Trump pleads not guilty to 2020 election charges

Ex-President now just another Jan. 6 defendant

Also in today’s edition of ‘Regular Order’ for August 4, 2023:

• Democrats demand Alito recusal in tax case.

• No bombshells in new Hunter Biden deposition.

• Freedom Caucus member to leave Congress.

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TRUMP. For the third time this year, former President Donald Trump appeared in court on Thursday to hear criminal charges lodged against him, this time focused on his effort to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Trump pleaded not guilty to four federal felony charges - at a courthouse just blocks from where his supporters laid siege to the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

• INSIDER. In the courtroom, there was no bluster as Trump entered a plea of not guilty. But on his fake Twitter website, Trump claimed he was arrested for challenging a 'corrupt, rigged, and stolen election.' "This is a very sad day for America," Trump told reporters before flying back to New Jersey.

• GOP. Trump again won unwavering support from some GOP voices in Congress. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy denounced the latest set of charges. "From what I see now, they seem totally political," McCarthy said. Meanwhile, top Senate Republicans kept their radio silence - saying nothing about Trump.

• QUIET. If you were hoping for a big circus outside the courthouse, it really didn't happen. Things were actually pretty tame. There were some Trump supporters - one guy with a big flag which read, "TRUMP OR DEATH." Another guy had a sign calling for the release of Jan. 6 'political prisoners.'

• NO SHOWS. Yes, Congress was out of session - so lawmakers were not in town yesterday. But I figured some GOP lawmaker would come to the courthouse to express their support for Trump. Nope. No one showed up.

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MEANWHILE. While it was a big deal to have Donald Trump appearing at the federal courthouse - it was just one of many cases being pursued yesterday in the Jan. 6 investigation. As you read about these, just think of how the lives of these people were derailed because they believed Trump’s false claims of election fraud.

• PALMETTO STATE. Before Trump arrived at the courthouse, four members of one family from South Carolina were sentenced for their actions on Jan. 6. The dad and one son got two months in jail. The daughter-in-law received one month. And another son got 120 days - he tried to kick open the door where Ashli Babbitt was shot and killed just off the House floor.

• WINDY CITY. In another courtroom yesterday, final preparation was underway for the trial of Chicago police officer Karol Chwiesiuk, who rejected a plea bargain agreement. Jury selection in his case will start Monday. Chwiesiuk helpfully took pictures of himself in a Senator's office on Jan. 6.

• IN CUSTODY. A few hours ahead of Trump, another federal judge at the same courthouse conducted a video hearing with Marc Bru - a Jan. 6 defendant who had been on the lam. Bru was arrested last month in Montana after not showing up for scheduled pre-trial conferences. His trial will start October 2.

• LOCK HER UP. If Donald Trump had simply done what Hillary Clinton did in 2016 - concede an election defeat - none of this would have happened. None of these people now caught up in the Jan. 6 investigation would be in any trouble if not for Trump's ‘Big Lie’ about the 2020 election.

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THIRD STREET TUNNEL. Trump evidently wasn't happy to be back in D.C. "It was also very sad driving through Washington, D.C. and seeing the filth and the decay, and all of the broken buildings and walls and the graffiti," Trump told reporters. "This is not the place that I left."

• BIG CITIES. The attacks on big cities have become a staple of Republican Party politics - even though they are often detached from reality. Are there areas of D.C. that you might avoid? You bet. But the route Trump drove from the airport actually took him by one of the fastest growing areas in town.

• FRUSTRATION. While Democrats enjoyed the sight of Trump in court, some feel the Biden Justice Department waited too long to bring charges. "Thank you @SpeakerPelosi for creating the House Jan 6 Committee," Rep. Brendan Boyle (D-PA) tweeted. Then, he turned the knife.

• BOYLING. "If it were just up to the weak and feckless Merrick Garland and Lisa Monaco then today would have never happened," Boyle added, taking a shot at the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General.

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WHEELS OF JUSTICE. Donald Trump's appearance at the federal courthouse in Washington on Thursday was a reminder that the Jan. 6 investigation is mainly about the many Trump supporters who tried to illegally keep him in power by attacking the Capitol that day. That's my column in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

• WHAT'S NEXT. Speaking of my friends in Georgia, Donald Trump may have to be in court again very soon, as there could be charges filed in coming days in Atlanta, where Fulton County investigators have been probing how he tried to reverse the 2020 election results in the Peach State. Stay tuned.

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HUNTER BIDEN. Republicans on Thursday released the transcript of a closed door deposition earlier this week with Hunter Biden's former business partner. You can read the full Q&A at this link from Devon Archer, who took questions from lawmakers and staffers on the House Oversight Committee. It did not really produce any major breaks in the case.

• RAINMAKING. The testimony by Archer confirms what we all knew - that Hunter Biden was getting hired by foreign groups, not because he was a consummate insider, but because of his last name. "Obviously, that brought the most value," Archer said. "And a lot of it’s about opening doors."

• ACTIONS. Archer was pressed on whether Hunter Biden asked his father 'to take official actions on behalf of his business partners.' The answer - repeatedly - was no. "He did not. He did not ask him - to my knowledge, I never saw him say, do anything for any particular business."

• CONTACTS. Joe Biden has long said he wasn't involved in Hunter's work. But Archer testified that Biden had dinners with Hunter Biden's foreign business associates. And Archer confirmed that Joe Biden sometimes was put on the speakerphone to remind everyone of the family name as well.

• NO BRIBE. Archer was asked about the allegation that Joe Biden had been bribed by people in Ukraine - something that Republicans have repeatedly claimed. "Are you aware of a $5 million payment?' "No," Archer said. Asked again about the GOP claim that Joe Biden had been bribed - 'would you disagree with that conclusion?' "Yeah, I would," Archer said.

• INFLUENCE PEDDLING. It’s obvious Hunter Biden was playing off the family name to make money. It smells. Frankly, it stinks really bad. But the GOP still hasn't offered any evidence that Hunter received money in exchange for some action by then Vice President Biden, or that Joe Biden was paid off.

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REGULAR ORDER. I want to take a minute to thank everyone who subscribes to ‘Regular Order.’ Help me spread the word about this little newsletter, which offers a unique inside view of Capitol Hill. Support independent journalism by giving someone a gift subscription, or you can always just buy me a drink.

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SUPREME COURT. Last week’s foray into the pages of the Wall Street Journal by Justice Samuel Alito has now drawn official calls by Senate Democrats for Alito to step aside from an upcoming case. That's because the 'interview' Alito did for the newspaper was conducted by an attorney involved in a case on the docket this fall.

• SENATE. "Twice now, Justice Alito has gone straight to the Wall Street Journal to publicly comment on and meddle in Congressional activity," said Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "Alito must recuse himself in Moore v. U.S."

• LAWYER. The Alito newspaper interview was done in part by David Rivkin, who helps represent a couple in a tax case, Moore v. U.S. Think about that for a moment. A lawyer with a case before the U.S. Supreme Court is getting several hours of friendly interview time with one of the Justices.

• ETHICS. Alito used the interview to very publicly oppose efforts in Congress to set up a stronger ethics regime for the Justices, who have the weakest ethics standards of any government officials. The Wall Street Journal editorial board said critics of the interview were just 'jealous journalists.'

• DEMS. "It would be hard to make a clearer case for how important it is that Congress require Supreme Court justices to follow binding ethics rules just like every other federal judge does," said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who has sharply criticized Alito.

• KAGAN. Meanwhile, at the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference being held in Portland, Oregon, Justice Elena Kagan said there have been conversations about ethics changes. "It won't be a surprise to know that the nine of us have a variety of views," Kagan said on Thursday.

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DESANTIS. It's no secret that many Republicans would like to cut the size of government in Washington, D.C., and that's a legitimate policy discussion. What might not be a legitimate discussion is talking about killing bureaucrats if you get into power. But that's what came out of the mouth of Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida on Wednesday.

• LIVE FREE OR DIE. In a stop in New Hampshire, DeSantis didn't just say he wanted to cut jobs in the federal bureaucracy. He was a bit more graphic. "We are going to start slitting throats on day one," DeSantis said.

• UNIONS. Those comments did not sit well in D.C. "No federal employee should face death threats from anyone, least of all from someone seeking to lead the U.S. government," said Everett Kelley, the head of the American Federation of Government Employees national union.

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CASUALTY LIST. One member of the House Freedom Caucus has decided to leave the Congress. Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC) will announce today that he will run for state Attorney General in North Carolina. "We decided this is the right thing for me to do - to come back to North Carolina," Bishop told WBT Radio in Charlotte.

• NUMBERS. Bishop's announcement means that 13 current House members won't be back after the 2024 elections - 11 of them are running for another office. Five Senators have also decided they won't run for reelection. We are likely to see more retirements in the coming months.

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CAR WRECK. Rep. Kathy Manning (D-NC) and a staff member were injured on Thursday morning in a car accident, while traveling to an event. "They sustained non life-threatening injuries, were taken to the hospital, and have been discharged," Manning's office said in a statement, without offering further details.

• ONE YEAR. The incident with Manning came one year to the day after Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN) and two staff members were killed in a car wreck in Indiana. Thankfully, that tragedy was not repeated.

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CUSSING CONGRESSMAN. It's been over a week now since Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) repeatedly swore at a group of Senate Pages in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol - and Van Orden still refuses to publicly apologize for his actions.

• VIDEO. The head of the House Administration Committee, Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI), has asked the Capitol Police to release the security video from the Rotunda. It's not clear if that will happen. "Bad press has never bothered me," Van Orden has said about the incident.

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RAP SHEET. Republicans often claim no rioters were armed on Jan. 6 at the Capitol. That's simply not true, and on Thursday, yet another individual was charged with carrying a firearm. A federal grand jury charged Mario Mares of Texas with carrying a 'black semi-automatic handgun' into the Capitol.

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MUSE OF HISTORY.  August 4, 1961.  After a series of passenger plane hijackings to Cuba, Senate leaders sparred on this date over the best response.  "It has even been suggested that armed guards ride American planes," said Senate GOP Leader Everett Dirksen, who ridiculed the idea.  "How silly can we be?"  Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield endorsed the idea of arming pilots.  "In a sense, it is a return to the Old West, when we used to have shotgun guards riding the stagecoaches."

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LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:

The House next has votes on September 12.

The Senate next has votes on September 5.

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