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countyflagchampionship · 4 months

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On to Round 2!

This is a wrap-up of the current standings. Polls for round 2 will be published starting this Saturday (12/16).

Congratulations to all the counties that progressed!

The state that is standing the strongest is New York, with 39 counties progressing to round 2! Albany, Allegany, Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Chenango, Clinton, Columbia, Delaware, Franklin, Greene, Hamilton, Jefferson, Kings, Livingston, Nassau, New York, Niagara, Oneida, Orange, Otsego, Putnam, Rensselaer, Richmond, Rockland, Saint Lawrence, Saratoga, Schuyler, Steuben, Suffolk, Sullivan, Ulster, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Westchester, and Wyoming.

Next most powerful state is Virginia, which has 36 winning counties. Alleghany, Alleghany, Amherst, Augusta, Bedford, Brunswick, Caroline, Carroll, Charlotte, Chesterfield, Fairfax, Fauquier, Fluvanna, Gloucester, Goochland, Grayson, Halifax, Isle of Wight, James City, King and Queen, King George, King William, Lee, Louisa, Montgomery, Patrick, Pittsylvania, Prince Edward, Pulaski, Rockingham, Scott, Smyth, Southampton, Tazewell, Warren, and Wise.

Ohio is also standing strong with 27 advancing counties. Brown, Butler, Columbiana, Coshocton, Crawford, Defiance, Erie, Fulton, Geauga, Holmes, Jackson, Lake, Lawrence, Licking, Madison, Mahoning, Medina, Mercer, Monroe, Muskingum, Perry, Pickaway, Ross, Scioto, Seneca, Trumbull, and Van Wert.

North Carolina is up next with a solid 24 wins. Beaufort, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Camden, Carteret, Craven, Currituck, Granville, Harnett, Henderson, Hoke, Jackson, Johnson, Lenoir, Lincoln, Macon, Madison, Mecklenburg, Northampton, Onslow, Person, Robeson, Tyrrell, and Wake.

Only 1 more state has over 20 counties that made won their match-ups and that's my wonderful Washington. Adams, Asotin, Chelan, Clallam, Cowlitz, Ferry, Garfield, Grant, Grays Harbor, King, Kitsap, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lewis, Pacific, Pend Oreille, Skagit, Snohomish, Thurston, Walla Walla, Whatcom, Whitman, Yakima. Stay strong my soldiers.

A much higher number of states are comfortably in the middle of the pack. They are as follows:

Texas: 19 counties. Bosque, Collin, Dallas, Denton, Fort Bend, Goliad, Hockley, Jones, Lipscomb, Live Oak, Llano, McMullen, Milam, Ochiltree, Orange, Panola, Parker, San Patricio, and Travis.

California: 17 counties. Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Imperial, Lake, Mariposa, Monterey, Orange, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano, Tulare, Tuolumne, and Yolo.

Pennsylvania: 16 counties. Allegheny, Blair, Butler, Carbon, Dauphin, Franklin, Greene, Jefferson, Lancaster, Lycoming, Mifflin, Montgomery, Perry, Potter, Venango, and York.

Tennessee: 15 counties. Blount, Campbell, Carter, Cumberland, Hardin, Houston, Johnson, Knox, Madison, Maury, McNairy, Obion, Union, Williamson, and Wilson.

Nebraska: 13 counties. Adams, Buffalo, Cass, Cherry, Dakota, Keith, Knox, Nuckolls, Platte, Saunders, Stanton, Thayer, and Webster.

Nevada: 13 counties. Churchill, Clark, Douglas, Esmeralda, Eureka, Lander, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Pershing, Storey, Washoe, and White Pine.

Illinois: 12 counties. Cook, DeKalb, Franklin, Jasper, Kane, Marion, McDonough, McHenry, Morgan, Peoria, St Clair, and Winnebago.

Maryland: 12 counties. Anne Arundel, Calvert, Carroll, Cecil, Dorchester, Frederick, Montgomery, Prince George’s, Queen Anne’s, Talbot, Washington, and Worcester.

Michigan: 12 counties. Barry, Berrien, Clinton, Genesee, Gogebic, Kalamazoo, Lake, Oceana, Ottawa, Rocommon, Sanilac, and Wexford.

Iowa: 11 counties. Dickinson, Fayette, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Humboldt, Jefferson, Jones, Polk, Pottawattamie, and Wright.

Louisiana: 11 parishes. Ascension, Bossier, Cameron, Catahoula, Concordia, Jefferson, Lincoln, Natchitoches, St Bernard, St James, and St Tammany.

New Jersey: 11 counties. Bergen, Cumberland, Essex, Middlesex, Morris, Passaic, Salem, Somerset, Sussex, Union, and Warren.

Kentucky: 10 counties. Boone, Boyle, Breckinridge, Daviess, Leslie, Logan, Pike, Shelby, Trimble, Woodford.

Many of these poor cute states are barely hanging on. Please wish them luck.

Florida: 8 counties. Alachua, Bay, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Okaloosa, Osceola, Palm Beach, and St Johns.

New Mexico: 8 counties. Colfax, Curry, Doña Ana, Lincoln, Mora, Otero, Roosevelt, and Socorro.

Georgia: 6 counties. Bartow, Cherokee, Floyd, Fulton, Pierce, and Rockdale.

Indiana: 6 counties. Benton, Elkhart, Jennings, Marion, Marshall, and Starke.

Minnesota: 6 counties. Aitkin, Clearwater, Hennepin, Hubbard, McLeod, and Pipestone.

Wisconsin: 6 counties. Calumet, Fond du Lac, Osaukee, Portage, Racine, and Sheboygan.

Wyoming: 6 counties. Big Horn, Converse, Lincoln, Natrona, Park, and Teton.

Missouri: 5 counties. Clay, Gentry, Greene, Newton, and St Louis.

South Carolina: 5 counties. Anderson, Calhoun, Dillon, Dorchester, and Lexington.

Utah: 5 counties. Beaver, Summit, Utah, Washington, and Wayne.

Alaska: 4 boroughs. Anchorage, Juneau, Matanuska-Susitna, and Wrangell.

Arkansas: 4 counties. Cross, Searcy, Washington, and White.

Colorado: 4 counties. Douglas, El Paso, Fremont, and La Plata.

Oklahoma: 4 counties. Bryan, Payne, Rogers, and Washington.

West Virginia: 4 counties. Fayette, Marion, Monongalia, and Roane.

Alabama: 3 counties. Bullock, Cleburne, and Mobile.

Arizona: 3 counties. Coconino, Maricopa, and Yavapai.

Maine: 3 counties. Androscoggin, Hancock, and Washington.

Idaho: 2 counties. Bannock and Bonner.

Kansas: 2 counties. Atchinson and Johnson.

Massachusetts: 2 counties. Barnstable and Berkshire.

Montana: 2 counties. Gallatin and Silver Bow.

North Dakota: 2 counties. Benson and LaMoure.

Some states only have 1 county that progressed. They are: Delaware (Kent County), Hawaii (Maui County), Mississippi (Adams County), New Hampshire (Hillsborough County), Oregon (Linn County), and South Dakota (Bennet County).

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In addition to all the winning counties above, there will be 83 new county flags folded into round 2!!! (Because of math reasoning this had to happen) Get hyped

They are as follows:

Alexander NC, Allen OH, Alpena MI, Alpena MI, Alpine CA, Arapahoe CO, Ashe NC, Avery NC, Baldwin AL, Baltimore MD, Bell KY, Benzie MI, Bernalillo NM, Black Hawk IA, Brevard FL, Camden NJ, Campbell WY, Canyon ID, Centre PA, Charles City VA, Cheatham TN, Chester PA, Clark WA, Clarke VA, Cleveland OK, Cochise AZ, Columbus NC, Coweta GA, Darke OH, Davidson NC, Elko NV, Erie PA, Florence SC, Garrett MD, Goshen WY, Greene VA, Grundy IL, Gwinnett GA, Hidalgo TX, Highland OH, Hocking OH, Holt NE, Hot Springs WY, Howard MD, Huntingdon PA, Ingham MI, Island WA, Kankakee IL, Lackawanna PA, Lawrence PA, Leelanau MI, Lehigh PA, Leon FL, Liberty TX, Lucas OH, Madera CA, Mahaska IA, Manitowoc WI, McLennan TX, Meigs OH, Milwaukee WI, Nashville and Davidson TN, Northumberland VA, Orleans NY, Page VA, Porter IN, Sacramento CA, Salt Lake UT, San Diego CA, Sangamon IL, Sevier TN, Shelby TN, Skamania WA, Spotsylvania VA, Stafford VA, Sussex VA, Terrell TX, Trinity CA, Tulsa OK, Tuscarawas OH, Ventura CA, Wahkiakum WA, Yuma AZ

#updates

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unwelcome-ozian · 2 years

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Do you have any information on Christian organized abusers operating in the metro Atlanta area (particularly if it was in or near north Fulton county) sometime between the years 1994-2003ish?

We've had memories come up that suggest we underwent some kind of extreme and ritualized conversion therapy (we were pretty obviously trans from a young age) that included "corrective" CSA/molestation and religious dogma. From what we can tell at this time, this happened mostly inside churches but could have also happened within private homes as well. We are not aware of any other children being involved, at least not that we saw, but we seem to recall multiple perpetrators.

We could DM you the names of two specific churches we know our family attended during this timeframe if you think that would be helpful; however, we have been unable to find any (relevant) dirt on either of these churches, ourselves. It is also possible we were abused at a different location entirely.

Thank you very much for the work you do.

The names Joel Afman and Dick Walsman come up.

Feel free to DM the names of the churches to me if you feel comfortable.

#answers to questions #conversion therapy

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bound2happin-blog · 2 years

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My Legal Battle with my Family and their Co-horts / Co-conspirators (21):

This is a letter from Dennis Bickham to me on December 7th, 2015. After my assailant, Creighton Hussey, intentionally brought about a revocation of my parole for filing a fraudulent-statements based restraining order against me after he beat the crap out of me and then convinced me that he was in love with me and to not pursue the TPO (Temporary Protective Order) I had already filed against him. If you read on Page 1 of this letter in the last paragraph, the 12th, 13th, and 14th sentences. Dennis Bickham states:

“I have been unable to get your things from DeKalb.”

“I went out there once and they could not find them.”

“I will work on this again after the first of the year.”

This evidences that 1: He intentionally destroyed my property / evidence which included my cell phone which also had a threatening voicemail on it from Creighton Hussey and hundreds if not thousands of text messages which were also evidence. This is because my property was not located anywhere in “DeKalb” county. Dennis Bickham knew specifically that the evidence was being held at the North Fulton Parole Office because I was on Parole in Fulton County, not DeKalb County and it was the officer from the North Fulton County Parole office, the one that testified at my Parole Hearing (which only takes place in front of a parole board member via video conference such as Zoom from the Jackson State Prison) that he was a Parole Officer from the North Fulton Parole Office where Creighton Hussey had sent the restraining order he filed against me to. (I also have a recording of this hearing that I obtained from the Parole Board when I was released stating that that is why the warrant was issued for my arrest. Simply because they received this restraining order against me from my assailant, Creighton Hussey. A fraudulently filed and completely perjurious restraining order.)

This evidences that 2: He intentionally destroyed my property because he never went back or ever tried to obtain my property as he stated he would do “after the first of the year.” Additionally, I wrote Dennis Bickham a multitude of letters and called him thirty-five (35) times between November 2015 and May 2018. He only ever once answered the phone which was in November 2015. I included a text message with each and every phone call so he would know it was me calling as I called from another inmate’s cell phone. He intentionally ignored me despite beliving I would “commit suicide” from being in prison. I will also post evidence of this.

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bllsbailey · 1 month

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Key Witness Spills the Beans on Fani Willis Corruption Scandal

A key witness testified Wednesday morning before the Georgia state Senate's special committee investigating the actions of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis as she seeks to take down former President Donald Trump ahead of Election Day.

In front of the Republican-led investigative panel, defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant, who's defending Trump co-defendant Michael Roman in the George election interference case, laid out exactly how she exposed the snowballing FaniGate scandal.

Willis stands accused of misusing public funds for personal gain. Merchant alleges that Willis hired her longtime lover Nathan Wade, a private-practice lawyer with scant prosecutorial experience, to act as special prosecutor as part of a "self-serving" scheme from which she enjoyed "vacations across the world" bought by her boyfriend's taxpayer-funded earnings.

GOP state Sen. Bill Cowsert (R-Athens), the committee's chairman, asked Merchant to break down her fact-finding process that led to the affair's exposure. Rehashing her discoveries throughout the three-hour hearing held at the Georgia state Capitol, Merchant talked witness tampering, White House collusion claims, and Wade's "unusual" billing practices.

White House Connection

Cowsert honed in on an invoice Wade's law offices submitted to Fulton County featuring a vague $2,000 entry for an 8-hour "Interview with DC/White House" on November 18, 2022. "Do you know what that references?" Cowsert prodded Merchant.

Merchant said she believes that's when Wade's prosecution team met with members of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. House select January 6 committee. "The state said that they had to meet off-campus, because they didn't have a record of it. You have to have a record if you go into the White House..." Merchant stated. "They said they had a really hard time getting that meeting, and they had to have someone who had some source or something to get them to agree to the meeting."

Merchant pivoted to White House visitor logs showing Willis visiting Vice President Kamala Harris on February 28, 2023, several months before Trump's August 2023 grand jury indictment, inside a tent situated on the lawn of the VP's residence (a.k.a. "VPR"). The VP's mansion is located about two-and-a-half miles north of the White House on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Observatory.

Recommended

On the witness stand, Willis categorically denied ever visiting the White House. "I did not go to the White House," she testified.

According to Newsweek, the occasion was a garden event hosted by Harris at her home in partnership with Black Entertainment Television (BET). Approximately 400 guests attended the soiree honoring "young black emerging leaders," including Willis. "In honor of Black History Month and in keeping with the theme of celebrating Black excellence, Vice President Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff hosted trailblazing Black leaders at their private residence..." a BET press release reads.

Still, people often talk shop at parties.

Cowsert pointed to another $2,000 entry that says "Travel to Athens; Conf. with White House Counsel" on May 23, 2022.

"We've tried to figure out what and who that was," Merchant said without adding much illumination on the matter.

Then, the chairman asked the question we were all waiting for: "Do you have reason to suspect or can you confirm whether or not Ms. Willis or Mr. Wade were coordinating with the Biden White House in the course of this investigation and prosecution?"

Merchant said "a lot" of the material in the discovery is the "same" as what "other places" have, alluding to some J6 similarities. "So, they had to have gotten it from somewhere," Merchant remarked, and she left it at that before Cowsert called a short recess.

The Informant

Wade's ex-law partner Terrence Bradley, who once represented him in his divorce dispute, was the initial source of information tipping Merchant off about the affair. Merchant said Bradley—"upset" with the way Wade was treating his wife of 26 years—contacted her. "He essentially just left her after meeting Ms. Willis," she stated, noting Jocelyn Wade was a stay-at-home mom.

For months, the two exchanged hundreds of text messages, and Bradley divulged details about the affair's origins, including meet-ups at hotels. Bradley texted he "absolutely" knows that the sexploits started years earlier than the couple claimed under oath (when they met at a training conference where Wade was Willis's teacher vs. after Wade's November 2021 appointment).

According to the chat logs, Bradley was a willing behind-the-scenes informant offering Merchant, his trustworthy "friend," legal advice on effectively exposing corruption in the DA's office, such as advising whom she should subpoena in the Willis admin.

Following Merchant's January 8 motion to disqualify Willis, which contained the explosive affair allegations, she said Bradley received a frenzy of calls fishing to see if he was "the leak," including one from an attorney with direct ties to the DA's office. Though it wasn't overtly "threatening," it was an "out-of-the-blue" phone call prodding to see if Bradley was Merchant's source.

"They were trying to figure out if it was him, and they were trying to silence him," Merchant assessed.

The next day, Wade called Bradley's best friend and instructed him to remind Bradley of his attorney-client confidential privilege, Merchant testified. It seemed like tampering with witnesses, Merchant surmised. "Did he interpret that as Ms. Willis trying to intimidate him from revealing this affair?" Cowsert asked. "Or Mr. Wade," Merchant said. "He took it as intimidation, yes."

Specifically, Bradley phrased it as "the shot across the bow." An evidentiary hearing was scheduled on February 15, and Merchant started issuing a whirlwind of subpoenas, which the prosecution tried to squash across the board.

"That's when this witness tampering occurred after that to try to intimidate your witnesses from coming to court," Cowsert said.

Bradley was billed as the defense's "star witness," but he turned hostile on the stand, denying having direct knowledge of the affair despite saying so and dismissing the texts as "speculation." Everything else Bradley couldn't "recall" when nudged to snitch on his ex-client. Beforehand, Bradley claimed attorney-client privilege to escape cross-examination, but his bid was shot down.

Willis's Public Persona

Merchant brought up the book Find Me the Votes, which Willis was exclusively interviewed for. Willis gave the writers unfettered access, she said, and intimate insight into the investigation as the prosecution built its case against Trump. "She literally let the authors of this book in when she was deciding how to prosecute this case, who to indict, who not to indict," Merchant stated.

"Prosecutors aren't allowed to publicly condemn an accused prior to trial," Merchant said.

She referred to the infamous "church speech" Willis delivered at a black church in Atlanta, where Willis claimed the immense backlash is racially motivated and that political opponents are targeting Wade simply for being "a black man." "God has told her to prosecute them..." Merchant said Willis expressed in the book. "That she is doing the will of God by prosecuting our clients."

Merchant said the DA's office contracted Critical Mention, a company that would monitor Wilis's public image through media monitoring for $10,000. "They put a dollar figure basically on your media presence, and they give you these analytical reports. They'll say, 'Hey, you appeared on NBC. That's a million dollars worth [...] The Fani Willis brand is doing well.' Things like that."

Democrat Opposition

Afterward, state Sen. Harold Jones (D-Augusta), a member of the minority party, was allowed to ask Merchant questions.

Jones cited case law that says, in part, there has to be "a personal stake in the defendant's conviction" for a conflict of interest to arise. "So, is that what you're relying on?" he asked. To which, she said: "No, in the prosecution also [...] It's not just a conviction. And obviously, the state wants it to be a conviction." Merchant referred to Willis making "numerous" public statements about "her interest in a conviction," such as emails admitted as exhibits discussing the DA's desire to see a guilty outcome and jail time.

"Mr. Wade is receiving his funds because he's billing [Fulton County], because the case is going on. Correct? Not because he wins a case," Jones ventured again. "No, he could lose the case and still make a ton of money off of it," Merchant replied.

"What you have to show is there's an actual unfairness to the defendant in the trial. Can you point to any unfairness in the trial that's taken place?" Jones asked, working another angle on the conflict issue. Merchant retorted: "It's not limited just to the trial."

Then, the Democrat state senator accused Merchant of prolonging the prosecution (and Wade's legal payments as a result) for not taking a plea deal offered by Wade that would've handed her client a $5,000 fine plus misdemeanor probation. "We were the first people to get an offer," Merchant recounted. "We said, 'No, we want a dismissal,' because [Roman] was not guilty."

"In reality [...] he was actually trying to end your client's case," Jones stated. "It would have been no more billing on that case [...] What you're just telling me now is that he was willing to stop his billing because he offered your client a misdemeanor and you rejected it. You're the one who's continuing the billing! You're the one that's continuing to make him bill! He was willing to cut that off [...] He basically went out and said, 'I'm tired of billing. I'm going to offer a misdemeanor.' And you said no," he told Merchant.

Merchant said there are three different classifications of co-defendants that were jointly indicted: D.C. defendants who could've been handled in federal court, the electors, and local-level subjects. "Instead of choosing to do that [...] by putting them all three together, it expands the ligitation," Merchant said. Rather than it being "a quick case," wherein the state would prosecute each defendant separately and independently, the prosecution chose to pursue a sprawling RICO indictment, Merchant said.

Rather than "a quick case" that litigates each defendant's case separately turned the matter into a sprawling RICO indictment

"They can plea people out [...] but they're always going to have that large enterprise," Merchant explained. "Even if they pled my client out, the offer was for him to testify. Even though he would not be on trial, his acts would still be on trial, which still expands the litigation because he's not gone. The deal's not: 'You can plea out and you're gone. Bye. We're not taking up time with you.'"

"If they brought it out and said, 'Hey, we datin'. Is it a conflict in your mind?" Jones asked. "What would be the conflict?"

"They only brought it out once I alleged it and they called me a liar multiple times," Merchant said of the undisclosed affair, adding it's "the fact they were sleeping together, he was paying for trips for them to go on, and they were hiding it from the taxpayers."

"It doesn't matter if she discloses—If you disclose a conflict, it still exists..." Jones said. "If you have an actual conflict where your client is harmed, just because they disclose it doesn't end that conflict. What you're describing is not a conflict at all! You're just saying, 'I caught somebody, so therefore I'm going to create something and call it a conflict.' You cannot waive a conflict like that."

"You're talking about a prosecutor sleeping with a person that she is appointing to do this work, paying exorbitant amounts of money, not getting county approval—" Merchant went on. Jones interjected, "Is she paying him or is he earning the money...?"

"I would hope that he's billing based on work that he is doing..." Merchant volleyed, noting that "the billing is very irregular." (Wade "always" used "block billing," meaning he "never" itemized and specified what work was actually done, Merchant said. On November 5, 2021, days after his contract commenced, Wade billed the county for 24 hours in a single day, raking in $6,000.)

As outside counsel, Wade was awarded "lucrative" contracts that have amassed him over $650,000 in income. Wade's wages far exceeded what others assigned to the Trump case were pocketing. Willis has defended her "southern gentleman," who never prosecuted a felony case, making "much more money than the other special prosecutors...because Wade did much more work."

"She's not paying him; the Fulton County taxpayers are," Merchant clarified.

On the subject of the luxury trysts Willis and Wade took together to Aruba, the Bahamas, and Belize, Jones asked, "Do you know what the average Americans spend on vacation?" Merchant countered, "Not this much." Jones pressed, "Have you looked?" Merchant said, "I would imagine most of the Fulton County taxpayers would love to go on any of these trips."

"I made very certain that my numbers only included the two of them," Merchant responded.

"But it's two adults," Jones shot back. "It's nothing extraordinary."

"This is half of that for two people," Merchant emphasized.

"It wouldn't necessarily be half. It's two adults. Bottom line is it's not extravagant. It's not lavish," Jones stated.

Merchant mentioned it only has to be at least a $100 value for the financial benefit to violate the county's Code of Ethics. She noted Willis did not list the travel paid for by Wade on financial disclosure reports, which require officials to disclose gifts of $100 or more from someone doing business with the county. Also, she swore an oath of office to take "only my lawful compensation."

Willis insists she repaid Wade in other ways with (conveniently) untraceable cash reimbursements and by paying occasionally, though there's little to no proof of the transactions. That's the story they're sticking to as Willis faces being kicked to the curb.

What's Next for Fani Willis?

"What are the consequences for an attorney to give sworn testimony—that she did—if your Bradley, Yeartie [testimony], your CellHawk data, your other independent verifications are found to be truthful?" Cowsert asked Merchant of Willis lying under oath.

"It's a crime," Merchant answered. "It's a felony. You'd lose your license. It's perjury."

"Same for Wade?" Cowsert continued. "Yes," she replied.

However, if Willis is found guilty of wrongdoing, the legislative body probing the piling prosecutorial misconduct changes can't directly discipline, disbar, or criminally charge the DA. At most, its members—six Republicans to three Democrats—can recommend changes to the state law or budget in order "to build guardrails" in the state's criminal justice system.

Merchant is the first witness to be called on to testify and may be summoned again for additional questioning, Cowsert said. Willis could possibly be deposed, too, as the committee has full subpoena powers and can compel the production of evidence. Accordingly, it is authorized to undertake actions it deems necessary to "enforce such subpoenas" when parties refuse to obey.

Following the committee's formation, the state senators have since been contacted by whistleblowers within the DA's office coming forward to volunteer closed-door, confidential testimony over mounting concerns about the department's alleged misuse of state and federal funds. When the committee first convened in early February, Cowsert publicized, "We've already had a number of people reaching out to us in the nature of whistleblowers who have sensitive information..."

Speaking at the Georgia state Capitol building, Willis called the committee hearing "a political quest," per NBC News.

"People are angry because I'm going to do the right thing and stand up for justice," Willis told reporters.

"They can continue their games, and I'll continue to do the work of the people," she added.

Moreover, anything Merchant stated before the committee won't be admissible as evidence in the disqualification proceedings.

Judge Scott McAfee, who's currently mulling over whether or not to knock Willis off the Trump case, announced at the conclusion of Friday's final arguments he will make a disqualification decision within two weeks or so. There's no longer "speculation and conjecture" that there was a relationship, McAfee stated. "Where the ledger stands" between the lovers remains in dispute.

McAfee questioned the veracity of Bradley's knowledge, suggesting he's an unreliable witness who went "sideways."

"Is it ever definitively shown how he knew this and that he actually did know it?" McAfee asked. "Other than just an assertion outright? 'Absolutely.' Usually, if a state has a witness that goes sideways, they've got him locked in [...] We don't have that here."

More witness testimony has been submitted by the defense in hopes of re-opening evidence and, thus, the evidentiary hearings.

The witnesses coming forward include a "concerned" Cobb County prosecutor, who wants to correct the record after watching Bradley's testimony "directly contra[dict]" what he had told her about the affair, and an attorney, whom Bradley also allegedly blabbed to. Based on what Bradley told them, both say the sexcapades "definitely" started long before the couple claims, corroborating what former Willis staffer Robin Bryant-Yeartie testified to, specifically that they began dating as early as 2019.

The court filings also allude to Yeartie's condominium, where Willis was subletting, being used as a hook-up hub, as Wade's cellphone data indicated. One of the witnesses said Wade was given a garage opener to access Yeartie's residence at will.

The other witness, a deputy DA from Cobb County, said she once overheard Bradley receive a phone call from a frantic Willis after a damaging article was published revealing how much money Wade has been paid thus far for his work on the Trump case.

"They are coming after us," Willis allegedly told Bradley, instructing him: "You don't need to talk to them about anything about us."

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adk-almanack-mirror · 2 months

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#ADK #Adirondacks #Adirondack Almanack #Adirondack Park

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chsspeculator · 3 months

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The Counterproductivity of School Competitiveness in America

NicholasGarrison, Editorials Editor A rising discourse surrounding Fulton County has been the difference between North Fulton and South Fulton school systems. Schools in these regions often compete with each other when it comes to grading, test scores and the overall atmosphere of their schools. However, comparing these two areas beyond superficial competitiveness reveals a much larger issue in…

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#Chattahoochee #Fulton County #SAT test #school #test scores

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mumblelard · 10 days

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my kids came over yesterday and we sat at my kitchen table telling our tales of the week and talking nonsense about nonsense and we laughed and laughed and laughed until the sun started to set and the streetlights came on

tomorrow morning at finnie's house we'll all get together and our partner's too and have our monthly big breakfast and visit some more. i know this window where we are all so near and we can get together so often, i know it will close eventually. i am trying so hard to pay attention to every minute

i had dark dreams and restless sleep last night but boba kept me company the whole time. i got so hungry thinking about tomorrow, i made myself a big breakfast this morning too and it felt so good. it's a sunny day. i am finishing my coffee. boba is warming herself in a bright spot and chirping happy thoughts. i have a new poetry collection waiting for me at the library and i'm going to walk up the hill and across the park and through the woods to go get it and i'll see where the day goes from there

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saywhat-politics · 2 months

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Right-wing media figures responded to news that Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has died in prison by drawing comparisons to the various prosecutions former President Donald Trump is facing in the United States.

Navalny was widely celebrated in the West as an anti-corruption crusader and a force for democracy in Russia. He was poisoned in August 2020 with a toxin that had been used in the deaths of other critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin, and has been in prison since early 2021. His death in a “penal colony 40 miles north of the Arctic Circle” was announced by Russian authorities on February 16.

Trump is facing an array of investigations and court cases at the federal, state, and municipal level. Special counsel Jack Smith is investigating Trump for his attempts to overturn the 2020 election, as is the district attorney’s office in Fulton County, Georgia. He is also on trial in New York for allegedly fraudulently manipulating his financial assets and paying hush money to porn performer Stormy Daniels.

Many far-right pundits on X (formerly Twitter) attempted to draw equivalencies between the two situations.

#right wing media #former president #donald trump #russia #alexei navalny

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mddeck · 4 months

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MD Deck Locations in Howard County, MD

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#md deck #deck builders howard county md

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ledenews · 5 months

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#belmontcounty #BigWheelingCreek #MarshallCounty #ohiocounty #UpperOhioValley

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sporadicarbitergardener · 6 months

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Mark Randall Meadows (born July 28, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 29th White House chief of staff from 2020 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he also served as the U.S. representative for North Carolina's 11th congressional district from 2013 to 2020. During his legislative tenure, Meadows chaired the Freedom Caucus from 2017 to 2019. He was considered one of Donald Trump's closest allies in Congress before his appointment as chief of staff.[1]

A Tea Party Republican, Meadows was a founding member of the Freedom Caucus. During his time in Congress, he was one of the most conservative Republican lawmakers and played an important part of the United States federal government shutdown of 2013. He also sought to remove John Boehner as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.

Meadows resigned from Congress on March 31, 2020, to become White House chief of staff. As chief of staff, he played an influential role in the Trump administration's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He pressured the Food and Drug Administration to adopt less strict guidelines for COVID-19 vaccine trials,[2] and admonished the White House's own infectious disease experts for not "staying on message" with Trump's rhetoric.[3] In October 2020, Meadows said it was futile to try "to control the pandemic", emphasizing instead a plan to contain it with vaccines and therapeutics. As the virus spread among White House staff in the fall of 2020, he reportedly sought to conceal the cases, including his own.[4][5] After Trump lost the 2020 presidential election, Meadows participated in Trump's failed effort to overturn the election results and remain in power.[6][7][8]

On December 14, 2021, Meadows was held in criminal contempt of Congress[9] for refusing to cooperate with the January 6 Select Committee. He is the first White House chief of staff since the Watergate scandal and first former member of Congress to have been held in contempt of Congress.[10][11] The contempt charge was referred to the Justice Department, which declined to prosecute him.[12]

On October 26, 2022, a South Carolina circuit judge ordered Meadows to testify before a Georgia grand jury investigating Republican efforts to reverse the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia. The grand jury was empaneled by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who said the inquiry is examining "the multistate, coordinated efforts to influence the results of the November 2020 election in Georgia and elsewhere."[13] On August 14, 2023, he was indicted along with 18 other people in the prosecution related to the 2020 election in Georgia; Meadows is the second White House Chief of Staff to face criminal charges, after H. R. Haldeman.[14]

Early life and education Meadows's mother was from Sevierville, Tennessee, and his father from Pine Bluff, Arkansas. He was born at a United States Army hospital in Verdun, France, where his father was serving in the Army and his mother worked as a civilian nurse.[citation needed]

Meadows grew up in Brandon, Florida, and described his upbringing as "poor".[15] He has said he was a "fat nerd" who went on a diet after a classmate rejected him for a date.[15] Meadows attended Florida State University for one year in 1977–78.[15] It was reported that Meadows held a Bachelor of Arts from the University of South Florida for many years in his official biography maintained by the Office of the Historian of the U.S. House of Representatives. In actuality, he graduated from the University of South Florida with an Associate of Arts.[15]

Early career In 1987, Meadows started "Aunt D's", a small restaurant in Highlands, North Carolina. He later sold it and used the proceeds to start a real estate development company in the Tampa, Florida, area.[16]

While living in Highlands, Meadows served as chairman of the Republican Party in Macon County, and was a delegate to several state and national Republican conventions.[17] Meadows was on North Carolina's Board for Economic Development in Western North Carolina.[18]

In 2011, he moved to Glenville, North Carolina. In 2016, he sold his house and moved into an apartment in Biltmore Park, a mixed-use community in Asheville, North Carolina, while deciding where to buy next in either Henderson or Buncombe counties.[19] He is the owner of Highlands Properties, which specializes in construction and land development.[20] In 2014, Meadows sold 134 acres (54 hectares) of land in Dinosaur, Colorado, to a young earth creationist group. He appeared in the controversial creationist film Raising the Allosaur: The True Story of a Rare Dinosaur and the Home Schoolers Who Found It (2002), which was debunked by experts.[21]

U.S. House of Representatives In Congress, Meadows had an ultraconservative voting record.[6] He signed the Contract from America, a set of ten policies assembled by the Tea Party movement.[22][23] Meadows was a founding member of the Freedom Caucus.[24]

Meadows voted against disaster relief spending for October 2012's Hurricane Sandy, which struck the Northeastern United States and caused severe damage.[25] He was one of several Republicans who claimed the funding bill contained pork-barrel spending that had nothing to do with hurricane relief, a claim the bill's supporters denied.[25][26] Meadows's opposition to Sandy relief was recalled in 2017 news accounts after he and many Republicans who had opposed it voted in favor of disaster aid following Hurricane Harvey, which caused massive damage in Louisiana and Texas that August.[25][26] Critics alleged that Republicans were hypocritically opposing spending in states with Democratic majorities while supporting it in Republican states.[27] Republicans, including Meadows, claimed the situations were different because the Harvey spending bill contained no "pork".[27] A Congressional Research Service review determined that the Sandy spending bill's funds were almost all devoted to recovery from Sandy.[28]

Meadows served as chair of the Subcommittee on Government Operations up until June 20, 2015, when fellow Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz removed him from the position. A member of the House Republican leadership, Chaffetz removed Meadows due to Meadows's vote against a procedural motion the Republican leadership presented.[29] Meadows was one of 34 Republicans who voted against the motion, which allowed for consideration of President Barack Obama's request for fast-track authority on trade agreements. Speaker John Boehner supported the measure, but many Republicans felt it gave too much power to Democrats and Obama specifically.[30] Chaffetz's action was seen as controversial, with many prominent Republican politicians, including Texas senator Ted Cruz, speaking out against the punishment.

Meadows served as ranking member of the House Oversight Committee for 18 days, until he assumed the office of White House Chief of Staff.[31]

Meadows was a member of these committees:

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newstfionline · 8 months

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Saturday, August 26, 2023

Trump Surrenders at Atlanta Jail in Georgia Election Interference Case (NYT) Former President Donald J. Trump surrendered at the Fulton County jail in Atlanta on Thursday and was booked on 13 felony charges for his efforts to reverse his 2020 election loss in Georgia. It was an extraordinary scene: a former U.S. president who flew on his own jet to Atlanta and surrendered at a jail compound surrounded by concertina wire and signs that directed visitors to the “prisoner intake” area. As Mr. Trump’s motorcade of black SUVs drove to the jail through cleared streets, preceded by more than a dozen police motorcycles—a trip captured by news helicopters and broadcast live on national television—two worlds collided in ways never before seen in American political history. The nation’s former commander in chief walked into a notorious jail, one that has been cited in rap lyrics and is the subject of a Department of Justice investigation into unsanitary and unsafe conditions. The case is the fourth brought against Mr. Trump this year, but Thursday was the first time that he was booked at a jail.

See you on Copacabana? Unusually balmy weather hits Brazil in a rare winter heat wave (AP) Summer is still four months away in the Southern Hemisphere but Brazil is contending with a balmy winter, with record high temperatures and dry weather across much of the country. The rare heat wave engulfed 19 of Brazil’s 26 states on Thursday, as well as the capital of Brasilia, according to the National Meteorological Institute, bringing also low humidity for the country that’s home to the Amazon tropical rainforest. Beachgoers hit many of the country’s famous sandy stretches, including Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana. Four state capitals recorded the year’s highest temperature on Wednesday. Cuiabá, in central-western Brazil, the highs reached 41.8 degrees Celsius (107.2 degrees Fahrenheit).

Libertarian’s surprise primary win upends Argentina (Washington Post) As the election results set in, Juan Fonrouge knew just what to do. First: Fill his car with gas. Then, shop for essentials: eight jars of coffee, a dozen cans of mosquito repellent, 100 cans of food, 100 bars of soap. The 44-year-old journalist is not alone. After the surprise primary victory this month of presidential candidate Javier Milei, who has promised to dismantle Argentina’s central bank, dollarize the economy and break up the “political caste,” a beleaguered citizenry has launched into a wearyingly familiar crisis mode, rushing to spend pesos in anticipation of the inflation to come. “It’s a very Argentine thing to do—something for which you’re trained from a very young age,” said Fonrouge, who owns a news agency in La Plata. “Whenever you see prices soaring and the peso nosediving, the first thing to do is stock up to the extent that you can.” The action quickly proved shrewd. The day after Milei won 30 percent of the primary vote Aug. 13, the country’s Peronista administration delivered a 22 percent devaluation in the peso. Private economists forecast a 175 percent annual increase as the government struggles again to avoid hyperinflation and an economic collapse. Looters this week ransacked supermarkets and shops in the Buenos Aires suburbs.

As Fires Endanger the ‘Lungs’ of Athens, Greek Anger Rises (NYT) Even as the Greek authorities battled scores of wildfires, stretching from north to south on the mainland, the fires encroaching on a treasured national park north of Athens on Thursday provoked special anger. Mount Parnitha, a protected wildlife area widely known as the “lungs” of Athens, is normally a respite for city dwellers, especially as the heat of Greek summers has tipped to dangerous extremes. But on Thursday, with the air acrid with the smell of burned wood, residents and conservationists alike lamented the potential loss of one of the few green spaces left near the capital. They accused the authorities of failing to protect a precious forestland that is home to more than 1,000 species of plants and animals. “No other European capital has been blessed with such a hot spot of biodiversity literally at its doorstep,” said Demetre Karavellas, director of World Wildlife Fund Greece, adding that the extent of the damage was still unclear as fires continued to rage.

Russian plane crash debris points away from accident, experts say (Washington Post) Aviation experts broadly agreed Thursday that the business jet reportedly carrying Wagner Group leader Yevgeniy Prigozhin and other top members of the mercenary outfit experienced a catastrophic structural failure when it crashed Wednesday and evidence points away from a simple mechanical problem or human error. Two U.S. officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss preliminary findings, told The Washington Post on Thursday that early intelligence pointed to the possibility of an onboard explosion. Jeff Guzzetti, a former accident investigator with the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board, said it’s clear that there was a “catastrophic, in-flight, structural failure—during cruise flight—of a modern business jet. And that just does not happen unless there’s some sort of trigger to it.” After reviewing video of the falling aircraft, photos of the wreckage and public flight tracking data, he said the evidence shows “all the earmarks of an explosion on board.”

Russia’s elite draws one lesson from downed plane: Cross Putin and die (Washington Post) When the jet believed to be carrying Yevgeniy Prigozhin and several top commanders of the Wagner paramilitary group fell from the sky west of Moscow on Wednesday, its destruction sent a terrifying message to Russia’s elite, even though the cause of the crash may never be conclusively known. “Anyone who displays disloyalty will be seen by the state as an enemy that needs to be liquidated,” one well-connected Moscow businessman said. “Everyone will believe that this was carried out on the orders of the czar. We may never know whether this is true or not. But it has frightened everyone.” Russian business executives said that now, more than ever before, they were reluctant to raise their voice publicly against Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. Many among Russia’s wealthiest have been privately critical of the handling of the war. But now they fear that even the mildest or most constructive criticism could invite savage retribution.

After Thais Vote to Move Forward, the Old Guard Just Shifts Its Grip (NYT) The election was supposed to be about change. Three months ago, Thai voters propelled the progressive Move Forward Party to a surprise victory. “A new day for the people has arrived,” said Pita Limjaroenrat, the party leader, as he paraded through the streets of Bangkok. On Tuesday, Thailand named a new prime minister, but it was not Mr. Pita. A coalition government was formed in Parliament, made up almost entirely of parties linked to the generals who led the last military coup. Move Forward is in the opposition. Now, many Thais are asking why the future they had voted for is looking so much like the past. “If you go around and talk to middle-class Thais at the moment, they’re saying, ‘What the hell did we have this election for, if this is the result that we get?’” said Christopher Baker, a historian of Thailand. Thailand, Mr. Baker said, is giving up a chance to “reverse the fact that it’s been going backward, in almost every sense, for the last 15 years.” As the second-largest economy in Southeast Asia and an ally of the United States, Thailand was once a powerful player in the region. More recently it has suffered from prolonged economic stagnation brought about by nine years of military rule.

As China’s economy slows, the buck stops with leader Xi Jinping (Washington Post) For a generation of Chinese who grew up knowing nothing but boom times, 2023 is proving to be a bit of a downer. Yes, there’s the relief of exiting coronavirus controls, but the Chinese economy is not roaring into a post-pandemic recovery. Instead, houses aren’t being sold, families aren’t spending and recent graduates either can’t—or don’t want to—find jobs. With growth expected to slow further over the coming decade, it will be difficult for China’s gross domestic product to overtake the United States or hit its target of doubling by 2035. Even if Xi is not in power then, it will still be difficult for Xi to make good on his more immediate promises to deliver “common prosperity,” his catchphrase for curbing inequality by sharing China’s newfound wealth evenly across society. Already, the economic slowdown is fraying the weak, implicit understanding with ordinary Chinese people that has allowed the Communist Party to remain in power throughout decades of economic opening: Accept Communist Party rule without protest, and we will deliver a better future for you and the country. The Chinese Communist Party’s legitimacy still relies heavily on ordinary Chinese feeling their lives are improving.

Former soldier raises war awareness by touring Taiwan on foot (Reuters) Dressed in camouflage and holding a plastic rifle, Tsai Tsung-lin has been tramping around Taiwan on foot for more than a month with one message to his compatriots: be prepared for war. The 22-year-old former soldier, discharged from the army in July, hopes his journey can help increase civil defence awareness and unite the people of Taiwan amid tensions with China. China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up military activity to try to force democratically governed Taiwan to accept Beijing’s sovereignty, despite strong objections from the government in Taipei. “We know that the situation won’t be good if this (constant threats from China) continues. I want people to be prepared, prepare for war with a goal,” Tsai told Reuters in the northern port city of Keelung, after walking more than 900 kilometres (560 miles) around Taiwan.

BRICS Expansion (1440) The BRICS alliance announced yesterday six countries will be joining its bloc of developing economies. The alliance—comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—invited Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt, Argentina, and the United Arab Emirates to join starting January 1. The bloc, currently representing 40% of the world’s population and over 25% of global GDP, seeks to counterbalance Western dominance in international affairs and expand its global influence. With the additional countries, BRICS claims 46% of the world’s population and more than 30% of the global economy. The group will now include several major oil producers, including Saudi Arabia, which is the world’s largest crude oil exporter. More than 80% of international trade takes place in US dollars, and the expansion could push forward the bloc’s goal to trade in alternative currencies. The group plans to allow further expansion, with more than 40 countries expressing interest in joining the alliance. The announcement comes at the end of the group’s 15th annual summit in South Africa and marks the first expansion since the addition of South Africa in 2010.

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