Donald Trump are coming under fire after the conservative advocacy organization made a claim that the president threatened to defund the state of Indiana should lawmakers not pass legislation to redraw its congressional district maps.

“President Trump has made it clear to Indiana leaders: if the Indiana Senate fails to pass the map, all federal funding will be stripped from the state,” Heritage Action wrote on social media on Thursday. “Roads will not be paved. Guard bases will close. Major projects will stop. These are the stakes and every NO vote will be to blame.”

The post ended with, “#PassTheMap.”

While President Trump has publicly threatened to support primary challengers against lawmakers who oppose his redistricting push, NCRM has not found any news reports confirming Heritage Action’s assertion. It is possible the group is relying on information that has not been reported or made public.

READ MORE: ‘Where Is Antifa Headquartered?’: FBI Official Struggles Defending Top Threat Label

Should Indiana pass legislation to redistrict, it reportedly could pick up only two more GOP-held seats.

Critics blasted Heritage Action, a sister group to the Heritage Foundation, for appearing to support Trump’s alleged threat, and blasted the president as well.

“The president and one of the most influential conservative groups in the country are threatening to deprive all Indiana residents of paved roads, guard bases, and major projects if they don’t pass an extremely gerrymandered map to deprive voters of choice,” noted Isaac Saul, founder of Tangle News. “Awesome stuff.”

“Heritage sure loves authoritarianism,” remarked Media Matters researcher Zachary Pleat.

Calling it “nonsense,” Joel Griffith, a senior fellow at the conservative group Advancing American Freedom wrote: “Appalling to see @Heritage_Action endorse this unconstitutional threat by @realDonaldTrump. The President does not have power to coerce state legislators to redraw congressional maps.”

Others appeared to aim their ire directly at the president.

READ MORE: ‘Shaky’ House GOP Leadership ‘Losing Control’: Report

“This is the behavior of a madman,” declared Tim Carney, a senior fellow at the conservative American Enterprise Institute.

“This isn’t conservative. This is fascist,” commented former Republican U.S. Congressman Joe Walsh.

Mother Jones’ D.C. bureau chief David Corn declared the move “dictatorial.”

“This does not sound like an appropriate or legal use of federal authority or presidential discretion,” observed Bloomberg columnist Matthew Yglesias.

“Nothing about this shakedown is conservative,” noted CNN’s Jake Tapper.

Jacob Stewart, the deputy opinion editor for the IndyStar called the move “illegal.”

Jonah Goldberg, editor-in-chief of the conservative online magazine The Dispatch, wrote: “I remember when Heritage cared about federalism, the rule of law, separation of powers, and all that stuff. Now it’s all ‘We love Trump’s musk, do what he says (or what Tucker says).'”

“This is called extortion,” wrote former White House correspondent Sam Youngman, also deeming it “illegal.”

“If this comes to pass,” wrote IndyStar columnist James Briggs, “then the story will be that Trump is punishing Indiana citizens for reasons that have nothing to do with them and so-called Indianans will see the punitive measures for what they are.”

READ MORE: ‘You’re a Loser Dude’: Carville Scorches Trump as ‘Done’

 

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‘Where Is Antifa Headquartered?’: FBI Official Struggles Defending Top Threat Label

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A top FBI official struggled to explain his claim that Antifa is the “most immediate violent threat” America is facing, as he was challenged to provide details.

Former Trump FBI Director Christopher Wray stated in 2020 congressional testimony that Antifa is “not a group or an organization. It’s a movement or an ideology.” The BBC has explained that Antifa is “a loosely organized, leftist movement that opposes far-right, racist and fascist groups.”

“Antifa is short for anti-fascist,” BBC added. “It is a loose, leaderless affiliation of mostly far-left activists.”

House Homeland Security Committee Ranking Member Bennie Thompson on Thursday asked Michael Glasheen, FBI National Security Operations Director, to describe “organizations that pose, on the domestic side,” the number one and number two threats to the homeland.

READ MORE: ‘Shaky’ House GOP Leadership ‘Losing Control’: Report

Glasheen asked for clarification.

“Any domestic terrorist organizations that poses a threat to the homeland as we speak,” Thompson replied.

Pointing to President Trump’s designation of Antifa as a domestic terrorist organization, Glasheen said, “That’s our primary concern right now.”

He described Antifa as “the most immediate violent threat that we’re facing on the domestic side.”

“So, where is the Antifa headquartered?” Thompson pressed.

After a pause, Glasheen said: “What we’re doing right now —” before Thompson cut him off.

“Where, in the United States, does Antifa exist?” he asked. “If it’s a terrorist organization — and you’ve identified it as number one.”

“We are building out the infrastructure right now,” Glasheen responded.

READ MORE: ‘You’re a Loser Dude’: Carville Scorches Trump as ‘Done’

“So what does that mean?” Thompson pressed. “Where do they exist? How many members do they have in the United States as of right now?”

“Well, that’s very fluid,” Glasheen said, describing it as “ongoing,” before comparing the situation to Al Qaeda and ISIS.

“I asked one question, sir,” Thompson replied. “I just want you to tell us. If you said Antifa is the number one domestic terrorist organization, operating in the United States, I just need to know where they are, how many people. I don’t want a name. I don’t want anything like that. Just, how many people have you identified with the FBI, that Antifa is made of?”

“Well, the investigations are active,” Glasheen replied.

“Sir, you wouldn’t come to this committee and say something you can’t prove. I know. I knew you wouldn’t do that. But you did.”

READ MORE: ‘His Heart Just Ain’t in It’: Report Reveals Trump’s ‘Achilles Heel’

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