Levoff Tostig

Back in 2019, we knew that Atkinson had changed the form, but we didn't KNOW whether Ciaramella had used the new form or the old form. It turns out that he had used the old form - the form which required first hand knowledge. The copy of Ciaramella form made public excluded the first two instruction pages in which the firsthand requirement was stated. While Atkinson subsequently changed the form, it was the earlier form that was submitted (sans the two instruction pages.) Atkinson's position was that Ciaramella had first hand knowledge of some things. However, the things that he had first hand knowledge of do not appear to have been especially relevant. Atkinson cited Grassley as authority that secondhand information should be permitted for a whistleblower report. But Atkinson glossed over difference between a non-urgent concern and an urgent concern. This doesn't seem to have been focussed on in discussion. The requirement for firsthand knowledge was reasonable enough for an "urgent" concern. Another point that hasn't been discussed much. In the Solomon articles in March-April 2019 which led into these discussions, there was discussion of Ukrainian interference in the 2016 election. Trump's contiguous discussion of the CrowdStrike server supports the possibility that Trump was seeking investigation of 2016 election interference - an entirely proper request - as opposed to anticipatory interference in the 2020 election. One of the major misunderstandings of Ukrainian interference in the 2016 is that the interference was initiated by Biden cadres (especially at the Jan 2016 meeting with Ukrainiain prosecutors and Biden cadres while Biden was a leading candidate for nomination) and resulted in the Black Ledger operation that decapitated Paul Manafort as campaign chair in August 2016. The role of Biden cadres in this interference has been clouded by incorrect pointing at Clinton campaign. There was obviously no way that any of Ciaramella, Wilde or Atkinson could have reasonably been sure that the issues raised by Trump weren't related to past 2016 events, as opposed to still distant 2020 events where Biden's nomination was far from guaranteed. The issue of Ukrainian interference in the 2016 election surfaced from time to time in the 2019 impeachment hearings, but was ridiculed and shouted down by State Department officials. None of the Republicans or their staff appear to have been well enough informed to focus on the valid issues.

This is a travesty. John represented the President in litigation challenging an election. That’s all. He lied about nothing. Reasonable minds can disagree about the 2020 election. He did what lawyers are supposed to do — represent disfavored individuals. And make no mistake, the elites, especially in bar apparatuses, disfavor and hate President Trump and anyone associated with him with a burning passion. No one representing Vice President Gore was disbarred for losing Bush v. Gore where the whole partial county-specific recount strategy Democrat lawyers devised there was ruled an unconstitutional violation of equal protection. Two-tiered system of justice and of bar discipline. Pray for John and his family and that John will speedily take his case to the U.S. Supreme Court and that they will grant cert and reverse this absolute nonsense.

A Chinese maritime monitoring analysis says the past 24 hours around Iran showed “military pressure and diplomacy in parallel.” According to the report, 18 vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz, including 4 tankers and 14 cargo ships, while at least one tanker turned back in the Gulf of Oman before later re-entering the strait. The report adds that neither Washington nor Tehran has fully closed the door to talks, but core disagreements remain unresolved and tensions are still high. The analysis also claims the U.S. maintained heavy military activity across the region. At least 18 KC-135 and KC-46 tanker sorties were tracked over the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and near Hormuz, while at least 28 C-17A transport flights from the U.S. and Europe carried military equipment and supplies toward key bases in the Middle East, including Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Djibouti. It further says U.S. reconnaissance flights remained active, with at least 7 sorties by P-8A and MQ-4C aircraft near the Gulf of Aden and the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, meanwhile, is described as keeping its forces on high alert, with Revolutionary Guard naval assets and coastal missile deployments maintaining pressure around the waterway.

Found another one of those “RED LIGHT/HOLY SMOKES” scammers that Twitter said they were going to do something about.