Tootfinder

US official lobbied French magistrate over Le Pen's election ban (Marion Solletty/Politico)
https://www.politico.eu/article/us-state-department-marine-le-pen-election-ban-far-right-france/
http://www.memeorandum.com/260120/p104#a260120p104

If I were voting today in D4 I'd rank Jeremy Greco first because he's the only pro–Sunset Dunes candidate and seems cool generally; he's a longtime co-op worker at Other Avenues and wants to make it easier to start co-ops.
I'd rank Natalie Gee second. It sucks she wants to turn the park back into a highway, but so do all the non-Jeremy candidates, and she's the only one I trust to tax the rich to build affordable housing.

Meet the District 4 Candidates: What is your No. 1 issue?
Some say the Sunset needs to be more affordable. Some say it needs more police. They all want to be District 4’s next supervisor.

I've now had AI bots impersonate high-profile people I know and engage me in a DM chat that was initially passable on both Bluesky and Mastodon. Be careful out there folks. And if the account is new with few followers, that's a big tell.
https://www.

A judge issues an order requiring Kalshi to temporarily halt sports and election contracts in Nevada, the first US state to force Kalshi to cease operations (Kate Knibbs/Wired)
https://www.wired.com/story/nevada-bans-kalshi-prediction-market/

Kalshi Has Been Temporarily Banned in Nevada
A judge ordered Kalshi to immediately halt sports and election contracts in the state, intensifying a growing regulatory battle over prediction markets.

Donald Trump has comprehensively
failed to meet a key election promise
to slash Americans’ energy bills in half within the first year of his presidency
-- with ❌power prices instead surging across the US.
The average household electricity bill in the US was 💥6.7% more expensive in 2025 compared with the previous year,
according to a Guardian analysis of data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the Department of Energy’s statistical arm.
The i…

But no worries, the midterms will be great.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/12/us/politics/trump-kurt-olsen-election-denialism.html?unlocked_article_code=1.LlA.2GEc.5b33ugqAzM6…

Trump’s Director of Election Security Is an Election Denier
Even in a government full of conspiracists, Kurt Olsen stands out. He made a key referral in the Fulton County, Ga., election case.

oooof. this incumbent running for re-election to the SF Bike Coalition board is literally a landlord lawyer.
if you're a member, the voting details are here and there are 10 candidates for 8 seats. https://sfbike.org/news/meet-the-candidat…

Saying the quiet part out loud:
Trump regrets not seizing voting machines after 2020 election loss;
President says he ‘should have’ used national guard to seize machines in support of false claim that election was rigged
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/j

Trump regrets not seizing voting machines after 2020 election loss
President says he ‘should have’ used national guard to seize machines in support of false claim that election was rigged

"Both of those states are led by high-profile Democratic governors — Gavin Newsom and Wes Moore — who are also considered potential 2028 presidential contenders.
Vance’s new assignment could give him a perch from which he could attack his potential rivals ahead of the next presidential election — an election in which he was until recently considered the presumptive GOP frontrunner."

Q&A with NYT tech reporter Tiffany Hsu on how AI-generated ads are shaping the political landscape, as candidates from both parties increase deepfake use in ads (Katie Glueck/New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/13/us/politics/ai-ads-campaign-deepf…

What to Know About AI Political Campaign Ads During Election Season
Wait, that’s not the real James Talarico …

Why is it that two of my hobbies have US national organizations who are actively working against their membership? The ARRL's bylawys changes to try to disqualify from election anyone who argues for change were embarrassing, and now AOPA is using legal action to try to stop a movement for transparency.
I think they are probably both em…

Trump's Gutting of Election Security Fuels Worries for Midterms (Adam Sella/New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/17/us/politics/trump-cisa-election-security.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260317/p48#a260317p48

Wishing all our readers a peaceful weekend, but before you head out, don't forget to read today's Metacurity for the most crucial cybersecurity developments you should know, including
--US ODNI ignores her remit and is investigating 2020 election fraud claims,
--US law enforcement are probing if WhatsApp employees can read users' messages,
--Popular AI app exposes millions of users' private messages,
--Darkweb market Empire Market creator pleads guilty,…

US ODNI drops her remit to investigate 2020 election fraud claims
US law enforcement are probing if WhatsApp employees can read users' messages, Popular AI app exposes millions of users' private messages, Darkweb market Empire Market creator pleads guilty, US seizes $400m in darknet crypto mixer Helix's assets, UK safety charity warns about The Com, much more

A Democrat won a state legislative special election in a district that President Trump carried by 17 percentage points,
unnerving Republicans in Texas and beyond.
Taylor Rehmet,
a local union leader and first-time candidate,
defeated the Republican, Leigh Wambsganss,
by double digits
— 57 to 43
— in the historically conservative district.

Democratic Upset in Deep Red Texas District Rattles Republicans
A Democrat won a state legislative special election in a district that President Trump carried by 17 percentage points, unnerving Republicans in Texas and beyond.

This is exactly the groundwork we need to be laying right now, and I’m delighted to hear it coming from a US Senator (!):
If Trump tries to prevent a fair election from happening, then we need “a true national strike in the sense that, if they do this, if they try to overthrow our democracy, if you are allied with democracy, do not go to work . If you’re a pilot, do not show up. If you drive a train, do not show up. If you’re a teacher, do not show up. We grind the country to a halt.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/06/donald-trump-voting-midterms-democrat-national-strike
1/

Brynn #Tannehill: ‘#Trump Has Already Rigged the #2028PresidentialElection’
Regardless of how people vote, the chances of a

'Trump Has Already Rigged the 2028 Presidential Election': US Defence Insider
Regardless of how people vote, the chances of a Democrat Government coming to power in 2029 is now virtually nil, argues Brynn Tannehill

A search warrant affidavit unsealed on Tuesday reveals that
when the FBI raided the Fulton county election office in Georgia last month,
the decision was based on debunked claims from election deniers
and came after a referral from a White House lawyer who tried to overturn the 2020 election.
The FBI’s investigation “originated” from a referral sent by
Kurt Olsen, an attorney who sought to overturn the 2020 election
and contacted justice department offici…

Jack Smith says Trump acknowledged to others that he lost 2020 election | Reuters
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/jack-smith-says-trump-acknowledged-others-that-he-lost-2020-election-2026-01-01/

A reminder for those in Ottawa and Ontario...
Upcoming municipal elections will be October 26, 2026.
You can check to see if you are on the voter list. It takes at most 2 minutes.
The last election it took us maybe 10 minutes and they made sure handicapped voters had everything they needed.
If you don't vote then DON'T BITCH!

https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/28/politics/hacking-disinformation-election-security
Secret US cyber operations shielded 2024 election from foreign trolls, but now the Trump admin has gutted protections

Secret US cyber operations shielded 2024 election from foreign trolls, but now the Trump admin has gutted protections
Weeks before the 2024 election, American military hackers carried out a secret operation to disrupt the work of Russian trolls spewing false information at US voters.

“Federal prosecutors said the man accused of planting pipe bombs in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 5, 2021, told investigators he felt compelled to ‘speak up’ for people who believed the 2020 election was stolen.”
“Cole said he was disillusioned by the election outcome and sympathetic to claims by President Donald Trump and allies that it had been stolen.”
#RightWing

DC pipe bomb suspect says someone needed to 'speak up' about stolen election claims
Man accused of Jan. 6 pipe bombs allegedly confessed he felt compelled to "speak up" for those who believed 2020 election was stolen, prosecutors say.

Polls have closed in Illinois, where a series of bitterly contested primaries will decide which members of a new generation of politicians will try to replace several Democratic mainstays
-- including Senator Richard J. Durbin, the party’s No. 2 in the Senate.
The Senate primary and down-ballot races in deep-blue Illinois have seized national attention as longtime lawmakers step aside and Democrats hope to gain momentum heading into midterm elections that have been reshaped by …

Illinois Primary Election Live Updates: Polls Close, Vote Counting Underway
With Senator Richard J. Durbin retiring, the Democratic primary features two House members, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly, and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton. AIPAC, the pro-Israel group, was a factor in several House races.

What’s key to understand in Venezuela is that the US did a coup and got the president Maduro out.
But the regime is still there. The VP took power. Chavismo is still in charge. The armed forces, paramilitary, everyone is still around. The opposition, that likely won the last election, is still not in charge.
It’s really unusual. And shows the US, as usual with Trump, might not have much of a plan.
Good article on the new president Delcy Rodríguez

In Secret Testimony, Republicans Derided Trump's Stolen Election Claims (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/us/georgia-election-republicans-trump-transcripts.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260113/p153#a260113p153

I'm shocked, shocked, that waiving the transfer tax on downtown office to residential conversions did not result in a single such conversion happening.
Well, not that shocked. (The real point of March 2024 Prop C was the sneaky provision letting the SFBOS reduce the transfer tax altogether without an election. Not to produce housing but to cut downtown landlords' taxes.)

Trump Regrets Not Seizing Voting Machines After 2020 Election (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/11/us/trump-voting-machines-2020-election.html?unlocked_article_code=1.D1A.KeLF.EZk3YjdwPJ3h
http://www.memeorandum.com/260111/p85#a260111p85

Trump says Venezuela can’t have elections before US rebuilds
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5681435-trump-venezuela-election-rebuild-maduro-ouster/

Republicans, Braced for Losses, Push More Voting Restrictions in Congress
Legislation that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote was only the beginning
as the G.O.P. presses to sharply limit voting in line with Trump’s false claims of widespread fraud
MAGA rep Bryan Steil’s "Make Elections Great Again "bill would ban universal voting by mail
and prohibit the counting of ballots received after Election Day.
It would ban ranked-choice v…

Republicans, Braced for Losses, Push More Voting Restrictions in Congress
Legislation that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote was only the beginning as the G.O.P. presses to sharply limit voting in line with President Trump’s false claims of widespread fraud.

So y'all who complain about the democratic party: I've got a friend who works (very hard I might add!) as a consultant and campaigner for campaigns. There's a special election primary going on where he is, and he's trying to get the leftmost candidate elected. Guess who didn't show up to help get the candidate elected?
The progressives and leftists.
This is the problem. The party is whoever's left. It's not us, because we're not showing up.

The next non-insane president-elect of the United States. Literaly anything he decides to say will win him the election. The easiest run in the US history, considering the scariest part that it will drive Trump into a world-destruct mode - if Trump manages to stay in office in the next three years ->
Governor Gavin Newsom on Relationship with Trump, People Badmouthing CA & "Gov Gav" Has a Surprise!

Texas suppresses voting further despite some of the lowest turnout numbers in US in every election.
Change in Primary Voting Rules Leads to Confusion in 2 Texas Counties as Voters Are Turned Away https://ground.news/article/change-in-primary-voting-rules-leads-to-confusion-in-2-texas-counties-as-voters-are-turned-away

Donald Trump has finally unveiled his long-awaited framework for healthcare affordability,
almost a year and a half after announcing during a pre-election presidential debate that he had the “concepts of a plan” for healthcare reform.
The short document, titled
"the Great Healthcare Plan",
provides four headline objectives,
but few specific details as to how they will be achieved.
The Trump administration says it intends to lower prescription pri…

Democrats Sue to Find Out if Trump Will Send Armed Officers to Election Sites (Nick Corasaniti/New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/10/us/politics/democrats-sue-to-find-out-if-trump-will-send-armed-officers-to-election-sites.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260310/p133#a260310p133

Galway City Tribune article announcing my run for the Galway West bye-election.
As most working people know, the current way society is structured is driving us to working long hours often for little pay. It's time that working hard meant having a good life with a secure home.
The successive governments of Fine Gael & Fianna Fšil have put the interests & profits of landlords and investment funds over the needs and housing security of ordinary people.
I've …

Democrats eye rare window of opportunity in Georgia run-off
to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene
The Democrat Shawn Harris will go head-to-head with Republican Clay Fuller
in a run-off after they came out ahead in a special election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress on Tuesday night.
The election for the state’s 14th congressional district has been seen as a test of Donald Trump’s sway
and may provide a rare opportunity for Democrats in a deep-red pocke…

Representative Tony Gonzales Will Not Seek Re-election - The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/05/us/politics/tony-gonzales-resigns.html

In Arizona, an Electric Utility Holds an Election, Open Only to Property Owners (Reis Thebault/New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/14/us/politics/arizona-salt-river-project-voting.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260314/p12#a260314p12

The FBI raided an elections office in Georgia
and seized ballots from the 2020 presidential election
in connection with a federal investigation into
“deficiencies or defects” into Donald Trump’s loss in the state, according to newly unsealed documents.
An affidavit for the search signed by a judge last month reveals that
the investigation followed a referral from Trump’s former campaign-linked attorney

FBI raided Georgia election office over 2020 ‘defects’ on command of Trump’s ‘Stop the Steal’ lawyer
FBI affidavit reveals Trump administration’s criminal investigation was sparked by Kurt Olsen

Ramping Up Election Attacks, Trump Does Not Let Reality Get in His Way (Katie Rogers/New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/13/us/politics/trump-elections-midterms-voter-id.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260213/p112#a260213p112

Donald Trump said that the US-Israel war in Iran will end “soon” because there is “practically nothing left to target” in a phone interview with Axios.
“Any time I want it to end, it will end,” the president told the outlet.
“The war is going great. We are way ahead of the timetable.
We have done more damage than we thought possible, even in the original six-week period.”
It’s the latest update in a series of inconsistent messages from the administration on the estima…

Donald Trump’s first Venezuela oil sale deal goes to ... megadonor’s company
(of course he did)
https://www.ft.com/content/da74c248-fb36-4ff1-8fb2-d2dd1e00fde8

Donald Trump’s first Venezuela oil sale deal goes to megadonor’s company
Senior Vitol trader met US president at White House last week and gave millions to his re-election campaign

This is what the market-led policies of Fine Gael and Fianna Fšil have given us. They've put the profits of landlords and investment funds above ordinary people.
That's why I've decided to run in the Galway West by-election. It's time we had a radical shift in housing policy that puts people first.
• Ban Evictions
• Freeze and Reduce Rents
• Build a State Construction Company to deliver quality homes and jobs at the scale we need

Over 17,000 homeless last month in record high
Homeless figures have surpassed 17,000 for the first time.

I subscribed to Jacobin when they had some deal, but I don't actually read it. Classic champagne socialist behavior. Leftists will be like, "Win an election? That pales in comparison to my idea, subscribing to Jacobin" and then not read Jacobin

Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence,
is running her own review into the 2020 election with Donald Trump’s approval,
working separately from a justice department investigation
even as she joined an FBI raid of an election center in Georgia last week.
Her presence at the raid drew criticism from Democrats and former intelligence officials,
who questioned why the country’s top intelligence officer with no domestic law enforcement powers would appea…

The biggest change to voting in Republican election bill could become a burden for many US voters (Julie Carr Smyth/Associated Press)
https://apnews.com/article/save-act-documents-requirements-citizenship-voting-congress-dfb43bcdd0255d3665da588a60286b4e
http://www.memeorandum.com/260314/p39#a260314p39

A special election for the successor to Marjorie Taylor Greene’s congressional district in Georgia on Tuesday
will be a test of Donald Trump’s sway, and may provide a rare opportunity for Democrats in a deep-red pocket of the southern state.
Republican former prosecutor Clay #Fuller is likely to come out of Tuesday’s jungle primary,
-- in which the top two candidates go to a runoff regardl…

Tulsi Gabbard running solo 2020 election inquiry separate from FBI investigation (Hugo Lowell/The Guardian)
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/03/tulsi-gabbard-2020-election-investigation-ed
http://www.memeorandum.com/260203/p66#a260203p66

Donald Trump on Saturday appeared to link the massive attack he ordered against Iran to his persistent claims about his 2020 election loss to former president Joe Biden, in a social media post about allegations that Tehran’s government interfered in the US president elections.
“Iran tried to interfere in 2020, 2024 elections to stop Trump,” his Truth Social post said, “and now faces renewed war with United States”.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/01/trump-iran-attack-2020-election-loss?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Georgia Ballot Inquiry Originated From Election Denier in Trump White House (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/us/politics/fulton-county-kurt-olsen-fbi-search-2020-ballots.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260210/p113#a260210p113

Immigration has been a centerpiece of Trump’s platform throughout more than a decade of political life,
-- and was at the core of his 2024 election campaign.
But polls show public opinion has shifted amid the widely circulated operations carried out by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and other federal agents in urban areas.
Those operations have this month seen the shooting deaths of two US citizens in Minneapolis.  
A Reuters/Ipsos poll published o…

ICE on US streets challenges American norms, founding values
The Trump administration has moved ICE's center of activity from the US border with Mexico to the heart of US cities. Federal agents' encounters with the public are challenging the foundational ideas of America.

F.B.I. Agents Search Election Center in Fulton County Over 2020 Election (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/28/us/politics/fbi-search-election-center-georgia.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260129/p2#a260129p2

Trump issues blunt
message to Senate majority leader
to pass voter ID legislation
As John Thune battles conservative blowback for refusing to alter Senate rules
and mandate a traditional “talking” filibuster that would force Democrats to hold the floor to block the Save America Act,
Donald Trump had a blunt message for the Senate majority leader.
“He’s got to be a leader,” the president told reporters outside the White House today.
The upper chambe…

White House Offers Shifting Story on Gabbard's Presence at Georgia Raid (Erica L. Green/New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/us/politics/trump-gabbard-georgia-election-raid.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260205/p89#a260205p89

Bondi Hands St. Louis Prosecutor Nationwide Election Fraud Remit (Ben Penn/Bloomberg Law)
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/bondi-hands-st-louis-prosecutor-nationwide-election-fraud-remit
http://www.memeorandum.com/260129/p85#a260129p85

FBI executing search warrant at Georgia election office related to 2020 vote, law enforcement official says (Jana Winter/Reuters)
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi-executing-search-warrant-election-office-georgia-related-2020-vote-fox-news-2026-01-28/
http://www.memeorandum.com/260128/p76#a260128p76

By any measure, the F.B.I.’s search of an election center in Fulton County, Ga., last week was extraordinary.
Agents seized truckloads of 2020 ballots, as Trump harnessed the levers of government to not only buttress his false claims of widespread voter fraud,
but also to try to build a criminal case against those he believes wronged him.
What happened the next day was in some ways even more unusual, The New York Times has learned.
Behind closed doors, Tulsi Gabbard,…

Gabbard Arranges Trump Call With FBI Agents After Georgia Election Center Search
Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, brokered the call and President Trump directly questioned frontline agents on the inquiry, The Times has learned.

Nithya Raman filing papers on Saturday morning to
⭐️challenge Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass in the
👉 June 2 election
hit like a political bombshell.
Text chains blew up with stunned variations of,
"I didn't see that coming!"
Everyone sought to determine what a run from someone on Bass' left will mean when election day arrives in, gulp, 💥 less than four months.
How this plays out remains to be seen.
But here are some initial t…

Election Live Updates: Trump Says He Will Endorse in Texas Senate Race (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/03/04/us/primary-elections-midterms-tx-nc-ar
http://www.memeorandum.com/260304/p124#a260304p124

It’s only February, and the November elections are already in peril.
When I think back to the days and weeks before Jan. 6, 2021, one thing that’s clear is that many of us suffered from a failure of imagination.
We knew President Trump’s lies and conspiracy mongering were dangerous,
but it’s hard to think of a single person who predicted that a MAGA mob would storm the Capitol.
Very few people anticipated the sheer scale and scope of the effort to overturn the electi…

Opinion | This Is Not a Drill
What Is the F.B.I. doing raiding an election office in Georgia?

This week’s media atrocity
The New York Times published a story Wednesday about how Trump is undermining trust in our elections
and pushing dishonest schemes to rig the midterms.
Yet in the middle of the story, NYT wrote:
“Democrats are sounding alarms
— and sometimes sounding downright alarmist
— as they war-game for extreme subversion scenarios.”
By describing legitimate concerns as “downright alarmist,” they undercut their own story
-- and …

Trump’s Push for Election Power Raises Fears He Will ‘Subvert’ Midterms
The president appears to be undermining Americans’ faith in the outcome, at a moment when Republicans face an uphill climb to keep control of Congress.

Trump Had Unusual Call With F.B.I. Agents After Election Center Search (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/us/politics/trump-fbi-phone-call-georgia-gabbard.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260202/p57#a260202p57

One day after California’s Democratic party urged candidates without a “viable path” in the state’s crucial race for governor to drop out,
the crowded field showed no sign of winnowing down.
At least nine Democrats are in the running to replace the outgoing governor, Gavin Newsom,
with no clear frontrunner,
💥which has fueled fears that the number of candidates could lead to two Republicans advancing to the November election.
Rusty Hicks, the chair of California’…

Bondi let the cat out of the bag, so to speak.
Once again, Republicans and Trump are planning on stealing the election
Give me your voter files and ICE will leave!
It was never about gang members or drugs!
Our government does nothing but lie to us!
Stop voting for republicans! #Epstein

Susan (@joeyotis.bsky.social)
Bondi let the cat out of the bag, so to speak. Once again, republicans and Trump are planning on stealing the election, again! Give me your voter files and ICE will leave? It was never about gang members or drugs! Our government does nothing but lie to us! Stop voting for republicans! #Epstein [contains quote post or other embedded content]

Steve Bannon, the former White House strategist and rightwing podcast host, said he wants to
🔥see immigration agents at the polls in November,
a proposal that election officials have decried.
Bannon has no formal power,
but is an influential figure on the far right and is closely tied with the Trump administration.
Donald Trump this week again suggested that the federal government
“should take over the voting”
and federalize elections,
which ar…

Trump's Push for Election Power Raises Fears He Will 'Subvert' Midterms (New York Times)
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/25/us/politics/trump-elections-midterms.html
http://www.memeorandum.com/260225/p131#a260225p131

In today's Texas Senate primary election, Republicans are measuring the potency of Trump’s Make America Great Again movement against old-guard conservatism. Democrats, meanwhile, face a choice between two progressive “powerhouses” with different theories of how to fight – and how to win – in the Trump era.
The fiercely competitive races have left Democrats unusually hopeful about their chances in a state that hasn’t elected a Democrat statewide since 1994, while Republicans fret th…

The Venezuelan opposition leader #María #Corina #Machado has
💥vowed to return to the country as soon as possible and rejected the authority of the interim president backed – for now – by the US after it forcibly removed Nicolšs…

Donald Trump said that his party should seize control of elections in ‘at least 15 places’
and brazenly repeated a number of blatant lies about his electoral history in Minnesota and Georgia
during a Monday phone interview with a right-wing podcaster who briefly served in a top FBI role last year.
Trump, who continues to falsely insist that he won the 2020 election despite having lost to successor-turned-predecessor Joe Biden by wide margins in both the popular and electora…

Trump calls in to Dan Bongino’s first show and insists Republicans must ‘take over voting’ in 15 places
Trump has never won Minnesota’s electoral votes and lost Georgia’s electoral votes in 2020

Jack Smith said in his opening remarks before the House judiciary committee:
“No one should be above the law in this country,
and the law required that he be held to account, So that is what I did.”
Smith’s appearance came with the risk of sore loser Trump and his MAGa thugs on Capitol Hill
poised to seize on any admissions or misstatements that could be used as a basis to
refer him for investigation by the justice department,
which Trump has demanded for y…