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Last April, Donald Trump made history when he became the first former US president ever to be charged with a crime after leaving office. Now, he may make history again, with a fresh indictment courtesy of the federal government. And what an absolute travesty that would be!

The Wall Street Journal reports that special counsel Jack Smith “has all but finished obtaining testimony and other evidence in his criminal investigation into whether former President Donald Trump mishandled classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago resort,” according to sources familiar with the matter. While the Journal could not determine if Smith had made a decision to charge the ex-president, or if he’d made a recommendation to Attorney General Merrick Garland—who gets the final say—some of Trump’s close allies are said to be “bracing for his indictment.” (Naturally, Team Trump plans to fundraise off of any potential prosecution, as it did following charges from the Manhattan district attorney’s office.)

According to the Journal, attorneys working for Smith have, in recent weeks, “completed interviews with nearly every employee at Trump’s Florida home, from top political aides to maids and maintenance staff,” with prosecutors reportedly “press[ing] witnesses—some in multiple rounds of testimony—on questions that appeared to home in on specific elements Smith’s team would need to show to prove a crime, including those that speak to Trump’s intentions.” Last month, it emerged that Smith had uncovered “significant” evidence that Trump had obstructed justice. And on Monday, The Guardian reported that Trump attorney Evan Corcoran had handed over dozens of pages of notes, which showed, among other things, that Corcoran advised the ex-president against retaining any government documents after his May subpoenaed was issued. (Corcoran’s notes also reportedly described “Trump’s facial expressions and reactions whenever they discussed the subpoena.”) Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the National Archives and Records Administration is set to turn over “16 records that show Trump…had knowledge of the correct declassification process while he was president” and did not follow it.

In a letter sent to lawmakers last month, Trump’s legal team likened the documents found at Mar-a-Lago to those found at Joe Biden’s home and ones found at the home of former vice president Mike Pence, saying that “deficient document handling and storage procedures are not limited to any individual, administration or political party.” Of course, what they didn’t add was that neither Biden nor Pence refused to hand back over the classified documents they’d taken, necessitating an FBI raid.

A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to the Journal’s request for comment. Though, as you could have probably guessed, Trump has previously claimed Smith’s investigation is a politically motivated witch hunt.

Wouldn’t want to upset the Trump supports who think the insurrection was justified!

Report: Ron DeSantis will formally announce his 2024 bid with Elon Musk, because apparently David Duke wasn’t available

After many months of refusing to confirm what so many people already suspected, Ron DeSantis will reportedly announce on Wednesday that he is running for president. And that’s not all: He is said to be planning to formally jump into the 2024 race during a conversation on Twitter with Elon Musk, because apparently other neo-Nazi sympathizers weren’t available.

Yes, NBC News reports that the Florida governor’s formal announcement will occur tomorrow night on Twitter Spaces—during a live audio chat that will begin at 6 p.m. ET and be moderated by Musk’s longtime friend David Sacks. According to the outlet, DeSantis’s campaign will “release a launch video” on Wednesday evening, which the governor will follow up with visits to a number of early states after Memorial Day. As for how this all came together, DeSantis’s team has reportedly “been in talks with Musk for at least the last few weeks,” according to a person familiar with the matter—and during those discussions, Musk has indicated that he doesn’t think Donald Trump will be able to win a second term. While Musk said last year that he would back DeSantis if the governor were to run for president, on Friday, the billionaire praised an ad by Senator Tim Scott, who announced Monday that he is also running for the White House.

As NBC News notes, aligning with Musk and his 140 million followers could give DeSantis a “significant boost,” but there’s also an obvious downside to teaming up with a guy who has said and done terrible things—and who has turned Twitter into a safe haven for hate speech; given a new home to Tucker “Great Replacement Theory” Carlson; and made remarks about George Soros that the Anti-Defamation League said would “embolden extremists.”

On the other hand, it’s very possible that that’s exactly why DeSantis wants to align himself with Musk. Per NBC News:

Musk has carved out an intense following after he purchased Twitter with the promise to return “free speech” after years of complaints from the right that the site had tried to censor conservatives…. One of the sources familiar with the plans told NBC News that DeSantis’s aides have been watching Twitter become an increasingly friendly space for conservative firebrands under Musk’s leadership, allowing them to speak directly to their conservative audience and bypass traditional media—something that was once Trump’s superpower. 

Anyway, just as a reminder, a DeSantis presidency is as terrible a prospect as a Trump one.

In other Trump legal news…

The former guy is apparently unhappy about the trial date for his hush money case. Per The New York Times:

The trial of Donald J. Trump has been scheduled for March 25, 2024, the judge presiding over his Manhattan criminal case said at a hearing on Tuesday. Mr. Trump attended the hearing remotely, making his first courtroom appearance since 34 felony charges were unveiled against him last month. He appeared to react angrily when the trial date was announced by Justice Juan Merchan, though his microphone was muted and it was unclear what he was saying to the lawyer seated next to him, Todd Blanche.

The trial is set for three weeks after Super Tuesday, one of the most important days on the Republican presidential primary calendar. And the disclosure of the date came just a day before Mr. Trump’s chief rival for the Republican nomination, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, was set to announce his own run, highlighting the way that Mr. Trump’s legal entanglements could complicate his third campaign for the White House.

Oh, well, it’s like that old saying goes: Don’t allegedly commit numerous felonies if you don’t want to have to go to court on a day that’s inconvenient for your presidential campaign.

Meanwhile, in Florida

A school has banned a poem calling for unity, because who would want any of that? Per The New Republic:

A Florida school has banned the poem read at Joe Biden’s inauguration after a parent complained it contained “indirect hate messages,” part of a disturbing state-wide trend of blocking discussions about race and gender.

A parent of two students at the Bob Graham Education Center in Miami Lakes challenged Amanda Gorman’s The Hill We Climb and four other books in March, arguing they were not age-appropriate. Bob Graham covers grades kindergarten through eight. Daily Salinas said that The Hill We Climb, The ABCs of Black History, Cuban Kids, Countries in the News Cuba, and Love to Langston contained references to critical race theory, gender ideology, “indirect hate messages,” and “indoctrination,” especially of socialism. She requested they be removed from the school entirely, according to documents shared by the Florida Freedom to Read Project.

According to PEN America, at least 175 books were banned in Florida as of March, a trend undoubtedly inspired by the state’s governor, who wants to dictate what people can read, think, and say.

This claim raises a lot of questions, perhaps most pressingly: Can Lauren Boebert do basic math?

What—and we cannot stress this enough— the f—k?

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