Trump’s co-defendant in classified documents case still hasn’t hired a lawyer
Nearly a month after former president Donald Trump was arraigned on the 38-count federal indictment he and his longtime aide Walt Nauta are facing for allegedly unlawfully retaining national defence information and obstructing justice, the ex-president’s co-defendant still needs legal representation. Mr Nauta, a retired Navy chief petty officer who served as Mr Trump’s White House valet before following him home to Florida after the end of the ex-president’s term, is charged with a single count of making a false statement to federal investigators. The other 37 charges are against Mr Trump, who pleaded not guilty to all of them at his arraignment last month. But even though the charge against him was unsealed at the same time as the charges against his boss, Mr Nauta was not arraigned at the same time as Mr Trump because he did not have a local attorney to appear with him in court. A second attempt to arraign him was scuttled last week after his flight to Florida was cancelled, and a third attempt to arraign him is set for Thursday. Although he is represented by a veteran Washington-based criminal defence lawyer, Stanley Woodward, the Trump aide still needs a lawyer who is licensed to practice in the Southern District of Florida to sponsor Mr Woodward so he can be admitted to practice before that federal court. And without local counsel, Mr Nauta won’t be able to enter a plea when he appears in court. Last week, Mr Woodward told the federal magistrate judge who is set to preside over the arraignment that Mr Nauta would attempt to find a Florida-based attorney by his third attempt at an arraignment, but a review of court records does not show that any local lawyer has officially entered an appearance for him. Although the magistrate judge, Edwin Torres, excused Mr Nauta from appearing in person at the 27 June court date because weather had caused him to be unable to travel, he told Mr Woodward at the time that he could “discuss” the need for a court-appointed lawyer for Mr Nauta if necessary. The charge against Mr Nauta stems from a May 2022 interview with FBI agents, during which he was asked about boxes Mr Trump had brought with him to his Palm Beach, Florida social club after leaving the White House. When investigators asked if he knew of any boxes being brought from a storage room to Mr Trump’s private suite at the club, Mr Nauta replied that he did not even though he had participated in moving some of the boxes at issue. Read More Trump news – live: Trump suggests White House concealing security footage over cocaine scandal as Don Jr branded ‘big baby’ DeSantis doubles down on ‘homophobic’ anti-Trump ad: ‘Totally fair game’ Australian minister calls Donald Trump Jr a ‘big baby’ for cancelling trip down under
2023-07-06 22:23
Car crashes into elementary school in Wimbledon, London, in 'serious collision'
A car has crashed into an elementary school in Wimbledon, southwest London, according to the city's Metropolitan Police force, who have described it as a "serious collision."
2023-07-06 19:21
A 65-year-old man is found dead in Death Valley National Park after apparent extreme heat death
A 65-year-old San Diego man was found dead apparently from extreme heat at Death Valley National Park in California, where his car had two flat tires and a non-functioning air conditioning system as temperatures soared into the triple digits, park officials said Wednesday.
2023-07-06 15:26
Trump news – live: Trump calls special prosecutor a ‘crackhead’ in response to White House cocaine discovery
Most presidents, current and former, typically spend America’s Independence Day celebrating the values of US society that bring its citizens together, joining in the festive and unifying themes of the national holiday. And then there’s Donald Trump. The former president spent July 4 fuming at his enemies on Truth Social, resharing a vulgar message aimed at President Joe Biden and the tens of millions of Americans who voted for him in 2020. ““F**k Biden and f**k you for voting for him”, read the post. Later, he continued his holiday rant by branding the president a “very dangerous idiot in the White House”. He also posted a bizarre image of himself imposed into the Revolutionary War, prompting social media users to suggest he is more like Benedict Arnold – the infamous US traitor – than the Founding Fathers. In other Trumpworld news, the company planning to merge with Truth Social has reached an $18m settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC) announced the tentative settlement on Monday, ending an SEC probe looking into whether it held talks with Truth Social’s parent company before going public – a violation of regulations. Read More Trump marks Independence Day by sharing vulgar attack on Biden and ominous 2024 warning Trump-appointed judge blocks Biden agencies from communicating with social media platforms Ex-New York congressman pardoned by Trump is planning to run again in Florida Truth Social’s merger partner reaches $18m settlement with SEC
2023-07-06 14:26
Your questions on RTÉ's payment scandal answered
From Tubridy to flip-flops, what is the latest with undisclosed payments at the broadcaster?
2023-07-06 13:53
Oil Holds Gain as Traders Turn Focus to Decline in Inventories
Oil steadied as traders assessed the impact of the latest round of supply cuts from OPEC+ and a
2023-07-06 13:50
Chinese owner of iconic MG car brand to build Europe plant
MG, which has roots dating back over a century, was made in the UK until production moved to China in 2016.
2023-07-06 13:22
Authorities are on the hunt for a Humvee stolen from a National Guard armory in Northern California
California Highway Patrol officers are on the hunt for a green military vehicle stolen from a National Guard armory north of San Francisco on Monday.
2023-07-06 09:52
Man accused of raping and impregnating child in Ohio is sentenced to life in prison after guilty plea
A man accused of impregnating an Ohio child -- a girl who then went to Indiana for an abortion in a case that became a flashpoint in debates about post-Roe v. Wade abortion rights -- was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday after pleading guilty to rape, according to court documents.
2023-07-06 09:52
Trump fundraising doubles to $35m amid growing legal woes, report says
Donald Trump’s increasingly serious legal problems are translating into a cash boom for his third presidential campaign, a staffer told Politico this week. The campaign is due to release official fundraising numbers by the end of the month, per an upcoming Federal Election Commission (FEC) deadline. But a campaign official familiar with the matter provided the eye-popping sum to Politico: $34m, a haul that puts him firmly on top of the GOP primary field, dollars-wise, and depicts a campaign picking up steam as Mr Trump apparently solidifies his support base within the GOP primary voter population. In the first quarter of 2023, Mr Trump’s campaign had presented a fundraising total of $18.8m — impressive, but not nearly as high as his latest quarter. However, a greater share of donations is now being diverted to the Save America PAC, the twice-indicted former president’s vessel for outside spending that has fronted the bulk of his legal costs in recent months. Previous news reports indictated that the donation levers were pulled on Mr Trump’s WinRed donation page to divert as much as 10 per cent of every donation to the Save America PAC, up from just 1 per cent of every gift earlier this year. The total is likely to bolster Mr Trump’s argument against Republican candidates like primary rival Will Hurd who have argued that Mr Trump’s legal problems will jeopardise his chances of winning a general election against President Joe Biden. While polling backs up Mr Hurd’s assertion at present, the Trump campaign’s war chest will prove a counter-argument that paints the former president as the candidate with GOP voter enthusiasm and the funding necessary to wage an effective general election campaign. Mr Trump faces a growing field of GOP rivals, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, and his former vice president, Mike Pence. But he has remained dominant across polling of the field for months, even amid his two criminal indictments for allegedly falsifying business records in New York and the alleged illegal retention of classfied materials at Mar-a-Lago. The legal pressure mounting against the former president is likely to escalate in the coming weeks, given the two investigations known to be currently ongoing involving him and his closest advisers. Officials in Fulton County, Georgia are weighing whether to bring criminal indictments against Mr Trump and members of his legal team over their efforts to alter the lawful election results in that state, while the Department of Justice has been reported by The Independent to be weighing a superceding indictment charging Mr Trump with dozens of offences related to the January 6 attack and his related efforts to block Joe Biden’s election victory. Read More Judge's order limits government contact with social media operators, raises disinformation questions Special counsel Jack Smith subpoenas Arizona Secretary of State’s office in January 6 probe Trump attorney who was key to election conspiracies retires from legal practice
2023-07-06 08:19
Can 'good cop' Janet Yellen help fix US-China relations?
The US Treasury secretary's trip to Beijing comes as tensions between the two countries remain high.
2023-07-06 07:54
North Carolina's Democratic governor vetoes 3 bills targeting LGBTQ youth
North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper on Wednesday vetoed three bills that target LGBTQ youth, setting up a likely effort by the state's Republican-controlled legislature to override him.
2023-07-06 06:53