I read the 221-page court filing
And the Jan. 6th Committee has amassed a damning case against Eastman, against Trump, against them all
I started to title this “I read it, so you won’t have to,” but honestly? You should read the latest court filing refuting the attempts of John Eastman to keep secret some significant documents. Eastman, if you can’t keep straight the members of Trumps rogue’s gallery, tried to help the former president overturn the 2020 election.
You should read all of it, and you can do that here. (The bulk of it is legal stuff that has to go along with a filing, such as declarations from attorneys as to their bona fides, etc., but do check out exhibits A-N.)
From my reading, chronologically: The court filing starts by establishing that Eastman, who woke up Thursday to find his legal ass in a very tight sling, cannot claim attorney-client privilege as he seeks to withhold information from the (full name here) Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. Nor can he claim that the information he wants to keep secret was created in preparation for litigation.
Pages 4-18 gives the summary of what lead up to all this mess. Pay attention to the word “extra-judicial.” That can mean something as benign as “outside the court,” or it can be “really stinkin’ illegal.” You might be tempted to skip over some of this information, but it’s worth it if you can stay focused. I’d forgotten quite a lot of this, and may the names that float up from the pages land with the same thud in the history books as did H.R. Haldeman (another guy with an uninspiring haircut) and other political criminals.
Pages 18-20 takes us through the legal history of this mess. For people who want this all to be finished, like, yesterday, this is a good primer on the wheels of justice moving slowly — when a case is being built. Yes, I believe Trump is guilty of all kinds of punishable crimes, as well, but us beating the drums on social media is really just us shouting into the abyss. The reality is that every t must be crossed, i must be dotted, and criminal held accountable for crimes committed.
The smackdown starts on page 19, where the filing lists the arguments for bringing these scofflaws to justice. Here, too, the details are telling, as are the footnotes. I’m trying to imagine, say, Sidney “Release the Kracken” Powell writing such a detailed filing, but I cannot.
P. 43 contains the money shot, which has been covered already by multiple news organizations:
The Select Committee also has a good-faith basis for concluding that the President and members of his Campaign engaged in a criminal conspiracy to defraud the United States in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371.
Interesting, too, that some of the most damning information in the filing comes from some of the insurrectionists, themselves, who say they attacked the Capitol because they believed the lie of the stolen election, a lie perpetuated by Trump and crew. If you’re watching the invasion and carnage in Ukraine, keep reminding yourself that these two events are connected by a bright white ribbon.
Meanwhile, down the road in Subpoena Land:
Thank you for your service!
But even more for saying "For people who want this all to be finished, like, yesterday, this is a good primer on the wheels of justice moving slowly — when a case is being built."
It's unfortunate that Dems and other lefties have been convinced to dismiss Dem government because it doesn't move at the speed of autocracy.
I will read this document - more than thanks for sending. As always your comments and image inspiring descriptions make my morning. Your final comment ". . . the invasion and carnage in Ukraine, keep reminding yourself that these two events are connected by a bright white ribbon." has been floating around in my grey matter for several days. It's real. It's terrifying.