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« on: November 05, 2019, 12:49:01 PM » |
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The Patriot Post Digest 11-5-2019
From The Federalist Patriot
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The Patriot Post® · Mid-Day Digest
Nov. 5, 2019
https://patriotpost.us/digests/66587-mid-day-digest-2019-11-05
THE FOUNDATION
“If duties are too high, they lessen the consumption; the collection is eluded; and the product to the treasury is not so great as when they are confined within proper and moderate bounds.” —Alexander Hamilton (1787)
https://patriotpost.us/fqd/66583-founders-quote-daily-2019-11-05
IN TODAY’S EDITION
Trump loses tax battle with New York, leaves state.1
Democrats build narrative with released testimony.2
Daily Features: More Analysis3, Columnists4, Headlines5, Opinion in Brief6, Short Cuts7, Memes8, and Cartoons9.
IN BRIEF
New York vs. Trump’s Taxes10
Donald Trump’s tax returns have long been a point of contention between him and those who are bent on taking him out. To be sure, he probably has some taxing questions he’d rather not publicly answer, which is why he reneged on his campaign promise to follow the traditional practice of presidential candidates by releasing them. But he also has every right to keep those returns concealed. Except that’s not what another court has ruled.
“The New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Monday that President Trump’s accounting firm must hand over eight years of corporate tax returns to the Manhattan District Attorney’s office, upholding a subpoena for the documents submitted by the D.A. earlier this year,” reports11 National Review. Trump plans to petition the U.S. Supreme Court, but NBC News notes12, “Past Supreme Court rulings have upheld subpoenas directed at presidents, and this time the local prosecutors are seeking documents from the Trump Organization and Trump’s accountants — not directly from the president himself.”
We’ve warned about the danger Trump faces in New York, because what prosecutors are looking for is evidence that Trump violated campaign-finance law related to his (alleged) affairs and hush-money payoffs to Playboy model Karen McDougal and porn star Stormy Daniels. Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer, was sentenced to three years in prison for violating campaign-finance law with payments made to Daniels. The government of New York has politically targeted Trump, but he provided the opening.
Speaking of taxes and New York, the president announced last week that he’s leaving the Empire State to make his permanent residence in the Sunshine State instead. Florida has no income tax, compared to New York’s onerous high taxes. And, Trump noted, “Despite the fact that I pay millions of dollars in city, state and local taxes each year, I have been treated very badly by the political leaders of both the city and state. Few have been treated worse. I hated having to make this decision, but in the end it will be best for all concerned.”
He’s not alone. New York loses more people each year than any other state, and its high taxes are the primary reason. According to a Bloomberg story in August, “New York leads all U.S. metro areas as the largest net loser with 277 people moving every day — more than double the exodus of 132 just one year ago.” Trump is right that few have been treated worse than he has, but that doesn’t mean New York treats anyone all that well. When a dollar goes so much further in Florida, why wouldn’t a New Yorker move?
https://patriotpost.us/articles/66581-new-york-vs-trumps-taxes
Dems Trickle Out Impeachment Testimony Transcripts13
On Monday, House Democrats, led by Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, released two transcripts from their closed-door impeachment hearings. The transcripts were from testimonies given by the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Maria Yovanovitch, and the former top aide to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Michael McKinley.
Neither of the witnesses had direct knowledge of the July 25 phone call14 between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which was the alleged impetus behind the “whistleblower” complaint15. However, Democrats allege that Trump removed Yovanovitch in May 2019 because she was proving to be an obstacle to Rudy Giuliani’s investigation into Joe and Hunter Biden and Ukraine’s involvement in 2016 election interference16.
Interestingly, Yovanovitch asserted, “It’s not like we had a policy that Ukraine should not become involved in our domestic politics or, you know, somehow become involved in 2020 elections, but clearly that is not in U.S. interests for Ukraine to start playing such a role.” This statement seems to effectively undercut the Democrats’ whole argument for claiming that Trump engaged in an impeachable offense. In other words, he had a legitimate interest in fighting Ukrainian corruption.
McKinley’s testimony was primarily focused on his frustration over Yovanovitch’s treatment and eventual removal. He was troubled by Pompeo’s refusal to push back against Donald Trump Jr.‘s negative comments against Yovanovitch and by Pompeo’s unwillingness to allow the State Department to issue statements in support of the ambassador. “In 37 years in the Foreign Service and different parts of the globe and working on many controversial issues, working 10 years back in Washington, I had never seen that,” McKinley stated regarding Ukrainian officials expressing concerns over Giuliani’s investigation into the 2016 election.
Cleary, Democrats are still trying to control the anti-Trump narrative as they selectively release these transcripts rather than releasing the entirety at once. Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan blasted Schiff and company for their obvious politicization, lamenting, “Democrats cherry-pick which transcripts they release and when. Why not release Ambassador Volker’s testimony? He was the very first witness to testify.” Schiff plans to release two more transcripts today.
https://patriotpost.us/articles/66582-dems-trickle-out-impeachment-testimony-transcripts
Editor’s Note:
Today we kick off an important objective. To protect our independence, we have never accepted advertising, nor have we ever charged a subscription fee. We are a small organization and depend on many Patriots who volunteer their time and effort to our mission, while others receive only a modest salary. However, publishing and operation costs are still substantial. Because there isn’t a special interest or parent organization financially backing us, we rely on the generosity of Patriot readers, many of whom donate in the $26 range. Like many mission-based organizations, we typically raise nearly half of our budget in the last two months of each year. If you find today’s edition interesting, inspiring or informative, we humbly ask that you make a secure online donation today to The Patriot Fund’s 2019 Year-End Campaign today. Thank you for your support! —Nate Jackson, Managing Editor |
