US Politics

Sorry if this has been covered elsewhere, but $60 USA bibles (including such bonuses as the declaration of independence, and the pledge of allegiance), that's a proper #notTheOnion moment

A convenient way to launder fundy christian money that avoid any pesky donation rules tho.

I can't adequately describe how much I want that man to go to (and die in) jail.

+1

Also how is Mar-a-Lago meant to be worth >$1b!

Agree. But it’s worth more than $18m surely.

Depends on the basis of the valuation I imagine. Is it gross outright value, or is it the value net of any liens against it. Or is it a willful misinterpretation of something that was said about it, twisted to suit a specific narrative.

I think at one point it could be built upon with residential buildings which would be very valuable land. At some point trump changed the zoning or something save money, but now it can't be built upon so the value is just what the club makes after expenses

Also it'll probably be under water in less than 10 years

Aileen Cannon doing exactly what she was put there for:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/02/judge-delay-schedule-trump-classified-documents-case

Trump’s legal strategy for all of his criminal cases has been to delay, under the calculus that winning re-election would enable him to appoint a loyalist as attorney general who could direct prosecutors to drop the case, or pardon himself if he was convicted.

Finally calling spades spades, possibly a few years too late. (I know it’s not the first time the guardian have shared their thoughts about the issue)

It’s easy to check the actual value by comparing it to other properties in the neighbourhood. It’s not an oceanfront property. It’s also rumoured to be poorly maintained, as Trump is notoriously cheap.
Maybe worth more than 18M but not much more.

Google says its 5,810m²

Unless I'm getting my numbers wrong that means he's valuing it at something like $1.5-3m/m²?

I don’t think valuing it really is that easy - isn’t this a large part of what the case against him is? There is a tax valuation of it that is “low” at $18m and some estate agent said in court it was worth $1bn. I would expect it is much nearer the tax valuation than the estate agent valuation, but both of those types of valuations are for specific, different purposes.

I am sure he has lied and inflated it, massively, but I was surprised it was “only” worth $18m.

The deeds to Mar a Lago say it can only be used as a club. It's not lawful for anyone to live there. Not even Trump. Trump asked for this change to the deeds in the nineties when he was short of cash. He wanted to devalue the property and thereby reduce his tax bill.

He also got the building listed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. This rules out redevelopment of the land and restricts interior modifications. He chose this, to reduce the value and the tax liabilities. The $18m valuation is based on the club's profits. The property has no other value.

But in his head he has the freedom to undo all the restrictions which he asked for, to allow the 17 acre plot to be filled with new Trump-brand mansions. He probably thinks his next presidency would give him the power to overrule the Palm Beach County commissioners and build whatever he wants.

More detail here https://eu.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/trump/2024/02/16/why-new-york-judge-concluded-trumps-mar-a-lago-valuation-fraudulent/72632374007/

Texas governor Greg Abbott might turn out to be a more dangerous man than Trump.

https://archive.is/peqXv

Ironically, one of the problems with Texas is domestic migration, with loads of people from other states moving to Texas, buying sequinned cowboy boots and Stetson hats, and acting like what they imagine Texans should act like: gun-obsessed, anti-govt, retrograde conservative whack jobs. They make friends with whack job Texans, and together they move the dial, and impact political dialogue as well as policy and legislative action.

Abbot is a dangerous man because he’s made a point of showing how strong and tough he is: carries a gun on his jogs, is pro lethal injection, puts illegals in cages and ships them to democratic states disregarding court orders, uses armed manpower to stand up to Big Govt Feds who illegitimately attacked the South and took away states’ rights 160 years ago… His base eat it up, without looking inward at the causes of it all. Since it’s a foundation of his power, he’s willing to stir up a fight to keep that image, even at a time of critical internal division across the States.

Ah, Texas. Plenty of people there, including some elected officials, who want the death penalty for women who have abortions. Here's a recent meeting: https://twitter.com/mrsamartini/status/1773160427981070620?t=sk_wYDuPHwg89Q4WqTwnlA

Here's a glimpse of Republican thinking - the people of Gaza have plenty of food https://nypost.com/2024/04/05/opinion/is-the-gaza-famine-a-myth-the-data-say-yes/

Bond seems to be as legit as his financial statements. https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-bond-new-york-civil-fraud-case-manhattan-letitia-james-arthur-engoron-1888410

Delicious anticipation!

RFJ Jr's aim is to get Trump elected. Here's the proof https://archive.ph/WW38G/again?url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/robert-f-kennedy-jr-campaign-rita-palma-donald-trump

Source: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/robert-f-kennedy-jr-campaign-rita-palma-donald-trump

so " sleepy donald " falls asleep at his trial. wonder if there is anything troubling him and keeping him up at night

bankruptcy, $500mn in fines, loosing his business's, down in the polls, 4 or 5 law suits, impending dementia, poop in his diapers maybe

"Murder people with your car!"

Urges senator:

https://twitter.com/Esqueer_/status/1780059691172724879