Former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud
Former Trump Organization chief financial officer (CFO) Allen Weisselberg pleaded guilty Thursday to 15 counts of fraud and tax evasion, in a plea deal requiring him to testify against the company but not against former President Donald Trump.
Events in a federal courtroom in New York played out much as anticipated. As Breitbart News reported earlier this week:
Allen Weisselberg, the chief financial officer (CFO) of the Trump Organization, Donald Trump’s business empire, is expected to reach a plea deal with prosecutors in a tax fraud case that does not require him to testify against the former president.
…
The relatively minor allegations were anticlimactic, given the public determination of elected Democratic prosecutors to pursue Trump for whatever crime they could find. Trump himself was not accused of breaking the law, but prosecutors hoped to turn Weisselberg against Trump by pressuring him to testify against his former boss in other investigations.
That effort appears to have failed, with Weisselberg refusing to cooperate, and prosecutors reportedly considering a plea deal that could see the septuagenarian executive sentenced to as little as five months in jail, and eligible for early release after about 100 days.
CBS News added Thursday:
Weisselberg’s deal with prosecutors calls for a sentence of five months in New York’s Rikers Island jail, followed by five years’ probation. He must also pay $1.9 million in back taxes and fines, and must appear as a witness during the company’s trial to testify under oath. He has not agreed to provide any new or supplemental information about Trump or the company that bears his name, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Weisselberg was accused of receiving fringe benefits such as free rent, private school tuitions, and a car without reporting them to the IRS. The value of the benefits was estimated at a total $1.7 million over a period of 15 years. The company is also accused of failing to report the benefits, though Trump himself is not implicated.
Democrats celebrated the conviction, though it failed to reach the former president.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
Liz Cheney’s Ouster a Major Loss for K Street Lobbyists — Her ‘Biggest Benefactors’
K Street lobbyists and lawyers lost a favorite lawmaker on Tuesday night when the Trump-backed candidate Harriet Hageman defeated Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY).
Ahead of the pivotal primary for Wyoming’s at-large congressional district, Politico documented how lawyers and lobbyists have been some of “Cheney’s biggest benefactors throughout her political career.”
The establishment media outlet noted that more than four dozen Republican lobbyists signed up to host one fundraiser for Cheney in 2021.
Politico also noted that many prominent lobbyists donated to Cheney in the final weeks of her primary, even though she was slated to lose Hageman.
The outlet’s Caitlyn Oprysko elaborated:
Samuel Olchyk of Venable, Michael Robinson of Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas, Khary Cauthen of Cheniere, Julius Hobson of Polsinelli and Christopher Boesen of Tiber Creek Associates of Capitol Hill, are among the registered lobbyists who wrote checks to Cheney in the final weeks of the primary, along with Joshua Dorner, the managing director of SKDK’s Washington office and Hal Quinn, the head of the National Mining Association.
— CVS Health’s Shannon Penberthy and ACG Advocacy’s Michael Barbera also wrote checks to Cheney this year, and throughout the campaign, she received donations of at least $2,900 — the maximum amount allowed for individuals for a primary — from Nathanson + Hauck’s Megan Hauck, the Business Roundtable’s Josh Bolten and Kristen Silverberg, Blackstone’s Wayne Berman, Coinbase’s Kara Calvert, Fierce Government Relations’ Kirk Blalock, Forbes Tate Partners’ Jeff Forbes (a Democrat), West Front Strategies’ Shimmy Stein and Airlines for America’s Nick Calio.
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— James Richards of Cornerstone Government Affairs, Brian Shinault of American Strategic Partners and Denise Morrisey of Capitol Counsel have also donated to Hageman.
Former lawmakers also donated to Cheney.
This includes, “Filemón Vela, Congress Minutes reported. Former Reps. Mac Thornberry, Martha Roby and Rodney Frelinghuysen also contributed via their old campaign accounts, while former Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen gave to Cheney personally.”
Jeff Miller, a House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) ally who runs the lobbying firm Miller Strategies, said in 2021 that they could either work for Cheney or they could work for the potential next House speaker.
Sean Moran is a congressional reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.
Trump is struggling to find good lawyers who are still willing to represent him: WaPo report
Donald Trump is struggling to find lawyers willing to represent him, per a Washington Post report.
The Post spoke to several lawyers, some of whom described Trump as an impossible client.
Others said they feared they would not get paid after representing him.
Former President Donald Trump is having trouble finding a good lawyer to represent him, per a new report from The Washington Post.
The Post spoke to several lawyers who commented under the condition of anonymity on Trump's struggle to find seasoned counsel to defend him. "Everyone is saying no," a Republican lawyer told The Post, weighing in on how lawyers are turning down the Trump camp's cases.
Also speaking under anonymity, another lawyer spoke about the difficulties faced when representing Trump. They said that during his presidency, Trump would tweet about the Mueller probe against his legal team's advice. Several other people also told The Post that Trump was an impossible client, and worried if they would be compensated for their work.
"In olden days, he would tell firms representing him was a benefit because they could advertise off it. Today it's not the same," said Michael Cohen, a former Trump lawyer who has since become a fierce critic of the former president.
"He's also a very difficult client in that he's always pushing the envelope, he rarely listens to sound legal advice, and he wants you to do things that are not appropriate, ethically or legally," Cohen added.
Trump spokesman Taylor Budowich told The Post that the Trump legal team includes individuals like Jim Trusty and Evan Corcoran, who have "decades of prosecutorial experience and have litigated some of the most complex cases in American history."
"President Trump is represented by some of the strongest attorneys in the country, and any suggestion otherwise is only driven by envy," Budowich said.
Trump is currently represented by Trusty and Corcoran — as well as Alina Habba, a New Jersey parking garage lawyer, and former One America News anchor Christina Bobb.
Trump is facing several major legal challenges this year, including an investigation in New York into whether the Trump Organization violated banking, insurance, and tax laws and whether it engaged in financial fraud. Trump pleaded the fifth more than 440 times during his deposition in the case.
Trump could also be facing potential criminal charges following an investigation from the Department of Justice into whether he mishandled confidential documents. While executing a search warrant on Trump's Mar-a-Lago last Monday, the FBI removed 11 sets of classified documents — some of which were marked "top secret" and concerned nuclear weapons. According to the warrant, the Justice Department is looking into whether Trump broke three federal laws, including the Espionage Act.
A representative at Trump's post-presidential press office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
Read the original article on Business Insider
Nolte: MoneyBags Liz Cheney’s Only Future Is at Disgraced CNN
Watching outgoing (tee hee) Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) compare herself to Ulysses S. Grant was really something. Watching her compare herself to Abraham Lincoln is now (at least so far) my favorite part of the 2022 election season.
The self-regard! The hubris! The self-love!
More like, the self-delusion.
With narcissistic sociopaths like Liz Cheney, you never know if they truly believe what they say or whether they are just saying what they’re required to remain in good standing with the Mika-Joe-Jake-Anderson-Wolf-Rachel morons.
You better tote that barge, girl. You better lift that bale.
Watch as Liz Cheney compares herself to former Pres. Abraham Lincoln:
C-SPANTo keep her and the rest of our insufferable elites’ delusions in place, Cheney says she’s seriously thinking of running for president in 2024.
As what?
The Democrats will chuck her the moment she stops being useful and represents even a tiny threat to their violent quest for power. Ask Cindy Sheehan about that.
As we saw in her blow-out humiliation in Wyoming, GOP voters can’t stand her.
Will she try to run as a spoiler Independent? Well, who do you think that will hurt? Donald Trump, who left office with record GOP support? Or His Fraudulency Joe Biden, who’s losing Democrat support, even among black voters?
Please, run, Liz. Run like the wind, cupcake. Run like you’ve never run before. Run like there’s a spot on The View for you at the finish line.
Hey, maybe Liz and Evan McMullin could join forces and run for president on the Smug Ticket.
Liz Cheney was not humiliated and rejected in Wyoming Tuesday night because she “betrayed Donald Trump.” Liz Cheney was humiliated and rejected because she betrayed Wyoming.
How much higher do energy prices have to explode before Liz Cheney gives up on her personal (and childish) vendetta against the Orange Whale?
Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., arrives, with her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, to vote at the Teton County Library during the Republican primary election on Tuesday, Aug 16, 2022 in Jackson Hole, WY. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
How many illegal aliens have to cross the border before Liz Cheney stops allowing herself to be prostituted against all Trump supporters by Nancy Pelosi?
How much underage grooming does the left have to try and institutionalize in our schools, health care, and entertainment before Liz Cheney stops making everything about Liz Cheney and her “principles?”
How bad does crime have to get?
How many Afghanistan withdrawals?
How many Black Lives Matter riots?
How high does the price of eggs have to get before Liz Cheney disconnects from the crack pipe of establishment media love?
No one — and I do mean no one — sees Liz Cheney as principled. Everyone — including the corporate media, Democrats, and her fellow mercenaries in Never Trump — know exactly what she’s doing: using the quickest, easiest, and safest way imaginable to feather her own nest…
Betray Trump supporters = get rich quick.
The Deep State might not be able to win a war, manage a military withdrawal, handle a pandemic, or run an economy, but one thing these degenerates do better than anyone else is reward their own.
Trump lost money serving in elected office.
Check out, Liz!
So MoneyBagsLiz is headed towards the only place the Vichy GOP can go and still pretend to be relevant: CNNLOL.
Bye, Felicia!
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