Hi everyone,

Welcome back, and a happy Friday to you all.  What a crazy week.  Do you have any big plans for the weekend?  I doubt we'll do anything too crazy on this end.  I'm going to need a day to bounce back from Thursday's shoveling.  We ended up getting about 5-6 inches of the heavy stuff.  It was manageable, but I'm still sore, so, maybe we'll binge-watch some more of Only Murders in the Building or The Bear.

Meanwhile, BDH and Little Buddha are thrilled, because they think this year's gardening season should start as soon as all of this snow melts.  We've already had a couple of birds stop by to have a look, and the guys want to get things ready for more visitors.  Sounds like I should add yard waste bags to the shopping list.

The first item on today's to-do list is to sort through the headlines with you, so let's get to it.  There's a fresh pot of coffee on the counter, so grab yourself a nice medium DD, because it's time to clear out some Clutter.

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Donald Trump had two court defeats yesterday, as the judges in both his classified documents case and Georgia election interference trial rejected his attempts to have the prosecutions thrown out.  U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon continues to bend over backwards to help Trump in the documents case.  However, perhaps she's feeling some pressure after special counsel Jack Smith challenged her recent actions regarding some bizarre proposed jury instructions.  Meanwhile, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled that there's no precedent showing that Trump's alleged racketeering in Georgia falls under 1st Amendment protections.

The fact that Donald Trump has been able to delay so much to this point is outrageous.  He's weaponized the courts, throwing everything at the wall he can think of to put off these prosecutions until after the November elections.  Trump must be held accountable for his criminal activities.  He's likely to be convicted in his upcoming hush-money trial which starts on April 15th.  A legitimate political party wouldn't accept a felon as its leader, but the GOP is corrupt to its core.  Send them all packing, and put Trump behind bars once and for all, for the protection of the United States.

Loser loses again and again.  (pic via www.bssnews.net)

Donald Trump constantly refers to the U.S. economy as trash, but surprise surprise:  The data shows he's lying as usual.  To all of the GOP voters out there, why would you want to support a guy who obviously hates this country so much?

Donald Trump will be deposed yet again, this time as part of the fight over ownership of Trump Media.  The company's co-founders are suing Trump for trying to push them out, weakening the value of their holdings, and blocking their sale of their shares.  Meanwhile, Trump claims the two men are guilty of mismanagement.  We have no doubt Trump is guilty of misconduct, but at this point, how does any potential business partner expect there to be any other outcome if they work with him?  It would be shocking if he didn't try to screw them over.

New York Attorney General Letitia James wants more information about the company that secured Donald Trump's $175 million bond in his civil fraud appeal.  AG James seems to be questioning if Knight Specialty Insurance Company is good for the money, and if they're even eligible to do business in the state.  It would be fitting if Trump's plan to escape a fraud verdict was to commit more fraud.

No Labels has finally decided to end their nonsense by announcing they won't run a third-party presidential candidate, because they can't find anyone for the job.

Speaking of fringe candidates, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s presidential campaign sent out a fundraising email yesterday referring to January 6 defendants as "activists."   Kennedy should have just asked to be Donald Trump's VP candidate.  He apparently has no problem with the death of democracy in the United States, so he'd be a perfect addition to the MAGA cult.

Retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy has a two-volume memoir coming out on October 1.  You can buy both books as a box set or individually.  Justice Kennedy probably has an interesting story to tell, but it seems like a decent editor could have condensed the 640 pages into one book.  We'll take a look at the one focused on his time on the bench, but that first one is a pass.

Good for the Indiana Court of Appeals for siding with plaintiffs who claim the state's almost-complete abortion ban violates their religious beliefs.  There's no reason only right-wing extremists should be able to claim religion as a guiding principle for their actions.  If they can use it to avoid delivering fundamental health care, it stands to reason that a patient should be able to say their decision to seek an abortion was guided by their beliefs.  This decision will now go to the Indiana Supreme Court, but this argument is also being made in other states.

Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow won't say much about contract discussions with Alex Cora.  The Sox manager is in the last year of his deal, and if an extension was a priority, would have already happened by now.  Maybe both sides are waiting to see if the current roster is a viable team, or if the rebuild will continue for another 2-3 years.  If it's the latter, Cora can definitely find other/more immediate opportunities after this season.  He's been given a raw deal by ownership for the past few years, and we're hoping this is the start of the new era at Fenway Park.

Let the record show that Mookie Betts is an amazing baseball player, and the Red Sox refusing to keep him was the greatest ownership mistake in our lifetime. 

This is WrestleMania 40 weekend.  The cards for the two nights are stacked, but rumors are circulating that a few big names might make some surprise appearances in Philadelphia.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice drove the Lamborghini that was involved in a multi-car crash in Dallas last Saturday, according to his lawyer.  Rice is reportedly cooperating with officials now, but according to accounts, he and the driver of the Corvette he was racing at the time fled the scene after the accident.  He's lucky no one was killed because of his recklessness. 

The NFL is printing money, but the layoffs continue at the NFL Network, this time with the release of Melissa Stark, Andrew Siciliano, James Palmer, and Will Selva.

Angelina Jolie claims in new court documents that former husband Brad Pitt was physically abusive before the infamous 2016 plane ride where he allegedly assaulted Jolie and their children.  This is the latest development in a lawsuit Pitt filed against Jolie regarding a French winery the two used to jointly own.  She didn't go into further detail but seems prepared to do so if the lawsuit actually makes it to court.  Our prediction is that a confidential settlement will be reached.  However, one has to look at Pitt in a different light at this point.

The initial reviews for Zendaya's upcoming movie, Challengers seem pretty positive.

Drew Barrymore is the latest actor to indicate that Adam Sandler is working on a script for Happy Gilmore 2.  Barrymore recently talked on her TV show about trading messages with Sandler, and while she didn't explicitly state it, she did imply heavily that the script is in development.  This follows similar comments from Happy Gilmore actor Christopher McDonald.  Without knowing any of the plot details, we'll go out on a limb and say this sequel will be a huge hit whenever it's released.

Actress Lisa Ann Walter recently explained what Abbott Elementary's renewal for a fourth season means to her.

It's startling to realize that yesterday was the 30th anniversary of the death of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain.  He was the face of the grunge movement and the voice for a generation of teenagers.  We thought he'd be around for decades to come, but it was over in the blink of an eye.  Cobain's passing was a tremendous loss for music.  Remember, if you or someone you know is in crisis, you can reach the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by simply dialing 988.

Okay kids, that's going to do it for now.  Here are The Black Keys to close things out with, "On the Game" for today's, "Song of the Day."

Thanks for stopping by, folks.  It was great to see you, as always.  Have a terrific weekend, be good, and we'll catch up with you again soon.  Until next time, that's today's Clearing out the Clutter, and we are outta here.