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Google claims it is stepping up efforts to combat online "misinformation" ahead of the European Union's parliamentary elections in June with a new "prebunking" initiative. The European elections will likely serve as a dry run for Google's attempts to influence the 2024 presidential election.
The post Thought Police: Google Launches βPrebunkingβ Campaign to Counter βElection Misinformationβ appeared first on Breitbart.
The appeals court identified additional errors and decided that Weinstein had not received a fair trialβ which is true.Β
The post Nolte: Appeals Court Rightly Overturns Harvey Weinstein NY Conviction appeared first on Breitbart.
Consumer spending weakened by much more than expected while inflation accelerated.
The post Stagflation Shock: GDP Growth Slows Much More Than Expected While Inflation Accelerates appeared first on Breitbart.
WHAT IF 'KING' ORDERS COUP?
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TRUMP CLAIMS ASSASSINATION PRIVILEGE!
SUPREME COURT SHOCK
KILL A RIVAL, KILL AN ENEMY
SUPREME COURT SHOCK
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President Trump on Thursday morning arrived at a construction site to greet union workers in New York.
Trump made the surprise visit to the construction site ahead of his βhush moneyβ trial in Manhattan.
βI did nothing wrong. Itβs a political witch hunt. Itβs election interference. Thatβs all it is!β Trump said to thunderous chants of βUSA!β βUSA!β
According to The New York Post, supporters lined up as early as 5 am to catch a glimpse of Trump.
βWe love Trump because he loves this country!β one supporter told The Post.
You would never see this kind of energy with Joe Biden.
WATCH:
GOOD MORNING FROM NEW YORK!
Union workers chant βUSAβ as President Trump visits their construction site pic.twitter.com/KjcZ9UzvX3
β Karoline Leavitt (@kleavittnh) April 25, 2024
The union workers love Trump.
New York union leader Bobby Bartels trashed the Democrat party after he met with Trump on Thursday morning.
βWe are basically Democratsβ all of us. [But] after whatβs happened the last 4 years in this country, Democrats have basically pushed everybody to the other side,β Bobby Bartels told Newsmax.
WATCH:
New York union leader Bobby Bartels after meeting with Trump in NYC:
βWe are basically Democratsβ all of us. [But] after whatβs happened the last 4 years in this country, Democrats have basically pushed everybody to the other side.β pic.twitter.com/VQLAJAGcGL
β Addison Smith (@AddisonSmithTV) April 25, 2024
The post New York Union Workers Chant βUSA!β As President Trump Visits Their Construction Site β Union Leader Trashes Democrats, Praises Trump (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Servicemen of the 1148th Separate Artillery Brigade of Air Assault Troops of Ukraine fire an M777 howitzer towards Russian troops in Donetsk Region, Ukraine, April 20, 2024.
The District Attorney for El Paso, Bill Hicks, has indicted 140 illegal aliens on rioting charges after a leftist county judge attempted to dismiss the case against them.
El Paso Times reports that Hicks presented the charges to a grand jury on Tuesday after El Paso County Judge Ruben Morales dismissed the charges on grounds of lack of probable cause.
This is the moment when TX National Guard became overrun by migrants rioting to get across the border here in El Paso today
We were there and saw it all happen. Absolute chaos here. pic.twitter.com/VN6Kf663ie
β Jennie Taer (@JennieSTaer) March 21, 2024
Hicks explained:
We took all 141 of those cases to a grand jury this morning. Because the judgeβs ruling was limited to the complaint affidavit in front of him, it allowed us to take the broader case to the grand jury.
We presented the case as a whole. We presented videotape evidence of what happened. The grand jurors believed there was, in fact, probable cause. The citizens of El Paso, through the grand jury, essentially overruled the judgeβs ruling and found probable cause to believe that the riots did occur.
Traditionally, we reserve the grand jury for felony indictment, and we donβt take misdemeanors to a grand jury. However, when there is a question regarding probable cause, I believe it is fair to take these cases to 12 citizens of our community.
El Paso County Public Defender Kelli Childress, who is defending the illegals against criminal prosecution, condemned the indictment and called it a violation of their human rights:
We pretty much predicted that was their plan, which is why we sought a probable cause hearing in advance of todayβs grand jury. I canβt say we didnβt know it was coming. We didnβt know exactly when. Knowing that it was coming doesnβt at all ease the fact that I think it is a horrible move. I think it is a blatant violation of constitutional rights and human rights.
I find it pretty amazing that they were able to indict 140 misdemeanor cases basically overnight, yet I have hundreds and hundreds of felony cases waiting to be charged for more than a year. They can claim all they want that this isnβt about politics and itβs not about immigration laws, but their actions scream otherwise.
This is not the first time that an El Paso judge has sided with illegal aliens over the rule of law.
Last month, El Paso Magistrate Judge Humberto AcostaΒ ordered the release of dozens of migrants who engaged in a violent encounter with National Guard troops along the Rio Grande as they attempted to enter into the country illegally.
The post El Paso DA Indicts 140 Illegal Aliens on Rioting Charges After Leftist County Judge Dismissed Their Case appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie has appeared to wish death on Donald Trump and Vivek Ramaswamy.
The failed presidential candidate spoke at an event on Tuesday at the University of Chicago titled βDoes the Truth Still Matter? In Conversation With Chris Christie.β
βI would have preferred any of those people over Trump,β Christie said when asked about other Republican candidates. βRamaswamy and Trump, I would have hoped for a death match where they both die.β
The comments led to awkward laughs from the audience, while the moderator asked him whether he meant βa literal death match.β
βYes,β Christie responded, βWhere they both die.β
Watch the exchange below:
Chris Christie: βI would have preferred any of those people over Trump. Ramaswamy and Trump I would have hoped for a death match. Where they both die.β
The applause break from the βprogressive crowdβ was a nice touch of irony. pic.twitter.com/gkijE5ER54β Eric Abbenante (@EricAbbenante) April 24, 2024
Having been a vocal supporter of Trump in 2016 and interviewing for a position as his chief of staff, Christie has viciously turned his back on both the former president and the MAGA movement.
He recently flirted with the prospect of running as an independent but has since closed the door on the idea on the grounds that there is no chance he could win.
βI appreciate the encouragement Iβve gotten to pursue a third-party candidacy,β Christie said last month. βWhile I believe this is a conversation that needs to be had with the American people, I also believe that if there is not a pathway to win and if my candidacy in any way, shape or form would help Donald Trump become president again, then it is not the way forward.β
The post βWhere They Both Dieβ: Nasty Chris Christie Wishes Death on Donald Trump and Vivek Ramaswamy appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Weissmann said Wednesday on MSNBC's "The ReidOut" that Donald Trump's former Attorney Kenneth Chesebro is likely cooperating with the Arizona prosecutors who indicted 17 individuals in an election case.
The post Weissmann: Arizona Indictments Mean Kenneth Chesebro Likely Cooperating appeared first on Breitbart.
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Trump White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, RNC attorney Christina Bobb, conservative attorney John Eastman, andΒ Trump campaign adviser Boris Epshteyn are among the eighteen individuals indicted by an Arizona grand jury in the latest election interference witch hunt against President Trump and his allies.
President Trump was named βUnindicted Coconspirator-1β in the indictment because he made a phone call about the ballot counting to former governor Doug Ducey.
The charges include nine counts of conspiracy, fraudulent schemes and artifices, fraudulent schemes and practices, and forgery. βDefendants and unindicted coconspirators schemed to prevent the lawful transfer of the presidency to keep Unindicted Coconspirator 1 in office against the will of Arizonaβs voters,β The indictment alleges.
The indictment further states, βDefendants deceived the citizens of Arizona by falsely claiming that those votes were contingent only on a legal challenge that would change the outcome of the election. In reality, Defendants intended that their false votes for Trump-Pence would encourage Pence to reject the Biden-Harris votes on January 6,Β 2021, regardless of the outcome of the legal challenge. When combined with the six other States where Republican electors sent in uncertified votes for Trump-Pence, Defendants wanted Pence to either declare Unindicted Coconspirator 1 the winner of the election, delay the proceeding and have individual state legislatures determine their electors, or have Congress resolve any claimed uncertainty about the validity of election results in Arizona and six other states in Unindicted Coconspirator 1βs favor.βΒ
However, this is perfectly legal conduct and there is a legal precedent for this so-called deception:
PerΒ Politico:
By December 1960, it was clear Kennedy had won. Only Hawaiiβs result remained in doubt.Β Nixon had prevailed by just 140 votes, according to the initial results, which were certified by the governor.Β A recount was underway on Dec. 19, 1960, when presidential electors across the nation were required by law to meet and cast their ballots.
Nixonβs Hawaii electors met and cast their three votes in an official ceremony. But nearby, Kennedyβs three elector nominees gathered and signed their own certificates, delivering them to Washington as though Kennedy had won the state.
The Gateway Pundit reported on the indictment yesterday.
Arizonaβs radical left Democrat Attorney General Kris Mayes, who stole her election from Abe Hamadeh by 280 votes, announced the charges on Wednesday afternoon. She defended her witch hunt and the curious timing of the indictment β just months before the 2024 general election. Make no mistake, the charges are a warning shot to anyone who may want to challenge the 2024 election.
Democrat prosecutors in other states are also targeting Trumpβs alternate electors.
In July, Democrat Michigan Attorney General Dana NesselΒ criminally chargedΒ 16 dueling βTrump electorsβ in the stateβs 2020 election.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis recentlyΒ indictedΒ three of Trumpβs alternate electors in Georgia as part of her RICO and conspiracy case against Trump.
Five of the individuals indicted in Georgia were also indicted in Arizona.
The 18 Defendants facing felony charges in Arizona include:
Per the Washington Post, attorneys and spokespersons for Mark Meadows, Rudy Giuliani, John Eastman, and Kelli Ward responded to a request for comment:
Meadows lawyer George Terwilliger said Wednesday he had not yet seen the indictment when a Post reporter called him. After reviewing the indictment, he said: βIf Mr. Meadows is named in this indictment, it is a blatantly political and politicized accusation and will be contested and defeated.β
βThe continued weaponization of our justice system should concern every American, as it does permanent, irrevocable harm to the country,β Ted Goodman, a spokesman for Giuliani, said in response to the indictment.
βThe phenomenon of partisan lawfare grows more troubling by the day,β Charles Burnham, an attorney for Eastman, said in an email responding to the Arizona charges. βProfessor Eastman is innocent of criminal conduct in Arizona or any other place and will fight these charges as he has all the other unjust accusations leveled against him.β
A lawyer representing Ward and most of the other Trump electors said: βWe are certainly disappointed in todayβs developments and are confident that these charges are unwarranted."
The Gateway Pundit will continue to provide updates on the Arizona election interference indictment.
The post FULL LIST: Mark Meadows, Rudy Giuliani, Christina Bobb, John Eastman Among Those Charged in Democrat Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayesβ Witch Hunt Grand Jury Indictment appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Harvey Weinsteinβs 2020 rape conviction was overturned by the New York Appeals Court on Thursday.
The disgraced Hollywood mogul was convicted of sexual assault and rape in 2020 during the height of the #MeToo movement.
Weinstein was also found guilty of rape in a Los Angeles sexual assault trial in 2022.
A panel of mostly female judges in New Yorkβs high court overturned the conviction and said the remedy is a new trial.
βWe conclude that the trial court erroneously admitted testimony of uncharged, alleged prior sexual acts against persons other than the complainants of the underlying crimes,β the courtβs 4-3 decision said, according to AP. βThe remedy for these egregious errors is a new trial.β
The AP reported:
New Yorkβs highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinsteinβs 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with βegregiousβ improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that werenβt part of the case.
The courtβs majority said βit is an abuse of judicial discretion to permit untested allegations of nothing more than bad behavior that destroys a defendantβs character but sheds no light on their credibility as related to the criminal charges lodged against them.β
In a stinging dissent, Judge Madeline Singas wrote that the majority was βwhitewashing the facts to conform to a he-said/she-said narrative,β and said the Court of Appeals was continuing a βdisturbing trend of overturning juriesβ guilty verdicts in cases involving sexual violence.β
βThe majorityβs determination perpetuates outdated notions of sexual violence and allows predators to escape accountability,β Singas wrote.
DEVELOPINGβ¦
The post DEVELOPING: Harvey Weinstein Rape Conviction Overturned By New York Appellate Court β By a Panel of Female Judges! appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Hedge fund mogul Bill Ackman has publicly announced that he is considering voting for President Donald Trump in the upcoming 2024 presidential election.
Ackman, the CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, has been vocal in his disgust of what is happening on college campuses across the county as students rally to support Hamas, a terrorist organization, particularly at Harvard University.
Ackmanβs political views have been significantly shaped by his interactions on Elon Muskβs social media platform, X, where he actively participates in discussions.
He credits these exchanges with providing him insights that are often overlooked by mainstream media.
During a conversation at the TED 2024 conference in Vancouver, Ackman spoke passionately about the importance of free speech and open debate. He highlighted the social media platform X, owned by tech entrepreneur Elon Musk, as a pivotal space where these values are upheld.
βIβm a big fan of X. I think it really is an open free speech platform,β Ackman said per QZ. βIβve learned a lot, and itβs affected my views, my politics, my insights. And I think itβs one of the few places you can go and have a true free speech platform.β
On Wednesday, Ackman posted a blunt statement on X, saying, βFor anyone who is still confused on the topic, I am not voting for Biden.β
For anyone who is still confused on the topic, I am not voting for Biden.
β Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) April 25, 2024
A curious user on X asked Ackman, βFirst time not voting Democrat in your life? Have you ever voted Republican, Bill Ackman? For all of us confused folk.β
Ackman responded, confirming his past voting behavior: βYes. I voted for Donald Trump in 2016.β
Yes. I voted for @realDonaldTrump in 2016.
β Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) April 25, 2024
He added that he had switched his vote to Biden in the 2020 election.
Biden
β Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) April 25, 2024
When journalist Laura Loomer asked him when he is going to endorse President Trump, Ackman responded, βAnd yes, I am open to voting for Donald Trump.β
And yes, I am open to voting for @realDonaldTrump.
β Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) April 25, 2024
He further noted that he prefers to keep his options open, saying, βI will share whom I am supporting when I make my decision closer to the election. I like to preserve optionality.β
I will share whom I am supporting when I make my decision closer to the election. I like to preserve optionality.
β Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) April 25, 2024
The post Billionaire Hedge Fund Manager Bill Ackman Says He is Open to Voting for Trump in 2024 Presidential Election appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
In his latest episode, Uncensored: Systemic Racism Against White Americans, Tucker Carlson asks, βThere is systemic racism in the United States against whites. Everyone knows it. Nobody says it. How come?β
Jeremy Carl, author of The Unprotected Class, How anti-White Racism Is Tearing America ApartΒ joined him to discuss the issue.
Tucker Carlson: Β If somehow you were able to be airlifted directly or teleported directly from 1994 to 2024, youβd notice an awful lot of changes. Primary among them would be the internet. But the biggest change youβd probably notice about our public conversation is how white people were so openly attacked and denigrated. Yes, a racial group. So in 1994, you were about 30 years past the civil rights movement. And in 1994, the operating assumption of virtually everyone in the United States was the main lesson of the civil rights movement. Of the letter from the Birmingham Jail on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, and all the different sacred moments that we grew up hearing about.
The main lesson of those moments was it is immoral, in fact, unacceptable to attack people on the basis of their race.
So then, if you fast forward 30 years to find the same country engaged in a public hate frenzy against people because of their race, you would find that bewildering. How did this happen? Of course, there would be the discrimination, the institutional racism of hurting people on the basis of their race in hiring, in admissions to schools, in federal contracting, in promotions, there would be all of that.
But there would also be the public manifestation of it, of saying out loud, βWe just donβt like you. Youβre not as good. You are morally defective because of your skin color.β You say this about white people, people who founded the United States. Youβd be shocked by that. And then to turn on the TV and see the President of the United States do the very same thing. Youβd think maybe youβd been drinking ayahuasca. Youβd see Joe Biden say things like this:
Biden Soundbites:β History has thrust one more urgent task on us. Will we be the generation that finally wipes out the stain of racism from our national character? Weβve all seen the injustice on the neck of Black Americans. Racism, nativism, fear, demonization, have long torn us apart.
βBut a black parent, no matter how wealthy or how poor they are, has to teach their child. When youβre walking down the street, donβt have a hoodie on when you go across the street.β
βDomestic terrorism from white supremacists is the most lethal terrorist threat in the homeland.β
News Soundbite: If I were your daughter, what advice would you give me the next time I am stopped by the police?
Biden Soundbite: If youβre my daughter, youβd be a Caucasian girl and you wouldnβt be pulled over.
Carlson: White supremacy is the most lethal threat to the United States. White people are the threat. They are evil and they are dangerous. Thatβs not just a senile President making that one statement. That is the people in charge of the country reinforcing that statement and that theme every single day of the year, not just by their words, but with their deeds.
What is this? Why does no one mention itβs happening? Why does anyone who does mention itβs happening get attacked as a white supremacist for complaining about racism? And maybe more important, where does it go? Is there any other ending to the story but hurting people physically, lots of people? Could we have a resolution that doesnβt look like Rwanda? J
Jeremy Carl is an author whoβs thought a lot about this. Heβs got a brand new book called The Unprotected Class, How anti-White Racism Is Tearing America Apart.
He joins us now. Jeremy, thanks so much for coming on. It may be a an advantage or maybe disadvantage of being a little bit older that itβs this is like the one thing you never thought or I never thought you would see in America, which is our leaders openly attacking people on the basis of their race. Just 60 years after the civil rights movement that supposedly taught us the opposite lesson in the Civil Rights Act. So how did this happen, do you think?
Jeremy Carl: Well, itβs an interesting question, right. And I think you just hit on a key point, which is 60 years. We are as far now from the Civil Rights Act as they were basically from the Wright brothers. So thereβs been a lot of time thatβs kind of, a lot of water under the bridge since that time. And a lot of things have happened. And I think it was begun with very sincere intentions, but I think rather quickly, certainly, you know, 10, 20, 30 years down the line, it got really hijacked to the point that we went from trying to treat people equally to what has eventually amounted to reverse racism.
Carlson: Right? Or just I guess I would just call it racism, because it seems like the standard would remain the same. No matter the race of the person being discriminated against. You canβt attack people. You canβt punish people for the color of their skin for how they were born. So like that seems like a pretty easy principle to uphold, is pretty straightforward.
Carl: Β Well, I would agree with you, Tucker, but itβs, you know, nonetheless, weβre really seeing throughout, and this is what I really wrote the book about, throughout many different areas of endeavor, and whether that be when weβre looking at how, crime gets talked about to whatβs going on in Hollywood, to the educational system and monuments coming down and everything you could imagine, kind of the white person is kind of the great enemy. Itβs the, the kind of, the evil guy in 1984, the kind of two minutes of hate we have to have against him. The Emanuel Goldstein figure, kind of is the white person in particularly the Democratic Partyβs discourse today.
Carlson: Β Whatβs interesting, though, is it typically when you see these moments of scapegoating, which are clearly, you know, kind of inherent to people, I mean, they pop up in every society at every time through history, like thereβs something in people that wants to separate a small group and like, blame all its problems in that group. But itβs usually itβs the minority. Of course, you know, the persecuted minority, whites are still, for at least as of today, probably change soon, of course, but they are still the majority in the country. So like, have you ever seen anything like that happen?
Carl: Β You know, I havenβt Tucker. Itβs itβs kind of amazing to watch because this is whites are still a 58% majority. Itβs no longer a majority of the under 18, but of adults itβs still a solid majority. Itβs a super majority of our voters, still, in every presidential election, although just barely in the last presidential election. And yet theyβve become this figure of hate. And itβs really been kind of fascinating and disturbing to watch and to kind of think about why that happened.
And one of the things I suggest in my book is that really, ultimately, this is a legitimizing ideology for ultimately resource transfer and resource confiscation. And that takes, the form of some of this reparations conversation or land back or some of these other things, and they sort of start out on the extreme left and everybody goes, oh, well, thatβs silly. Thatβs never going to happen. And then all of a sudden, you know, it is happening and youβre a racist if you think itβs a bad idea.
Carlson: Yeah. I mean, of course itβs happened and itβs still happening in other countries. You know, Rhodesia became Zimbabwe and the whites were killed and their land was taken and their money stolen. And itβs happening in South Africa right now. Of course, weβre not supposed to look at it, but it is happening, actually. I wonder why people are, why the majority is putting up with it?
Carl: Β Well, thatβs a good question, Tucker and I, I canβt even fully I donβt have the perfect answer for that myself. And ultimately, I one of the main reasons I wrote this book is because I donβt think the majority, I donβt think anybody should be putting up with it, regardless of race. I mean, we shouldnβt have, we shouldnβt be putting up with racial discrimination in our society in 2024.
But I think, you know, kind of white people, theyβre almost itβs like a Stockholm syndrome, almost where theyβre theyβre like in a hostage mode in terms of some of the ways that theyβre thinking where they they sort of are in love with their captors. And theyβre not able to kind of accept whatβs going on, and particularly on the left, itβs this sort of notion that, because we, of course, like every nation, have had an imperfect past, that white people have some hereditary blood guilt. And I think the balance of American history just shows that thatβs a really myopic and childish way to look at our history in our country.
Carlson: Well, itβs demonstrably absurd if America is so racist, if systemic racism is such a barrier, then why are nonwhite people moving here by the millions. So obviously thatβs silly, but itβs a little weird to say that, you know, you hate whites, but you need to live in a country founded by whites who systems are Anglo systems like that. I mean, maybe Iβm being too logical here, but it doesnβt make any sense.
Carl: Β No, it doesnβt. And I mean it sort of. It points to some of the absurdity here. And you also touched that. Of course, people from all sorts of different backgrounds are clamoring at the door. Weβre right now dealing with this, of course, with illegal immigration. And even if you look at some of these groups and again, something I discuss in the book, there are all sorts of nonwhite ethnicities in this country among immigrants and among citizens, in which, particularly among Asian American groups, but not exclusively. I mean, if you were to even look at Nigerian Americans, or particularly Igbo Americans, for example, they would have an average, higher, income than the average white American. And so this kind of notion that whites are sort of on the top is really a selective editing of any story, no matter how true that belies that or any statistics that belie that. Itβs one of the reasons you actually see Asian Americans frequently eliminated from these comparison sets when theyβre talked about, because it doesnβt tell the story that, the left wants to tell.
Watch the full interview:
Ep. 98 There is systemic racism in the United States, against whites. Everyone knows it. Nobody says it. How come? pic.twitter.com/hSrU9BPVb4
β Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) April 24, 2024
The post Tucker Carlson: There Is Systemic Racism in the U.S. β Against Whites! (Video) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Between judicially disqualifying conflicts of interests to overbroad gag orders that outrageously violate President Trumpβs First Amendment rights as a criminal defendant, the Presidentβs lawyers have multiple grounds on which to appeal this present show trial, which makes a mockery of the rule of law currently underway in lower Manhattan. Β One would have to scour the annals of American legal history to find another case quite like the one brought by Alvin Bragg and aided and abetted by Matthew Colangelo, a former top-level official of Joe Bidenβs Justice Department, and prosecuted with inglorious vengeance by the highly conflicted Judge Merchan. Β The fact that Braggβs kangaroo show trial is being prosecuted against Donald Trump at all, shamelessly denying him the respect and decorum the office of the President deserves, even in the courtroom, is bad enough.Β But that it is being waged against the leading candidate, by most leading polls, to become the 47th President of the United States, and leader of the free world, is many steps beyond the pale.Β Worse yet, that leading candidate has been so unceremoniously stripped of the traditional formalities of the presidential office β a laundry list of indiscretions that includes proper respect in the courtroom, protection of his fundamental due process rights, the right to speak and protest the trial proceeding where necessary.Β These indiscretions collectively prove that Judge Merchan condemned President Trump before his trial has even really commenced, depriving him of the most important pillar of the Anglo-American legal system: the presumption of innocence.
On these grounds, President Trumpβs attorneys must request intervention by a higher tribunal, to either stay the proceeding, or better yet, put an end to this sham kangaroo trial that epitomizes what so many Americans realize as clear as day: a flagrant case of election interference.
The judicial system fortunately provides the defendant tools to appeal an utterly conflicted and corrupt proceeding.Β All President Trumpβs attorneys would need to do is file a motion with the court requesting the judge recuse himself.Β If the judge refuses to recuse himself, despite being so troublingly conflicted, President Trumpβs attorneys will then have the option to appeal the order the court must thereupon issue.
There are several ways to appeal a court order of this kind.Β The first, more conservative approach, would be a kind of collateral attack on the proceeding β which challenges the case on grounds other than the underlying merits of the claim β through what is called an Article 78 filing under New York law.Β In New York, lawyers have the option to appeal via an Article 78 proceeding to challenge the conduct of judges, including state criminal court judges whose offices are created by statute.Β There are two reasons why an Article 78 appeal might be easier, and more advisable, than a direct interlocutory appeal to federal court.Β The first reason is that Article 78 appeals would help streamline the process, given that President Trumpβs case was brought in state court already, where such appeals are commonplace.Β It is much more complicated to appeal a criminal case, especially one implicating the thorny and often confused legal issues controlling the proceeding here, to federal court than by way of an Article 78 proceeding, which arises under state law and is thereby governed by much similar rules and principles than those which govern federal court.
The second, perhaps even more compelling, reason favoring an Article 78 appeal, rather than an appeal to federal court, is that under the New York State Constitution, parties have even more expansive First Amendment rights than those that would typically arise under the First Amendment.Β In the seminal 1988 decision, OβNeill v Oakgrove Construction, the Second Appellate Division of New York held that the βprotection afforded by the guarantees of free press and speech in the New York State Constitution is often broader than the minimum required by [the Federal Constitution].βΒ Thus, if the gag order serves as the basis for the Article 78 collateral attack, at least on paper, President Trump has reason to be optimistic because of how speech rights are traditionally protected in New York State, which heavily disfavors any infringements whatever on speech β more so than what would give rise to a valid challenge under First Amendment grounds alone.
Accordingly, President Trumpβs lawyers have strong grounds to make an Article 78 appeal on the basis of the unconstitutional scope of the gag order that Judge Merchan arbitrarily imposed upon him, which fails to meet normal strict scrutiny analysis under federal law, as I have previously detailed at length.Β Therefore, if the gag order fails to pass muster under the Supreme Courtβs own precedent from Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969), which governs when courts may prohibit speech in exceptional cases, surely the gag order here would likewise fail to meet the even more rigorous standard for speech prohibitions that arise under New York Stateβs Constitution.
Another issue that might be included in an Article 78 appeal is the issue of judicial misconduct: in other words, the conflict of interest serving as the basis for the appeal.Β Again, New York law is arguably more rigorous than federal law on this issue.Β Under New York law, β[a] judge shall disqualify himself or herself in a proceeding in which the judgeβs impartiality might reasonably be questionedβ¦β. Β An important ground for dismissal is when βthe judge knows that the judge or the judgeβs spouse, or a person known by the judge to be within the sixth degree of relationship to either of them, or the spouse of such a person β¦ has an interest that could be substantially affected by the proceeding.β
One such interest that can be substantially affected by the proceeding is an economic interest.Β Namely, the economic interest of Loren Merchan, Judge Merchanβs daughter, who happens to fall βwithin the sixth degree of relationshipβ stipulated under the rule.Β As exhaustively discussed elsewhere, Loren Merchan works as a senior officer and fundraiser for a political consulting firm, Authentic Campaigns, whose βfeatured clientsβ include none other than the Biden-Harris campaign and various far-left lawmakers, including Adam Schiff and Kathy Hochul, with interests that would, to say the least, create a strong impression of impropriety that severely undermines Judge Merchanβs ability to rule fairly and impartially.Β Moreover, as also reported previously, Judge Merchanβs own wife allegedly works for Attorney General Letitia Jamesβ office, who campaigned on βgettingβ President Trump and whose office put strong political pressures on both Merchan and Bragg to prosecute the 45th President in this criminal trial β to say nothing of presiding over President Trumpβs concurrent civil cases taking place in New York State.Β Furthermore, reputable sources have reported that Loren Merchanβs firm profited, to the tune of at least $93 million, off the political persecution of Donald Trump happening in lower Manhattan.
Under the federal canons of judicial conduct, a judge must recuse himself whenever the judge, his spouse, or a relative βwithin the third degree of relationshipβ of the judge is βa person who has more than a de minimis interest that could be substantially affected by the proceeding.βΒ Reading these two rules together, it is notable, first, that the state ethics code encompasses relatives to βthe sixth degree of relationship,β giving strong reason to believe that, much like speech law, the standard for impropriety under New York State laws governing judicial misconduct is even more rigorous than federal law.
Second, a daughter presiding over a business that raises tens of millions of dollars for political candidates and campaigns, and stands to β with very good reason β earn a windfall if her father happens to prosecute and convict the man poised to be her firmβs clientβs political opponent in the upcoming presidential race, would, I conjecture, qualify as an example (if not textbook example) of βmore than a de minimis interest in the case.βΒ Ditto too is Judge Merchanβs wife, Lara Merchan, if the reports alleging an employment connection, as special assistant to Letitia James, between her and Letitia Jamesβ office prove true, given how much Jamesβ political career rests on βgettingβ President Trump, which she irrefutably made the central issue of her statewide race for Attorney General, and short-lived race for Governor.
Beyond these damning revelations, the fact that Judge Merchan himself is a noted and long-term donor β directly via donations, and indirectly via PAC monetary contributions β and friend of Joe Biden should, even if the facts brought about the daughter and wife did not come to light, alone be sufficient grounds for a recusal.Β In a case involving a presidential candidate taking place just months before Election Day, politics are necessarily all-controlling.Β There is no getting around it.Β Hence, to any reasonable observer, the courtroom drama in lower Manhattan cannot be understood other than as a brazen act of election interference by the incumbent president in Biden against his likeliest successor in Trump.
Otherwise, what else explains the seven-plus years of delays in which this case was kicked down the road from the DOJ to the FEC to Braggβs office, not once, but twice, only to finally be prosecuted at a politically convenient hour: the moment when Donald Trump became, for the third time in as many cycles, the presumptive Republican nominee.Β There were also various changes in the law (all of which in hindsight look like strategic meddling by Democrats in the New York state legislature making preparations to jury-rig the legal system in advance to prosecute Donald Trump) made over the years.Β These include a change in the statute of limitations that allowed Bragg to prosecute this case well beyond the original limitations period.Β In addition, there was a 2018 change in tax law that made hush money write-offs for sexual indiscretions unlawful.
To date, not one of Merchan, Bragg, Colangelo, James, or Bidenβs DOJ could explain why it is imperative to commence a six-week trial right here and now, rather than postpone it β for just another seven months β until after election day.Β To channel our eloquent Commander-in-Chief: For Godβs sake itβs been seven years already, what the hell is another seven months going to make a difference!Β The choice to prosecute President Trump now, perhaps at the summit of his political clout, where most reputable polls have him trouncing Biden in the upcoming general election, just reeks of improprieties β and indeed, election interference β of the worst possible variety.
Separately from the Article 78 proceeding, President Trumpβs lawyers also have the option of making an interlocutory appeal directly to federal court β either to the Second Circuit or, better, Supreme Court.Β Under well-settled federal law, the Supreme Court has permitted interlocutory appeals from state to federal court, in the decision Lauro Lines S.R.L. v. Chasser (1989), if the appeal satisfies the three-prong test of what the High Court called βthe collateral order doctrine.β
The collateral order doctrine says that appeals are permitted as long as the following elements are met:
1.Β Β Β Β Β The outcome of the case would be conclusively determined by the issue;
2.Β Β Β Β Β The matter appealed was collateral on the merits;
3.Β Β Β Β Β The matter was effectively unreviewable if immediate appeal were not allowed.
In President Trumpβs criminal proceeding, all three elements are easily met.Β The matter appealed β the recusal order β would conclusively determine the outcome of the case because if the Judge is found conflicted under New York or ABA canons regulating judicial ethics, there would be strong grounds for a mistrial.Β Even if President Trumpβs attorneys appealed just on the gag order issue, that still would likely satisfy the collateral order doctrine β because President Trumpβs ability to speak about, and expose, the conflicts of interest implicating Judge Merchan and his family would reveal a disqualifying economic interest in the case that goes directly to the reason why it was brought in the first place.Β If it can be shown that Judge Merchan had a judicially disqualifying economic stake in the case, which should be easy here because he incontestably does, the entire case would have to be dismissed on grounds of unfair prejudice to the defendant and his constitutional rights.Β Indeed, there is strong reason to believe that there would be no case without Judge Merchan β in other words, a recusal alone would not mitigate the prejudice to President Trump here, because that prejudice runs to the heart of the proceeding itself, regardless of the identity of the judge presiding over the case.
At the bare minimum, however, the judgeβs myriad conflicts of interest serve as more than sufficient grounds for an order for recusal β there is absolutely no way President Trumpβs due process rights can be guaranteed so long as Judge Merchan remains on the case.Β If a recusal order is successfully appealed, given how damaging Judge Merchanβs conflict was in the case at bar, the court will likely have to stay this proceeding until after the election, in order to avoid a repeat of the same dangers here that severely harmed President Trumpβs fundamental rights β which stand as a grievous indictment of New Yorkβs judicial system.
The other two elements are also easily met.Β The matter appealed, whether on the gag order or recusal issue, is collateral to the merits of the underlying legal claim: which involves an alleged fraudulent business records scheme.Β What is more, if Judge Merchan is not recused, the matter cannot be reviewed unless on appeal.Β Put differently, the only way President Trump can request relief here is by appealing any ruling Judge Merchan might issue on a recusal order.Β Given the probability that Judge Merchan will deny any order filed by his attorneys for his recusal, there will be a basis for an interlocutory appeal to either state or federal court.
Why else might a direct interlocutory appeal to federal court, rather than to state court via the aforementioned Article 78 proceeding, be more desirable?Β Well, for one thing: the legal basis for it should not be that hard given that federal questions run amok all throughout this case.Β Whether dealing with President Trumpβs First Amendment rights, or denial of his due process rights β or even the alleged FEC violations at issue here β there are more than sufficient grounds, as a matter of procedure, to kick this case into federal court for appeal.Β Of course, federal crimes require federal jurisdiction: but there are likely jurisprudential grounds, not the least of which has to do with the issues controlling here, especially with the FEC, that implicate the interstate commerce clause, that would create the nexus to make the underlying issue a federal question.
I mean, this is the President of the United States, we are talking about, who also happens to be an out-of-state resident!Β So, the question to be raised: why is this a state court matter at all seems so obvious β and yet has bizarrely not been talked about enough, despite being a central and unaddressed issue, either by the legal pundits or the prosecution.
Bragg has hidden the ball so much with regard to his theory of criminal liability here, which can only be attributed to one of two reasons: 1) he has no basis for bringing this case in state court because has no idea what on earth he is doing, or 2) he realizes that to the extent a crime is ascertainable at all amid Braggβs legal muddying of the waters, it is emphatically one that warrants prosecution in federal court, not state court, ergo explaining the lack of transparency on his end.Β Given the fact that Bragg is so heavily relying on a federal prosecutor from Bidenβs DOJ, Matthew Colangelo, to help him contrive a theory of criminal liability here, is all the more reason to believe that this matter belongs in federal court, not state court.
That being said, I discussed advantages for collaterally attacking this matter via an Article 78 proceeding rather than making a direct interlocutory appeal to federal court.Β The first reason is that Article 78 proceedings might be easier: similar rules and legal principles would apply for both the criminal proceeding and Article 78 appeal.Β The second reason is that New York State Law, at least in theory, is even more protective of both President Trumpβs speech rights and offers an even more rigorous standard for judicial ethics than what is observed by the ABA.
But the advantages to a state court proceeding should be placed alongside the advantages of a direct interlocutory appeal to federal court.Β These advantages may be described as follows: 1) even though state law is supposed to apply more generous speech protections, considering the current cast of characters in charge of New Yorkβs law enforcement β from Hochul to James to Bragg to Merchan β it is improbable that President Trumpβs state constitutional rights would be adequately protected.Β It would thus be incumbent upon federal actors, either judges or prosecutors, to apply New York law faithfully β or, in the alternative, use the federal standard to exonerate President Trump from the endless indignities of New Yorkβs corrupted judicial system. Β Β 2) The second reason favoring federal appeal is that federal courts β and the Supreme Court, above all β has the greatest means to establish a national standard for the ongoing criminal (and potential other) proceedings against President Trump.
Now that Donald Trump is officially the presumptive Republican nominee, it would be much easier for the Supreme Court to simply issue a stay on all proceedings against him until after November 5th.Β That, the Highest Court of the Land has the power to do β and should do, if it truly cares about the rule of law, the protection of individual rights, and safeguarding the republic from nefarious and gratuitous political prosecutions, particularly during a hotly contested election year.Β An emergency interlocutory appeal to the Supreme Court would be the best way to preserve our democracy from the subversive forces, acting at the behest of Bidenβs weaponized Department of Justice, working actively to expel President Trump from the political arena.Β Granted, it may be a difficult feat to pull off, given all the time constraints and political hurdles, but President Trumpβs attorneys should treat the persecution against him as a serious act of legal warfare, one that must be responded to in kind β using every tool in the arsenal β or risk defeat by our enemies, hellbent on bringing down the remaining morsels of the American republic for all time.
The post Alvin Braggβs Legal Assault On President Trump Is Lawfare Of The Worst Kind: Strategizing A Legal Counterattack appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
A Jewish woman was reportedly kidnapped and threatened with being sex trafficked or killed by a man promising to "avenge Palestine".
The post France: Man Vowing to βAvenge Palestineβ Kidnaps Jewish Woman, Threatens Her with Sex Slavery, Death appeared first on Breitbart.
Gold prices are experiencing an upward trend, and there are several factors contributing to this rise. Understanding these factors can help investors decide whether Gold is a suitable investment for their portfolio.
The post Why Is Gold Up 12.5% for 2024, and Should I Invest? appeared first on Breitbart.
HOUSTON β A judge has declined to dismiss hundreds of lawsuits filed against rap star Travis Scott over his role in the deadly 2021 Astroworld festival in which 10 people were killed in a crowd surge.
The post Judge Wonβt Dismiss Hundreds of Lawsuits Against Travis Scott over Deadly Astroworld Festival appeared first on Breitbart.
Former President Donald Trump said sarcastically he will remove "lethargic" for the list of insults of former Attorney General Bill Barr, after his "wholehearted endorsement."
The post Trump Says He Will Stop Calling Bill Barr βLethargicβ After His βWholehearted Endorsementβ appeared first on Breitbart.
The blades of the Moulin Rouge windmill, one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, collapsed during the night, firefighters said.
The post Can-Canβt! Pictures: Windmill Sails of World-Famous Paris Landmark Moulin Rouge Collapse Overnight appeared first on Breitbart.
On Wednesdayβs broadcast of CNBCβs βSquawk Box,βΒ Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy at Harvard University and the Harvard Kennedy School Jason Furman, who served as Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Barack Obama and on the
The post Fmr. Obama Adviser: The Goal of Biden Loan Plan Will Increase Interest Rates, Inflation, Mortgage Rates appeared first on Breitbart.
On Wednesdayβs broadcast of the Fox News Channelβs βJesse Watters Primetime,β House Speaker Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) stated that Columbia University and other schools that βare engaging in this kind of nonsenseβ similar to whatβs happening at Columbia do not
The post Speaker Johnson: Columbia Shouldnβt Get Taxpayer Dollars appeared first on Breitbart.
Anti-Israel protesters invaded Harvard Yard on Wednesday, the second day of Passover, setting up an encampment and chanting "intifada revolution," provoking an angry response from Jewish leaders concerned for student safety.
The post Harvard Yard Invaded by Anti-Israel Encampment; βIntifada Revolutionβ appeared first on Breitbart.
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Ever since Americaβs largest bank JPMorgan Chase got rid of the Jeffrey Epstein-linked string of lawsuits, its CEO Jamie Dimon has been able to fully reposition himself as one of the main economy commentators in the nation.
He has been a critical voice removed from the rosy-colored forecasts by some liberal economists, and has so far been proven right about it.
Now, Dimon is is concerned that the US economy could be in route to repeat the economic woes that held back the country during the 1970s.
Thereβs a chance that it can happen again, he said during an appearance Tuesday (23) at the Economic Club of New York.
But what is βitβ? He is talking about stagflation, a combination of low growth and high inflation, and Dimon has made it clear that he believes such a risk exists again.
Yahoo Finance reported:
ββI worry that it looks more like the β70s than weβve seen beforeβ, he added during a question and answer session with Marie-JosΓ©e Kravis, chair of the Museum of Modern Art and wife of KKR co-founder Henry Kravis. βThere are circumstances in which itβll look more like the β70s than what weβve had for the last 20 yearsβ.β
Dimon has been warning of βstickier inflation and higher rates than markets expectβ.
And now, even Fed Chair Jerome Powell nixed any rate cuts and alerted they will stay elevated for longer because of unrelenting inflation.
βDimon said in his April 8 letter that the bank is prepared for interest rates βfrom 2% to 8% or even moreβ β and he repeated that prediction Tuesday. βWe would handle stagflation tooβ, he added.β
JPMorgan Chase posted profits 6% higher than the previous year, it is suffering from βdeposit margin compression and lower deposit balancesβ.
βDimon returned to some other familiar subjects during his discussion Tuesday, including his concerns about large amounts of government spending and efforts by the Fed to shrink its balance sheet, as well as the ongoing wars in the Middle East and Ukraine and their potential to disrupt essential commodities markets, migration, and geopolitical relationships.β
In his speech in the Economic Club of New York, Dimon was in no way a βdoom and gloomβ prophet, as he described the US economy as βboomingβ, celebrated the American consumers, US bank credit, home prices, and stock prices.
βEconomic growth, he said, is key to solving any number of problems. βWe need to do more and better, and thatβs why we need to grow the economyβ, he said.
[β¦] He didnβt drop any hints about when he might leave JPMorgan, saying only that he wants to βleave behindβ a βgreat companyβ and βI want to help my country. I am very excited about the futureβ.β
Read more:
Β
The post STAGFLATION? JPMorgan Chase CEO Dimon Fears US May Be Heading back to 1970sβ Economic Woes appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
An Israeli soldier stands near the Israel-Gaza border amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Israel, March 4, 2024.
It is said that βeven a broken clock is right twice a day.βΒ By that, we infer that, due to some statistical oddity, even people who are consistently wrong can sometimes be right.
This applies to Globalist Pope Francis, who is famously wrong in a vast number of issues, but every now and then is able to land one for the right team.
Just some three weeks ago, Pope Francis did something unusual, and issued a declaration called βDignitas Infinitaβ, in which he strongly defended the Catholic Churchβs dogma and doctrine without trying to βimproveβ or βmodernizeβ it.
He dealt with a dozen contemporary issues through the lens of scripture and church teaching, including abortion, human trafficking, poverty, euthanasia, and the death penalty, among others.
Read more:
However, it also follows that during the rest of the day, the broken clock is necessarily wrong. And so is Francis.
Now, with apparent better health, the Pontiff gave his first-ever US TV interview to CBS News' Norah O'Donnell, and he made a point of adhering to the Globalist talking point of the day, 'speaking out against climate change deniers', calling them 'fools'.
UK paper Daily Mail hilariously called Francis 'the often progressive pontiff', as if that was not a full-time occupation with the Argentine Pope.
Mostly, he talked about the sensible theme of the necessity of Peace talks in all wars, but 'peace does not sell,' so MSM will focus on the climate alarmism.
Daily Mail reported:
"He made a pointed effort to express his displeasure with those who deny climate change when asked what he says to those who deny it by O'Donnell.
'There are people who are foolish, and even foolish if they show you them research. They don't believe it,' he said through an interpreter.Β They don't understand the situation or because of their interest, but climate change exists,' he added."
This is all he said about the issue, so Daily Mail segued it with no less than 5 paragraphs of the purest climate alarmism with a heavy-handed editorial tone that is totally out of the supposed focus of the piece.
The rest of the interview dealt with the Pope's constant calls for peace in all the military conflicts of the world.
While he may be guilty of over-simplifying the issues, it's within the expected scope of a Pope's duties, a relentless quest for peace on Earth.
"When asked what can be done for a million Gazan children facing starvation, he added that they and children in Ukraine must be helped.Β
'Those kids don't know how to smile. This is very hard when a child forgets to smile,' he said.
His overall message was: 'Please, countries at war, all of them, stop the war. Look to negotiate peace'."
But peace and love do not sell papers or help control the population, and fear does.
Β
The post Globalist Pope Francis Gives His First US TV Interview, so MSM Uses Him To Help Push Climate Alarmism Into Overdrive appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
This article was written by Swedish independent journalist Peter Imanuelsen, also known as PeterSweden. You can follow him at PeterSweden.com.
New poll finds that a large majority of Swedish people want to keep physical cash
I have some good news to bring you from my home country of Sweden.
A new poll finds that a whopping 83% of people want to keep using cash as a payment option in the future, a new record high!
Looks like people are beginning to realize that the cashless society is not what we want after all.
The biggest reason that people want to keep cash was for emergency preparedness, with 51% giving that as their main reason. But 29% of people said that freedom of choice was the main reason for wanting to keep cash, and another 19% said that inclusion was their reason.
So it appears one major reason for people wanting to keep cash is because of FREEDOM.
As we all know, going cashless would make it very easy for the state to keep track of everything that people do. Dissidents could easily be locked out from buying and selling.
Sweden has been one of the main countries pushing for a cashless society for many years now.
For example, over 6000 people have already gotten microchip implants in their hands to use for cashless payments. You can read all about that here.
Many shops in Sweden have gone cashless. For example, I visited a Burger King last year that had a sign proudly stating that they were cashless.
And now we see that a large majority of the people want to keep cash.
Looks like the cashless dystopia has been postponed!
Independent journalist Peter Imanuelsen has dedicated years to reporting the things the mainstream media ignores. You can follow him at https://petersweden.com/
The post Peter Sweden: GOOD NEWS: Swedes REJECT Cashless Agenda appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
The Tricky Judgments on When To Loosen
This story originally was published by Real Clear Wire
Β
Joe Feldman has faced many tough crowds in the course of successfully selling his βGrading for Equityβ program to school districts across the nation. During the consultantβs presentations, teachers concerned that his approach lowers standards have rolled their eyes, questioned his understanding of students, and worse.
βA guy in the front row got his stuff together and walked out of the room,β Feldman told RealClearInvestigations.
Despite the frequent resistance from teachers, dozens of districts from California to Massachusetts are giving the consultantβs ambitious project a shot. As schools face a series of crises, including a spike in chronic absenteeism and sharp academic decline, grading for equity offers a path to better grades and higher graduation rates. Its practices include the removal of behavior in calculating grades, the end of penalties for late assignments, allowing students to retake exams, and a ban on zeros as the lowest mark.
Since the pandemic, districts have been lowering standards by making grading more lenient to help struggling students, according to several studies. But Feldman insists that his sweeping overhaul isnβt part of that controversial trend. He says the practices he promotes are a matter of fairness and accuracy in an educational system thatβs stacked against blacks, Latinos and other disadvantaged students.
Grading for equity, however, stirs enough dissent among teachers and parents that some districts have dropped the difficult revamp in mid-stream. They say Feldmanβs reforms are a form of leniency that brings out the worst in some students, hurting the very kids he wants to help.
βWhatβs most troubling are the practices that lower expectations, like giving a 50 percent grade instead of a zero even when a student doesnβt attempt the assignment,β said Meredith Coffey, a former teacher and now a researcher at Thomas B. Fordham Institute who co-wrote a report on grading for equity. βIf students know that they could do nothing and get 50 percent, why would they work hard? Many would do nothing.β
In some districts, grading for equity is part of the controversial agenda thatβs taken hold in urban areas and seeks to wash away perceived βsystemic racismβ in classrooms in the wake of the George Floyd murder in 2020. In Fairfax County, a district thatβs embraced grading for equity, leaders have also pushed βanti-racistβ education for students and paid author and crusader Ibram X. Kendi $20,000 to give a one-hour Zoom presentation, telling staff that anti-racism means working to achieve equitable outcomes.
Like critical race theory, cops in schools, and transgender bathrooms, grading for equity is galvanizing divisions in the cultural conflict over public education. Progressives support it as a path to closing the stubborn achievement gap between rich and poor students while conservatives fear it further undermines high expectations that encourage all students to strive to improve.
A savvy promoter, Feldman frequently posts on X, expressing his excitement to schools and conference organizers who tap his expertise. He likes to plug his book, too. βGrading for Equity,β with a second edition in 2023, has sold 175,000 copies, a top-five bestseller from publisher Corwin.
Grading for equity, a term coined by Feldman, isnβt a fringe movement. Some districts adopted pieces of the program before the pandemic undermined the ability of many students to keep up academically. Since then, many more districts have embraced it.
Last year, with Feldmanβs help, Boston Public Schools approved a shift to equity grading. In Oregon, Portland Public Schools is making plans to implement similar grading reforms by 2025, and thousands of New York City and Los Angeles teachers have been trained in equitable grading practices. Smaller districts in California, Nevada, New York, and other states have also adopted the program.
Feldman, a former teacher and principal with degrees from Stanford, NYU, and Harvard, is part of an army of educational consultants who charge as much as $10,000 per day. They work in every facet of public education, typically promising districts major transformations in teaching, leadership, technology, and performance. Big firms like Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey & Co. as well as smaller outfits like Feldmanβs Crescendo Education Group are in the game, vying for the sizeable βprofessional developmentβ pool of funding thatβs part of every districtβs budget. It totals an estimatedΒ $26 billion.
The pandemicβs harsh toll on students β chronic absenteeism almostΒ doubled to 26% of students, contributing to many months of learning loss β has boosted demand for consultants. Some 50 of them work in grading practices, and Feldman, who has consulted with hundreds of schools, is perhaps the most popular.
Feldmanβs program calls for a profound change in grading practices that raises fundamental questions about human motivation. He believes the traditional practice of grading almost everything a student does is antiquated and superficial. It relies on the extrinsic motivation for points, turning students into grade grubbers, rather than the intrinsic desire to learn because the subject is inspiring and meaningful.
The consultant says the pre-eminence of grades disproportionately harms disadvantaged students, who often get dinged for missing homework, late assignments, and misbehavior β issues that can stem from a lack of parental support and resources at home, research shows.
Feldman asserts that schools have a βmoral obligationβ to close the achievement gap, and his fix is far-reaching: no points for daily homework and classroom behavior, eliminating the distinction in the gradebook between students who lead discussions and those who disrupt them, and no penalties for the late submission of assignments, which shouldnβt be given much weight in grading.
Grades are all about tests. Teachers assess only what really matters β learning β based on a set of well-defined standards and demonstrated on a test at the end of a unit. This summative evaluation doesnβt really count either, because students who donβt ace it get a chance to review their mistakes and take the exam again, and possibly a third time. Itβs better to encourage them to master the material, the consultant says, than accept a demoralizing low mark.
Hereβs the kicker: Even the student who keeps failing the test, or doesnβt show up to take it, gets 50% credit. On a 100-point scale, Feldman says, a zero is disproportionately punitive for the lowest mark, when a passing grade begins at 60%.
Teachers who support Feldmanβs program say it gives them better insight into studentsβ academic progress and problems, making them more effective. βI have more meaningful conversations with students about the English standards and how grades are not arbitrary points for effort, but directly reflect their knowledge of the skills,β said Savannah Berry, a high school English teacher in the predominately Latino and black San Leandro district in California.
School districts and their elected boards tout the programβs main result β fewer kids fail β and that plays well politically in many communities. In an examination of four high schools that have embraced grading for equity, non-white students had 37% fewer Ds and Fs at the end of a school year, and white students, no longer benefiting from extra credit and good behavior points, saw a 19% drop in As, according to a report by Feldmanβs firm.
In Virginiaβs diverse Fairfax County Public Schools, the significant drop in Ds and Fs for blacks and Latinos led to a 4% increase in theΒ graduation rateΒ between 2018 and 2022.
Critics dismiss such progress as a mirage produced by lenient practices that inflate low grades. Students are also getting the wrong message about the importance of meeting expectations, several teachers told RCI, leading some to blow off studying and just coast. With less focus in class, more kids are also misbehaving.
Zenaida Perez says half of the teachers in her Fairfax district, the largest in Virginia, oppose grading for equity but are afraid to speak up because they fear retaliation. βAt least 30 percent of my students definitely make less effort,β said Perez, who has taught in the district for 16 years. βSometimes they do not come to school and I still must give them a 50%. That is absolutely ridiculous.β
In some ways, Feldmanβs biggest roadblock are the students, who like all humans procrastinate if given the chance. DePaul University psychologist Joe Ferrari, who has written extensively about the condition, says 20% of people are chronic procrastinators. If schools remove deadlines with penalties, he says most students would likely also delay and delay doing their work. βPeople will always gravitate to the easiest path,β he said. βHumans seek pleasure and avoid pain.β
Feldman didnβt come up with the grading practices he tirelessly promotes. He borrowed the ideas from others, including consultant Ken OβConnor, a pioneer in standards-based grading, and reframed them with a lens on equity for disadvantaged kids.
βAll of the basic ideas in Feldmanβs book are exactly the same as my guidelines,β said OβConnor, who published his first paper on standards-based grading in 1995. βHis popularity is probably from having the right idea at the right time. I respect his work.β
Feldmanβs boutique shop in Oakland, Calif., operates with seven staffers, including a chief operations officer and a marketer. Education consultants say their fee averages between $5,000 and $10,000 a day. Feldman says he might charge a couple hundred thousand dollars to help a district roll out his program over three years.
βWe are not making much money,β he said. βIf people think Iβm buying a boat, that is not happening. Iβm not trying to gouge districts.β
Consultants tap into the big bucket of funds that districts set aside for the professional development of teachers. In a study by education nonprofit TNTP, districts spent about $18,000 per teacher each year, or the equivalent of perhaps a third of their salaries, on βPD,β as itβs known.
The study and other research found that despite spending almost 20 days a year in PD sessions, most teachers donβt become more effective over time because of the training. They learn more from classroom experience and peers than from consultants who often pitch the latest educational gimmicks, says Tim Daly, the president of TNTP when the 2015 study was done.
βTeachers donβt see PD as a primary vehicle for improving,β said Daly, a former teacher and now CEO of EdNavigator. βItβs something for the most part that they tolerate, not something that they look forward to.β
Thatβs particularly true when consultants push ambitious programs like grading for equity. At its core, it requires a new way of thinking about education for everyone in a school, overturning an embedded tradition that awards points on a frequent basis to keep students on track toward a final goal of a good grade. Since many students have yet to develop executive functioning skills, or the ability to create their own study plan and stick to it, external pressures from deadlines play a key role in education, researchers say.
For students to develop a new mindset about the value of doing work without getting an immediate reward takes a tremendous amount of persistence and encouragement by teachers, says OβConnor, who has consulted with schools in 47 states. He says students must think like athletes, who devote themselves to weeks of hard practice in hopes of later excelling in a competition. One school brought in a football coach to give students pep talks on the importance of practice.
Beyond the students, all the stakeholders in a district have to be willing to change their views on the role of grading. While board members debate the practices for months, and teachers sit in days of training, administrators must sell the plan to families and deal with the inevitable complaints and protests. Even the districtβs grading software needs to be updated.
The report card on grading for equity is mixed. After districts hire Feldman and start making changes, a βsignificant numberβ abandon the project, the consultant says. A lack of follow-through from school leaders to stick with the overhaul and opposition from teachers are often to blame.
New York City made a mess of grading for equity. While suffering an exodus of students in the wake of the pandemic, officials tapped Feldman for help. Teachers in District 6 attended his workshop at the National Museum of the American Indian. They received a copy of Feldmanβs book and were urged to bring his ideas back to their schools and lead the effort to implement them.
Janessa Tamayo, a high school math teacher who attended the training session, says she initially saw value in the program for her students from low-income families. But the grading changes she made backfired, with fewer students participating in class and doing homework. When she offered retakes on tests, she was frustrated that many students didnβt bother to take them.
βTo participate and turn assignments in on time is a life skill these students need to learn to be successful,β Tamayo said. βGrading for equity works fine for the small percentage of kids who are highly motivated. For the rest, it encouraged them to do the minimum.β
After teachers tested the program for a year, Tamayo says, administrators never followed up to assess its effect. No one collected data and asked for feedback. The program just faded away. Teachers like Tamayo have mostly returned to their old grading practices.
Arlington Public Schools in Virginia had big plans for Feldman, hiring him for what was envisioned to be a three-year project. But teachers at Wakefield High, a school with mostly Latino and black students, sent a letter to the board and superintendent, saying the changes would harm students by removing accountability and high expectations. Early this year, the district backtracked on several of Feldmanβs practices, allowing penalties for late work and limiting retakes of exams.
βItβs the politics of the place, whose voices are loud,β Feldman said of the rollback in Arlington. βThey could resolve it and continue down the path.β
To be sure, some districts make it to the finish line. Solon, a small, mostly white and high-achieving district near Iowa City, pulled off grading reform, thanks to the devotion of its then leader, Matt Townsley. It took four sometimes rocky years, with a handful of teachers quitting.
Townsley, now a professor of education and consultant, says districts must hang on through the tough times to get through the βimplementation dip.β Initially, thereβs a big decline in effort, with some districts seeing less than half of the students doing their work. But eventually, the vast majority of students get over the dip, realizing that practice prevents them from bombing the test, and taking it again.
Placer Union, another small and predominately white district in Northern California, also made it work. With Feldmanβs support, the high-performing district directly involved teachers in shaping the program β a key to winning their support. For students who used to struggle and give up, retakes on exams gives them hope that they can achieve academically, says Superintendent Jeff Tooker.
βThis process takes patience, support, communication, grace, and a lot of time,β he said.
Even for districts that fully implement grading for equity, a big question looms: Does it result in more learning, the ultimate goal of public education? No one knows for sure. Feldman says he would like to know if his program improves state test scores, the most objective measurement of learning, but researchers havenβt tackled this question.
Several studies, including a peer-reviewed examination by Fordhamβs research director Adam Tyner, have looked at what happens with learning when grading standards are lifted β test scores go up too. Tyner says students strive to meet the expectations that teachers set for them, whether high or low.
βThe grading for equity advocates donβt have any research showing that their changes lead to greater learning, and thatβs very concerning,β said Tyner.
The post βGrading for Equityβ: Promoting Students by Banning Grades of Zero and Leaving No Class Cut-Ups Behind appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Here are some news stories that might be of interest. Most articles will be more or less summarized in the headline. You can skim the headlines and summaries, and click the links if they are of interest. Keep in mind, many of these reports are products of an unreliable news media, so although they will be what people are hearing and talking about, there is no guarantee any one of them is necessarily correct, and we have had cases of outright lies make it onto these pages.
Follow Don Jr on twitter here.
βMake sure those you follow talk about the surveillance, because everyone who is in the game knows. Make them either damage the machine by saying it, or reveal they are part of it by staying silent. Demanding our side talk about the surveillance is really the closest to a Xanatos gambit our side has.β
Visit our surveillance page, the most important page on this site, and see firsthand the massive Stasi-like domestic spying operation in the US which is targeting you and your loved ones.
_________________________________________
No DFT today.
We will be moving this News Brief to the main domain in the near future, so you will find this at anonymousconservative.com, instead of anonymousconservative.com/blog I have a lot going on right now, and it will take time to make sure it goes right, so not right away. I will try to redirect people from /blog to there, but if that doesnβt work, just go to the main domain.
American Stasi Chapter Five, featuring the surveillance in rural Montana, is done for the book, converted to html, and up at the site. This is exactly what will be in the book, only the book will feature the links as endnotes. You can begin to see where the book is going and how it works. Next up, SoCal, and then Alaska. It is an exercise in cognitive conditioning, in Pavlovian fashion, which will force readers to see the surveillance, in the book and in their real lives. And once they are so trained, we show them the surveillance killed Irah Sok, and then we show them everyone from John Lang to Michael Hastings, to Brian Mancini, as well as the Gilgo Beach Killer. If we can make everyone aware of it, it will be the most influential book out there since the Bible, and certainly the most influential book in the history of America. It will change history. And I have a marketing plan to make that happen.
I am not smart enough to come up with that whole thing myself. This is God, working through me, and it is why I have no doubt we will take the surveillance down, in His name, and free our nation. Things are fucked up, but it is a glorious time to be alive. We, all of us here, are going to free our kind, and our kind will remember us for it throughout history.
Gateway Pundit heads for Chapter 11 to consolidate legal attacks. They are being sued by Ruby Freeman and her daughter over their stories of election rigging. Meanwhile Ben Shapiro probably saw an increase in revenues. Still, if Hoft is not talking about the surveillance, he is not on our side.
Migrants complain that New Yorkers donβt learn African languages.
Secret Service officer protecting Kamala Harris came to blows with other agents at Joint Base Andrews. These guys get screened psychologically. They were concerned enough the first thing they did was take his gun off him once they got him down. They are saying it was a medical incident, he began displaying disturbing behavior, they confronted him, and he began brawling. Encephalitis can do that. There was a guy on a plane once in Alaska who was known to be the nicest, sanest guy, he had encephalitis, freaked out, and tried to open a door mid-flight, and then fought like a tiger with everyone. Never remembered any of it. Of course what you have to wonder is, could the domestic Stasi decide they want Kamala gone and replaced by Michelle, so one night they fry Kamalaβs security officerβs brain with Havana syndrome in ways known to mimic the brain damage caused by the tumor which drove Texas clocktower shooter Charles Whitman to perform a mass shooting.
Joe Biden, reading off a teleprompter, says βpauseβ instead of pausing for applause.
San Jose Mayorβs security detail isnβt going to be stopping anybody who wants to from killing him. The way I know surveillance wonβt last ten seconds when the shit touches off is they run cops by me, I think because they think it will intimidate me or something. In their mind, I think they see cops as some kind of Jedi knights, trained in the fine art of death. I trained with cops. None of the cops I trained with could beat me in hand to hand, when I was like 19 or 20. And one was a genuine city cop, not a house mouse. He was out there in the ghetto, and would relate all the weird improvised weapons he came across chasing down and scrumming with scumbags who had no money, and would thus make the weirdest improvised weapons. Heβd pull like a 2 foot cross between a roman short sword and an ambassadorβs knife out of some guyβs pants, who made it, painstakingly, from steel he took off some staircase in the projectsΒ like he was a medieval blacksmith. He and I were doing ground work once, and bantering, and I asked him, which weapon he carried. I knew his department gave its officers a choice, Smith, Sig, or Glock. He said he carried a Smith. Sig was classy and elite. Glock was the ultra-reliable workhorse, and easy to clean. But those old stainless Smiths, never really had a reputation. I asked why he chose the Smith, and he said he didnβt want to have to go to the range to qualify with a semi-automatic. Yep. That dude who was nose to nose with the scum of his city was still carrying a revolver. In like the late nineties.Β Because he was too lazy to go to the range. And he didnβt even carry when we went places. I remember saying, why donβt you have your gun?Β He said there was no point in carrying, nothing would happen. And though he did grappling martial arts, it wasnβt his life. He wasnβt watching tapes and replaying them and visualizing what some attack or defense. The thing with most cops is, they are well adjusted. The guy above is well adjusted. He has a wife, and kids, and probably doesnβt have his threat-perceptions warped to see some ultra-dangerous society where he will have to kill someone sooner or later simply because that is how the world is. But as a result, he is being a good parent and pleasing his wife, and not training to fuck somebody up in hand to hand becauseΒ he assumes he is going to be attacked tomorrow. And when the shit hits the fan it shows. He doesnβt even want to keep scrumming at the end. And the mayorβs staff is even worse.Β It never even crosses their mind to jump in and help. Meanwhile the mal-adjusted guy is bouncing up and down having a ball. Cabal, I think, has spent great effort mal-adjusting a lot of people on our side throughout our youth. And they are mal-adjusting more now by fucking up society this badly. And they have never really gotten mal-adjusted themselves, hiding in their houses microwaving people, so they are like ultra-rabbits. I suspect some day that will bite them in the ass. Who knows, we may even bring that day about ourselves with American Stasi. May the mal-adjusted, one day run free.
An Oklahoma man is facing up to 12 years in prison for having ammunition in his carry-on bag at a Turks and Caicos airport, according to a GoFundMe page for his family. Forgot he had left four hunting rounds in a pocket in his bag. Interestingly he is the second American theyβve gotten, and both were βdiscoveredβ on their way out of the country coming home. Could be domestic intel is going through bags at some point in the hotel down there while people are out and alerting airport security to look for the ammo on their way home.
Supreme Court to consider when doctors can provide emergency abortions in states with bans.
New Windows 11 update introduces start menu ads.
Metaβs stock plunges over 16% after earnings report, wiping out $240 billion market cap.
Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoes bills on school showers, residency for voting, squatters, more.
New Jersey congressman Donald Payne Jr. (D-NJ) dead at 65.
Federal Reserveβs capital has now plummeted to negative $121 billion,
TIKTOK vows to fight βunconstitutionalβ US ban.
Nation-state hackers exploit Cisco firewall 0-days to backdoor government networks.
Not a confirmed report, but from a reputable source with contacts deep within the Hague β The Biden administration is behind an ICC plan to arrest senior Israeli officials. That is one way to get Netanyahu off the gameboard.
U.N. says mass graves with victimsβ hands tied found at Gaza hospitals.
China offers Blinken cold welcome in Shanghai, mocks visit as βimploring.β
Princess Beatriceβs ex-boyfriend Paolo Liuzzo is found dead in Miami hotel room.
Poland ready to help Ukraine to get military-age men back, minister says.
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by US to hit Russian-held areas, officials say.
Ukraine has only six months left as Russia moving with βsheer determination.β βWhat is an October Surprise for 200, Alex.β
Russian special services continue to identify people behind Crocus City Hall attack β Putin.
Lawyers have the right to bear arms in courthouses according to the Arkansas Supreme Court.
Β
The estate of deceased rapper Tupac Shakur has threatened singer Drake with a lawsuit for a recent Kendrick Lamar diss track that allegedly uses an AI-generated voice mimicking the rapper.
The post Tupac Estate: Drake Has 24 Hours to Remove Song Using Deceased Rapperβs AI-Generated Voice appeared first on Breitbart.
Former President Donald Trump will be back in a New York City courtroom Thursday as his business records trial resumes after a day's break.
The post Trump Trials: NY Jury Hears Tabloid Publisherβs Testimony, Supreme Court Hears Immunity Arguments appeared first on Breitbart.
Just 0.6 per cent of hate crime reports made since the introduction of draconian speech codes in Scotland have been found to be legitimate.
The post Scotland: Less Than One Per Cent of Hate Speech Reports Deemed Legitimate appeared first on Breitbart.
President Joe Biden's pro-migration border chief is opening new processing centers for Muslim migrants from the Arab world, just after Congress granted $3.5 billion more for migration within the $95 billion aid package for Ukraine and Israel.
The post Ukraine-Israel Aid Bill Includes β$3.5 Billion to Supercharge Mass Migration from the Middle Eastβ appeared first on Breitbart.
On Wednesdayβs broadcast of the Fox News Channelβs βThe Story,β NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry stated that the Columbia demonstrators βare kidsβ and βwe are handling them with kid gloves, as you will say,β because they donβt want
The post NYPD: Weβre Handling Columbia Students βwith Kid Glovesβ to Avoid 2020 Repeat appeared first on Breitbart.
A drag queen invited children to chant "Free Palestine" during a story event at a Massachusetts art center recently.Β
The post Drag Queen Tells Children to Chant βFree Palestineβ During Story Time appeared first on Breitbart.
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