“Donald Trump is endorsing an effort by news organizations to provide live television coverage of his trial on federal charges that he conspired to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,” Politico reports.

“In a bombastic legal filing submitted late Friday to the judge who’s scheduled that trial to begin in March, Trump’s attorneys argued he’s the victim of political persecution by President Joe Biden’s administration and should be allowed to use the platform of TV to showcase the proceedings’ unfairness.”

From the filing: “The prosecution wishes to continue this travesty in darkness. President Trump calls for sunlight. Every person in America, and beyond, should have the opportunity to study this case firsthand and watch as, if there is a trial, President Trump exonerates himself of these baseless and politically motivated charges.”

“Seven more Republican Florida legislators are endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential campaign – including five defections from Ron DeSantis – underscoring the former president’s momentum and the subtle erosion of the governor’s influence in their home state,” The Messenger reports.

Donald Trump claimed he has spent over $100 million in legal fees as he fights a litany of legal battles, The Messenger reports.

“The U.S. on Saturday circulated a draft resolution to UN Security Council members condemning Hamas for the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel,” Axios reports.

Donald Trump lashed out at Forbes after the magazine cut him from its list of the wealthiest 400 people in America last week, the Daily Beast reports.

Trump complained that the magazine had “taken me off their Fake Forbes 400 list just by a ‘whisker,’ even though they know that I should be high up on that now very dated and discredited ‘antique.’”

He also accused the company of being owned by China and called the magazine a “Chinese propaganda machine.”

“He’s retarded, like most Americans.”

— Rupert Murdoch, describing Fox News host Sean Hannity in Michael Wolff’s new book, per the Daily Beast.

The Fall: The End of Fox News and the Murdoch Dynasty

• Amazon Kindle Edition
• Wolff, Michael (Author)
• English (Publication Language)
• 303 Pages - 09/26/2023 (Publication Date) - Henry Holt and Co. (Publisher)

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Attorney Lin Wood surrendered his law license last week after disciplinary proceedings tied to his work for Donald Trump, The Messenger reports.

Said Wood: “I’m probably the second most persecuted person in America, wouldn’t you say?”

He responded without hesitation when asked who was first: “Donald Trump.” 

“Donald Trump plans to ramp up his campaign in Iowa over the next several weeks as he looks to solidify his lead over GOP 2024 field in the state that will hold the first presidential nominating contest,” CNN reports.

“Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s (R-AL) lengthy blockade of senior military promotions is becoming a major national story as the Marine Corps is now without a Senate-confirmed commandant for the first time in a century,” Punchbowl News reports.

“And the issue is only going to become more acute across the U.S. military establishment as a new Joint Chiefs chair and top-level posts in the Army, Navy and Air Force are scheduled to come open soon.”

“But Tuberville said he has no intention of backing down over Defense Department policy of covering service members’ travel expenses when seeking out-of-state abortions and other forms of reproductive care. Tuberville insists he’s not under any pressure from GOP colleagues to cave.”

“In my administration, I’m going to enforce all laws concerning the protection of classified information. No one will be above the law.”

— Donald Trump, at a campaign rally on August 18, 2016.

“Five high-profile House Republicans who signed onto the no-earmarks pledge in 2021 have requested a combined 45 projects totaling $175.9 million in federal spending in the 2024 fiscal year,” The Messenger reports.

They include Reps. Lauren Boebert, Byron Donalds, Lance Gooden, Marjorie Taylor Greene and Andy Harris.

“The shape-shifting president of Montenegro, Milo Djukanovic, Europe’s longest-serving elected leader, lost a re-election bid on Sunday, according to provisional official results, raising hopes across the Balkans of a long-awaited end to a political era stamped by the Yugoslav wars of the early 1990s,” the New York Times reports.

“He hasn’t declared his candidacy yet — but some Republicans fear that their non-Trump savior is showing signs of faltering,” Politico reports.

“DeSantis was compelled to reverse course on his public skepticism about the war in Ukraine following criticism from mainstay Republicans. His poll numbers have dipped. And he was dragged into the very thing he’d been trying to avoid: a public brawl with his chief rival, Donald Trump, whose attack dogs smelled blood.”

“Even Republicans eager to see DeSantis succeed agree that he has been put in a bind.”

Politico: “For a Democratic Party that spent years battling with the former president and warning that his administration was ‘corrupt,’ this week could bring possible catharsis. Just don’t expect the issue to be front and center in Democrats’ messaging, either this week or anytime soon.”

Punchbowl News: “The extent to which House Republicans are backing Trump has been necksnapping. Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s conference has been the base of Trump’s support among elected officials. And now they are using the powers afforded to them as the majority to back the former president.”

Politico: House “Republicans are embracing a familiar role: Acting as a defensive line against former President Trump’s perceived political enemies.”