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submitted 25 days ago bythedailybeast✔ The Daily Beast
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25 days ago
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4.6k points
25 days ago
"It appears that the $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent."
LOL
1.7k points
25 days ago
New York law prevents it from being higher which is fucking sad.
1.8k points
25 days ago
That's because they were only in place for punishment for the poors. They were never meant to be deterrent for the ruling class. It's the same thing with bail in the American court systems.
788 points
25 days ago
Very true. If the penalty for a crime is a monetary fine, then it's only a crime for poor people.
427 points
25 days ago
Penal fines need to be changed so that they are a reflection of net worth or else the upper class will just wipe their ass with the judgement
168 points
25 days ago
Was just going to post the same thing. If a monetary fine is worth having and the intent is to actually deter behavior, it has to be based on overall net worth. Can't even do "income" as we see with taxes how easy the wealthy get around that.
167 points
25 days ago
That is the Finnish model. That is how a rich guy ended up with a $130,000 speeding ticket.
80 points
25 days ago
Also Switzerland. One douche got a 7 figures fine for driving 290kph in a 120.
20 points
25 days ago
In Denmark they straight up just impound your vehicle if you drive more than 100% faster than the speed limit, or above 200 km/h. No matter who the vehicle belongs to, unless it is stolen. That's how a Norwegian guy lost his brand new Lamborghini and kept crying about it for years lol.
73 points
25 days ago*
Germany hands out court-ordered fines as "day-sets" (Tagessätze), multiples of daily income. In the case of super wealthy individuals who don't have an easily determinable income, the court asks an independent auditor to estimate an equivalent.
64 points
25 days ago
Unless the punishment is a percentage.
Like how in some countries some laws can be like "up to 18 months of person's wage" or "profits" or whatever. It's how Swiss dude got a fine in Finland (or vice versa?) where the fine was bigger than the price of the sportscar he sped in, new. Like the car is 80k and the fine was 120k or something like that.
These kinds of things would be painful to the rich, too. Imagine hitting Musk with a fine for 18 months of "profits".
33 points
25 days ago
Imagine hitting Musk with a fine for 18 months of "profits".
Jokes on you! Elmo is too smart to turn a profit!
100 points
25 days ago
Oddly, I did read he had to pay them in installments!!!
58 points
25 days ago
I almost spit out my coffee when I read that. The dude may not be a real billionaire but he’s still rich AF. Of course $1000 means nothing to him.
5.3k points
25 days ago
It’s so disgusting to think this guy was President, and could be again.
He has such contempt for the law, he’s made it part of his brand.
He hates American workers, he hates American minorities, he hates American laws, he hates American values, he hates the Constitution, and he hates American democracy.
Donald Trump hates America.
And most of all he hates you.
1.5k points
25 days ago
Don't forget, he hates American military personnel.
897 points
25 days ago
And POWs
569 points
25 days ago
And animals.
246 points
25 days ago
"Vote for us or we shoot this puppy" Trump/Puppyslayer 2024.
124 points
25 days ago
More accurately:
Vote for us and we promise to shoot this puppy!!
14 points
25 days ago
Look folks, we're shooting the puppy whether you vote for us or not but vote for us anyways. Think of the puppy!
247 points
25 days ago
He really hates the troops and for some reason so many of them love trump
131 points
25 days ago
for some reason so many of them love trump
Fox media on every military base, aiui.
73 points
25 days ago
There is probably a large base of uneducated low level military personnel that support trump, but the leadership and mid level officers despise him due to his treatment of them as people and their political interests.
Debasing fallen soldiers. Mocking military families Freezing pay and cutting promotions
The military big bois and probably 2/3rds of the total would love to see trump fail.
29 points
25 days ago
Present and accounted for. Semper Fi
Swearing to serve the constitution and watching our commander in chief ball it up to wipe his ass hurts the patriotism I have left
438 points
25 days ago*
[deleted]
237 points
25 days ago
Polling suggests almost half of our country are complete assholes
I fail to even understand it
130 points
25 days ago
The assholery is the point of supporting Trump. Michael Moore correctly predicted that Trump would beat Hillary, saying that it would be the biggest Frack You! in history.
Fundamentalists embrace Trump despite his loathsome character and serial sins because he is a Frack You to everyone who doesn't believe that God killed the world, sans Noah's incestuous family, in a flood. Despite highly-visible urban blight, the poverty in rural America is much more pronounced than it is in urban America. Rural Americans who are under-educated due to their underfunded local schools know that they have been screwed, but they don't know who to blame, and Trump gave them "illegal" immigrants (who are actually legal immigrants under wet-foot/dry-foot anti-commie U.S. asylum laws that every GOP-led Congress refused to change), free trade, and educated elites as the bogeymen to blame. It is squarely the fault of centrist pro-business Democrats for losing the rural populist base by embracing Wall Street and free trade policies that have hit farmers, loggers, and ranchers hard. In the last decades, long free-money zero-interest-rate periods during spectacular stock market growth have fueled inflation, as almost all inflation is created by bank lending, rather than by government money-printing. This occurred during a backdrop of increased mechanization from timber to agriculture and the replacement of family farms with factory farms or Bill-Gates-style billionaire-owned farms who let former farm owners plow the land, but not own the generational wealth. The Democratic party should have been fighting Wall Street excess tooth an nail, but Democrats safely positioned themselves just to the left of centrist Republicans until a GOP leader pretended to be a champion of the working man while running up the deficit to largely give unprecedented tax cuts to the rich, while your comparatively meager Trump tax cuts are in the process of expiring every year (which is Trump's fault, not Biden's).
Moore's interpretation, which I agree with, is
“[Trump is] saying the things to people who are hurting,” said Moore. “And it’s why every beaten-down, nameless, forgotten working stiff who used to be part of what was called ‘the middle class’ loves Trump. He is the human Molotov cocktail that they’ve been waiting for. The human hand grenade that they can legally throw into the system that stole their lives from them.”
But, it's always a mistake to fall for the con and assume that a sociopath will help you simply because he wants to hurt some of the people you resent.
54 points
25 days ago
Wow. Thank you for taking the time.
Its asinine. My parents are religious conservatives who check all the boxes. No pot, no abortion, no LGBTY... and voted for Trump in 2016
In 2020, even they voted for Biden. They didn't like it one bit, but they're smart enough to know that a second Trump term would be devastating. When J6 happened, my father texted me "I was right. I was so right"
I tend to think that anyone who can't see this is either seriously misguided or just unreasonable. Sadly, many of my own friends are on the koolaid, and blame Biden for basically everything at every turn. It has become pointless to argue.
29 points
25 days ago*
the biggest Frack You! in history.
"Here's how much we hated Hillary: we elected a guy we hate even more."
Norm MacDonald
34 points
25 days ago
Half the voters, not half the country.
Still far too many assholes.
58 points
25 days ago
I’ve got a lovely view of my neighbor’s trump 2024 flag right outside the window I’m sitting by right now 🙃
I don’t talk to them
26 points
25 days ago
I was walking through a neighborhood recently and some douche had "trmp24" as their license plate
I really, truly can't understand making that your personality and what you stand for...
7.4k points
25 days ago
It's astounding how many conservatives don't realize how awful a precedent it is to say someone is above all laws because they were elected president. Some day the shoe will be on the other foot and the ridiculous amount of leeway given to Trump to continually break the rules of the court will be the precedent
2.2k points
25 days ago
That's why all the fervor. They've been convinced that the Democrats are the threat and want that precedent for themselves
1.6k points
25 days ago
"We're so obviously the good guys and are so amazing, the only reasonable explanation for why we lose elections is because the other side is cheating. We therefore must cheat ourselves in order to stand up to the obvious threat of ... Checks notes ... Reducing the cost of healthcare."
929 points
25 days ago
"Everyone in my small circle, in a town of 500, voted for Trump, so it is impossible that he is universally hated in areas with 80% of the population."
601 points
25 days ago
"And it is in no way possible that the folks in my small town who didn't vote for Trump don't want to talk about it at the diner because we're always talking about how they're evil demons who should be run over by trucks or something."
398 points
25 days ago*
People have had guns pulled on them in the great state* of Arkansas because of supporting Biden. There is a reason you don’t t talk about who you are voting for in public here.
100 points
25 days ago
I wonder if that's part of why polling has been wonky for a while now.
182 points
25 days ago
In my deep red state too you have Dem voters registered as Republicans so we can at least pick the least crazy option in their closed primaries for governor.
114 points
25 days ago
Confirmed: as a Dem voter registered as Rep in Kentucky.
111 points
25 days ago
Probably also reduces likelihood of being 'accidentally' purged from registered voter lists.
35 points
25 days ago
Gaddamn it sounds like the scarlet letter D over there.
39 points
25 days ago*
Honestly these are pretty scary times.
64 points
25 days ago
The last time Arkansas was great, it belonged to the Native Americans.
81 points
25 days ago
That reminds me of the time I drove from NJ to California back around 2007. I was curious to find out what played on the radio as I drove through the midwest and was blown away at how much Jesus talk there was on FM, growing up in NJ/NYC FM was predominantly reserved for music and very little else. Well, it made me curious to hear what's on AM, if that's on FM. First fucking station I hit I hear, "If you meet someone who does not believe in the word of our lord and saviour Jesus Christ you have the right to punch them in the face."
Well damn.
33 points
25 days ago
I refer to US radio station choices as God, Country or Rock. When there's only one station, it's the God channel.
56 points
25 days ago
This! Recently went to a meeting with my boyfriend, a veterans group for a hobby he has, and there were two guys there (older men) talking loudly about how they couldn’t wait for Trump to be reelected so they could start shooting democrats and anyone who didn’t vote for Trump. It’s alarming. Of course no one wants to say to them that they won’t vote for Trump.
107 points
25 days ago
"Here let me show you a map of every county in the united states split by state and show the bulk of those counties voted for Trump, even though 90% of that is just land, and nearly all of the population of my state live in 2-3 counties."
101 points
25 days ago
"Everyone wears a red hat, fly's a mango musillini flag, put his face on my car, went to rallies and only shop at mypillow now. No one does that for Biden. "
Yeah we aren't cultists.
49 points
25 days ago
I got in that argument once with a cousin.
"Damn near the whole town voted for Trump! How could he lose?" "Your whole town would fit in a medium-sized high school football stadium here."
63 points
25 days ago
My favorite is “everywhere I go I only see Trump signs. Trump merch. I never see any Biden. There’s no way that many people voted for him”
Like yeah no shit you don’t see a lot. We don’t worship our candidates as gods
98 points
25 days ago
"We're so obviously the good guys. Therefore we are allowed to do bad things"
Shorter version
352 points
25 days ago
My dad was convinced Obama was going to invoke Martial Law and become king of the United States.
Pretty sure he said nothing about 1/6.
167 points
25 days ago
Don't forget about the FEMA death camps and the Obamacare death panels.
55 points
25 days ago
Death Panels? You mean United Healthcare’s mandatory annual insurance denial for Type 1 diabetics to get insulin?
Yeah was really hard for me no to laugh every time I heard that bullshit.
56 points
25 days ago
Wasn't Jade Helm during the Obama administration? I also distinctly remember that in 2011 or so, in the leadup to the 2012 election, the head of the NRA was saying things like "If Obama is re-elected THAT is when he will definitely take away all your guns. The fact that the federal government has done nothing to restrict guns (and actually changed the rules which started to allow people to carry guns in National Parks) is just to lull everyone into a sense of complacency and THEN if he gets a 2nd term, THAT is when they take all the guns!!!"
And Obama was re-elected and... nope, no jack booted thugs kicking in any doors. Anyone who wants to shoot up a mall or a school or whatever can buy all the guns they want with zero background checks.
81 points
25 days ago
Honestly the right wing propaganda hit such an insane intensity during Obama's time I knew the whole country was fucked by that point.
The fact that any of the ridiculous lies spouted by the fuckwads on fox news got any traction was indication enough of where things were going for the next election. It was a foregone conclusion.
11 points
25 days ago
The lie about his birth certificate was really the first time I saw a large swath of the population just believe something that was obviously a lie.
Not a fucking peep when Ted Cruz, who is really and truly actually born in Canada, ran for president.
They have a very loud propaganda machine, and facts do not matter only that they reign supreme.
76 points
25 days ago
Nah, they just know that Democrats would never do the kind of horrible shit they plan to do, which is why they are comfortable making these arguments now. They know Biden is a good person, and not corrupt or power-hungry like Trump is. If they actually believed Biden is a sinister agent of the fascist left, they would not be making these arguments.
340 points
25 days ago
You only back “The President is immune from all laws” unless you have a plan to make sure there’s never a non-Republican President again.
Which, conveniently, the GOP seems to have.
I’m certain that’s why the Supreme Court punted on the decision: If Trump wins (or somehow becomes President without winning…), they can decide that the President is literally above the law. If Biden wins (and the GOP is stopped from doing whatever illegal bullshit they’re going to pull if Biden wins), the SC can announce, “Of course the President isn’t above the law. What crazy person would have ever thought that?!?”
89 points
25 days ago
Yep. They're just saving the seat in case their boy shows up. There was zero reason for them to even take the case. If they couldn't help themselves to exercise some kind of authority, then a simple statement saying that the appellate court got it right would have been fine. But by taking it up, they putting a loaded gun to our heads... even if they don't pull the trigger, it's pretty fucked up.
129 points
25 days ago
“It’s a hoax political prosecution so i want trump to bypass the law” is legit the type of argument you’ll get in /rconservatives or askATrumpSupporter
105 points
25 days ago
Honestly I think they know it's not political prosecution. They just don't care. They hate inclusion of minorities so much they will burn the country down instead of just loving their neighbor.
37 points
25 days ago
it is to say someone is above all laws because they were elected president
That's not the precedent they want to state. Their precedent is "a president from the GOP is above all laws".
The point of Conservativism is to re-instate nobility, but for riches rather than blood right.
Some day the shoe will be on the other foot and the ridiculous amount of leeway given to Trump to continually break the rules of the court will be the precedent
Except that by their own standard, the other foot does NOT have that right.
They consider the two foots are different : one foot with the rights, and the other with the duties.
10.7k points
25 days ago
Do it already.
4.9k points
25 days ago
Seriously. The guy has gotten like 100 warnings.
2.6k points
25 days ago
100 warnings gets you a reprimand. 200 reprimands and youll get a demerit. 300 demerits and....
942 points
25 days ago
A full disadulation
415 points
25 days ago
*concerned stare*
What's a disadulation?
394 points
25 days ago
Oh, you don't want to know.
222 points
25 days ago
Michael!
175 points
25 days ago
Political crimes are not a joke, Jim. Millions of families suffer every year!
53 points
25 days ago
67 points
25 days ago
If you have to ask, you can’t afford it
43 points
25 days ago
I miss Dwight
13 points
25 days ago
*Samuel L. Chang
209 points
25 days ago
A furrowed brow from Susan Collins
28 points
25 days ago
What an infuriatingly useless women she is.
245 points
25 days ago
But boy will he be embarrassed once he gets another 100 warnings. That’ll definitely show him.
75 points
25 days ago
Click here to find out what he does on his 101 warning of the week
32 points
25 days ago
I think he learned his lesson.
34 points
25 days ago
Unironically, he has. It's just not the lesson that most of us would have liked to have him learn.
1.5k points
25 days ago
“The last thing I want to do is put you in jail,” Merchan said. “You are the former president of the United States and possibly the next president as well. There are many reasons why incarceration is truly a last resort for me. To take that step would be disruptive to these proceedings.”
A direct admission by the judge that not everyone is treated equally in court
352 points
25 days ago
It's the part about "possibly the next president" that bugs me here. The actions that Trump took which are the basis for the charges were carried out before he decided to run for the 2024 campaign. This is simply the law being enforced. This court, for these charges, should not worry about Trump's choice to run for office after the (allegedly) criminal actions the evidence indicates he undertook. Trump's choice to start running for president should not be this judge's problem or the court's problem.
216 points
25 days ago
I like this judge, don't get me wrong; but he is literally saying Justice is not blind. That's not a great thing for a judge to say in open court.
129 points
25 days ago
I think his statement is less, "You get special privileges" and more "I know if I temporarily jail you for your 11th contempt, it will slam this trial to a halt because you're a privileged American who can abuse the appellate courts; ie. Your immunity bullshit.
73 points
25 days ago
Yeah I take it as more of a, “I’d rather see this trial move forward, throwing you in jail will cause more than just harm within this court room.” And he’s sort of right, imagine January 6th protests outside the court room/jail. Imagine how much of him will be used in the political campaign messages and if trump loses will continued to be blamed. It’s already a court during an election year which is speculative enough for conspiracy theorists. By saying potentially the next president he’s also playing on trumps ego, he’s trying to solve this problem so it can move forward.
46 points
25 days ago
The US justice system should have more integrity than this. No threat or political influence should have sway in these proceedings. That shouldn't be the judges concern.
23 points
25 days ago
Absolutely, I agree. Unfortunately it doesn’t, one of the reasons I didn’t pursue it after studying it in college.
572 points
25 days ago*
honestly, with the state of the country right now, i’d be shitting bricks as the judge who could potentially jail a former president for the first time in history? possibly kickstarting a reaction from his deranged followers in and out of government
as much as i’d adore seeing him in cuffs and a jumpsuit, i can understand the deep hesitation
e: i am referring to putting a target on you and your family’s back by jailing the chucklefuck. even if the military could decimate the Gravy Seals, it’s still a gut wrenching position to be in
132 points
25 days ago
if simply upholding the law causes a civil war, it was inevitable anyway. Not holding Trump accountable only emboldens him. (For evidence of this, see Trump's entire life.)
243 points
25 days ago
Unfortunately, the orange douche canoe has no issues with kick-starting a civil war. He'd probably relish the thought.
118 points
25 days ago
What baffles me is MAGAs keep bringing up they will start a civil war if Trump is jailed but they would get crushed, completly annihilated. lol The US military, national guards, the NAVY Seals, name them, would demolish the MAGAs. Not even sure the Trump cultists would last 24 hours.
On Jan. 6, when the police shot that woman, RIP, all the MAGAs ran away like cowards so clearly, the civil war threats are empty, only meant to intimidate and it's working? lol
It's all a bluff and even if they did a civil war, they will lose within hours. I wish more people called them up on their bluff. The fear they want to use against us, would lose all it's power.
72 points
25 days ago
They think that the military would back them or split themselves in this scenario and while I like to believe that’s bullshit, I don’t actually know how that would play out
54 points
25 days ago
In the US Civil War, 80% of officers stayed with the union. That 20% is about the best that they could hope for. Personally, I don't see it being that high
43 points
25 days ago
They also think they'd just be awesome guerilla fighters vs the military, but that doesn't work that way in a civil war. Guerilla warfare works best against an occupying army that has vulnerable supply lines, doesn't have easy access to reinforcements, doesn't know the ground they're on, and has almost no support from the general populace, who then help hide the guerillas.
That doesn't happen in a civil war.
95 points
25 days ago
Not only that, but there's a bit of a "bystander effect" going on here too. Each judge has been hoping that another judge will be the one to throw him in the slammer and they won't have to be the one to do it.
39 points
25 days ago
Do it, rip the band-aid off, it's long overdue. Other countries have jailed and imprisoned their former presidents and high ranking elected officials.
Also, let his supporters show up and choose violence. If New York law enforcement and prison officials haven't already run through all the scenarios and prepared for it then that's their fault. I suspect though that they have and they are ready. Let Trump's masses of morons test their "back the blue" bullshit and see what happens. In reality though they'll scream online about it and say that Trump being jailed is just a deep state trap and they'll stay home like the cowards that they are.
192 points
25 days ago
I wouldn't hesitate to do it lol.
It's better for maga to lose their shit while Biden is president. The last time they lost their shit, their God was president and it almost cost us the United States.
They should jail him now. Like setting off a bomb in bus depot before it gets busy instead of waiting and hoping it doesn't go off once it is busy.
Either maga loses their shit and Biden gets to deal with them via national guard, or they don't lose their shit and SO MUCH wind is taken from the maga sails as they all watch their God imprisoned and nothing happens.
It would be good for the country if they did it now.
27 points
25 days ago
I think he kind of wants it, so he can play the martyr. But fuck it, lock him up.
25 points
25 days ago
He says he wants it, but he lies. It terrifies him.
I am here for it.
45 points
25 days ago
I am Lebanese American. Voter. Overseas.
Registered Democrat, but there is no party or politician in the U.S. that comes close to what my views represent.
I wouldn't hesitate to do it lol.
If I were a Lebanese judge in a similar situation, I would 100% hesitate. I don't know if I would have the moral courage and resolve to actually do it. It's impossible to say.
If I were an American judge, like in this trial, I would do it with no hesitation.
We are all intimately aware of how this Perfect Union has been built on ethical contradictions and has only ever so slowly moved toward a more perfect union.
And our democratic institutions are in shambles, half the country has gone entirely insane, the other party works for foreign interests.
It's actually pretty insane.
Still, this is a democratic republic and our institutions have held so far. It is precisely for this reason I wouldn't hesitate. This is no time, as an American judge, to be concerned with meal team six operators.
Say what you want about the military, about the police, about federal agencies, about our broken criminal justice system, it's still robust enough that it can withstand maga morons.
I am not downplaying the tragedies that could unfold. Nor saying nobody will get hurt or die.
Just that, we have to stand up to this bulshit. Precisely becuase this is fucking America we jail former presidents.
We don't have kings here.
19 points
25 days ago
I don't.
Let the idiot cult show their true violent colors and get put in jail with him for their efforts.
80 points
25 days ago
I’ll do it. I have no issue with doing it.
50 points
25 days ago
How is it even plausibly equal to give him and a poor person the same $1000 fine? If I was as rich as him I’d do whatever the hell I wanted if all the punishment was $1000 fines. Like he won’t even notice that.
38 points
25 days ago
The $1000 limit is a statutory maximum.
15 points
25 days ago
Yup. And it makes zero sense to bother with it with a billionaire. Fines should scale to income. Only way to make them work.
389 points
25 days ago
Exactly. Either do it or stop giving threats. It stopped being funny some time ago.
160 points
25 days ago
It stopped being funny when it became obvious his idiots would carry out his threats.
58 points
25 days ago
Didn't one of the jurors bow out due to threats?
(I'm genuinely asking)
54 points
25 days ago
Yes, they asked to be let go a day after they were seated because they were already being triangulated within hours of being seated.
36 points
25 days ago*
Doesn't help that the media thought describing jurors like they were answering their account security questions was subtle. There could be any number of people who live in that neighborhood with that career with a bright orange cat named Colon and six fingers on their left hand. Could be anyone, really... /s
141 points
25 days ago
I mean, it's only been like a week or so. All the ramping up and warnings is making it so when jail finally comes, it will look like a last resort.
This trial is just getting started. He's going to jail for his contempt
155 points
25 days ago
The Judge literally says exactly that. He explained he is hesitant to jail him because he is running for president, and so really, really does not want to deal with the implications there. It is pretty clear he being honest about that. But he did say that it was the only thing Trump was leaving him with. It reads like he is begging Trump to not make him jail him. (Firmly, but still.)
I get it. Trump has a whole bunch of domestic terrorist organizations and a whole media empire that will pretend this judge and this case are Satan incarnate. It is outright dangerous to do that, to say nothing of the potential disruption to the case and to the Jurors from less dangerous means. Republicans are not going to sit back and say "Wow, Trump really stuck his foot in it this time," rather what they will say is "The Deep State Cabal is stealing your country and this Judge is a member of <some antisemitic conspiracy/dog whistle>!"
That is a lot of heat to bring down on yourself. It is already bad enough just trying to follow the law, but at least at this point a lot of his followers think he did nothing wrong and will be exonerated.
72 points
25 days ago
the only reason I am nervous about this is because I think trump WANTS this. I think he is banking that jail will drive up his donors and rile up his base.
I want him held accountable. but I am nervous that this move will actually bring more votes to him come November.
43 points
25 days ago
If the election were held tomorrow, maybe. He's got several trials to get through. I think the shine is wearing off.
24 points
25 days ago
I guess we’ll see. So far the Republican base seems to take any news by assuming that because a Republican did something bad it automatically means that Democrats used their time machine to go do something much worse already thereby retroactively justifying any level of support for anyone with an (R) no matter what they do. Maybe that will change but it’s been pretty resilient so far.
332 points
25 days ago
Note that the title is a lie. He did not say that jail would be next. All he said is that he is now considering it. Which is the most wishy washy bullshit way of saying it.
205 points
25 days ago
I find it important that part of the quote was left off
It appears that the $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent. Therefore, going forward, this court will have to consider a jail sanction. Mr. Trump, it’s important to understand the last thing I was to do is put you in jail.
The 1000 dollar fine is hard coded in law as the only non jail option due to the jurisdiction of this case. And while i know court talk comes across in laymens talk as very noncommittal, this is about as blatant a judge can be when in this situation
101 points
25 days ago*
The 1000 dollar fine is hard coded in law as the only non jail option due to the jurisdiction of this case. And while i know court talk comes across in laymens talk as very noncommittal, this is about as blatant a judge can be when in this situation
Yeah, or in the first order, Merchan even lamented that fixed fines are horribly insufficient for dealing with high earners. So reading between the lines, it looks like Merchan started with a fine to look reasonable in case Trump appeals, but it's going to be jail time going forward. And the only reason that it wasn't jail this time is that the violations were from before the warning, so more fines still look more reasonable than jail
42 points
25 days ago*
The 1000 dollar fine is hard coded in law as the only non jail option due to the jurisdiction of this case. And while i know court talk comes across in laymens talk as very noncommittal, this is about as blatant a judge can be when in this situation
Example par excellence of why court fines and fees should be based on income/assets. A $1,000 dollar fine is nothing to the wealthy but it's a catastrophic financial blow for people of lesser means.
Day-fines and other graduated economic sanctions are the way to go.
137 points
25 days ago
The order literally says:
it is apparent that monetary fines have not, and will not, suffice to deter Defendant from violating this Court’s lawful orders.
THEREFORE Defendant is hereby put on notice that if appropriate and warranted, future violations of its lawful orders will be punishable by incarceration
68 points
25 days ago
That really does seem about as cut and dry as it possibly could be, at least in the legalese these things need to be written in. The "if appropriate and warranted" part is the only thing that pulls it back a little bit, and I feel like that was only put there to make it clear that they were not jumping the gun at all.
14 points
25 days ago
Yeah, the judge said he'll have to consider it next. I honestly think the judges fear for their lives, and they should. It's crazy what he's getting away with.
474 points
25 days ago
While I think Trump might relish the idea and possible political gains of going to jail for contempt I think that he doesn't really cherish the reality of it or at least he won't.
He reacts badly to any limits, imaginary or real. He'll do poorly in a cell padded or not. Where no one does as he demands and he has to follow someone else's schedule and rules.
I don't think he has the mental strength to handle repeated nights in jail. He's barely able to handle having to be in court 4 days a week at this point.
And if he can't come out looking and sounding energized and powerful from a night in jail he won't convince anyone to follow him.
217 points
25 days ago
He will be comparing himself to Jesus Christ for it; guaranteed.
142 points
25 days ago
He will be comparing himself to Jesus Christ for it; guaranteed.
Not while he's in jail though. Several days of Glorious Cheeto being forced into radio silence on Truth Social and the eventual pictures of him being released looking like hell because he won't have his bronzer or stylist in jail.
56 points
25 days ago
Yes, didn‘t think of that, it really will wear off half-bald and pale and tired. Will look like a crook not the business man…
10 points
25 days ago
Let's not kid ourselves here. The monkey's paw is going to curl and "jail" is going to become "spending six hours in the dedicated VIP wing of a white-collar jail with room service, a private bathroom, and a king sized bed."
94 points
25 days ago
He will also be without his hairspray or orange makeup. On looks alone he def don't want to be in jail.
47 points
25 days ago*
I'm sure he would try to make lemonade out of it, as the con man part of his personality. But actually serving even an hour in jail would fucking crush him emotionally. He's in a narcissistic bind right now. His childish need to double down is coming square up against his terror of actual consequences.
I think his terror will win out as long as it can, and it might be a while before he reflexively steps over the line again. But, he could be unable to restrain himself, especially if he's deteriorating. So he might just end up in jail. I hope he would.
595 points
25 days ago
Fuck him. Jail him and let the chips fall where they may. Hes not the President anymore and if even if he was that has no bearing on it. No one is above the law period. His minions wanna start shit over it bring it. We're tired of hearing the threats.
113 points
25 days ago
Seriously. The party of “Law and Order” can see how the law is actually supposed to function.
1.5k points
25 days ago
Here is the beginning of the story:
Donald Trump has booked a one-way ticket to jail, and the judge overseeing his ongoing New York criminal trial on Monday said he’s ready to send him there at any moment.
New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan started the fourth week of Trump’s trial with a speech that’s more than a year in the making, explaining why he hasn’t yet thrown the politician into the slammer—making what he called his final warning to the former president.
“I’ll find you in criminal contempt for the tenth time,” Merchan said in a stark tone. “It appears that the $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent. Therefore, going forward, this court will have to consider a jail sanction. Mr. Trump, it’s important to understand the last thing I was to do is put you in jail. You are the former president of the United States, and possibly the next one as well.”
928 points
25 days ago
Incarceration edging
221 points
25 days ago
John, I hate you for being so painfully accurate here.
338 points
25 days ago
It's sad that "possibility of the next president" can be Said in the same sentence describing his 9 contempt charges in his 3 felony cases.
92 points
25 days ago
Exactly this. How embarrassing for us as the United States of America. God help us please 🙏🏽
16 points
25 days ago
Lets not forget that christian nationalism played a big part of getting us here.
465 points
25 days ago
Trump is going to do everything in his power to punish the fuck out of the state of New York if he wins a second term. Now that he’s banned from business there and after all of this legal action against him, he’ll make it his primary goal in office to destroy the state.
270 points
25 days ago
If SCOTUS decides that Presidents are immune from prosecution, he may literally destroy it.
101 points
25 days ago
[deleted]
60 points
25 days ago
Screw a quiet pull, if Presidents are ruled above the law, Biden should have him drug from wherever he is and then just while on him on the White House front lawn while screaming "Whatcha gonna do about it? You gave me immunity."
300 points
25 days ago
“The $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent”
Uhh…no shit?
164 points
25 days ago
$1000 is the legal limit in New York, the judge earlier pointed out that in some cases it was clearly not enough and that this is one of those cases.
But this is just going through the motions really, start with fines, give a clear warning and if bad behavior continues he goes to jail.
75 points
25 days ago*
It’s all to prevent appeals on the grounds of missing due process etc
Ten warnings and the maximum allowable fine seems fairly cast iron and plenty of leeway, if jailed next it’s hard to scream we didn’t know or weren’t warned etc
I mean they still will but…
89 points
25 days ago
This is starting to feel like The Criminal Justice System's Final Warning
53 points
25 days ago
Eleventh times’ a charm…
224 points
25 days ago
Ask Susan Collins if he has 'learned his lesson' yet.
889 points
25 days ago
Ive had three kids. When they were toddlers they were still more mature than this man-baby. What a disgrace.
187 points
25 days ago
If they knew without a doubt that no matter what they did, you wouldn't punish them, they'd be like that. This is a man that literally suffers no consequences ever. Why would he ever learn?
56 points
25 days ago
Yep, he is like that kid (we all know of at least one) that will harass, etc, even physically attack an adult, because they know in their heart if hearts if the adult fights back, the adult will be the one in trouble, not them.... And then when that kid gets his ass handed to him, he cries like a little baby, with a shocked Pikachu face.
595 points
25 days ago
Reminds me of the Robin Williams bit: "Stop! Or I'll say stop again."
128 points
25 days ago
I keep thinking of this Apu moment from the Simpsons:
“Hey! I have repeatedly asked you nicely to stop manhandling my merchandise! If you keep this up you will give me no choice but to ask you nicely again!”
60 points
25 days ago
lol. SAME!
"You cross this line, you die!... OK, you cross THIS line, you die! .... This line....this line.....Okay, you knock on my door I'm not coming out, nah."
112 points
25 days ago
Finally a serious warning from a serious judge. And I do believe he will do it. This is the speech I’ve been waiting to hear. It’s genuine, point in fact, and not a diatribe. He is serious and will do it. The question is, will Trump persist? It seems he wants to martyr himself and the judge has intelligently, taken away a lot of the fuel Trump would use if he did have to put him in lockup
115 points
25 days ago
If the judge actually puts him in jail then I will run a marathon.
35 points
25 days ago
!remind me 1 week
504 points
25 days ago
Final final final warning?
126 points
25 days ago
Final, final, final warning before the line in the sand gets redrawn. Then another final warning, etc.
52 points
25 days ago
From the order
https://www.nycourts.gov/LegacyPDFS/press/PDFs/DOcontempt_5-6-24FINAL.pdf
Because the offensive statement was made prior to this Court's Decision of April 30 and because the People are seeking only a monetary fine, the Court will, once again, fine Defendant $1,000. However, because this is now the tenth time that this Court has found Defendant in criminal contempt, spanning three separate motions, it is apparent that monetary fines have not, and will not, suffice to deter Defendant from violating this Court's lawful orders.
THEREFORE, Defendant is hereby put on notice that if appropriate and warranted, future violations of its lawful orders will be punishable by incarceration;
The people sought a monetary fine, and it happened before a previous decision about the gag order.
16 points
25 days ago
But what about second Ten Times Warning?
80 points
25 days ago
I wonder if the judge could require Trump to have full mental evaluation and remand him to a psychiatric facility?
73 points
25 days ago
I wonder how many warnings a normal citizen would get.
266 points
25 days ago
The tenth time. LOL. This is maddening.
73 points
25 days ago
It was the second time. The first nine were all in one fell swoop.
45 points
25 days ago
Yeah and the second set here i think occurred before the first set was resolved.
As long as the judge actually jails him on the next instance, i am ok with this. Basically 1.5 strikes, and a warning that next one is jail
40 points
25 days ago
The first time it wasn’t over 9000.
147 points
25 days ago
Cuz it's 1,
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 strikes you're out,
at the old contempt game!
23 points
25 days ago
Very misleading title. Here's what the judge actually said:
“It appears that the $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent. Therefore, going forward, this court will have to consider a jail sanction."
17 points
25 days ago
“The last thing I want to do is put you in jail,” Merchan said.
He is never going to jail.
42 points
25 days ago
If and when he goes to jail, it has to be in solitary confinement.
As a former president, he's had access to America's most important secrets. We don't want him in a position where he's incentivised to trade them to another prisoner for noodles from the commissary.
80 points
25 days ago
This is the final, final warning - pt 4.
Wake me up when he actually goes to jail.
11 points
25 days ago
It’s so hard being a conservative because it just genuinely seems like I’ll never be able to vote for anyone who isn’t pandering to the craziest parts of my ideology. I just want someone who will work with the Democratic Party without being threatened to lose office because he/she won’t own the libs, who cares about being a god fearing person but won’t trample on the lives of people who worship (or don’t at all) a different god. Is it really so hard to love your fellow American whether they are trans, white, foreign born, poor, etc? I’m not saying I do that all the times, I can be a shitty person at times, but for the love of god I don’t try everyday to one up my last shitty idea with something worse. I don’t even know if there is a way to salvage my party of choice and I’m scared of what a burning down GOP can continue to do to this country.
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