Elise Stefanik fails screen test to be Trump "cult diva" president of vice - VP

New York #21 Representative Elise Stefanik is a lot of things, but this week, she made a good case that she’s not a historian.

Echo opinion published in The New Republic by Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling:

Rep. Elise Stefanik is a Trump cult diva

During a (botched !) speech on Super Tuesday, Stefanik tried to insert a callback to a famous campaign line by Ronald Reagan, in which he coyly questioned the progress made during President Jimmy Carter’s term. But the House Republican Conference chair had none of the charm—or apparently any memory—of what happened during the previous administration.

“Are you better off today than you were four years ago? The answer for hard-working Americans around the country is a resounding no,” Stefanik said.

This time four years ago, the nation was being ravaged in a dystopian way by the Covid-19 pandemic, with former President Donald Trump ordering sick passengers to stay quarantined on the Grand Princess cruise ship to keep case numbers inside the country low.

Droves of viewers with working memories were quick to glom onto the scripted error, including several of Stefanik’s Democratic colleagues.

One user on X (formerly Twitter) pointed out that “4 years ago this month Covid exploded out as Trump endlessly lied about the seriousness of it and there were so many dead bodies from it that cities had to rent trailers to stuff full of corpses.”

“Four years ago, people were rationing toilet paper and dying in hospital hallways,” posted Virginia Representative Gerry Connolly.

“The gentlelady from NY seems to have forgotten about body bags in Central Park, a collapsing economy, loss of faith in US democracy around the world and a tax-dodging, COVID-denying rapist President who was preparing his final act of sedition,” said Illinois Representative Sean Casten.

Rep. Don Beyer (on X- formerly Twitter) "Do these people have amnesia? Four years ago we were in a pandemic that killed hundreds of thousands of Americans, people couldn't safely leave their homes, the economy was taking the biggest hit since the Great Depression, and Trump was lying to the country about all of it.

Other wanna-be contenders to be Trump’s Number Two include one-time Democratic presidential primary candidate Tulsi Gabbard, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, Florida Representative Byron Donalds, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, the last of whom has already outright rejected the offer (“I am not doing that.”) 

And the list continues to grow. Just last week, Trump added Texas Governor Greg Abbott to his dumpster fire pick list.

Don "Pooorleone" or Broke Ass Don: IOW Trump is Broke

Echo report published in The New Republic by Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling: Donald Trump has had to admit that he cannot afford his legal comeuppance—a punishment that might have been even worse for the self-proclaimed billionaire than the actual 💲454 million penalty in his New York civil fraud trial.

“Well, of course, he’s embarrassed because his entire net worth, the constant reiteration that ‘I’m worth at least 💲10 billion,’ maybe even more, obviously goes to his id, his ego, his super-ego,” former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen told CNN.

“And so, that’s now super deflated, because it’s just not true,” he continued. 

“They had to acknowledge, HELLO❓ that they don’t have it❗ 

It wasn’t that long ago that he stood on the stand, and he told everybody that he was worth many, many, many, many billions of dollars and has a very low debt-to-value ratio.”

Trump’s last-ditch effort to postpone paying the full amount in lieu of a $100 million bond was rejected by a New York appeals court judge. The judge did, however, grant some relief after Trump’s legal team argued in an 1,800-page court filing that it would be “impossible” to secure a bond covering the full amount of the multimillion-dollar ruling. The granted request will allow Trump to continue borrowing money, though the ruling is temporary until a full panel of judges deliberates on the order.

Failing to obtain a loan, however, could result in the seizure of Trump’s assets, warned New York Attorney General Letitia James.

“I mean, what is he going to do?” Cohen continued. “What’s he going to call like a J.G. Wentworth and say, ‘I need cash now’? How was he going to raise more than this half a billion❓💰💲”

Justice Arthur Engoron had originally slapped a 💲354 million fine on Trump for committing real estate–related fraud in New York, but by last week, that sum had grown to 💲454.2 million thanks to added interest, which is tacking on an additional 💲112,000 with each passing day.

The penalty also came with an addendum that Trump cannot serve as an officer or director of a New York company for three years, including his own Trump Organization. His two adult sons were also penalized by the ruling:  Additionally, they were fined 💲💲4 💰million each and will have to stay out of New York business for two years. They will also be prevented from obtaining loans from any New York financial institutes for three years.