Is there an inventory of White House property? I wouldn’t be in the least surprised if Trump decided to loot every possible “souvenir” he could find that wasn’t red hot or nailed down (possibly for future sale in the MAGA Store), but it would surprise me if there was no way of identifying what was missing.
(I hope I’m not just being ridiculously naive again by imagining that the bombs-or-fires prospect doesn’t seem all that credible: after all, it’s certainly not the Trumps themselves lugging the boxes, and presumably any of the working people who are doing the actual moving can be held liable for damage.)
Historian Michael Beschloss did quite a bit of tweeting about this, today. He referred to the “White House Permanent Collection,” which does seem likely to be a cataloged inventory.
The fire/bombing would be for the purpose of making sure that the Permanent Collection inventory could not be taken–a step that probably happens starting January 21st of every transition.
So the activities of moving-van personnel now wouldn’t have anything to do with a decision to blow up the White House. The destruction of the building would simply make sure than no inventory could be taken, and therefore no Trump can be fingered for having ordered the removal of valuable objects.
(One of Beschloss’s series of tweets about the stuff being removed:
While I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t try to steal the Resolute desk, I’m not getting worked up about this.
The administration changeover, for the White House staff, is a huge endeavor with lots of moving parts. They will be doing a lot of “refreshing”, replacing carpets, painting, changing light fixtures, etc.
It is very possible they are using trucks in order to store items while work is being done. Ive seen it done with that type of commercial renovations. It’s way quicker and easier to pull a truck to the closest door and load it than it is drag the stuff to a storeroom in some distant basement, and easier to get it back when they’re done.
They could be stealing stuff, but there are other explanations.
If there is anybody who can collect on a debt, it’s a lawyer. Between the judgments and the writs and the bailiffs who seize property legally, it’s a lawyer who is behind it all. Trump is no lawyer, he understands little about legal procedures, and he would do well just to pay what he owes Rudy, because Rudy knows how to make Trump pay.
I don’t imagine Trump would like plumbers arriving to de-install his golden toilet, in order to sell it to pay Rudy’s fees, but the court order–and the attending sheriffs and bailiffs–would make him.
Arrested Development often made me laugh against my will. Too hard.
And speaking of Barry Zuckercorn…it made me smile way too broadly when I saw Michael Cohen for the first time and realized what a dead ringer he was for Barry.
There’s a far right rag, American Thinker, which apparently made a few mistakes in its reporting and would like to correct them;
I can only assume the demand letter was covered in asbestos and delivered with oven mitts, because this retraction was written by people who have finally seen the ways of Jesus and are mighty sorry for their sins.
Anyone with understanding of US bankruptcy law: how can you file for bankruptcy if you’re not insolvent?
Second, if you’re under investigation and facing potential dissolution under one state’s regulatory laws, can you just file for bankruptcy to skip to another state?
IANAL, but I don’t think one has to be 100% destitute to declare bankruptcy, just unable to meet current obligations. For example, the NRA may make enough $ to keep operating, but not enough to pay their interest payments, ergo, bankruptcy.
