Shiftless2
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Just passed the ten year anniversary on this quote
The Second Term of Donald J. Trump as President of the United States of America
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Shiftless2
Well-known member
The story that will not die
"THE CLINTON GAMBIT: Did They Just Trap the DOJ…
The political world gasped yesterday. But for once, it wasn't because of a scandal. It was because Bill and Hillary Clinton just looked the House Oversight Committee in the eye and effectively told them to go to hell. The subpoena demanded their presence for a closed door deposition regarding Jeffrey Epstein.
The Clintons didn't just decline. They sent a legal letter so scorching it practically burned the paper it was printed on.
The breakdown of the last 24 hours is simple. Chairman James Comer issued the summons, expecting the former power couple to fold or plead the Fifth. Instead, they refused to show up entirely. In response, the committee voted yesterday to hold them in contempt of Congress. But if Republicans think they just scored a victory, they might want to check the chessboard again. They may have just walked into a trap.
The rejection letter from the Clinton legal team was not standard boilerplate. It called the subpoenas "invalid" and "legally unenforceable." It accused the committee of harassment "untethered to a valid legislative purpose." This matches the sentiment of "eat sh*t" perfectly, though phrased in the polite brutality of high priced lawyers. They explicitly stated they would "forcefully defend" themselves.
Here is the core of their argument. It is actually a point that transparency advocates have been making for years. The Clintons argued that it is absurd for Congress to interrogate them about the Epstein files while the government is simultaneously refusing to release those very files. They asked a simple question. How can we testify about evidence you are hiding from us and the public?
This is where the strategy gets brilliant. Legal analysts are buzzing about a theory called "Forced Discovery." By refusing to testify, the Clintons are practically begging to be prosecuted. If the House refers them to the Department of Justice, and if the Trump DOJ actually decides to charge them with Contempt of Congress, the dynamic flips instantly.
Once they become criminal defendants, the game changes. In a criminal trial, the defense has broad rights to see the evidence against them. This is known as "discovery." If the government wants to put them in jail for what they know or didn't say about Epstein, the Clintons can argue that they cannot defend themselves without seeing the full, unredacted Epstein files.
It is the ultimate checkmate. To prosecute the Clintons, the Trump administration would have to hand over the documents they have been slow walking for a year. The Clintons are effectively holding a gun to the DOJ's head. They are saying, "Go ahead. Charge us. But if you do, you have to give us the files."
The irony is thick enough to cut with a knife. Republicans led by Comer want a show trial to embarrass the Clintons. But by pushing this contempt charge, they are handing Bill and Hillary the legal authority to demand the release of the most explosive secrets in Washington. The Clintons might be the only people with the security clearance and the legal standing to force these documents into the light.
This is high stakes poker played at the highest level. If the DOJ blinks and refuses to prosecute, the Clintons walk away looking untouchable. If the DOJ prosecutes, the files likely come out in court. Either way, the Clintons have managed to turn a subpoena into a weapon against the very committee trying to investigate them.
Whether you love them or loathe them, you have to admire the maneuver. They saw the trap set by the Oversight Committee and decided to spring it on purpose. Now the ball is in the DOJ's court. Do they want the Clintons in handcuffs enough to risk exposing every secret in the Epstein vault? We are about to find out just how much the government really wants us to know."
(I believe the credit goes to Ayock from the Investorshub - but I'm not positive)
SOURCE
"THE CLINTON GAMBIT: Did They Just Trap the DOJ…
The political world gasped yesterday. But for once, it wasn't because of a scandal. It was because Bill and Hillary Clinton just looked the House Oversight Committee in the eye and effectively told them to go to hell. The subpoena demanded their presence for a closed door deposition regarding Jeffrey Epstein.
The Clintons didn't just decline. They sent a legal letter so scorching it practically burned the paper it was printed on.
The breakdown of the last 24 hours is simple. Chairman James Comer issued the summons, expecting the former power couple to fold or plead the Fifth. Instead, they refused to show up entirely. In response, the committee voted yesterday to hold them in contempt of Congress. But if Republicans think they just scored a victory, they might want to check the chessboard again. They may have just walked into a trap.
The rejection letter from the Clinton legal team was not standard boilerplate. It called the subpoenas "invalid" and "legally unenforceable." It accused the committee of harassment "untethered to a valid legislative purpose." This matches the sentiment of "eat sh*t" perfectly, though phrased in the polite brutality of high priced lawyers. They explicitly stated they would "forcefully defend" themselves.
Here is the core of their argument. It is actually a point that transparency advocates have been making for years. The Clintons argued that it is absurd for Congress to interrogate them about the Epstein files while the government is simultaneously refusing to release those very files. They asked a simple question. How can we testify about evidence you are hiding from us and the public?
This is where the strategy gets brilliant. Legal analysts are buzzing about a theory called "Forced Discovery." By refusing to testify, the Clintons are practically begging to be prosecuted. If the House refers them to the Department of Justice, and if the Trump DOJ actually decides to charge them with Contempt of Congress, the dynamic flips instantly.
Once they become criminal defendants, the game changes. In a criminal trial, the defense has broad rights to see the evidence against them. This is known as "discovery." If the government wants to put them in jail for what they know or didn't say about Epstein, the Clintons can argue that they cannot defend themselves without seeing the full, unredacted Epstein files.
It is the ultimate checkmate. To prosecute the Clintons, the Trump administration would have to hand over the documents they have been slow walking for a year. The Clintons are effectively holding a gun to the DOJ's head. They are saying, "Go ahead. Charge us. But if you do, you have to give us the files."
The irony is thick enough to cut with a knife. Republicans led by Comer want a show trial to embarrass the Clintons. But by pushing this contempt charge, they are handing Bill and Hillary the legal authority to demand the release of the most explosive secrets in Washington. The Clintons might be the only people with the security clearance and the legal standing to force these documents into the light.
This is high stakes poker played at the highest level. If the DOJ blinks and refuses to prosecute, the Clintons walk away looking untouchable. If the DOJ prosecutes, the files likely come out in court. Either way, the Clintons have managed to turn a subpoena into a weapon against the very committee trying to investigate them.
Whether you love them or loathe them, you have to admire the maneuver. They saw the trap set by the Oversight Committee and decided to spring it on purpose. Now the ball is in the DOJ's court. Do they want the Clintons in handcuffs enough to risk exposing every secret in the Epstein vault? We are about to find out just how much the government really wants us to know."
(I believe the credit goes to Ayock from the Investorshub - but I'm not positive)
SOURCE
Thank you S2.
from Wiki
"Born and raised in Arkansas, Clinton graduated from Georgetown University in 1968, and later from Yale Law School, where he met his future wife, Hillary Rodham. After graduating from law school, Clinton returned to Arkansas and won election as state attorney general, followed by two non-consecutive tenures as Arkansas governor. As governor, he overhauled the state's education system and served as chairman of the National Governors Association. Clinton was elected president in the 1992 election, defeating the incumbent Republican president George H. W. Bush, and the independent businessman Ross Perot. He became the first president to be born in the Baby Boomer generation and the youngest to serve two full terms." More from Wikipedia
The Clinton's not merely both lawyers, each held high government office, president, & secretary of State. Both had earned their party's nomination for Democrat presidential candidate. Bill won. Hill nil.
The Clinton's are formidable. It's not merely their legal education, it also includes broad political skills honed at the highest levels of our government, and often to our benefit.
"Clinton presided over the second longest period of peacetime economic expansion in American history. He signed into law the North American Free Trade Agreement and the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act but failed to pass his plan for national health care reform."
More from Wikipedia
This dynamic Democratic duo has aged, but the elder president is Trump (born June 14, 1946), Bill was born months later, late August the same year.
Trump might vanquish a Clinton or two on the golf course, particularly if Trump's driving the cart as badly as he drives the ball.
So S2 #2,562 may mean a race to the judiciary. Can the Clinton's find a venue that hasn't already been MAGAconquered.
"A good lawyer knows the law. A great lawyer knows the judge." The Clinton's may be right on the law, and perhaps on their conduct in this matter. But a crooked judge could sink the Clinton dingy. God's Speed USS OMG
William Jefferson Clinton, WJC was nicknamed "slick-Willy" by politicians that opposed Bill politically, but acknowledged WJC's skill in besting them.
The most grudging of them omitted the governor / president's middle initial, leaving WC. Yachtsmen appreciate the insult.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Think she would have done a good job as POTUS but Hillary's public persona was unpleasant - that's a big part of the reason she lost the election. At the time I said that even if you didn't like her the alternative was worse. Far worse. And I was right.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
I'm not enough of an insider to have reliable insight here, but I've wondered whether Hillary went along w/ GWB on Iraq so that her political opposition couldn't call her a dove.
Of U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY), former Speaker Newton Gingrich (R-GA) said: "She's serious, she's hard working, she is a first rate professional."
Supplementing that, (then) current RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman said: "Senator Clinton is smart, uh, she's effective, uh ... very hard working." Source: NBC-TV Meet The Press June 5, 2005
Let's not overlook an eye-opening if not jaw-dropping irony here.
In the previous millennium it was Southerners that tried to secede.
In the new millennium it may be these two Southerners that defend our Constitution, against a damn yankee.
KTTC | Rochester, MNhttps://www.kttc.com › 2026 › 01 › 25 › minnesota-secretary-state-steve-simon-releases-statement-response-us-ag-pam-bondi-letter
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon releases statement in ...
16 hours ago ... Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon has issued a statement in response to a letter written by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to ...
FOX 10 Phoenixhttps://www.fox10phoenix.com › news › fontes-accuses-doj-blackmail-over-minnesota-voter-data-ice-removal-offer
Fontes accuses DOJ of 'blackmail' over Minnesota voter data and ...
8 hours ago ... Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes claims the DOJ offered to pull ICE from Minnesota in exchange for sensitive voter rolls.
The New York Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com › interactive › 2026 › 01 › 24 › us › pam-bondi-walz-doc.html
Read Bondi's Letter to Minnesota's Governor - The New York Times
1 day ago ... Attorney General Pam Bondi sent a letter to Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota on Saturday that blamed him and other Democratic officials for ...
Visit in Anonymous View
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Shiftless2
Well-known member
This exact freeze frame needs to be reposted everywhere. This is exactly what Alex Pretti was doing when he was pepper sprayed and gang tackled by ice. He did not attack anyone or brandish anything.
Yes, you turned out to be correct.
Trump's first term was not that bad, but it could be from all the impeachments keeping him toned down.
I'm not enough of an insider to have reliable insight here, but I've wondered whether Hillary went along w/ GWB on Iraq so that her political opposition couldn't call her a dove.
Of U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY), former Speaker Newton Gingrich (R-GA) said: "She's serious, she's hard working, she is a first rate professional."
Supplementing that, (then) current RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman said: "Senator Clinton is smart, uh, she's effective, uh ... very hard working." Source: NBC-TV Meet The Press June 5, 2005
Let's not overlook an eye-opening if not jaw-dropping irony here.
In the previous millennium it was Southerners that tried to secede.
In the new millennium it may be these two Southerners that defend our Constitution, against a damn yankee.
View attachment 3898
KTTC | Rochester, MNhttps://www.kttc.com › 2026 › 01 › 25 › minnesota-secretary-state-steve-simon-releases-statement-response-us-ag-pam-bondi-letter
Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon releases statement in ...
16 hours ago ... Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon has issued a statement in response to a letter written by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to ...
View attachment 3900
FOX 10 Phoenixhttps://www.fox10phoenix.com › news › fontes-accuses-doj-blackmail-over-minnesota-voter-data-ice-removal-offer
Fontes accuses DOJ of 'blackmail' over Minnesota voter data and ...
8 hours ago ... Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes claims the DOJ offered to pull ICE from Minnesota in exchange for sensitive voter rolls.
View attachment 3899
The New York Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com › interactive › 2026 › 01 › 24 › us › pam-bondi-walz-doc.html
Read Bondi's Letter to Minnesota's Governor - The New York Times
1 day ago ... Attorney General Pam Bondi sent a letter to Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota on Saturday that blamed him and other Democratic officials for ...
Visit in Anonymous View
Its not just that Hillary went along with Bush on the fake claim of Iraqi WMD, but that under Obama she pushed for the coup by Sisi in Egypt that took out Morsei, she was behind Qaddafi being killed, she was after Assad, and she is the one who sent Ambassador Stevens to Benghazi to arm ISIS as pretending to be Moslem radicals.
All of ICE has proven they are criminals, not just guilty of illegal beatings and murder, but in total violation of the Bill of Rights.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Shiftless2
Well-known member
He spent decades bringing the religious right to power. Now he's marching to undo it.
www.facebook.com
346K views · 17K reactions | He spent decades bringing the religious right to power. Now he's marching to undo it. "Being here, in solidarity, is part of the repair work in my own soul," says Rev. Rob Schenck, an Evangelical minister who spent decad
He spent decades bringing the religious right to power. Now he's marching to undo it. "Being here, in solidarity, is part of the repair work in my own soul," says Rev. Rob Schenck, an Evangelical...
www.facebook.com
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Apparently we're living in Bizarro World now, minus the cube shaped planet
‘Moral and Political Debacle’: The Wall Street Journal Nukes Trump Over Alex Pretti Shooting
The Wall Street Journal took the Trump administration to task in an editorial decrying both the death of Alex Pretti and the reaction to it on Sunday.
www.mediaite.com
Fox's Griff Jenkins Grills Todd Blanche on Pretti Shooting
A Fox News host grilled Deputy AG Todd Blanche over reports of internal frustrations about DHS officials calling Alex Pretti a "domestic terrorist."
www.mediaite.com
Never thought that I'd see the day that Faux News & the WSSJ would be grilling and nuking the Trump regime.
Shiftless2
Well-known member
Fox News Gets New Orders on What to Say: "followed the editorial boards of Rupert Murdoch’s NY Post and WSJ in urging President Donald Trump to change course."
On Sunday evening, Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin published a lengthy report detailing internal dissent among his federal immigration enforcement sources regarding the narrative pushed by Department of Homeland Security leaders after Border Patrol officers gunned down Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse who had been videotaping their activities, in Minneapolis on Saturday morning.
Amid the several hundred words describing an internal schism over how DHS is messaging masked agents of the state opening fire on a man who had already been restrained, Melugin slipped in the following statement: “There is no indication Pretti was there to murder law enforcement, as videos appear to show he never drew his holstered firearm.
”Melugin’s stark acknowledgement was whiplash-inducing for anyone who had been following Fox’s on-air coverage of Pretti’s killing up to that point, and it marked the start of a dramatic shift in the network’s treatment of the case.
Fox spent Saturday and much of Sunday blaming the victim and local Democrats for his death while excusing and even valorizing his executioners. In doing so the network was following in the footsteps of the high-ranking administration officials who baselessly argued that Pretti was a “would-be assassin” engaged in “domestic terrorism.” Melugin himself was the vehicle DHS used to launder its excuse that Pretti “was armed.”
And notably, some Fox contributors repeatedly justified Pretti’s killing by going beyond the official comment to allege that he had drawn the gun he was reportedly legally carrying and that he even pointed it at the Border Patrol officers — the very claim Melugin said Sunday night had been disproved by videos.
The fallacy of the DHS smear of Pretti had long been clear to anyone who had reviewed videos of the shooting, triggering widespread outrage over his killing. But Melugin’s admission — and his reporting on a schism within immigration enforcement over the case — apparently provided his colleagues the permission structure they needed to abandon their narrative. “Tomi, speak plainly with the audience right now,”
Fox host Johnny Joey Jones told his co-host Tomi Lahren on Sunday night. “What we're getting from Bill — and as he cited, many of his sources are pro-what's happening as far as enforcing immigration and mass deportation — but what they're concerned with is every video we've seen so far doesn’t show him brandishing a gun, it doesn’t show him — it doesn’t substantiate the idea that he was there to commit a massacre or that he was a domestic terrorist.”
“Usually, when those words are used you usually have more than the fact that he had a gun on him as evidence, and that is what at least some officials are taking issue with,” he added.
Fox & Friends co-host Brian Kilmeade on Monday morning followed the editorial boards of Rupert Murdoch’s New York Post and Wall Street Journal in urging President Donald Trump to change course.
“I would love to see Tom Homan just be asked to go in there and settle things down,” Kilmeade said, referencing his former Fox colleague turned White House border czar, who has stressed the need for “collateral arrests” of immigrants without criminal backgrounds.
“He understands the president’s objective. He could come in with a fresh set of eyes,” Kilmeade added. “For some reason he’s been sidelined of late, and I think we could use someone to come in there and settle everything down from the Trump perspective.”
And Dana Perino, who served as press secretary to President George W. Bush and now anchors Fox’s morning “straight news” hours, stressed the need for the White House to get its facts in order and find a way to make adjustments.
She said that current White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt needed to be “very clear to the officials that we have a gigantic problem and, yes, we can say that the media is biased, and we can say that the Democrats are crazy and that they're radical and that they're ginning everything up, but we have a problem and I need better answers for you before we go to the briefing room at 1 o’clock.
”Perino added that Trump should take credit for having “arrested a lot of illegal immigrants” in Minneapolis and then send presidential envoy Steve Witkoff to the city “because I believe they need somebody that can be trusted on both sides to say, I hear you, I hear you, and here's where we're going.”
Shiftless2
Well-known member
In a quiet hallway at a Minneapolis hospital, staff, veterans, and coworkers stood shoulder to shoulder in silence.
As Alex Pretti was carried through the corridor one final time, hands paused, heads bowed, and salutes were raised. Doctors, nurses, and hospital workers—people who spend their lives trying to save others—stopped to honor one of their own.
Draped in the American flag, Alex’s body passed through a line formed not out of obligation, but respect. For service. For sacrifice. For a life that mattered.
Moments like this don’t make headlines, but they say everything about dignity, community, and remembrance. In the stillness of that hallway, gratitude spoke louder than words.
Rest with honor.
As Alex Pretti was carried through the corridor one final time, hands paused, heads bowed, and salutes were raised. Doctors, nurses, and hospital workers—people who spend their lives trying to save others—stopped to honor one of their own.
Draped in the American flag, Alex’s body passed through a line formed not out of obligation, but respect. For service. For sacrifice. For a life that mattered.
Moments like this don’t make headlines, but they say everything about dignity, community, and remembrance. In the stillness of that hallway, gratitude spoke louder than words.
Rest with honor.