Latest news with #TrumpImpeachment
CBS News
a day ago
- Politics
- CBS News
Democrats accuse Trump administration of weaponizing law enforcement to silence political foes
Rep. Eric Swalwell is no stranger to fighting legal battles. Swalwell, in his seventh term as a Democrat representing the Bay Area of California, served as an impeachment manager in President Trump's first impeachment trial in 2020. Swalwell is also the plaintiff in a four-year civil lawsuit seeking damages from Mr. Trump for the U.S. Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021. But Swalwell, an attorney and former local prosecutor in Alameda County, is so concerned about legal peril during the second Trump term, he has taken out a liability insurance policy to protect himself. Swalwell confirmed he had done so in a text message to CBS News. In a social media post last month, Swalwell accused the Trump administration of targeting Democratic legislators like his colleague, New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver, who was charged with assaulting law enforcement officers at an immigration detention center. Rep. LaMonica McIver demands the release of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka after his arrest while protesting outside an ICE detention center in Newrk, N.J. on May 9, 2025. Angelina Katsanis / AP Swalwell — who has not been charged with a crime — wrote on X, "A RED LINE has been crossed. Trump is prosecuting his political enemies in Congress. This is just the beginning. We must take whatever we've done before to show dissent and go one rung higher." Last week's handcuffing of Sen. Alex Padilla, a California Democrat who was forcibly removed from a news conference and briefly cuffed by federal agents after publicly questioning Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, has raised criticisms that the Trump administration has broken norms — and escalated tensions — by allowing federal law enforcement to arrest or detain elected officials who dissent. Sen. Alex Padilla, a Democrat from California, is removed from the room after interrupting a news conference with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in Los Angeles on June 12, 2025. Patrick T. Fallon / AFP The Padilla incident occurred weeks after the arrests of McIver and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, also a Democrat, after a May 9 confrontation with federal agents outside the Delaney Hall immigration facility in Newark. Prosecutors dropped the case against Baraka, but McIver faces felony charges and the prospect of a multi-year prison sentence if convicted. She has pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors allege McIver struck agents with her arms during the incident. The Department of Homeland Security accused the elected officials of "breaking into" the detention center. McIver responded to her indictment in a statement that said, "The facts of this case will prove I was simply doing my job and will expose these proceedings for what they are: a brazen attempt at political intimidation." In the latest incident, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, a Democrat running for mayor, was detained by immigration agents Tuesday at a Manhattan courthouse. New York City Comptroller and mayoral candidate Brad Lander is placed under arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and FBI agents outside federal immigration court on June 17, 2025, in New York. Olga Fedorova / AP In a sequence of events captured on video, Lander was seen holding onto a man, whom he identified as Edgardo, following the man's immigration hearing. Video then showed masked immigration agents trying to take the man into custody, and then taking Lander into custody as he asked to see a warrant. Federal law enforcement officials said Lander was arrested "for assaulting law enforcement and impeding a federal officer." He was released four hours later, with his wife and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul by his side. No charges were filed against him. The series of arrests began with the case of Hannah Dugan in April. Dugan, an elected Wisconsin circuit court judge, has pleaded not guilty to charges of obstructing federal agents, for allegedly rerouting a criminal defendant from her courtroom to avoid immigration agents. Dugan's July 21 trial date was delayed Wednesday, as a judge considers a motion from Dugan to dismiss the case. Raskin alleges "strong-arm tactics" to "silence and intimidate" The arrests, detentions and handcuffings are inflaming an already toxic political moment and supercharging complaints by Democrats that Mr. Trump is seeking to use law enforcement powers to subdue his opposition. "Trump and his enforcers want to handcuff and jail members of the legislative branch who perform oversight," said Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat who is the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee. Raskin told CBS News, "These strong-arm tactics are meant to silence and intimidate people, but they only strengthen our conviction." Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) speaks with reporters outside the U.S. Capitol on March 31, 2025. Francis Chung / POLITICO via AP Images In a statement to CBS News, a White House spokeswoman said, "Here's the real story: why do so many Democrat officials feel emboldened to brazenly break the law and then complain when they are held accountable?" "It's alarming Democrats think they can obstruct federal law enforcement, assault ICE agents, or physically push law enforcement officers while charging a cabinet secretary, without consequence — it's even more alarming that the media is encouraging and defending this lawless behavior," the spokesperson said. After his case was dismissed, Baraka filed a civil suit against the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, Alina Habba, who not only filed the criminal case, but posted about Baraka's arrest on social media. The lawsuit accuses Habba of defamation and seeks damages for what it calls "false arrest and malicious prosecution." The criminal cases are a burden to public officials, who must pay legal costs and expend time on court hearings. Defense attorneys for McIver noted she has juggled initial proceedings in her case in Newark with her duties in the U.S. Capitol, during a busy month in the House since the May 9 incident. In her filing to dismiss her obstruction case, Dugan argued the Justice Department was violating separation of powers and unlawfully exceeding its authority. "The government's prosecution here reaches directly into a state courthouse, disrupting active proceedings, and interferes with the official duties of an elected judge," she argued. The legal battles are separate from the political acrimony that has been fueled by the physical confrontations, including the handcuffing of Padilla last week — which the Department of Homeland Security claims happened after Padilla "lunged toward" Noem. In a tearful floor speech Tuesday, Padilla asked, "How many Americans in the year 2025 see a vindictive president on a tour of retribution?" As part of her statement to CBS News, the White House spokeswoman said, "Democrats are disingenuously characterizing their behavior with the help of the Fake News media. And we look forward to CBS's coverage of Democrat smears against law enforcement officials, including comparing them to Nazis, leading to a 413% increase in assaults against ICE officers." As for Swalwell, he isn't the only congressional Democrat to seek out liability insurance to protect his legal future. According to a report last week by the NOTUS digital news outlet, multiple Democrats have done the same. According to the report in NOTUS, one unnamed House Democrat said, "That's just, unfortunately, the nature of the job right now and it's terrible."
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Absolute Betrayal': Joe Rogan Regular Turns On Trump, Calls For Impeachment
Comedian Dave Smith, a libertarian and frequent guest on Joe Rogan's podcast who endorsed Donald Trump in 2024, is now apologizing for his support of the president due to his recent handling of the escalating Israel-Iran conflict. 'He should be impeached and removed for this one,' said Smith, referring to his endorsement as a 'bad calculation,' in remarks that stunned the hosts of the 'Breaking Points' program on Monday. He later continued, 'All of his supporters should turn on him, it's the absolute betrayal of everything he ran and campaigned on and everything that he stood for.' Trump — amid days of missiles exchanged between Israel and Iran— hasn't ruled out U.S. involvement in the conflict and claimed that Iranian officials would 'like to talk' at the negotiating table to wind down tensions. By Monday evening, he scolded Iran for not signing a deal, calling the move a 'shame' and a 'waste of human life' before stressing that the country shouldn't have a nuclear weapon while calling for the immediate evacuation of Tehran. Over the years, Trump has notably touted himself as being anti-war, labeled himself as a 'peacemaker' during his second inaugural address and also openly advised against getting involved in any Iranian regime change. Smith argued that Iran's leadership has now been pushed to a point where they 'probably don't feel that they have the option not to respond' after strikes that killed the country's top military officials and hit its nuclear facilities. 'And Donald Trump telling them to come back to the negotiating table now is a joke, I mean, what an impotent leader to be sitting there coming back to the negotiating table,' he said. 'It's like sitting after Pearl Harbor and telling FDR, 'Now's the time to go negotiate with the Japanese. Negotiations are over now, the time for negotiations was before this.' Smith later predicted that the president is 'going to lose his coalition' over his handling of the most recent conflict. 'I don't just speak for myself when I say there are a lot of us who simply will not go along with this, so it's just a devastating mistake,' he emphasized. Trump To Depart The G7 Early As Conflict Between Israel And Iran Shows Signs Of Intensifying Trump Escalates His Feud With Tucker Carlson Over Israel And Iran US Bolsters Trump's Middle East Military Options By Moving Refueling Aircraft, Officials Say
Russia Today
05-06-2025
- Business
- Russia Today
Musk agrees ‘Trump should be impeached'
Former White House government efficiency czar Elon Musk has claimed that President Donald Trump would have lost the election without his support, agreed with the notion that Trump should be impeached, and floated the idea of a new political party to actually represent the majority of Americans. The clash between Musk and Trump over the federal tax and spending bill escalated into a series of sharp public exchanges on social media on Thursday, with the billionaire accusing the US president of 'ingratitude' and Trump accusing the former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) chief of going 'crazy.' 'President vs Elon. Who wins? My money's on Elon. Trump should be impeached and JD Vance should replace him,' conservative blogger Ian Miles Cheong posted on X. 'Yes,' Musk replied. The owner of X had earlier claimed that 'without me, Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51–49 in the Senate… Such ingratitude.' Musk also launched a poll asking his 220 million followers: 'Is it time to create a new political party in America that actually represents the 80% in the middle?' Within four hours, amlost three million users responded, with roughly 81% voting 'Yes'. Trump, in turn, said he was 'very disappointed' with Musk and claimed that the Tesla CEO's opposition to his 'Big Beautiful Bill' stemmed from cuts to EV tax credits. 'Elon was 'wearing thin.' I asked him to leave, I took away his EV Mandate that forced everyone to buy Electric Cars that nobody else wanted (that he knew for months I was going to do!), and he just went CRAZY!' Trump wrote on Truth Social. In another post, he added: 'The easiest way to save money in our Budget – Billions and Billions of Dollars – is to terminate Elon's Governmental Subsidies and Contracts.' After stepping down from running DOGE last month, Musk has intensified his attacks on Trump's tax-cut bill, calling the legislation a 'pork-filled disgusting abomination' that would push the US into 'debt slavery.' The House passed the president's flagship measure in May, and Trump aims to sign the final version by the Fourth of July, pending Senate approval.
Reuters
03-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Official involved in withholding Ukraine aid confirmed for US Defense post
WASHINGTON, June 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Michael Duffey, who in President Donald Trump's first administration asked the military to withhold aid to Ukraine, to be undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment. On the day that one of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's top aides visited Washington, the Senate voted 51-45, along party lines with Trump's fellow Republicans backing the nominee, to confirm Duffey as the official overseeing the Pentagon's weapons programs. Democrats sought testimony from Duffey during Trump's first term as president after an email showed him, in his role as a senior White House official in the Office of Management and Budget, directing the Pentagon to withhold security aid for Ukraine that had been approved by Congress. The inquiry, which led to Trump's first impeachment, focused on Trump's request that Zelenskiy investigate the president's political rival, Joe Biden, the former Democratic vice president who would defeat Trump in the 2020 election. Democrats who impeached Trump said he had withheld the aid to put pressure on Zelenskiy's government to agree to an investigation. Trump denied wrongdoing, accusing Democrats of seeking to overturn his 2016 election victory. Most congressional Republicans called the impeachment process unfair. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Trump was elected to his second term as president in November 2024. In his second term, Trump has put intense pressure on Ukraine - including by briefly halting military aid - to come to the bargaining table with Russia. Those efforts have so far not yielded a ceasefire or significant progress toward a broader peace deal. Duffey's confirmation vote came the same day that Andriy Yermak, Zelenskiy's chief of staff, arrived in Washington together with the first deputy prime minister and other government officials. Yermak was expected to meet with U.S. officials including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and members of Congress.
Washington Post
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
The weighty lesson from Arizona's ‘fake electors' stumble
After the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, Donald Trump's opponents had a dilemma. The president's behavior had been egregious, but the Senate acquitted him in an impeachment trial. He had to be criminally charged — but for what? His role in the riot seemed to entail First Amendment-protected speech, such as sharing falsehoods about the 2020 election on social media and delivering a rowdy political speech on the Ellipse.
