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Gil Bang last won the day on July 17
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-11-14/michael-flynn-doj-in-settlement-talks-over-50-million-claim?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc2MzEyOTY1OCwiZXhwIjoxNzYzNzM0NDU4LCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUNUlNM1NHUEZITzEwMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiI1NkY0MDI2RTJDMDU0OTAyQUU5NTQwMkVCODZDREI1RCJ9.eumMDzfUHik236WD2937RF5FwYOifZUajl0JBrZXp7k The Justice Department has been discussing settlements with two former officials from Donald Trumpβs first term who β like the president β claim theyβre owed major payouts from the US government as victims of politically motivated actions. The administration has been in talks since at least late summer to resolve lawsuits brought by Trumpβs first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, and former senior White House lawyer Stefan Passantino, according to court filings. Flynn is seeking $50 million for what he alleges was a wrongful prosecution, while Passantino says a House committee probing the 2020 election harmed his reputation by leaking private information. The negotiations mark a shift from the Justice Departmentβs position during the Biden administration, when government lawyers successfully fought both cases. Flynn lost the first round of his civil damages lawsuit last year. The US attorneyβs office in Atlanta was defending a judgeβs decision to toss out Passantinoβs claims as recently as June. By September, though, lawyers in Flynn and Passantinoβs cases had notified courts about the settlement talks. The developments are the latest example of how the administration is seeking to provide legal relief and potentially taxpayer-funded compensation for those Trump considers aligned with him or wronged by his perceived political enemies. The US governmentβs process for handling claims for monetary damages drew fresh attention after the New York Times reported last month that Trump is seeking $230 million in compensation for past investigations into his 2016 campaign and his handling of classified material after he left the White House in 2021. Trump told reporters that the Justice Department βprobablyβ owes him βa lot of moneyβ but said heβd give it βto charityβ or use it to pay for White House renovations. Read More: Trump Says Justice Department Likely Owes Him Money Over Probes The Justice Department reached a nearly $5 million settlement this year with the family of Ashli Babbitt, who was shot and killed by a police officer inside the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, amid demonstrations and rioting by Trumpβs supporters over Congressβ certification of President Joe Bidenβs election win. The government had been arguing to dismiss some of the estateβs claims before Trump took office. On Wednesday, the president signed a spending deal to end the shutdown that would let Republican senators sue the federal government for potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars if former special counsel Jack Smith subpoenaed their phone records without notice during the criminal probe into Trumpβs efforts to undo his 2020 election loss. Justice Department official Ed Martin announced this week that Trump signed a largely symbolic pardon for dozens of individuals who backed him in 2020, including conservative lawyers Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, John Eastman and Jeffrey Clark. On Trumpβs first day in office, he granted clemency to more than 1,500 people charged or convicted in connection with the Jan. 6 attack. Settlement Talks Court filings donβt describe what terms might be on the table for Flynn and Passantino. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment on the settlement talks or the status of Trumpβs administrative claims as described in the Times report. The two men have the same lawyer, Jesse Binnall, who has also represented Trump over the years. Binnall provided statements but didnβt elaborate on the discussions. He said he hoped mediation βis a step toward justiceβ for Flynn. βRogue FBI actors orchestrated a politically motivated hoax to attempt to shatter his life, all while staging a soft coup against President Trump, draining millions in lost opportunities and legal fees from Flynn while the government lavished payouts on those very bad-faith saboteurs,β he wrote. Binnall said that Passantino βseeks accountabilityβ and that his β30-year career of service and integrity was unblemished until zealots on the January 6 Unselect Committee peddled fabricated claims against him to advance a political agenda. Their actions destroyed his reputation, threatened his livelihood, and cost him millions β while protecting their enablers.β Flynn and Passantino filed suit in 2023. Flynn alleged he was wrongfully prosecuted by former Justice Department special counsel Robert Mueller, who investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election and, separately, whether there was a connection to Trumpβs campaign. Trump never faced charges but heβs frequently criticized the probe and his administration is now investigating whether it was part of a conspiracy against his presidency. Follow the latest in global politics. Get insights from reporters around the world in the Balance of Power newsletter. By continuing, I agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. Flynn initially pleaded guilty to lying about his conversations with a Russian official but later fought the prosecution. Trump pardoned him in late 2020. A federal judge in Florida dismissed Flynnβs damages lawsuit in December 2024, but gave him a chance to revise his complaint. Both sides asked for extensions this year, culminating with the disclosure of settlement discussions. On Nov. 5, the government asked to again pause deadlines due to the government shutdown, and noted the pending settlement talks. Passantino served as deputy White House counsel from 2017 to 2018 and then returned to private practice. He represented several witnesses in the congressional investigation into the 2020 election, including former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, whose legal bills were covered by a Trump-affiliated political action committee. Hutchinson eventually changed lawyers and delivered explosive testimony against Trump during a televised hearing in 2022. Passantino accused members and staff of the Jan. 6 committee of violating his privacy by leaking nonpublic information to orchestrate a βfalse storyβ in the media that heβd advised Hutchinson to provide misleading testimony. He denied the allegation. A federal judge in Georgia tossed Passantinoβs case in January and he appealed. Binnall asked for an extension in September, citing settlement talks over the previous month. His next filing in the appeals court is due Nov. 18. Passantino is a principal at a Washington-based lobbying shop. The New York Times reported last year that legal ethics regulators dismissed complaints against him in connection with his work with Hutchinson. Flynn, a conservative activist, was appointed by Trump earlier this year to serve on the board of visitors for the US Military Academy. βThey will make our Country proud,β Trump posted at the time. Jan. 6 Claims The administration hasnβt approved all claims with a political nexus to Trump. The Justice Department is fighting a lawsuit filed by a group of Jan. 6 defendants affiliated with the far-right Proud Boys group who received clemency from Trump. Theyβre seeking more than $100 million for what they contend was a βmaliciousβ prosecution effort. A federal judge in Florida hasnβt ruled on the governmentβs August motion to dismiss the case. Some Jan. 6 defendants have filed administrative claims with federal agencies seeking damages for how they were treated in the course of investigations, prosecutions, and imprisonments. Mark McCloskey, a lawyer who says he represents more than 450 Jan. 6 defendants, said in an interview he was frustrated that claims were rejected so far for βspuriousβ procedural defects. McCloskey said heβs preparing to submit hundreds more claims and was βencouragedβ by the latest pardons. The St. Louis-based lawyer gained notoriety β and support from Trump β after he and his wife faced state charges for pointing guns at protesters in 2020; they later received gubernatorial pardons. βDespite the new administration, the DOJ has been very hostile to these claims,β he said. A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment.
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Fun fact: the Doc on the right is Terry Dubrow (I know him fairly well). His brother Kevin was the frontman for Quiet Riot until his overdose death. Terry spends more time doing Real Houswives bullshit these days than he does cutting. And, since we're in the trust tree here, I've also been around Mrs. Dubrow a few times and she's a fucking cunt.
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I'm with you. I take mine "black", and that means pure coffee, no additives.
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lots of posts similar to this one
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are you Japanese?
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Derka, don't let it ruin your day. I happen to agree with you, but those in L.A. and N.Y. will always have an advantage in these situations. It ain't fair, it's just the way it is.
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What ever happened to Mackovic's son? He was a good poster on these boards for a long time. IIRC, he did undergrad at Texas and law school in Tucson.
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Padres are for sale
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I'm just an ignorant asshole, I suppose. I've never seen one in a store, I don't recall seeing anyone playing one. Hell, I've never noticed one on Reverb for that matter. But, I agree that they look fantastic.
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never seen a Collings at all. Never heard of them.
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??? I've never seen one of these before. Off to the Googles.
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https://www.reddit.com/r/PublicFreakout/comments/1ovqza5/the_white_house_press_team_scrambles_to_get_the/
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I'm pretty happy with TM. I really enjoy the free internet on AA. Because I like to watch porn on airplanes.
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