The judge in Donald Trump's Georgia criminal case dismissed some of the charges brought by embattled prosecutor Fani Willis, citing "fatal" errors in the indictment. 

The decision from Judge Scott McAfee deals a serious blow to the case, which has already been jeopardized by Willis' highly publicized affair with another prosecutor. McAfee is expected to decide on whether Willis is disqualified this week.

In the meantime, his move to dismiss some of the charges raises more doubts about the integrity of the sweeping indictment.

Trump has counts tossed

Willis charged Trump and 18 others with racketeering charges in August, accusing them of a vast conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia.

The prosecution was widely noted for its ambitious scope compared to other criminal cases brought against Trump.

The judge found that six of the counts Willis brought were too broad to be charged, including three counts against Trump. The charges accuse Trump and his co-defendants of soliciting officials in Georgia to violate their oath.

McAfee criticized the indictment's references to the U.S. Constitution and the Georgia Constitution as so "generic" that the defendants could have violated the law in "dozens, if not hundreds, of distinct ways."

"On its own, the United States Constitution contains hundreds of clauses, any one of which can be the subject of a lifetime’s study," he wrote, further noting that Georgia's Constitution is not a "mere shadow" of its federal counterpart.

The six counts "contain all the essential elements of the crimes but fail to allege sufficient detail regarding the nature of their commission, i.e., the underlying felony solicited."

McAfee called the lack of detail "fatal" as it leaves Trump and his co-defendants without any way to prepare their defense.

Willis facing disqualification

Trump lawyer Steve Sadow praised the decision, saying, "The ruling is a correct application of the law, as the prosecution failed to make specific allegations of any alleged wrongdoing on those counts."

McAfee said Willis could file the charges again with corrections.

The dismissal of the charges seems to undercut efforts to separate the case from Willis and her indiscretions. Some of Trump's critics say the facts are sound, despite Willis' admitted affair with a prosecutor who receive a lucrative salary for his work.

McAfee has said he will make a decision by Friday on whether Willis should be dropped from the case.

Even if Willis is not disqualified, her incompetence and poor judgment have likely damaged the case beyond repair.

Eric Carmen, frontman of the Raspberries who later found success as a writer of powerful ballads like "All By Myself," has died. He was 74.

The singer-songwriter died in his sleep, according to his wife Amy Carmen.

“It is with tremendous sadness that we share the heartbreaking news of the passing of Eric Carmen,” she wrote. "It brought him great joy to know, that for decades, his music touched so many and will be his lasting legacy."

The Raspberries

Formed in Cleveland, Ohio in 1970, the Raspberries never achieved the fame of some of their contemporaries, but the group's big, melodic sound was influential in forming what critics labeled "power pop."

Bruce Springsteen called them "THE great underrated power pop masters.”

Carmen's songwriting talent shined in the band's biggest hit, "Go All The Way," described by AllMusic as "a magnificent fusion of Who-inspired guitar snarl and Beach Boys-styled vocal harmonies."

The song reached Number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 but was banned by the BBC because of its sexually suggestive lyrics.

 

Drawing inspiration from the Beatles and the powerful guitar sound of The Who, the Raspberries swam against the musical currents of their day, as rock moved in more ambitious - some would say pompous - directions.

"By the end of the 60s, it was all about bands like Jethro Tull noodling on flutes, or inferior guitarists playing 10-minute solos under the delusion that they were as good as Jimi Hendrix,” Carmen once recalled. “We reacted against that by writing melodic three-minute pop songs.”

Carmen's solo career

After the Raspberries broke up in 1975, Carmen went on to a successful solo career with soaring ballads like "All By Myself" and "Hungry Eyes," which was featured in the 1980s movie Dirty Dancing. "All By Myself" was famously covered by Celine Dion years later.

Carmen also found radio play with songs like "Never Gonna Fall In Love Again" and "Make Me Lose Control."

The son of Russian Jewish immigrants, Carmen was vocal in later years about his support of President Trump, which brought backlash. When the Raspberries reunited in 2004 for a tour, Carmen was pleased to find the band was finally getting recognition.

“It’s more satisfying now to go onstage and play with these guys than it ever was,” Carmen told Cleveland newspaper The Plain Dealer in 2007.

“It’s also nice that after 30-some years, we finally seem to be eliciting the respect of the media and people who maybe the first time around didn’t quite get it.”

One of the most sensational and widely publicized claims about Donald Trump's behavior on January 6th was contradicted by a key witness - whose testimony was buried by the January 6th committee. 

The notorious account of Trump lunging for the steering wheel of his limousine is not true, his Secret Service driver told the committee, contradicting star witness Cassidy Hutchinson.

The driver's testimony was left out of the January 6th committee's final report.

Trump narrative collapses

House Republicans released an 81-page report Monday scrutinizing the "cherry-picked" work of the January 6th committee, which shared its findings in a lengthy report of its own.

Hutchinson's dramatic account of Trump lunging at a Secret Service agent was the climax of the committee's public hearings, but the GOP's report notes that four White House officials were unable to back up the sensational story, including the limo driver.

The Secret Service agent brought up Hutchinson's story on his own to say it was false during a November 2022 interview with the January 6th committee.

"The driver of the SUV testified that he ‘did not see him reach [redacted]. [President Trump] never grabbed the steering wheel. I didn’t see him, you know, lunge to try to get into the front seat at all,’” the report said.

The final report "hid the driver’s full testimony and only favorably mentioned his testimony," the GOP's report added.

January 6th committee's deception

The witness who Hutchinson cited as her primary source, White House Deputy Chief Of Staff For Operations Anthony Ornato, told the January 6th committee that he heard the account for the first time during Hutchinson's public testimony, the GOP report added.

Hutchinson also did not mention the story during three prior interviews with the committee, only mentioning it for the first time eight days before the committee scheduled her public testimony.

The January 6th committee did not attempt to corroborate Hutchinson's claims until months after her high-profile testimony, "when it was obvious
Republicans would win control of the House," the Republican report found.

Before losing control of the House, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca.) controversially rejected the GOP's picks to serve on the January 6th committee and handpicked Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, both anti-Trump Republicans, to represent the opposition.

"Without minority representation on the Select Committee, there was no cross examination of Hutchinson’s testimony or the testimony of other witnesses," the Republican report concluded.

An Egyptian-born actor with a memorable role in the Indiana Jones series has passed away.

Ahmed El-Shenawi joined Harrison Ford for a famous scene in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom in which "snake surprise" is served at an elaborate dinner.

The 75-year-old actor developed sepsis as a complication from a surgery to treat a fracture.

“I believe his brief but impactful moments of fame resonated so much among many,” his daughter Eman said.

Indiana Jones actor dies

The actor left his mark as a rotund, extravagantly dressed merchant with a cartoonish mustache who attends a banquet at the palace of an Indian prince.

In the famous scene, a boa constrictor is placed on the dinner table, then cut open to reveal baby snakes writhing inside.

With just three words, El-Shenwai conveys irrepressible delight: "Ah, snake surprise!"

Although his part was small, El-Shenwai impressed director Stephen Spielberg with his "Shakespearean" talent and "eloquent style," his daughter wrote in a 2011 tribute.

"Watching it back with my father beside me and seeing a very chubby man with a heavy fake moustache on the television screen, heavily dressed in embellished Indian clothing and a turban in keeping with the film’s setting, I always feel overwhelmed with pride. And I also cannot help but laugh a little," she wrote.

Bariatric surgery ended career

In real life, El-Shenawi was the son of a professional chef and one of six kids in an Egyptian household with a "lively family life," Eman told The Hollywood Reporter.

After studying business in college, he moved to Britain in 1971 and found work for the BBC as a radio actor for a program in Arabic. He went on to appear in British TV shows like The ProfessionalsCannon and BallMuck and Brass and Danger: Marmalade at Work.

Some of his other credits include the prison movie Midnight Express (1978), directed by Alan Parker, and Lars Von Trier's neo-noir The Element of Crime (1984), in which he hypnotizes the detective.Eventually, the character actor was put of out work when he underwent surgery to reduce his weight, but he took it all in stride.

“My character as the ‘chubby Arab man’ changed, and the agency would not find as much work for me as it did before when I was big,” he told his daughter. “But I was still thrilled that I could wear a better selection of suits!”

Speculation over Donald Trump's VP choice is reaching a fever pitch after his commanding Super Tuesday victory all but guaranteed a rematch with Joe Biden in November.

A Republican strategist claims that Trump is down to three senators: J.D. Vance (Oh.). Katie Britt (Al.), and Marco Rubio (Fl.).

The Washington Times cited Ryan Girdusky, a prominent Republican consultant and commentator.

Trump's shortlist?

Rubio was rivals with Trump during the 2016 primary, but he has since become a Trump cheerleader.

The same is true of J.D. Vance, a freshman senator who underwent a dramatic evolution from a Never Trump commentator to one of the fieriest supporters Trump has in Washington. Vance gave a speech at this year's CPAC, which was seen by many as an audition of sorts for VP hopefuls.

Like Vance, Britt is a freshman senator, and she was chosen by the Republican party to give the rebuttal to Biden's State of the Union on Thursday night.

Although Britt's tone was criticized by some as awkward and exaggerated, Trump gave her a positive review on Truth Social.

"Katie Britt was a GREAT contrast to an Angry, and obviously very Disturbed, 'President.' She was compassionate and caring, especially concerning Women and Women's Issues," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

"Damn liar"

The Washington Times cited Britt's "good looks, intelligence and deep understanding of the Senate" as factors in the Trump team's thinking.

However, Girdusky's shortlist was immediately dismissed as "trash" by Chris LaCivita, a top Trump campaign adviser.

“That is trash,” LaCivita said. "Anyone who claims that they know or that they have heard is a damn liar.”

Some other names that have been mentioned include Senator Tim Scott (Sc.), South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, and Vivek Ramaswamy, who ran in the primary against Trump.

Trump has cast a wide net, even floating his most bitter rival for much of the primary, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R), at a recent event. But DeSantis, who gave Trump a lukewarm endorsement, immediately shut down the idea of joining his campaign.

Nikki Haley, Trump's last primary challenger, ended her longshot campaign on Tuesday but declined to endorse Trump and instead challenged him to win back her supporters. Haley has dismissed VP speculation, and so has Trump, saying she lacks "presidential timber." 

Fans of TLC's Sister Wives received some devastating news with the confirmed suicide of Kody Brown's son Garrison. 

Police say that Garrison, 25, shot himself in the head.

He was found dead by his younger brother Gabe, 22, after Garrison sent some texts that alarmed their mother, Janelle.

'Sister Wives' tragedy

A concerning text from Garrison read, "I want to hate you for sharing the good times. But I can’t. I miss these days.”

The message was sent in a group chat to people involved with the show. Janelle caught wind of the message and reached out to her son, engaging in a brief text conversation until Garrison abruptly stopped responding.

That's when Janelle urged her son Gabe to check on his brother.

Garrison was estranged from his father, the polygamous patriarch at the center of the reality series. Garrison was introduced to viewers in the show's first season, which aired in 2010.

Son was estranged from family

The show's recent seasons have featured the breakdown of many relationships within the family. Kody separated from three of his partners, Janelle, Meri, and Christine, and was accused of showing favoritism toward his youngest and sole remaining wife, Robyn Brown.

During the COVID pandemic, Garrison and Gabe grew estranged from their father over his rigid pandemic protocols. Kody said he was trying to protect his family, but the rules caused immense strain.

The boys' mother recalled the toll that isolation was having on them.

“I have worried about my boys’ mental health,” Janelle said during one episode. “Gabe feels everything very very deeply ... and Garrison just seems angrier, sadder. He’s not as happy-go-lucky as he used to be."

Kody expressed regret over the rift, but reconciliation never came.

Sons had moved to Arizona

Garrison and Gabe had moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, where Garrison ultimately took his life.

Police interviewed Garrison's roommates, who said they heard a noise Monday night but thought nothing of it. The next day, Gabe made the horrible discovery.

Garrison's roommates also said he had an alcohol problem.

Kody and Janelle confirmed the tragic news of their son's death in identical statements over Instagram.

"He was a bright spot in the lives of all who knew him. Our loss will leave such a big hole in our lives, that it takes our breath away. We ask that you please respect our privacy and join us in honoring his memory,” they wrote.

One of the most recognizable Russia hawks in Washington D.C., Victoria Nuland, is leaving the Biden White House at a critical moment for the Ukraine war.

A fixture in Washington's foreign policy establishment, Nuland is perhaps best known for her activities under President Obama during the 2014 Ukraine revolution, which led to accusations that she helped orchestrate a coup in Kyiv.

Nuland leaves as the third-highest ranking diplomat in the U.S.

She served every president from George W. Bush to Joe Biden, with the notable exception of President Trump.

Victoria Nuland steps down

In recent years, Nuland's aggressive foreign policy led some to criticize her as the face of an overextended, meddling liberal empire.

Nuland faced particularly notable backlash in 2014, over her role in the Maidan protests against Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.

The diplomat raised eyebrows over a leaked phone call in which she bluntly stated "f--k the EU" over the European Union's lukewarm backing of the Maidan movement.

Nuland, who was then Assistant Secretary of State for Europe, also casually described her preferences in leaders for a new Ukrainian government.

The comments have been cited as evidence that the Maidan protests, rather than an independent democratic movement in Ukraine, were engineered by the Obama administration. The Kremlin cheered the news of Nuland's resignation, citing her departure as proof that the Biden administration's "anti-Russian" foreign policy is failing.

"Russophobia, proposed by Victoria Nuland as the main foreign policy concept of the United States, is dragging the Democrats to the bottom like a stone," Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

Democracy defender or meddling busybody?

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Antony Blinken cheered Nuland as a champion of "democracy" and human rights.

“Her efforts have been indispensable to confronting Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, marshaling a global coalition to ensure his strategic failure, and helping Ukraine work toward the day when it will be able to stand strongly on its own feet – democratically, economically, and militarily," he said.

Nuland's departure comes as Washington remains divided over sending additional aid to Ukraine, with rising domestic concern over illegal immigration taking center stage.

The Biden administration and Ukraine backers in both parties have warned that "democracy" is at risk without additional U.S. funding.

A new witness is willing to testify against Fani Willis as the embattled district attorney faces possible disqualification in her case against Donald Trump. 

A motion summarizing the proposed testimony from Cindi Lee Yeager, a prosecutor in Cobb County, was submitted by one of the people charged with Trump, David Shafer.

Yeager says she was told by another witness, Terrence Bradley, that Willis began her affair with prosecutor Nathan Wade in 2019.

Bradley is Wade's former divorce lawyer. Yeager says she grew "concerned" after watching Bradley's court testimony, in which he denied any knowledge of Wade's affair.

New witness steps forward

Bradley's testimony "was directly contrary to what Mr. Bradley had told Ms. Yeager in person," according to the court motion.

According to Yeagar, Bradley confirmed that Wade "had definitively begun a romantic relationship with Ms. Willis during the time that Ms. Willis was running for District Attorney in 2019 through 2020."

Moreover, Yeager claims she overheard a phone call in which Willis warned Bradley to stay quiet about the affair.

"They are coming after us. You don’t need to talk to them about anything about us," is what Willis allegedly said. 

Bradley had extensive communications with a Trump defense lawyer in which he discussed details of Wade's affair, including when and where it began.

But on the witness stand, Bradley was evasive and dismissed his own texts as "speculation."

Relationship timeline scrutinized

The court heard closing arguments Friday after several days of dramatic testimony, including a furious performance from Willis herself.

Willis and Wade have admitted they had an affair, but they insist it is not disqualifying and that Willis reimbursed Wade - in cash - for lavish vacations they took together.

Another witness, Robin Yeartie, told the court that Willis and Wade were intimate as far back as 2019. Willis and Wade have both acknowledged meeting at a judicial conference in 2019, but they say their relationship was professional at first and only became romantic years later.

According to Yeager, Bradley said that Willis and Wade "met during the 2019 Municipal Court Continuing Legal Education Conference" and began a relationship "at or around this time."

Defense lawyers have obtained phone records indicating that Willis and Wade texted and called each other in the evenings before Wade was hired to work on the Trump case. Wade also visited Willis' condo 35 times.

The judge is expected to rule any day now on whether Willis is disqualified.

Donald Trump caused a stir at a Virginia rally this weekend where he appeared to mix up Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Trump's critics seized on his remarks as evidence of mental decline, as Democrats attempt to equate Biden's almost daily gaffes with Trump's occasional slips.

Whether Trump's latest remarks were intentional or not, they likely made the Obamas pretty uncomfortable, given pervasive speculation that the power couple is continuing to influence the White House.

Trump's "mix up"

During a rally in Virginia on Saturday, Trump appeared to suggest that Obama was still the president while riffing on Russia.

“Putin has so little respect for Obama that he’s starting to throw around the nuclear word. You heard that. Nuclear. He’s starting to talk nuclear weapons today,” Trump said.

The Biden campaign pounced, writing on X, "Trump once again forgets who president is currently, says he is running against ‘Obama.'”

After leaving the White House, Obama made the unusual decision to retain a residence in Washington, D.C., and he has continued to play a high-profile role in political affairs, leading many to believe that he never relinquished power over the Democrats.

He is certainly their biggest star, and there is rampant speculation that his wife could run for president if Biden falters.

Biden refuses cognitive test

Trump has used Obama's name interchangeably with Biden's on several occasions, but he insists he does it on purpose "as an indication that others may actually be having a very big influence in running our Country."

"No, I know both names very well, never mix them up, and know that they are destroying our Country," he wrote on Truth Social in November.

A recent poll found that Michelle Obama is the top choice among Democrats if Biden steps aside.

Barack and Michelle Obama are expected to play significant roles as campaign surrogates for Biden, with polls showing a tight race between Biden and Trump.

The White House doctor recently declared Biden "fit for duty" following his annual physical, which once again did not include a cognitive exam, despite growing public pressure for Biden to clear up doubts about his age.

Biden's press secretary said he doesn't need a cognitive test because he passes one "every day" in the performance of his duties.

The Supreme Court may have given Donald Trump his biggest legal victory yet when it decided to take up his immunity case this week.

Just by agreeing to review the matter, the court has dramatically lowered the odds that Trump will face trial over January 6th before the 2024 election.

That's a tremendous blow to Democrats, who are emotionally invested in seeing Trump convicted over the "insurrection."

Trump's Supreme Court breakthrough

It's also outstanding news for Trump, whose best hope of avoiding a conviction in left-leaning D.C. is not to face trial at all.

Out of the four criminal cases Trump faces, the January 6th case in D.C. has the most potential to damage his presidential campaign.

The trial, scheduled originally to start March 4, is currently paused pending Trump's appeal, which was previously shot down by an appellate court in D.C.

Left-wing lawyers were confident that the appeals court decision was airtight, leaving the Supreme Court with no option but to decline Trump's appeal.

But it appears the court wants to confront the significant, and legally untested question of whether presidents have immunity from prosecution over official acts.

Trump has warned that, without such immunity, presidents would have to fear legal harassment once they leave office.

For Democrats, it's obvious that Trump is an "insurrectionist" - but the court doesn't see it that way, having already cast doubt on efforts to take him off the ballot.

Libs not taking it well...

The Supreme Court does not have to agree with Trump about immunity to hand him a win. A careful review of the questions at hand might be enough to delay the trial past the election.

If Trump wins the presidency, he could pardon himself, and the trial would never happen.

Top Democrats and liberal celebrities vented their frustration with the court's decision, with actor and filmmaker Rob Reiner calling the court "a cancerous threat to Democracy."

A separate case over the 2020 election in Georgia is on the brink of collapse as the prosecutor, Fani Willis, faces possible disqualification over conflicts of interest.

Trump is facing trial in New York this month, over hush money to Stormy Daniels.

The case, widely seen as the most frivolous Trump faces, now might be the only one to be decided before November.

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