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Senate Dems Investigating SCOTUS Requested Long List of Documents From Harlan Crow – He Has Hours to Comply

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Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee investigating the U.S. Supreme Court’s ethics crisis earlier this month requested an extensive list of documents from billionaire real estate magnate, Republican mega donor, and activist Harlan Crow. He has just hours left to meet the deadline.

According to the letter – not a subpoena – signed by the 11 Democratic Senators including Chairman Dick Durbin, the committee appears to be working off reporting from ProPublica, which published several articles recently exposing, among other concerns, decades-worth of annual or nearly annual luxury all-expenses paid vacations gifted to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, and at times his wife Ginni. Legal experts say Justice Thomas failed to comply with federal law by not disclosing certain portions of those gifts, like travel aboard private planes and yachts – a required category. There’s also Crow’s purchase of Thomas’ mother’s house, where she lives now rent-free, and payments (including a half-million dollar startup seed fund) to or for Ginni Thomas. Then there are the tuition payments for the Thomas’ legal ward, their grandnephew.

“Recent investigative reporting has identified multiple instances in which you or entities you own or control have made payments, purchased real estate, or provided gifts, travel, or other items of value to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and members of his family,” the May 8 letter to Crow from the Judiciary Committee begins. “Many of these gifts, transactions, and items of value had not been previously disclosed by Justice Thomas, in apparent contravention of the Supreme Court’s April 25, 2023 ‘Statement on Ethics Principles and Practices’ which claimed that Justices since 1991 ‘have followed’ the financial disclosure requirements provided in the Judicial Conference Regulations, and other applicable obligations. You have issued several public statements acknowledging these items of value that you have given to Justice Thomas and his family members.”

RELATED: ‘Weren’t in a Fraternity Together’: Harlan Crow’s Relationship With Clarence Thomas Based on ‘Cozying Up’ Says Fallon

Indeed, in an interview with The Atlantic published Monday, Crow defiantly insisted he saw nothing wrong with lavishing a sitting U.S. Supreme Court justice with gifts, a justice who can and, some say, has issued rulings favorable to his interests.

According to a short biography at the George W. Bush Presidential Center where he sits on the board of directors, Crow’s “company owns and manages real estate investments throughout the United States and overseas.  Mr. Crow serves on the boards of the American Enterprise Institute, Thomas Jefferson Foundation, Supreme Court Historical Society, and is a member of the American Antiquarian Society and The Philosophical Society of Texas.”

The nonpartisan 501(c)3 watchdog group Accountable.US alleges: “Harlan Crow Is A Longtime Member Of AEI’s Board Of Trustees, And Has Served While The Group Promoted Numerous Supreme Court Amicus Briefs During Thomas’ Tenure.”

It also alleges, “As Recently As 2022, AEI Declared It Had Initiated A ‘Renewed Emphasis On… The Supreme Court’ And The Organization Has Highlighted Their ‘Impact’ On Court Decisions Multiple Times.”

RELATED: ‘Could Shoot Somebody on Fifth Avenue’: Clarence Thomas’ Corruption Is Indefensible. Here’s Who’s Defending Him.

The Senate Judiciary letter asks Crow for items from five different categories:

“An itemized list of all gifts, payments, and items of value exceeding $415 given by you, or by entities you own or control or for which you have served as a partner, director, or officer, to any Justice of the Supreme Court or a member of the Justice’s family, including the name of the Justice, the approximate dollar amount of each item, and the date it was extended.”

“An itemized list of all real estate transactions in which you, or any entity you own or control or for which you have served as a partner, director, or officer, conducted with a Justice of the Supreme Court or a member of the Justice’s family, including the name of the Justice, the date of the transaction, the valuations of the properties, the dollar amount conveyed in the transaction, any occupancy agreements reached regarding the real estate, and the dollar value of any improvements made or taxes paid on the properties during the course of any occupancy agreement.”

“An itemized list of all transportation or lodging provided by you, or any entity you own or control or for which you have served as a partner, director, or officer, to a Justice of the Supreme Court or a member of the Justice’s family, including the name of the Justice, the date the transportation was provided, the mode of transportation provided, the itinerary traveled, any lodging provided, and the approximate dollar value of the transportation or lodging.”

RELATED: Clarence Thomas in 2001: Being a Supreme Court Justice Is ‘Not Worth Doing for What They Pay’

“An itemized list of the occasions on which any property or facility owned by any entity you own or control or for which you have served as a partner, director, or officer, provided lodging to a Justice of the Supreme Court or a member of the Justice’s family, including the name of the relevant Justice, the location of the lodging, the date the lodging was provided, and the approximate dollar value of the lodging.”

“An itemized list of all occasions when entrance to any private, members-only club was provided by you, or entities you own or control or for which you have served as a partner, director, or officer, to any Justice of the Supreme Court or a member of the Justice’s family, including the name of the Justice, the dates of those visits, and the full names of any other guests who were also provided entrance by you, or entities you own or control or for which you have served as a partner, director, or officer.”

That letter gives a deadline of today.

Last month Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden also requested documents from Crow. He refused to comply. Last week in an extensive letter Wyden replied, renewing his committee’s request.

It does not appear Crow has complied with either committee’s requests as of this writing.

 

 

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‘Antisemitism Is Wrong, But’: Marjorie Taylor Greene Pilloried for Promoting Antisemitic Claim

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May 1, 2024

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U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) was strongly criticized Wednesday after promoting a historically and biblically false, antisemitic claim while declaring antisemitism is wrong.

As the House voted on an antisemitism bill that would require the U.S. Dept. of Education to utilize a certain definition of antisemitism when enforcing anti-discrimination laws, the far-right Christian nationalist congresswoman made her false claims on social media.

“Antisemitism is wrong, but I will not be voting for the Antisemitism Awareness Act of 2023 (H.R. 6090) today that could convict Christians of antisemitism for believing the Gospel that says Jesus was handed over to Herod to be crucified by the Jews,” Greene tweeted.

The definition of antisemitism the House bill wants to codify was created by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.

Congresswoman Greene highlighted this specific text which she said she opposes: “Using the symbols and images associated with classic antisemitism (e.g., claims of Jews killing Jesus or blood libel) to characterize Israel or Israelis.”

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What Greene is promoting is called “Jewish deicide,” the false and antisemitic claim that Jews killed Jesus Christ. Some who adhere to that false belief also believe all Jews throughout time, including in the present day, are responsible for Christ’s crucification.

Greene has a history of promoting antisemitism, including comparing mask mandates during the coronavirus pandemic to “gas chambers in Nazi Germany.”

Political commentator John Fugelsang set the record straight:

“If only you could read,” lamented Rabbi Dr. Mark Goldfeder, Esq., CEO and Director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center. The Antisemitism Awareness Act “could not convict anyone for believing anything, even this historical and biblical inaccuracy. It only comes into play if there is unlawful discrimination based on this belief that targets a Jewish person. Do you understand that distinction @RepMTG ?”

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“Not surprising,” declared Jacob N. Kornbluh, the senior political reporter at The Forward, formerly the Jewish Daily Forward. “Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has been accused in the past of making antisemitic remarks — including her suggestion that a Jewish-funded space laser had sparked wildfires in California in 2018, voted against the GOP-led Antisemitism Awareness Act.”

Jewish Telegraphic Agency Washington Bureau Chief Ron Kampeas, an award-winning journalist, took a deeper dive into Greene’s remarks.

“Ok leave aside the snark. The obvious antisemitism is in saying ‘the Jews’ crucified Jesus when even according to the text she believes in it was a few leaders in a subset of a contemporary Jewish community. It is collective blame, the most obvious of bigotries.”

“The text she presumably predicates her case on, the New Testament,” he notes, “was when it was collated a political document at a time when Christians and Jews were competing for adherents and when it would have been plainly dangerous to blame Rome for the murder of God.”

“Yes,” Kampeas continues, “that take is obviously one that a fundamentalist would not embrace, but it is the objective and historical take, and *should* be available to Jews (and others!) as a means of explaining why Christian antisemitism exists, and why it is harmful.”

CNN’s Edward-Isaac Dovere also slammed Greene, saying she “is standing up for continuing to talk about Jews being responsible for the killing of Jesus. (John & Matthew refer to some Jews handing over Jesus to Pilate,not Herod. But also: many, including Pope Benedict, have called blaming Jews a misinterpretation)”

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Potential Trump VP Pick Says ‘If You’re a Billionaire’ You Should Vote for Trump

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May 1, 2024

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One of the possible picks to be Donald Trump’s vice presidential running mate, seen as “rapidly ascending” the list, is urging billionaires to vote for the ex-president.

North Dakota Republican Governor Doug Burgum “is quickly moving up former President Trump’s list of possible vice presidential picks because Trump’s team believes he would be a safe choice who could attract moderate voters,” Axios reported on Sunday. “Burgum is on a long list of VP contenders, but Trump’s rising interest in the North Dakota governor has been clear in recent weeks — and reveals his latest thinking about how he thinks his running mate could help him with undecided voters.”

Praising Governor Burgum, the National Review’s Michael Brendan Dougherty on Monday wrote he was “the only candidate in 2024 to easily exceed expectations in the debates.”

“He is a well-liked governor from a small state. He projects seriousness and sobriety, two qualities Pence also had that were important to balance the 2016 Republican ticket. Burgum is also good at championing Republican policy, including our desperately needed policies of energy abundance and supply-side reform. He is also the right age — 67 — with no signs of slowing down. Burgum needs to survive the millions poured into opposition research, but, if he does, I think he would bring credit and balance to the Republican ticket.”

READ MORE: ‘Next Week, Absolutely’: Marjorie Taylor Greene Says She Will Move to Oust Speaker Johnson

On Tuesday, Gov. Burgum, appearing on Fox News, told Laura Ingraham, “when you see someone who cares this deeply about this country, what he’s going through and what the Democrats and the liberal media is putting him through, and how he gets up and fights for every day people in America every day, and then his policies are all in the right direction.”

“If you’re a billionaire and you care about your shareholders, you care about your family and your grandkids, you should be voting for someone that’s going to bring prosperity to America and peace to the world, that’s what President Trump is going to do, that’s what he did for us when he was president,” Burgum claimed.

The Hill adds, “Ingraham suggested a lot of billionaires are still planning to support President Biden, especially those that are the ‘Wall Street types.’”

Last year, asked if he would ever do business with Trump, Bergum told NBC News, “I don’t think so,” and added, “I just think that it’s important that you’re judged by the company you keep.”

Some reports call Bergum a billionaire, while Forbes last year reported it “estimates Burgum’s net worth to be at least $100 million.”

Watch the video below or at this link.

READ MORE: Trump Would Not Oppose State Pregnancy Surveillance or Abortion Prosecution

 

 

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‘Next Week, Absolutely’: Marjorie Taylor Greene Says She Will Move to Oust Speaker Johnson

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12 hours ago

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May 1, 2024

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U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), standing in front of posters showing Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson casually embracing Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and behind a podium with a sign calling Johnson the “Uniparty Leader,” announced she will call up her “motion to vacate,” to try to oust Johnson “next week, absolutely.” She made her announcement despite public and private remarks and signals from top Republicans opposing the move, and despite it having little to no chance of passing.

Speaking Wednesday morning at a press event, Greene lashed out at the Republican House Speaker and Democratic Minority Leader after  Jeffries announced Democrats will vote to keep Johnson as Speaker.

“Now we have Hakeem Jeffries and the Democrats coming out, embracing Mike Johnson with a warm hug and a big wet sloppy kiss.”

She later claimed taxes will go up if Democrats take the House in the November election because Johnson and Jeffries are “holding hands together.”

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Backing herself into a corner, the far-right Georgia MAGA Republican has positioned herself as the outraged opposition to her own party, with a small following – just two other House Republicans have announced they will support her move to oust Johnson.

Early into her remarks Greene said she had the right to try to oust Johnson because “I elected him,” also adding that she had voted for Johnson for Speaker.

Greene then unleashed a lengthy list of grievances against Johnson.

“Americans all together gave Republicans the House they gave us the House in 2022,” she said, according to a rush transcript. “You want to know why? Because they were fed up with the Democratic agenda that is destroying this country, wide open borders. An economy that’s crashing, freedoms being stolen, COVID shutdowns, all the horrors that happened when Joe Biden took the White House and Democrats took full control.”

The COVID shutdowns happened during Donald Trump’s presidency and were ordered by governors of both parties.

“He passed three continuing resolutions, and then he finally passed a two part omnibus that fully funded Joe Biden’s agenda and the Democrat agenda, funding the Department of Justice,” she said, adding that funding DOJ is effectively putting “President Trump in jail for the rest of his life, which is a death sentence.”

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“Mike Johnson fully funded the FBI which raided Mar-a-Lago and gave them a brand new building as a gift. Pro-life Mike Johnson funded full term abortion clinics, funded the trans agenda on children that 70% of Americans are completely against on both sides of the aisle. And he fully funded Joe Biden’s open border policies, the number one issue in America.”

“Mike Johnson fully joined the disgusting business model of Washington, D.C. to fund forever wars. Yeah, that’s what this is. The uniparty is Make Ukraine Great Again. The uniparty is all about funding every single foreign war. They think this is the business model that needs to be done.”

She went on to angrily complain about funding “the murder and killing in foreign countries.”

“Our economy should not be built on the blood of wars in foreign countries. That’s not what our economy should be built on. That’s not how you grow jobs in America. That is that is horrific. It is evil it needs needs to end but that’s what the uniparty does. And that’s what they continue. Mike Johnson fully embraced it. And he funded $61 billion to Ukraine, funded war in Israel, while he funded Hamas and Gaza. How do you support Israel when you’re funding Hamas? And give more money away while our border stays open? And today 300 Americans will die from fentanyl tomorrow 300 Americans will die from fentanyl and the next day 300 more Americans will die from fentanyl poisoning because there’s a war on America. Led by the cartels in Mexico and nobody in Washington, D.C. gives a damn and has enough courage to face it.”

Watch clips of Greene above and below or at this link.

 

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