Driving the Day
Must Read Stories
Trump claims he’s a victim and attacks Special Counsel, as second federal indictment looms and “fake electors” in Michigan are criminally charged
- New York Times: Trump Says He’s Target in Special Counsel’s Investigation Into Jan. 6: Former President Donald J. Trump has been informed that he could soon face federal indictment for his efforts to hold onto power after his 2020 election loss, potentially adding to the remarkable array of criminal charges and other legal troubles facing him even as he campaigns to return to the White House. Mr. Trump was informed by his lawyers on Sunday that he had received a so-called target letter from Jack Smith, the special counsel investigating his attempts to reverse his defeat at the polls, Mr. Trump and other people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. Prosecutors use target letters to tell potential defendants that investigators have evidence tying them to crimes and that they could be subject to indictment.
- The Washington Post: Trump says he received a target letter in federal Jan. 6 investigation: Former president Donald Trump said Tuesday morning that he received a letter from the Justice Department informing him that he is a target of the long-running investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Trump wrote on social media that special counsel Jack Smith — the prosecutor leading the federal investigation — sent a letter on Sunday. His advisers declined to provide a copy, and a spokesman for Smith declined to comment.The target letter and potential indictment further ensnare Trump in unprecedented legal peril while he is campaigning as the front-runner to be the 2024 Republican nominee for president.
- The Wall Street Journal: Trump Says He Received Target Letter in Jack Smith’s Jan. 6 Case: Federal prosecutors told former President Donald Trump’s legal team that he is a target of their investigation into efforts to undo his loss in the 2020 election, a sign that he is likely to be indicted in the case. The notification deepens Trump’s legal peril as the 2024 presidential race heats up, with Trump as the front-runner for the Republican nomination. The former president already faces a separate federal prosecution on charges that he mishandled classified documents after leaving the White House, criminal charges in New York and the prospect of an additional indictment by a local prosecutor in Georgia.
- NBC: Michigan attorney general charges ‘false electors’ over efforts to overturn the 2020 election: Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Tuesday that she has filed charges against 16 people who signed paperwork falsely claiming that President Donald Trump had won the 2020 election as part of a scheme to overturn the results. Presidents are technically voted in by slates of electors from each state who cast their votes for the candidates selected by their states’ popular votes. In December 2020, as Trump tried to overturn the results of the election, his allies readied alternative slates of electors in several states. They appear to be the first charges filed against fake electors.
- CNN: Trump’s team seeks to learn whether special counsel has evidence, witnesses they don’t know: Former President Donald Trump’s lawyers and advisers are trying to figure out if there is evidence and witnesses they are unaware of that are bolstering special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election, according to multiple sources familiar with Trump team’s legal conversation. The potential charges listed in the target letter suggest the special counsel will prosecute a bigger case against Trump than the former president’s team was expecting, given the evidence they are aware of. That has led to questions if there is evidence or testimony they don’t know about, the sources said.
Date for Trump’s classified documents case hangs in the balance until Judge issues order
- Associated Press: Spotlight on judge in Trump documents case intensifies following controversial earlier ruling: A month after former President Donald Trump was charged with mishandling classified documents, the judge presiding over the case is set to take on a more visible role as she weighs competing requests on a trial date and hears arguments this week on a procedural, but potentially crucial, area of the law. A pretrial conference Tuesday to discuss procedures for handling classified information will represent the first courtroom arguments in the case before U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon since Trump was indicted five weeks ago. The arguments could provide insight into how Cannon intends to preside over the case while she also confronts the unresolved question of how to schedule Trump’s trial as he campaigns for president.
- The Washington Post: Judge rejects Trump’s bid to move New York hush money case to federal court: The federal judge presiding over Donald Trump’s trial for allegedly mishandling classified documents appeared skeptical Tuesday about the former president’s request that it be delayed until after the 2024 election. U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon also appeared wary of prosecutors’ request to begin the proceedings as soon as this year. During a hearing in federal court, Cannon did not set a new date for the trial, saying she would consider both sides’ arguments and make a decision on the timing “promptly.” The hearing Tuesday afternoon marked the first time that lawyers on both sides of the case appeared before Cannon, with federal prosecutors and Trump’s defense attorneys gathering in a courthouse about an hour north of downtown West Palm Beach. Trump was not present, but his longtime aide and co-defendant, Waltine “Walt” Nauta, was in the courtroom.
- NBC News: Trump lawyers and special counsel prosecutors debate trial date in classified document case: U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon heard Tuesday from federal prosecutors and attorneys representing former President Donald Trump on charges that he mishandled sensitive government documents after he left the White House. During the nearly two-hour hearing, Trump’s attorneys and prosecutors for the special counsel discussed how they will handle classified material in the case and how it would be presented at trial. Trump’s co-defendant, Walt Nauta, who was an aide to the former president, arrived at the courthouse before the hearing with his defense lawyers Stan Woodward and Sasha Dadan.
In The States
ALABAMA: Debates continue over redrawn congressional maps to fix Voting Rights violation
- NBC News: Alabama Republicans pitch congressional map with one majority-Black district, even though the Supreme Court mandated two: A proposal for redrawn congressional districts in Alabama has been met with criticism by leaders and advocates, who say the new map is still biased against Black residents, despite a Supreme Court order to address the imbalance. Last month, the conservative-led Supreme Court issued an unexpected victory for voting rights advocates when it struck down Alabama’s Republican-drawn congressional map. Agreeing with a lower court, the Supreme Court said it diluted the power of Black voters by having just one majority-Black district, even though the Black population of the state, at about 28%, is large enough to warrant two. Per the court’s direction, the Legislature will have to adopt a new congressional map, with two majority-Black districts, by Friday. But that’s not what’s happening at the state Capitol. In a special session on Monday, the GOP-led Legislature recommended a new map that maintains only one majority-Black district, the 7th district. The proposed map would instead shift the concentration of Black voters in this district and redraw the lines of the neighboring 2nd district to include more Black voters, but not to the extent advocates had wished for, according to NBC affiliate KXAS.
- AL.com: Redistricting: Will Alabama do enough to fix Voting Rights violation on map?: An increase of 30% to 42%. Or an increase of 30% to 38%. That’s the change in the percentage of Black voting age population that would happen in congressional District 2 under two plans the Republican majority is advancing through the Alabama Legislature. A three-judge federal court, with two President Trump appointees, has told the Legislature it must add a second majority Black district, or something close to that, to fix what the court found was most likely a violation of the Voting Rights Act because of the dilution of Black voter influence in a state with racially polarized voting. On the current map, Alabama has one majority Black district out of seven. The state’s population is one-fourth Black. The three-judge court, in a ruling affirmed by the Supreme Court, said the Black population is large enough and compact enough to draw a reasonably configured second majority Black district.
VIRGINIA: Governor weighs circumstances of crimes in deciding on restoring felons’ voting rights, advocates call for transparency
- Associated Press: Virginia NAACP demands to see governor’s criteria for restoring voting rights to felons: The Virginia NAACP on Tuesday called on Gov. Glenn Youngkin to establish clear and publicly available criteria for restoring the voting rights of convicted felons who have served their time, saying the system now is secretive and could discriminate against people of color. Youngkin has come under scrutiny since his administration confirmed earlier this year that it shifted away from a system used by three of his predecessors that was partly automatic. Two lawsuits have been filed over Youngkin’s process, which critics have said is confusing and does not have clear standards on when an application should be granted or denied. The governor’s “painfully slow opaque process is sure to have a discriminatory impact on Black Virginias and other Virginians of color, as well as communities where they live and work,” Robert Barnette Jr., president of the NAACP Virginia State Conference, said during a news conference Tuesday.
GEORGIA: Lawsuits alleging Georgia voting districts are discriminatory to be decided by judge in September
- Associated Press: Judge refuses to toss discrimination lawsuits over Georgia voting districts: A judge has refused to dismiss lawsuits alleging Georgia’s congressional and legislative districts illegally discriminate against Black voters. U.S. District Judge Steve Jones ruled Monday that he could only decide disputes over the facts of the cases and the credibility of the witnesses after a full trial, which he set for September. “Additionally, given the gravity and importance of the right to an equal vote for all American citizens, the court will engage in a thorough and sifting review of the evidence that the parties will present in this case at a trial,” Jones wrote. The orders apply to three cases, one challenging the lines of Georgia’s 14 congressional districts and two challenging the lines of the 56 state Senate and 180 state House districts. All three lawsuits allege that the maps violate the federal voting rights act by weakening the growing electoral strength of Black voters.
MICHIGAN: Governor signs legislation expanding voting rights
- The Detroit News: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signs bills putting early voting in Michigan law: Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed eight bills Tuesday that carry out a constitutional amendment voters approved in November and require at least nine days of early voting across the state in future elections. Supporters have described the legislation as implementing the “biggest change in how we vote in a generation.” Traditionally, Michiganians have cast their ballots at polling places on Election Day or used absentee ballots, which weren’t tallied by officials until Election Day. Under the new laws, clerks can begin providing early, in-person voting within 29 days of an election. Clerks can also work together to provide joint sites where ballots can be filled out and fed into tabulators before Election Day. The proposals were the result of a voting rights-focused constitutional amendment, Proposal 2, which passed with 60% support.
What Experts Are Saying
States United Democracy Center: Backgrounder: Michigan’s ‘fake electors’ charges, explained Fact Sheet
Norman Eisen, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, and Ryan Goodman, law professor at New York University: “We’ve reached a turning point in the effort to ensure there are consequences for those who deliberately attempt to undermine our democracy: Michigan’s attorney general, Dana Nessel, charged 16 Republican leaders in her state on Tuesday for their role as fake electors working to overturn the results of the 2020 election…Until now there have been no charges centered on the fake electors plot. For that reason alone, Michigan’s action brings a sense of needed accountability for those who fanned the rioters’ passions leading up to Jan. 6 by spinning a false narrative about a stolen election.” New York Times Op-Ed
Joanna Lydgate, former chief deputy attorney general of Massachusetts, and Christine Todd Whitman, former governor of New Jersey – both are co-founders of the States United Democracy Center: “Welcome to the summer of accountability. This is a critical moment. What happened between Election Day 2020 and January 6 was a conspiracy to overturn a free and fair election and keep Trump in power. It was carefully planned, then carried out, step by step, in multiple states. And we can’t let it happen again. The way to make sure it doesn’t is to push for concrete consequences for everyone who was involved. Zero tolerance for anyone who tried to undermine our elections and the will of the people. Because our elections are run by the states, and because the plot was carried out in the states, state officials have a pivotal role to play. It’s their job to defend the voters’ right to choose for themselves, and the state laws that ensure elections remain free, fair and secure.” CNN Op-Ed
VIDEO: Barbara McQuade, former United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan: “Right here in Michigan these 16, according to the charges filed today, engaged in their own little conspiracy to say, we’re the duly elected electors of Michigan and we cast our votes for Donald Trump. That was a lie.” MSNBC ReidOut Tweet
Renato Mariotti, former federal prosecutor: “Like the prosecutions of 1/6 insurrectionists, [MI “fake electors” charges] sends an important message — *everyone* who tries to overturn an election could face criminal charges.” Tweet
Joshua Kolb, former law clerk on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Fred Wertheimer, founder and president of Democracy 21: “Michigan’s attorney general has announced charges against 16 ‘false electors’ in that state. And we’ve learned that another state, Arizona, is also investigating similar alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election. The emergence of an inquiry in Arizona holds special significance. The state, along with Georgia, is arguably the epicenter of the election denial movement — led by figures like Kari Lake, who ran for governor in 2022 and remains an influential player in GOP politics, and former state GOP Chair Kelli Ward.” MSNBC Op-Ed
Joyce Vance, former US attorney: “In a normal case, sending a target letter signifies someone is firmly in DOJ’s sights. Sending a target letter to the former president is virtual confirmation Jack Smith intends to charge him[.]” USA Today
Headlines
The MAGA Movement And The Ongoing Threat To Elections
Roll Call: Democrats respond to ‘MAGA extremists’ with rival election bill
Bloomberg: MAGA-fied GOP Wants Little to Do With the Chamber of Commerce
Newsweek: MAGA Pastor Urges People to Rethink Study of God if They Believe Biden Won
Trump Investigations
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: EXCLUSIVE: Feds sought surveillance video from State Farm Arena in Trump probe
New York Times: Prosecutors and Trump Lawyers Clash Over Timing in Classified Documents Case
CNN: Why a third indictment of Trump could be such a profound stain on his legacy
New York Times: Trump Hush Money Case Will Remain in New York State Court, Judge Rules
New York Times: Potential Trump Charges Include Civil Rights Law Used in Voting Fraud Cases
January 6 And The 2020 Election
New York Times: Republicans Shrug at Latest Possible Trump Indictment
Axios: GOP’s uncomfortable Trump defense
The Hill: Pence: Judgment over Trump’s actions on Jan 6 should be left up to American people
The Hill: Gaetz says he’ll offer bill to defund Jack Smith investigations of Trump
Opinion
New York Times: Trump’s Conspirators Are Facing the Music, Finally
The Washington Post: But have we considered … tyranny?
MSNBC: Why Arizona’s 2020 electors investigation only adds to Trump’s troubles
The Washington Post: I thought the GOP would abandon Trump. I was wrong.
In the States
KSL-TV: Utah Supreme Court asks for more arguments in lawsuit over redistricting maps
Ohio Capital Journal: Changes to Ohio voter ID law will impact August 8 election. Here’s how:
Houston Public Media: Galveston County’s redistricting plans go to trial next month, in a major test of the Voting Rights Act
