Four women accuse New York’s Attorney General of physical abuse

Update: Three hours after the publication of this story, Schneiderman resigned from his position. “While these allegations are unrelated to my professional conduct or the operations of the office, they will effectively prevent me from leading the office’s work at this critical time,” he said in a statement. “I therefore resign my office, effective at the close of business on May 8, 2018.”

Eric Schneiderman, New York’s attorney general, has long been a liberal Democratic champion of women’s rights, and recently he has become an outspoken figure in the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment. As New York State’s highest-ranking law-enforcement officer, Schneiderman, who is sixty-three, has used his authority to take legal action against the disgraced film mogul Harvey Weinstein, and to demand greater compensation for the victims of Weinstein’s alleged sexual crimes. Last month, when the Times and this magazine were awarded a joint Pulitzer Prize for coverage of sexual harassment, Schneiderman issued a congratulatory tweet, praising “the brave women and men who spoke up about the sexual harassment they had endured at the hands of powerful men.” Without these women, he noted, “there would not be the critical national reckoning under way.”

Now Schneiderman is facing a reckoning of his own. As his prominence as a voice against sexual misconduct has risen, so, too, has the distress of four women with whom he has had romantic relationships or encounters. They accuse Schneiderman of having subjected them to nonconsensual physical violence. All have been reluctant to speak out, fearing reprisal. But two of the women, Michelle Manning Barish and Tanya Selvaratnam, have talked to The New Yorker on the record, because they feel that doing so could protect other women. They allege that he repeatedly hit them, often after drinking, frequently in bed and never with their consent. Manning Barish and Selvaratnam categorize the abuse he inflicted on them as “assault.” They did not report their allegations to the police at the time, but both say that they eventually sought medical attention after having been slapped hard across the ear and face, and also choked. Selvaratnam says that Schneiderman warned her he could have her followed and her phones tapped, and both say that he threatened to kill them if they broke up with him. (Schneiderman’s spokesperson said that he “never made any of these threats.”)

Via The New Yorker

Featured Image: citizenactionny/Flickr

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‘Biggest Threat’: Prosecutor Helping Robert Mueller Boasts Of ‘Legal Resistance’ To Trump

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who is reportedly assisting special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, boasted of his successful resistance to the Trump administration in a Tuesday Medium post.

Schneiderman, who could play an essential role in the disposition of Mueller’s investigation, has effectively branded as a public anti-Trump litigator during the president’s first year, in keeping with the history of hostility between the two men.

Tuesday’s Medium post accompanied a profile of Schneiderman in The New York Times, which noted that the AG lodged 100 legal or administrative challenges to administration policies during Trump’s first year in office.

Such challenges include lawsuits contesting the travel ban and rescission of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, an Obama-era amnesty policy that grants temporary status to illegal immigrants who entered the country as children.

“We try and protect New Yorkers from those who would do them harm,” Schneiderman told TheNYT. “The biggest threat to New Yorkers right now is the federal government, so we’re responding to it.”

The AG is building a political profile around his anti-Trump bona fides. Schneiderman told TheNYT that he has invested resources and personnel in anti-Trump litigation efforts, while coordinating with other Democratic state attorneys general to challenge the administration in court.

His official Twitter feed regularly features content attacking the president or promoting the AG’s litigiousness.

2017 was a year of legal resistance. With the tireless efforts of the talented attorneys on my staff, my office has now taken over 100 legal & administrative actions to protect the people of NY from attacks by the Trump administration. https://t.co/WM4K1nhbfG

— Eric Schneiderman (@AGSchneiderman) December 27, 2017

Mueller’s office retained Schneiderman’s assistance in August in a bid to establish greater leverage against the president and his loyalists. Though the Constitution invests Trump with the power to pardon violations of federal crime, he cannot grant relief from state and local prosecution.

Schneiderman’s cooperation provides a powerful supplement to the special counsel’s office, as it ensures criminal prosecutions may still proceed against any person Trump might pardon, diminishing the president’s assurances to wavering supporters.

The extent of cooperation between the two offices is not clear, though unnamed sources close to the investigation say they have shared evidence and discussed potential cases.

Schneiderman was circumspect on the topic in his NYT profile. The AG said he was “watching [the investigation] from the outside, like everybody else,” and aides told TheNYT that they halted their investigation of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s finances out of deference to Mueller.

The New York attorney general is a natural ally of the special counsel. Many of Trump’s associates and business interests are based in New York City, where Schneiderman has power to bring cases. His office was also investigating Trump well in advance of the 2016 election.

The AG brought a $40 million civil case against the now-defunct Trump University in 2013 for fraud and illegal business practices. Trump settled the suit for $25 million during the transition.

Relations between Trump and Schneiderman have long been characterized by mutual animosity. Trump loosed a steady barrage of disparagement against the AG on Twitter during the Trump University civil case. In a string of October 2014 tweets, he accused the AG of wearing Revlon eyeliner and blowing cocaine at a revolting Manhattan dive.

Schneiderman denies both charges.

"Fake News" Exposed: Louise Mensch Duped By Hoaxer

The woman who has been widely credited with the creation of the “liberal conspiracy theory” has – finally and definitively – been proven a fraud. According to the Guardian, Louise Mensch and her writing partner Claude Taylor published “bogus” allegations about President Donald Trump that had been fed to them by a hoaxer who claimed to work for New York Attorney General (and longtime Trump antagonist) Eric Schneiderman.

Mensch, a former British MP who moved to the US with her American husband a few years back to found the now-defunct Rupert Murdoch-backed conservative news website Heat Street, has garnered a large following (she has some 300,000 followers on Twitter) thanks to her “scoops” about the Russia investigation. Her "exclusives" have included patently false "stories" like her claim that the FBI had issued a sealed indictment for the president. She once suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin had Breitbart News founder Andrew Breitbart murdered to clear the way for Steve Bannon, Trump’s former chief strategist, allowing Bannon to guide Trump to electoral victory - an assertion for which she was resoundingly mocked.

The Guardian confirmed that another one of Mensch’s claims – that Trump’s inactive fashion agency is under investigation for alleged sex trafficking – was solely sourced to the hoaxer.

“Claude Taylor tweeted fake details of criminal inquiries into Trump that were invented by a source whose claim to work for the New York attorney general was not checked, according to emails seen by the Guardian. The allegations were endorsed as authentic and retweeted by his co-writer Louise Mensch.

The source’s false tips included an allegation, which has been aggressively circulated by Mensch and Taylor, that Trump’s inactive fashion model agency is under investigation by New York authorities for possible sex trafficking.”

The hoaxer said she acted out of a “frustration with fake news” after reading other obviously ridiculous reports published by Taylor and Mensch.

“The hoaxer, who fed the information to Taylor by email, said she acted out of frustration over the “dissemination of fake news” by Taylor and Mensch. Their false stories about Trump have included a claim that the president was already removed from office in a process kept secret from the American public.

Taylor asked no questions to verify my identity, did no vetting whatsoever, sought no confirmation from a second source – but instead asked leading questions to support his various theories, asking me to verify them,” the source said in an email.”

Mensch’s assertions have occasionally osmosed into the mainstream media. In March, the New York Times published an op-ed by Mensch advising members of Congress on how to proceed with their investigations into Trump’s Russia ties. The op-ed came after the paper backed up her still-unverified claim that a FISA warrant had been issued to surveille the Trump Organization. As the Guardian notes, Sen. Ed Markley (D-Mass) was forced to apologize earlier this year after repeating Mensch’s claim that Trump was under investigation.

“During a television interview earlier this year, Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts repeated unverified information about the inquiries into Trump and Russia that he had gleaned from Mensch’s website. He later withdrew the comment.

Amy Spitalnick, a spokeswoman for Schneiderman, said in a statement that the incident highlighted the importance of using “legitimate news outlets, which know to verify their sources and their facts”

Joe Scarborough once repeated one of Taylor and Mensch’s false claims on his show, MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

“The bogus source first contacted Taylor by email on 20 July with an email titled “NYAG investigation”. Earlier that day, MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough had quoted approvingly from an online post by Taylor, describing it as “one of the best tweets of the past month.”

Mensch and Taylor eagerly embellished the false claims fed to them by the leaker, insinuating that they knew more than the leaker had shared with them.

“After being asked by a follower for more information, Taylor claimed to know even more than the hoaxer had told him. “I have few details but apparently the possibility exists that our president has been a sex trafficker,” he said.

Mensch then weighed in, reposting this false claim by Taylor and adding a vague allegation of her own that the full story was even worse.

Taylor and Mensch also repeated an invented claim from the source that former president Bill Clinton knew of criminal wrongdoing by Trump’s model agency and was was preparing to testify for the prosecution. Taylor posted another series of tweets making lurid allegations about Trump’s model agency that yet again matched invented claims supplied to him in emails from the hoaxer.”

The Guardian published the contents of the hoaxer’s emails with Taylor alongside Taylor and Mensch’s tweets about the false claims, which neither of them bothered to try and verify (note the liberal use of the hashtag #PIMPOTUS).

From NYAG Schneiderman source, "I am aware of at least one sealed indictment targeting multiple Trump Organization Principals".

— Claude Taylor (@TrueFactsStated) July 22, 2017

Schneiderman is moving https://t.co/sseoG0yKw9

— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) July 22, 2017

On all three. Many Russian nationals are also among the targets as are other Trump family members.

— Claude Taylor (@TrueFactsStated) July 23, 2017

I have few details but apparently the possibility exists that our president has been a sex trafficker. That"s frowned upon. https://t.co/SFScjkaLlK

— Claude Taylor (@TrueFactsStated) July 22, 2017

      

From Schneiderman source on money laundering case. Targets include Don Jr, Eric, Ivanka, Jared & Trump Sr, Felix Sater & 15 Rus nationals.

— Claude Taylor (@TrueFactsStated) July 28, 2017

Clinton is an @AGschneiderman witness against Trump. #PIMPOTUS #humantrafficking pic.twitter.com/m6uiEYJIBR

— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) August 6, 2017

     

It"s #PIMPOTUS day on Twitter. #TeamPatriot please use the hashtag and let"s trend @realDonaldTrump human trafficking #Epstein #TrumpModels pic.twitter.com/vWxksCBZjn

— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) August 6, 2017

Just in case you needed another reminder - don"t believe everything you read on the Internet.
 

New York Towns, Cities Follow AG's Order To Ignore Sessions, Adopt Illegal Alien Sanctuary Laws

Via Judicial Watch,

Weeks after the chief law enforcement official in New York State issued “legal guidance” to help municipalities provide sanctuary for illegal immigrants, nearly a dozen have followed through with the attorney general’s order to skirt federal law. The goal, according to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, is to provide local governments with a tool to “protect their immigrant communities, regardless of new federal enforcement practices.” Those that have followed Schneiderman’s directive range from sleepy towns like Newburgh to larger cities such as Rochester as well as Albany, the state capital.

Schneiderman issued the decree in response to the Trump administration’s proposed immigration enforcement policies. The document states that its purpose it to describe the legal landscape governing the participation of local authorities in immigration enforcement and to “assist local authorities that wish to become sanctuary jurisdictions by offering model language that can be used to enact local laws or policies that limit participation in immigration enforcement activities.” Utilizing so-called “model language” has become a key tool for sanctuary cities, counties and states that want to avoid losing federal funds under new Trump administration measures that punish local governments for not cooperating with federal authorities. Just last month Judicial Watch reported on a California town that found a creative way to implement a stealth sanctuary policy with “model language” that avoids using certain trigger words.

New York stands out because it’s the only state in which the top law enforcement authority, a veteran elected official, is actively encouraging and assisting local governments to violate the law. Some have faced resistance from citizens, though the majority have passed stealth sanctuary measures with little opposition since Schneiderman launched his campaign to protect illegal aliens in the Empire State. In the upscale town of Irvington, situated about 20 miles from Manhattan, the Board of Trustees issued a Statement of Tolerance days after the 2016 presidential election to guarantee that people of all races, religions, orientations and countries of origin are safe within its boundaries. “It seems there are many in our nation who are not currently feeling welcome nor safe,” the statement reads. “We want everyone to know that the Irvington Board of Trustees will never tolerate discrimination of any kind in our Village.” The city lists a phone number of the local police and encourage anyone who witnesses “any form of discrimination or intimidation” to call immediately.

Last month Irvington unanimously passed a resolution making it a sanctuary city and lawmakers credit the attorney general’s legal guidance. Now the mayor and several trustees are used as propaganda by the attorney general’s office to promote more illegal alien sanctuaries in the state. In a statement issued by the attorney general, Irvington Mayor Brian Smith says this: “We relied on the guidance of the AG’s office in crafting the wording of the resolution, which has the complete support of our police department. Irvington proudly stands as the first Westchester municipality to pass such a resolution and looks forward to having others step forward.” Under the new measure, which reportedly will soon be adapted by other communities in the county, Irvington will not honor detainer requests from federal immigration enforcement agencies.

One Irvington resident who continues challenging the sanctuary measure is an attorney who argues that the village is protecting criminals and endangering the lives of citizens. Her name is Lauri Regan and she reminds Irvington lawmakers in writing about a recent Maryland case in which two illegal immigrants raped a 14-year-old girl in a high school bathroom. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had issued a detainer for one of the rapists but, because Montgomery County offers illegal immigrants sanctuary, it was ignored. Regan fears the same will occur in her hometown of Irvington. In one electronic mail Irvington Mayor Brian Smith tells Regan that he fails to see a link between the Maryland case and the new Irvington policy and in another he writes that “we do not want undocumented immigrants to fear interacting with our police department.”

Is Soros The Source Of Funds Behind The "Muslim Ban" Lawsuits?

More than a dozen lawsuits and counting have been filed against President Donald Trump’s executive order that temporarily blocks visas from Iraq, Iran, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen.  As of last Friday, one such lawsuit heard by Federal District Judge James Robart, a Bush appointee, in Seattle effectively blocked the enforcement of the executive order nationwide (see here for details: "Judge Blocks Trump Travel Ban Nationwide; White House Vows To Challenge "Outrageous Order""). 

Of course, mounting this scale of legal crusade is extremely costly, a concern which, as we noted last week, was seemingly alleviated by a massive surge in contributions to the American Civil Liberties Union.  According to the Washington Post, the lawsuits filed by the ACLU prompted a tidal wave of donations which totaled over $24 million in a single weekend, or roughly 6 times the organization"s average annual donation tally. 

Update: the @ACLU just ran the numbers again. Spokesman says the group received 356,306 online donations totaling $24,164,691 this weekend.

— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) January 30, 2017

But raising that kind of money that quickly is difficult to do at $20 a pop.  Which is why we weren"t terribly surprised to see a note from LifeZette this morning confirming what is likely implicitly understood by most people already, namely that the lawsuits filed against Trump"s immigration executive order largely stem from organizations bankrolled by billionaire leftist George Soros and Democratic state attorneys general.

According to LifeZette and the Capital Research Center, Soros"s Open Society Institute has given over $35 million to the ACLU alone and millions more to other liberal organizations directly involved in filing lawsuits all around the country. 

Outside of the politicians, the Soros’s Open Society Institute, which advocates for open borders, is financing several advocacy groups that initiated litigation against the order.

Leading the way in these lawsuits in several states is the American Civil Liberties Union, which has gotten at least $35.5 million from the Open Society Institute, according to the Capital Research Center, a Washington think tank that investigates nonprofits.

Soros also gave $4.6 million to the National Immigration Law Center, which has been involved in litigation, according to the CRC; and $621,000 to the Urban Justice Center, which has an appendage known as the International Refugee Assistance Project that has jumped into the lawsuits, according to CRC.

Of course, leading the charge of liberal state Attorney Generals in the crusade against Trump"s immigration order is none other than NY AG Eric Schneiderman who was praised last August for his attacks against Trump by George Soros"s son, Alex.

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who has carried out a political vendetta against Trump, led 15 other state attorneys general in a joint statement condemning what they called an “unconstitutional, un-American and unlawful the executive order.” The Democratic AGs also said, “Religious liberty has been, and always will be, a bedrock principle of our country and no president can change that truth,” a curious statement from the party that targeted the Little Sisters of the Poor.

Last August, George Soros’s son, Alex Soros, posted a picture of himself with Schneiderman on Instagram, and wrote, “Great to meet with #newyork attorney general @ericschneiderman who recognized that @realdonaldtrump was a fraud way before many and has courageously taken him on!”

As we pointed out last August (see "Soros Seeks To "Reshape American Justice System" By Pouring Funds Into "Powerful" District Attorney Races"), funding the campaigns of local district attorneys has been a stated strategy of Soros for some time now.

With hundreds of millions of dollars poured into presidential and congressional elections in the United States it can be difficult, even for mega donors like George Soros, to truly understand how much influence is being "bought."  That"s why Soros is pursuing a new strategy to dump millions into the campaigns of local district attorneys, a position which "exercises the greatest discretion and power in the system."  So far, Soros has funneled $3 million into seven local DA races over the past year but his support is "expected to intensify in the next few years, thanks to longer-term planning and candidate recruitment."  In general, Soros looks to fund progressive DAs running on platforms to "reduce racial disparity in sentencing" and support prison "diversion programs" for drug offenders instead of trials that could result in jail time.  As Politico points out:

Prosecutorial discretion gives district attorneys a huge say in the charges and sentences that defendants face. But reform efforts have not traditionally focused on harnessing that power.

“They are often a very invisible part of the criminal justice system and the political system,” said Brenda Carter, director of the Reflective Democracy Campaign, an arm of the progressive Women Donors Network. “Many people can’t name their district attorney. It’s not an office people think about a lot.”

Carter’s group commissioned research in 2015 that found that 95 percent of elected local prosecutors in the U.S. are white and three-quarters overall are white men. It also highlighted a Wake Forest University study that found that a vast majority of prosecutors — 85 percent — run for reelection unopposed.

“I found that to be shocking, and I think people are waking up to the untapped potential for intervention in these seats to really change the day-to-day realities of criminal justice,” Carter said. “It’s been really gratifying for us to see the research taken up and run with by different groups around the country.”

Of course, as Matthew Vadum, senior vice president of the CRC, notes, it should come a surprise to precisely zero people that George Soros"s fingerprints are all over these latest anti-Trump lawsuits: “It shouldn"t surprise anyone that pressure groups funded by George Soros are litigating to keep U.S. ports-of-entry wide open to terrorists and other people who hate America.  Soros has said he wants to bring America down. Flooding the country with Muslim aliens who won"t assimilate is one way to do that.”