Comment on White House officials to kick off big Trump impeachment week

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) announced he left the Democratic Party and registered as an independent. It’s unclear whether Manchin will continue to caucus with Democrats in the Senate.

“Donald Trump can proceed with a lawsuit against Mary Trump, his estranged niece, over her role as a source for a New York Times investigation into Mr. Trump’s finances, a New York State appeals court said on Thursday,” the New York Times reports.

Averi Harper: “The felony conviction of a former president would be extraordinary at any time but in the middle of a presidential election in which that former commander-in-chief is running, it is truly remarkable. What’s even more remarkable is that it likely won’t significantly change the kind of broad support he has within the Republican Party.” “The party of ‘law and order’ is undoubtedly moving toward nominating a convicted felon to be atop its presidential ticket.

Steve Benen updates the list: Donald Trump was charged, convicted, and is awaiting sentencing. Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was charged, convicted, and sentenced to prison. Trump’s former campaign vice chairman, Rick Gates, was charged, convicted, and sentenced to prison. Trump’s former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, was charged, convicted, and sentenced to prison. Trump’s former adviser and former campaign aide, Roger Stone, was charged, convicted, and sentenced to prison. Trump’s former adviser and former White House aide Peter Navarro, was charged, convicted, and is currently in prison. Trump’s former campaign adviser, George Papadopoulos, was charged, convicted, and sentenced to prison. The Trump Organization’s former CFO, Allen Weisselberg, was charged, convicted, and sentenced to prison. Trump’s former White House national security advisor, Michael Flynn, was charged and convicted. Trump’s former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, was charged with wire fraud and money laundering, in addition to a conviction in a contempt case similar to Navarro’s.

Politico: “The trial was over. And minutes later, the jury was gone… The most jarring aspect of the moment was its mundane efficiency.”

“Being convicted of a felony — let alone 34 of them – is the kind of blow that would normally tank any politician’s ambitions,” the AP reports. “Donald Trump will instead try to turn what might otherwise be a career-ending judgment into campaign fuel.” “Trump will return to the campaign trail with a news conference at his namesake tower in Manhattan on Friday, a day after he was convicted of trying to illegally influence the 2016 election by falsifying business records to hide a hush money payment to a porn actor who claimed they had sex.