Manhattan DA w/Egg on Face?, TikTok TikTok & DeSantis’ Interview – More Hype than Bite? – Top 3 Takeaways – March 24th, 2023
- Another day with no indictment for the Manhattan DA. The hottest news story of the week began before the week itself when former President Donald Trump “Truthed” from Mar-a-Lago last Saturday that he was to be arrested on Tuesday. The cause...seven-year-old hush money payments to Stormy Daniels. A name, like Michael Avanati, you’d likely thought you were free from ever having to hear about again. Anyway, the hush money case previously proved so thin that federal prosecutors, who’ve clearly been no friend of Trump’s over the years, rejected pursuing it upon review last year because they found no crime had been committed. Details, right? But enter a Soros backed Manhattan DA, presiding over a city riddled in crime in part due to his desire to lesson criminal charges for serial offenders – or to never bring them at all, who instead has been bent on being the one who finally “gets Trump”. But a funny thing has apparently happened on the way to attempting to do so. A heavy dose of reality. Tuesday came, and Tuesday went and there was no indictment issued by the empaneled Manhattan grand jury. Instead, we heard that more witnesses were set to testify. Then Wednesday came but the jury never did as Bragg issued an 11th – hour notice to all, including the grand jury, that they’d not be meeting that day. Instead, they were to reconvene Thursday. With no reason publicly cited the rumblings from within became louder. Multiple news sources, citing sources, that Bragg doesn’t have the support from within his own office to pursue an indictment against Trump and even more importantly, doesn’t have the votes in the grand jury to bring one. Enter Thursday...and this time not only was the grand jury told once again to not reconvene, but they were also told they were done for the week. Are the rumors true? It’s hard to know but easy to believe. Trump didn’t just suggest he’d be indicted on Tuesday because he was bored. Bragg hadn’t contacted law enforcement agencies, including the Secret Service, about a potential arrest because he didn’t think one was coming. But what Bragg did appear to do, was to overestimate that the empaneled grand jury was as bent on ignoring the rule of law in order to “get Trump” as he was. Where does this go from here? Hard to know. But here’s what I’d be most concerned with this weekend. What’s Bragg, a politically ambitious prosecutor who already has pursued a case the feds said didn’t exist capable of behind the scenes? Why is he suddenly interested in buying more time before the jury decides whether to indict? How would that change the facts of a matter that’s over seven years old? Color me suspicious. Speaking of time...
- TikTok, TikTok. Not as in a clock but as in the ByteDance backed social media platform. Meghan Trainor was far from the first to suggest that if lips are moving then someone’s lying. But her iteration from eight years ago popularized the saying for a generation which is most commonly TikToking away most days. Anyway, several years ago when the platform was first taking off in the United States the CEO of the platform promised those concerned about its Chinese roots that all information in the US was hubbed in California and stayed in California. That was until last year when the CEO admitted that the Chinese Communists regularly accessed user data prompting federal investigations by the Federal Trade Commission and congress. And then there was the December revelation in which TikTok was forced to admit they’d actively tracked the data of reporters who’d used the app to track movements to identify sources of reporter's stories on behalf of the Chinese Communist government. Four people were fired and made to appear to be the fall guys for that “rouge” operation. And this takes us to yesterday’s testimony by TikTok’s CEO before a House committee. In that hearing Mr. Chew said in response to a question about user data being accessible to the Chinese government... “I’ve seen no evidence that the Chinese government has access to that data” - which was quickly called preposterous by the congresswoman asking the question. And what’s the alibi for all of the previously known issues with all American data having been tracked and accessed by the Chinese government? “I don’t condone the effort by former employees to access U.S. user data”. Right, so the explanation in so many words is that...hey I’m just the CEO, I don’t actually know anything about the company. But really, you can trust us going forward. We’ll totally not violate user agreements, federal law, compromise reporters and sources or use the platform to propagandize. No really. It was always and only those four bad employees. Well, he thinks everyone is really that dumb – but then again, when you see how many users of the app there are... Anyway, Mr. Chew, as Trainor has sung... I know you’re lyin’ cause your lips are moving. And btw, his testimony yesterday might have been the most devastating I’ve ever seen before a House committee. He greatly misread and underestimated the room. Trump was right about TikTok all along. Speaking of Trump...
- More hype than bite? As I previewed yesterday there was a distinct chance the Piers Morgan interview on Fox Nation was more hype than bite, at least in terms of the suggestion that DeSantis would tear into Trump. Yes, DeSantis all but announced that he’s running for president. Yes, he drew a contrast with the former president. Yes, Trump continues to take the wrong tact in somehow suggesting that DeSantis hasn’t been a great governor and that the Florida we live in (including him) and love isn’t awesome. And yes, this is setting up to be a big mess. But last night’s interview, while interesting, was no doubt more hype than bite.