Peter H. Stone
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Articles by Peter H. Stone
State attorneys general step up plans to counter Trump’s meddling in midterms
Democratic state attorneys general, other top state officials and civic groups have accelerated planning to thwart any federal meddling in the November midterm elections by Donald Trump as he continues his false charges of widespread voting fraud and veiled threats of interfering in the process.
State attorneys general step up plans to counter Trump’s meddling in midterms
Nick Brown, Washington state’s attorney general, is coordinating efforts by Democratic counterparts in other states to protect midterm election security. Photograph: Jason Redmond/AFP/Getty Images Democratic state attorneys general, other top state officials and civic groups have accelerated planning to thwart any federal meddling in the November midterm elections by Donald Trump as he continues his false charges of widespread voting fraud and veiled threats of interfering in the process.
Legal veterans lead fightback against Trump’s ‘full-out assault on democracy’
A cluster of advocacy groups that boast veteran lawyers, voting experts and ex-judges have expanded legal challenges to Donald Trump's authoritarian executive orders on voting and other presidential actions they see as a "war" on the rule of law in the US.
Trump administration drive to seize election powers sparking ‘chaos’ despite pushback
The Trump administration continues to expand its authoritarian and radical drive to revamp voting rules and seize state election powers, though it faces growing resistance from US courts, state officials and Democrats, who warn the moves are sparking "chaos" and endangering voting rights and the rule of law.
Experts alarmed as Trump launches broad-front attack on US voting rights
The Trump administration is waging war on voting rights using justice department lawsuits, FBI investigations, and an executive order to limit voting by mail, moves mirroring the US president's false claims he lost the 2020 election due to voting fraud, say election experts and ex-officials.
US lower court judges are challenging Trump’s ‘war on the rule of law’, experts say
Donald Trump in Washington DC on 1 April.Photograph: Alex Brandon/AFP/Getty Images (Photograph: Alex Brandon/AFP/Getty Images) District court judges nationwide have been increasingly issuing strong rulings challenging the legality of many of Donald Trump’s policies and executive power grabs, blocking key ones at least temporarily, and sparking angry responses from the president, former judges and prosecutors say.
‘A subversion of the justice system’: DoJ shifts into Trump’s ‘political wing’ as criminal investigations accelerate
Pam Bondi in Washington DC on 11 February.Photograph: Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images (Photograph: Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images) Donald Trump’s Department of Justice (DoJ) has increasingly become his administration’s “political wing” with criminal investigations of economic and political foes and an FBI raid of a Georgia election office seeking evidence for Trump’s debunked claim that his 2020 election loss was rigged, say ex-prosecutors.
Trump’s ‘pay-to-play’ politics fuel a ‘new gilded age’, experts say
Donald Trump during a meeting with oil executives in the East Room of the White House.Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images (Photograph: Bloomberg/Getty Images) Donald Trump’s “pay-to-play” governing and fundraising style is helping forge a new gilded age where many super rich donors to Trump’s Maga Inc Pac and other top Trump causes are reaping big political and financial gains, including lax regulations, federal contracts and other benefits, say scholars and analysts.
Maga loyalist expands investigation into intelligence officials who angered Trump
Peter Stone Wed, December 17, 2025 at 12:00 PM UTC 9 min read Jason Reding Quiñones, the US attorney for the southern district of Florida, in Brooklyn in August.Photograph: Michael M Santiago/Getty Images A Maga loyalist US attorney in Miami is expanding an investigation of ex-FBI and intelligence officials who incurred Donald’s Trump’s wrath with an inquiry into how Russia helped him win in 2016, despite the US justice department suffering stinging recent court rejections of indictments of...
Trump DoJ’s focus on Maga goals harms other investigations, experts warn
Donald Trump’s weaponization of the US department of justice to focus on retribution against political foes, on fulfilling Maga goals and on ranting pardons for allies has seen thousands of lawyers depart or be fired and weakened investigations in civil rights, national security and other areas, say ex-prosecutors and legal experts.
‘A classic authoritarian tactic’: outrage over Trump’s pardons for friends and allies
Donald Trump speaks in Miami in November.Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images Donald Trump’s unprecedented pardoning spree for political and business friends since returning to the White House has prompted warnings from ex-prosecutors and legal scholars of “corrupt” pay-to-play schemes, conflicts of interest and blatant partisanship.
How Trump is weaponizing the DoJ to ‘bully, prosecute, punish and silence’ his foes
A sign indicating the US Department of Justice (DoJ) headquarters in Washington DC.Photograph: J David Ake/Getty Images Donald Trump’s intense pressure on the US Department of Justice (DoJ) to charge key foes with crimes based on dubious evidence and his ongoing investigations of other political enemies is hurting the rule of law in the US and violating departmental policies which scholars and ex-prosecutors say may help scuttle some charges.
Peter Stone in Washington Tue, October 21, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. UTC 8 min read US district and appeals courts are increasingly rebuking Donald Trump’s radical moves on tackling crime, illegal immigration and other actions where administration lawyers or Trump have made sweeping claims of emergencies that judges have bluntly rejected as erroneous and undermining the rule of law in America.
‘Page one of the authoritarian playbook’: how Trump and allies are exploiting Kirk’s killing
Peter Stone in Washington Sat, October 11, 2025 at 12:00 p.m. UTC 9 min read Donald Trump and Maga allies have capitalized on the killing of rightwing influencer Charlie Kirk to expand attacks on liberal groups, donors, Democrats, and others by tarring many critics as the “enemy within” and “radical left” in a move that legal scholars and historians call authoritarian and anti-democratic.
Trump pressure tactics in Comey case ‘chilling’ – but they could backfire, experts say
It followed a remarkable series of public moves by Trump seeking Comey’s indictment that sparked a firestorm of criticism. Trump pressured the US attorney in eastern Virginia Erik Siebert to resign after he had indicated the case against Comey was weak, and then tapped White House adviser Lindsey Halligan, a former Trump defense lawyer who lacked prosecutorial experience to replace him. In an usual move, Halligan was the only prosecutor who signed the charges in a meager two-page document.
Legal groups resist Trump authoritarian moves with pro bono work
Peter Stone Tue, September 23, 2025 at 11:00 AM UTC 10 min read As the Trump administration has fired federal employees and top officials for political reasons, blocked millions of dollars Congress appropriated and flouted legal norms, several legal outfits are providing crucial pro bono and other help to many individuals hurt by Donald Trump’s authoritarian actions, say lawyers involved and ex-prosecutors.
Donations for Turning Point USA pour in after founder Charlie Kirk’s death
Cara Ediger visits the makeshift memorial for Charlie Kirk outside the headquarters of Turning Point USA on 19 September, in Phoenix, Arizona.Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images The powerful fundraising operation that rightwing activist Charlie Kirk led to build the influential college group Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is receiving a wave of support from large donors and Donald Trump allies since his murder, which suggests the group will remain a major force on the American right, campaign...
‘Hallmarks of authoritarianism’: Trump banks on loyalists as he wages war on truth
Guardian photomontage. ‘None of this is new. It’s part of Trump’s conspiratorial mindset.’Composite: Rita Liu/The Guardian/Getty Images Donald Trump is waging a war on truth by firing top officials who present facts he finds unpalatable, while he banks on key loyalists at executive agencies to bolster his policies and powers by “rewriting history’s narrative” and squelching dissent, say scholars and former officials.
How Trump is contorting Department of Justice into his ‘personal weapon’
Peter Stone in Washington Mon, August 4, 2025 at 11:00 AM UTC 8 min read Pam Bondi speaks alongside Donald Trump at the White House on 27 June.Photograph: Ken Cedeno/Reuters As Donald Trump’s Department of Justice expands investigations of his foes and ousts dozens of lawyers and staff who worked on cases targeting himself and his allies, scholars and ex-prosecutors say the rule of law is under siege in the US as the department morphs into Trump’s “personal weapon”.
Gabriel García Márquez, The Art of Fiction No. 69
Interviewed by Peter Stone Gabriel García Márquez was interviewed in his studio/office located just behind his house in San Angel Inn, an old and lovely section, full of the spectacularly colorful flowers of Mexico City. The studio is a short walk from the main house. A low elongated building, it appears to have been originally designed as a guest house. Within, at one end, are a couch, two easy chairs, and a makeshift bar—a small white refrigerator with a supply of acqua minerale on top.
Trump fossil-fuel push setting back green progress decades, critics warn
Peter Stone Sun, July 20, 2025 at 12:00 PM UTC 7 min read Donald Trump greets first responders in Kerrville, Texas, last week.Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images Ever since Donald Trump began his second presidency, he has used an “invented” national energy emergency to help justify expanding oil, gas and coal while slashing green energy – despite years of scientific evidence that burning fossil fuels has contributed significantly to climate change, say scholars and watchdogs.
Health experts raise alarm over RFK Jr’s ‘war on science’ amid mass firings and budget cuts
Peter Stone Sat, July 19, 2025 at 11:00 AM UTC 6 min read Health and human services secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr testifies during the House energy and commerce subcommittee on health hearing on 24 June 2025.Photograph: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images The Trump administration’s “war on science” appears to have entered a new phase in the aftermath of a recent supreme court decision that empowered health and human services secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, a prominent vaccine sceptic,...
‘Perpetual crisis mode’: how Trump uses emergency declarations to push radical agenda
Donald Trump’s drives to pursue his radical policies on immigration, tariffs and energy may seem at first to have little in common beyond a shared Maga political agenda. But Trump has made spurious or thinly documented claims of “national emergencies” to justify harsh illegal immigrant measures, sweeping tariffs and massive energy deregulation, say legal scholars, watchdog groups and Democrats.
‘I have never seen such open corruption’: Trump’s crypto deals and loosening of rules shock observers
Cryptocurrency multibillionaire Justin Sun could barely contain his glee. Last month, Sun publicly flaunted a $100,000 Donald Trump-branded watch that he was awarded at a private dinner at Trump’s Virginia golf club. Sun had earned the recognition for buying $20m dollars of the crypto memecoin $Trump, ranking him first among 220 purchasers of the token who received dinner invitations.
‘Roadmap for corruption’: Trump dive into cryptocurrency raises ethics alarm
Donald Trump’s push to sharply ease oversight of the cryptocurrency industry, while he and his sons have fast expanded crypto ventures that have reaped billions of dollars from investors including foreign ones, is raising alarm about ethical and legal issues.
‘Roadmap for corruption’: Trump dive into cryptocurrency raises ethics alarm
A $Trump memecoin, a novelty crypto token that has generated millions for the president and his family as buyers vie for access. A $Trump memecoin, a novelty crypto token that has generated millions for the president and his family as buyers vie for access.
US judges ruling against Trump barraged with abuse and threats, experts warn
US judges who have increasingly rebuked the Trump administration’s harsh deportation agenda and other Maga policies are facing intense verbal assaults from the president and his allies, which seem to be spurring other dangerous threats against judges, say legal experts and former judges.
US judges who rule against Trump are being barraged with abuse and threats, experts warn
US judges who have increasingly rebuked the Trump administration’s harsh deportation agenda and other Maga policies are facing intense verbal assaults from the president and his allies, which seem to be spurring other dangerous threats against judges, say legal experts and former judges.
Pam Bondi turning DoJ into Trump’s ‘personal law firm’, top experts warn
Donald Trump’s Department of Justice has taken radical steps to target his political foes, back a harsh agenda against undocumented immigrants and help business allies – steps which underscore its politicization under the attorney general Pam Bondi and undermine the rule of law, say ex-prosecutors and legal experts. Some even say that the department has in effect become Trump’s “personal law firm”.
Critics slam deregulation of crypto as Trump family expands its footprint in industry
As Donald Trump’s administration has cut regulations for the cryptocurrency industry, the crypto firm World Liberty Financial, in which the Trump family has a large financial stake, has grown quickly by launching its own “stablecoin” and another digital token, prompting watchdogs and experts to warn of Trump’s conflicts of interest and economic hazards.
Alarm as Republicans in Congress back Trump and Musk’s attacks on US judges
As Donald Trump and Elon Musk widen their radical attacks on US judges who have stalled some of Trump’s executive orders and Musk’s slashing of federal agencies, they’re gaining backing from top House Republicans and other politicians, including some to whom the tech billionaire made big campaign donations.
‘The authoritarian playbook’: Trump targets judges, lawyers … and law itself
As Donald Trump aggressively seeks revenge against multiple foes in the US, he’s waging a vendetta using executive orders and social media against judges, law firms, prosecutors, the press and other vital American institutions to stifle dissent and exact retribution.
Kleptocrats to benefit from Trump DoJ’s anti-corruption pause, experts warn
A radical makeover at the US department of justice has seen key drives to fight corruption hamstrung in ways that could benefit US businesses operating abroad and foreign kleptocrats, including some Russian oligarchs.
Elon Musk’s conflicts of interest ‘should scare every American’, experts say
As Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk work zealously to slash tens of billions in federal spending by axing thousands of jobs and gutting some government agencies, Musk faces mounting claims he has conflicts of interest and no oversight, legal and ethics experts say.
‘This is a coup’: Trump and Musk’s purge is cutting more than costs, say experts
Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s radical drive to slash billions of dollars in annual federal spending with huge job and regulatory cuts is spurring charges that they have made illegal moves while undercutting congressional and judicial powers, say legal experts, Democrats and state attorneys general.
Trump’s blitz to expand his power is direct threat to democracy, experts say
Donald Trump’s spate of executive orders include many aimed at expanding his presidential powers in areas that pose threats to the rule of law and democratic norms in the US, say legal experts.
‘Trump’s grifting tendencies’: how the president’s crypto ties could spur corruption
With Donald Trump tapping top regulators with cryptocurrency ties and promising to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet”, the controversial and scandal-plagued industry is poised for laxer oversight and faster growth, which ethics watchdogs and ex-prosecutors fear could pose dangers for investors and spur potential criminal abuses. The president’s pro-crypto stances have come as he wooed crypto companies to ratchet up their campaign contributions to help him win the White House.
Trump trying to rewrite history in battle to bury Smith report, legal experts say
Donald Trump’s desperate legal battles to block a damaging special counsel report about his efforts to subvert his 2020 election loss and his sentencing for a 34-count felony conviction in New York ultimately failed, but former prosecutors say they nevertheless reveal his continual disdain for the rule of law and his penchant for rewriting history.
‘Incredibly harmful’: why Trump’s FBI and DoJ picks scare civil liberties experts
By tapping two combative ultra-loyalists to run the FBI and the justice department, Donald Trump has sparked fears they will pursue the president-elect’s calls for “revenge” against his political foes and sack officials who Trump demonizes as “deep state” opponents, say ex-DoJ prosecutors.
Trump’s picks to reward top donors who helped him win, watchdogs say
Donald Trump has quickly tapped big donors and political allies for top posts to roll back environmental and health regulations, cut taxes and government spending in ways that will benefit key backers, say government watchdogs.
Gaetz pick raises fears that Trump will seek ‘retribution’ on political foes
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Gaetz pick raises fears that Trump will seek ‘retribution’ on political foes
As Donald Trump moves fast to expand his influence over prosecutorial and legal decisions while revamping the US justice department, concerns are rising quickly about how he may abuse his powers to target political foes for “retribution” as he often suggested during his campaign, say ex-federal prosecutors.
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