(India's space agency successfully landed an unmanned spacecraft on the moon's south pole Wednesday morning, NPR reports, three days after an unmanned Russian craft crashed there. India becomes the fourth country to successfully land a craft on the moon, after the U.S., Soviet Union and China.)
Chesebro and Smith Surrender – The count as of Wednesday morning is four booked, 14 plus ex-President Trump to go. Former Trump campaign attorney Kenneth Chesebro and Atlanta attorney Ray Smith were booked on charges he participated in a criminal organization that attempted to turn over 2020 Georgia presidential election results, The Atlanta Journal-Constitutionreports. Chesebro posted a $100,000 bond, and Smith posted $50,000.
On Tuesday, ex-Georgia GOP chairman David Shafer, along with former Coffee County GOP chairwoman Cathy Lanham turned themselves in to Fulton County, each posting $75,000. Donald J. Trump is scheduled to appear Thursday. District Attorney Fani Willis has given defendants in her RICO case until Friday to appear before the court.
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DC Grand Jury Concludes – The federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., investigating Donald J. Trump’s alleged mishandling of classified documents has finished its work, according to a 12-page filing Tuesday by David Harbach, deputy to Special Counsel Jack Smith, The Washington Post reports. Prosecutors and defense attorneys had argued over the Justice Department’s use of two grand juries, with one in South Florida in addition to the D.C. grand jury. Prosecutors said it was proper to use both because the alleged criminal conduct took place in two places.
Perjury charges: Meanwhile, prosecutors charged Trump employee Carlos De Oliveira with lying to FBI agents, but not specifically to the grand jury. De Oliveira has pleaded not guilty, while another Trump employee, tech worker Yuscil Taveras, began cooperating with investigators after Trump was first indicted for the Mar-a-Lagogate case. WaPo says it previously had reported that Taveras changed lawyers “not long” after Trump’s June indictment and “subsequently offered testimony” against De Oliveira, Trump and Waltine “Walt” Nauta.
--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa
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MONDAY 8/21/23
Trump Bond Set at $200,000 -- Ex-President Trump's bond has been set at $200,0000 in the Georgia case accusing him and 18 others of attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election, the AP reports. The bond agreement signed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and Trump's attorneys prohibits the former president from intimidating co-defendants, witnesses and victims, including on social media, and prohibits him from communicating "in any way, directly or indirectly" about facts of the case with any co-defendant or witness, except through his attorneys.
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Democracy is Coming to Guatemala – Reformist candidate Bernardo Arévelo pulled off an upset win Sunday to become Guatemala’s next president, NPR’s Morning Edition reports. Arévelo was leading Sandra Torres, a candidate from the country’s long dominant ruling class by more than 20 points, even though Arévelo’s Semila Party had no money for the campaign.
“Democracy has been defended,” a voter told NPR’s Eyder Peralta.
As of Monday, Torres had not yet conceded to Arévelo, though Guatemala’s outgoing president had congratulated him and pledged he would help in the transition of power.
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No Moon Over Moscow – A Russian Luna-25 spacecraft headed for the moon’s south pole crashed after entering an uncontrolled orbit Sunday (The Washington Post). The landing was to be the first on the moon’s icy south pole and the first landing anywhere on the moon by the country since a Soviet Union landing in 1976. Let your schadenfreude toward Putin’s Russia run free: The Luna-25 was unmanned.
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Once More, This Time with Feeling – It’s official, again, that ex-President Trump will not attend Wednesday’s GOP presidential candidate debate in Milwaukee. Yes, we’ve heard it before, but this time it appears to be officially official, with Trump having committed to an interview with Tucker Carlson on an as-yet unnamed platform.
Will Trump and Carlson try to call in to the debate?
And, of course, Trump still leads: A Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa poll of likely GOP caucus-goers there show Donald J. Trump with 42% to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at 19%, and Sen. Tim Scott (SC) at 9%. Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley is tied with former Vice President Mike Pence at 6%. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is at 5% and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy garnered 4% of the poll.
The debate in Milwaukee will be held Wednesday, same day as India’s expected moon landing.
--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa