DeSantis addresses the possible Trump indictment
Many of those on the right who seem to detest DeSantis have been extremely critical of the fact that he didn’t address the iffy news of a possible Trump indictment immediately. I saw this phenomenon on various websites that seem to draw a lot of commenters of that ilk. Whether they be real or leftist trolls trying to stir up trouble on the right I don’t know, but my guess is that at least some of them are bona fide.
Anyway, DeSantis has spoken up:
“If you have a prosecutor who is ignoring crimes happening every single day in his jurisdiction, and he chooses to go back many, many years ago to try to use something about porn star hush money payments, you know, that’s an example of pursuing a political agenda and weaponizing the office. And I think that that’s fundamentally wrong.”
DeSantis pointed out that the problem isn’t just Bragg; all Soros-funded district attorneys are following the playbook. “They ignore crime and they empower criminals, and that hurts people, hurts a lot of people every single day,” DeSantis said before calling these district attorneys “a menace to society.”
Indeed.
There’s a lot to like about DeSantis, and the fact that he waited a bit before giving a statement on this matter is one of those things to like. I used to read the Conservative Treehouse occasionally, until he started in on his anti-DeSantis ranting. Perhaps I should be grateful, because it finally opened my eyes to the fact that this guy Sundance is a nutter.
Anyway, I believe MOST of the anti-DeSantis talk is coming from the OnlyTrump crowd, and I fear that they will lose the ’24 election for the Republican nominee, by sitting out the general should it be someone other than Trump – and I think they’ll do so with his blessing and encouragement, which gives me no pleasure to say.
I’ve said it elsewhere (LI & PLB) that I voted for Trump in ’16 & ’20, and should he win the nomination I’ll vote for him again. But, in the ’24 primaries I will vote for DeSantis should he run. And if Trump can put his bruised ego aside for the good of the nation, and gather in his followers to do the same, then I believe the Republican candidate will win the general, and hopefully then America can be saved.
I’m on Twitter 25/7, why isn’t DeSantis providing instant pushback? It’s been another 20 minutes! It’s disqualifying!
Honestly, why would any conservative detest DeSantis? That he’s in Trumps way? Trump is in Trumps way He’s his own worst enemy.
its a free country, well sort of, although the prog das and majors and governors are making it less all the time, one could quibble, and he hasnt mentioned the plantados in dc, who largely come from florida, as he was slow with the maralago raid,
but corrupt das in gotham, or san angeles south (san angeles north was able to get away from the cursed boudin) don’t care, their kink is the destruction of the various metropoles,
miguel cervantes:
DeSantis was not slow with the Mar Al Lago raid. That’s one of those things those who are against him keep saying, but it’s not true. I wrote about that several times (can’t find it at the moment; it may have been in comments). DeSantis spoke up right away; see this.
I am very sick of the lies told by the right as well as those told by the left. This isn’t meant to be an attack on you personally or to pick on you for mentioning it; my guess is that you’re not aware that DeSantis spoke out quite early, or perhaps you’re just referencing Trump’s critics who say he didn’t. But now you know.
FWIW I think DeSantis’ comment is just about letter-perfect. The Soros DAs are a plague on the nation. I also agree with “Telemachus” about the least-bad choices in the larger battle ahead.
I could quibble, as I said, how much dissent is allowable with a corrupt state corporate alliance, he has done great things where he has influence, it’s easier in a red state, to carry out needed reforms, whereas the local fishwraps just cackle in coherently, the local tv stations a little less,
I keep reminding myself I shouldn’t be surprised by current events since ~ Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.
~ John Adams
This is what worries me (reposted from an earlier post):
What are the odds that the chaos, mayhem and violence in S. Florida are orchestrated by the usual suspects so as to demonstrate to Gov. DeSantis—and to the nation—that he has LOST CONTROL OF THE STREETS, the goal being, of course, to take DeSantis DOWN.
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/miami-beach-declares-state-emergency-amid-spring-break-chaos
Out-of-control partiers?… Or just another “mission” for those Democratic Party shock troops?
(And what happens when all those POLEECE start responding?…. St. George Floyd by the dozens?)
The Democrats will surely get a kick out of that!…as they play it for all it’s worth…like they did with Trump…
Your selective editing leaves out the part where he made an unforced foul, by including this:
“I don’t know what goes into paying hush money to a porn star to secure silence over some type of alleged affair…”
It was completely unnecessary, and diminishes him, and his message.
If you wish to listen to it in in its entirety:
https://twitter.com/i/status/1637833627856932865
Only Trump?
A circular firing squad.
SomeDunce at ConservateNutHouse indeed.
It ain’t 2016 or 2020. And regarding Ron’s comments on Don’s behavior, they are not vut from the same cloth.
Listening to Frei/Barnes this minute–they completely agree that De Santis fell into the Deep State trap today and has committed political suicide.
DS wants him to run, beat Trump, and then he will NEVER BE PRESIDENT because he’s alienated Trump’s die hard voters.
https://rumble.com/v2dyw44-ep.-152-trump-madness-reparations-paltrow-ski-hit-and-run-and-more-viva-and.html?mref=71v3&mc=bp3oa
You know, dont put yourself needing to pay hush money to anyone and you wont have to rely on your competent rival to speak on your behalf. Try that next time.
Admiral Akbar (aka Barnes?)
https://m.youtube.com/shorts/Qw3Jd58H3tQ
And the “walls are closing in” just as they were for President Trump.
no barry, miami beach is another annoying blue dot in dade county, gelber got the steak knife when he lost out on a congressional seat, lucky beach goers,
i
no that’s jumping to conclusions and having shin splits,
Sorry to hear, Lee, that Frei/Barnes are off the edge on this.
As to the swipe at Trump, it’s pretty mild, considering what Trump has been lobbing at DeSantis for a while now, without provocation other than DeSantis being an effective and popular governor. Note that DeSantis did say “alleged affair,” since Trump has consistently denied the allegation.
You know, dont put yourself needing to pay hush money to anyone and you wont have to rely on your competent rival to speak on your behalf. Try that next time.
Just being a billionaire in the entertainment industry is enough to “put yourself needing to pay hush money.” For all we know Stormy was just making a frivolous charge and Trump’s lawyers paid her off because it was cheaper than trying to fight it.
The Progressive Democrats chuckle in satisfaction to see conservatives bicker about Trump vs DeSantis, getting tied into furious rhetorical knots over things that are of virtually no consequence. Nothing could be better than the prospect of fighting an already-exhausted opponent when the games really commence.
Is there any doubt that whomever the Republican candidate is, they will get the conservative vote over the Democrat candidate? Case Closed. Keep the rhetorical powder in the horn for things that are worth shooting at, in the course of time. There is no shortage of high-value targets.
Actually, yes, both celebrities and corporations settle cases and pay damages because it’s easier and less expensive to do that than go to court, even if they weren’t guilty of the alleged wrong behavior. Leftists have been doing this kind of corporate extortion for decades.
https://twitter.com/GrabienMedia/status/1637974909472342016?cxt=HHwWgIDQ4Y7goLstAAAA
Miguel cervantes, the House Republicans are asking the same questions about this New York investigation. Are federal resources and agents involved?
I started to listen the Frei today and dropped off when he started touting the authenticity of Seymour Hersh article on Nord Stream pipeline. So disappointing. Listening to Nate now.
Lee – Bragg is grossly abusing his power. But Trump absolutely handed Alvin Bragg that power to abuse by putting himself in a compromising position with a porn star. I’m sorry, that has to be pointed out, and DeSantis was right to do so.
Any dig at Trump attributed to DeSantis, “I don’t know what goes into paying hush money…”, is mild compared to the childish ranting and name calling Trump has lobbed in DeSantis’ direction. And I say that as someone who voted for Trump twice.
Jimmy and Kate – People/companies pay nuisance settlements when they are sued, not when they are blackmailed. Stormy Daniels (and Karen McDougal) weren’t threatening to sue Trump, they were threatening to go public about alleged affair.
Would Mike Pence, Ron DeSantis, Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney, and the like feel the need to pay a $130k settlement to a random porn star who showed up and threatened to allege an affair? I daresay no.
While I think it’s too soon to write the political obituary for DeSantis, he didn’t do himself any favors with his statement today. Vivek Ramaswamy’s statement was much better. There was simply no reason for DeSantis to choose this time to take a swipe at Trump. Obviously Trump has said far worse things about DeSantis and he’s entitled to defend himself, but the snide remark about paying off porn stars isn’t going to help him politically.
DeSantis is in a tough position in trying to find a political path that will appeal to populists without alienating Trump supporters. His very carefully worded statement on Ukraine was not a bad attempt but in the end will not convince many people. People who want to continue to support Ukraine until Russia is defeated were not happy with him but neither were those who want the fighting to end now, even if it means Ukraine giving up some territory.
It seems to me this election is going to boil down to East Palestine vs. Silicon Valley and I at this point I don’t see DeSantis being a more effective advocate for East Palestine than Trump.
I care less about how long it takes a public figure to say the right thing, than I do that they say the right thing on an issue. When a politician does say the right thing, I’ve learned to watch and see if their actions are consistent with what they’ve said.
I find DeSantis’ words to be thoughtful and considered. So far I find his actions to be consistent with his words.
Gregory Harper; Lee:
Actually, I think DeSantis has shown a remarkable degree of restraint and forbearance in not taking much worse “swipes” at Trump, who is a dirty fighter. I’m not sure whether you’re aware of the sort of things Trump has thrown at DeSantis, but it includes this, according to Ace:
And Lee – the people who would take offense at what DeSantis said today were never ever going to vote for him. Frei and Barnes are pretty good on legal stuff. But they are way off the deep end on a lot of other things.
Leland:
When Frei and Barnes stray from legal stuff, at least half the time they are way way off-base. That’s been particularly true for the last year or so, although Barnes has been that way longer.
Jimmy: ” For all we know Stormy was just making a frivolous charge and Trump’s lawyers paid her off because it was cheaper than trying to fight it.”
Please , just stop. You cant be that self deluded.
Gregory Harper:
I find it passing strange that Silicon Valley, East Palestine, and Ukraine all get wrapped around the same axle of populism.
“But Trump absolutely handed Alvin Bragg that power to abuse by putting himself in a compromising position with a porn star.”
The idea that Republicans/conservatives should be perfect is one of the worst reflexive habits people on the Right need to unlearn. “Gee, if Trump just didn’t give them this opportunity, he’d have nothing to worry about!” The fact is that every other investigator, including the formerly sainted Mueller, looked at this situation and concluded there was nothing to it.
And DeSantis is in a tough spot in that most of the negativity about him has little to do with him. The Trump-haters almost-teenage-girls-screaming-about-The-Beatles fawning over DeSantis is really hard to take. And when you combine everything Trump actually did as President with everything he’s actually endured, there’s more than the usual non-rational element to why many are devoted to him.
Mike
Bauxite:
No, not exactly. Stormy Daniels wasn’t threatening to go public about the alleged affair. She had already gone public or at least semi-public, in that she had given an interview in 2011 to In Touch magazine alleging the affair. They never published it, but they still had it (they published it in 2018). The money was paid to her about month before the 2016 election; she was probably threatening an “October surprise.” Trump may not have even known about the money payments – at least, that’s what (perjurer) Michael Cohen originally said. Trump would have understandably wanted her to shut up prior to the election, because even false rumors get great traction under those circumstances. $130K is nothing to him in terms of the amount. He has always denied the affair (which she alleges was a one-night stand, by the way).
Neo: I’m well aware of what Trump has said about DeSantis and what he said about Ted Cruz and all those who have opposed him. As you say he is a dirty fighter and this hasn’t changed. I also said that DeSantis is certainly entitled to defend himself and I agree he has shown remarkable restraint. But I still think it was a mistake politically to choose this time to take a swipe at Trump when the focus should have been squarely on the outrageous decision (if that’s what happens) to use the justice system to attack a political opponent.
I like DeSantis and would vote for him but he is taking some bad advice. Both this statement and his statement on Ukraine sounded very scripted. DeSantis clearly wants to remind people that he doesn’t come with the same amount of baggage that Trump carries. That’s fine but this was the wrong time to make that point.
Gregory Harper:
If “scripted” means “thoughtful,” I’m all for it.
I think very very few people agree with you who aren’t already anti-DeSantis. I think most people who vote GOP see DeSantis as a model of forbearance at this point re Trump.
Bunge:
“The idea that Republicans/conservatives should be perfect is one of the worst reflexive habits people on the Right need to unlearn.”
Another strawman.
Adults know what “perfect” means. People aren’t perfect. Trump has a lot of baggage, and yet 80 million people voted for him. So it isn’t a question of expecting perfection, and never has been.
Please , just stop. You cant be that self deluded.
Hey, if you have proof that the one-night stand actually happened I’d be happy to see it. I’m not saying it did or did not happen, which is the meaning of “For all we know….” It may have happened, or it may have been a shake-down. We don’t know.
I also don’t believe Christine Blasey Ford’s allegations against Kavanaugh, perhaps you do. “Believe the women.”
Neo:
Actually by “scripted” I did not mean “thoughtful”. I meant something that is said that does not necessarily express the thoughts of the speaker, but is said to have a certain desired political effect. On Ukraine it seemed to me that DeSantis was trying very carefully to thread the needle between those who want to stop support to Ukraine right now and those that want to support Ukraine for “as long as it takes”. It’s a tough position to be in. I think he handled it fairly well but I still don’t really know what he would do if he were President.
On his statement on the potential Trump arrest, I think he thought (or his advisors thought) that this would be a good time to not so subtly remind people that Trump has had an unsavory personal life. That’s fair game but it took the emphasis off the much larger and more important point. I think it was a mistake.
I don’t know how many people agree with me who aren’t already anti-DeSantis. I’m not anti-DeSantis and I agree with me as do my wife and daughter. So that’s three. There may be more but I don’t get out much so who knows?
As for DeSantis being a model of forbearance compared with Trump, I completely agree. Although I’m not sure where forbearance lands on the list of qualities GOP voters are looking for.
Jimmy: “I also don’t believe Christine Blasey Ford’s allegations against Kavanaugh, perhaps you do. “Believe the women.”.
Kavanaugh doesn’t have quite the same reputation though does he?
Anyway, What good does that do you to already pre-imagine what I presume about some other case? If I believe X I must also necessarily believe Y?
I will vote for any Republican over any Democrat in 2024, regardless of what they say about each other.
Ask me about Republican primaries when we get to August 2024.
A lot can happen in a year and a half.
Gregory Harper,
I agree with you.
Fl voter here. Trump threw DeSantis a lifeline when he was losing big agaisnt Putnam. I voted for DeSantis twice. Found Trump’s verbal hits against DeSantis bewildering and distasteful.
I would have voted for DeSantis if he became the candidate. That was unquestionable till today.
DeSantis just lost my vote in 2024. I haven’t missed voting in a primary or general election yet. But I am disgusted at DeSantis. Repulsed by what he failed to do for two days and worse, by what he did today.
I will never vote for DeSantis in the primary or for president.
Trump’s comments about Desantis were crass. DeSantis comment today makes him a backstabber and a traitor.
CarlosMartillo:
Sure thing, enable Biden’s election because DeSantis says something incredibly mild about Trump which isn’t to your liking.
That makes zero sense. Negative numbers sense.
Meanwhile, Trump has been saying things about DeSantis – which aren’t even true, unlike what DeSantis said – that are so much worse than anything DeSantis said about Trump. And yet you call DeSantis the backstabber.
It is Trump who has been regularly and viciously stabbing DeSantis in the back, simply because he thinks DeSantis is his strongest rival.
“Beatles fawning over DeSantis”
Put down the bong, bung.
DeSantis is right about Trump. The man is his own worst enemy. Even giving Trump a very generous benefit of the doubt about the truth of the Daniels and McDougal allegations, he was undisputedly connected with those women. This was not a Kavanaugh/Blasey Ford scenario where there was no evidence that the two had ever met. Trump’s relationships with McDougal and Daniels, combined with his undisputed history of marital infidelity, make their allegations plausible. That is absolutely a weakness in a political candidate and pointing that out is absolutely fair game.
If you want to run for political office, representing the party most associated with conservative social values, in an environment in which you know that Democrats are going to throw every possible accusation your way, maybe don’t hang out with porn stars!
If you are a voter of the party most associated with conservative social values and you know that Democrats are going to tar your candidate with every conceivable accusation, maybe don’t pick the candidate with a history that makes those accusations more believable to uncommitted voters!
And I just don’t get the folks who say they can’t vote for DeSantis now because he (rather mildly) criticized Trump. Trump is already deep into the gutter with his attacks on DeSantis, getting deeper by the day, and DeSantis isn’t even officially in the race yet. Seriously, do you really want better government, or is this just a cult of personality? A right-of-center candidate can win. A Trumpian cult of personality cannot. Trump is the woke Democrats best friend right now.
“Would Mike Pence, Ron DeSantis, Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney, and the like feel the need to pay a $130k settlement to a random porn star who showed up and threatened to allege an affair? I daresay no.”
They don’t need to. The taxpayer funded slushfund Congress has, pays for their settlements. Keep voting in the corrupt.
https://www.realclearpolicy.com/articles/2021/03/24/182_million_congressional_slush_fund_for_metoo_claims_769046.html#!
https://redstate.com/bonchie/2023/03/21/trump-keeps-his-eye-on-the-ball-rants-about-ron-desantis-by-insinuating-hes-gay-n719372
wendybar – You need to read your own article. I’m not defending that fund at all, but it is for complaints of workplace harassment in Congress. It just wouldn’t apply to extra-marital affairs unless those affairs (or trysts or whatever we’re rationalizing them as these days) occur with Congressional employees and give rise to a harassment claim from the Congressional employee.
And my point still stands – accusations of porn star flings stick to Trump in a way that they just wouldn’t stick to Romney, Ryan, Pence, or most any other serious Republican politician.
Good grief people i value thd contributions of both, yes trumps proxies against desantis are stupid we have seen how the press doesnt have to be bribed to cover up real crimes (its in their nature) the looting of the ys like a chop shop is one of those
John ensign that upstanding mormon put his mistresses family on staff scarborough might have killed some on his staff (the corrupt coroner covered for him)
The Congressional slush fund is a disgrace. But could any of the people you cite, wendybar, casually throw $130,000 from personal funds at someone to avoid embarrassment over allegedly false allegations? For Trump, this was small change he didn’t miss and may not have even known about.
Bauxite, Bonchie at Red State may have a point. How seriously worried is Trump about indictment, if his major concern seems to be attacks on DeSantis, who isn’t even an announced candidate? The argument about whether DeSantis would have been nominated in 2018 without Trump is moot. He was nominated, he won, and he’s been the most effective Republican governor of a major state for four years. Trump’s diatribes are attempts to deny those successes and to tarnish an effective executive from his own party. Some team leader.
I want to also push back on wendybar’s suggestion that criticizing Trump is the same thing as defending the Congressional slush fund. That’s nuts! You don’t have to defend Trump’s every quirk in order to oppose corruption. As a matter of fact, dragging around Trump’s prodigious baggage makes it much harder to do away with swampy corruption.
If you make it out as a black and white choice between Trump and the swamp, the swamp is going to win.
miguel cervantes – No one is suggesting that we nominate Ensign or Scarborough for president.
The point is they are covering up treasonous activity by this crew with this illegal maneuver and those who sit in judgement most aggressively likd scarborough have a surplus of twine comprende
Tip to the Concerned Conservative™ don’t remind us what an absolute disaster Mittens, The Whiter Than Snow UltraPure Seriously Conservative, Romney has proved to be. Yes, Mittens has no moral failings except being a closeted Democrat.
John ensign that upstanding mormon put his mistresses family on staff scarborough might have killed some on his staff (the corrupt coroner covered for him)
==
She was on the Scarborough staff assigned to the satellite district office in Fort Walton Beach (the main office being in Pensacola, a burg with a population about 3x that of Fort Walton Beach). The satellite office employed two people. She went in to do some work on Saturday, had a fainting spell in the office, and hit her head on a desk on the way down. Scarborough was in Washington at the time, and, yes, that’s readily verifiable. It’s doubtful there were any Scarborough employees who had less personal contact with the boss than this woman and her office mate and her husband has maintained in the intervening years that he was present with his wife at one particular event the congressman was at and the congressman had to be introduced to her; Scarborough did not know who she was. At the time this Mrs. Klasutis died, Scarborough had already turned in his resignation and was in the process of leaving Congress and moving to New York.
==
The coroner in that case was a sketchy character who was later professionally sanctioned, but sketchy or no he’s not going to be able to teleport Scarborough from Washington to Fort Walton Beach so JS can frag an employee for sh*ts and giggles. He’s also not going to be able to extort from the police investigative findings consistent with an accident. The one thing he could do was produce a report on the cause and manner of death; there is no indication he was wrong about either.
==
I have no clue why Trump was motivated to remark on this at all just to skewer Scarborough. Scarborough’s skeevy enough to have generated actual material to use for pot shots. (Of course, Trump’s history is such that he’s not the guy to use that material).
The Congressional slush fund is a disgrace. But could any of the people you cite, wendybar, casually throw $130,000 from personal funds at someone to avoid embarrassment over allegedly false allegations? For Trump, this was small change he didn’t miss and may not have even known about.
==
Romney is a centimillionaire. The assets of McConnell and his wife are enumerated in eight digits (though it’s largely Chao family money). I think Ryan has been buckraking big time since leaving Congress four years ago, so it’s a reasonable wager he could swing it though the sum would be missed.
==
If I understand correctly, Cohen handled the claims of Stormy and one other woman quite differently than all the other accusations contra DJT, so it’s a passable inference that there was something distinct about the contact DJT had with them.
==
People have shticks which they apply inconsistently, so the fact that DJT doesn’t shake hands with people does not preclude him enjoying her services. I have a cousin whose husband made millions in Texas oil; one of her quirks was recycling Christmas ribbons. My mother’s explanation “that’s what we learned to do during the Depression” (which had ended 40+ years earlier). I knew a dear woman in Rochester who came from money, married a stockbroker, lived in a smart suburban town, and sent her children to private schools. I was also served ghastly powdered milk in her home. People are funny.
DeSantis 2024.
Kavanaugh doesn’t have quite the same reputation though does he?
==
No, he doesn’t, but that’s only a subsidiary reason to doubt CBF. The primary reason to doubt her were that she and her exponents produced no evidence she’d ever met either of the men she accused, nor did she delineate a set of circumstances which would have made it likely they met. There were about 40,000 youths in Montgomery County, Md in 1982 born after 1962 and prior to 1968, so you wouldn’t assume any randomly selected pair knew each other. The three did not attend the same school, CBF’s brother did not attend the school at which Kavanaugh and Judge were enrolled, Mark Judge’s sister did not attend the school at which Blasey was enrolled, and the Blaseys lived six miles from the Judge family and eight miles from the Kavanaugh family. I think the media did locate one person who said she was acquainted with both Blasey and Kavanaugh, but she provided nothing incriminating. Blasey said she’d been introduced to Kavanaugh’s circle via a friend of BK’s named Christopher Garrett, who is now a schoolteacher in Atlanta. Mr. Garrett made a confidential statement to the FBI that neither side found worth leaking and a public statement through counsel that he had ‘no knowledge relevant to her claims’. As for the supposed gathering where BK and MJ supposedly assaulted her, all four people she named as present drew a blank and her chum Leland Keyser later told a reporter that with the schedule she was keeping in 1982 she would never have allocated time for a midday social gathering and remembered none like it.
Cohen will lie about his own state according to his lawyer (animal mineral or vegetable) where is miss daniels poof as lanny davis (another detestable character) would say
Please , just stop. You cant be that self deluded.
==
His is not an unreasonable supposition. Trump and the Trump Organization are involved in scads of lawsuits as a matter of course. Contractors complaining about payment, patrons who slipped on the ice outside of one or another hotel, disgruntled employees etc. Out-of-court settlements are part of the cost of doing business.
I want to also push back on wendybar’s suggestion that criticizing Trump is the same thing as defending the Congressional slush fund.
==
She never suggested that.
There is a good article on PJMedia – https://pjmedia.com/columns/dennis-prager/2023/03/21/memo-to-conservatives-you-dont-have-to-agree-on-everything-only-on-fighting-the-left-n1680052
“People should adopt two rules with regard to political allies.
One is that you will have no allies if your only allies are individuals with whom you agree on every issue; it should suffice to agree on most issues. The other rule is that if we agree about who our chief enemy is, we can differ on a lot of other issues. With few exceptions, if you understand the existential threat the Left poses to America and to Western civilization, you are my ally.”
Another way to state this idea – “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.”
What’s funny is all the news sites saying DeSantis took a dig at Trump, and the quote they offer is something to the effect “Look, I don’t know what goes into paying hush money to a porn star to secure silence over some type of alleged affair.” They’re really trying to press orange juice from a stone with this one.
Your selective editing leaves out the part where he made an unforced foul, by including this:
“I don’t know what goes into paying hush money to a porn star to secure silence over some type of alleged affair…”
It was completely unnecessary, and diminishes him, and his message.
I agree with this and “put himself in a compromising position with a porn star” consisted of having his picture taken at a golf tournament. Does it occur to anyone else that she probably does not play golf and it could be a setup ?
Finally, Trump is a germophobe. Does anyone think he would dip his wick in a porn actress?
Trump’s relationships with McDougal and Daniels, combined with his undisputed history of marital infidelity, make their allegations plausible. That is absolutely a weakness in a political candidate and pointing that out is absolutely fair game.
I assume you must have evidence re; “Daniels” since the only “evidence” I have seen is a photo at a golf tournament he sponsored. I’m sure there are hundreds of photos from that public event.
Mike K – So Trump had never seen Daniels before in his life except for a picture from a golf tournament? Then she shows up claiming to have had a tryst/affair with Trump during the same golf tournament and Trumpworld hands her $130k, maybe on Trump’s instructions and definately reimbursed by Trump?
It’s theoretically possible that Trump is the completely innocent victim in this one, I suppose. It is also a certainty that no other conceivable Republican nominee would have this kind of problem.
It is also a certainty that no other conceivable Republican nominee would have this kind of problem.
It was inconceivable that Kavanaugh would have this kind of problem until he did. Let’s see what happens when there’s an actual nominee. I’m sure there are old photos around of DeSantis with attractive women as well.
“It is also a certainty that no other conceivable Republican nominee would have this kind of problem”
It is not certain at all. Brett Kavanaugh should be in the dictionary under “soccer dad”.
Whether the incident Daniels alleges is true isn’t the issue. I’m open to doubt about it. Trump was at the time a celebrity and was even more so in 2016, and he was very, very rich. This is the type of person who can be the target of false charges for extortion money.
What DeSantis referred to was “paying hush money to a porn star to secure silence over some type of alleged affair.” What about that is untrue? DeSantis did say “alleged” affair so his comment doesn’t even assume Trump’s guilt, and hush money was paid. Trump could have, like Rick Pitino a few years ago, called the police when he was being blackmailed and refused to pay. Trump, or his staff, chose instead to pay for silence, which is a legal thing to do.
I’m sure there are old photos around of DeSantis with attractive women as well.
==
There weren’t any old photos of Kavanaugh with Blasey or anyone else. He was still subject to a smear machine. See also Roy Moore, an intensely controversial man for some time in Alabama politics and all of a sudden the media find a mess of people making accusations just at an inopportune time. (Accusations to which NeverTrumpers applied little skepticism).
Bauxite wrote: People/companies pay nuisance settlements when they are sued, not when they are blackmailed.
That’s not correct. An example would be the many payments from numerous Archdioceses to people who alleged that they were abused, but who never brought suit.
David vitter who ran for governor after he was in a madams book a dozen years earlier,
Yes she made her story out of whole cloth and was not prosecuted good grief people stay on target a media that circulates lies often using our tax dollars (danchenko dossier) then uses those same tax dollars to silence the truth
I am glad that Governor DeSantis is going to let Trump take care of his own problems. After Trump went to his default position of calling him puerile and childish names, Trump can go to you know where. I cannot even feel sorry for Donald Trump even though the whole indictment is a joke and Alvin Bragg is a complete disaster.
Except that it’s not just Trump’s problem…
‘Dershowitz…: In Trump Case We’re “Losing Our Rule of Law” ‘—
https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/alan-dershowitz-trump-indictment/2023/03/20/id/1112830/
Of course, he could have said the same in regard to at least a half dozen prior scandals…
I said it before & I’ll say it again–liberals/progressives/leftists in this country suffered a collective nervous breakdown the day Donald Trump won the election in 2016 & I don’t think they’ve recovered to this day.
Oh, yeah, I’m against this bogus prosecution because it’s a political use of lawfare in an attempt to destroy a presidential candidate. We ought to oppose it without regard to whether or not we want Trump to be the nominee.
But other than condemning it (correctly) as a wrongful effort by a Soros-funded prosecutor, what is the governor of Florida supposed to do about it, or what is he able to do about it? He has removed one Soros-funded prosecutor in Florida. He can’t remove one in New York.
“Would Mike Pence, Ron DeSantis, Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney, and the like feel the need to pay a $130k settlement to a random porn star who showed up and threatened to allege an affair? I daresay no.”
No, their dalliance would be paid off with the taxpayer slushfund Congress has to protect their own.
https://www.realclearpolicy.com/articles/2021/03/24/182_million_congressional_slush_fund_for_metoo_claims_769046.html#!