By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on March 7, 2025 Anthony S. "Tony" Butler, an Alabama civil rights icon. Photo courtesy of Hayden and Butler Funeral Home, Lisman, Alabama. I knew Anthony S. “Tony” Butler was an important person when Dr. Joe L. Reed, the then-Associate Executive Director of the Alabama Education Association (AEA), assigned me to work on Tony's employment discrimination case against the Choctaw County, Alabama School System in the mid-1970s. Tony lived and worked in Lisman, a small town in southwest Alabama that I had never visited. Dr. Reed told me to spare no resources in fighting for Tony Butler. Losing was not an acceptable option. This was the first time Dr. Reed had given me that instruction in an AEA-backed case. I called Tony Butler and arranged to meet him in Lisman. As was my routine in the 1970s and early 80s, I reviewed my Traveler's Green Book to plan my trip from Montgomery to Lisman. In 1974, I was given an annotated version of the Green Book by my mentor, Attorney Solomon S. Seay, Jr., as I began litigating civil rights cases in and around Alabama. The book told me what routes to use and where I could safely eat, buy gasoline, and stay while I was traveling to trial locations outside of my home base of Montgomery. There were no cell phones or personal security details at the time. As such, every movement had to be carefully planned and coordinated from a safety standpoint. Tony Butler’s home and the Hayden and Butler Funeral Home were listed in the Green Book as safe places for civil rights activists and lawyers who were visiting the town of Lisman in Choctow County. This part of Alabama was extremely dangerous territory for such activists and their lawyers. Furthermore, Choctow County was in a federal court district that was notorious for coddling white supremacists and segregationists. Two of the federal judges in the Southern District of Alabama – Brevard Hand and Daniel Thomas – were among the most flaming racists on the federal bench. Hayden and Butler Funeral Home In addition to serving as an educator in the Choctow County School System and as a named plaintiff in the case that desegregated the public schools, faculties, and staffs in Choctow County schools, Tony Butler was a part-owner and active funeral director at Hayden and Butler Funeral Home in Lisman. As an African American-owned business, Hayden and Butler provided Tony Butler with the independent base of operations he needed to launch and wage his decades-long fight to improve the socio-economic conditions of blacks in Choctow County and the state of Alabama. Tony Butler waged mighty fights that gradually changed the socio-economic landscape in Choctow County. Tony started by desegregating the County's public schools, via court litigation. Tony expanded his fights to include a focus on the fair representation of blacks on state and local government boards and agencies, including the Alabama State Legislature and Alabama's Congressional delegation. Next, Tony focused on economic empowerment to make sure black-owned businesses in Choctow County were not locked out of local government contracting opportunities. Tony Butler was also elected by his peers as the president of the Alabama Funeral Directors and Morticians Association, Inc. (formerly known as the Alabama Colored Funeral Directors and Embalmers Association). Tony made sure the Association was represented by strong attorneys while it pursued fair marketplace opportunities for its members and the uniform application of regulatory standards. Overcoming Alabama’s Massive Resistance to Equal Rights and Fair Economic Opportunities At every turn, Tony Butler’s life was threatened by the forces that sought to (a) preserve the Old South tradition of racial segregation in all aspects of life and (b) perpetuate the exclusion of blacks from fair workplace opportunities. Unfazed, Tony kept fighting. Every battle was strategic, well-planned, hard fought, and executed to perfection. As the years passed, Tony and I became extremely close. I admired his stamina, his manhood, his passion for greatness, his commitment to equal rights and fair economic opportunities, and his vast reservoir of personal courage. Looking back on it today, I realize that Dr. Joe Reed sent me to the front lines in Choctow County to fight for and with Tony Butler because Tony was one of Reed's best warriors on the battlefields for equal rights in Alabama. Epilogue Tony Butler died on October 30, 1996, at age 75. When Tony died, a piece of me died with him. Tony and I had fought and bled together in the trenches on Alabama's civil rights battlefields for two decades. We never knew which day we might be killed by the diehard segregationists we encountered and defeated in these battles. I never had to worry about Tony’s resolve, courage, or willingness to fight hard. He was a true warrior. This article constitutes my public tribute to one of the bravest warriors I have ever known and fought with. Tony left it all on the battlefield in every contest. He died on his feet fighting for our dignity and respect. I plan to go out the same way.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on March 14, 2024 IMAGE: Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump (left) and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. An Editorial Opinion When the U.S. Supreme Court granted former president and current Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s February 2024 petition to consider whether he enjoys presidential immunity from criminal prosecution for acts committed during his days in the White House, I knew that Justice Clarence Thomas had likely rounded up the votes he needed to deliver presidential immunity to Trump.   Thomas has prior experience in delivering the presidency to a Republican nominee on a 5-4 vote .  Thomas was one of the five Justices who voted in favor of George W. Bush in Bush v. Gore (2000), thereby giving Bush the presidency in January 2001.  Trump's case will be Thomas’ second time delivering the presidency to a Republican nominee on a 5-4 vote, assuming Trump wins the general election in November. Today, Trump is leading in all credible national polls of likely registered voters.   For the record, presidential immunity for criminal acts is not expressly authorized in the U.S. Constitution or any federal statute. As discussed below, presidential immunity from criminal prosecution is a concept birthed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in 1973.   Today’s Supreme Court is an activist judicial body that uses "power-voting" to impose its conservative, right-wing political agenda on the American people.  The Court adheres to prior caselaw only to the extent necessary to facilitate its advancement of certain planks in the Republican Party's national political platform.   Because of his seniority and networking skills, Clarence Thomas operates as the "de facto" Chief Justice of the Court.   This is a role Thomas relishes. He cares more about results than titles.   Two Department of Justice Memos Provide a Pathway for Presidential Immunity   On September 24, 1973 and October 16, 2000 , DOJ issued memos recognizing the existence of presidential immunity for a sitting president.  The 2000 DOJ memo regurgitated nearly all of the language on presidential immunity that is set forth in the 1973 DOJ memo . The 1973 memo birthed the concept of presidential immunity, while the 2000 memo affirmed and fortified it. According to these memos, our constitutional framework prohibits the indictment or criminal prosecution of a sitting president because it would “impermissibly undermine the capacity of the executive branch to perform its constitutionally assigned functions.” Implicit within this language is immunity for criminal acts a sitting president may have committed while holding office.   Even though presidential immunity is not expressly stated in the U.S. Constitution, the Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton Departments of Justice recognized such immunity.  Nixon was a Republican president whose vice president (Spiro Agnew) resigned on October 10, 1973, because of criminal activities he committed while he was a Baltimore County executive and governor of Maryland. Agnew engaged in a criminal conspiracy, acts of bribery and extortion, and tax fraud during his time in state and local government. Agnew continued to receive payments from government contractors caught up in his bribery and kickback scheme while he served as vice president. Nixon resigned the presidency on August 8, 1974 in the aftermath of the Watergate break-in and burglary in 1972, which he personally authorized, monitored, and covered up. The 1973 DOJ memo addressed presidential immunity for Nixon and Agnew. According to the memo, President Nixon enjoyed presidential immunity, while Agnew did not.   Bill Clinton’s interest in presidential immunity arose from his sexual abuse of women who worked in the White House -- Monica Lewinsky and Kathleen E. Willey -- and his perjury with respect to his sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky.  Clinton, a Democrat, was also concerned about allegations swirling around in Washington that he used the presidency to get rich while in office.  Clinton came to Washington financially broke and left office rich.  As such, an official and enhanced recognition of presidential immunity by DOJ was a high priority for Bill Clinton.   The two DOJ memos on presidential immunity open the door for Clarence Thomas and his Republican allies on the Supreme Court to do their thing.  In their view, the twice-recognized right to presidential immunity can be extended to cover all criminal acts a president committed while in office, except for treason and murder.   The Supreme Court is expected to use both DOJ memos to expound upon and justify a grant of presidential immunity for any and all acts the Chief Executive Officer of the United States (Donald Trump) engaged in while serving in office, except for treason and murder.  Of course, the Court's creation of presidential immunity through judicial fiat is an act of judicial activism. Regardless, Clarence Thomas and his block of conservatives on the Court do not care about activism when it furthers the Republican political agenda of empowering Donald Trump, overturning Roe v. Wade , expanding states’ rights, pushing political gerrymandering, restricting the regulatory powers of government agencies, and fortifying the Second Amendment’s right to bear arms. It is unclear how Chief Justice John Roberts will vote on the issue of presidential immunity. If he joins the Thomas block of Justices, the vote in favor of presidential immunity will be 6-3.   What Does Presidential Immunity Mean for Trump’s Four Criminal Cases?   For all practical purposes, Donald Trump’s four criminal cases will end when the Supreme Court issues its ruling affirming Trump’s right to presidential immunity for acts he committed while president. This ruling should occur in late June.   It is undisputed that the acts forming the basis of the Miami, Washington, and Atlanta criminal prosecutions against Trump occurred, in whole or in part, while he was a sitting president .  All of those cases would be covered by the Court's favorable ruling for Trump and tossed out immediately.   Trump’s New York state court “hush money” case would also end with the Supreme Court's ruling on presidential immunity, even if Trump's trial begins on March 25th and he is convicted in April or May.  Dismissal of a criminal case may occur at any time, upon a showing of immunity from prosecution. The reason for a dismissal of these charges is simple -- Donald Trump, or persons acting on his behalf, did not reimburse Michael Cohen for the “hush money” payments he made to porn actress Stormy Daniels until February 14, 2017 .  Even then, the authorized signatories for Trump's Revocable Trust Account made the first three monthly payments. Donald Trump signed reimbursement checks made payable to Cohen from his personal bank account, beginning on May 23, 2017. Trump was well into his presidency when he began signing the reimbursement checks. It is undisputed that Donald Trump was a sitting president when all 11 reimbursement payments were made to Michael Cohen.   It does not matter that Michael Cohen may have committed crimes with his "hush money" payments to Stormy Daniels prior to Trump assuming the presidency in January 2017. Donald Trump’s personal participation in Cohen “hush money” scheme began AFTER he was president. As such, Trump would be covered by the Supreme Court's newly announced doctrine of presidential immunity. What is more, prosecutors in New York did not charge Donald Trump with participating in a "hush money" conspiracy with Michael Cohen . Trump is the lone defendant in his New York "hush money" case and the payment to Cohen occurred after he assumed office as president. He will likely win a dismissal of the "hush money" charges after the Supreme Court grants him immunity from all criminal prosecutions, whether state or federal.   Epilogue   Donald Trump is the luckiest criminal defendant I know.  Despite his cadre of mediocre criminal defense lawyers in all four of his criminal cases, Trump will likely walk away from these four criminal prosecutions because Clarence Thomas knows how to corral 5 votes for Trump's benefit on the Republican-dominated Supreme Court.   It also appears that the Supreme Court is determined to make the rematch between Donald Trump and Joe Biden an election that will be decided by voters at the polls, without any interference from federal and state prosecutors.    Two shady U.S. presidents (i.e., Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton) had their minions in the Department of Justice create and fortify the concept of presidential immunity from criminal prosecution "out of thin air" to cover their asses upon their exit from the presidency.   Clarence Thomas did not have to birth the concept of presidential immunity.  All Thomas had to do was get four of his fellow Justices to join him in expanding the scope of presidential immunity and add judicially-created exceptions for treason and murder.    Democrats only have themselves to blame for this entire quagmire.  It was Bill Clinton's Department of Justice that affirmed and fortified the Nixon DOJ's creation of presidential immunity. Democrats are always a day late and a dollar short when it comes to battling and defeating Republicans on critical political issues of national importance.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 25, 2025 U.S. President Donald Trump confers with Russian President Vladimir Putin An Editorial Opinion   Between 1770 and 1870, the U.S. government and Native American tribes signed and ratified 374 treaties .   All of these treaties were broken by the "white men" who ran the U.S. government.  None was broken by a Native American tribe.   Freed black slaves in America were promised “40 acres and a mule” in Special Field Order 15 , which was issued by Union General William Tecumseh Sherman on January 16, 1865.  This promise turned out to be false after President Andrew Johnson rescinded the Order on September 12, 1865.   On December 5, 1994, America promised Ukraine in writing that we would defend that country from invaders if Ukraine would give up its nuclear weapons.  This promise is set forth in the so-called Budapest Memorandum , which was signed by the United States, Russia, United Kingdom of Great Britian and Northern Ireland, and Ukraine.   To its detriment, Ukraine believed that America’s “word was its bond.” Accordingly, Ukraine surrendered its nuclear weapons to Russia for decommissioning.   In retrospect, Ukrainian reliance on America for its national defense was a huge mistake.   Today, Ukrainians are being slaughtered by Vladimir Putin’s missiles and drones, Russian soldiers on the ground in Ukriane, and North Korean soldiers fighting in Ukraine.   Inside President Donald Trump’s Sellout of Ukraine   On Monday, the U.S. joined Russia, North Korea, Hungary, Israel, Belarus, and 11 other nations in voting against a U.N. resolution that condemned Russia for its unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine in 2022.  The U.N. resolution passed despite U.S. opposition.   In a departure from reality, President Donald Trump now claims (with no supporting evidence) that Ukraine started the ongoing war with Russia.  Anybody with walking-around sense knows that Trump's statement is a bold face lie.  The war started with Russia's televised invasion of Ukraine three years ago.   Trump’s “brilliant” idea for ending the Ukriane-Russia war is to surrender Ukraine to Putin.  In doing so, Trump is completely ignoring the U.S.’s mandatory obligation under the Budapest Memorandum to defend Ukraine’s sovereignty.   To date, Donald Trump’s second-term foreign diplomacy has consisted of bullying America’s allies and appeasing its enemies, particularly Russia.  Frankly, Trump does a better job of consorting with America’s adversaries than comforting its friends.   With respect to Trump’s sellout of Ukraine, Alnur Mussayev, former head of Kazakhstan’s security service, who rose up the ranks of the Soviet KGB, claims Moscow began grooming Donald Trump as a Russian asset in 1987 under pseudonym “Krasnov . "  Alnur Mussayev, former Soviet KGB intelligence officer. In “American Kompromat,” a 2021 book by Craig Unger, former KGB officer Yuri Shvets also claimed that Trump had been recruited by Moscow in the 1980s.  “ Donald Trump was cultivated as a Russian asset… and proved so willing to parrot anti-Western propaganda that there were celebrations in Moscow ,” said Shvets.   Judging by Its Actions, America’s Word is No Good   How many times does the American government have to break its word before heads of state around the world know that its word is no good?  When does America honor its word?   Native Americans learned that the “white man’s” word was no good when all 374 signed and ratified treaties were broken by the U.S. government.    African Americans have been waiting since 1865 to get their promised “40 acres and a mule.” Meanwhile, from 1 862 to 1986 , white peasants who were openly recruited from Europe to the U.S. were awarded 160 acres of free land (that was forcefully taken from Native Americans) per applicant under the Homestead Act of 1862 .   Today, Ukrainians realize that the U.S. commitment to Ukraine's national security, as set forth in the Budapest Memorandum, may turn into another broken American promise.

By: Donald V. Watkins © Copyrighted and Published on November 22, 2019 Black sharecroppers in the late 1800's A 124-Year-Long, Government-Sponsored Land Giveaway Program For Whites From 1862 to 1986, the United States government ran a homestead program that gave 2,992,058 white settlers and European immigrants (both documented and undocumented) a minimum of 160 acres of land from the Mississippi River to the West coast of America, including the Alaskan territory. Authorized by the Homestead Act of 1862, this land giveaway program ended for all participating states in 1976 and ended for land awards in Alaska in 1986. White recipients in the land giveaway program were recruited through a widespread, government-sponsored advertising campaign in newspapers in America and Europe. The land was awarded to applicants who promised to live on it and develop the land for five years. Title to the property vested at the end of this five-year period. Claimants paid total filing fees of $18 and $1.25 per acre after six-months of residency. These below-market land acquisition rates essentially made the land a free gift to the recipients. In 1873, Congress passed additional laws that allowed the government to award larger tracts of land to these white settlers and immigrants. A lot of the land grants included property that had timber rights, mineral rights, and oil and gas reserves, all of which the government eventually released to the land owners through various legislative enactments. In all, more than 270 million acres of valuable land -- about ten percent of the land area of the United States -- was given to white settlers and immigrants. The Homestead Act of 1862 was a 124-year-long, government-sponsored, wealth transfer program for a particular class of people -- white settlers and immigrants. It was the longest running, race-based, affirmative action program in United States history. Ironically, some of the descendants of the beneficiaries of this affirmative action program for whites were the first ones to claim their status as the "victims" of "reverse discrimination" in the 1970s and 80s. An estimated $10 trillion dollars (when measured in today's present value) was transferred to white homesteaders, essentially for free. This land giveaway program made thousands of millionaires in the agriculture, timber, mining of natural resources, and oil and gas industries. In addition to the gift of free public land to these white program recipients, the government-built land grant colleges to teach these settlers how to farm. It provided them with county agents to further their expertise in farming and the commercialization of natural resources running with the land. It also gave them low-interest loans so that they could mechanize their farms. Then, it provided them billions of dollars in federal subsidies not to farm certain crops. From the outset, blacks were not allowed to participate in the 1862 Homestead Act land giveaway program. The United States Supreme Court had already decided, on a 7-2 vote, in the 1857 Dred Scott case that blacks -- freed or slaves -- had no rights that white men were bound to respect. This holding included the right to own property. The Unfulfilled Promise of 40 Acres for Freed Slaves Union Army General William T. Sherman's Special Field Order No. 15, issued on January 16, 1865, set aside land for freed black slaves. With this Order, 400,000 acres of land described as "a strip of coastline stretching from Charleston, South Carolina, to the St. John's River in Florida, including Georgia's Sea Islands and the mainland thirty miles in from the coast" was to be reallocated to emancipated slaves in the South. Each slave family was entitled to 40 acres of land in this strip. Abraham Lincoln's successor, President Andrew Johnson, a Southern and sympathizer with the Confederate states, vetoed Order No. 15 in the Fall of 1865. With his veto, the land was returned to the very planters who declared war on the United States of America. As a result, black slaves were never awarded the public lands that were promised to them by the United States Government. Instead, former slaves, for the most part, became sharecroppers on the lands they used to work as slaves. Epilogue For four centuries, property ownership has been the greatest source of wealth in the United States. Ten percent of the land area of the United States was given to white settlers and European immigrants, essentially for free, for a period of 124 years. The last component of the government's land giveaway program for whites just ended in 1986. In contrast, the 400,000 acres was set aside for freed black slaves. The land allotment was 40 acres. This land was never given to them. As a result, blacks in the South and elsewhere languished in abject poverty for the next 100 years. This poverty was accompanied by widespread racial violence against blacks nationwide, rigidly enforced racial segregation, ingrained racial discrimination, and massive resistance to equal rights for blacks. The next time you hear people say, "the black man ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps," please remind them of the white privilege embedded in these laws and historical events. Homestead Act advertisement from the 1860's .

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on September 24, 2024 Sean "Diddy" Combs (left), Marc Agnifilo (right). An Editorial Opinion Sean “Diddy” Combs hired attorney Marc Agnifilo to represent him in his federal racketeering, sex trafficking, and interstate prostitution case in New York.   Agnifilo, a New York criminal attorney, previously represented Keith Raniere, an infamous cult leader who was convicted on federal racketeering and sex trafficking charges following a trial in 2019. Raniere was sentenced to 120 years in prison .   Agnifilo only lists two acquittals in criminal cases and one non-prosecution agreement on his law firm's résumé .  Agnifilo’s overall win-loss record in jury trials cannot be ascertained from his published résumé. As the Raniere case makes clear, when Marc Agnifilo does lose a federal racketeering and sex trafficking case, he loses it is a big way. Agnifilo is Making No Move to Transfer Diddy to a Safer Detention Center   Diddy is housed in a segregated part of the federal detention center in Brooklyn, New York called the “Hole.”  This is a horrible place for any criminal client to be detained. It is a nasty, filthy, violent hellhole.   Last week, Diddy was placed on suicide watch.   Yesterday, Agnifilo notified the trial judge in Diddy’s case that he would not pursue legal action seeking to transfer Diddy to a safer detention facility. Agnifilo's letter to Judge Andrew Carter is bizarre. It will take a miracle for Diddy to make it out of the federal detention center in Brooklyn alive.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 22, 2025 New York City Attorney Anthony L. Ricco An Editorial Opinion Anthony L. Ricco is one of the six attorneys representing Sean “Diddy” Combs in his pending New York criminal case. On Friday, Ricco filed a motion to withdraw from this case. Diddy is charged with leading a racketeering enterprise that included sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution, coercion and enticement to engage in prostitution, narcotics offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice. If convicted, Diddy faces imprisonment for life. Ricco was hired on September 22, 2024 to represent Diddy in the case. Yesterday, Ricco told the court in an accompanying affidavit that: “Although I have provided Sean Combs with the high level of legal representation expected by the court, under no circumstances can I continue to effectively serve as counsel for Sean Combs, consistent with the ABA Standards for Criminal Justice.” Diddy’s remaining defense attorneys are Marc Antony Agnifilo, Teny Rose Geragos, Alexandra A.E. Shapiro, Anna Maria Estevao, and Jason Anthony Driscoll. None of these attorneys has a national reputation for winning complex criminal cases involving high-profile “outcast” defendants, which is Diddy's current status within the criminal justice system. The Docket Sheet Tells the Real Story After Ricco filed his motion to withdraw, I retrieved and reviewed the Docket Sheet in Diddy's case to see what is really happening in the case. The Docket Sheet did not reflect the aggressive defensive activity and creative strategies I believe are necessary to win Diddy’s high-profile case, which is schedule for trial in May. Losing is not an acceptable option in Diddy’s case. Based upon my past trial experience and 217-8 win-loss record in complex criminal cases that were tried to a verdict, I do not see the kind of defensive motion filings on the Docket Sheet that will position Diddy to win his case. I don't know for sure, but Attorney Anthony Ricco may see it the same way. Meanwhile, Diddy has been held without bond since September 2024. He has been refused bail in this case on multiple occasions. Presently, Diddy is jailed in the nasty, filthy, dilapidated Manhattan Detention Center in New York while he awaits trial.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on January 30, 2025 USA v. Sean "Diddy" Combs An Editorial Opinion   On Thursday, federal prosecutors in New York City unsealed a superseding indictment against Sean “Diddy” Combs.  The new indictment did not add additional charges to Diddy's case. However, it added at least two more victims and greater clarity to the original criminal charges against him.   [Click here to read the Superseding Indictment]   Diddy is charged with leading a racketeering enterprise that included sex trafficking, forced labor, interstate transportation for purposes of prostitution, coercion and enticement to engage in prostitution, narcotics offenses, kidnapping, arson, bribery, and obstruction of justice.  If convicted, Diddy faces life imprisonment.  The government also seeks to seize any of Diddy's mansions, cash, and other assets that were derived from the racketeering enterprise alleged in the indictment. Since September 2024, Diddy has been held without bond on the original federal criminal charges against him. He has been refused bail in this case on multiple occasions.  Presently, Diddy is jailed in the nasty, filthy, dilapidated Manhattan Detention Center in New York while he awaits trial.   Diddy has six criminal lawyers defending him.  They are Marc Antony Agnifilo, Teny Rose Geragos, Alexandra A.E. Shapiro, Anna Maria Estevao, Anthony L. Ricco, and Jason Anthony Driscoll.  None of these attorneys has a national reputation for winning complex criminal cases involving high-profile “outcast” defendants.  In fact, we have not been able to establish an overall win-loss record for any of these attorneys for defendants in criminal cases that were tried to verdict. The government has 8 seasoned prosecutors working on Diddy's case.  Over 95%  of the criminal cases they have prosecuted in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York resulted in a plea of guilty.  To date, Diddy has pleaded “Not Guilty.”   In fiscal year 2022, only 290 of 71,954 defendants in federal criminal cases  – about 0.4% – went to trial and were acquitted, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of the  latest available statistics from the federal judiciary .  Another 1,379 went to trial and were found guilty (1.9%) .   In my opinion, there is a total mismatch of the legal talent in this case.  Diddy’s lawyers are more suited for defending run-of-the-mill criminal cases involving low-profile defendants.  Diddy is a high-profile “outcast” who is scorned by many segments of American society.  Losing is NOT an acceptable option in Diddy's case.   Agnifilo, a New York criminal attorney, previously represented Keith Raniere, an infamous cult leader who was convicted on federal racketeering and sex trafficking charges following a trial in 2019.  Raniere was sentenced to 120 years in prison .   Based upon what I have seen in Diddy's case to date, there is no indication that his lawyers have the trial skills and experience necessary to walk him out of the courtroom as a “free man.”

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 15, 2025 President Donald J. Trump listens to First Buddy Elon Musk explain Trump-Musk presidential initiatives in the Oval Office at the White House. An Editorial Opinion President Donald Trump assumed office on January 20, 2025.  This is what he has accomplished during his first month in office:   Trump freed all 1,600 January 6th insurrectionists , including the ones who assaulted and injured Capitol police officers.   These brave officers defended the lives and safety of Congress members who were barricaded in the Capitol and/or running from the mob. These officers also protected Vice President Mike Pence, who was fleeing from an effort to lynch him. Trump issued Executive Orders killing every forms of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in government and the private sector, dating back to 1965. By doing so, Trump telegraphed to all women and racial minorities in the U.S. that the federal government’s enforcement of their civil rights has ended.  Interestingly, as late as June 8, 2023, the ultra-conservative U.S. Supreme Court in Allen v. Milligan acknowledged that Alabama still discriminates against its black citizens, from the “ cradle to the grave .”  Of course, Trump has never mentioned this DEI-related problem. Trump removed at least 17 inspectors general from federal government agencies.  These independent watchdogs conduct audits and investigations of major federal agencies.  They also receive "whistleblower" complaints of unlawful agency conduct. Trump stopped all work at the Consumer Financial Protection Agency. This action opened the door for Wall Street banks and other regulated financial institutions to rip-off their customers, as they have done so egregiously in the past . Trump gutted environmental protection safeguards in the U.S. This action opened the door for heavy industrial manufacturers to resume their pattern and practice of polluting the air, ground, and water around their toxic manufacturing facilities. Trump humbled America’s billionaire class and paraded some of them around Washington like they were his pet dogs on a leash. Trump resurrected the doctrine of “ Manifest Destiny ” and is using it to make unconscionable land grabs for Canada, Greenland , and the Gaza Strip. Trump reshaped the Department of Justice in his own image by intimidating 6,000 FBI agents and firing hundreds of federal prosecutors. Trump intervened in the Justice Department’s bribery case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams , commencing with his private meeting with an indicted Adams at Mar-a-Lago and concluding with DOJ’s awkward motion to dismiss the bribery charges. Seven career federal prosecutors resigned their jobs rather than participate in DOJ's "fix"of Eric Adams' criminal case. Trump and Musk resurrected the federal government's convict leasing program , which was banned nationwide in 1941 as inhumane. Trump made the Presidential Cabinet a “Second Chance” employment opportunity zone for sexual predators, alcoholics, thieves, mentally impaired conspiracy theorists, and a boutique collection of other “undesirables.” Trump appointed ambassadors to foreign nations who have zero diplomatic experience and whose only expertise is their ability to serve as glorified bellhops to Trump and Secretary Marco Rubio. Trump made South African Apartheid Supporter/Beneficiary Elon Musk his de facto Co-President, with complete access to every federal agency and database. Trump also designated white South African land barons as “ refugees ” who are entitled to preferential entry into the U.S. These modern-day beneficiaries of South Africa's colonialization and racial apartheid eras own 72% of the country's land. This land was taken from South Africa's indigenous black population by deadly force and without compensation between 1806 and 1992. Trump made the U.S. Congress irrelevant and reduced its GOP members to spineless minions.  In a dramatic reversal of the role to empower their respective states, MAGA-affiliated U.S. Senators and House Members are now forced to acquiecse in the loss of hundreds of bilions of dollars from Elon Musk’s draconian cuts to federal programs that enhanced the quality of life for their political constituents. Trump dismantled the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which has uplifted humanity around the globe for many decades. Trump used the threat of tariffs to make adversaries out of America’s longtime allies. Thanks to these threats and Trump's cutoff of USAID funding, most of the 195 sovereign nations recognized by the United Nations now resent America and dislike Americans. Trump elevated Israel to “Golden Boy” status, even though this nation provides nothing of value to the United States beyond a steady supply of predatory lenders and well-funded political action committees that buy U.S. politicians (from top to bottom) at bargain basement prices.  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal with an outstanding arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court. Netanyahu's campaign of genocide against innocent Palestinians in Gaza is as well-documented as Adolf Hitler’s campaign of genocide against Jews, Black Germans, Gypsies, Gay Germans, and other “undesirable” during World War II. Trump has commenced negotiating so-called "peace deals" in the Ukraine-Russia and Hamas-Israel wars that guarantee the continuation of long-term violent conflicts in those regions for decades.  Trump created an Imperial Presidency through the unprecedented use of Executive Orders and his elimination of all guardrails on the presidency.  With popular support from MAGA loyalists and many independent voters, Trump was able to convert the Presidency into an authoritarian Monarchy where everybody seeking federal government assistance must kiss Trump’s presidential ring or ass, whichever one he prefers on any given day. Trump neutered the U.S. Supreme Court during his first term in office. In his second term, Trump started controlling individual Justices by protecting them from bribery investigations and accommodating their requests for personal favors, trinkets, and clandestine perks.   President Trump’s achievements in just one month are as dubious as they are disturbing.  No U.S. president has been able to touch as many lives in such a negative way in such a short period of time.   By exposing the sheer numbers and categories of weak-kneed, compromised, and shallow public officials in America and heads of state around the world, Donald Trump has done all Americans a tremendous favor.  We needed to know this information and see this political subjugation for ourselves.

By: Donald V. Watkins November 5, 2022 Since 2000, Wells Fargo Bank has violated federal criminal and civil laws on 228 occasions. The bank has paid $22,081,446,244 in penalties and fines for doing so. No Wells Fargo executive was prosecuted for this avalanche of lawbreaking. In law enforcement jargon, Wells Fargo is a "habitual offender" with a rap sheet that is long and ugly. If you or I broke federal banking laws on 228 occasions, we would be deemed “incorrigible” and labeled as a “career criminal.” We would be prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to long prison terms. The prosecutors and judges in our case would brag about how they protected society from dangerous criminal activity. Wells Fargo Always Gets Away With Its Crime Sprees The crimes committed by Wells Fargo include major felonies like bank fraud, price-fixing, bid-rigging and other forms of anti-competitive practices, money laundering, economic sanctions violations, toxic securities abuses (which is a euphemism for "securities fraud") and mortgage abuses (which is a euphemism for as “mortgage fraud).” Click here to see Wells Fargo’s 228 violations of federal criminal and civil laws, as compiled by Violation Tracker. You can also review the details of each violation of law. You need to review all three pages of violations to get a full and complete picture of the 228 violations of law committed by Wells Fargo and its affiliates since 2000. In each case, federal law enforcement and regulatory agencies simply fined Wells Fargo, and allowed the bank to moved on. Obviously, the government’s 228 symbolic slaps on Well Fargo’s wrist did not deter the bank and its top executives from continuing to engage in an ongoing criminal enterprise. What is more disgusting is this equally disturbing fact: All of the big Wall Street banks have a comparable record of breaking federal criminal and civil laws with impunity . When Wells Fargo, its Wall Street peers in the banking industry, and their top executives get caught committing serial felony offenses, they simply pay a fine and promise not to break the law again. The money for the fines is always passed on to their bank customers. In 2020, Wells Fargo paid $3 billion to settle bank fraud charges arising out of a nationwide fraud scheme they ran from 2002 to 2016 in which the bank created millions of fake bank accounts to bilk customers out of billions of dollars in bank fees. No one at Well Fargo was prosecuted for this 14-year crime spree that was sanctioned by the bank's top executive officers. As a result, Wells Fargo continued to implement new schemes to bilk its customers out of money. Today, Wells Fargo is under pressure from the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to pay more than $1 billion to settle a slew of investigations into customer mistreatment, according to Bloomberg News. A Modern-day Untouchable Wells Fargo, which is headquartered in California, is a publicly traded company that sells shares of stock on Wall Street under the ticker “WFC.” The bank is a major player in the financial services industry. Since 2000, Wells Fargo has acquired Wachovia Bank, First Union Bank, A.G. Edwards, Prudential Securities, Strong Capital Management, Evergreen Investment Management Company, Ragen Mackenzie Investment Services LLC, and a host of related-affiliates. Wells Fargo’s culture of financial crimes has spilled over to its affiliate entities, as well. Bank regulators and federal prosecutors are afraid to prosecute the CEOs of the so-called “Big Banks.” They enjoy immunity from prosecution, whether a Democrat or Republican president occupies the White House. In essence, Wells Fargo and its Wall Street peers are modern-day untouchables, and they know it. Not one of the bank executives at the big Wall Street banks was prosecuted for running their banks into the ground during the Great Recession of 2008 and for losing $13 trillion in American wealth in the process. In stark contrast to the U.S. Justice Department’s ingratiating treatment for this class of financial crooks, Iceland sent 26 top bank executives to jail for their roles in causing the 2008 global recession. The Big Bankers Thanked Americans by Giving Us the Middle Finger In 2009, President Barack Obama bailed out many of the big Wall Street banks with taxpayer’s money, which they promptly used to give themselves bigger bonuses. These bankers thanked American taxpayers for this generosity by giving us the middle finger and by finding new and creative ways to cheat their customers and hoodwink bank regulators. Wells Fargo and other big Wall Street banks don’t pay any attention to federal prosecutors. The Big Banks routinely buy off federal prosecutors by giving them high-paying jobs when their careers in government are over or by allowing them handle legal cases for the banks after they join a private law firm. As such, federal prosecutors are not trying to bite the Wall Street bank hand that might feed them in the future. Interestingly, the non-stop criminal conduct committed by Well Fargo and its Wall Street peers would never be tolerated by federal prosecutors if it was committed by one of America's 21 black-owned banks. Bank regulators and federal prosecutors would use a sledgehammer to punish any black-owned bank or black bank executive who committed just one of the 228 offenses on Wells Fargo’s rap sheet. Just so that you know, Wells Fargo and other “Big Banks” in America own whoever is in the White House and most members of Congress. They control the very state and federal bank regulators who are supposed to "regulate" their business conduct. And, no U.S. Attorney General is going to prosecute Wells Fargo and its Wall Street peers for the bank fraud, wire fraud, bid-rigging, price-fixing, money laundering, securities fraud, mortgage fraud, or any other felony offense they commit on a routine basis. These banks are viewed as too big to prosecute! They are truly above the law. This is the real reason why they are career criminals.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 14, 2025 An Editorial Opinion Happy Valentine’s Day, America! I regret to inform you that on this Valentine's Day, America is in deep financial trouble! We are broke.   America is $36.5 trillion in debt .  Each citizen's share of this debt is $107,196 .  Each taxpayer's share of this debt is $323,047 .  The net interest on this $36.5 trillion national debt is over $1 trillion per year.  Additionally, the federal debt to GDP ratio is a shocking 122% . You can see every aspect of this $36.5 trillion national debt for yourself in real-time . Just click on this link: www.usdebtclock.org . The graphic details of the national debt will shock you.   Republicans and Democrats, alike, have failed to lead us on restoring fiscal responsibility to our national government.  Rather than solving the national debt crisis, our politicians in Washington simply keep raising the debt limit on America's unsecured national credit card. This reckless move guarantees that the nation will plunge further into debt.   There is no way America can grow itself out of this $36.5 trillion national debt, even with deep, pro-business tax cuts for the super-rich and lesser tax cuts for ordinary American taxpayers.  The projected revenues from all sources in the federal government's budget for fiscal year 2025 is only $5.2 trillion . Likewise, DOGE Chief Elon Musk will not find $36.5 trillion in fraud, waste, and abuse to cut from the annual federal budget.  To date, Musk has found only $93 billion in budget cuts.   The U.S. Debt Clock tells the story in real-time.  We are drowning in debt. As a nation, we are in a complete financial mess.  Politicians on both sides of the aisle have been spending money that we do not have at speeds that rival Olympic sprinting events. One day, this $36.5 trillion national debt will come crashing down on all American taxpayers and citizens. Until then, enjoy your Valentine's Day!

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on July 5, 2024 An Editorial Opinion Now that America's annual 4th of July celebration is over, I want to discuss the Declaration of Independence from a historical and personal perspective.   The 13 colonies' Declaration of Independence from King George, III, is a revered document in American history.  It contains a list of 27 grievances against the British monarchy that justified the American Revolution.    Most Americans have never read the Declaration of Independence.   They just know it is an important document in America’s history. Grievance 27 in the Declaration of Independence expressly demeans my African-American and Native-American ancestry.  Here is how and why:   Grievance 27  states:  "[King George] has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and conditions." According to the National Park Service and numerous historians, this statement is often interpreted as one grievance.  In reality, it is two separate grievances.   The Grievance Relating to Runaway Slaves of African Descent   The  “ domestic insurrections ”  brought on by the British refers primarily to Lord Dunmore’s proclamation that any slaves that ran away from their masters to join him in fighting the rebellious colonists would be granted their freedom.  A significant part of Dunmore's force that attacked the Virginia coast was composed of runaway slaves.   Additionally, the English case of  Somerset v. Stewart  (1772) limited the rights of Southern slave owners in their slaves.  In this case, the master of a runaway slave from Virginia petitioned the King's Court for his return.  The Chief Justice of the King’s Court, Lord Mansfield (William Murray), ruled:   "The state of slavery is of such a nature that it is incapable of being introduced on any reasons, moral or political, but only by positive law, which preserves its force long after the reasons, occasions, and time itself from whence it was created, is erased from memory. It is so odious, that nothing can be suffered to support it, but positive law. Whatever inconveniences, therefore, may follow from the decision, I cannot say this case is allowed or approved by the law of England; and therefore the black must be discharged."   So, the runaway slave was not returned.  News of this case spread throughout the colonies. The legal principle that a slave could secure his freedom by escaping slavery caused great alarm in the South.  It was viewed as insurrectionist conduct within the 13 colonies.   Furthermore, the “Founding Fathers” were painfully aware of how hypocritical they were being in stating that  “all men are created equal”  while maintaining the institution of slavery in the colonies.  For example, Thomas Jefferson, a signatory to the Declaration of Independence and the 3rd president of the United States, owned 267 slaves in1822.  Jefferson whipped his slaves and sold them into the Deep South to instill fear and obedience in them. Jefferson only freed three slaves during his lifetime and five at his death  – all of them were blood relatives.  So, the reference to " all men are created equal " in the Declaration of Independence really applied to white men only. The Declaration's failure to expressly condemn slavery eventually paved the way for  the Confederate Constitution of 1861 . Though this Constitution largely mimics the U.S. Constitution, it is replete with references to “ the institution of negro slavery ,” “ negroes of the African race ,” and “ negro slaves .” It specifically forbids the Confederate Congress from passing any “ law denying or impairing the right of property in negro slaves .”   The Grievance Relating to "Merciless Indian Savages" The designation of Native Americans as “ merciless Indian savages ” is overtly racist and has driven U.S. policy towards 574 federally recognized Indian Tribes for more than 400 years. Benjamin Franklin, another signatory to the Declaration of Independence, called Native-Americans “ ignorant savages . ” America's treatment of Native-Americans was awful before and after the Declaration of Independence. After the Revolutionary War to free America as an English colony and after the Ohio War in 1790, President George Washington regarded Native-Americans as " animals of prey " who should be slaughtered and their cultures destroyed. In 1845, William Gilmore Simms wrote, " Our binding prejudices .... have been fostered as necessary to justify the reckless and unsparing hand with which we have smitten [Native Americans] in their habitations and expelled them from their country ." In 1871, Francis A. Walker, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, considered Native-Americans so far beneath morality that he said, " When dealing with savage men, as with savage beasts, no question of national honor can arise . " Every treaty America's national government, territorial governments, and private companies made with Indian Nations was broken by the white man. The white men's lack of trustworthiness and honest dealings eventually gave rise to the term " Indian-Giver. " By any objective definition, America's national government fully and officially embraced the concept of "white supremacy" in its dealing with Native-Americans from the 1600s up to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. During this period of time, an estimated 60 million Native-Americans were exterminated by white European settlers, U.S. Army soldiers, and white vigilantes on the Western Frontier. Adolf Hitler admired our concentration camps for American Indians in the west and according to John Toland, his biograoher, " often praised to his inner circle the efficiency of America's extermination -- by starvation and uneven combat" as the model for his extermination of Jews and Gypsies (Rom people) . " Epilogue   For more than four centuries, white historians, government scribes, and news reporters have recorded America's mistreatment of Native-Americans in the light most favorable to whites. This body of spin-masters has lied over and over again about the nature and scope of slavery and Indian-white relationships in America. African-Americans and Native-Americans have seen, experienced, and endured the worst aspects of white behavior in this country. Yet, they remain very proud people, and they still form the heart and soul of this nation. We must always remember that Native-Americans were the first Americans. The rest of us are descendants of poor European migrants who came to America willingly or African slaves who came here involuntarily in the hell holes of slave ships. Of course, it is illegal in Old Confederate states to teach this history of the Declaration of Independence in public schools. This documented history has been labeled as a "critical race theory" by modern-day "white supremacists" and those politicians who advance their causes. Regardless, I am very proud of my African American and Native-American ancestry. I am also proud of the positive aspects of my white heritage , via Michael Daley and the Carmichael family . I embrace the positive values of all three cultures. I respect the tradition of Americans whose ancestry was not condemned or demeaned in the Declaration of Independence to celebrate the 4th of July with joy in their hearts. Freedom from a monarch's subjugation is always a wonderful thing. On a personal level, I celebrate President Abraham Lincoln's January 1, 1863 Emancipation Proclamation and June 19, 1865 (Juneteenth), when the last slaves in the South were freed by the Union army . Freedom from perpetual enslavement is also a wonderful thing, particularly for the enslaved people.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on March 25, 2021 Bob Barker Co.'s Fuquay-Varina, NC location Most Americans have never heard of the Bob Barker Co., Inc., in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. This is not a company founded and run by Bob Barker of the “Price is Right” TV game show. This Bob Barker company supplies a wide range of goods for U.S. prisoners and prison staff. The company bills itself as a “worldwide leader in delivering innovative products and services to correctional and rehabilitation customers”. Bob Barker Company is a privately owned company. As such, its annual gross receipts are not readily available to the public. However, Dun & Bradstreet reports the company’s annual revenues at an estimated $175.6 million. Owler reports the company’s annual revenues at $105.6 million. The company supplies the nation’s 122 federal prisons with low-quality, high-price, foreign-manufactured goods such as toothpaste, toothbrushes, razors, shaving gel, body wash, soap, handwash, shampoo/conditioner, grooming products, combs, brushes, clippers, lotion, toiletry items, hand sanitizers, OTC meds, inmate uniforms, other clothing items and undergarments, shoes, sheets/blankets, towels/wash clothes, laundry supplies, paper/writing supplies, reading glasses, plastic chairs/tables, mirrors, padlocks, hand cuffs, leg irons, officer’s uniforms, and a host of other foreign-made products. All of these products were made in America in the recent past, and many still are. During the ‘’America First” era of the Donald Trump presidency (from January 2017 to January 2021), the Bob Barker Company flooded the U.S. Bureau of Prisons with manufactured goods from China, Vietnam, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, South Korea, Canada, and a host of third-world emerging countries. The Bureau’s steel handcuffs are proudly engraved with the country of origin, “Made in Korea”. In 2006, the company merged with its primary national rival for the prison niche market – Leslee Scott, Inc. – to further grow Bob Barker’s product offering to include Officers Only items and gear. This merger produced somewhat of a monopoly for Bob Barker in its market share for prison goods. Allegations of Utilizing Sweatshop Labor In 2008, a Bob Barker/Leslee Scott factory in Bangladesh was investigated in connection with sweeping allegations of sweatshop labor. The company contracted with Bangladesh vendor, Arena Fashion Wear under Contract #C18257-04-X-35622 to manufacture undergarments, women’s panties and brassieres . While company president Robert Barker, Jr., denied the allegations of sweatshop labor, the following working conditions were reported at Arena’s Chittagong, Bangladesh manufacturing facility: There was no safe drinking water; workers drank water from the toilets. The high hourly production target was hard to meet. If workers did not meet the target, they had to work overtime. Workers reported some shifts each month from 8 a.m. to 3 a.m. the next day, followed by another shift starting at 8 a.m. Workers cited physical punishment, including beatings for refusal of shifts, absences, or mistakes. Despite these reported conditions, Bob Barker describes its company’s vision in glowing terms: “Transforming criminal justice while honoring God in all we do”. Honoring Republican Politicians, Too! In addition to “honoring God”, the Bob Barker company has a pretty good track record of honoring Republican politicians, as well. According to records from the General Accounting Office, the company had one $31,000 contract with the Bureau of Prisons in 1995, one $35,000 contract in 1999, and one $30,000 contract in 2003. Business picked up for the company in 2004 with 11 contracts and took off in 2005 with 77 contracts. It has continued at this pace since 2005. During the 2020 campaign season, individuals affiliated with Bob Barker contributed the following amounts to prominent Republican candidates and political action committees, among others: Donald Trump - $13,625 Republican National Committee - $10,384 National Republican Senatorial Committee - $8,050 Lindsey Graham - $7,500 Kevin McCarthy - $5,600 Kelly Loeffler - $2,352 Mark Meadows - $1,500 Republican Party of Georgia - $5,000 National Republican Congressional Committee - $4,600 Republican Party of North Carolina - $3,425 Black Americans to Re-elect the President - $2,500 Devin Nunes - $1,000 Ted Cruz - $500 Virginia Foxx - $7,600 Thom Tillis - $6,450 In all, Bob Barker’s affiliated individuals contributed a total of $134,002 to political recipients in 2020. Of this amount, $124, 963 (98.34%) was contributed to Republicans and $2,114 (or 1.66%) was contributed to Democrats. Of the $2,114 that was contributed to Democrats, $1,271 was contributed to Joe Biden’s campaign. Trump was president in 2020, while Lindsey Graham (R-SC) was chairman of the Senate Judicial Committee that oversees the Department of Justice and Bureau of Prisons. Business flourished for the Bob Barker Company during Donald Trump's presidency and Lindsey Graham's Judiciary Committee chairmanship. In Washington political circles, the Bob Barker Company's national contracts with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons were viewed as "protected" contract concessions, even though they hurt American manufacturers. In 2008, Republican political candidates received 100% of the Bob Barker affliliated contributions. In 2010, they also received 100% of these contributions. In 2012, Republicans received 98.99% of the company’s affiliated contributions. In 2014, 2016, and 2018, Republicans again received 100% of Bob Barker’s affiliated political contributions. Epilogue In the political world, money talks – loudly. “America First” was mere campaign rhetoric spewing from the mouths of Republican politicians in Washington. In reality, political self-interest came first (from 2017 to 2021) and, as always, American manufacturers were screwed in the process. What responsible and accountable Director of the U.S Bureau of Prisons would use handcuffs that proudly proclaimed in engraved steel, “Made in Korea”? Only one who thought he could hoodwink the American public. All articles are shared on Facebook and Twitter. If you would like to follow Donald Watkins, please click on these links and hit the follow button: https://www.facebook.com/donald.v.watkins https://twitter.com/donaldvwatkins