all likelihood, President Trump is going to be impeached by the House this week, . It should be a moment of strong, bipartisan protection of the electoral process and of Congress as an institution. Instead, Democrats — at the very moment when they appear to have the high ground — are politicizing the process. Instead of pursuing a preservation of the Constitution that can unite the country, they are making the impeachment push the coda of their four-year partisan warfare against Trump.The Democrats have labeled their “Incitement of Insurrection.” This is needlessly problematic and…Who could...…all likelihood, President Trump is going to be impeached by the House this week, . It should be a moment of strong, bipartisan protection of the electoral process and of Congress as an institution. Instead, Democrats — at the very moment when they appear to have the high ground — are politicizing the process. Instead of pursuing a preservation of the Constitution that can unite the country, they are making the impeachment push the coda of their four-year partisan warfare against Trump.The Democrats have labeled their “Incitement of Insurrection.” This is needlessly problematic and…Who could...WW…

are dark days in the history of the United States, and no one is feeling them more intensely than Mike Pence.On Wednesday, the vice president the president’s high-intensity demands that he shred the Constitution. Trump was pushing Pence to usurp the states’ power over the disposition of their electoral votes — in effect, to claim dictatorial power to reverse President-elect Biden’s victory. Pence’s fidelity to his constitutional oath so enraged Trump that the president publicly rebuked him even as an insurrectionist mob was descending on the Capitol. Press reports indicate that the rioters,...…are dark days in the history of the United States, and no one is feeling them more intensely than Mike Pence.On Wednesday, the vice president the president’s high-intensity demands that he shred the Constitution. Trump was pushing Pence to usurp the states’ power over the disposition of their electoral votes — in effect, to claim dictatorial power to reverse President-elect Biden’s victory. Pence’s fidelity to his constitutional oath so enraged Trump that the president publicly rebuked him even as an insurrectionist mob was descending on the Capitol. Press reports indicate that the rioters,...WW…

… what part of the word “conclusive” is unclear?Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz are erudite constitutional law scholars. They are former Supreme Court clerks, each becoming a top government lawyer in his state: Hawley as Missouri’s attorney general, Cruz as Texas’s solicitor general. Yet they are of Republican senators in a farce that, if Democrats tried it, would be decried by conservative constitutionalists as the ultimate Swamp usurpation of state sovereignty.They propose an “Electoral Commission” that would audit the election results in select states, chosen out of careful partisan...…… what part of the word “conclusive” is unclear?Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz are erudite constitutional law scholars. They are former Supreme Court clerks, each becoming a top government lawyer in his state: Hawley as Missouri’s attorney general, Cruz as Texas’s solicitor general. Yet they are of Republican senators in a farce that, if Democrats tried it, would be decried by conservative constitutionalists as the ultimate Swamp usurpation of state sovereignty.They propose an “Electoral Commission” that would audit the election results in select states, chosen out of careful partisan...WW…

most telling aspect of the Wisconsin federal district court’s of another Trump campaign lawsuit on Saturday is so obvious it is easy to miss. And no, it is not that the rejecting was done by a , Brett H. Ludwig, or that it was done on the merits.After all that’s been said over the last six weeks, this fleeting passage near the start of the court’s workmanlike, 23-page should take our breath away (my highlighting):With the Electoral College meeting just days away, the Court declined to address the issues in piecemeal fashion and instead…ByOne of Joe Biden’s first tests in office will be the...…most telling aspect of the Wisconsin federal district court’s of another Trump campaign lawsuit on Saturday is so obvious it is easy to miss. And no, it is not that the rejecting was done by a , Brett H. Ludwig, or that it was done on the merits.After all that’s been said over the last six weeks, this fleeting passage near the start of the court’s workmanlike, 23-page should take our breath away (my highlighting):With the Electoral College meeting just days away, the Court declined to address the issues in piecemeal fashion and instead…ByOne of Joe Biden’s first tests in office will be the...WW…

drives me nuts when subject-matter experts lapse into the jargon of their fields, so I’m doubly annoyed when I contribute to this menace. Over the past couple of days, discussing news of Hunter Biden’s announcement that he’s under federal investigation, I casually described criminal probes as being “covert” and “overt” as if everybody knew what that distinction means. There is no reason why they should, so let me explain.Some investigations involve open and notorious crimes — e.g., a bank robbery, a murder. A measure of investigative secrecy is important in every case, even those involving...…drives me nuts when subject-matter experts lapse into the jargon of their fields, so I’m doubly annoyed when I contribute to this menace. Over the past couple of days, discussing news of Hunter Biden’s announcement that he’s under federal investigation, I casually described criminal probes as being “covert” and “overt” as if everybody knew what that distinction means. There is no reason why they should, so let me explain.Some investigations involve open and notorious crimes — e.g., a bank robbery, a murder. A measure of investigative secrecy is important in every case, even those involving...WW…

federal “safe harbor” date for state certification of presidential-election results is Tuesday. , this means that, as far as the federal government is concerned, a state’s certification of its result is deemed conclusive.That may not be quite as conclusive as it sounds. There is no federal law that prevents a state from altering its certification between Tuesday (December 8) and next Monday (December 14), when the Electoral College actually casts its votes in each state. But getting a state to reverse its certification would be extraordinarily difficult. Federal courts would almost...…federal “safe harbor” date for state certification of presidential-election results is Tuesday. , this means that, as far as the federal government is concerned, a state’s certification of its result is deemed conclusive.That may not be quite as conclusive as it sounds. There is no federal law that prevents a state from altering its certification between Tuesday (December 8) and next Monday (December 14), when the Electoral College actually casts its votes in each state. But getting a state to reverse its certification would be extraordinarily difficult. Federal courts would almost...WW…

The most amusing thing about the Obama v. the Squad kerfuffle is that there is not actually an inch of substantive daylight between the supposed combatants. Former President Obama does not disagree with the sentiments or objectives of Ilhan Omar et al. He disagrees with their tactic of pursuing it through a slogan – “Defund the Police” – that frightens and enrages most people in the country.And he disagrees with it not because he thinks most people in the country are right, but because if you wake those people up – as you do when you say like “Defund the Police” – they become an obstacle.As...…The most amusing thing about the Obama v. the Squad kerfuffle is that there is not actually an inch of substantive daylight between the supposed combatants. Former President Obama does not disagree with the sentiments or objectives of Ilhan Omar et al. He disagrees with their tactic of pursuing it through a slogan – “Defund the Police” – that frightens and enrages most people in the country.And he disagrees with it not because he thinks most people in the country are right, but because if you wake those people up – as you do when you say like “Defund the Police” – they become an obstacle.As...WW…

 told the Associated Press on Tuesday that he has Connecticut U.S. attorney John Durham as a special counsel under the same regulation that covered Robert Mueller, the special counsel who investigated alleged Trump campaign collusion with Russia.The indicated that he made the appointment in October. Since Barr gave him the assignment in 2019, Durham has been investigating the politicized origins of the Trump-Russia investigation launched by the Obama administration during the 2016 presidential campaign.Barr told the AP, “I decided the best thing to do would be to appoint them under the same...… told the Associated Press on Tuesday that he has Connecticut U.S. attorney John Durham as a special counsel under the same regulation that covered Robert Mueller, the special counsel who investigated alleged Trump campaign collusion with Russia.The indicated that he made the appointment in October. Since Barr gave him the assignment in 2019, Durham has been investigating the politicized origins of the Trump-Russia investigation launched by the Obama administration during the 2016 presidential campaign.Barr told the AP, “I decided the best thing to do would be to appoint them under the same...WW…

President Trump plotting to circumvent the popular election in order to stay in power? I spent the better part of assuring people that this notion was too inconceivable to worry about. Shows what I know. At this point, there are reasons to worry. Undeniably.The idea would be to appeal to Republican-controlled legislatures in states where presumptive president-elect Joe Biden won the popular vote — Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, and Arizona — and persuade them to appoint slates of Republican electors who would cast each state’s Electoral College votes for Trump rather than Biden., …ByThe...…President Trump plotting to circumvent the popular election in order to stay in power? I spent the better part of assuring people that this notion was too inconceivable to worry about. Shows what I know. At this point, there are reasons to worry. Undeniably.The idea would be to appeal to Republican-controlled legislatures in states where presumptive president-elect Joe Biden won the popular vote — Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, and Arizona — and persuade them to appoint slates of Republican electors who would cast each state’s Electoral College votes for Trump rather than Biden., …ByThe...WW…

, the legal battle over the 2020 election is over. As I over the weekend, from President Trump’s perspective, that battle is beset by a fatal mismatch between (a) what his campaign is in a position to allege and prove, and (b) the remedy — i.e., the potential number of votes that could swing from Biden to Trump. That problem was already apparent last week, when the campaign filed its original complaint in the Williamsport federal court. It became insurmountable Sunday, when the campaign , stripping out the main fraud claims.What is left of the lawsuit cannot conceivably change the result in...…, the legal battle over the 2020 election is over. As I over the weekend, from President Trump’s perspective, that battle is beset by a fatal mismatch between (a) what his campaign is in a position to allege and prove, and (b) the remedy — i.e., the potential number of votes that could swing from Biden to Trump. That problem was already apparent last week, when the campaign filed its original complaint in the Williamsport federal court. It became insurmountable Sunday, when the campaign , stripping out the main fraud claims.What is left of the lawsuit cannot conceivably change the result in...WW…

The Trump campaign won a minor victory today in the multifaceted post-election litigation ongoing in Pennsylvania. that the state government lacked the authority to extend by three days (i.e., until today, November 12) the statutory six-day post-election deadline for voters to verify proof of identification. Consequently, if these voters did not verify their identification by November 9, their votes may not be counted.The decision by President Judge Mary Hannah Leavitt of the Commonwealth Court is expected to affect very few votes. As I write this, presumptive President-elect Biden leads...…The Trump campaign won a minor victory today in the multifaceted post-election litigation ongoing in Pennsylvania. that the state government lacked the authority to extend by three days (i.e., until today, November 12) the statutory six-day post-election deadline for voters to verify proof of identification. Consequently, if these voters did not verify their identification by November 9, their votes may not be counted.The decision by President Judge Mary Hannah Leavitt of the Commonwealth Court is expected to affect very few votes. As I write this, presumptive President-elect Biden leads...WW…

Trump to lose a close election.This being modern America, nothing is final until the courts have spoken (particularly ). That process must be allowed to play out. To my knowledge, there is no hard evidence at this point of anything so monumental that it could change the result, but disturbing anecdotal reports merit investigation. And Biden’s margin of victory is so razor-thin in some states that recounts may be warranted if the president chooses to press the matter.Undoubtedly, post-election litigation would be pursued if the shoe were …ByThis weekend, the news organizations projected Joe...…Trump to lose a close election.This being modern America, nothing is final until the courts have spoken (particularly ). That process must be allowed to play out. To my knowledge, there is no hard evidence at this point of anything so monumental that it could change the result, but disturbing anecdotal reports merit investigation. And Biden’s margin of victory is so razor-thin in some states that recounts may be warranted if the president chooses to press the matter.Undoubtedly, post-election litigation would be pursued if the shoe were …ByThis weekend, the news organizations projected Joe...WW…

latest talking point in the election coverage, which I’ve seen or heard in several places today, is that the Supreme Court has validated the mail-in, depot-drop, and ballot-counting procedures that have been ginned up by state courts and election-board bureaucrats. This is wrong. The Supreme Court has not validated anything. It has abdicated.This distinction needs to be made clearly. The narrative that the Supreme Court has already authorized voting that does not comply with state election laws is just part one in a two-step scheme to enable post-election cheating: First, infiltrate as many...…latest talking point in the election coverage, which I’ve seen or heard in several places today, is that the Supreme Court has validated the mail-in, depot-drop, and ballot-counting procedures that have been ginned up by state courts and election-board bureaucrats. This is wrong. The Supreme Court has not validated anything. It has abdicated.This distinction needs to be made clearly. The narrative that the Supreme Court has already authorized voting that does not comply with state election laws is just part one in a two-step scheme to enable post-election cheating: First, infiltrate as many...WW…

what’s going on here: The is warning you, on the basis of no evidence, that if you don’t close your eyes to the explosive revelations from computers, you will be abetting a Russian intelligence operation; yet it has become increasingly obvious that this is because, if you open your eyes, you may find out that the Bidens were selling themselves to an actual Chinese intelligence operation.Among the more amazing revelations in the Biden corruption scandal that the media-Democrat complex is blocking voters from seeing is this: The corrupt Chinese businessmen with whom the Bidens were colluding...…what’s going on here: The is warning you, on the basis of no evidence, that if you don’t close your eyes to the explosive revelations from computers, you will be abetting a Russian intelligence operation; yet it has become increasingly obvious that this is because, if you open your eyes, you may find out that the Bidens were selling themselves to an actual Chinese intelligence operation.Among the more amazing revelations in the Biden corruption scandal that the media-Democrat complex is blocking voters from seeing is this: The corrupt Chinese businessmen with whom the Bidens were colluding...WW…

one thing we’ve forgotten to mention about political intimidation of the Supreme Court. It works.On the right, and among those who respect history, tradition, and stability, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Court-packing gambit is remembered as a welcome rejection of radicalism: At the pinnacle of his influence, the most powerful president of the 20th century could not prevail on his scheme to expand the Court and fill it with like-minded, politically willful progressives, even though his party controlled both houses of Congress by decisive margins.Yet, on the left, and especially among...…one thing we’ve forgotten to mention about political intimidation of the Supreme Court. It works.On the right, and among those who respect history, tradition, and stability, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Court-packing gambit is remembered as a welcome rejection of radicalism: At the pinnacle of his influence, the most powerful president of the 20th century could not prevail on his scheme to expand the Court and fill it with like-minded, politically willful progressives, even though his party controlled both houses of Congress by decisive margins.Yet, on the left, and especially among...WW…

their floating of the Court-packing notion proved unpopular, and after their redefining of the meaning of “packing” proved unpersuasive, congressional Democrats and the Biden campaign have settled on a new stratagem to confront the to the Supreme Court. They now warn that they will visit future “consequences” on the country but do not specify what those consequences will be.This is mainly saber-rattling out of frustration over being unable to stop Barrett’s appointment. To repeat what two weeks ago, Democrats do not appear to have the votes they would need to …ByIf Donald Trump wins a...…their floating of the Court-packing notion proved unpopular, and after their redefining of the meaning of “packing” proved unpersuasive, congressional Democrats and the Biden campaign have settled on a new stratagem to confront the to the Supreme Court. They now warn that they will visit future “consequences” on the country but do not specify what those consequences will be.This is mainly saber-rattling out of frustration over being unable to stop Barrett’s appointment. To repeat what two weeks ago, Democrats do not appear to have the votes they would need to …ByIf Donald Trump wins a...WW…

Editor’s Note: The following is one of three essays, each from a different perspective, in the latest edition of on the question of whether to vote for President Trump. The views below reflect those of the individual author, not of the NR editorial board as a whole. The other two essays can be found  and . …If you enjoyed this article, we have a proposition for you: Join NRPLUS. Members get all of our content (including the magazine), no paywalls or content meters, an advertising-minimal experience, and unique access to our writers and editors (conference calls, social-media groups, etc.)....…Editor’s Note: The following is one of three essays, each from a different perspective, in the latest edition of on the question of whether to vote for President Trump. The views below reflect those of the individual author, not of the NR editorial board as a whole. The other two essays can be found  and . …If you enjoyed this article, we have a proposition for you: Join NRPLUS. Members get all of our content (including the magazine), no paywalls or content meters, an advertising-minimal experience, and unique access to our writers and editors (conference calls, social-media groups, etc.)....WW…

is not an attack on the American election. It is an influence operation aimed at the American media, using the $60 billion per annum American intelligence apparatus to pull it off.And it’s working.On Wednesday night, it was suddenly announced that U.S. security services would conduct a press conference to announce vital information. With millions of Americans already voting, with our official Election Day less than two weeks away, and with minds ever attuned to the specter of 2016 election shenanigans that the media-Democrat complex has never stopped litigating, there was an instant...…is not an attack on the American election. It is an influence operation aimed at the American media, using the $60 billion per annum American intelligence apparatus to pull it off.And it’s working.On Wednesday night, it was suddenly announced that U.S. security services would conduct a press conference to announce vital information. With millions of Americans already voting, with our official Election Day less than two weeks away, and with minds ever attuned to the specter of 2016 election shenanigans that the media-Democrat complex has never stopped litigating, there was an instant...WW…

would be in much better shape right now if he’d campaigned and debated like the guy who showed up at last night’s debate. To use a boxing analogy, I think he won the match on points, but the margin gets better for him in the post-mortem. Former vice president Biden said some truly indefensible things. Starting this morning and continuing for the next ten days, Republicans will be whistling through the groove-yard of forgotten favorite video clips . . . or, better, GOP favorites that Biden would like to forget.In fact, the president wasted no time: He had …ByThere was a low bar for Joe Biden...…would be in much better shape right now if he’d campaigned and debated like the guy who showed up at last night’s debate. To use a boxing analogy, I think he won the match on points, but the margin gets better for him in the post-mortem. Former vice president Biden said some truly indefensible things. Starting this morning and continuing for the next ten days, Republicans will be whistling through the groove-yard of forgotten favorite video clips . . . or, better, GOP favorites that Biden would like to forget.In fact, the president wasted no time: He had …ByThere was a low bar for Joe Biden...WW…

imagine if something like this happened during the Trump administration, and ask yourself what the media-Democrat complex would be saying.In November 2011, an elite group of Chinese Communist Party members and billionaire cronies of the repressive regime in Beijing secured a meeting in the White House, said to be with Vice President Biden and other Obama administration officials, through Hunter Biden’s associates.News of the meeting has been broken by Peter Schweizer and Seamus Bruner. Schweizer, who has spent years tracking Washington’s web of money, influence and access, is the author...…imagine if something like this happened during the Trump administration, and ask yourself what the media-Democrat complex would be saying.In November 2011, an elite group of Chinese Communist Party members and billionaire cronies of the repressive regime in Beijing secured a meeting in the White House, said to be with Vice President Biden and other Obama administration officials, through Hunter Biden’s associates.News of the meeting has been broken by Peter Schweizer and Seamus Bruner. Schweizer, who has spent years tracking Washington’s web of money, influence and access, is the author...WW…

much-misunderstood of the 1996 Communications Decency Act is in the spotlight again. Twitter and, to a lesser extent, Facebook, suppressed reporting that on the then-vice president’s political influence. Since there are plenty of alternatives to these social-media platforms, their actions merely drew more attention to the story while calling into question their qualification for Section 230 immunity from lawsuits., the nation’s fourth-largest daily by circulation, whose (with 1.8 million followers) remains suspended as of this writing — irrationally …ByEditor’s Note: The following is one of...…much-misunderstood of the 1996 Communications Decency Act is in the spotlight again. Twitter and, to a lesser extent, Facebook, suppressed reporting that on the then-vice president’s political influence. Since there are plenty of alternatives to these social-media platforms, their actions merely drew more attention to the story while calling into question their qualification for Section 230 immunity from lawsuits., the nation’s fourth-largest daily by circulation, whose (with 1.8 million followers) remains suspended as of this writing — irrationally …ByEditor’s Note: The following is one of...WW…

Editor’s Note: The following is one of three essays, each from a different perspective, in the latest edition of on the question of whether to vote for President Trump. The views below reflect those of the individual author, not of the NR editorial board as a whole. The other two essays can be found  and . …If you enjoyed this article, we have a proposition for you: Join NRPLUS. Members get all of our content (including the magazine), no paywalls or content meters, an advertising-minimal experience, and unique access to our writers and editors (conference calls, social-media groups, etc.)....…Editor’s Note: The following is one of three essays, each from a different perspective, in the latest edition of on the question of whether to vote for President Trump. The views below reflect those of the individual author, not of the NR editorial board as a whole. The other two essays can be found  and . …If you enjoyed this article, we have a proposition for you: Join NRPLUS. Members get all of our content (including the magazine), no paywalls or content meters, an advertising-minimal experience, and unique access to our writers and editors (conference calls, social-media groups, etc.)....WW…

to a 2015 email, then–vice president Joe Biden met with a top executive at Burisma, the Ukrainian energy firm that paid Biden’s son, Hunter, $50,000 a month to sit on its board. Earlier, the Burisma executive had asked Hunter to use his influence to quell Ukrainian government officials who were trying to extort the company. Months later, Vice President Biden coerced the Ukrainian government into firing a prosecutor who says he was gearing up an investigation of Burisma.The evidence that Vice President Biden gave access to the company that was paying his son is disputed. It comes from emails...…to a 2015 email, then–vice president Joe Biden met with a top executive at Burisma, the Ukrainian energy firm that paid Biden’s son, Hunter, $50,000 a month to sit on its board. Earlier, the Burisma executive had asked Hunter to use his influence to quell Ukrainian government officials who were trying to extort the company. Months later, Vice President Biden coerced the Ukrainian government into firing a prosecutor who says he was gearing up an investigation of Burisma.The evidence that Vice President Biden gave access to the company that was paying his son is disputed. It comes from emails...WW…

I kid you not. In an this afternoon, Senator Tim Kaine (D., Vt.) surmised — because, of course, they haven’t discussed the matter — that his party’s presidential nominee, Joe Biden, is probably refusing to answer the question of whether he supports packing the Supreme Court because . . . it turns out . . . “it’s not his business.” See, Biden is running for president, and it turns out that legislation regarding the Supreme Court is totally up to Congress. Nothing for Ol’ Joe to be concerned about.You can check the clip. The senator did his best to keep a straight face, but it was a...…I kid you not. In an this afternoon, Senator Tim Kaine (D., Vt.) surmised — because, of course, they haven’t discussed the matter — that his party’s presidential nominee, Joe Biden, is probably refusing to answer the question of whether he supports packing the Supreme Court because . . . it turns out . . . “it’s not his business.” See, Biden is running for president, and it turns out that legislation regarding the Supreme Court is totally up to Congress. Nothing for Ol’ Joe to be concerned about.You can check the clip. The senator did his best to keep a straight face, but it was a...WW…

she or didn’t she?Of course she did. In late July 2016, Hillary Clinton, in an effort to divert attention from the email scandal that was haunting her presidential bid, directed her campaign to peddle a political narrative that Russia’s suspected hacking and leaking of Democratic Party emails was in furtherance of a conspiracy between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump to swing the election to Trump.That is, as I argued in , the Clinton campaign dreamed up, paid for, and peddled the Trump–Russia collusion farce. And in promoting it, President Obama’s former secretary of state had a...…she or didn’t she?Of course she did. In late July 2016, Hillary Clinton, in an effort to divert attention from the email scandal that was haunting her presidential bid, directed her campaign to peddle a political narrative that Russia’s suspected hacking and leaking of Democratic Party emails was in furtherance of a conspiracy between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump to swing the election to Trump.That is, as I argued in , the Clinton campaign dreamed up, paid for, and peddled the Trump–Russia collusion farce. And in promoting it, President Obama’s former secretary of state had a...WW…