GUEST OP-ED: ‘Black Hand Mob or Clown Show’ — Martin Sheil’s Update on the NYC Trial
GUEST OP-ED: ‘Black Hand Mob or Clown Show’ — Martin Sheil’s Update on the NYC Trial
Retired IRS criminal investigator Martin Sheil offers us his observations of Trump’s mob-circus trial
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As I have noted in prior missives to you, I often send retired IRS criminal investigator Martin Sheil Joyce Vance’s Civil Discourse, as she helps us follow the plots with her sharp legal eye. Marty, who follows the money and relays his findings to the Bette Dangerous community, was inspired by Vance’s latest, and contributes the following:
‘Black Hand Mob or Clown Show’ — A Death Knell to the Grifter’s Future Freedom
Hey Heidi,
Black Hand Mob or Clown Show?
Let me give you a little more background to the story of Joyce Vance and her Hush Money bar locale for her Podcast in Chicago. The bar is located right across from Wrigley Field - home to my beloved Cubbies.
The name of the bar "Hush Money" derives from the attempt by the Black Hand Mob criminal organization to extort a century ago from beloved Cubs pitcher Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown.
I will leave it there for a bit before returning to the crime org theme while I share my observations, which diverge a bit from Joyce's.
The Trump team had an up and down day in court but given the above segue, let me note the Trump good part first.
The Trump defense put Stormy's attorney - Keith Davidson on his back foot upon cross examination, and they needed to do that because he scored some telling points on "Direct" examination, which we will get too.
The Trump team really made Stormy out to be an "extortionist" and her attorney a slime bag with a history of representing clients in shake down schemes. How effective a strategy will be impossible to tell until we receive a verdict from the jury but Trump scored some points. And they needed to.
On direct, the Prosecution team got Davidson to corroborate some of Pecker's testimony nicely with regard to the motive of shutting down the Ladies weeks before the election from going to the media with their salacious stories of Trump solicitude.
Why is this important?
The prosecution has done a nice job in "laying the foundation" for Michael Cohen's testimony, which will definitely be blockbuster and will no doubt encourage a vicious counter attacking cross examination.
Going into the trial - most folks thought Cohen would be the key witness but I think that Pecker did such a great job laying the ground work that Cohen will now be almost an afterthought from the prosecution perspective.
The surprise testimony of the day came from a forensic analyst who was used by the prosecution to enter into evidence the handwritten notes of Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg outlining the payment scheme.
I did not know those notes existed, and they could have a powerful effect.
Further - testimony was obtained that Weisselberg played a role in reviewing campaign contributions and dealing with the FEC. In fact, Rick Gates emails documented Weisselberg's effectiveness in auditing campaign contributions.
Was Weisselberg's work for the Trump campaign fully accounted for by the campaign as an "in kind contribution" ? To be determined...
The prosecution jarred the jury when they played some recordings including the one where Cohen explained to Trump that he went over the whole scheme with Allen Weisselberg and then the key admission by Trump when he exclaimed - What financing? Pay it in cash ! Take it out of cash!
Other recordings played in court that must have impacted the jury - Davidson exclaiming on Election night - "What have we done"? and Trump repeating - "I hate the fact we did it" - referring to the Hush money payments - Consciousness of guilt anyone?
So the trial had some ebbs and flows, which is typical imo and the Defense will have its moments. But the Prosecution is building its case brick by brick, and I applaud the way they are going about it.
But there is a second trial going on simultaneous to the Hush money scheme and that is the Trumpster pushing the limits of the Gag order he is under. Trump was fined $9,000 for nine violations and another hearing was conducted to determine further violations, and we will just have to wait for Judge Merchan's ruling.
Trump is daring the Judge to jail him for Contempt and if the Judge is going to keep control of the Trial, he just might have to put Trump in the hoosegow for a bit.
Naturally, Trump will play the ultimate victim should that happen which plays into his campaign election strategy and campaign financing strategy, but puts his attorneys under tremendous stress.
Not sure how that will all play out. Trump made one of his attorneys look like an idiot in the press conference after the day in court when Trump publicly lied that the Gag order that Judge Merchan imposed on Trump - prevents Trump from testifying - which it certainly does NOT. But there was the Trump attorney enthusiastically nodding his head in affirmation of his client's false claim.
Not exactly the fearsome Black Hand Mob here - more like Bozo and his fellow clown show.
To add to the clown show, Hope Hicks emerged from her Trump testimony in tears as the years of spinning stories about the Trumpster finally caught up to her. The title of her new book is suggested to be ‘Hope Hicks and the Swinging Dicks I Put Up with In the Oval Office.’
The circus has clearly come to town now and the side show of the Contempt hearings threaten to take over the actual trial.
Leave it to the coming silent killer Accountant testimony to calm everything down and put everyone, including the defendant, back to sleep while applying a death knell to the Grifter's future freedom.
Marty
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Illustration courtesy Steve Brodner.
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