Is this a situation where the Speaker of the House beared false witness to a sitting POTUS?
The U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives falsely advised in the manipulation in the signing of law.
Paul Ryan lied into the public record in the pilfering of the U.S. Treasury by breaching the trust in the right to bear the armoralities of the U.S. Speaker of the House.
I bet people have been severely effected, and even died because of lies.
President Donald Trump says former House Speaker Paul Ryan promised to secure wall funding while Republicans controlled both Houses in exchange for the president’s signature on the 2018 omnibus spending bill.
But after the president signed the massive, $1.3 trillion spending package, Ryan reneged on his commitment.
“Well, I was going to veto the omnibus bill and Paul told me in the strongest of language, ‘Please don’t do that, we’ll get you the wall.’ And I said, ‘I hope you mean that, because I don’t like this bill,’” the president recounted in an exclusive Wednesday interview with The Daily Caller.
“Paul told me in the strongest of terms that, ‘please sign this and if you sign this we will get you that wall.’ Which is desperately needed by our country. Humanitarian crisis, trafficking, drugs, you know, everything — people, criminals, gangs, so, you know, we need the wall.”
“And then he went lame duck,” Trump said.
“And once he went lame duck, it was just really an exercise in waving to people and the power was gone so I was very disappointed. I was very disappointed in Paul because the wall was so desperately needed. And I’ll get the wall.”
—
TRANSCRIPT:
THE DAILY CALLER: Well, the people who elected you are very interested in the immigration decision and what’s going on with this negotiation. Republicans in charge of Congress for two years didn’t get to your wall promise in Congress. How big of a roadblock to wall funding was Paul Ryan, now that he’s gone?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, I was going to veto the omnibus bill and Paul told me in the strongest of language, ‘Please don’t do that, we’ll get you the wall.’ And I said, ‘I hope you mean that, because I don’t like this bill,’ although I love the bill for what it did for the military. And therefore, if it weren’t for the military, I would have vetoed it.
Just so you understand, our military needed funding desperately. Totally depleted. And this bill was great for the military. Had I vetoed it, you would never have gotten the numbers back that I got. 700 and 716 billion dollars over the past two years. Which is substantially more — much more than President Obama was able to get for the military.
So that was a negative, but a big factor as to why that was the reason I signed it. But another very big factor was the fact that Paul told me in the strongest of terms that, ‘please sign this and if you sign this we will get you that wall.’ Which is desperately needed by our country. Humanitarian crisis, trafficking, drugs, you know, everything — people, criminals, gangs, so, you know, we need the wall.
And then he went lame duck. And once he went lame duck it was just really an exercise in waving to people and the power was gone so I was very disappointed. I was very disappointed in Paul because the wall was so desperately needed. And I’ll get the wall.
THE DAILY CALLER: Did he lie to you? Did he play you?
TRUMP: I don’t want to say he lied. I think he probably meant it at the time, I guess. I hope. So I don’t call that lying. But when he went lame duck, meaning, he said he’s not running again — and it was very unusual because usually they’ll do that sometime after an election and he didn’t want to do that because it’s somewhat misrepresenting and I understand that too. But maybe you don’t run, okay? Maybe you just don’t run. And he had an excellent person taking his place in Congress, he ran a really great campaign, did a really good job.
So Paul said, please sign the omnibus bill. Now, in all fairness to Paul, I may have signed it anyway because it was so much more money than anyone ever thought possible for the military and equal to the wall, and maybe even greater than the wall was my promise to refurbish the military.
Many consider Samuel L. Jackson to be the patron saint of, erm, the word Rashida Tlaib used to describe President Donald Trump last week.
So it perhaps shouldn't be any surprise that the 70-year-old Jackson, whose film work spans several decades and genres, chimed in on Twitter after Tlaib, who now represents the 13th Congressional District in the U.S. House, said "we're gonna go in there and we're going to impeach the mother****er" at a political event last Thursday.
The video went viral late Thursday and throughout Friday, with many folks condemning Tlaib's choice of words toward Trump, including Trump himself.
Jackson, however, endorses them — and then some.
"I just wanna Wholeheartedly endorse your use of & clarity of purpose when declaring your (expletive) goal last week," Jackson told Tlaib on Sunday night. "Calling that (expletive) a (expletive) is not an issue,calling that (expletive) President Is!!!"
Jackson is notorious for saying the word in several of his films, including "Pulp Fiction," "Rules of Engagement," "Shaft" and "Snakes on a Plane." One YouTube video has him saying it 171 times across 29 films.
The only person that can tell the tale of Trey Gowdy is Trey Gowdy, because he speaks as an orator of times past in the spirit of Thucydides.
He movingly speaks on ethics, his area of expertise.
He is telling the tale of the Ethics War of Privatization and it is my belief that Trey shall tell this scribe this tale in the database of history called PACER.
Sometimes, there are elected officials will fall on their swords in the spirit of ethics to preserve the institution of democracy, which includes due process.
Due process is the seminal component of scientific methodology that Trey is championing.
There will be many elected officials who may or may have not fallen upon the sword of ethics, and for this well documented fact, must be litigated.
Given in the first year of the Peloponnesian War 431/430 B.C.
As Thucydides recounts Pericles claiming in a famous speech, "Our natural bravery springs from our way of life, not from the compulsion of laws...We are lovers of the beautiful, yet simple in our tastes, and we cultivate the arts without loss of manliness." Athens under the leadership of Pericles was populated by citizens intensely loyal and proud of their city state where the government was renown for justice and the streets adorned with beautiful public buildings and art some of which survives to this day. It was a happy moment of ancient history when free and prosperous men said things about the human condition which have not been said better since, in my opinion.Perhaps no other city or culture has enjoyed such a fertile period of genius and brilliance in so many different disciplines. In philosophy, Athens produced Socrates, Anaxagoras and Plato; in history, Herodotus and Thucydides; in literature, Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides. As a culture which prized intelligence and pleasure, Athens boasted a veritable pantheon of exceptional citizens who achieved brilliance in the arts, medicine, mathematics, and philosophy.
They were proud and considered even arrogant. They had reason to be. Many people today consider Athens in the age of Pericles as an ideal to be lived up to.
"Our form of government is called a democracy because..."
"... Our form of does not imitate the laws of neighboring states. On the contrary, we are rather a model to others. Our form of government is called a democracy because its administration is in the hands, not of a few, but of the whole people. In the settling of private disputes, everyone is equal before the law. Election to public office is made on the basis of ability, not on the basis of membership to a particular class. No man is kept out of public office by the obscurity of his social standing because of his poverty, as long as he wishes to be of service to the state. And not only in our public life are we free and open, but a sense of freedom regulates our day-to-day life with each other. We do not flare up in anger at our neighbor if he does what he likes. And we do not show the kind of silent disapproval that causes pain in others, even though it is not a direct accusation. In our private affairs, then, we are tolerant and avoid giving offense. But in public affairs, we take great care not to break law because of the deep respect we have for them. We give obedience to the men who hold public office from year to year. And we pay special regard to those laws that are for the protection of the oppressed and to all the unwritten laws that we know bring disgrace upon the transgressor when they are broken.
"Let me add another point. We have had the good sense to provide for our spirits more opportunities for relaxation from hard work than other people. Throughout the year, there are dramatic and athletic contests and religious festivals. In our homes we find beauty and good taste, and the delight we find every day in and this drives away our cares. And because of the greatness of our city, all kinds of imports flow in to us from all over the world. It is just as natural for us to enjoy the good products of other nations as it is to enjoy the things that we produce ourselves.
"The way we live differs in another respect from that of our enemies. Our city is open to all the world. We have never had any aliens' laws to exclude anyone from finding our or seeking anything here, nor any secrets of the city that an enemy might find out about and use to his advantage. For our security, we rely not on defensive arrangements or secrecy but on the courage that springs from our souls, when we are called into action. As for education, the enemy subjects their children from their earliest boyhood to the most laborious training in manly courage. We, with our unrestricted way of life, are just as ready to face the dangers as they are. And here is the proof. The Spartans never invade Attica using only their own troops, but they bring along all their allies. But when we attack a nearby city, we usually win by ourselves even though we fight on enemy soil against men who defend their own homes. No enemy, in fact, has even engaged our total military power because our practice is constantly to attend to the needs of our navy, as well as to send our troops on many land excursions. Yet, if our enemies engage one division of our forces and defeat it, they boast that they have beaten our entire army, and if they are defeated they say that they lost to our whole army. So it is not painful discipline that makes us go out to meet danger, but our easy confidence. Our natural bravery springs from our way of life, not from the compulsion of laws. Also we do not spend our time anticipating the sufferings that are still in the future, and when the test is upon us, we show ourselves no less brave than those who are continually preparing themselves for battle. Athens deserves to be admired for these qualities and for others as well.
"Our love for beauty does not make us extravagant, and our love of things of the mind does not make us soft. We regard wealth as something to be properly used and not as something to boast about. Nobody need be ashamed to admit poverty, but it is shameful not to do one's best to escape from poverty. Our concern for our private affairs is balanced by our involvement with the affairs of the city. Even people who are mostly occupied with their own business are extremely well informed on political matters. We do not simply regard a man who does not participate in the city's life as one who just minds his own business, but as one who is good for nothing. We all join in debate about the affairs of the city, as they deserve, or at least we participate in the decisions. We do not think that these discussions impede action. We do believe that what is damaging is to go into action in a crucial situation before the people have been fully instructed in debate.
"The strongest are those who understand with perfect clarity what is terrible in life and what is sweet and then go out undeterred to confront danger.
"But he who owes us something is likely to be listless in his friendship, knowing that when he repays the kindness, it will count not as a favor bestowed but as a debt repaid.
"Again, in nobility of spirit, we differ from most others in the way we conduct ourselves toward other peoples. We make friendships not by receiving kindness from others but by conferring it on others. Helping others makes us a more trustworthy friend, because we then act so as not to lose the good will that our help created. A city that makes its friendships by accepting help is not so trustworthy. Its conduct toward other peoples is going to be governed not by good will, but merely by its grudging sense of obligation. We alone do kindness to others, not because we stop to calculate whether this will be to our advantage, but in the spirit of liberality, which motivates us.
"In short, I assert that the city of Athens, taken all together, is a model for all Greece, and that each Athenian, as far as I can see, is more self-reliant as an individual and behaves with exceptional versatility and grace in the more varied forms of activity.
He may be legally gagged, or not, but hey, what do I know?
I know the Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson has yet to send me copy of her letter of certification of the 2018 Michigan Special Election that was transmitted to the U.S. Clerk of the House and accepted by the Speaker of the House.
I wonder if North Carolina Secretary of State has done the same.
I should ask.
.@NCSBE voted 7-2 Friday to hold public hearing by Dec. 21 into claims of irregularities and fraudulent activities related to absentee by-mail ballots in the 9th CD. Audio is here: https://t.co/iyywGwiOsw#ncpol
Jens Lutz informed colleagues of his abrupt decision, saying “things have gotten way out of hand.”
WASHINGTON — The vice chairman of the Bladen County Board of Elections abruptly announced his resignation as the North Carolina State Board of Elections continues its investigation into potential election fraudin 9th Congressional District race there.
Jens Lutz informed his fellow board members and the executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections of his resignation in an email Friday evening because “things have gotten way out of hand.”
“Sometimes in life circumstances reach the breaking point especially when your (sic) trying to do the right thing. It becomes even more difficult when your family is drug into the drama plus your own party begins to attack you for compromising and common sense decisions,” Lutz wrote. “I regret having to do this but things have gotten way out of hand.”
Rural Bladen County has become the epicenter of the investigation into irregularities with absentee ballots involving third parties allegedly collecting handling them. It is illegal for anyone other than family members, legal guardians or official delivery people to turn in ballots.
The state board of elections has voted twice not to certify the election results of the ninth district congressional race between Democrat Dan McCready and Republican Mark Harris. After Election Day, Harris appeared to be the unofficial winner by 905 votes. The board has also stopped the certification of the results of several local in races in the district.
Since the board of elections announced its investigation, McCready has withdrawn his concession. Harris has said he would support a new election, which the board has the power to call for, if the investigation finds enough widespread fraud to call the results into question.
Central to the investigation is Bladen County resident McCrae Dowless, the county's soil and water supervisor, who was hired by the Red Dome consulting group to do work for the Harris campaign on grassroots and get-out-the-vote efforts. The names of Dowless, members of his family and other associates appear as signatures as witnesses on absentee ballots, according to documents released by the state board of elections. According to the personal accounts of some voters, some of those same individuals attempted to collected their absentee ballots, promising to submit them.
"Overall, I'm a Democrat, but I've never been one to stay where I'm not wanted,” Lutz told WECT. “It came to my attention yesterday that some in the Democratic party are not happy with me. I'm getting hit on both sides, including my own party. I just thought it was time to step down."
The state board plans to hold an evidentiary hearing by December 21 and under state law, it has the power to order a new election in a given contest if it determines there were enough widespread "irregularities or improprieties” to “taint the results of the entire election and cast doubt on its fairness.”
I will post the letter of the Michigan Secretary of State Ruth Johnson transmitted to the Clerk of the House of Representatives when the email comes in later today.
Washington — U.S. House lawmakers soon could refer to committee the matter of whether to seat Democratic Rep.-elect Brenda Jones while she remains president of Detroit City Council.
If it goes forward, such a move could extend to a year the time that Michigan's 13th District, which covers parts of Detroit and Wayne County, has gone without representation in Congress.
Jones has not resigned her council seat, and House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, has delayed swearing her in — in part because of concerns that her city post is "incompatible" with being a sitting member of Congress, she said.
A resolution is being drafted by leadership to potentially send the issue to the House Administration Committee, though the timing is unclear, a Democratic aide said Wednesday.
"This, to me, is a suppression of the vote of the third-poorest congressional district in the country. My question is: Would this happen if it were the third-richest district in the United States? We're talking about democracy," Jones said.
"We’re dealing with a district that had gone unrepresented for a year and with a vote that has taken place. I’ve been elected and have opinions."
Time is already short for Jones, who is in Washington, D.C., waiting to be sworn into office.
Three weeks ago, she won a special election to temporarily fill the seat of Conyers until January. Only 10 legislative days remain on the House calendar for 2018, though Congress could recess earlier.
Jones said she received three legal opinions that the offices were not incompatible — including an opinion from counsel on the House Ethics Committee.
Ryan's office says there's no precedent for an individual to serve in the U.S. House while holding a locally elected office.
While the Constitution doesn't prohibit members from simultaneously holding state or local office, the House has historically taken the position that "high state office is incompatible with congressional membership," as stated in the House Ethics Manual.
Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong has saidthe office was awaiting certified election results from Michigan and "still evaluating other complicating factors including her holding two elected positions." Michigan election officials on Monday formally accepted the results that were earlier certified by Wayne County officials.
The House did not require certified returns for other special-election winners this month and relied on preliminary returns to seat them, including Democrat Susan Wild of Pennsylvania, whom Ryan swore in Tuesday evening.
"Once the House receives the election certification, this will be a decision for the whole House," Strong said Monday.
"Any member can object to the member-elect holding two offices, and it can be referred to the House Committee on Administration, which has jurisdiction over such matters."
In election matters, the Administration Committee would typically issue a report and file a resolution concerning the disposition of the case for the full House to consider, according to the Congressional Research Service.
U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence, D-Southfield, said late Wednesday that Ryan and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of California were "working through a process for Brenda Jones to be seated."
"We’re hoping that happens this week," said Lawrence, whose district includes the other half of Detroit. "The voters spoke. Brenda Jones won that seat. The people voted for her, and she should be seated."
Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder called a special election to coincide with the Nov. 6 statewide elections, and critics sued, alleging Snyder had discriminated against black voters. The suit was tossed out.
"I just am so disappointed that decision was allowed to stand. That governor made another decision that disenfranchised some of the poorest people in his state," Lawrence said. "It also happens to be one of the highest areas of minorities."
Jones won the special election to finish out Conyers' unexpired term but lost the race to replace him next year to Democratic Rep.-elect Rashida Tlaib of Detroit.
Jones says there should be no conflict with her city position because the council is on recess during the tenure of her House service. Also, she has pledged to accept no pay from Detroit while serving in Congress in compliance with House rules and federal ethics law.
"Everyone thinks this is unfair including the 13th Congressional District, which is waiting to have a representative," Jones said.
She provided The Detroit News with copy of an unofficial opinion provided by counsel for the House Ethics Committee. It says Jones' position with Detroit City Council "does not appear to be incompatible" with her potential position in the U.S. House.
The Ethics Committee counsel said Jones' dual office-holding is only compatible given the "very limited time" Jones would be representing Michigan; given that she does not accept compensation from the council (including back pay); and given the council remains in recess during her term in Congress.
The opinion gave the example of a mayorship that overlapped three days with a House position and was not considered an incompatible office by the Ethics Committee when the House member did not accept pay for the mayoral position and recused from all work on behalf of the city for that time.
Jones said the Ethics Committee's opinion is considered "unofficial" because she is not a seated member of Congress, but that it's consistent with the legal opinions of her private attorney and the Detroit Corporation Counsel.
The city's legal analysis in August concluded that nothing in federal rules, state law or the city charter expressly prohibited Jones from serving in Congress while keeping her local post.
Jones said Ryan's office is relying instead on the advice of the House parliamentarian for its finding of incompatibility. The parliamentarian relies on House precedent to guide the chamber on questions of legislative procedure.
The last time the House acted on a similar issue was in 1909, when the body vacated the seat of Republican Rep. George L. Lilley of Connecticut, who was sworn in as governor of Connecticut without resigning his House seat.
In Lilley's case, the Judiciary Committee determined serving as governor and congressman to be incompatible and recommended vacating the office and removing Lilley's name from the clerk's rolls. The House later agreed to a resolution to that effect.
On this exciting episode of Cocktails & Popcorn, Nancy Pelosi has been nominated Speaker of the House for the 116th Congress with Hakeem Jeffries as the Congressional Caucus Chair.
Let us begin with the City of Detroit Election Commission.
Detroit Election Commission
The Detroit Election Commission consists of the City Clerk, Janice Winfrey, Corporate Counsel, Larry Garcia, and the Mayor Pro Tem, Brenda Jones, who just so happened to be a Democratic Candidate for the 13th Congressional District Special Election.
Janice told Yvonne that she was to come testify in front of the Detroit Election Commission, but the day of the hearing, she told Yvonne that it was cancelled and that her complaint would be sent to the State Board of Canvassers where she would testify in Lansing.
But that never happened.
So, I am posting Yvonne's complaint so the public can learn what went on in her precincts, oh, and also to let the public know that the Detroit Election Commission threw her complaint in the trash.
Wayne County Clerk has no record
of my vote for the 2018 Primary
and Special Elections.
The vote was never certified because it never addressed any of the Primary Election, including the Special Election complaints, or irregularities, as witnessed above.
As a matter of fact, I can prove my vote and the majority of the vote of my Precinct were not counted.
Michigan Secretary of State Board of Canvassers
These are the members of the State Board of Canvassers:
Chair: Norman D. Shinkle - Republican
Vice-Chair: Julie Matuzak - Democrat
Jeannette Bradshaw - Democrat
Colleen Pero - Republican
Jeannette Bradshaw was not in attendance for the certification of the 2018 Primary & Special Elections.
Her absence was wise because the certification and recording of the vote becomes partisan, and that is never a good thing, particularly when dealing with such a historic and litigious action.
So, if the 13th Congressional District Special Election was never certified, nor recorded, that would mean that the rest of the Primary Elections could not be certified.
Washington — Democrat Brenda Jones is expected to become Michigan's newest congresswoman when she takes the oath of office Thursday after U.S. House leaders reached a deal on seating her.
It is the first time Michigan's 13th District will have representation in the U.S. House in nearly a year, since the resignation of former Rep. John Conyers Jr. last December.
Jones, 59, of Detroit will only serve a matter of weeks until January after winning a special election this month to finish out Conyers' term. She lost her bid to replace Conyers next year to former state Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Detroit.
House Speaker Paul Ryan had delayed seating Jones in part because she has not stepped down from her position as president of Detroit City Council, and there's no precedent for an individual to serve in the U.S. House while holding locally elected office.
“The House had a precedent dating from 1909 that made clear that service as both a member of Congress and a state or local official were not compatible. However, Ms. Jones was duly elected by the constituents of the 13th District of Michigan," Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong said Thursday.
"Ms. Jones has written the speaker and indicated that she will abide by guidance from the Ethics Committee to minimize the conflict between her service as a member and her duties on the Detroit City Council during the short time she’s here. The House will carve out a narrow exception to the 1909 precedent."
Prior to the administration of the oath around noon Thursday, the House is expected to adopt a resolution authorizing Ryan as speaker to swear in Jones, effectively creating an exception to the earlier precedent.
Under the deal between Ryan and Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Jones may accept no pay from Detroit's council and participate in no council votes while serving in Congress — conditions advised by counsel to the House Ethics Committee and which Jones previously attested to.
Ryan's office had previously warned that any House member could have objected to Jones holding two offices, at which point the matter would have been referred to the House Committee on Administration.
While the Constitution doesn't prohibit members from simultaneously holding state or local office, the House has historically taken the position that "high state office is incompatible with congressional membership," as stated in the House Ethics Manual.
But Jones this week released a copy of the unofficial opinion provided by counsel for the House Ethics Committee that said her position with Detroit City Council "does not appear to be incompatible" with her potential position in the U.S. House.
The Ethics Committee counsel said Jones' dual office-holding is only compatible given the "very limited time" Jones would be representing Michigan; given that she does not accept compensation from the council (including back pay); and given the council remains in recess during her term in Congress.
The opinion gave the example of a mayorship that overlapped three days with a House position and was not considered an incompatible office by the Ethics Committee when the House member did not accept pay for the mayoral position and recused from all work on behalf of the city for that time.
The House precedent from 1909 that Strong referred to relates to GOP Rep. George L. Lilley, who was sworn in as governor of Connecticut without resigning his House seat.
In Lilley's case, the Judiciary Committee determined that serving as governor and congressman to be incompatible and recommended vacating the office and removing Lilley's name from the clerk's rolls. The House later agreed to a resolution to that effect.
Jones' brief stint in the House will likely be among the shortest in history but won't set a record.
That distinction belongs to George Sheridan and Effingham Lawrence of Louisiana, who both served for one day only on March 3, 1875 — the final day of the 43rd Congress.
WASHINGTON – It looks as though Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones may be able to keep that job while serving — briefly — in Congress, though there has been no final decision.
Jones on Tuesday shared with the Free Press informal guidance she received from the U.S. House Ethics Committee staff, which said her position in Congress "does not appear incompatible" with her job on City Council.
There were a couple of caveats, however.
First, the guidance is based on Jones — who this month was elected to serve out the short remainder of former U.S. Rep. John Conyers' term — not receiving a salary from the city while she is a member of Congress.
And second, it takes into account the fact that Jones and Detroit's corporation counsel "anticipate the Detroit City Council will be in recess during the entire time you would serve in the House.
It's also far from clear exactly how Jones' seating in Congress will turn out with a final decision likely to come down to the House speaker, a couple of committees, the parliamentarian and a possible vote by the entire House of Representatives.
The document, which was written by Sarah Myers-Mutschall, the ethics committee's counsel, noted, that neither state nor federal law appear to prohibit a member of Detroit's city council from serving in Congress under those circumstances but that "even a small change in facts may give rise to an incompatibility."
While it wasn't clear exactly when the guidance was written, it became more significant this week as the state Board of Canvassers met Monday to certify her election to the partial term, which ends Jan. 3.
Jones is expected to be sworn in just as soon as that certification is transferred to the House leadership and Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. On Monday, AshLee Strong, a spokeswoman for Ryan, said once the certification is received, the whole House will vote on whether to seat her, though "any member can object to the member-elect holding two offices and it can be referred to the House Committee on Administration, which has jurisdiction over such matters."
If that were to happen, however, it's likely that the Ethics Committee guidance would be taken into account.
The strange circumstances of Jones' election to Congress came about after Conyers, caught up in allegations he mistreated women on his staff, resigned last December and Gov. Rick Snyder decided to have a successor be picked on Nov. 6 — the day of the regular general election — for the next two-year term.
While former state Rep. Rashida Tlaib won the election to the new term in a six-person field that included Jones, Jones won the partial term in a somewhat smaller four-person field. That led to the question of whether Jones would want to give up her council seat for such a short-term position.
Besides, she knows there is a myriad of ongoing legal activities, from multiple law enforcement entities, examining the reasons why the 2018 Michigan Primary Election has yet to be certified or recorded.
Washington — House Republican leadership says there's no precedent for allowing Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones to hold seats in both Detroit and Congress.
"There isn’t historical precedent for allowing the holding of two offices, but this is something we are evaluating," House Speaker Paul Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong told The Detroit News.
It means Jones' seating in Congress could be open to challenge if she aims to keep her City Council seat while serving a seven-week stint in the U.S. House of Representatives after the Nov. 6 midterm elections.
Jones, who turns 59 this week, won a special election primary to complete the term of former U.S. Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Detroit, but lost a separate primary for the full two-year term to former state Rep. Rashida Tlaib.
Jones, a Democrat, is expected to win the special general election for the unexpired term, as no Republican is on the ballot.
Her campaign did not respond Tuesday to a request for comment. Jones has not said whether she intends to resign her elected city post before taking office in Washington, saying last month she's consulting with experts.
Jones intends to serve in Washington, D.C., said Jonathan Kinloch, chairman of the 13th Congressional District Democratic Party. He doesn't expect her to resign her council seat for a few weeks in a "lame duck" Congress.
Jonathan Kiniloch, 13th Congressional District
Democratic Party Chair - Michigan
"That would just be so, so devastating for us to have gone through this primary election, have a nominee, and then the House refuses to seat Brenda Jones. That would be devastating and just a travesty," Kinloch said.
The seat has been vacant for nearly 11 months since Conyers resigned in December, he said.
"We need a voice. Every vote counts, especially in this current climate in Washington. She needs to be there. She needs to be voting," Kinloch said.
A century of precedent
For more than a century, incoming House members have resigned from incompatible offices — such as the president of a city council — rather than force the House to litigate the issue, a senior House aide said.
If Jones moves forward with serving in both offices simultaneously, the aide said, any House member could object to her being sworn into office.
At that point, the House would need to determine how to decide the matter, likely adopting a resolution referring the matter to a committee for further consideration, the senior aide said.
"I have reached out to several establishments to get another opinion," she said last month.
"Of course, I’m not going to say that it matters or doesn’t matter, but I do want to know everything before I make a decision.”
Detroit's Law Department has opined that neither state law nor the city charter prohibits Jones from serving in Congress while maintaining her council seat, noting that House rules don't explicitly prohibit it.
Kinloch said he sees no conflict of interest between the elected offices, in part because Detroit City Council is expected to be in recess when Jones would be serving in Congress in late November and December.
"She won’t have any official votes she’d be taking on the City Council then," he said.
"I hope the ruling by the House Ethics Committee is consistent with the city’s corporation counsel, and she’s able to serve those few weeks."
If the concern is over Jones' receiving compensation for both offices, she could waive her city salary during that time, Kinloch added.
'Incompatible' with Congress
The House Ethics Manual offers reasons why holding state and local office is discouraged, including the "full-time nature" of House membership and the "manifest inconsistency of the respective duties of the positions."
The Constitution doesn't prohibit House members from simultaneously holding state or local office, but the House has determined that "a high state office is incompatible with congressional membership," according to the manual.
The manual advises House members who are weighing dual office-holding to consult with the Ethics Committee, which has declined to comment on Jones' case.
Paul Ryan, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
If Jones were headed to Washington to serve a full two-year term, the Ethics Committee would likely tell her she has to resign her City Council position based on House precedent, said attorney Rob Walker, former chief counsel and staff director of the Senate and House ethics committees.
“Given the short period of time that she’d be holding both offices, maybe the Ethics Committee will say you can go ahead and do it," said Walker, now of counsel at the firm Wiley Rein in Washington.
"I think it would be better that she not put them in that position, because it’s a precedent they’re not going to want hanging around for the future."
The committee would likely view the situation as a conflict of fiduciary obligations, even if Jones' constituencies arguably overlap, Walker said.
"They’re two different offices, and you’d be serving the people through two different institutions," he said. "And the interests may not always align.”
Hoping for inaction?
Even if the Ethics Committee says no, Jones could take the seat and count on the Ethics Committee not acting quickly enough on her case before her abbreviated term is up.
“I’m certainly not advising that as a course to be taken," Walker added.
The last time the House acted on a similar issue was in 1909 when the body vacated the seat of Republican Rep. George L. Lilley of Connecticut, who was sworn in as governor of Connecticut without resigning his House seat.
In Lilley's case, the Judiciary Committee determined that serving as governor and congressman to be incompatible and recommended vacating the office and removing Lilley's name from the clerk's rolls. The House later agreed to a resolution to that effect.
In the Senate, New York Attorney General Jacob Javits didn't show up to be sworn in with the rest of the senators in January 1957, waiting almost a week more before resigning his position as attorney general and taking the oath of office in the Senate. In that case, no one objected to his taking the oath.
Jones' term in the U.S. House is expected to start after the general election results are certified in mid-November, concluding Jan. 2, 2019.
Her Flatulent Boviness & her daughter, Champagne (undercover espionage identities of Congress)
In this exciting adventure of Cocktails & Popcorn we are starting to witness the demise of the #MeToo psychoptic, but the issue is not that these women lied about what happened and who they are, but what are they covering up and why?
Then, this happened, which triggered my memory so I have included a video on a possible relationship to explain the concerns Sheila Jackson Lee, Her Flatulent Boviness, has with computers and national security, below.
A Democratic congressional intern was arrested Wednesday and accused of posting the personal information of at least one Republican senator during last week's hearing about sexual assault claims against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, authorities said.
Senior congressional sources tell Fox News that Cosko most recently worked as an unpaid intern for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas. He previously worked with Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and former Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer of California. He also worked or interned with the office of Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, as well as with at least one other unnamed lawmaker. A LinkedIn page with Cosko's name on it describes him as a "Democratic Political Professional & Cybersecurity Graduate Student."
Jackson Lee's office told Fox News that Cosko had only worked there for a couple of months, but has now been terminated.
“It’s unfortunate,” Glenn Rushing, Jackson Lee's chief of staff, told Fox News. Rushing added that the congresswoman's office is "cooperating with law enforcement."
Hassan’s office has had two substantial personnel issues in recent months. Earlier this year, an intern for the senator shouted "Mr. President, f--- you!" across the Capitol Rotunda at President Trump as he was being escorted into the office of House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. Hassan's office declined to comment on Cosko's arrest.
Personal information of Sens. Lindsey Graham, Mike Lee and Orrin Hatch was posted on their respective Wikipedia pages Thursday as the Senate Judiciary Committee questioned Kavanaugh over allegations that he assaulted Christine Blasey Ford at a high school party in the early 1980s. All three have professed their belief that Kavanaugh is innocent of the claims brought against him by Ford, with Graham telling the federal judge "you've got nothing to apologize for" amid a fiery rant denouncing Democrats' handling of the allegations.
The intentional publication of the information was first caught by a Twitter bot that automatically tracks any changes made to Wikipedia entries from anyone located in the U.S. Congress and publicizes them on the social media site. The bot account later deleted the tweets because the edits contained personal information. According to the bot, whoever posted the information did so from a computer in the House of Representatives.
The home addresses of the senators appeared to be correct, though the phone numbers didn't appear to be entirely accurate. A "home" phone number listed for Graham appeared to direct callers to the Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League (SMYAL), a Washington D.C.-based advocacy group.
Sources tell Fox News that authorities are looking into the possibility that at least two other senators were doxxed.
Fox News has also learned that Cosko was discovered by aides Tuesday night working on a computer in a Capitol Hill office that did not belong to Jackson Lee. He was arrested at his Washington home the following day. Capitol Hill security officials plan to scrub the computers in question.
Many more grand jury indictments to come as it seems the direction is to approach it as a racket.
Once again, you cannot use your public office for personal inurement because that is stealin'.
The Conyers Ethics investigations grand jury indictments should be lots of fun!
Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) and his wife, Margaret, were indicted Tuesday after being charged with misusing at least $250,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced.
The indictment quickly led to Hunter being dropped from his position on several House committees, with Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) calling the charges against the three-term GOP lawmaker "deeply serious."
The California Republican is accused of using the funds to purchase trips to Italy and Hawaii, pay for his family's dental work, his children's tuition and international travel for nearly a dozen relatives, according to the DOJ. Thousands were also spent on "fast food, movie tickets, golf outings, video games, coffee, groceries, home utilities, and expensive meals."
Hunter allegedly falsified campaign records filed to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to conceal the purchases by mischaracterizing the expenses as "'campaign travel,' 'dinner with volunteers/contributors,' 'toy drives,' 'teacher/parent and supporter events,' 'gift cards' for charitable donations, and 'gift basket items,' among other false descriptions," the DOJ said.
“The indictment alleges that Congressman Hunter and his wife repeatedly dipped into campaign coffers as if they were personal bank accounts, and falsified FEC campaign finance reports to cover their tracks,” U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman said in a statement.
“Elected representatives should jealously guard the public’s trust, not abuse their positions for personal gain. Today’s indictment is a reminder that no one is above the law,” Braverman said.
The allegations against the couple were detailed in a 47-page indictment returned by a federal grand jury in California.
Hunter's wife — who was paid $116,000 by his campaign between 2010 and 2017 and given access to campaign funds as a consultant — dismissed campaign finance rules as "silly" when pressed by the campaign treasurer on her spending, according to the indictment.
Margaret Hunter also allegedly refused to allow the campaign fundraiser to review her credit card statements. According to the document, Hunter's campaign treasurer suggested his wife's credit card be taken away, to which the congressman acknowledged the spending was a problem but declined to restrict her access to campaign funds.
The indictment notes that the Hunters had less than $1,000 in reportable assets between 2009 and 2016, having overdrawn their bank accounts more than 1,100 times "resulting in approximately $37,761 in "overdraft" and "insufficient funds" bank fees."
"Their credit cards were frequently charged to the credit limit, often with five-figure balances, resulting in approximately $24,600 in finance charges, interest, and other fees related to late, over the limit, and returned payment fees," the indictment states. "By virtue of these delinquencies - as well as notifications of outstanding debts and overdue payments from their children's school, their family dentist, and other creditors the Hunters knew that many of their desired purchases could only be made by using Campaign funds."
Examples of alleged campaign fund misuse include spending $238 in campaign funds at Matchbox Vintage Pizza Bistro to watch a San Diego Chargers game with a fellow congressman; spending $121 on food and beer while attending a concert in Virginia with another congressman and his date; $1,912 for birthday gifts for family members; $1,200 for new garage doors for their personal resident; $6,288 at a resort in Hawaii for a family vacation in 2015; $11,375 at Costco; as well as thousands spent on golf outings.
The GOP lawmaker and his wife are scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment Thursday morning in court in southern California, according to the Justice Department.
"Congressman Hunter believes this action is purely politically motivated," Michael Harrison, a spokesman for Hunter, told The Hill in an email.
The House Ethics Committee had announced in March 2017 it would defer its probe into potential campaign finance violations to the Justice Department.
Hunter, who previously drew headlines for using a vaporizer pen during a congressional hearing in early 2016, also garnered attention by becoming the second member of Congress to endorsePresident Trump's White House bid.
“Once again, one of President Trump’s earliest supporters in Congress has broken the public trust and abused his position to enrich himself and his family. Speaker Ryan must immediately call on Congressman Hunter to resign, and affirm that no one is above the law," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement Tuesday night.
In a statement, Ryan called the charges against Hunter "deeply serious" and said the California congressman would be removed from his position on the Transportation and Infrastructure, House Armed Services and Education committees.
"The Ethics Committee deferred its investigation at the request of the Justice Department. Now that he has been indicted, Rep. Hunter will be removed from his committee assignments pending the resolution of this matter," Ryan said.
Hunter is currently set to face off against Democratic challenger Ammar Campa-Najjar this fall in a district that Trump won by 15 points in 2016.
Lawyers for Hunter noted there is no way to replace the GOP congressman on the ballot following California's June 5 "jungle" primary.
Hunter's counsel, Gregory Vega, requested in July that two prosecutors in the case be recused, arguing their attendance at a 2015 fundraiser for Hillary Clinton posed a conflict of interest.
The GOP lawmaker's legal team has also questioned the timing of the investigation's conclusion, noting that the more than two-year probe wrapped up weeks after the June primary.
"Because California employs a 'jungle primary' process, an indictment brought just after the June primary but before the general election – which is what we understand the Southern District intends to do – will result in a solidly Republican district being handed to a Democratic candidate who garnered a mere 16 percent of the vote in the primary," his legal team argued in a statement.
A Democratic congressional intern was arrested Wednesday and accused of posting the personal information of at least one Republican senator during last week's hearing about sexual assault claims against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, authorities said.