People focus on trump's megalomania as the reason why his businesses failed. Evidence of why he bankrupted 6 casinos are playing right in front of us. He does not know how to hire people.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nati...d49260-b558-11ea-a510-55bf26485c93_story.html Prosecutor to tell Congress of pressure from ‘highest levels’ of Justice Dept. to cut Roger Stone ‘a break’ A federal prosecutor and another Justice Department official plan to tell Congress on Wednesday that Attorney General William P. Barr and his top deputies issued inappropriate orders amid investigations and trials “based on political considerations” and a desire to cater to President Trump. Aaron Zelinsky, an assistant U.S. attorney in Maryland formerly detailed to Robert S. Mueller III’s Russia investigation, will tell the House Judiciary Committee that prosecutors involved in the criminal trial of Trump’s friend Roger Stone experienced “heavy pressure from the highest levels of the Department of Justice to cut Stone a break” by requesting a lighter sentence, according to Zelinsky’s prepared remarks. The expectation, he intends to testify, was that Stone should be treated “differently and more leniently” because of his “relationship with the President.” Read Aaron Zelinsky’s opening statement to the House Judiciary Committee Zelinsky will be joined by John Elias, an official in the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, who will say that Barr ordered staff to investigate marijuana company mergers simply because he “did not like the nature of their underlying business,” according to his prepared testimony. As a result, the antitrust division launched 10 reviews of mergers in the marijuana industry, according to Elias’s prepared remarks, and was ordered to probe a deal between major U.S. automakers and the state of California after Trump tweeted about it disparagingly. Months later, when the matter seemed near a close, political leaders ordered a subsequent investigation after California announced it would purchase vehicles only from automakers that complied with fuel efficiency standards, Elias’s prepared testimony says. Read John W. Elias’s opening statement to the House Judiciary Committee Together, their accounts — which will be delivered under subpoena — are a damning indictment of Barr’s management of the Justice Department, a tenure, House Democrats charge, defined by “unprecedented politicization.” The testimony is expected to raise the stakes surrounding a subpoena the Judiciary Committee chair, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), has promised to issue for Barr’s testimony early next month. In a statement, Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec took aim at Zelinsky, saying that Barr determined the sentencing recommendation for Stone proposed by him and his colleagues was “excessive and inconsistent with similar cases,” and he thus directed Tim Shea, then the U.S. attorney in the District of Columbia, to “leave the sentencing to the discretion of the judge.” She repeated, as she has in the past, that Barr did not discuss the matter with Trump or anyone at the White House before the president tweeted about the case, after which Barr intervened to reverse career prosecutors’ recommendation. “Notably, Mr. Zelinsky, a line prosecutor, did not have any discussion with the Attorney General, the U.S. Attorney, or any other member of political leadership at the Department about the sentencing; instead, Mr. Zelinksy’s allegations concerning the U.S. Attorney’s motivation are based on his own interpretation of events and hearsay (at best), not first-hand knowledge,” Kupec said. “The Attorney General stated during his confirmation hearing that it his job to ensure that the administration of justice and the enforcement of the law is above and away from politics. He has and will continue to approach all cases at the Department of Justice with that commitment to the rule of law and the fair and impartial administration of justice.” Democrats have long objected to Barr’s stewardship of the Justice Department, listing among their grievances the attorney general’s intervention in criminal matters of consequence to the president, his refusal to defend the Affordable Care Act in court, and his recent order to disperse protesters from outside the White House, which resulted in police using tear gas and horses to push back a largely nonviolent group. But Barr has successfully evaded testifying before the Judiciary panel since Democrats took over the House majority in 2019 — despite being issued a subpoena last year and then being held in contempt upon defying it. Though Barr had agreed to testify in March as part of the panel’s politicization probe, that session was scrapped because of the pandemic and never rescheduled. The campaign to subpoena Barr gained momentum after the weekend firing of former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York Geoffrey Berman, who prosecuted members of Trump’s inner circle over the past two and a half years. But many, including Nadler, expect that Barr may still flout a summons to appear July 2. Barr’s review of Russia investigation wins Trump’s favor. Those facing scrutiny suspect he’s chasing conspiracy theories. If that happens, it is unclear what recourse may be available to Democrats. Nadler has ruled out attempting to impeach the attorney general, telling CNN over the weekend that such a move would be a “waste of time.” And with only a handful of workweeks before Congress turns its focus to November’s election, it is unlikely there would be time to seek court enforcement of a disregarded subpoena. In the meantime, political disputes over the Justice Department continue raging on committee daises on both sides of the Capitol. Late Monday, the House Judiciary Committee’s top Republican, Rep. Jim Jordan (Ohio), wrote Nadler to accuse him of “posturing” against Barr as retaliation against his work “to expose how the Obama-Biden Administration targeted” Trump’s 2016 campaign. In the Republican-controlled Senate, the Judiciary Committee and the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee are looking into the origins of the FBI’s Russia investigation, which became the foundation for Mueller’s probe. As Zelinsky and Elias speak to Barr’s alleged transgressions, some of the cases they will cite as evidence are continuing to develop. Zelinsky, who resigned in protest after his formal objections to the handling of Stone’s case were ignored, is expected to testify that prosecutors were told “to water down and in some cases outright distort events that transpired in his trial, and the criminal conduct that gave rise to his conviction,” in order to justify the lighter sentencing request. He added that the U.S. attorney in charge of the prosecution agreed to give Stone “unprecedentedly favorable treatment because he was ‘afraid of the President.’ ” Stone, who was convicted of lying to Congress, is supposed to report to prison on June 30 to begin serving his 40-month sentence. (Prosecutors had recommended between seven and nine years before they were overruled.) On Tuesday, his defense team asked a judge to postpone that date, citing concerns over the spread of the novel coronavirus in many detention facilities. In their filing, Stone’s attorneys wrote that the U.S. attorney’s office did not oppose a 60-day extension. Trump has strongly hinted he will pardon his friend and former adviser.
https://www.npr.org/2020/06/24/8827...s-lower-judge-to-throw-out-michael-flynn-case Appeals Court Orders Lower Judge To Throw Out Michael Flynn Case By a vote of 2 to 1, the three-judge panel on the appeals court ruled Wednesday that the lower-court judge, Sullivan, had intruded on the Justice Department's "charging authority" by seeking further investigation after the department moved to dismiss Flynn's case. An attorney appointed by Sullivan to counsel him about the government's decision in the case called the move to dismiss an abuse of power by the Justice Department because it was interceding in the case of a friend of President Trump. Outside critics also have faulted Attorney General William Barr and the Justice Department. "In this case, the district court's actions will result in specific harms to the exercise of the executive branch's exclusive prosecutorial power," the judges wrote. "The contemplated proceedings would likely require the executive to reveal the internal deliberative process behind its exercise of prosecutorial discretion, interfering with the Article II charging authority."
https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/02/politics/us-attorney-brooklyn-barr-ally/index.html Justice Department considering replacing US attorney in Brooklyn with Barr ally (CNN)The Justice Department is considering replacing the US attorney in Brooklyn with a senior department official close to Attorney General William Barr, officials briefed on the matter said. On Thursday, Richard Donoghue, the US attorney for the Eastern District of New York, told his staff he'd be stepping down to move to Washington as the Justice Department's principal associate deputy attorney general, a powerful position that acts as a gatekeeper to investigations across the country, a spokesman for the office, John Marzulli, told CNN. The most recent principal associate deputy attorney general, Seth DuCharme, is now being considered by department leadership for the top role in the Brooklyn office, where he had built his career as a prosecutor. The job swap discussion comes as Barr has drawn outrage for his management of politically significant cases, which was heightened last month as he forced out the US attorney in Manhattan, Geoffrey Berman, after the two clashed over prosecutions sensitive to the White House. The changeover in the neighboring district of Brooklyn, however, involves two men who are said to be favorites of the attorney general and are set to remain in senior positions within the department. The Brooklyn post wields significant influence by virtue of its jurisdiction and recently has investigated individuals close to President Donald Trump, including Tom Barrack, who chaired the President's inaugural committee. Barrack was interviewed last year and, according to his spokesman, was told prosecutors had no further questions for him. Barrack has not been accused of any wrongdoing. In February, the Justice Department tapped Donoghue to supervise all agency investigations related to Ukraine in a move that gave Washington officials more oversight into an area of interest that had become a political minefield. It's not clear if the authority over the Ukraine investigations will remain within the Brooklyn US attorney's office if Donoghue were to move out of the position. A spokesman for the Justice Department declined to comment for this story. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have been investigating the actions of Rudy Giuliani, the president's personal lawyer, including his efforts to oust Marie Yovanovitch, then-US ambassador to Ukraine, and push for an investigation into Hunter Biden, the son of former Vice President Joe Biden, who had done business in the country. Berman's handling of the case and the way he kept Barr at arm's-length as it proceeded had fueled mistrust between the men ahead of his firing last month, CNN has reported. Barr has said that the reason that Berman was removed was to make room for Jay Clayton, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, who had inquired about the job. DuCharme served as a counselor to Barr for national security and criminal matters before being promoted to the senior position in the deputy attorney general's office last year. Before his time in Washington, DuCharme was a longtime career prosecutor in the Brooklyn office, where he later led the criminal division. The mechanics behind the swap remain unclear and could be complicated by federal vacancies law, as evidenced by the chaotic transition last month at the Manhattan US attorney's office. Under office protocols, Donoghue's deputy, first assistant US attorney Mark Lesko, would succeed him. Both Berman and Donoghue assumed their positions initially in an interim capacity after an appointment from the attorney general, and their roles were later made permanent by the federal judges in their district. In Manhattan, Berman had initially refused to leave after Barr said publicly that he would be "stepping down" and named another senior prosecutor from outside the district to replace him temporarily. Berman was eventually fired by the President, but his role was filled in an acting capacity by his deputy, instead of Barr's handpicked successor. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/02/...epartment-barr-berman-congress-testimony.html U.S. Attorney Ousted by Barr Will Testify Privately Before Congress The interview with Geoffrey S. Berman, the former top federal prosecutor in Manhattan, is part of Democrats’ inquiry into potential Justice Department politicization. WASHINGTON — Geoffrey S. Berman, the former top federal prosecutor in Manhattan who was abruptly dismissed last month, has agreed to testify in a closed-door hearing before lawmakers next week as part of an inquiry into potential politicization at the Justice Department, according to a House Judiciary Committee notice reviewed by The New York Times. Mr. Berman, who was fired after a brief but highly public standoff over his status with Attorney General William P. Barr, will meet privately on July 9 with members of the committee to discuss the circumstances surrounding his surprise ouster, according to two people familiar with the terms of his testimony. Mr. Berman’s planned testimony comes amid a shake-up at the federal prosecutor’s office in Brooklyn. Richard P. Donoghue, the office’s top prosecutor, will come to Washington to serve as the No. 2 official in the office of the deputy attorney general, Jeffrey A. Rosen, a key department post. Mr. Donoghue is seen within the department as a close ally of Mr. Barr. The position is currently held by Seth DuCharme, who plans to return to the Brooklyn prosecutor’s office, where he was previously the head of the criminal division. He is being considered to run the office, according to two people familiar with the deliberations. The moves, coming weeks after Mr. Berman’s firing, are likely to stir speculation that they are politically motivated. But President Trump has yet to nominate a successor to Mr. Donoghue, who expects his top deputy, Mark Lesko, to serve as the acting U.S. attorney immediately after his departure. Mr. Trump could install Mr. DuCharme to run the office under the Vacancies Reform Act. Under Mr. Berman, the Manhattan federal prosecutor’s office pursued cases that touched on Mr. Trump’s inner circle, exposing misdeeds by his former personal lawyer Michael D. Cohen. From nearly the moment that Mr. Barr took office last year, he clashed with Mr. Berman’s office about politically sensitive investigations, including the decision to charge Mr. Cohen with campaign finance offenses and how prosecutors in Manhattan should investigate Halkbank, a Turkish state-owned bank that they indicted last year, according to multiple people familiar with those investigations who were not authorized to publicly discuss the deliberations. The end of Mr. Berman’s tenure appeared to be hastened after Jay Clayton, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, told Mr. Trump and Mr. Barr weeks ago that he would be interested in running the Southern District. Mr. Barr decided to install a lawyer with whom he had a better working relationship, the attorney general said in an interview with NPR. But Mr. Berman refused to resign, and Mr. Barr issued a news release late on a Friday night last month declaring that Mr. Berman intended to leave. That notice prompted Mr. Berman to publicly say that he had no intention of leaving. In the end, because of legal issues surrounding Mr. Berman’s appointment, Mr. Barr was forced to ask Mr. Trump to fire him. He also backed away from his plan for temporary succession and installed Mr. Berman’s deputy, Audrey Strauss, to run the office for now. Mr. Berman’s dismissal also came at a time when Mr. Trump had been pushing out other administration officials with a degree of independence, including inspectors general who are tasked with rooting out agency fraud and abuse. On Thursday, Mr. Donoghue, the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of New York, notified his office that he would be stepping down to become an official with the Justice Department in Washington, according to people familiar with the matter. The post he will assume — principal associate deputy attorney general, working under Mr. Rosen — is considered extremely influential, as Mr. Rosen’s office oversees the nation’s federal prosecutors’ offices. A previous official in the role, Edward O’Callaghan, was best known for overseeing the day-to-day of the Russia investigation. The job is particularly critical under Mr. Rosen, who has never been a prosecutor. Mr. DuCharme, who is Mr. Rosen’s current top deputy, will return to the Brooklyn office, where he had worked for his entire career as a prosecutor before he came to Washington last year to advise Mr. Barr on criminal and national security matters. Mr. Berman will testify just a week after two Justice Department lawyers told the House Judiciary Committee that political appointees in the prosecutor’s office in Washington and in the antitrust division had intervened in investigations to advance the personal interests of Mr. Trump and Mr. Barr. Aaron S.J. Zelinsky, a prosecutor who worked on the investigation into Roger J. Stone Jr., Mr. Trump’s longtime friend, told the committee that senior officials in the Washington U.S. attorney’s office demanded a more lenient prison sentence for Mr. Stone “because of politics.” He named several career lawyers who told him that the lenient sentence would be done essentially to appease Mr. Trump, and that the office’s top political appointee feared the president. A Justice Department spokeswoman has said that Mr. Zelinsky’s testimony was based on hearsay, and that he had no conversations with the political appointees whose intentions he described. John W. Elias, a senior career official in the antitrust division, said that Mr. Barr sought to use an antitrust investigation to harass cannabis companies because he personally disliked the industry. He also said that to please Mr. Trump, the division opened an investigation into automakers who had decided to make cars that emitted fewer pollutants. Leaders in the antitrust division denied those accusations in an internal memo circulated to the division. Their testimony and Mr. Berman’s interview are part of the House Judiciary Committee’s scrutiny of whether Mr. Barr has politicized the Justice Department and wielded its power to protect and support the interests of Mr. Trump. Mr. Barr will appear before the panel on July 28.
By KYLE CHENEY 07/09/2020 01:17 PM EDT Updated: 07/09/2020 05:38 PM EDT Attorney General William Barr persistently pressured Manhattan's former top federal prosecutor to resign during a June 18 meeting at a New York hotel and in a subsequent phone call, the ousted prosecutor, Geoffrey Berman told lawmakers Thursday, detailing for the first time the series of events that led to his removal the next day. Berman, in a written statement to the House Judiciary Committee, said Barr repeatedly attempted to coax Berman into resigning his post by suggesting he consider other positions in government, including the chairmanship of the Securities and Exchange Commission or the head of the Justice Department's Civil Division. "I said that there was no job offer that would entice me to resign from my position," Berman told lawmakers in his opening statement, obtained by POLITICO. Berman’s testimony raised a suggestion from Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), chairman of the Judiciary Committee, that Barr's offer of a different position in exchange for stepping down could amount to criminal activity. "What we don't know yet is if the attorney general's conduct is criminal. But that kind of quid pro quo is awfully close to bribery," Nadler said after exiting the interview with Berman. Nadler said Berman would not discuss specific cases his office was leading but said his removal would inevitably lead to "delay and disruption" in the office's work. The ousted prosecutor told lawmakers that Barr, later on June 18, issued a statement announcing Berman's resignation anyway, which triggered Berman to publicly respond that he had done no such thing. The extraordinary exchange culminated the following day, when Barr agreed to name Berman's deputy as his successor and President Donald Trump ordered Berman's firing. Berman told lawmakers he had consulted with private attorneys and was prepared to contest his removal until Barr had agreed to elevate Berman's deputy, Audrey Strauss, rather than insert an attorney from outside the office to replace him. The events have raised alarms on Capitol Hill that Trump was seeking to assert control over the office of a prosecutor handling cases connected to Trump himself and his close associates. Berman's testimony to the House Judiciary Committee could reveal more details about the work he's been pursuing, though he emphasized that he is constrained in what he can say due to the office's ongoing work. Berman described in great detail his interactions with Barr, noting that they met at 12:10 p.m. on June 18 in the Pierre Hotel in New York City. "There were sandwiches on the table, but nobody ate," Berman recalled. "The Attorney General began the meeting by saying that he wanted to make a change in the Southern District of New York," Berman continued, adding, "I asked the Attorney General why I was being asked to resign prior to a nominee being confirmed. He said it was because the Administration wanted to get [SEC Chairman] Jay Clayton into that position." Clayton, who hasn't served as a prosecutor, sidestepped lawmakers' questions last week about why he sought to lead the Manhattan-based federal prosecutor's officeduring a subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee hearing.And Berman said Barr never explained why he wanted Berman to resign before a permanent, Senate-confirmed successor was ready to lead the office. Berman was initially tapped by Trump to lead the Southern District of New York prosecutor's office in January 2018, but as the temporary appointment neared its expiration, the federal district court employed a seldom-used law to permanently appoint Berman to the post until a successor was confirmed by the Senate. Barr is slated to testify to the Judiciary Committee on July 28, the culmination of a 14-month effort to bring the attorney general before the Democrat-controlled panel. The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment on Berman’s testimony and Nadler’s suggestions. Berman said he consistently pushed back on Barr's suggestion that he accept another position in government. "The Attorney General pressed me to take the Civil Division position, saying that the role would be a good resume builder. He said that I should want to create a book of business once I returned to the private sector, which that role would help achieve," Berman said. "He also stated that I would just have to sit there for five months and see who won the election before deciding what came next for me." "I told the Attorney General that there were important investigations in the Office that I wanted to see through to completion," he continued. “I also said that I wanted to help lead the Office through the COVID crisis and get the Office back to normal functioning."