By: Donald V. Watkins © Copyrighted and Published on March 6, 2020 Federal prosecutors in actress Lori Loughlin's college cheating case in Boston have, themselves, been caught in the act of cheating. Unbelievably, these prosecutors withheld 309 pages of notes made by their star witness, William "Rick" Singer, after he began cooperating with the FBI and the prosecutors on the case. They have now turned this exculpatory evidence over to Loughlin's defense counsel. This startling new development was announced in court last week. Under the law, federal prosecutors had a mandatory duty under the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Brady case to disclose to the defense team any and all evidence that is exculpatory or favorable to the defendants in the case -- Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli. When prosecutors deliberately withheld Singer's 309 pages of notes from the defense until last week, their failure to timely produce this body of exculpatory evidence to defense counsel constituted prosecutorial misconduct. Among the Singer documents prosecutors failed to turn over to the Loughlin-Giannulli defense team was a note in which Singer details his "loud and abrasive call" with FBI agents. According to Singer, "they continue to ask me to tell a fib" about where Lori Loughlin's money was going. "It was a donation," Singer wrote, "and they want it to be a payment." Singer's note confirms what Loughlin and Giannulli have said all along -- the money paid to Singer was intended as a donation to the University of Southern California. A donation is legally permissible, while a bribe is not. The University has a longstanding tradition of admitting the children and relatives of big donors. Nearly all prestigious colleges and universities give an admissions preference to the relatives of donors. As is often the case, the FBI demanded that Singer lie about Loughlin's donation to USC in order to fit their false "bribery" narrative of the case. This kind of law enforcement misconduct is called "twisting" the evidence. This practice is illegal in every state whenever private parties "twist" the facts into a knowingly false and misleading narrative. FBI agents are notorious for "twisting" evidence and for pressuring witnesses to change their testimony to conform to the prosecution's theory of the case. This is why they do not tape-record witness statements. They are the only law enforcement agency in America that does not tape-record interviews with witnesses and suspects. This is because FBI agents want the flexibility to massage and change witness statements over time. In Loughlin's case, the prosecution team got caught cheating in an effort to win their case against the defendants. It is now up to U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel Gorton to decide what he will do about the prosecutorial misconduct in Loughlin's case. If he follows the applicable case law, Judge Gorton will reprimand the prosecutors, or sanction them with fines or jail time, and/or he may even dismiss the indictment against Loughlin and Giannulli. One thing is for sure -- if prosecutors hid this exculpatory evidence from the defendants, they most likely hid it from the grand jury, as well. This form of cheating would also be a violation of their affirmative duty under the U.S. Attorney's Manual, which governs their conduct. If Judge Gorton, who was appointed to the federal bench by President George H.W. Bush in 1992, is a run-of-the-mill judicial "fluffer" for prosecutors, as most federal judges are, he will make up some lame excuse for taking no adverse action against the prosecution team. If Gorton is a fair-minded judge who enforces the law on an even-handed basis, he will punish prosecutors for their misconduct in this case. Singer's notes also discuss the FBI's focus on Attorney Gordon Caplan, the co-chairman of a prestigious law firm in Los Angeles. Singer said the FBI wanted to "nail Gordon at all cost." The agency singled out Gordon for personal destruction. This action constitutes impermissible "targeting," which occurs frequently with rogue FBI agents and prosecutors. This is why President Donald Trump has labeled FBI agents as "scum" and federal prosecutors as "corrupt." They almost always cheat to win. They feel entitled to cheat because very few federal judges will hold federal prosecutors and FBI agents accountable for breaking the rules. Private attorneys who get caught cheating to win trials are disbarred. Prosecutors who get caught cheating are routinely forgiven by trial judges, which is why these prosecutors continuously cheat to win. Loughlin and Giannulli will go on trial in October in Boston federal court, unless Judge Gorton tosses out the case. The couple has been charged with wire fraud, mail fraud, and bribery. Both defendants maintain their innocence. If convicted, they face up to 50 years in prison. On January 8, 2020, I published an article titled, "Lori Loughlin's Case Cries Out for Jury Nullification." The prosecutorial misconduct in this case is despicable. It shows exactly why trial jurors in Loughlin's case must put the breaks on this kind of government lawlessness. Jurors can stop this kind of prosecutorial abuse by exercising the power they hold under the doctrine of jury nullification.

By: Donald V. Watkins © Copyrighted and Published on March 5, 2020 Early Wednesday morning, President Donald J. Trump thrashed former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, again. The President commented about Sessions' second place finish in the Alabama Republican primary for the U.S. Senate seat once held by Sessions. Trump tweeted this message to his followers: "This is what happens to someone who loyally got appointed Attorney general of the United States & then doesn't have the wisdom or courage to stare down & end the phony Russia Witch Hunt. Recuses himself on FIRST DAY in office, and the Mueller Scam begins!" Sessions faces a March 31, 2020 runoff against former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville, who finished in 1st place. Tuberville, a newcomer to politics, led Tuesday's vote with 32.24%, while Sessions garnered 31.15% of the vote. The remaining votes were split between U.S. Representative Bradley Byrne (26.76%) and Former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore (6.98%). Sessions defended himself Wednesday in a news release by his spokesperson stating,"[Sessions] says they had a disagreement and he still loves Donald Trump." Sessions' characterized his desertion of Trump on the partisan battlefield in Washington during the Robert Mueller criminal investigation as a simple "disagreement." Mueller's grand jury probe was part of an unsuccessful coup d'etat initiated by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, several disgruntled White House staffers, a handful of disloyal cabinet members, and other administration officials to overthrow Trump's presidency. Sessions was a willing participant in the coup d'etat and, as Attorney General, played a pivotal role in the coup throughout 2017 and 2018. Trump has made it clear over the last three years that he has absolutely no use for Jeff Sessions in Washington, or elsewhere. The President has berated and belittled Sessions publicly on numerous occasions. Trump views Jeff Sessions as a "field general" who deserted his commander-in-chief during the heat of battle. Sessions has tried to overcome the President's profound disdain for him by becoming a cheerleader for Trump. The President wants and needs political soldiers who are willing to stand with him and fight. He does not need political cheerleaders in key positions.

A Commentary By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 28, 2020 I read a deeply moving and inspirational article by Greg Garrison, a reporter at AL.com, about Dr. Harold Franklin, Auburn University's first black student. Garrison's article describes Dr. Franklin's ordeal in integrating Auburn University in 1964, and the 51-year journey by Dr. Franklin to get the master's degree from Auburn that he earned five decades ago. I sincerely thank Mr. Garrison for bringing this heart-warming story to the public's attention. I took a special interest in Dr. Franklin's ordeal because so many aspects of his journey reminded me of my oldest sister Marie Garraway's ordeal at Northwestern University from 1958 to 1961 for her undergraduate degree in mathematics, and in 1962 for her master's degree. It also reminded me of my brother Levi Watkins, Jr.'s ordeal when he integrated Vanderbilt University's medical school in 1966. Finally, it brought back a lot of repressed memories of my own ordeal when I desegregated The University of Alabama's law school in 1970, along with George Jones from Birmingham. Dr. Franklin graduated from Alabama State College in 1962, a few months before my father, Dr. Levi Watkins, Sr., became the college's president. Dr. Franklin sought and was denied admission to Auburn University to pursue a master's degree in history. In 1963, Dr. Franklin sued Auburn University to gain enrollment to its graduate program. Legendary Montgomery, Alabama federal judge Frank M. Johnson ordered Auburn to enroll Dr. Franklin. Segregationist governor, George C. Wallace, tried to block Dr. Franklin's enrollment. Fortunately, this effort was unsuccessful. Dr. Franklin was escorted onto campus by an FBI agent. Dr. Franklin was housed in a dormitory wing all by himself. In Marie's case, white students at Northwestern did not want to be her roommate. Eventually, Northwestern found Jewish students who were willing to room with Marie. In Levi's case, he was in a dorm room by himself. He was also the victim of non-stop racial slurs and horrible acts of harassment and vandalism. I shutter to imagine the racism Dr. Franklin must have experienced in 1964 at Auburn. Yet, he overcame it all without a bitter bone in his body. Dr. Franklin's sheer determination and strength of character enabled him to survive the isolation and loneliness during his ordeal. The same was true for Marie and Levi. When I desegregated UA's law school in 1970, I was the only black student in my section of 75 freshman students. George sat alone in his section of freshman law students. No one ever sat next to me in the classroom during my three years there. Fellow students and a few faculty members openly and regularly used the word "nigger" when referring to me. My law school years were the longest and loneliest three years of my life. I credit Mr. Ramus Rhodes, the brave and intellectually gifted black janitor in the law school building, for getting me through this challenging ordeal. A Soldier of Conscience Named Keith Hebert When Dr. Keith Hebert, an associate professor of history at Auburn and chair of the thesis committee learned of Dr. Franklin's experience 51 years ago, he took several faculty members to visit Dr. Franklin at his home in Sylacauga in early November, 2019. They asked Dr. Franklin if he still had his thesis. He did, and Dr. Franklin showed it to these visitors. Dr. Hebert scanned the thesis and distributed copies to faculty members. The thesis was evaluated by the committee from the era in which it was written and was compared to what was written, submitted, and approved for other master's students during that era. Auburn also located and reviewed Dr. Franklin's student records to confirm that he completed his course requirements. After this review, the committee determined that Dr. Franklin's thesis was well-researched and that he had fulfilled all requirements for the award of his master's degree. The committee then approved Dr. Franklin's thesis. The approval came with a formal apology from the University for the delay in awarding Dr. Franklin his earned master's degree. Even though Dr. Franklin received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree from Auburn in 2001, he will finally receive the master's degree he earned 51 years ago. The degree will be awarded during the May 3rd commencement ceremonies. Dr. Hebert led the Auburn University effort to award Dr. Franklin the master's degree he earned. His actions demonstrate that it is never too late to do the right thing. By his actions, Dr. Hebert is a soldier of conscience. A Trail Blazer, Unsung Civil Rights Hero, and Man of Honor After leaving Auburn, Dr. Franklin went on to earn a master's degree in international studies at the University of Denver. He never stopped elevating his educational status. Dr. Franklin is a trailblazer, unsung civil rights hero, and man of honor. He grew up in Talladega and now lives in Sylacauga. Dr. Franklin taught history at famed Tuskegee University from 1965 to 1968. Later, he became a professor of history at Talladega College, where he served on the faculty from 1968 until his retirement in 1992. Finally, Alabama State University should acknowledge Dr. Franklin's courage and pioneering work at Auburn University by conferring an honorary doctorate upon this distinguished alumnus during its May commencement ceremony. Dr. Franklin's academic preparation at ASU, together with his enduring efforts to uplift humanity, changed the course of history at Auburn University and positively impacted the Alabama's system of higher education forever. He is truly an inspiration to all Americans. Thank you, Dr. Harold Franklin for showing us the proper way to greatness!

By: Donald V. Watkins © Copyrighted and Published on February 26, 2020 Judas Iscariot was one of Jesus Christ's most trusted disciples. He was also the one who betrayed Christ. His betrayal led to Jesus' trial and crucifixion. President Donald Trump has a "Judas Iscariot" in his inner circle. Right now, Trump loyalists are compiling lists of so-called "Never-Trumpers" who work in the White House and in various national government agencies. The President is intent on purging disloyal political appointees in the aftermath of his acquittal in the recent Senate impeachment trial. Thus far, Trump's "Judas Iscariot" has escaped the purge, thanks in large part to his Chameleon-like ability to evade White House scrutiny and detection. Make no mistake about it, Trump's "Judas Iscariot" is well-placed in his administration. He privately fumes about Trump's lack of class and he resents the success of Trump's family business empire. This man has already betrayed the President on more than one occasion. In 2018, Trump's "Judas Iscariot," along with other coup d'etat plotters who were White House staffers and cabinet members, believed that Trump was too "unstable" and "unfit" to serve as president. They actually considered the implementation of an ill-fated plan to remove Trump from office by invoking the disability clause in the 25th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Trump's "Judas Iscariot" had an active, direct, but very discreet channel of communication to Jeff Sessions, who served as Trump's first Attorney General. Sessions, who was regularly and publicly scorned by Trump for deserting the President during Special Counsel Robert Mueller's criminal investigation, signaled his support for an invocation of the 25th Amendment. The channel of communication between Trump's "Judas Iscariot" and Sessions appeared to be benign on its face. In reality, it was operated in a clandestine fashion that protected Trump's "Judas Iscariot." In Washington, this "cloak and dagger" technique is called "plausible deniability." "Anonymous" alluded to this 25th Amendment vehicle for the coup d'etat in his September 5, 2018 Op-Ed article published in the New York Times. Regardless of his motivation, "Anonymous" was telling the truth about the 25th Amendment scenario. A Longtime Track Record of Uncovering Wrongdoing and Clandestine Activities Due to the highly sensitive nature of this information, I will only disclose the identity of the President's "Judas Iscariot" to the President himself or to Jared Kushner, who is Trump's son-in-law. I will also describe the attempted coup d'etat in detail and name the other key coup participants. The inside story of how this attempted coup d'etat evolved is simply fascinating and it has never been reported. I don't trust anyone else in Washington with this information. President Trump and/or Mr. Kushner can readily verify my track record of uncovering wrongdoing and clandestine activities by simply reviewing the classified government files in two matters. Each matter requires a "top secret" security clearance, which both men have. First, President Trump and Mr. Kushner can review the classified Pentagon file on the "suicide" of 19-year-old Army Private LaVena Johnson on a U.S. military base in Balad, Iraq in July 2005. In truth, Private Johnson did not commit suicide. She was murdered by a married four-star Army general after Private Johnson inadvertently stumbled upon this officer while he was engaged in the heat of passion with a female civilian contractor. The general had previously been ordered to end this extramarital affair by Peter J. Schoomaker, Army Chief of Staff when the murder occurred. The general ignored this direct order. After Private Johnson's murder, the top Commander for Iraqi Operations briefed President George W. Bush on Private Johnson's "suicide" (which was one of 85 suicides involving military personnel in 2005) during a private briefing he gave to Bush in Washington that also included an update on the hunt for Osama Bin Laden. After this presidential briefing, the murderer was promptly fired as a four-star general and was immediately expelled from the Army. Private Johnson's file was then classified as a "national security" matter and sealed from public view. I named Private Johnson's murderer in a series of investigative articles I published in 2016 titled, "The Murder of Private LaVena Johnson." The four-star general named in the articles has never demanded a retraction or threatened to sue me for defamation. Private Johnson's "suicide" file remains classified 15 years after her death, and it requires the signature of the Secretary of Defense and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff before this file is released to the media or public. If President Trump or Mr. Kushner reads Private Johnson's file, he will see for himself that the name of the murderer in her classified Pentagon file is the same four-star general named in my published article. Second, President Trump or Mr. Kushner can review the classified intelligence files on how America purchased "hot nukes" from the Russian mafia and high-level Soviet military officers after 9/11 for $100 million apiece to keep them off the black market. After the purchases were made, these nuclear weapons were flown out of Russia by an Oregon-based NSA/CIA contractor to Huntsville, Alabama for decommissioning. This sensitive intelligence information has never been publicly disclosed before today. My confidential sources for investigative news reporting are reliable, trustworthy, and impeccable. This has been the case dating back to April 3, 1977 when the Washington Post published a two-page headline article on the 1975 police murder of Bernard Whitehurst. The article, titled "Alabama's Watergate," featured a nationally recognized police scandal that resulted in (a) the resignation of Montgomery, Alabama's mayor and police commissioner, (b) the indictment of three police officers, and (c) the firing or resignation of eight others. Thirty-eight years later, the City of Montgomery formally acknowledged (on a historic marker erected in front of the city's police headquarters) the murder of an unarmed Whitehurst by a rookie police officer and the massive police cover-up that ensued for two years after his death. Epilogue Anyone within Trump's administration who seeks to block President Trump from receiving the identity of his "Judas Iscariot" is likely protecting this man. The individual still poses a potential danger to Trump and his family. Like President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, Donald Trump survived an attempted coup d'etat. Unlike President Erdogan, President Trump has not yet rounded up all of the coup leaders, charged them with the appropriate crimes, prosecuted them to the fullest extent of the law, and imprisoned them. If Attorney General William Barr does not have the stomach for the administration of justice in this circumstance, Trump's Special Counsel, Pam Bondi, certainly does. Until recently, Ms. Bondi served as the two-term attorney general of Florida. She was also a key member of Trump's impeachment defense team. Finally, the "deep state" that President Trump frequently references in his speeches and tweets actually exists. This cabal of coup d'etat plotters attempted to take down the President of the United States in 2018. He survived and the rest is history.

By: Donald V. Watkins © Copyrighted and Published on February 23, 2020 On Friday, the American public learned that the price for immunity from prosecution for two million separate acts of federal wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy charges is $3 billion, if you are a big Wall Street bank like Wells Fargo. If a big Wall Street bank pays this price to the U.S. government, the chief executive officer and senior management executives who presided over a massive, multi-year fraud crime spree from 2012 to 2016 will not be charged with any federal crimes. Of course, ordinary Americans who are charged with wire fraud, mail fraud, and bank fraud and who are convicted in what President Donald Trump has proclaimed is a "rigged" criminal justice system must appear before a pro-prosecution federal judge, listen to a sanctimonious lecture from this judge about how he/she must punish the accused harshly as a deterrent to others who may commit bank fraud, and then face a lengthy sentence. The Cost of Wells Fargo-Style "Justice" in America. Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency announced the end of the criminal and civil investigations into Wells Fargo's four-year crime spree where the bank created two million fake bank accounts for existing customers for the sole purpose of bilking them out of unearned banking fees. Under the settlement, Wells Fargo agreed to pay $3 billion to make this criminal and civil exposure go away. Given Wells Fargo's annual revenues of $104 billion, the amount of the fine was the equivalent of a speeding ticket for ordinary Americans. In simple terms, the $3 billion fine was the cost of conducting a lucrative fraud scheme for four years. Neither the bank, nor the senior executive who presided over the fraud scheme faced criminal charges. Wells Fargo simply bought "justice" at a price it could readily afford -- $3 billion. Federal prosecutors, who normally slap each other on the back when pursuing wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy charges against political dissidents, Hollywood actresses, and working class Americans, sold the integrity of the criminal justice system for the banking equivalent to the Bible's "thirty pieces of silver." Justice "For Sale" is a Non-Partisan Thing Selling out the American public when it comes to fair justice is not a Republican or Democratic phenomenon. For example, President Barack Obama's Department of Justice did not prosecute a single chief executive officer of a Big Wall Street bank in the aftermath of the Great Recession of 2008 even though their collective lawlessness and greed caused $13 trillion in lost American wealth. To the contrary, Obama became bosom buddies with these culprits. President Donald Trump's Department of Justice is following in Obama's footsteps by not prosecuting big bank CEOs, regardless of the nature and scope of the crimes committed during the bank's crime spree. This is one area where the two men are alike. Unlike the Department of Justice's sellout to Wall Street bankers under the Obama and Trump administrations, Iceland prosecuted 26 former CEOs of big banks in Iceland for financial crimes that led up to the Great Recession. These executives were convicted of transgressions relating to extensive market manipulation, breach of fiduciary duties, embezzlement, bank fraud, insider trading, money laundering, lying to authorities, and related crimes. They have been sentenced to a combined 74 years in prison. Remember the Federal Judges Association that was "concerned" last week about justice in Roger Stone's case? Well, we have not heard a peep out of them. So much for their "Bullshit" about the "fair administration of criminal justice." The facade of "fair justice" in America has crumbled in a spectacular way with the end of the Wells Fargo case. The public can see for themselves how the super-wealthy immunize themselves from criminal prosecutions for their crime sprees by simply buying "justice" at the right price. It's always been "for sale" in America.

By: Donald V. Watkins © Copyrighted and Published on February 21, 2020 Federal judges are the only public officials in America who enjoy (a) lifetime appointments to their jobs under Article III of the U.S. Constitution and (b) the power under the 13th Amendment to the Constitution to subject citizens to a life of "slavery" or "involuntary servitude" as a punishment for crimes. Not even the President of the United States has this enormous power. Federal judges appointed under Article III of the Constitution can be removed from office only through an impeachment process. In exchange for granting federal judges this awesome status and power, the Founders expected them to be fair, independent, and apolitical guardians of justice. In reality, most federal judges today are little more than political operatives who team up with federal prosecutors to "rig" the criminal justice system in favor of prosecutors. In many instances, federal judges have morphed into embarrassing judicial "fluffers" for rogue prosecutors. On Tuesday, the Federal Judges Association interjected itself into the high-profile Roger Stone case. Founded in 1982, the 1,100-member association called an emergency meeting to address "concerns" about the intervention by Attorney general William Barr and President Donald Trump in the Roger Stone case. Yesterday, Judge Amy Berman Jackson, an Obama-appointee, sentenced Stone to three years and four months in prison after he was convicted on charges of obstruction, lying to Congress, and witness tampering. Members of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's prosecution team had originally asked Judge Jackson to impose a sentence on Roger Stone of seven to nine years. Trump and Barr blasted this recommended sentence as "excessive." Hypocrisy in Action The Federal Judges Association claims the organization supports "a fair, impartial, and independent judiciary." The Association's actions demonstrate blatant hypocrisy in this regard. Where was the Association's so-called "concern" about the fair administration of justice when Mark E. Fuller, the Chief U.S. District Court Judge in Montgomery, Alabama severely beat his second wife, Kelli, in a hotel room in Atlanta in 2015? Fuller, who was a serial wife-beater, was subsequently arrested by Atlanta police on a misdemeanor charge of spousal battery. After Fuller entered a pretrial diversion program, his case was quietly dismissed. When Judge Fuller was interviewed months later by a federal judicial inquiry commission about his vicious and bloody beating of Kelli, he lied about the incident in an effort to obstruct the investigation and shape its outcome. Even though Fuller's lies to the inquiry commission constituted perjury, he was never charged with this crime by federal prosecutors. Likewise, Fuller was never charged with obstructing the investigation by telling his lies. Additionally, Fuller was never charged with witness tampering even though there was evidence that he coached courthouse personnel on how to answer investigators' questions. Instead, Judge Fuller was allowed to resign with full pension benefits. He thereafter faded into the sunset, without fear of any criminal prosecution. When Roger Stone's case is compared to the favorable treatment federal prosecutors lavished upon Judge Fuller, the double standard of justice is glaring. Yet, the Federal Judges Association never voiced any "concern" about the favorable disposition of the Fuller case. After all, he was one of them. The Association chose to leap into action in Stone's case only when four rogue federal prosecutors, whom President Trump said are "corrupt" and accused of committing "real crimes" in the case, were reigned-in on their sentencing recommendation by Mr. Barr. Judge Jackson tacitly defended the conduct of these prosecutors even though it was not necessary to do so. Unfortunately, the Federal Judges Association will not be in any position, morally, legally or otherwise, to lecture President Trump or anyone else on the fair administration of justice until the Association rids itself of its own "in-your-face" judicial hypocrisy.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 19, 2020 Over the last seven decades, federal prosecutors have changed the definition of what constitutes the "fair administration of criminal justice." There was a time when prosecutors started their investigations after a crime had been committed or reported to them like kidnapping, murder, bank robbery, sex trafficking, airplane hijackings, acts of terrorism, hate crimes, racketeering, etc. They looked for the culprits who committed these crimes. By the 1950s, federal prosecutors embarked upon an expanded approach to what they called "criminal justice." Under this expanded approach, the FBI started targeting people and organizations that Bureau chief J. Edgar Hoover disliked. FBI agents and federal prosecutors would scour the law books and put investigators to work looking for any kind of offense to pin on the targeted citizens and organizations. The DOJ's expanded approach to the "fair administration of criminal justice" flourished during the reign of terror inflicted upon civil rights activists and other dissidents under the FBI's COINTELPRO program, which operated from 1956 to 1971. The individuals Hoover hated were targeted for personal destruction. Hoover's most famous COINTELPRO target was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., whom Hoover tried to pressure into committing suicide. The law books are filled with hundreds of federal crimes. Any federal prosecutor stands a fair chance of finding at least a technical violation of some act on the part of almost every citizen. What Makes Rogue Prosecutors Dangerous Federal prosecutors have more direct control over a person's life, liberty, and reputation than any other person in America. Their discretion is boundless. They can have citizens investigated. They can threaten and intimidate innocent people. They can destroy a person's reputation by simply interviewing his/her friends, family members, neighbors, church members, and co-workers in a way that implies some criminal activity. They can order arrests. They can present one-sided cases to a grand jury. They can cause a citizen to be indicted and held for trial. They can make recommendations as to sentencing in cases where the accused is found guilty in a "rigged" courtroom. And, they can stop a prisoner from being released. This is the evil President Trump seeks to eradicate. When federal prosecutors act with malice or other improper motives, they are the most dangerous people in America. Some of them are simply thugs with badges, especially the ones who hold the family members of targeted citizens as hostages. This is what happened to Donald Trump when rogue prosecutors pointed their prosecutorial guns at the heads of Trump's oldest three children. Rogue federal prosecutors scare the hell out of weak-kneed federal judges and national politicians. They have even frightened former U.S. presidents like John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. These prosecutors are not accountable to anyone, especially those individuals who are down-line career prosecutors. After decades of bombarding ordinary citizens and powerful men/women with the full force of the United States government and obtaining a 99% conviction rate through coerced guilty pleas and "rigged" trials presided over by pro-prosecution judges, top DOJ officials in 2017 thought they could use their traditional Blitzkrieg techniques in a coordinated but miscalculated effort to overthrow President Donald Trump's presidency. Their attempted coup d'etat, which was led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, failed miserably. This failed coup d'etat was a mistake of epic proportions. Unfortunately for the coup plotters, President Trump does not share Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s philosophy about "turning the other cheek". Trump always defends himself, and he makes sure the "slappers" are never in a position to slap his face again. This is why Trump's diehard supporters adore him. President Trump is working to stop rogue prosecutors from hurting other innocent Americans, as well. As president, Trump has the power and authority to do so. After all, the President is the nation's self-proclaimed "chief law enforcement officer." Trump's efforts to reign-in rogue prosecutors have created a firestorm of controversy within the ranks of former and current federal prosecutors. If federal judges would get off of their knees and stop serving as judicial "fluffers" for rogue federal prosecutors, President Trump would not have to fight the battle for transparency, accountability, and fairness within the DOJ. The war for criminal justice reform is raging because rogue DOJ officials boldly attacked President Trump and failed in their efforts to overthrow his presidency. President Trump's attempt to institute an effective system of internal supervision and accountability for career federal prosecutors is succeeding. Americans from all walks of life should stand with Trump in this crucial battle for the heart and soul of the DOJ.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 18, 2020 Roger Stone's case may be a blessing in disguise for America. The 67-year-old Stone is President Donald Trump's close friend. He was targeted by rogue federal prosecutors, charged with lying to Congress (which defense lawyers characterize as a "process crime"), convicted in what Trump calls a "rigged" federal court system, and is waiting to be sentenced this week in Washington by Amy Berman Jackson, a Barack Obama-appointed federal judge. The prosecutors in Stone's case -- Aaron Zelinsky, Jonathan Kravis, Adam Jed, and Michael Marando -- asked the judge to sentence him to seven to nine years in prison. President Trump, Attorney General William Barr, and other top Department of Justice (DOJ) officials have called this sentencing recommendation "horrible," "very unfair," a "miscarriage of justice," "excessive," "extreme," and "grossly disproportionate to Stone's offenses." In an obvious reference to the prosecutors in Stone's case, Trump noted that "[t]he real crimes were on the other side, as nothing happened to them." The four prosecutors in Stone's case reportedly threatened to quit the case and hold a news conference if they did not get their way. They were minions of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, the Obama administration's designated DOJ "hit man" for taking down Trump and subjecting his children to prosecutorial abuse. After two-years of sending Donald Trump and his oldest three children through pure hell, Mueller lost his nerve and declined to indict Trump on charges of colluding with Russia on the 2016 presidential election. However, Mueller's henchmen soldiered on, unsupervised and unaccountable to anyone in the DOJ. They pursued process crimes against a dozen or so low-level Trump campaign advisers to justify the $25 million of taxpayers' money that was spent on persecuting Trump. The federal judges who should have reigned-in these rogue prosecutors failed to do so. Most of them coddled these prosecutors and ignored their abuse of the criminal justice system. TV Pundits and Democrats are blasting Trump for "meddling" in the DOJ's internal affairs. More than 2,000 former DOJ prosecutors and officials have criticized Barr for overruling the excessive sentencing recommendation of the Mueller prosecutors. Under pressure, Barr even took a shot at Trump last week by complaining that the President was making it "impossible" for him to do his job. Hopefully, Barr is not morphing into another Jeff Sessions. President Trump may be subject to many criticisms, but he is right on this matter. The DOJ falls within the executive branch of our national government, which Trump heads. Every president has the clear power and authority to direct any and all operations of the Department, without exception. No Constitutional provision or federal law mandates that President Trump must stay out of any legal matter where the United States is a party. History is on Trump's Side President John F. Kennedy (a Democrat) appointed his brother, Robert "Bobby" Kennedy, as Attorney General to make sure rogue FBI agents, federal prosecutors and cooperating judges would never try to take down John Kennedy. The Kennedy brothers were well aware of how ruthless this group of DOJ officials could be. The brothers, who were philanderers inside and outside the White House, feared FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover and his rogue agents. They witnessed the lawlessness perpetrated by DOJ officials during the Bureau's infamous COINTELPRO era from 1956 to 1971. COINTELPRO targeted Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and thousands of other civil rights activists for harassment, trumped up criminal charges, home-cooking in the courtrooms of sympathetic federal judges, and the destruction of the victims' reputations and lives. The FBI even tried to pressure King into committing suicide. President Obama (a Democrat) appointed his friend, Eric Holder, as Attorney General to make sure rogue FBI agents and DOJ prosecutors did not turn on Obama. Holder even referred to himself as Obama's "wingman." Fully aware of the DOJ's torrid history of officially sanctioned COINTELPRO operations, Holder covered Obama's back and used the DOJ to protect and defend controversial public policies like ObamaCare and transgender restrooms in public schools that received federal funding. Following suit, President Trump appointed former U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) as Attorney General to make sure that the rogue FBI agents and federal prosecutors who hated Trump would not attempt a bloodless coup d'etat to overturn the outcome of the 2016 election. Unfortunately for Trump, Sessions turned out to be weak and compromised. He deserted the President as soon as Mueller declared war on Trump and his children. Donald Trump survived Mueller's nasty, vicious, and politically-motivated coup d'etat. Now is the time for President Trump to implement a genuine system of accountability within the ranks of DOJ's career prosecutors. He is the only person in government with the backbone to do it. Ordinary citizens cannot hold rogue prosecutors accountable because all prosecutors enjoy immunity from civil lawsuits. Most federal judges will not hold them accountable either. They willingly subjugate themselves to rogue prosecutors while exhibiting a "go along to get along" attitude. America's best chance for achieving meaningful criminal justice reform and accountability over unsupervised, "corrupt" prosecutors lies with Donald Trump. He knows, firsthand, the "evil" he is fighting within the DOJ. If Trump wins this fight, all Americans will benefit. Americans should step back and let President Trump's criminal justice reform initiatives clean up the corruption within the DOJ.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 15, 2020 Dear President Trump, I was shocked to see Attorney General William Barr's harsh criticism of your presidential tweets and public statements regarding several Department of Justice (DOJ) cases under investigation and in litigation, particularly the tweets about the Roger Stone case. Barr claimed your tweets were making it "impossible" to do his job. I am a lawyer, journalist, entrepreneur, and longtime political independent. I have 47-years of litigation experience in the federal court system. My track record as a litigator has resulted in a record number of landmark cases. (See, www.donaldwatkins.com). I have handled hundreds of civil cases where my clients' interests were aligned with those of the United States and quite a few criminal cases where their interests were adversarial to the government’s position. For the most part, the public policies of the United States are defined by the person who is elected as our president. As president, you have four to eight years to push your public policy initiatives through Congress. The DOJ's job is to defend these initiatives in the federal court system and to pursue the fair administration of criminal justice. One of the public policy initiatives you have championed is the long-overdue reform of the nation's "rigged" federal criminal justice system. This reform initiative is designed to reign-in the government's network of unelected, unsupervised, uncontrollable, and "corrupt" federal prosecutors. For a variety of reasons, the federal courts and past Attorneys General have refused to tackle this problem. Sir, you do not need a study commission to tell you how "rigged" the federal criminal justice system really is. You, Mr. President, experienced politically-motivated rogue federal prosecutors first hand. Barack Obama-era DOJ officials, including FBI Chief James Comey, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and many others in senior leadership positions in the DOJ tried to destroy you and your oldest three children during the first two years of your presidency. The designated "hit man" for this attempted coup d'etat was Special Counsel Robert Mueller. The only thing that stopped these rogue DOJ officials from succeeding was your intestinal fortitude, unconquerable spirit, and the sheer power of your tweets to the American people. You literally saved your children and yourself from the jaws of evil. Democrats were devastated when you de-balled Mueller. Jeff Sessions, your first Attorney General, was too weak and timid to reign-in the rogue Mueller prosecutors. Sessions made up some lame excuse that he had to recuse himself from the Mueller investigation to avoid supervising these officials. Sessions' recusal effectively green-lighted Mueller's reign of terror. Mueller's lawlessness eventually ensnared Roger Stone, Paul Manafort, Michael Cohen, Michael Flynn, George Papadopoulos, and others on trumped up process-related crimes (i.e., lying to Congress, making false statements to federal law enforcement officials, etc.), and not any substantive crimes that established collusion between the Trump Campaign and Russia. Now, William Barr is making excuses for presidential tweets that assure the American public that your criminal reform agenda is on track and is continuing in its success. With all due respect, Mr. Barr needs to implement your criminal justice reform policies without fear, embarrassment, or apologies, or he needs to get out of the way. You don't need another Jeff Sessions. Why Democrats and the Media Constantly Attack You On August 2, 2015, about three weeks after you announced your candidacy for president of the United States, I published an article titled, "Donald Trump's Newest Art of the Deal: Winning the American Presidency." The article explained why you would win the presidency. I did not support your candidacy because I believed the chasm of policy differences between us was too deep and wide to bridge. Likewise, I did not support Hillary Clinton either because I thought Ms. Clinton and Bill Clinton used Ms. Clinton's position as Secretary of State in the Obama administration to implement a pay-to-play scheme for the benefit of the Clinton Foundation. After you assumed office, I became one of your toughest critics. To this day, I strongly disagree with your policies on immigration, travel bans, global warming, your relationship with Vladimir Putin, and America's new form of isolationism from the international community. However, I strongly agree with your tax cuts, proposal for expanded scholarships for deserving inner city youths to attend prestigious charter schools, the renegotiated trade deals with Mexico and Canada, the new trade deal with China, your criminal justice reform initiatives, economic growth policies, and revamped approach to funding for NATO, the United Nations, and foreign aid to a host of foreign countries. You are the first president who has had the courage to say out loud what all modern-day presidents have said in private -- the DOJ is full of rogue FBI agents and prosecutors. You told the public the cold, hard, ugly truth about these people when you said: "Look how they've hurt people. They've destroyed the lives of people that were great people .... Their lives have been destroyed by scum. Okay, by scum." The FBI is the same agency that tried to make Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., commit suicide after calling him a "thug," a "filthy animal,", and an "evil, abnormal beast." The DOJ is the same agency that is described in a March 1996 OIG Report on "The Good Ol' Boys Roundup" that documented countless instances of FBI, ATF, DEA, and other federal law enforcement officials using hardcore racial slurs, disgusting racist skits, and moronic anti-black literature at an annual event from 1980 to 1995. These are the same kind of law enforcement officials who tried to make criminals out of you and your three oldest children. After their mean-spirited coup d'etat failed, their allies in Congress tried to remove you from the presidency through impeachment. Thanks to your political savvy and strong alliances with Republican Senators, this flimsy power play backfired. Ignore Media Pundits and Democratic Critics Various media pundits and Democratic critics are calling for you to leave the rogue DOJ officials alone. They view your criminal justice reform initiates and tweets about egregious DOJ cases as "meddling." They don't care that DOJ coup d'etat operatives tried to overturn your election, turn your children into criminals, and ruin their lives. If you do not round up these renegades, charge them with the appropriate crimes, and send them to jail, they will likely try to harm you and your children as soon as you leave office. The DOJ has already let former Deputy FBI Chief Andrew McCabe go free. How many other coup d'etat co-conspirators will escape justice, and why? Instead of lecturing you on your tweeting, this is what Mr. Barr needs to be explaining to you. The Attorney General works for the elected president, not the unelected career DOJ prosecutors who believe they are exempt from supervision and accountability. Personally, the media pundits and Democratic critics remind me of pet hamsters running on the spinning wheel inside of their cages. None of these people gave you any praise when you freed 63-year-old Alice Marie Johnson from a life sentence for a first-time drug offense after she had spent 23 years in prison and Obama had left her to languish in prison for the rest of her life. None of them praised you when you signed the First Step Act in 2018, which benefits tens of thousands of black, Hispanic, Native American, female, and poor white federal inmates who have never experienced the fair administration of justice in federal grand juries and courtrooms. Do your thing, Mr. President! Make the reform of America's federal criminal justice system a reality. Show your friends and foes alike how a strong president reforms ingrained corruption inside the federal criminal justice system. Thank you! Sincerely, Donald V. Watkins Inmate No. 36223-001 Talladega, Alabama Federal Prison Camp

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 13, 2020 COMMENTARY President Donald J. Trump is doing something other presidents were afraid to do -- attack corruption and misconduct within the ranks of federal prosecutors. Trump is using the high-profile case of Roger Stone to spotlight this problem. Most federal judges tolerate the misconduct of rogue federal prosecutors, including the ones who regularly commit fraud on the court as a matter of course. Some judges are actually afraid of federal prosecutors because these unelected federal law enforcement agents will turn on judges as quickly as they will turn on ordinary Americans. Nobody supervises their conduct. There are no mandatory professional standards of ethics or conduct for federal prosecutors. Within the defense bar, rogue federal prosecutors are not respected. Criminal defense lawyers know that these prosecutors will cheat to win and that a lot of federal judges will turn their heads and look the other way while the cheating goes on. Rogue federal prosecutors have a license to lie to grand juries, magistrates, trial judges, and appellate judges. They feel free to: (a) target potential defendants for political reasons, (b) manufacture phony criminal charges against political figures, controversial activists, Hollywood celebrities, unpopular public figures, and other "undesirables," (c) encourage pro-government witnesses to give testimony that is known to be false, (d) withhold or suppress evidence that is favorable to the defense, and (e) hijack the courtrooms of judges who are known to be weak, dumb, and lazy. President Trump knows from personal experience that prosecutorial misconduct is rampant and dangerous. During the first two years of his presidency, Trump watched Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his team of "corrupt" prosecutors use a criminal probe of the Trump Campaign's ties to Russia as a cover for an unsuccessful coup d'etat to overthrow this presidency. Trump also knows that these rogue prosecutors tried to hurt his oldest three children and his son-in-law. These federal prosecutors were unsuccessful only because Trump de-balled Mueller with the power of his Twitter communications platform. At the end of the day, Mueller was no match for Trump. If President Trump does not crush this kind of widespread prosecutorial misconduct and corruption, who will? Nobody. The only people complaining about Donald Trump's efforts to reform the Department of Justice (DOJ) are the very partisan politicians who tried to remove the President from office through (a) Mueller's failed coup d'etat and (b) the ill-fated, half-baked impeachment effort. Trump's next step should be this: The DOJ must bring criminal charges against the coup leaders and key participants. We now know who they are. We also know who aided and abetted the failed coup d'etat attempt, including the Republican sympathizers. Justice demands that these individuals be held accountable.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 12, 2020 President Donald Trump flexed his presidential muscle yesterday after learning that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team of "corrupt" federal prosecutors recommended a sentence of seven to nine years imprisonment for Roger Stone. Last year, Stone was convicted on seven charges, including lying to Congress and witness tampering. The recommended sentence amounts to a life sentence for 67-year-old Stone, who is a close personal friend of the President. Trump took to Twitter yesterday to blast the recommended sentence. He called the proposed sentence "a horrible and very unfair situation." The President further proclaimed that, "[t]he real crimes were on the other side, as nothing happens to them. Cannot allow this miscarriage of justice." Department of Justice (DOJ) officials promptly reversed course on the recommended sentence after calling it "extreme," "excessive," and "grossly disproportionate to Stone's offenses." The DOJ did not comment on whether it was investigating the "real crimes" Trump said were committed by Mueller's prosecutors in the case. Aaron S.J. Zelinsky, a top Mueller prosecutor signed and filed the government's sentencing memo Monday night. Zelinsky, along with three other federal prosecutors, resigned from the case last night. Trump was right to blast the team of federal prosecutors in Stone's criminal case. The charges against Stone were trumped up to pressure him into testifying falsely against Donald Trump and his children. Stone refused to do so. The entire Mueller investigation was a politically motivated coup d'etat to overthrow the Trump presidency. In 2017, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions green-lighted Mueller's criminal investigation when he did not kill the probe in its infancy after becoming Attorney General. Sessions deserted Trump and his oldest three children and left the President to fight Mueller and his "corrupt" prosecutors, alone. Trump has never forgiven Sessions for his desertion. President Trump is determined to break the backs of "corrupt" federal prosecutors who have been allowed to flourish in a "rigged" system where federal judges with lifetime appointments surrender total control of their courtrooms to politically motivated government lawyers who masquerade as professional law enforcement officials. In Trump's case, these "corrupt" prosecutors actually targeted the President's children as part of their two-year-long criminal investigation. Targeting and persecuting the children, wives, and other family members of criminal suspects is a technique that is designed to bring the maximum amount of pressure on the suspect. If Trump fails to round up and prosecute the coup d'etat leaders and participants, including former FBI chief James Comey, former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, Special Counsel Robert Mueller, members of Mueller's prosecution team, and Jeff Sessions, those coup participants who remain as career DOJ prosecutors in the Department will likely pursue criminal racketeering charges against Trump's children and their international business partners whenever he leaves office. Trump must crush the vestiges of this lingering DOJ anarchy in a highly public fashion before these prosecutors get another chance to hurt his children. Critics are claiming that Trump is interfering with the DOJ's independence. In reality, the DOJ's job is to implement, protect, and defend the President's public policies. One of Trump's highly publicized policies is criminal justice reform, which he started by signing the highly acclaimed First Step Act in December 2018. President Trump is poised to punish the "scum" FBI agents and "corrupt" federal prosecutors who used a "rigged" criminal justice system to launch a bloodless coup d'etat against him. Trump, whose sister was a distinguished federal judge, has seen where far too many federal judges coddle corrupt federal prosecutors, as opposed to holding them accountable for the lawlessness they commit under the color of law. It is now up to the President to stop this corruption. Without Trump's strong and unwavering hand, nobody in the federal criminal justice system would be strong enough to clean up the growing corruption and lawlessness within the ranks of federal prosecutors.

By: Donald V. Watkins Copyrighted and Published on February 11, 2020 I have written numerous articles about Donald J. Trump since he announced his candidacy for President in 2015. I have strongly criticized many of his policies and actions as president. On Super Bowl night, I finally realized something very important about Trump that I have never mentioned before -- nobody sets Trump's political agenda but him. Trump runs the presidency with an ironclad fist. By all accounts, Trump maintains a dictatorial grip on his White House staffers, cabinet appointees, and other top administration officials. Many Republican members of Congress, who privately express their dislike of Trump, live in fear of him because Trump and his Fox talk show media allies will scourge any public figure who openly criticizes the President. Trump has been called many things -- racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, crude, narcissistic, corrupt, unfit, and morally bankrupt, to name a few. Trump's friends, allies, supporters, and foes all agree that the President has a multitude of character flaws. By Objective Standards, Trump's Presidency Has Been Successful President Trump has been on a roll in recent months. He seems to be getting things done while Democratic members of Congress and the Party's presidential candidates appear to be twisting in the wind. The Democratic Party is in a state of turmoil because Pete Buttigieg, an openly gay candidate, won the Iowa caucuses last week. Buttigieg is fairing much better in the primaries than Party favorite, former vice president Joe Biden. Already this year, Trump has renegotiated and signed America's trade deals with Mexico and Canada. He has also signed a new trade deal with China. These trade deals are major accomplishments and are favorable for American workers and consumers. The economy is booming. The stock markets are sky high. Unemployment is at a record low. And, Trump gave American taxpayers and corporations a much-appreciated tax cut. Trump's federal court appointments are moving at a record pace. Trump has already appointed, and the Senate has confirmed more judges in three years than Barack Obama seated on the federal bench in 8 years. Trump has not started any new wars. Instead, he has withdrawn U.S. troops from hot zones in the Middle East and other foreign territories. Super Bowl Sunday was the Beginning of Trump's Direct Pitch for Black Votes On Super Bowl Sunday, Trump found his own way to appeal directly to black voters. He eschewed the traditional approach of using "Uncle Toms" and black politicians to act as surrogates for targeting and securing black voters. It appears that Trump does not want or need this readily available pool of subservient surrogates. As he has done with his outreach to white voters, Trump spoke directly to black voters that night. During a TV audience of 103 million predominantly white viewers, Trump rolled out a very powerful political ad about his commutation of Alice Marie Johnson's life sentence for a drug and money laundering charge. Ms. Johnson was 63-years-old when Trump freed her. She is a great-grandmother who served almost 23 years for a first-time, non-violent offense. In the ad, Trump noted that he had the courage to free Ms. Johnson while Obama left her to languish in prison for the rest of her life. In December 2018, President Trump signed the First Step Act over the objection of white conservatives. The Act is the most significant piece of criminal justice reform legislation in recent decades. Recognizing that the federal criminal justice system is "rigged",that many federal prosecutors are "corrupt,” that FBI agents are "scum", and that black defendants are sentenced more harshly for the same crimes committed by their white counterparts, Trump used the First Step Act and the power of his office to remedy the glaring racial disparity in the sentences handed down to black inmates by pro-prosecution federal judges who were appointed by Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama. Interestingly, the President's description of the federal criminal justice system mirrors the honest view held by most African-American voters. This is particularly true in the light of the well-documented history of: (a) COINTELPRO (1956 to 1971), (b) the "Good Ol' Boys Roundup" (1980 to 1995), and (c) the U.S. Bureau of Prison's current statistics on the racial disparity between black and white inmates in the federal prison system. Trump's First Step Act seeks to drastically reduce the federal inmate population for non-violent, first-time offenders. The Act provides an early release for tens of thousands of black inmates who were charged with non-violent offenses and who are participating in a host of innovative educational programs offered by the Bureau of Prisons. The Act also reduces the original term of imprisonment by one-third for qualified non-violent inmates who are 60-years-old and older. On top of these reductions, inmates may earn 54 days of "good time" credits for each year of their sentence. Finally, inmates can earn additional "good time" credits by attending and passing designated educational and re-entry programs. In his State of the Union speech last week, President Trump asked Congress to expand opportunities for scholarships for deserving black students who are hopelessly trapped in failing urban public schools. These scholarships will give inner city students an opportunity to attend alternative schools that enhance their chances of receiving a high-quality education. Trump also championed "opportunity zone" tax incentives which are aimed at funnelling investment money in low-income urban areas. Will Black Voters Give Trump a Chance? Will black voters look past President Trump's inflammatory rhetoric and take notice of the concrete policies and measurable actions he has taken that favorably impact African-Americans? Trump received 8% of the black vote in 2016. It will be interesting to see whether this number increases in the 2020 presidential election. Traditionally, black voters tend to support the Democratic Party's nominee, regardless of the person's electability or track record of supporting programs that enhance the quality of life of African-Americans. For reasons that are deeply rooted in America's history of disenfranchisement of African-Americans, Black voters have never made either political party work for their votes. The passage of time will help us gauge the effectiveness of Trump's direct appeal to black voters.