Daily Archives: May 12, 2023

Trump litigation has long been plural, and its tough to keep track.

The May 9 jury verdict that Donald Trump abused and defamed writer E. Jean Carroll is more than a historic #metoo moment. As we process this front page news, lets not overlook the outcome of yet another Trump lawsuit that highlights the importance of protection against litigation intended to chill free speech.

Such lawsuits have a curious acronym: SLAPP (not a verb).

SLAPP stands for strategic lawsuit against public participation, a tool to silence and-or intimidate criticism through costly legal proceedings. The idea is for the usually rich and-or powerful SLAPP such suits on anyone who criticizes them, silencing the speaker and bogging them down in court.

On May 3, a judge in New York dismissed Trumps most recent lawsuit against The New York Times and three of its reporters, citing the New York State anti-SLAPP law designed to quickly resolve such strategic litigation. The Times had won a Pulitzer in 2018 for stories detailing how Trump made hundreds of millions through dubious tax schemes.

As of April 2023, 32 states and the District of Columbia have anti-SLAPP laws, says Reporters Committee For Freedom of the Press. Ohio is not one of them.

An outlier, Ohio should plug this statutory hole to ensure speech is free for all not just the rich, powerful and lawyered up. Anti-SLAPP laws protect debate at zoning hearings, complaints about medical care, criticism of public officials, environmentalists speaking out on behalf of the environment, activists criticizing the police, just to name a few.

The Trump lawsuit against The New York Times offers compelling fresh evidence to support anti-SLAPP protections. The narrative of this case is worthy of a plot line of the HBO hit show Succession. Trump sued The Times and his niece, Mary L. Trump, who gave his financial documents to the newspaper. He sought $100 million for tortious interference, saying that the Times caused Mary Trump to break her confidentiality agreement in a prior lawsuit involving their inheritance money.

(Succession writer Jesse Armstrong: For people who come from powerful families, there is nothing in life quite as interesting as being at court.)

Niece Mary Trump provided tax and financial documents to The Times, which published a lengthy unflattering report in 2018.

Justice Robert R. Reed (Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York: Commercial Division) tossed Trumps claim against The Times and its reporters, noting that its not just abusive libel suits that need to be SLAPPed down. (Trump didnt file a libel suit in this case because as plaintiff, he would have to prove what the Times wrote was false. He didnt want to go there.)

The court said:

In 2020, the New York Legislature broadened the States anti-SLAPP law to make it easier for defendants to obtain dismissals.

The new law requires courts to broadly construe the term public interest to cover cases involving any communication in a place open to the public or a public forum in connection with an issue of public interest or any other lawful conduct in furtherance of the exercise of the constitutional right of free speech in connection with an issue of public interest.

Ohio Senate President Matt Huffman of Lima introduced anti-SLAPP legislation in 2019 (Senate Bill 215), and remains supportive of enacting anti-SLAPP protection.

The worthy goal of safeguarding against strategic lawsuits intended to chill speech and criticism does not mean that legitimate grievances cant be decided in court. Dismissing baseless, frivolous claims enables courts to focus on serious matters.

Ohio should join the majority of states that enacted laws to disincentivize SLAPP lawsuits.

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A lesson for Ohio from Donald Trump: Fill the void to protect against ... - Ohio Capital Journal

By now youve likely heard the news that on Tuesday, Donald Trump was found liable for sexually abusing (and defaming) writer E. Jean Carroll, and was ordered to pay her $5 million. Given that Trump has spent decades evading and all repercussions for his actions; has been accused by more than two dozen women of sexual misconduct (he has denied all allegations); and literally claimed on tape that its okay for stars to sexually assault people, the outcome felt monumental. And by the way, if youre wondering whether Trumpnow a certified sexual predatorrefrained from behaving inappropriately with women while he was serving as president, the answer is: Of course he didnt.

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Speaking to CNN, Alyssa Farah Griffin, former White House director of strategic communicationsandassistant to the president, told host Jake Tapper: I have countless pieces of what I considered impropriety in the White House that I brought to the chief of staff because I thought the way he engaged with women was dangerous.

You brought to Mark Meadows, the chief of staff, or other chiefs of staff, incidents that you witnessed of Donald Trump behaving inappropriately with women? Tapper asked.

I did as well as former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham and others, Farah Griffin said. Nothing that rises to [E. Jean Carroll] level but things that I would consider improper and that I had a duty to report.

Incidentally, Stephanie Grisham also appeared on CNN on Tuesday, and she told anchor Erin Burnett: There was specific stafferthat [Trump] would request for her to be on constant trips when it wasnt her turnhe one time had one of my other deputies bring her back so that they could look at her ass is what he said to him. And I wrote about this in my book so this is nothing new for me to be saying publiclyI sat down and talked to her at one point asked her if she was uncomfortable. I tried everything I could to ensure she was never alone with him. I did take it to a couple different chiefs of staff including Mark Meadowsat the end of the day what could they do other than go in there and say, This isnt good sir, and you know Donald Trump will do what Donald Trump wants to dowhen youre dealing with the president of the United States, again, theres no HR group or HR representative to go to, to talk to about these kinds of things.

Grisham added: With this one staffer it was really bad, to the point that I was extremely uncomfortableevery senior staff member knew itit happened with her a lot. I did everything I could to keep her off of trips actually and to stay with her if she was alone because I was really nervous about what could happen.

In other news re: Trump and yesterdays verdict, members of the Republican Party have, not surprisingly, lined up to shamelessly defend the guy. Marco Rubio declared, The whole case is a joke, while Senator Tommy Tuberville, last seen trying to help Trump overturn the 2020 election, said the outcome makes me want to vote for him twice.

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Surprise: ExWhite House Employees Say Donald Trump Behaved Grossly With Women While President - Vanity Fair

Stop yourself if this sounds familiar.

Donald Trump is asked a questionsay, whether he regrets his actions on Jan. 6and he answers with something like this:

Let me tell you, there's nobody who loves this country more than me, believe me. January 6 was a historic day, a day where millions of Americans came to Washington, D.C. to peacefully protest the rigged election. I did nothing wrong, and I have nothing to regret. The real regret is that the election was stolen from the American people, and that the corrupt politicians and fake news media refuse to acknowledge it.

If those comments sound like textbook Trump, you would be rightso right that it wasnt actually Trump who uttered them; it was ChatGPT.

We used the groundbreaking artificial intelligence tool to summon the voice of the ex-president and 2024 GOP frontrunner to respond to some of the exact questions he was asked during his shambolic CNN town hall on Wednesday night.

Only ChatGPTcall it TrumpGPTseems far more capable of delivering coherent answers than Trump himself, while rendering just enough of his trademark stylistic flourishes and tics to come across as the man himself.

Whats most remarkable about this experiment is that the AI version of Trump answered specific questions much in the same way as the real Trumphitting similar points, making similar pivots, reflecting similar political calculations.

Many political observers across the spectrum have noted that Trump, at this point, is almost painfully predictable. Much of the outcry around CNNs decision to give him a largely unfiltered platform was rooted in outrage that they were unprepared for him to behave in the precise way he has behaved for the last seven years.

Trump was so predictable that AIalbeit an extremely sophisticated AIwas largely able to stand in for Trump, and generally do a much better, more coherent, job.

Just judge for yourself:

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: Why should Americans put you back in the White House?

ChatGPT: Well, let me tell you something folks, nobody, and I mean nobody, has done as much for this great country as I have. When I was in the White House, we had record-low unemployment, we rebuilt our military, and we put America first.

But then the Democrats, and the fake news media, they came after me. They spied on my campaign, they impeached me for nothing, and they tried to steal the election. But I'll tell you what, I'm not a quitter. I'm a fighter. And I fought back harder than anyone else would have.

And you know what? We almost won. We almost took back the White House in 2020, but they cheated, folks. They cheated like you wouldn't believe. They rigged the election, they stole it from us, and they installed Sleepy Joe Biden in the White House.

But I'm not giving up, folks. I'm not giving up on America. I love this country too much. And I know you love it too. That's why I'm asking for your support. Because together, we can make America great again. Again.

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: But Mr. President, you know that the election wasn't stolen? The election wasn't stolen.

ChatGPT: Well, let me tell you something, fake news. You're wrong, as usual. The election was stolen, and it was stolen from me. We had massive voter fraud, we had dead people voting, we had illegal immigrants voting, we had ballots being shipped in from other countries. It was a disgrace, and everybody knows it.

But you know what? We're not gonna let it stand. We're not gonna let the Democrats get away with stealing the election. We're fighting back, and we're gonna keep fighting until we get to the truth.

Because that's what we do, folks. We fight for what's right, and we never give up. And I know that the American people are with us, because they know that the election was stolen too. They know that Sleepy Joe Biden didn't win, he lost, and he lost bigly.

So don't try to tell me that the election wasn't stolen, fake news. I know the truth, and the American people know the truth too. And we're not gonna stop fighting until we get the justice that we deserve. Because that's what true patriots do. We fight for our country, we fight for our freedom, and we fight for the truth.

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: Do you have any regrets about your actions on January 6?

ChatGPT: Well, let me tell you something, folks. What happened on January 6 was a disgrace. It was a disgrace to our country, and it was a disgrace to the millions of Americans who support me and my vision for America.

But you know what? I didn't do anything wrong. I didn't incite violence, and I didn't encourage anyone to break the law. What I did was speak the truth and fight for what's right.

And that's why I have no regrets about my actions on January 6. I was standing up for the millions of Americans who feel like their voices aren't being heard, and I was standing up to the corrupt politicians who are trying to silence us.

Now, some people might try to twist my words or take them out of context, but the truth is that I never encouraged violence or lawlessness. I simply encouraged people to fight for what's right and to demand that our voices be heard.

So no, I have no regrets about my actions on January 6. I will always stand up for what's right, and I will always fight for the millions of Americans who support me and my vision for America.

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: But Mr. President, you did incite violence. You told an angry mob to stop the steal. You said we would never give up, never concede. You said, If you don't fight like hell, you're not gonna have a country anymore. You assembled this mob. You fired them up. And then sent them to the Capitol. You tweeted that Mike Pence didn't have the courage to overturn the election. And then you watched the attack on the Capitol and didn't do anything for hours.

ChatGPT: Fake news! You're spreading lies and twisting my words. I never incited violence. I never told anyone to commit any acts of violence or to break the law.

What I said was that we need to fight for our country, fight for our rights, and fight for the truth. And that's exactly what we did. We peacefully protested, and we demanded that our voices be heard.

But you know what? The Democrats and the fake news media don't want to hear our voices. They want to silence us and they want to suppress the truth. And that's why they're spreading these lies about me inciting violence.

And as for Mike Pence, he didn't have the courage to do what needed to be done. He had the power to overturn the election, but he didn't use it. And that's a disgrace.

But let me be clear. I did not watch the attack on the Capitol and do nothing. I immediately called for peace and for everyone to go home. And that's exactly what happened.

So don't believe the lies and the fake news. The truth is that I love this country, and I will always fight for it. And the millions of Americans who support me and my vision for America know that.

REUTERS/Russell Cheyne/File Photo

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: A jury just found you liable for the sexual assault of E. Jean Carroll. What do you say to voters who say it disqualifies you from being president?

ChatGPT: Let me tell you something, folks. The verdict in the E. Jean Carroll case was a total sham. It's a witch hunt, just like the Russia hoax and the impeachment hoax.

I've been falsely accused by all sorts of people over the years, and this is just the latest in a long line of baseless accusations. It's a disgrace, and it's an attack on me and my supporters.

But you know what? I'm a fighter. I never give up, and I never back down. And that's why I'm not going to let this verdict stop me from fighting for the millions of Americans who support me and my vision for America.

And let me be clear. I never sexually assaulted anyone. E. Jean Carroll is just another person who's trying to get attention and make some money off of my name. It's a disgrace, and it's a total fabrication.

So to all the voters out there who think this disqualifies me from being president, I say this: don't believe the fake news media. Don't believe the lies. The truth is that I'm the best thing that ever happened to this country, and I'm going to make America great again, again.

So let's focus on the real issues facing our country, like jobs, the economy, and securing our borders. That's what matters, and that's what I'm going to keep fighting for.

The experiment is perhaps most illuminating, though, when you compare some of ChatGPTs answers to what Trump actually said. Here are just a few examples:

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: If elected president again, how would you act not only to defend our Second Amendment rights but to restore rights that have been taken from us?

ChatGPT: Let me tell you something, folks. Nobody loves the Second Amendment more than I do. I mean, it's right up there with making America great again. And believe me, nobody's gonna mess with our Second Amendment rights on my watch. I'm gonna defend them like nobody's ever defended them before. We're gonna have the strongest, most powerful Second Amendment protections you've ever seen.

REAL TRUMP: There's been nobody that's protected the Second Amendment, as you know, like I have. I've protected it through thick and thin, not easy to do. But we have a very big mental health problem in this country. And again, it's not the gun that pulls the trigger; it's the person that pulls the trigger. And we have to protect our Second Amendment.

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: Would you sign a federal abortion ban into law?

ChatGPT: Let me tell you, folks, I'm the best when it comes to making deals and protecting life. And let me be very clear, I am pro-life, very pro-life. We need to protect the sanctity of life, and that includes the lives of unborn babies.

As for a federal abortion ban, I would definitely consider it. It's something that needs to be looked at very closely, but I can tell you this, I will always err on the side of life. We need to do everything we can to protect the most vulnerable among us, and that includes unborn babies.

So, if a federal abortion ban comes across my desk, I will absolutely consider it and if it is the right thing to do, I will sign it into law without hesitation.

REAL TRUMP: What I will do is negotiate so that people are happy. But the fact that we were ableI was ableI'm so proud of it, we put three great justices on the Supreme Court. We have almost 300 federal judges on the Supreme Court

President Trump is going to make a determination what he thinks is great for the country and what's fair for the country. But the fact that I was able to terminate Roe v. Wade, after 50 years of tryingthey worked for 50 years, I've never seen anything like it. They workedand I was evenI was so honored to have done it. We are in a very good negotiating position right now, only because of what I was able to do.

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: Why did you take those classified documents with you when you left the White House?

ChatGPT: First of all, let me tell you, nobody loves classified documents more than me. I mean, nobody. They're tremendous, believe me. And let me tell you, I had every right to take those documents with me, OK? Because they were mine, all right? They were mine because I'm the President, and the President can do whatever he wants. That's just how it is. And you know what? I wanted to make sure that those documents were safe and secure. Because, let's face it, the people who are running the government now, they're not very good at their jobs. They're a disaster, really. So, I took those documents with me to make sure they didn't fall into the wrong hands. And if you don't believe me, just look at what's going on in this country right now. It's a mess, and it's all because of the people who are in charge. So, you can blame me all you want, but I did the right thing. I did the smart thing. And nobody can take that away from me.

REAL TRUMP: I had every right to under the Presidential Records Act. You have the Presidential Records Act. I was there and I took what I took and it gets declassified. Biden, on the other hand, he has 1,850 boxes. He had boxes sent to Chinatown, Chinatown, where they don't speak even English in that Chinatown we're talking about

Just so you understand, I had every right to do it. I didn't make a secret of it. You know, the boxes were stationed outside of the White House. People were taking pictures of the GSA and the various people that were moving.

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: What do you think about the United States' current debt situation, and how can we move forward?

ChatGPT: Well, let me tell you, nobody knows more about debt than me. Nobody. And I can tell you, the United States is in a very bad situation right now. We've got a tremendous amount of debt, and it's only getting worse. We're being ripped off by countries all over the world, and we're not doing anything about it. It's a disgrace, really. But you know what? I'm a businessman, and I know how to fix things. And I can tell you, the first thing we need to do is start negotiating better deals with these other countries. We can't keep letting them take advantage of us like this. We need to put America first. And you know what else we need to do? We need to cut spending. We need to get rid of all these wasteful government programs that are just wasting our money. And we need to start investing in our own country. We need to create jobs, we need to rebuild our infrastructure, and we need to make America great again. And you know what? I'm the only one who can do it. Nobody else has the experience, nobody else has the knowledge, and nobody else has the guts to take on this challenge. But I do.

REAL TRUMP: Such an important question. So we're at $33 trillion, a number that nobody ever thought possible. When we had our economy rocking and rolling just prior to COVID coming in, like literally, we were making a fortune. And oil, we were going to make so much money from oil, we were going to start paying off debt. But then with COVID coming in, we had to do other things. We had to keep this country alive because it was so serious. But we have to get the country back. We have to lower energy prices. We have to lower interest rates. Interest rates are through the roof. Energy has to come down, it all has to come down and we have to start paying off debt. But when we have a debt limit, and they use that very seriously. I mean, they came inSchumer came in with Nancy Pelosi, and they were using, we'll violate it, we'll do whateverthey talked a whole lot different than they do right now.

I say to the Republicans out therecongressmen, senators if they don't give you massive cuts, you're going to have to do a default. And I don't believe they're going to do a default because I think the Democrats will absolutely cave because you don't want to have that happen. But it's better than what we're doing right now because we're spending money like drunken sailors.

Answer this question in the style of Donald Trump: Do you feel that you owe your vice president Mike Pence an apology for your actions on January 6?

ChatGPT: Well, first of all, let me tell you, January 6 was a very tragic day for our country. And let me just say, nobody feels worse about what happened than I do. Nobody. But you know what? I didn't do anything wrong. I didn't incite violence, I didn't encourage people to storm the Capitol. That's just fake news, OK? And as for Mike Pence, let me tell you, he's a good man. He's a great man. But he made a mistake, OK? He made a mistake by not standing up for me and not fighting harder to overturn the election. And you know what? I'm disappointed in him. I really am. But do I owe him an apology? Absolutely not. I did what I had to do. I fought hard for our country, and I fought hard for the American people. And if Mike Pence can't see that, then that's his problem, not mine. So no, I don't owe him an apology. In fact, he owes me an apology for not standing up for what's right. And you know what else? I'll always be the President. Nobody can take that away from me. And I'll always be a winner. That's just who I am.

REAL TRUMP: No, because he did something wrong. He should have put the votes back to the state legislatures and I think we would have had a different outcome. I really do

I like Mike Pence very much. He's a very fine man. He's a very nice man. He made a mistake. His lawyer said, you cannot move. I call them the human conveyer belt. I said, even if the votes you meanI talked to his lawyereven if the votes are absolutely fraudulent, he cant sendyes, sir, he cant send them back. And the Democrats played it and the RINOs played it. And then, the election was over. They told them he couldnt do it. And Mike said to me, I cant do it. The lawyers told me I can't do it, they cant do it. But the lawyers were wrong because right after the election, they all met, the RINOs and the Democrats, and they worked out a plan to make sure that future vice presidents don't do what I said you could do.

See the rest here:

We Had ChatGPT Answer CNN's Questions for Donald Trump - The Daily Beast

The New York state judge presiding over the criminal hush money case against Donald Trump issued an order Monday restricting the former president from posting about some evidence in the case on social media.

Judge Juan Merchan largely sided with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg by limiting what Trump can publicly disclose about new evidence from the prosecution before the case goes to trial.

The order says that "any materials and information provided by the People to the Defense in accordance with their discovery obligations ... shall be used solely for the purposes of preparing a defense in this matter."

Merchan's order said anyone with access to the evidence being turned over to Trump's team by state prosecutors shall not copy, disseminate or disclose the material to third parties, including social media platforms, without prior approval from the court."

It also singles out Trump, saying he is allowed to review sensitive "Limited Dissemination Materials" from prosecutors only in the presence of his lawyers and "shall not be permitted to copy, photograph, transcribe, or otherwise independently possess the Limited Dissemination Materials."

In addition, the order restricts Trump from reviewing "forensic images of witness cell phones," although his lawyers can show him "approved portions" of the images after they get permission from the judge.

Trumps lawyers and the DAs office did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday.

The ruling largely tracks with the DAs office request for a protective order, which Trump's attorneys had complained was extremely restrictive.

Prosecutors had argued they needed safeguards that will protect the integrity of the materials, saying the risk that Trump would use them inappropriately is substantial.

Donald J. Trump has a longstanding and perhaps singular history of attacking witnesses, investigators, prosecutors, trial jurors, grand jurors, judges, and others involved in legal proceedings against him, putting those individuals and their families at considerable safety risk, the DA's office argued in a court filing last month.

Prosecutors had stressed they were not seeking a gag order against Trump, a 2024 presidential candidate they just wanted to make sure he did not misuse their evidence.

Defendant has a constitutional right to speak publicly about this case, and the People do not seek to infringe upon that right, their filing said.

Trump's lawyers argued in a filing last week that the DA's proposed order would do exactly that.

The Peoples Proposed Protective Order infringes upon President Trumps First Amendment right to freely discuss his own character and qualifications for federal office and the First Amendment rights of the American people to hear President Trumps side of the story, it said.

Merchan said in Monday's order that prosecutors had shown "good cause" for their request.

Trump was charged last month with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels and another woman toward the end of his 2016 presidential campaign to prevent them from speaking about their allegations of affairs with him. Hehas pleaded not guilty and has said he did not have an extramarital affair.

Trump has maintained Bragg and the judge are biased against him, and his lawyers filed paperwork last week seeking to have the case transferred to federal court. The request is pending.

Adam Reiss is a reporter and producer for NBC and MSNBC.

Dareh Gregorian is a politics reporter for NBC News.

More here:

Trump barred from posting evidence in hush money case to social media - NBC News

"If you believe the other side is corrupt, immoral, and dishonest, it takes someone like (Donald) Trump to stand up to them," Robert Alexander

Robert Alexander| Guest Columnist

Robert Alexanderis the founding director of the Ohio Northern Institute for Civics and Public Policy. He is a political science professor at Ohio Northern University.

The rally around the flag effect is a well-documented phenomenon where a presidents public approval rating climbs in times of crisis.

In spite of countless controversies, including two impeachments, the January 6 riot, and more recently being the first president to have criminal charges filed against him, Donald Trump has managed to engender his own rally around the Trump effect among Republican voters.

More: Nearly half of Republicans don't want Trump to run for reelection in 2024, new poll shows

Donald Trump indicted: Will he go to jail? Arrest, indictment in 7 new cartoons

A modern day Rasputin, no matter how many times he looks to be politically dead, he is able to maintain his position as the leader of the Republican party. This is true not only in spite of his controversies, but also in spite of poor electoral performances among Republicans nationally since his 2016 victory.

This has led many to question why Republicans continue to stand with him. The answers lie in part with him and in part with broader trends in American politics.

Who was Rasputin? The truth behind the legend of the Russian royal advisor.

It is no secret that we live in polarized times.

Yet, the extent to which this polarization affects how we view others might come as a surprise . Majorities of both Democrats and Republicans view the opposing party as being close-minded, dishonest, immoral, and unintelligent. These numbers have only grown since 2016. It is quite a challenge to unite Americans when 72% of Republicans see Democrats as immoral and 63% of Democrats see Republicans as immoral. Similar findings occur among young voters too.

One poll finds that nearly half of college students would not want a roommate who voted for a different candidate and 53% say they probably would not go on a date with someone who voted for a different candidate. This tracks with another poll finding that 4 in 10 parents say they would be disappointed if their child married someone of the opposing political party.

These sentiments fuel an apocalyptic us versus them mentality where any loss on our side, is a win for their side. This is explained through the concept of negative partisanship where dislike of the other party is more likely to drive support than your attachment to your own party.

This phenomenon is tied closely to various psychological biases we hold such as in-group bias, self-serving bias and confirmation bias.

For instance, confirmation bias occurs when individuals selectively choose what evidence they pay attention to based upon preexisting beliefs they hold. If new information supports their worldview, they hold on to it. If it challenges their worldview, they discard it. This, of course, does not lead to accurate assessments of the world around them.

When it comes to the political parties, both Democrats and Republicans are reluctant to give the other party credit and refuse to accept blame when it is likely warranted.

Bellwether no more? Is Ohio's bigly love for Donald Trump proof it lost its swing? |Opinion

There is little Donald Trump could do that would make Democrats happy and we have seen that regardless of his behaviors, there is little Trump can do to lose support among Republicans.

To see how much an increase in polarization has affected the landscape today, it is worth examining Bill Clintons impeachment nearly 25 years ago. In that crisis, Clinton saw his public approval rating increase from 58% in November of 1997 to 71% after Articles of Impeachment were introduced to 62% after the Articles were rejected by the Senate in the Spring of 1999. Much of his bounce was not due to an increase in support among Democrats, but a surge in support among Independents and Republicanssomething that would be unthinkable today.

Donald Trumps approval rating has remained remarkably consistent over the years. There has been little he has done that has brought him support among Democrats or Independents. Yet, among Republicans, every time he has faced a crisis, polls show the party rallying around him. This is true since his indictment and Republican rivals have not been able to capitalize on it to make any significant inroads to challenge him for the 2024 nomination.

And yet, dedicated Republican support for Trump has not translated into great electoral success for the party.

Since his surprise victory in 2016, Republicans had an historic midterm loss in 2018 (losing 41 seats in the House), they lost the presidency and Senate in 2020, and fully underperformed in the 2022 midterm elections with Democrats gaining a Senate seat.

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Still, thanks to negative partisanship and psychological biases, Trumps supporters see him as being attacked unfairly, that the system is corrupt, or putting their energy into the misdeeds of their opponents. Many of them recognize Trumps foibles, acknowledging that he can be vicious and engage in morally questionable behavior. But they also believe that the other side is doing it too.

For partisans, Trump is their guy who will do whatever it takes to win. If you believe the other side is corrupt, immoral, and dishonest, it takes someone like Trump to stand up to them. And for that reason, they are willing to tolerate many of his antics.

Robert Alexanderis the founding director of the Ohio Northern Institute for Civics and Public Policy. He is a political science professor at Ohio Northern University.

Read the original here:

How is Donald Trump able to maintain control of Republican party? - The Columbus Dispatch

I was sitting in a wine bar at the Denver airport when the news came up on my iPad: Donald Trump is found liable for sexual abuse and defamation.

I looked up, expecting some sort of reaction from the wine bar crowd.

Instead, they kept talking sports and delayed flights and whether to order the charcuterie or the flatbread.

Had they not heard the news?

I played with the idea of making some sort of announcement like a modern-day town crier but Im not that brave.

Instead, I shared the headline with a woman sitting next to me, who had leaned over to ask about the ordering protocol.

Have you seen this? I asked, turning my iPad toward her.

He didnt even know her! she huffed.

It wasnt the female bonding moment Id been hoping for, though I did get that from the employee who took my order. She gets $5 million? she asked. She deserves it!

Somewhat buoyed, I splurged on a $30 glass of champagne and quietly celebrated, avoiding eye contact with my he doesnt even know her neighbor.

Yet I could not get that womans words out of my head. Not during the five-hour layover in Denver. Not on the bumpy plane trip back to SLO. And not now especially after hearing Trumps bombastic denial at his CNN town hall gathering.

She wasnt raped, OK? And I didnt do anything else either, OK, because I dont know who the hell she is, he insisted.

Of course, he knew her!

And of course, she was telling the truth!

Why on earth would any woman call up a friend, as E. Jean Carroll did, and say, You are not going to believe what happened to me, and then go on to recount some terrible thing that happened to her?

Its a way of processing the terrible thing that happened and its something many maybe even most women do.

In this case, Carroll telephoned her friend, Lisa Birnbach, minutes after the 1996 assault and not only told her that she was raped inside a dressing room at the Bergdorf Goodman department store in New York City, but she also named her assailant, Donald Trump.

Story continues

Yet to the Trump faithful, its all a pack of lies.

Never mind that infamous 2005 Access Hollywood tape in which Trump admitted to grabbing womens genitals: When youre a star, they let you do it, he said then. You can do anything.

Never mind Trumps ludicrous defense: He didnt know Carroll and besides, she wasnt his type even though he mistook Carroll for his former wife Marla Maples when he was shown a photograph during his deposition.

Never mind that another woman testified that Trump sexually assaulted her on an airplane. It was like he had 40 zillion hands, she said.

They are liars, these women!

Yet a nine-member jury unanimously chose to believe the women. The six men and three women on the jury found that Trump sexually abused Carroll and defamed her. But the jury did not find that Trump raped Carroll.

My neighbor at the bar explained why Trump had lost the case: It could only have happened in New York, she told her husband in a voice loud enough for me to overhear.

In other words, it never would have happened in a state like Florida or Texas or Utah or Tennessee.

She may be right about that.

If millions of voters could believe the Big Lie that Trump rightfully won the election its not much of a stretch to get them to believe that he was wrongfully convicted by an out-to-get-him New York jury.

After all, he didnt even know her!

She wasnt his type!

She didnt scream!

She didnt go to the police!

Shes lying!

And its not just some random woman in a bar saying those things.

It makes me want to vote for him twice, Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama said post-verdict, adding that with a New York jury, he had no chance.

As incredible as it seems, a man found liable for sexual assault in a civil trial could win the Republican nomination and go on to be elected president of the United States.

Because the New York jury got it wrong.

He didnt even know her.

Read more:

Donald Trump was found liable for sexual assault. The MAGA crowd doesnt care | Opinion - Yahoo News