Norm Blumenthal – an attorney for workers and consumers. Selected as one of the Top Attorneys in Southern California. Norm was inducted and recognized as one of America’s Most Trusted Lawyers in Employment Law.
Bert Martinez: Welcome back, everybody. Today on the show, Norm Blumenthal.
Norm Blumenthal is a lawyer for the working class like you and I, small business people like you and I. He is the attorney for workers and consumers, selected as one of the top Attorneys in Southern California, Norm was also inducted and recognized as one of America’s most trusted lawyers in employment law. If you have questions, You can reach out to Norm personally at bamlawca.com.
Norm Blumenthal. Welcome back.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Hey, Bert. Nice to be back. I don’t know if anybody saw the 60 minutes show this past Sunday, But if you haven’t seen it, you need to see it. We are in a crisis at our borders, and, The fact that we in this country, we don’t have a unified government is just making matters worse. But The 60 Minutes show, the most interesting part of the show is that the vast majority of the persons Coming across the border currently are not Latin Americans. They’re Chinese.
Bert Martinez: Really? I did not see that.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: You need to see it, and then anybody that’s listening, just go back into the archives for 60 minutes and see it. It’s frightening how many Chinese are coming across the border.
And What they do is when they cross the border, they throw away their passport. So they can’t send them back because they don’t have any passports to leave.
And there’s no work, they said, in China. Fine. Everything in the stock market crashed. The real estate market crashed, And there’s no jobs.
And so they’re coming here for work. And guess who’s job they’re gonna take? Fine. Anybody that they can find. And right now, the United States is going to be in a crisis state with more people than we have jobs for. Right now, we have 8 million open jobs. We need to take in 4 million persons, to fill these jobs. We need new people from somewhere.
People coming out of college, people not going to college or went to high school here, and immigrants. And we don’t have the personnel to fill these jobs right now.
But the jobs that are out there, are opt out there for the taking, and there’s gonna have to be people that are gonna take these jobs. And the Chinese are more than capable of working in every job from the most menial tasks to jobs requiring a college degree.
So where do we go from here? We need a government that’s gonna work. In the new border bill that was just killed today, there was a provision. The new rule would be, you get to the border, the ability to get in on the basis of asylum is severely restricted.
So virtually nobody is gonna get in, basing claiming asylum, Which will deter persons from trying to pass any legally. If you get through the first hurdle, However, you’re coming in legally, you will get a work permit immediately, and you’ll go to work.
That’s where he said it. So that’s where we stand now. Trump is controlling the house and the senate, and they can’t get a border bill out. So this is a crisis.
Bert Martinez: Well, and what’s so interesting, and I’m blanking on his name. He’s, He was first of all, he was endorsed by Trump, Sam something or other. Forgive me, Sam. Can’t remember the guy’s name. And let’s see, look it up so we know we’re I want to make sure, either way, he is a republican, supported by and was supporting Trump, and, Or Trump was endorsing him and, now that he is working with the Democrats to try to get this thing taken care of.
Of course, Trump is now, you know, calling him all sorts of names and saying that he’s a loser, and that, what do you call it, that, that this is gonna be a huge mistake. And, you know, just goes to show you in the Trump world or the MAGA world, the Tea Party world, Even when you’re trying to do the right thing, you still can’t do it. You can’t win.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Well, and Trump is, what he cares about is being reelected so he can pardon himself from all these crimes he’s gonna be convicted of.
Today, the DC circuit, as expected, came down, per curiam, which just means everybody in agreement, with a per curiam decision that’s saying, Trump’s claim for immunity was a nonstarter. And he has no immunity for what he did, in the insurrection. No president in office or out of office has anything to do with the results of an election.
And the fact that he was getting involved in the results of the election was completely outside of his duties, and he should not have been involved. And everything he did was without support in the law. And, Trump, now has, told Monday to appeal to the US Supreme Court, and I believe they will not take that case.
And it’ll go back. The trial will start shortly in the insurrection case against Trump. So he’s getting closer and closer to being the King with no clothes.
Bert Martinez: Right. And to your point, a lot of people, I know that you probably know this, but a lot of people may have forgotten that a lot of this stuff has already been decided when Nixon was in office. Right?
Famous cases at Fitzgerald versus Nixon or Nixon versus Fitzgerald. I can’t remember it, but it’s Fitzgerald for sure. And, of course, I think that dealt more with a lot of civil stuff, but bottom line, it’s interwoven into this latest decision.
Nothing’s changed. I mean, and one of my favorite things that the DC circuit court, one of the judges asked Trump’s attorney, you’re telling me, I’m paraphrasing, you’re telling me that if, and I can’t remember if he used Biden as an example, but basically said, hey, if a democratic president, Wanted to get rid of his, what do you call it, opponent, his political opponent, and he, ordered team seal 6 to kill his political opponent that he would be okay with that he’s not crossing any lines and not breaking any laws. And, of course, Trump’s attorney had to answer yes and it wasn’t even a direct yes.
It was like a hem haw and going around because he knew that answer, first of all, answer yes was the only one he could give and it was going to be, it was going to land with a thud. And so, you know, it’s just so ridiculous, that they’re saying that a president of the United States of America Has total immunity all the time regardless of what he does. It’s just it’s just so crazy
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: And off the table. Those cards are off the table. And the cards that Trump has left on the table are few and far between. He’s now in in a position where tomorrow, I’m sorry, Thursday, The United States Supreme Court’s gonna hear oral arguments on Trump even being allowed to be on the ballot in Colorado, where the, in Colorado, the secretary of state decided that because of amendment 14, article 3, of the US constitution. He’s an insurrectionist, who previously took an oath of office to this country, and that therefore, he can’t run by, by being eliminated as if he were underage or not born in this country.
The irony of that would be, you know, he’s always argued about Obama not being able to be on the ballot. Well, he may very well be not on the ballot in many states.
And we’ll see. I think that is that one is, has less of a chance of happening than him being found guilty of a fine of insurrection trial in DC. Now that it’s going back, I predict the United States Supreme Court will not take this case, And that the trial will start, very close to its expected date in March, sometime in April or May.
And it’ll be decided before the election. And the polls are if he’s convicted, nobody’s gonna vote for a convicted felon to be president of the United States knowing what trouble he could cause. I mean, the man has no sense of right and wrong.
Bert Martinez: Right. I totally agree with you. I think that, Unfortunately, I will say that there’s probably no doubt there’s no doubt, Norm, that he’s going to lose millions of supporters once he gets convicted the 1st time and possibly a 2nd time and possibly a 3rd time.
However, there are gonna be those people that are thoroughly brainwashed, that are unable to think for themselves, that are going to support him regardless of his convictions. My producer just sent me this, the gentleman I was talking about, I was way off, Senator James Lankford, that’s the person that is working with the Biden administration to get this border secured. And of course, Trump is threatening him and extorting others, we call it denouncing him and and even though he had endorsed him at one point, Trump now says I’ve never endorsed him. And which brings me to this point, because you mentioned the oath that he took millions of people every year, not every year, every 4 years, millions of people watch the president-elect take the oath. And Trump, being the moral compass that he is, says, I never took an oath to support the constitution.
Which begs the question, why on God’s green earth would we have a president who’s not gonna support the constitution? It doesn’t make sense?
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: He says he’s not an officer of the United States as the words used in the, in the constitution, but he’s completely wrong on that.
He is an officer, and he took an oath the first time, to follow the laws, and he has violated that oath in attempting to cause an insurrection. And, he shouldn’t be on the ballot. I think that there’s a very strong argument he shouldn’t be on the ballot.
But, if he is on the ballot, He still has to face the criminal charges, and if they’re decided before he gets elected If he got elected, he could pardon himself. I guess that would be one way. But just can you imagine what this country would be like with a president of the United States who is already a convicted felon and pardons himself and is continuing in office.
I mean, what havoc can you cause to this country and the people in this country and the world? It’s a frightening thing.
He has the ability to drop a nuclear weapon on another country, start a nuclear war. You’re putting an unstable person, with his finger on the nuclear button. I mean, is this what you wanna wake up to every day not knowing what he’s gonna do? And he can’t pass the law.
And everybody in the congress, they’re all beholden to him because all they care about is getting reelected, and he controls the Republican Party. And if you don’t do what he wants to do, you won’t be on the ballot In the next election, because he’ll have you trumped. It’s just like a bridge, literally. His name is synonymous with the bridge, like, the game of bridge where there’s Trump cards.
And they beat all the other cards on the table. And so that’s what we’re faced with. He’s holding, potentially, the Trump cards and the courts need to take the Trump cards away from him and let him serve his time in prison where he belongs.
Bert Martinez: He either belongs in prison or he needs to be running some kind of third world dictatorship. He is perfectly suited to be somewhat like Gaddafi. His total need to be right all the time. His total inability to accept responsibility.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Well, he can destroy this country. Just the tariffs he wants to put on all our products, will make them so that products coming in so that people won’t be buying them.
You can just destroy the world economy, and people will lose faith in the dollar. And if that happens and they turn to another currency, there’s gonna be inflation like you’ve never seen before. I mean, Biden has put together a wonderful economy. All these jobs he created, millions of jobs have been created during time and millions more are being created.
We need 4 million people to fill Jobs every year that are being created, and we already have 8 million jobs that we can’t fill.
And there’s work permits out there. People wanna come to this country, with no promise of citizenship, and get a work permit. They’re open. But we just can’t if you gotta see the 60 minutes show. Chinese pouring into the country right at the Tijuana border fine threw a hole in the fence. And That’s amazing. And the border patrol is standing there right next to him because there’s no enforcement.
And so they and they put them through processing, as an asylum seeker from the Chinese regime. They have no fine passports, and then they go into the community, and they wait years before their asylum case is fine if they show up.
And this is where there’s a flaw in the system. You have to be heard immediately. Because once you’re in the system, your chances of showing up are not good because the asylum claims are without merit. And so they need to do away with them. But, you know, if you come legally, you come and put your processing in and you get a work permit.
I mean, we gotta fill these jobs somewhere. And, there’s more jobs than there are people to take them.
So we do need a robust, immigration system, but It can’t be one that’s illegal. It has to be a legal system, and it can be processed If congress would work together, to come up with border protection and Immediate processing of those that reach the border. That’ll stop people coming across if there’s no job for them. Well, they, you know, they haven’t made arrangements, so all immigration would be legal at that point. You fix that pretty quickly.
Bert Martinez: Right. Well, you know what? And I wanna change subjects since we’re talking about Trump a little bit and just again to demonstrate the level of what’s the word? The level of Debauchery? No. The level of fraud as a lot of people know Biden supports the United Auto Workers. He was at one of their plants and mister Trump, former President Trump, not to be outdone by that, staged his own, union, I guess rally. Right? And when I say staged, come to find out that he paid $20,000 to stage this union event. You and I have talked about this. Look, Republicans in general are pro management.
They are not pro labor. And to sit here and I don’t care whether it’s any Republican, but the fact that it was Donald Trump, probably the opposite of the guy who’s gonna support the everyday working class staff he holds this rally, a fake rally at a non union shop.
He’s got a bunch of people that he’s against. They paid 20 thousand dollars according to Trump’s own records. So it goes to show you that this guy will do whatever he can to get back in power. If I would have sort I certainly would have had a lot more back for him, if he would’ve just stood his ground and said, hey, I don’t support unions and whatever. Unions, in general, aren’t gonna vote for them. It’s just No.
It’s against their pocketbook, and you and I talk about this all the time. Follow the money. Vote for your best interest. And it just goes to show you the level of fraud, the level of crazy that the Republican Party and and or Trump are willing to take to get back in power.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Well, Trump is the Republican party. I mean, it’s the MAGA the MAGA party is what it is but it’s It’s not it’s not gonna work. And I think the Republicans will be we won’t say it but would be very happy if Trump would go away.
And they can go and MAGA party can go away, and they can return to some semblance of order and be pro management and pro growth and lower taxes and figuring out a way to continue to have a robust economy that could grow and be able to negotiate with the democrats who are pro labor and pro Social Security and Medicare and Obamacare and the ability to take care of of the people in this country. That can all control our country, helping to create jobs for everyone that can pay into the system. Everybody paid in a little bit more.
We would be in a good position where the country could be strong again, but the first thing that has to happen is that the legal process has to put Trump out of a position where he could become president again. We literally Can’t have him as president.
And people that think it’s a joke to vote for Trump, Fine. I’m gonna vote for this rebel. You know? He’s gonna come in and shake it all up. He’s not gonna shake anything up. He was already in, and look what that got us on the border. Fine It was a mess, and he couldn’t get anything done.
If he came back, it would be a mess. He won’t get anything done. So everybody needs to accept that this is the wrong man for the wrong job at the wrong time, in the wrong world.
Bert Martinez: Yeah. Absolutely, like you said he was in office for 4 years. He had his chance to prove, and what did he prove? That he didn’t empty the swamp, he filled the swamp with people who would do his bidding. That’s what he did.
He made the swamp worse. And what’s amazing to me, and I’ve gotten this, and I’m sure you have too, from both sides of the aisle people are scratching their heads and they’re saying, this person here who is an who used to be an anti Trumper, a never Trumper, has now changed to being a Trumper, and they have completely given up everything that they stood for. You know, Liz Cheney, who I think is a very honorable person, you know, she put her career on the line.
She was given many opportunities to support Trump, to back off, and she said, you know, no way, this is not right. We have to do what is right. We are the party of law and order. We are the party of Ronald Reagan, of Abraham Lincoln. We have to follow the constitution. No matter what, we don’t support the man, we don’t support any 1 person, we support the constitution. And I think what she did is historic. I think what she did is honorable.
And there’s so many people that have not gone that way, that have not stood up for America, that have not stood up for the constitution. McCarthy, I love what happened to McCarthy because he did, he was trying to please everybody and he ended up getting booted out. He didn’t stand up for anything, so he got kicked to the curb, even though he tried to do everything to placate Kate and the other people in his party. It goes to show you that when you don’t stand for something, then you fall for everything.
They got tired of him and they kicked him out of his own party. It just goes to show you that nobody’s safe. There was a video of a gentleman, a young kid, who looked like he was, you know, I don’t know, 20, where he took a picture with Alina Habba at a Trump rally, and of course Alina Habba was not supposed to be at this Trump rally. She’s supposed to be home sick with, COVID like symptoms, and because he took a picture with her, it wasn’t a covert picture, I mean they he asked, can I take a picture with you? She said yes.
They took a selfie together or whatever it’s called, and then he got fine. I’ve booted out, and he’s on the video saying, I just took a picture with Alina Habba. I have donated to this campaign. I had followed Trump. I had done everything they’ve asked me, and this is how they treat a loyal Trump supporter. And they kick him out of the event. That is what you can expect. Loyalty is a one way street.
That’s the way dictators like it. That’s the way Trump likes it. And if at any moment he just makes him displeased, your career’s over, he doesn’t care If you’re a loyal supporter or not, he’ll toss you to the side.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Yeah. I mean, the border bill was a good start as a compromise bill, and it had no chance. And in fact, when they take the vote today, Lankford’s gonna vote against his own bill because it doesn’t have enough support.
So the irony of it should not be lost that Trump controls Congress, because he controls the Republicans fine. Who can veto any legislation and will just be in a terrible mess that we’re already in with, Trump controlling the situation because he controls enough people who live as congressmen and senators, And continuing to serve depends on not being trumped. Just like the card game. Otherwise, they’ll be trumped in the primary, And they’ll be out of office. And that’s what’s happened to everybody that voted to impeach Trump.
They ended up, they’re no longer in office. And to Liz Cheney’s credit, I agree with you. She’s gone down in history as a hero in this country because she stood up for what she believed in, and I’d like to see her run for office. I mean, there’s no reason that she couldn’t, you know, be a bonafide republican nominee, but they need somebody Who is, has some integrity. And right now, they don’t have any of that. And, You know, it would be nice to see it, but we don’t have it. The republicans are a lost party because Trump has destroyed it. It’s the MAGA party.
That’s what it is. And the MAGA is just it’s a no no party. It’s you know, we don’t wanna get anything done. We just wanna tear up what’s already there, and that’s what it is. And, you know, it’s a terrible way to be when the people that govern the country have no interest in governing. They have an interest in getting rid of whatever government we have, and it’s it’s frightening thought.
Bert Martinez: It is a very frightening thought. I’ve said this time and time again, to any other person who was mired in indictments. 90 plus indictments, Civil suits, Sexual, what do you call it? Sexual misconduct. All of these things.
Most politicians would disappear and come back at another time. What’s his name? Mister Wiener? you have to be careful with a name like that, but mister Weiner, again, was caught with, You know, these, sending these, sexually explicit, pictures on Twitter, it it it, got it ruined it It stopped his career. His wife gave him another chance.
They stuck by him. The voters, for heaven’s sake, the voters, we’re going to give him another chance. And if once again, all the sexual misconduct, a bunch of brand new, sexually explicit pictures came out because he didn’t learn from the 1st time. He thought, well, I’ll, you know, I’ll try it again. Then he lost his career and his wife. My point being is, Americans will give you a second chance if they think that you have changed if they think that, okay, he’s turned the corner, he has learned his lesson, let’s give him another chance. We have tons of both men and women that have made a mistake, they were given a 2nd chance, and they’ve had good healthy careers. Occasionally, we have somebody that is so far beyond reach.
So just absolutely, stubborn, self centered that they’re not gonna change. They don’t care about changing. Like you said, all they want is power and more power. And if you give them more power, they won’t even say thank you. They just basically look at you and say, what took you so long?
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Yeah. He’s not gonna change. I mean, Trump is. It’s all about Trump. It’s not about this country. It’s not about the Republican Party. It’s not even about the MAGA party or the Democratic party. It’s about the Trump party.
And Trump wants to take advantage of whatever he can take advantage of for a fine. Self aggrandizement to make him all powerful and to allow him to collect funds. And that’s the bottom line. It’s a business to him. That’s what it is. It’s an ability to collect money for his own well-being.
Bert Martinez: I was gonna say, it’s not only a moneymaker for him, a business as you say, but it’s a business with very little regulation.
Unlike Trump University where he had to produce what he promised. There’s another lawsuit where I think it’s called ACN or something like that where he came up with these where these, it was a network marketing type company with the picture phones. The reason he’s in trouble there is because what was promised was not delivered, this is a theme in his business dealings, but with donor money, it’s not regulated as much. The PAC money is not regulated as much. He doesn’t have to do anything. He doesn’t have to deliver results, to, you know, all he has to do is say, hey, you know, give me money. I’m gonna say this stuff and wham bam.
He’s done. He doesn’t have to do anything. It’s for a guy who hates regulations, it’s a great business opportunity for him because he does not have to deliver anything. It’s the Wild Wild West.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Just think how frightening it would be if he got reelected and he knew that he could then go around to other countries And, if they needed something I can get you that. You want an atomic weapon? I’ll make arrangements for that. You know, just to make some deposits into my own bank account. Something like that is not beyond the realm of possibility.
Bert Martinez: It’s totally possible. That’s, I believe right now they’re investigating. I think it was like 6 or 7 million dollars that he received from foreign, businesses or foreign, citizens while he was president.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Yeah. And here there’s probably more I mean, they could discover, but they’re not gonna do it. No. It’s a frightening world we live in every day. I just hope that he decides that he can’t win. We gotta get him to that point. And I think if there’s a conviction of any of these felonies, people will realize that it’s true.
I think there’s a group of people out there, the MAGA people, that don’t believe anything that they hear or see from the courts, you know, that that’s real. They don’t believe it’s true. They don’t believe he did anything wrong. It’s all a setup and a hoax. And until they turn around and say, you know something? This man is if he’s convicted of a felony, he’s a felon. And I don’t want a felon as my president. Until that happens, I think we still have a danger that he could become president.
Bert Martinez: No. I agree with you. I think that there is a real danger. I think that I’m grateful that every day, more and more people are waking up to reality. I think that there is a very, very strong chance that even if he’s not convicted of a felony, that people will not become the president. There are some other options that I think are better. If you’re a republican, look at those other options and start supporting people that the constitution. That support, what the republican party really stands for.
And, You know, if we’re really gonna put America first, let’s do that. Let’s put America first. Let’s put the constitution first. Let somebody in the Republican Party who will abide by the constitution and not sit here and lie to your face and tell you, I didn’t take an oath. I never took an oath to support the constitution, which is exactly what he did in front of millions of people.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: And you know you could be, when you get republican convention, it’ll be an old fashioned, open convention, where the delegates will be there and decide who they wanna be, to run as President. It could be anybody. You know, there’s credible Republican gen governors out there that would be credible to run in the election. And it’s not far-fetched if Trump wasn’t running, that Joe Biden wouldn’t run, and he’d have an open convention for the democrats because there’s Democratic governors who were credible, and they tick tick at the convention who they wanted to run. So it could all change if Trump ends up knowing that he can’t be president. Then the whole world could change for the better.
Bert Martinez: You know what? I’ve said this numerous times, and I think this is the 1st time I’m saying it on the show. If you have faith, this is a good time to use your faith and pray that God will be done. And sometimes God’s will I think many people have said, God works in mysterious ways, so but I do believe that the power of prayer, I think that it might be time to, whatever your faith is, is to maybe get on your knees and pray to your God and let us help America heal, Let us get the right leadership to help America move forward. I think that, as you said already, Norm, there’s so many other good choices. If president Trump gets out of the way, president Biden will also not run, and that opens up both sides to better choices.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: Amen.
Bert Martinez: I love that. Amen. Yes, sir.
I appreciate you very much, Norm. I think you know, I look forward to catching up with you, and then let’s see what happens. I mean, today was a historic day.
Lawyer Norm Blumenthal: It was an historic day, and it’ll be an historic week. So anybody that gets C SPAN on Thursday, listen to the oral arguments. We’ll see if Trump’s gonna be allowed to be on the ballot.
Bert Martinez: Absolutely. Norm, thank you so much. Good stuff there from Norm Blumenthal. Maybe you disagree with what we’re saying. Let me hear from you. Maybe you think that we’re cray cray but I don’t think so.
I think that America deserves a leader in the truest sense of the word, a leader that is able to collaborate, a leader that is willing to take responsibility when things go awry, a leader that’s going to abide by the constitution, by the rule of law, by putting America first. And a perfect example is, you know, we finally get both sides to agree on border security, which we need so desperately, And yet former president Trump is unhappy because he won’t get any of the credit. Again, a good leader. All Trump had to say was, hey. Congratulations. If he didn’t wanna mention Biden, all he had to do is say, hey. Congratulations to Lankford for getting this bill passed. Congratulations to our Republican party for getting this bill passed, Blah blah blah.
But, no, it was beyond his ability to shed light, share the spotlight with other people to congratulate other people. That’s not a leader. A leader doesn’t always need the spotlight. A leader fine has no problem with other people winning. Think about that. Anyway, If you think we’re wrong, let me know. If you think we’re right, let me know. And, again, I appreciate you stopping by.
Share this episode with everyone you know. Let’s Get a real conversation, a real discussion, not one filled with hate, not one filled with, stubbornness, but a real Democratic is that right, Dem? Demont anyway, a real, a real honest debate with, without the, The anger and without the, criticism. Again, thank you so much. I appreciate you.
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