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Justice Department Filing Includes Details Of Pelosi Attacker's Motives And Plan

Justice Department Filing Includes Details Of Pelosi Attacker's Motives And Plan

The Justice Department formally announced charges against David DePape, the man who broke into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s San Francisco home on Oct. 28 looking for Pelosi and, not finding her, assaulted her husband, Paul.

DePape has been charged with “one count of assault of an immediate family member of a United States official with the intent to retaliate against the official on account of the performance of official duties,” and “one count of attempted kidnapping of a United States official on account of the performance of official duties.” The maximum sentences for the two charges are 30 years and 20 years, respectively.

In the affidavit supporting the charges, Special Agent Stephanie Minor offers details about the break-in and attack. According to the affidavit:

“When officers removed DEPAPE from Pelosi’s residence, police body worn camera footage showed a glass door that appeared to be laminated glass, broken near the door handle. San Francisco Police Department recovered zip ties in Pelosi’s bedroom and in the hallway near the front door of the Pelosi residence. In addition, law enforcement searched DEPAPE’s backpack at the Pelosi residence, and they found, among other things, a roll of tape, white rope, one hammer, one pair of rubber and cloth gloves, and a journal.”

Paul Pelosi told a local police officer he had never seen DePape before.

“Pelosi was asleep when DEPAPE came into Pelosi’s bedroom and stated he wanted to talk to ‘Nancy.’ When Pelosi told him that Nancy was not there, DEPAPE stated that he would sit and wait. Pelosi stated that his wife would not be home for several days and then DEPAPE reiterated that he would wait.”

Depape, according to the affidavit, told officers “that he was going to hold Nancy hostage and talk to her. If Nancy were to tell DEPAPE the ‘truth,’ he would let her go, and if she ‘lied,’ he was going to break ‘her kneecaps.’ DEPAPE was certain that Nancy would not have told the ‘truth.’” And this is what he’s telling law enforcement he had planned.

He admitted to having broken into the house through the glass door using his hammer. None of this will stop Republicans from promoting conspiracy theories about how DePape ended up in the Pelosi house.

DePape will face prosecution and is virtually certain to be convicted of something if he’s found competent to stand trial. But the people who fueled his rage by spreading the conspiracy theories he bought into are unlikely to face any kind of justice, and they will remain dangerous.

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

'Too Soon?' Don Jr. Mocks Brutal Attack With 'Paul Pelosi Costume' Meme

'Too Soon?' Don Jr. Mocks Brutal Attack With 'Paul Pelosi Costume' Meme

Donald Trump Jr. mocked the attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband Paul on social media by sharing a "Halloween costume" intended to represent the hammer-wielding intruder.

Trump Jr. shared an image Sunday night showing a hammer lying on top of a pair of Hanes underwear with the comment: "Got my Paul Pelosi Halloween costume ready."

"The internet remains undefeated … Also if you switch out the hammer for a red feather boa you could be Hunter Biden in an instant," Trump Jr. wrote.

He also posted a screenshot of the image on his Instagram, racking 88,000 likes. The underwear in his post appears to reflect a debunked rumor that the intruder was in his underwear at the time of the attack.

Paul Pelosi was "violently assaulted" with a hammer in his California home on October 28, according to San Francisco Police Chief William Scott. He suffered a fractured skull and injuries to his right arm and hands and underwent surgery on Friday.

The intruder planned to keep him tied up until the speaker returned home, law enforcement sources told CBS News.

The suspect, who was identified as David Wayne DePape, had a list of people he wanted to target, according to law enforcement sources that spoke with CBS News.

DePape's social media revealed memes and conspiracy theories he posted about Holocaust denial, COVID vaccines, pedophiles in the government and claims that Democratic officials run child sex rings.

The speaker posted a statement on Twitter saying that her family is "heartbroken and traumatized" by the "life threatening attack" on her husband.

But right-wing personalities on Twitter mocked the attack on Paul Pelosi — with some even spreading falsehoods and amplifying misinformation.

Larry Elder, a conservative radio host, reacted to the assault by ridiculing Pelosi for his prior charge of driving under the influence.

"First, he's busted for DUI, and then gets attacked in his home. Hammered twice in six months," he wrote, adding, "Too soon?"

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA)., called the media a "source of misinformation" and continued to promote the falsehood that the intruder was Paul Pelosi's friend.

"The same mainstream media democrat activists that sold conspiracy theories for years about President Trump and Russia are now blaming @elonmusk for 'internet misinformation' about Paul Pelosi's friend attacking him with a hammer," Greene tweeted.

Others went as far as suggesting the attack was fake. Dinesh D'Souza, whose widely-debunked recent film "2000 Mules" pushed Trumpist election conspiracy theories, continued to spread misinformation on Twitter.

"The Left is going crazy because not only are we not BUYING the wacky, implausible Paul Pelosi story but we are even LAUGHING over how ridiculous it is. What this means is that we are no longer intimidated by their fake pieties. Their control over us has finally been broken," D'Souza wrote.

Far-right Arizona Republican lawmaker Wendy Rogers retweeted a post mocking the attack as "fake" and displaying a bloody hammer.


The skepticism regarding the incident seems to have grown after Evan Sernoffsky, a reporter at the Fox-affiliated local news outlet KTVU, tweeted that the attacker was in his underwear at the time of his arrest. Sernoffsky deleted the tweet and said that sources told him this was untrue.

Some people have even floated the baseless conspiracy theory that Paul Pelosi and DePape were lovers.

The Telegram channel for Bannon's "War Room" show shared a story from "The Republic Brief" that repeated some of "the same uncorroborated details about the encounter, including that the suspect was found in his underwear," the Washington Post reported.

D'souza also amplified the theory on his Twitter.

"Were Paul Pelosi and his attacker BOTH in their underwear? BOTH holding hammers? And the attacker didn't strike until AFTER police were on the scene? As a movie-maker, I gotta say this script must be rejected. Nothing about the public account so far makes any sense," he wrote.

Some conservatives have tried to spin the apparently politically motivated attack by tying it to crime in San Francisco. "Last Week Tonight" host John Oliver on Sunday called out right-wing claims linking the attack to bail reform after Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), complained on Fox News about letting "dangerous criminals" roam free and commit violence. McCaul suggested that the intruder who attacked Paul Pelosi was out on bail.

"Now, he's wrong about a few things there. Again, the suspect was not out on bail. Also, no one gets bailed out of prison—that's where convicted people go," Oliver said.

People have continued to spread falsehoods about the hammer attack, including new Twitter owner Elon Musk, who amplified a baseless conspiracy theory from a site suggesting that Paul Pelosi was drunk and in a fight with a male prostitute. "There is a tiny possibility there might be more to this story than meets the eye," Musk wrote before deleting the tweet hours later.

Reprinted with permission from Alternet.

Republicans Hit Pelosi After Attempted Murder That Left Husband's Skull Fractured

Republicans Hit Pelosi After Attempted Murder That Left Husband's Skull Fractured

Of course.


For Republicans on the campaign trail, the early-morning brutal attack on Paul Pelosi did not mean a break in attacking the real target of that attack, Speaker Nancy Pelosi. And the appalling taste, the wink-wink at an assassination attempt on the second in line for the presidency, was not remotely restricted to Republicans generally understood as extremists.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who was widely portrayed in the media as a calm, moderate kind of guy during his campaign last year, said, at a campaign stop for House candidate Yesli Vega, “There’s no room for violence anywhere, but we’re going to send her back to be with him in California.”

Are we supposed to let the fact that he opened with “There’s no room for violence” obscure that Youngkin used an attempted attack on the speaker that hospitalized her husband as the hook for a ha-ha-we’re-going-to-beat-her line? Not a line that makes any sense, mind you, since there is no Republican wave imaginable that would remove Pelosi from Congress altogether.

As a side note, Yesli Vega, the candidate Youngkin was campaigning for, in May suggested that pregnancy might be less common in cases of rape, as part of an argument against rape exceptions in abortion bans. Like I say, Youngkin’s a real moderate kind of guy.

Youngkin wasn’t alone. Speaking at an Ohio Republican GOTV event, Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel rallied the crowd with the question, “Are you ready to fire Nancy Pelosi?” This was, again, a nonsensical call to arms since McDaniel said it while standing in front of a banner for Senate nominee J.D. Vance and at an event in a House district already represented by a Republican. It’s not like she was in some swing district currently held by a Democrat, seeking to win control of the House. It was just a gratuitous shot at a woman whose husband is hospitalized after a violent assault that was aimed at her.

National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Tom Emmer also targeted Pelosi specifically on Friday afternoon, tweeting a link to an article about the upcoming elections with the text, “In 11 days we are going to make history and #FirePelosi.” It is at least Emmer’s job to with the House for Republicans, but … he couldn’t take a single day off of specifically making it personal against Pelosi? Not one single day? In the name of basic decency?

But that’s the thing. Republicans have spent years building up Nancy Pelosi as the evil witch-lady whose name alone can rile up their base. Using her name is like a reflex for them, something they just can’t do without. And basic decency? That long ago left the Republican Party.

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos.

Pelosi Wields California Democrats’ Clout In Bid To Regain House

Pelosi Wields California Democrats’ Clout In Bid To Regain House

By Michael Memoli and Lisa Mascaro, Tribune Washington Bureau (TNS)

WASHINGTON — Undeterred by a dismal election that shrunk the party’s ranks in the House to their lowest level since World War II, Nancy Pelosi is building a path back to power for Democrats in Congress that relies heavily on California clout.

Pelosi won a unanimous vote Tuesday to serve again as the House Democratic leader, a result that belied private sentiment among some that the party needs a shake-up in its leadership ranks.

But Pelosi has raised more money for House Democrats than other elected leaders, including President Barack Obama, and the high-energy 74-year-old makes no secret of her plan to tap the state’s wealthy donor base and Democratic political tilt to propel her House minority back into the majority again.

“My thing is, I’m here on a mission to get something done,” Pelosi said in an interview in her elegantly cheery suite, steps from the House floor. “But I also know that I bring with me … a great deal of resources — intellectual, political and financial — to our opportunity to do that, to win.”

In the interview, Pelosi offered a brief lesson in California congressional history: The state’s delegation was split evenly between Democrats and Republicans when she began her climb into leadership more than a decade ago.

After Democrats swept the 2006 elections midway through President George W. Bush’s second term, Pelosi made history by becoming the first woman to be speaker of the House.

Now, despite the party’s electoral losses across the nation in November, Democrats in California are actually poised to gain another congressional seat this year to make the Democratic advantage 39-14 in California. That comes after Bakersfield Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the new Republican majority leader, tried unsuccessfully to make greater gains for his party on Pelosi’s turf.

“Thirty-nine members from one state — that’s more than some of the regions that we cover, much less any one state,” said Pelosi, who in January will also add the honorary title of dean of California’s delegation as its most senior member. “I take great pride in the fact that when we won the House in 2006, it all began in California.”

But Pelosi’s pride in what has been called the “Golden lining” of an otherwise dismal election performance — a reference to the electoral inroads made in the Golden State — may only go so far in buttressing her standing in the caucus.

The House, like the Senate, will be run next year by politicians old enough to receive Social Security and who have been in Washington for decades. House Speaker John A. Boehner of Ohio, 65, and Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, 72, the Republican leaders, draw on their career experience in Congress and ability to navigate through party rifts to remain in leadership.

Rank-and-file Democrats have privately grumbled that the party’s bench of new leaders has waited long enough for their turn at the top.

And, in an echo of complaints that spilled over in the Senate, they say someone in the party must take responsibility for Democrats’ fall setbacks. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, 74, of Nevada won his own leadership election last week only after a grueling three-plus-hour private session and a handful of opposition votes.

But on Tuesday, there were no audible expressions of opposition to Pelosi during the private meeting in the Capitol basement, according to those present. The woman who had conducted more than 750 campaign events over the last two years to help those in the room get re-elected was swiftly chosen by acclamation after less than 15 minutes of debate.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., who two years ago ousted longtime San Francisco Bay Area Democratic Rep. Pete Stark on a message of generational change, was one of the members chosen to nominate Pelosi. “Nancy listens and she builds consensus among our members,” he said.

“No one has worked harder to be inclusive,” said Rep. Nydia M. Velazquez of New York. “She understands our power is our diversity.”

“A big love-in,” said Rep. Rick Nolan, D-Minn., afterward. “She’s been just an indefatigable leader. No one knows anyone who has more energy, more determination.”

But what happened next may prove telling for the road ahead. Lawmakers broke into a bitter dispute over rules that prevented one pregnant lawmaker, Rep. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., from casting her vote by proxy, which many supported.

Pelosi opposed the proxy, arguing that changing the rules to allow Duckworth to vote would lead the caucus down a slippery slope requiring exceptions for all forms of absences.

Many also grimaced over Pelosi’s decision to back one of her closest friends, fellow California Rep. Anna G. Eshoo, to leapfrog over a more senior member from New Jersey, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., to the top Democratic spot on the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee.

Congressional Black Caucus members, in particular, chafed at the disregard of seniority, which they see as crucial to ensuring their members — who continue to win re-election and add to the Democrats’ ranks — will rise to chairmanships.

The outcome of the Energy and Commerce committee fight, which could come Wednesday, will provide what some see as the real referendum on Pelosi’s standing. But Pelosi told reporters after her re-election Tuesday that she felt “liberated” by the result despite rumors of dissent in the ranks.

“While there may be a few people who are talking to the press — and maybe there are some others who don’t — overwhelmingly, I feel very strengthened and encouraged by the support that my colleagues have placed in me,” she said. “I have never felt more confident going in than I do now.”

After 28 years in office, Pelosi argues that she is entrusting Eshoo to take on more of the party’s fundraising duties, particularly in California, where Democrats are facing increasing competition from Republicans going after tech money in Silicon Valley and from Hollywood.

“That whole just amazing resource is there — to the point that we have 39 members — that came with a lot of support and tremendous donors to the rest of the country. Our state is the donor state to the rest of the country,” Pelosi said.

Pelosi said Eshoo’s elevation would free her to focus on the party’s message and voter mobilization, key campaign priorities that cannot falter again if the party hopes to regain control of the House.

Photo via Flickr