TRUMP RUNS THE HOUSE GOP

For anyone taking notice, it was interesting that in the time from when Trump announced he would be arrested a week ago yesterday, the House Republican Caucus was “very tuned in” to what he was claiming, writing letters to New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg in which they claimed he was “harassing” Trump with the hush money payments investigation, and informing him he must come before them and explain himself so they could write legislation that would “protect former presidents” from harassment by state and local prosecutors.

It turns out that the House GOP Caucus is a bit more than “very tuned in” to Trump. Their leadership is actually in close contact - almost daily contact - with either Trump himself or his defense team, and are in fact taking orders from him on how they can conspire with him to frustrate and impede the many investigations he faces now.

Both the New York Times last week and CNN yesterday have come up with the goods.

The Times reported last Thursday:

“Referring to the expected indictment, Representatives Jim Jordan of Ohio, James R. Comer of Kentucky and Bryan Steil of Wisconsin wrote, “If these reports are accurate, your actions will erode the confidence in the evenhanded application of justice and unalterably interfere in the course of the 2024 presidential election.”

“Mr. Trump’s lawyers have quietly pushed the Republican-led House to intervene. Last month, a Trump lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, wrote to Mr. Jordan calling on Congress to investigate the “egregious abuse of power” by what he called a “rogue local district attorney,” according to a copy of the letter obtained by The New York Times.”

And what do you know, they not only wrote one letter, they doubled down over the weekend with a second letter pushing Trump’s bullshit and claiming they are indeed acting in accordance with congressional authority. (Hint: they aren’t)

“Representative Elise Stefanik of New York, the highest-ranking member of the House so far to endorse Mr. Trump, predicted in an interview that the expected indictment “only strengthens President Trump moving forward.” And Mr. Trump did in fact score an endorsement from Mr. DeSantis’s home state on Monday — from Representative Anna Paulina Luna, who indicated that the expected indictment had pushed her to unequivocally choose sides.

“This is unheard-of, and Americans should see it for what it is: an abuse of power and fascist overreach of the justice system,” Ms. Luna said in a statement to The Times.

It turns out that Stefanik talks to Trump directly two or three times a week. CNN reported yesterday:

“A number of top House GOP lawmakers have disclosed in recent days their efforts to keep the former president informed on the pace and substance of their investigations. Lines of communication appear to go both ways. Not only are Trump, his aides and close allies regularly apprised of Republicans’ committee work, they also at times exert influence over it, multiple people familiar with the talks tell CNN.

“The constant, and sometimes direct, communication between Trump and the committees has emerged as a crucial method for Trump to shape Republicans’ priorities in their newly-won House majority. It also underscores the extraordinary sway an ex-president still holds over his party’s lawmakers and the deference many still afford him.

“House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, the third-ranking House Republican, has become a key point person for Trump on Hill investigations. The New York Republican talks to Trump roughly once a week, and often more, frequently briefing him on the House committees’ work, three sources familiar with their conversations tell CNN. Trump often calls her as well, the sources said.

“GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who serves on the House Oversight Committee, which is conducting a number of investigations into President Joe Biden, also speaks to Trump on a frequent basis. Both she and Stefanik have endorsed Trump’s 2024 presidential bid and are said to be interested in serving as his running mate.

“I keep him up on everything that we’re doing,” Greene told CNN. “He seems very plugged in at all times. Sometimes I’m shocked at how he knows all these things. I’m like, ‘How do you know all this stuff?’”

“Multiple sources tell CNN that Trump and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan speak regularly but declined to divulge whether those conversations included Jordan’s investigative efforts.

“Conversations among concerned parties about issues facing the country are not news and regular order in Congress,” Jordan’s spokesperson Russell Dye said in a statement to CNN.

“Trump, meanwhile, has been regularly briefed on the work of House Oversight Chairman James Comer, but the Kentucky Republican said the two have not spoken since the 2020 presidential election.

“The decision of what to investigate also underscores the extent to which Republican-led committees are willing to act as a shield for the embattled former president, as well as attempt to inflict damage on Biden ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

“When Trump isn’t communicating directly with House Republicans himself, he is often doing so through a few top advisers, including those on his payroll and former aides who are still loyal to him, sources tell CNN.

“Boris Epshteyn, in-house counsel and senior adviser for Trump who is helping coordinate the former president’s legal strategy, has been at the center of the communications, four people familiar with the talks tell CNN.

“Epshteyn frequently interacts with committee staff, counsel to the chairmen, members of the committee and aides to House leadership, sources said. Epshteyn’s role in the discussions range from being briefed on their work to the pace of the investigations.

“Brian Jack, a former Trump administration official who joined McCarthy’s team in 2021 to lead his political operation, has also served as a crucial communicator between Trumpworld and the Speaker’s office, multiple source familiar his role said. Jack, who remains an adviser to McCarthy, recently began working on Trump’s 2024 reelection campaign.

“Multiple sources familiar with the backchanneling say much of the talks are less about putting pressure on the committees – as members already know how to maximize their defense of Trump – and more about ensuring Trump’s team is on the same page as congressional Republicans.

“A number of other Trump-affiliated groups have urged GOP-led committees to move more aggressively against Biden. That includes the Conservative Partnership Institute, run by former GOP Sen. Jim DeMint and now home to Trump’s former chief of staff Mark Meadows, and the Center for Renewing America, run by Trump’s former Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought. “

It really is a “vast right wing conspiracy,” as Hillary Clinton put it 30 years ago.

This is how a fascist movement takes power, and we are seeing in the operation of the House GOP Caucus how the parts of such a government will bend to the will of the Maximum Leader.

No wonder Ruth Ben Ghiat is now calling the threat posed by the Republican Party openly fascist. Godwin’s Law has been repealed.

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