Just Passing It Along…

Here’s my public service announcement, a reminder, for the day: Trump creates and thrives off of chaos. It’s his playbook. And sometime uninformed people are cited, wrongly, as credible sources. (THREAD)

— Anthony Coley (@AnthonyColey) June 7, 2023

Remember Trump’s inaccurate Truth Social post in March…the one where he claimed he was going to be charged in Manhattan the following Tuesday? Also false. But he used that three-day period to galvanize his supporters and raise millions. (3)

— Anthony Coley (@AnthonyColey) June 7, 2023

Let’s all take a breath, and let Smith and team complete their work. We’ll all know when we know. Thank you for coming to my TedTalk <smile> (End)

— Anthony Coley (@AnthonyColey) June 7, 2023

And this, too:

Between Bannon and Meadows, Smith is really going to the dead center of the January 6 offenses. Makes charges there seem both more likely and less remote in time. (not to say "imminent" by any means; in fact, we probably should stop using that word altogether!).

— Harry Litman (@harrylitman) June 7, 2023

In the meantime, we can look forward to August:

Ken Paxton impeachment case is a 'slam dunk' and much worse than people know: prosecuting attorneys https://t.co/A4qz2c52u4

— Raw Story (@RawStory) June 7, 2023

Famed criminal defense attorney Dick DeGuerin — who has represented clients ranging from former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay to convicted murderer and New York City real estate heir Robert Durst to cult leader David Koresh—is now determined to 'save and protect the people of Texas from a crooked attorney general,'" wrote Justin Rohrlich. "'It’s a matter of corruption, a matter of abuse of the public trust, a matter of misuse of public resources, flat-out bribery, perjury,' said DeGuerin, a one-time prosecutor who will help make the case on the House floor for Paxton’s conviction. 'It’s just conduct that convinces anyone that looks at it fairly that the office of attorney general has been abused and used for personal gain.'" 

Russell “Rusty” Hardin Jr., another former prosecutor and attorney who will be litigating the case in the Senate, has previously made similar claims to DeGuerin, saying at a May 30 press conference that “I promise you, it's ten times worse than has been public.”

DeGuerin and Hardy are two of the best trial lawyers in Texas, and a sign the Texas House isn’t screwing around. Paxton has four staff lawyers from the AG office (ironic since the charges against him involve misuse of the office by having employees do work for Paxton personally). He also has a Houston lawyer who is, generously, an ambulance chaser and all around slime. And not nearly as good a trial lawyer as he thinks he is.

My expectation is the Senate convicts based on the evidence and the publicity. The House wasn’t inclined to bury Paxton’s sins, and they gathered their information in secret. The Senate trial will be in public and, being the first in 75 years, will get a LOT of attention.

Paxton is toast.