Former Trump Attorney Tells CNN Immunity Ruling ‘Really Protects President Biden’
'It really protects President Biden'
Panel of attorneys tell Jake Tapper why Alvin Bragg's case against Trump is doomed: 'The prosecution hasn't met its burden'
A panel of attorneys told CNN anchor Jake Tapper on Tuesday that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's (D) case against Donald Trump is entering the territory of doom.
Earlier in the day, Trump's defense team cross-examined Michael Cohen, one of the prosecution's star witnesses. For several hours, Trump attorney Todd Blanche worked to impeach Cohen's character as an honest and credible witness.
'As the days go on, it in this case looks weaker and weaker.'
That strategy worked, according to attorney Bill Brennan.
"This witness is perfect for Todd Blanche," he told Tapper. "And all the people second-guessing each and every question — sit down, get your popcorn, let Mr. Blanche do his job.
"The judge will charge to this jury that if a witness has a bias or skin in the game, you take that testimony with caution," Brennan explained. "The witness is supposed to say, 'They rob the bank, they drove the car. It was blue, and it was raining out.' Not, 'I want him in jail. I got a little silly little T-shirt on.' This Cohen is reprehensible."
Attorney and CNN analyst Carrie Cordero, meanwhile, explained that prosecutors have not sufficiently met the burden required to convict Trump.
"I was here with you when the indictment first came out, and I thought it was underwhelming at the time. And as the trial continues, I still am not seeing the prosecutors get to the part where they really have demonstrated that at the former president had the intent to commit the underlying crime and to influence the election," Cordero explained.
"My big question is when they finally wrap up with Michael Cohen, what is the defense is going to do? Are they going to actually present a defense or are they going to stand up and say, you know what? The prosecution hasn't met its burden," she explained.
If the defense were to rest its case, that would be a "baller" move, the panel agreed.
And it's a strategy that Trump's defense should consider, Cordero said.
"I think at this point there would be a strong argument for the defense to just stand up and say, 'Look, the prosecution hasn't met its burden in this case. Here's all the things that they have to prove. They haven't gotten there. And it's time for everybody to go home,'" she explained.
Attorney Michael van der Veen agreed the case is weak — and only getting worse.
"You know, this case hasn't gone in the way I think it was billed to go in," Van der Veen said. "As the days go on, it in this case looks weaker and weaker. I think it's probably less that they have to put on for defense."
Cohen is expected to return to the witness stand on Thursday when the trial resumes.
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Vandals target and attack home of Trump impeachment lawyer
Vandals attacked the home of one of former President Donald Trump's impeachment defense lawyers Friday, according to police.
Authorities said the vandalism happened around 8 p.m. Friday at the Philadelphia-area home of attorney Michael van der Veen, ABC News reported.
The Philadelphia Inquirer said that vandals smashed windows and spray-painted "TRAITOR" and an arrow pointing to the house in red on van der Veen's driveway after he spent hours earlier that day presenting Trump's impeachment trial defense on the floor of the U.S. Senate. Van der Veen's wife discovered the vandalism and reported it to the police.
Someone vandalized Mike van der Veen's home in suburban Philly - spray painted "TRAITOR" on his driveway.Via… https://t.co/OxUiOkK0qd— Jonathan Tamari (@Jonathan Tamari)1613244594.0
The attorney told Fox News that his home was attacked and that his family, business, and employees are facing threats.
"My home was attacked," van der Veen said Saturday on Fox News. "To answer your question, my entire family, my business, my law firm are under siege right now. I don't really want to go into that, though."
The Inquirer reported that demonstrators with the group Refuse Fascism gathered outside van der Veen's law office chanting, "When van der Veen lies, what do you do? Convict. Convict."
Fox News added that the van der Veens hired private security for their home in the wake of the attack.
Fellow Trump impeachment attorney Bruce Castor reiterated to Fox News that van der Veen's house had been attacked, then revealed that his house, too, had been "the subject of unrest."
"I was a homicide prosector for decades, so I have some experience with death threats and vandalism at my home, and my wife and police dealt with that at our house," Castor said in response to questions about how difficult the trial has been on the defense team. "But the rest of the team don't have that sort of experience."
"It's been very unsettling. Mr. van der Veen's house was vandalized last night," he said, adding, "My house was the subject of unrest."
Castor then warned about the threat of attacking lawyers who are paid to represent people that many people might not like.
"These people are lawyers, and they expect to do their jobs without having fear for their personal safety," he said. "If the country has reached the point where somebody who needs a lawyer, that lawyer is themselves attacked, where are we going to be going forward when somebody truly is in need of counsel and can't find one because they're afraid to defend a person who represents what half the country thinks is an unpopular cause?"
West Whiteland Township Police Department Detective Scott Pezick told ABC News on Sunday that no arrests have been made so far in the attack on van der Veen's home and that there currently are no suspects. He added that police have increased their presence in the attorney's neighborhood.
Trump defense attorney goes scorched earth against media in explosive interview: 'Bloodthirsty for ratings'
Michael van der Veen, one of former President Donald Trump's defense attorneys, tore into the mainstream media and Democratic House impeachment managers in an explosive interview on Saturday that ended with the attorney ripping off his microphone and walking away.
What happened?
CBS News host Lana Zak began the interview by asking van der Veen whether he believes Trump will face more charges beyond impeachment, and accused the attorney of admitting that Trump incited an "insurrection."
Van der Veen responded by dismissing the question as "political rhetoric," and then corrected Zak — and pointed out that Democratic House impeachment managers "doctored evidence" against Trump.
Van der Veen said:
I used the word "insurrection" in my closing argument when quoting the charging documents. What happened at the Capitol on January 6 is absolutely horrific. But what happened at the Capitol during this trial was not too far away from that. The prosecutors in this case doctored evidence. They did not investigate this case. And when they had to come to the court of the Senate to put their case on, because they hadn't done any investigation, they doctored evidence.
It was absolutely shocking, I think, when we discovered it and we were able to expose it and put it out. I think it turned a lot of senators. The American people should not be putting up with this. They need to look at who these House managers were and look to see whether these are the folks they want representing them. It was shocking to me. Wouldn't have believed it.
The "doctored evidence" that van der Veen referred to included edited tweets and selectively edited video. Democrats denied manipulating evidence.
What happened next?
That is when the interview went completely off the rails.
After Zak seemingly minimized the actions of Democratic House impeachment managers, van der Veen tore into the media.
"The media is trying to divide this country. You are bloodthirsty for ratings," the lawyer said. "And as such, you're asking questions now that are already set up with a fact pattern. I can't believe you would ask me a question indicating that it's all right just to doctor a little bit of evidence."
Van der Veen continued:
What should happen is somebody should look at the conduct of these House managers. It's unconscionable, aside from all of the due process violations that my client had. And the media should be looking that at a square, straight way, a straight way. When I watch the news, I watch one station and it's raining. I watch another station at the same time and it's sunny.
Your coverage is so slanted. It's got to stop. You guys have to stop and start reporting more like PBS does rather than a TV news show that doesn't have any journalistic integrity at all. What I'm telling you is that they doctored evidence. And I believe your question says, "Well, it's only a Twitter check and changing a year of a date here." They switched the date of a Twitter a year to try to connect it to this case. That's not a small thing, ma'am.
The other thing they did is they put a checkmark on something to make it look like it was a validated account when it wasn't. And when they were caught, they didn't say anything about it. They didn't even try to come up with an excuse about it. And that's not the way our prosecutors or our government officials should be conducting themselves. And the media shouldn't letting them get away with it, either.
"I'm tired of the biased media— on both sides, left and right. What this country wants, what this country needs, is this country to come together," van der Veen declared, "to take the left and the right and find a middle ground and start responsibly being our public officials, our elected officials. And one of the reasons why they do it is because of the media, because the media wants to tell their narrative rather than just telling it like it is."
After additional back-and-forth, van der Veen accused Zak of asking a "slanted question that was set up to say, it's OK for them to cheat. That was your question."
Zak denied the allegation.
"That's the problem. The media has to start living by the truth and not try to create a narrative," van der Veen went on to say.
That's when van der Veen ripped off his microphone, dropped it, and then walked away.
Impeachment updates: Senate votes to hear witnesses, McConnell reveals he will vote to acquit Trump
The Senate voted 55-45 on Saturday to summon witnesses in former President Donald Trump's impeachment trial, where he is facing a charge of incitement of insurrection for the Capitol riots on Jan. 6.
House lead impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat, wants to subpoena Rep. Herrera Beutler, a Washington Republican, who divulged a conversation between Trump and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy that took place during the Capitol riots.
"When McCarthy finally reached the president on January 6 and asked him to publicly and forcefully call off the riot, the president initially repeated the falsehood that it was anti fascist that had breached the Capitol," Beutler said in a statement on Friday. "McCarthy refuted that and told the president that these were Trump supporters. That's when, according to McCarthy, the president said: 'Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.'"
Of the alleged conversation, Raskin said, "After the breach and invasion took place he was not working on the side of defending the Capitol. But rather, he was continuing to pursue his political goals, and the information that came out last night. This piece of evidence is relevant to that."
"Needless to say, this is an additional, critical piece of corroborating evidence further confirming the charges before you, as well as the president's willful dereliction of duty," Raskin continued. "For that reason, and because this is the proper time to do so under the [Senate impeachment rules], we would like the opportunity to subpoena congresswoman Herrera [Beutler] regarding her communications with [McCarthy] and to subpoena her contemporaneous notes."
Trump defense attorney Michael van der Veen was outraged at the delay, proclaiming that the case should have been "closed today." He added that he would ask for at least 100 witnesses, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Vice President Kamala Harris, adding they will need to give depositions in person in his office in Philadelphia.
"If they want to have witnesses, I'm going to need at least over 100 depositions. Not just one," van der Veen said.
"We did not do this hearing by Zoom," he declared. "These depositions should be done in person in my office in Philadelphia," van der Veen said. "That's where they should be done."
"We should close this case out today..." - Michael van der Veen https://t.co/rFUBSGgF76— Trump War Room (@Trump War Room)1613229809.0
Five Republicans voted in favor of trial witnesses, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who questioned the story about Trump's conversation.
"Isn't it a bit odd that these liberal news reports about impeachment, just like what happened during #BrettKavanaugh - which prove to be unreliable - always come out right before we are set to vote? I have found it wise to realize the source of these stories is the liberal media with an agenda," Graham tweeted on Saturday morning. "If you want a delay, it will be a long one with many, many witnesses."
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he would vote to acquit Trump. McConnell made the declaration in an email he wrote to fellow Senate Republicans, according to a Senate staffer who was read the email by a GOP senator, Politico reported.
"The Constitution makes it perfectly clear that Presidential criminal misconduct while in office can be prosecuted after the President has left office, which in my view alleviates the otherwise troubling 'January exception' argument raised by the House," McConnell reportedly wrote in the email.
"While a close call, I am persuaded that impeachments are a tool primarily of removal and we therefore lack jurisdiction," McConnell purportedly wrote.
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