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If youre a superstitious person, then maybe youre familiar with the notion that bad things happen in threes.For example, you might get a flat tire, then spill coffee all over yourself, and then sprain your ankle all on the same day.

Or, if youre former President Donald Trump, you might get arrested on state-level charges, then grapple with amajor setback in a federal investigation, and then be forced to face the specter of an ongoing fraud investigation, all in the same week.

We learned Wednesday afternoon that former Vice President Mike Pence will, in fact, testify before the special counsels grand jury.

Trumps Bad Thing No. 1 is federal.We learned Wednesday afternoon that former Vice President Mike Pence will, in fact, testify before the special counsels grand jury investigating Jan. 6.(Trump and Pence himself had tried and failed to block that testimony.But in a statement, an aide said Pence will comply with a subpoena.)We already know a lot about what Pence was doing in the Senate that day: evacuating the building, fielding urgent phone calls from a loading dock and presumably trying to ignore the chants outside of Hang Mike Pence.But the fact that his conversations with Trump are now fair game, legally speaking, is a huge deal here.

Trumps Bad Thing No. 2 involves the Mar-a-Lago documents case.Its already clear that Trump considers Jack Smiths special counsel probe a pretty bad thing. A week ago, at his post-arraignment rally, Trump was fixated on that investigation.He called Smith a radical-left lunatic and a bomb thrower.And he made a public spectacle of wrestling with his potential guilt. We were negotiating in very good faith, he proclaimed, to return some or all of the documents that I openly, and in very plain sight, brought with me to Mar-a-Lago from our beautiful White House just as virtually every other president has done in the past.

Subtle!

Compounding this,we now know from reporting last week that theJustice Department is focusing in on Trumps alleged obstructiondown at Mar-a-Lago, and that unnamed Secret Service agents connected to Trump mayhave to testify. New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman claimedTrump is particularly spookedthat his attorney, Evan Corcoran, was also recently ordered to testify.Corcoran is someone who, like Pence, was in the room where it happened. Multiple times. And hehas now said what he knows, under oath.

And then there is Trumps Bad Thing No. 3. This oneinvolves Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs indictment.There is something laid out in the DAs statement of facts the document accompanying the indictment that has left me with more questions than answers.It concerns former Trump Organization Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg who will very soon be released from Rikers Island after pleading guilty to a decadelong tax fraud scheme.

By way of a recap: In exchange for a lighter prison sentence in the tax fraud trial of the Trump Organization last year, Weisselberg testified, pleaded guiltyand helped Manhattan prosecutors secure a guilty verdict against the Trump Organization. Which is all to say, Weisselberg is a very important character in Trump World.He also worked for the Trump Organization for nearly 50 years.

The previous Manhattan DA, Cy Vance, was scrutinizing Weisselberg in connection withfraud claims levied at Trump and his organization by Michael Cohen.And that vast criminal probe appears to still be open.TheNew York Times reported in Februarythat prosecutors were dangling more charges against Weisselberg in an effort to get him to cooperate in Braggs hush money payments case.

This larger fraud investigation is arguably amuch broader and more consequential investigationthan the hush money payments case.It involves allegations that Trump and his business inflated and deflated assets in order to get more favorable insurance and mortgage rates. And Weisselbergs potential criminal exposure here remains a key concern.Asreported on Alex Wagner Tonightvia WNBC, Weisselberg has parted ways with the lawyers who represented him during the Trump Organization investigation.He reportedly has a new lawyer, someone who is probably not being paid for by the Trump Organization.

But if Weisselberg is getting out of prison in two weeks, why does he need a new lawyer?

That news stuck out to me because in thefederalprobe into the hush money payments, Weisselberg was granted immunity in exchange for his grand jury testimony. (This is the case that resulted in Michael Cohen going to prison, not the Manhattan case kicking off now.)

As part of Braggs case against Trump, we learned the deeper extent of Weisselbergs alleged role in that hush money scheme.

But as part of Braggs case against Trump, we learned thedeeperextent of Weisselbergs alleged role in that hush money scheme.The DA lays out in detail that Weisselberg was involved in discussions about how muchmoneyto pay Stormy Daniels andhowto pay her.Prosecutors allege that Cohen spoke to Weisselberg about how to set the whole thing up,and that Weisselberg played an integral role in figuring out how to reimburse Cohen. Remember, Weisselberg may have secured immunity on the federal case, but he has no immunity with Manhattan prosecutors.

So could Bragg use Weisselbergs alleged involvement in the hush money scheme as leverage to get him to cooperate in the other, broader and(we think) ongoingcriminal investigation into Trump World?Because that would be very problematic for Donald Trump.

Problematic on the level of his vice president and his lawyer testifying about him under oath.

As they say: Bad things happen in threes.

This is an adapted excerpt fromthe April 5 episode of Alex Wagner Tonight.

Continued here:
For Trump, bad things come in threes - MSNBC

By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Former President Donald Trump has appealed a judge's order requiring his former vice president, Mike Pence, to testify in the special counsel probe into efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, a person familiar with the matter said on Monday.

Trump's lawyers filed the appeal after a ruling related to the Justice Department investigation of efforts to undermine the 2020 presidential election that Trump, a Republican, lost to Democrat Joe Biden.

The case remains under seal. But on Monday, a new sealed case appeared on the federal appeals court docket in Washington, D.C., that referred to a grand jury matter before U.S. District Chief Judge James Boasberg.

Final briefs in the appeal are due by May 25, according to an initial schedule set by the court, which does not name the parties to the case.

Pence last week disclosed that he would not appeal a judge's ruling that requires him to testify to a federal grand jury about conversations he had with Trump leading up to the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol.

In a March ruling, the judge also said Pence could still decline to answer questions related to Jan. 6.

Several of Trump's attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Special Counsel Jack Smith, appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November to handle the two Trump investigations, is presenting evidence to grand juries in two separate investigations.

The first investigation is looking into attempts to interfere with the peaceful transfer of power following Trump's November 2020 loss to Biden. The second is looking at Trump's retention of classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida after leaving office in January 2021, and whether he tried to obstruct the Justice Department's investigation.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Jacqueline Thomsen; additional reporting by Kat Jackson and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Tim Ahmann, Jonathan Oatis and Leslie Adler)

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Trump appeals order requiring Pence to testify in Jan. 6 probe -source - Yahoo News

President Donald Trump and U.S. Vice President Mike Pence hold a news conference, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Washington D.C., March 22, 2020.

Yuri Gripas | Reuters

Attorneys for former President Donald Trump are trying to block ex-Vice President Mike Pence from testifying in a special counsel investigation of Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election, NBC News reported Monday.

The latest move in the sealed court proceedings came less than a week after Pence said he would not fight a judge's order for his testimony before the federal grand jury involved in the probe.

Trump's legal team has appealed that order from U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington, D.C., NBC reported, citing a source familiar with the litigation. The notice to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit is currently under seal.

The reported appeal also followed Trump's historic indictment and arrest in a separate case being prosecuted by the Manhattan district attorney's office. Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records during his arraignment in Manhattan on Tuesday.

As Pence prepares to comply with the subpoena in the investigation targeting his former boss, he is considering launching a 2024 presidential campaign that would put him in direct competition with Trump, the current Republican front-runner.

Steven Cheung, a spokesman for Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, in a statement to CNBC accused the Department of Justice of "attempting to destroy the long accepted, long held, Constitutionally based standards of attorney-client privilege and executive privilege."

The spokesman, who also derided special counsel Jack Smith's probe as a "witch hunt," said those standards "protect a President's ability to confer with his Vice President on matters of the security of the United States." He also asserted that the probe was intended to influence Trump's standing in the 2024 election.

Attorneys for Trump and spokespeople for Pence and the special counsel did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests for comment.

Pence previously said he planned to challenge Smith's subpoena for his testimony, arguing that his former role as vice president which also made him president of the Senate granted him constitutional cover against being compelled to testify about key pieces of the probe.

Boasberg ordered Pence to comply with the grand jury subpoena late last month, NBC reported. The judge reportedly ruled that Pence has some protections against testifying about his role on Jan. 6, 2021, when he presided over Congress' efforts to confirm President Joe Biden's 2020 electoral victory.

Read more of CNBC's politics coverage:

But Pence was not totally immune from testifying, Boasberg ruled. The judge also rejected arguments put forward by Trump's attorneys against the subpoena on the grounds of executive privilege

Last week, an advisor to Pence said that their legal claim "prevailed" as Boasberg's ruling "affirmed for the first time in history that the Speech or Debate Clause extends to the Vice President of the United States."

"Having vindicated that principle of the Constitution, Vice President Pence will not appeal the Judge's ruling and will comply with the subpoena as required by law," the advisor's statement said.

Continued here:
Trump appeals order for Pence to testify in special counsel Jan. 6 probe - CNBC

Former Vice President Mike Pence is visiting Tuscaloosa. Hes here at the invitation of the Alabama chapter of Young Americans for Freedom. This is just the latest campus appearance Pence has made across the U.S. The appearances comes as speculation swirls that Pence will seek the Republican nomination for President in 2024. The Vice Presidents speech is titled Saving America from the Woke Left. Pence will host a question and answer session after his prepared remarks.

Pence most recently made national news when he announced that he won't appeal a judge's order compelling him to testify in the Justice Department's investigation into efforts by Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The decision sets up a possible appearance by Pence in the coming weeks before a federal grand jury in Washington that's scrutinizing attempts by the former president and supporters before the Capitol riot to undo Democrat Joe Biden's victory. Multiple Trump administration officials have testified in that investigation, as well in a separate inquiry examining Trump's possession of classified documents, but Pence would be the highest-profile witness to answer questions before a grand jury.

The strain between Trump and Pence could grow as the former VP approaches a likely 2024 run for the presidency and a challenge to his former boss, who already is in the race for the Republican nomination. After Pence was subpoenaed months ago by the Justice Department's special counsel, lawyers for Trump objected on executive privilege grounds. But a federal judge in Washington last week rejected those arguments, forcing Pence to testify.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg did give Pence a win by accepting arguments from Pence's lawyers that, for constitutional reasons, he could not be questioned about his actions on Jan. 6. They had argued that because Pence was serving in his capacity as president of the Senate that day, he was protected from being forced to testify under the Constitution's "speech or debate" clause, which is intended to protect members of Congress from questioning about official legislative acts.

"Having vindicated that principle of the Constitution, Vice President Pence will not appeal the judge's ruling and will comply with the subpoena as required by law," Pence spokesman Devin O'Malley said in a statement Wednesday.

The Trump team could still appeal the executive privilege ruling from Boasberg.

The January 6th classified records investigations are being led by Jack Smith, a former war crimes prosecutor who was named by the Justice Department in November to serve as special counsel. It is not clear when the investigations might end or whether anyone will be charged.

Pence has spoken extensively about Trump's pressure campaign urging him to reject Biden's victory in the days leading up to Jan. 6, including in his book, "So Help Me God." Pence, as vice president, had a ceremonial role overseeing Congress' counting of the Electoral College vote, but did not have the power to affect the results, despite Trump's contention otherwise.

Pence has said that Trump endangered his family and everyone else who was at the Capitol that day and history will hold him "accountable."

"For four years, we had a close working relationship. It did not end well," Pence wrote, summing up their time in the White House.

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Former VP Mike Pence to speak at The University of Alabama - Alabama Public Radio

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) announced the creation of a presidential exploratory committee on Wednesday, April 13. | Francis Chung/POLITICO

Tim Scott has made one thing clear while dipping his toe in the 2024 waters: Hell be a candidate who knows how to say II Corinthians.

He can probably even quote the book from memory.

The South Carolina senator, who announced an exploratory committee on Wednesday, remains a mysterious factor in the Republican primary field. Donors float him as a potential alternative to Donald Trump, should Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis stumble. And Scotts genteel personality and lack of past Trump entanglements could give him unique appeal to independents and a newer swath of GOP voters.

A foregone conclusion, though, is that evangelicals with all their subsets and denominations will be his top constituency.

In a video announcing his new committee, Scotts first pledge was to defend Americas faith values and protect religious liberty. Scotts answer later in the morning on how he would beat Trump in a primary involved a reference to Psalm 139.

And own advisers say Scotts path to viability involves courting the vote of churchgoers, particularly in Iowa, where his first meetings after his Wednesday announcement were with homeschool families and pastors.

Dear Heavenly Father, read the first fundraising appeal from his exploratory committee, an email Wednesday morning that included a suggested two-minute prayer for Scott.

But the evangelical lane isnt one Scott will likely have to himself, and his focus on social conservatives could complicate Scotts ability to appeal to a newer generation of Republican voters with looser opinions on abortion access and marriage equality.

In addition to Trump who in the White House became a hero of conservative Christians after delivering them the Supreme Court, among other things former Vice President Mike Pence also speaks the language of Bible-believing Christians. Pence has long oriented his political message around faith and, like Scott, is at home in evangelical church settings.

But a day after news broke that he was launching an exploratory committee, Scott sounded like a man ready to compete for primacy with that constituency.

To a room of 35 pastors and their wives in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Wednesday, Scott told his life story his spiritual testimony before taking questions from Christian leaders who could ultimately help steer Iowa Christian voters toward one candidate or another.

Anybody whos around him for just a couple minutes doesnt doubt his heartfelt belief in Christ as his savior, said Chad Connelly, the former chair of the South Carolina Republican Party who now runs an organization that engages pastors on political and policy issues. Connelly, who is also organizing pastor roundtables for other Republican 2024 hopefuls, recalled a minister telling him once: Tim Scott quotes more scripture in conversation than a pastor does.

In a place like Iowa or Scotts home state of South Carolina, though, the pool of voters identifying as conservative Christians is broad. And it represents a wide range of pro- and anti-Trump Republicans.

Ive just learned this constituency theyre not like robots, said Steve Scheffler, the Republican National Committeeman from Iowa and president of the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition. Even though they agree on most issues, their methodology by the time they have their final pick in the caucuses can vary by 180 degrees.

A person familiar with Scotts campaign strategy said voters are going to be hearing a lot about his faith, and how it affects his worldview and vision.

As for his path to viability with the Republican primary electorate, another Scott adviser pointed to Scott being little-known nationally, which affords him a higher favorable rating and lower unfavorable rating than much of the rest of the field. His name recognition problem, meanwhile, can be remedied with the nearly $22 million he had sitting in his campaign account as of the end of last year a number likely to be larger when he posts his first-quarter filings in coming days.

Scott has kept a healthy distance from Trump in the Senate, neither a loyalist and cheerleader nor a critic. That puts him in position to pick up Trump admirers who are ready for the party to move on, as well as anti-Trump Republicans.

But positioning oneself as the candidate who can earn the support of social conservatives while also broadening the GOPs appeal to independents and swing voters will prove to be a tall order.

Example No. 1: Abortion.

At a time when Republican leaders are reckoning with the partys losses among young voters and suburban women particularly after last years Dobbs decision Scott is attempting to walk a fine line on abortion rights. The issue has long remained one of the top priorities of conservative evangelicals.

The senator, who was among the featured speakers at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Lifes gala last fall and says he is 100% pro-life, has declined to answer reporters questions on whether he would support a national abortion ban, such as a 15-week ban proposed by his home-state colleague, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).

Scott remained reticent to speak about the issue on Wednesday, telling local reporters in Cedar Rapids that he favors a robust debate on abortion. Later, in an interview on CBS News, Scott brushed off multiple questions about whether he would support federal abortion limits.

In his exploratory committee launch video, Scott vowed to protect the right to life, something he doesnt mention on his websites six-point issues page. Similarly, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley has spoken about the need for the country to reach consensus on the issue, while avoiding specifics about when in the course of a pregnancy it should be outlawed.

Trump, meanwhile, has drawn sharp criticism from top anti-abortion opponents for suggesting that the party became too extreme on the issue, despite the fact he appointed judges who later issued major court rulings siding with opponents of abortion rights.

In contrast, Pence has positioned himself as the GOP primary fields chief crusader against abortion rights, calling for a national ban and, more recently, celebrating a Texas judges controversial ruling against use of an abortion pill.

Despite most other candidates and prospective candidates in the field also incorporating faith into their message, opponents of Scott note that he has not sought to brand himself as a conservative fighter, and religion is no longer the primary motivating factor for many voters.

Its kind of like bringing a knife to a gun fight, said one GOP consultant working for another 2024 Republican hopeful, referring to Scotts emphasis on faith. Everyone else is playing 12-dimensional chess, and youre playing checkers.

Scotts first events after launching his exploratory committee were behind closed doors. Wednesday morning, he and Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-Iowa) spoke privately with homeschool families, before emerging to speak with reporters. Scotts roundtable with pastors was also closed to news media, though he gave a public address Wednesday night at a GOP womens dinner in Cedar Rapids.

Randy Page, the chief of staff to the president of Bob Jones University and a longtime Republican operative in the state, said he believes Scott is nimble enough to draw in independent-leaning and swing voters even while championing socially conservative causes. Page said he will support Scott if he ultimately runs.

Some of the things suburban women may have concerns about, he can talk about the issues in a way that appeals to them, Page said. Even if they may not agree with him on those things, they will find other issues they agree with him on and say, This is the kind of man we would want to represent us as president of the United States.

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How Tim Scott thinks he can outmaneuver Trump, DeSantis and ... - POLITICO