Trump repeats call for arrest of political enemies days after ‘vermin’ attack – Live

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis says the trial of former president Donald Trump and his 14 co-defendants in the sprawling election interference and racketeering case may not conclude by early 2025 and could be in full swing as America votes in late 2024.

Speaking at The Washington Post Live’s Global Women’s Summit, Ms Willis said: “I believe in that case there will be a trial. I believe the trial will take many months. And I don’t expect that we will conclude until the winter or the very early part of 2025.”

Ms Willis made the remarks as Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee began to consider scheduling issues. Ms Willis said that the election calendar plays no role in the decisions her office makes about cases.

“I don’t, when making decisions about cases to bring, consider any election cycle or an election season. That does not go into the calculus. What goes into the calculus is: This is the law. These are the facts. And the facts show you violated the law. Then charges are brought,” she said.

The new book by ABC News’ chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl, titled Tired of Winning: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party, is the latest piece of work to feature a collection of bombshell revelations about the former president.

Discussing the book – which is due to be released at midnight on Tuesday – Mr Karl recalled discussing the actions of Mr Trump’s zealous supporters with him.

Mike Bedigan has the story.

Mr McCarthy was seen by reporters elbowing Rep Tim Burchett, who told CNN afterwards that it was a “clean shot to the kidneys”.

“While talking to @RepTimBurchett after the GOP conference meeting, former @SpeakerMcCarthy walked by with his detail and McCarthy shoved Burchett. Burchett lunged towards me. I thought it was a joke, it was not. And a chase ensued,” she wrote.

A spokesperson for Mr Burchett told The Independent: “I don’t have any official comments on the incident from the Congressman, but I do not have anything in that tweet that I wish to correct.”

A former campaign staffer who helped George Santos get elected last year plead guilty to wire fraud on Tuesday.

Sam Miele, a 27-year-old GOP operative who worked as a fundraiser for Mr Santos in 2022, appeared in court and admitted to impersonating an aide to another member of Congress. News reports have indicated that he pretended to be working for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy when on the phone with potential donors soliciting contributions.

According to The New York Times, Mr Miele’s attorney declined to say on Tuesday whether his client had agreed to testify against his ex-boss for federal prosecutors. Mr Santos, a serial liar who spread falsehoods about massive portions of his background, has been charged separately by the Justice Department with a host of crimes including identity theft, misuse of public funds and money laundering. He has denied all guilt and vowed to fight those charges, while admitting to fabricating most of his resume.

John Bowden has the full story.

Court has adjourned for the day and expert witness Jason Flemmons will continue his testimony at 10am tomorrow morning.

The day ended on the subject of appraisals.

Judge James Redford ruled that the courts nor the Michigan Secretary of State have the authority to determine when someone is eligible to run for office nor remove candidates from the ballot, in three separate opinions.

Ahead of tomorrow’s hearing, attorneys for defendant David Shafer call for Judge Scott McAfee to reject the Fulton County prosecutors’ push for a broad protective order.

They argue that District Attorney Fani Willis failed to meet the burden of showing a “substantial threat of physical or economic harm to a particular witness” in her argument for the order.

Jason Flemmons returned to the witness stand after the lunch break and was quizzed further about the different ways in which a valuation can be determined.

He explained that assets that generate income can be looked at in terms of future earnings to assess their current value.

Moving on, he discusses audits and reviews which he describes as “assurance engagements” — they provide assurance that a client’s financial house is in order.

Asked about whether you could perform such tasks and depart from GAAP, Mr Flemmons says yes but these departures must be flagged. The Trump statements of financial condition included such disclaimers that he describes as “user beware”.

The Trump defence hinges greatly on such disclaimers and argues that the banks should do their own due diligence. Judge Engoron rejected this argument in his pre-trial ruling.