What A Day: Crime flies when you're having fun

The already-messy criminal case against Donald Trump in Fulton County, GA just got a little messier. 
 

• Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee dismissed three criminal counts against disgraced former president Donald Trump on Wednesday and three others against his co-defendants. McAfee decided that allegations made by Georgia prosecutors that Trump and his co-defendants tried to coerce state officials to violate their oaths of office weren’t detailed enough to sustain the six counts. 
   

• The good news is that McAfee left 35 other criminal counts intact, including 10 against Trump. This includes the central racketeering charge against Trump and his 14 co-defendants, all of whom have pleaded not guilty. 
   

• McAfee was randomly assigned to oversee the racketeering case against Trump and his goons who are accused of plotting to overturn the 2020 election. He’s also only been on the bench for a single year and is 34 years old. He’s the youngest member of the Fulton County bench and has become known for his “calm, almost opaque demeanor.” One of his earliest jobs was prosecuting homicides in the Fulton County District Attorney’s office where Fani Willis was, at one point, his supervisor. He’s also worked as a federal prosecutor and was appointed to the bench last year by Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA). He’s not officially affiliated with either political party, but has repeatedly been involved in conservative legal groups including The Big One: The Federalist Society.

Speaking of Fani Willis, Mcafee is also expected to decide by the end of the week whether the misconduct allegations against Willis should disqualify her from this case. 
 

• To recap: One of Trump’s co-defendants, Mike Roman, filed a motion in January alleging that Willis was dating her lead prosecutor Nathan Wade and that the two had traveled lavishly together domestically and abroad, which Roman alleged was paid for by Wade, setting up an argument that Willis had “financially benefited” from their relationship. (During a Georgia State Senate panel on the misconduct allegations, it was pointed out that Willis, who has an annual salary of over $200,000, probably doesn’t need financial help with a $3,500 vacation.)
   

• If Judge McAfee decides to remove Willis, she is expected to immediately appeal the decision. But the removal of Willis would almost certainly delay the Fulton County case against Trump, if not blow it up altogether. A state panel called the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia would designate a new prosecutor, in a process which could take months or even years. That prosecutor would have sole discretion as to whether to proceed with the case against Trump and his co-defendants. Should McAfee dismiss the charges, it’s possible Willis will seek a new indictment with a different team of prosecutors. If he denies the motion to disqualify Willis and dismiss the charges, the defendants would almost certainly appeal that decision as well. 

The Georgia case is just one of four criminal prosecutions in which Trump is a defendant. When is someone going to get a move on and put this guy in jail already???

Pod Save America is going on tour this year with The Democracy or Else Tour! The guys will be heading all over the country, including to key battleground states like Pennsylvania, Arizona, Wisconsin, and more! Lovett or Leave It will also be on tour, headed to cities like Asheville, Madison, Pittsburgh, and more.  This is your LAST Chance to take part in the pre-sale & get access to the best seats in the house. Pre-sale ends on Friday, the 15th at 9 AM local. Friends of the Pod get early access to tickets, so subscribe now at crooked.com/friends to get the exclusive pre-sale code!

The United Kingdom’s National Health Service announced that children with gender dysphoria will no longer be prescribed puberty blockers. The NHS said there is insufficient evidence about the safety and clinical effectiveness of the drugs to justify their continued prescription to minors. The nation’s conservative government welcomed the decision, describing it as “in the best interests of children.” A spokesperson for the government health service said that it had “carefully considered the evidence review,” conducted by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as well as “further published evidence available to date.” From now on, minors will only be able to obtain the drugs if they are part of a clinical trial. The LGBT rights charity Stonewall raised concern over the new policy, saying, “All trans young people deserve access to high quality, timely healthcare,” and that puberty blockers are a reversible treatment that gives young patients questioning their gender identity “extra time to evaluate their next steps.” Sex Matters, an anti-trans, gender-essentialist group, praised the decision, calling it a “momentous…course correction of NHS England’s approach to treating childhood gender distress.” 

The House overwhelmingly passed a bill on Wednesday giving TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest its American assets or face a ban. The bill now moves on to the Senate, where it could face more critical reception. 

A bipartisan bill to expand the child tax credit (good) and reinstate a set of business tax breaks (ugh) has stalled in the Senate after winning overwhelming support in the House, because Republican Senators think the bill is “too generous” to low-income families. They fully support taxpayer-funded generosity for wealthy families and corporations, though!

A medical examiner in Oklahoma concluded that Nex Benedict—the trans masculine/nonbinary 16-year-old in Oklahoma who was pronounced dead the day after being injured in a violent incident in the bathroom at their high school—died by suicide. 

The European Commission announced on Wednesday it’s taking Greece to the EU’s top court for failing to improve its flood risk management plans. Five months ago, the worst rains in Greece flooded its fertile Thessaly plain, wiping out crops and livestock. Over 350 organizations are calling for Oklahoma Schools Superintendent Ryan Walters to be removed for his frequent attacks on LGBT student rights. 

Former CNN anchor Don Lemon announced that Elon Musk canceled a partnership with Lemon and X mere hours after he taped an interview with Musk that was supposed to air during the premiere of what would have been his new show on the platform. Musk loves to fashion himself as a champion of “free speech” while also banning or suspending his critics on the platform he owns.

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Utah is a deep red state, but Utahns are moving to protect voting by mail in the state. 

The antidemocratic thorn in our side, the Senate filibuster, is losing two of its biggest defenders next term. When Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrseten Sinema (I-AZ) leave, there might be an opportunity to finally throw it in the trash once and for all. All the more important for Arizona voters to get out and vote for Ruben Gallego this fall!

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) announced that he will introduce legislation to enact a 32-hour workweek in America with no loss in pay, ahead of a HELP Committee hearing where various experts will testify about the efficacy of a 4-day workweek, which many studies have found does not result in a decline in productivity.