Politics

Joe Biden's pardoned a bunch of folks during his presidency, and as it turns out -- one of his own ancestors was granted mercy by none other than Abraham Lincoln way back when.

WaPo dug up old documents in the National Archives which show that POTUS's great-great-grandfather, Moses J. Robinette, received a pardon by Honest Abe back in the mid-1860s ... this after he got into a fight with a fellow Union Army worker that landed him in jail.

Here's what happened, per ancient history ... Moses was working as a civilian veterinary surgeon for the U.S. Army during the Civil War -- and while he was stationed at the Army of the Potomac's winter camp in Spring 1864, he got into a brawl with another fella.

Long story short ... John J. Alexander -- a brigade wagon master -- apparently overheard Joe's grandad talking s*** about him to the female cook in one of the tents, and he confronted him on the spot -- which led to an argument and eventually a scuffle.

During the fight, Moses was accused of pulling his pocketknife and stabbing John -- as he was left bleeding from several cuts in the aftermath. Soon, authorities arrived to check in.

Moses ended up getting charged with attempted murder -- but during the trial ... that charge ended up being dropped --- although he was convicted on other charges, including assault, "inciting a dangerous quarrel" and "violating good order and military discipline."

A transcript of his trial quotes Moses as saying ... "[W]hatever I have done was done in self defence, that I had no malice towards Mr. Alexander before or since. He grabbed me and possibly might have injured me seriously had I not resorted to the means that I did."

He ended up getting convicted on all counts -- minus the attempted murder -- and he was sentenced to two years incarceration at hard labor. Once they finally figured out where to send him, Moses was shipped to the Dry Tortugas islands near Key West, FL.

Once he was there, other army officers who knew Moses wrote a letter in his defense -- and that worked its way up the channels and eventually landed on Lincoln's desk. He reviewed the case and decided Moses' punishment was way too harsh ... and pardoned him.

There's a piece of Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy on the market ... a book he inscribed to a nurse who helped save his life following an assassination attempt.

MLK signed a copy of his book, "Stride Toward Freedom," and wrote a personalized note to Gwen Brown, thanking her for caring for him at Harlem Hospital after his 1958 stabbing.

The autographed copy is going up for sale over at Moments In Time ... with a $35,000 price tag.

MLK was actually at a book signing for this very book at Blumstein's Department Store in Harlem when Izola Ware Curry approached him and stabbed him in the chest with a steel letter opener.

The stab wound was so close to MLK's aorta he would have died if he sneezed or coughed on his way to the hospital. With Gwen's help, MLK made a full recovery.

MLK's note to Gwen reads ... "With best wishes and genuine appreciation for the attention you gave me as one of my nurses while I recuperated at Harlem Hospital."

Hay un pedazo del legado de Martin Luther King Jr. en el mercado. Hablamos de un libro dedicado a una enfermera que lo ayudó a salvar su vida después de un intento de asesinato.

MLK firmó una copia de su libro, "Stride Toward Freedom", y le escribió una nota personalizada a Gwen Brown, dándole las gracias por cuidar de él en el Hospital de Harlem después de su apuñalamiento 1958.

La copia autografiada está a la venta en Moments In Time, con una etiqueta de precio de $35.000.

MLK estaba en una firma de libros para este mismo libro en los grandes almacenes de Blumstein en Harlem, cuando Izola Ware Curry se acercó a él y lo apuñaló en el pecho con un abridor de cartas de acero.

La puñalada estaba tan cerca de la aorta que MLK habría muerto si hubiera estornudado o tosido de camino al hospital. Con la ayuda de Gwen, MLK se recuperó completamente.

La nota de MLK a Gwen dice: "Con mis mejores deseos y genuino agradecimiento por la atención que me diste como una de mis enfermeras mientras me recuperaba en el Hospital de Harlem".

Donald Trump está haciendo un movimiento a lo Michael Jordan, porque ahora está vendiendo zapatillas, presumiblemente para pagar lo que hasta ahora asciende a un total de 500 millones de dólares en juicios.

Trump anunció la línea de zapatillas el sábado, bajo el apodo, "Trump Sneakers". Él los está llamando el "NEVER SURRENDER HIGH-TOP SNEAKER" con un precio de $399.

Trump afirma que ha tenido la idea durante más de 10 años, pero es una gran coincidencia que se diera a conocer un día después de que se le ordenó pagar $355M por la manipulación de los libros de su empresa.

Solo se venderán 1.000 pares, así que no le servirá realmente para salir de sus problemas financieros.

Trump hizo el anuncio el sábado en Sneaker Con. Las zapatillas llevan una "T" y un "45" estampados. Y está vendiendo una colonia y un perfume a 99 dólares cada uno.

La empresa que está vendiendo los artículos es CIC Ventures LLC. No parece ser parte del imperio de Trump, ya que el juez dijo que Trump no puede hacer negocios en su empresa con sede en Nueva York durante tres años.

A propósito, si Trump está pensando en elegir a RFK Jr. como su compañero, debería pensarlo mejor. RFK y su esposa -Cheryl Hines- dejaron claro en "TMZ Live" que eso no va a suceder.

Una cosa más, Trump le respondió enfurecido a la gente en redes sociales respecto a unas imágenes que están dando vueltas en las que aparece mostrando una barriga prominente, alegando que la foto era una falsificación generada por A.I.

Donald Trump is hoping for a Michael Jordan moment because he's now selling sneakers ... presumably to pay off what is now amounting to a total of half a billion in judgments.

Trump announced the sneaker line Saturday ... under the moniker, "Trump Sneakers." He's calling them the "NEVER SURRENDER HIGH-TOP SNEAKER" with a price tag of $399.

Trump claims he's had the idea for more than 10 years, but it's pretty coincidental the kicks were unveiled a day after he was ordered to pay $355M for cooking the books of his company.

There are only 1,000 pairs being sold, so it won't come close to digging him out of the financial hole.

Trump made the announcement Saturday at Sneaker Con. The sneakers have a "T" and a "45" emblazoned on them.  And he's selling cologne and perfume at $99 a pop.

BTW ... the company that's selling the items is CIC Ventures LLC. It doesn't appear to be part of the Trump org, which would be problematic since the judge in the case said Trump can't do business in his New York-based company for 3 years.

BTW ... if he's thinking of picking RFK Jr. as his running mate, he should think again. RFK and his wife, Cheryl Hines made it clear on "TMZ Live" Friday that's not gonna happen.

And one more thing ... Trump launched on folks on social media for images of him they were using with belly in full display ... claiming the pic was a fake -- generated by A.I.

George Santos is suing Jimmy Kimmel for using personalized Cameo videos on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" ... TMZ has learned.

According to court documents filed Saturday ... the former member of the House of Representatives is suing Kimmel, ABC, and The Walt Disney Company -- alleging they violated copyright law by broadcasting his Cameo videos on Jimmy's show.

Here's the deal ... back in December, Kimmel aired several segments on his show where he shared videos he solicited from Santos. One showed Santos congratulating someone on winning a beef-eating contest, and another congratulating someone on cloning their dog.

Santos is claiming broadcasting these violated Cameo's terms of service ... alleging the types of licenses users receive when purchasing a cameo does not allow a user to broadcast them nationally.

They're also claiming Cameo's terms of service clearly state that all videos are "wholly owned" by the creator ... in this case, Santos.

Santos alleges that Kimmel violated copyright law by using five Cameo videos on his show. He's also suing for fraudulent inducement ... claiming Jimmy used fake profiles and personas to trick Santos into making the videos.

He's suing Kimmel, ABC, and Disney for damages and attorneys' fees.

Bill Maher is f***ing sick of Republicans and Democrats who reflexively villainize everyone with whom they disagree ... and he's got receipts of how stupid hard-core partisans have become.

For starters, the far right is trying to sell a story that Biden has destroyed America. Rep. Nancy Mace said since Joe Biden took office America has become a raging "s*** show." Bill concedes he wouldn't pick Joe as his "Squid Games" partner, but he says it's actually Nancy who's full of s*** when you look at the facts.

Fact is, the 'Real Time' host says Biden's not perfect by any stretch, but he's done a lot of good.

The funniest thing ... he points to Rep. Lauren Boebert who grouses we are now dependent on Saudi oil. Not true, BM says, and warns her not to jerk him off!

On the other side, people who don't like Ron DeSantis say he's worse than Donald Trump. Bill shows that just not true, even if you strongly disagree with his views.

The real point ... mindless partisanship. If you disagree with someone, then they're the worst people who ever lived. There's no good in them ... just evil. And that's why the largest voting block these days is independents, because they're sick of the tribalism.

And the media plays right into this. Cable networks find no good in the people with whom they disagree, and no bad in the people they embrace. And cable networks aren't alone.

Donald Trump is taking a swing at social media users with his nine iron for posting "fake" A.I. pics of him with a massive beer gut on the golf course.

On Friday, the 45th U.S. President posted a message on Truth Social, blasting everyone who uploaded to their accounts what he claims are Artificial Intelligence-generated photos portraying him as a fatso as he hits a golf ball on the links.

The pic, BTW, appears to be a photoshopped version of golfer John Daly.

Regardless, an infuriated DT wrote, "The Fake News used Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) to create the picture. These are despicable people, but everyone knows that."

He continued, "The other pictures are me hitting Golf balls today to show the difference. Sadly, in our Country, Fake News is all you get!"

Alongside his bloated "A.I." image, DT posted three snaps of a skinnier version of himself supposedly playing golf Friday afternoon.

As you know, the insult could not have come on a worse day for Trump as a New York judge ordered him to pay $355 million in fines after he was found liable in his civil business fraud trial.

Enorme pérdida para Donald Trump en los tribunales: el juez a cargo del juicio civil del expresidente por fraude empresarial en Nueva York acaba de ordenar que este debe pagar alrededor de $355 millones en multas.

El juez Arthur Engoron encontró responsable a Trump de conspirar para manipular su patrimonio neto en un fallo del viernes.

Además de la dura sanción económica, el juez también prohibió a Trump ocupar altos cargos en cualquier empresa de Nueva York durante 3 años y eso incluye la Organización Trump.

Los fiscales estaban buscando una multa de $370 millones para Trump y lo acusaban a él y a sus hijos Donald Trump Jr. y Eric Trump, de falsificar sus estados financieros y registros de negocios como parte de un fraude repetido y persistente.

Trump sin duda apelará la multa, la que aparentemente podría ascender a 400 millones de dólares con los intereses.

Como informamos, el mes pasado un jurado de Nueva York decidió que debía pagarle 83,3 millones de dólares a E. Jean Carroll por difamarla, mientras al mismo tiempo este negaba la acusación que ella hizo de agresión sexual.

Huge loss in court for Donald Trump ... the judge in Trump's civil business fraud trial in New York just ordered the former president to pay about $355 million in fines.

Judge Arthur Engoron found Trump liable for conspiring to manipulate his net worth in a Friday ruling.

In addition to the stiff financial penalty, the judge also barred Trump from serving in top roles at any New York company for 3 years, and that includes the Trump Organization.

Prosecutors were seeking a $370 million fine for Trump ... accusing him and his sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, of falsifying financial statements and business records as part of repeated and persistent fraud.

Trump will no doubt appeal the fine, which reportedly could balloon to $400 million with interest.

As we reported, just last month a New York jury decided he should pay E. Jean Carroll $83.3 million for defaming her while denying her sexual assault allegation.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. knows a happy wife makes for a happy life ... and that's why he has no desire to be Donald Trump's running mate.

RFK Jr. and his wife, actress Cheryl Hines, joined us on Friday's "TMZ Live," and we asked the presidential candidate why he wouldn't be down with a potential Trump pairing.

Cheryl jumped in and told us her husband knows that wouldn't make her very happy ... and he smiled and laughed as he sat back. Smart man.

While there's a marital agreement on the Trump topic, the Kennedy family's been at odds over RFK Jr.'s politics -- most recently, his campaign ad during last week's Super Bowl raised eyebrows.

Kennedy says, like most families, they don't agree about everything ... but it won't be an issue as his campaign moves forward because his Kennedy upbringing taught him to debate things with passion, but also congeniality.

Healthy debate, disagreement, and tough conversations are what RFK Jr. thinks our country needs ... as long as we don't hate on each other.

Speaking of hate, the candidate caught some lighthearted blowback over the viral photos of him walking barefoot on an airplane -- so, naturally, we had to follow up!

RFK says he can't do that anymore after we put him on blast ... even though it sounds like it's his preferred way to fly. Cheryl says he never should've taken off his shoes in the first place.

See, healthy family disagreement!

RFK Jr. and Cheryl seem warmed up for their upcoming comedy show fundraisers ... the first of which kicks off Wednesday night in Los Angeles, with Cheryl serving as host.

Dos de los últimos conciertos de Matisyahu fueron cancelados y él está teorizando que las cancelaciones podrían haber sido causadas por algunos trabajadores que hacen declaraciones políticas contra Israel.

El cantante y compositor se unió a nosotros en "TMZ Live" el jueves, diciéndonos que su espectáculo con entradas agotadas en Nuevo México fue cancelado apenas unas horas antes de que el telón estuviera listo para subir, algo de lo que se enteró a última hora.

Como Matisyahu -un partidario muy vocal de la causa israelí en Gaza- lo explicó, un fan se acercó a él después de que ya había realizado una prueba de sonido en el Meow Wolf, y dijo que había recibido un correo electrónico diciendo que el concierto fue cancelado debido a las amenazas de seguridad.

Cuando su equipo se dirigió a los organizadores del evento, Matisyahu dice que le dijeron que los trabajadores tenían miedo de ir a trabajar debido a posibles protestas fuera del edificio y que no tendrían tiempo de contratar a más personal para el evento.

La protesta no exactamente multitudinaria, solo alrededor de cinco personasestaban ahí para expresar su descontento, de acuerdo con Matis. Así que en realidad no fue una amenaza.

No es el único espectáculo que ha sido cancelado, Matisyahu dice que su show de esta noche en Tucson Arizona tampoco se llevará a cabo porque supuestamente los emp´leados están cabreados.

Matisyahu dice que los trabajadores podrían haberse dado cuenta de que el evento tendría que ser cancelado si decidían no llegar a trabajar, añadiendo mensajes en las redes sociales de algunos de los empleados de Nuevo México que dejaron claro que estaban en contra de Israel.

Matisyahu insiste en que no está empujando su política en sus espectáculos, admitiendo que a veces hace declaraciones en contra de Hamás, pero mantiene la división política fuera de sus actuaciones en su mayor parte.

Si los boicoteadores tienen la esperanza de desalentar a Matisyahu, no está funcionando, y dicie que está dispuesto a tocar en cualquier lugar dispuesto a acogerlo a él y a su grupo. Incluso mencionó a su primo, que estudia en Tucson, y dijo que daría un concierto en una fraternidad si estaban interesados.

Por supuesto, las tensiones han sido especialmente altas entre los seguidores israelíes y palestinos desde que un ataque sorpresa de Hamás en un festival de música el 7 de octubre desató una guerra total en la región.

Two of Matisyahu's recent concerts got canceled ... and he's theorizing the cancelations might've been caused by some workers making a political statement against Israel.

The singer-songwriter joined us on "TMZ Live" Thursday ... telling us his sold-out show in New Mexico was canceled just hours before the curtain was set to go up -- something he learned about very last minute.

As Matisyahu -- a very vocal supporter of the Israeli cause in Gaza -- explained it ... a fan approached him after he'd already performed a sound check in the Meow Wolf venue and said they had received an email saying the concert was called off because of security threats.

When his team approached the event organizers about it, Matisyahu says they told him workers were afraid to come to work because of possible protests outside the building and that they wouldn't have time to hire more staffers for the event.

BTW ... the protest didn't exactly take off -- with just about five people showing up, apparently, to voice their displeasure according to Matis. So, hardly a threat, really.

It's not the only show that's been canceled, as it turns out ... Matisyahu says his show tonight in Tucson, Arizona, is also not happening because employees there are also allegedly calling out.

The possible reasoning behind this ... Matisyahu says he thinks workers might've realized the event would have to be called off if they decided not to arrive for work -- adding social media posts of some of the New Mexico staff made it clear they stood against Israel.

Matisyahu insists he's not pushing his politics at his shows ... admitting he sometimes makes statements against Hamas but keeps political division out of his performances for the most part.

If boycotters are hoping to discourage Matisyahu ... it's not working so far, with him saying he's willing to play at any venue willing to host him and his group. He even mentioned his cousin who goes to school in Tucson -- and said he'd put on a show at a frat house if they're interested!

Of course, tensions have been especially high between Israeli and Palestinian supporters since a surprise attack by Hamas on a music festival on October 7 sparked a full-on war in the region.

La estrella de "La princesa y el sapo" Jennifer Cody está encantada de que Tiana's Bayou Adventure esté tomando forma en los parques Disney, sustituyendo a la controvertida Splash Mountain tras años de protestas del público.

La actriz que interpretó a Charlotte La Bouff en la película de 2009 le dice a TMZ que está aplaudiendo a Disney por decidir finalmente mantenerse al día y reemplazar a los animatronics de Splash Mountain debido a sus temas racistas.

La atracción se basó en la película de 1946, "Song of the South", que ha sido muy criticada durante años por sus representaciones racistas de los hombres negros del Sur y su retrato del Sur de antebellum.

Por esa razón, Jennifer nos dice que ya era hora de que hiriente atracción fuera retirada.

Su sustituta -Tiana's Bayou Adventure- abrirá sus puertas este verano en el Magic Kingdom de Walt Disney World y más adelante en el parque Disneyland de California. Se dice que los animatronics de la nueva atracción son de primer nivel, algo que encanta a Jennifer porque cree que no se apreció lo suficiente a los animadores de la primera historia de princesas negras del estudio.

Sin embargo, aunque está contenta de que Disney esté invirtiendo en historias de afroamericanos... espera que la gente en la atracción pueda ver más allá del concepto de "princesa afro" de Tiana... y se sienta inspirada para emular sus fuertes y valientes cualidades empresariales.

"The Princess and The Frog" star Jennifer Cody is thrilled Tiana's Bayou Adventure is taking shape at the Disney parks ... replacing the controversial Splash Mountain after years of public outcry.

The actress, who played Charlotte La Bouff in the 2009 movie, tells TMZ she's applauding Disney for finally deciding to keep up with the times and replacing Splash Mountain's animatronics due to its racist themes.

IYDK, SM was based on the 1946 film, "Song of the South," which has been heavily criticized for years for its racist depictions of Southern Black men and its portrayal of the antebellum South.

For that reason, Jennifer tells us it was about time the hateful and hurtful ride was taken down.

Its log flume replacement, Tiana's Bayou Adventure, will open up Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom this summer and later on in the year at Cali's Disneyland Park. Animatronics for the new attraction are said to be next-level -- something that delights Jennifer 'cause she thinks the animators from the studio's first Black princess story weren't appreciated enough.

However, while she's happy Disney's investing in Black stories ... she's hoping people on the ride can look past Tiana's "Black princess" concept -- and feel inspired to emulate her strong, courageous entrepreneurial qualities.

Johnny Depp has a new powerful, and allegedly dangerous, friend in Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman -- and their relationship's being described as a "bromance like no other."

The seemingly odd pairing is detailed in a new profile in Vanity Fair ... which claims Johnny is getting the royal treatment over in Saudi Arabia.

MBS hosted JD in the Saudi Kingdom for nearly 2 months last year, putting Johnny up in royal palaces and transporting him in helicopters, yachts and a private plane ... according to Vanity Fair.

Unsurprisingly, it sounds like money is a huge factor in this "bromance" ... Johnny's shooting movies in Saudi Arabia as he waits on a potential 7-figure deal to make him one of the nation's global cultural ambassadors.

MBS and the Saudis have been trying to buy their way into all sorts of global industries as part of MBS' grand plan to make people overlook his country's reported human rights abuses ... and the Crown Prince has been investing big in movies.

Johnny and MBS are said to have begun their friendship in July 2022 when Depp was shooting "Jeanne du Barry," a film bankrolled by the Saudis.

They've grown closer ever since, to the point where Johnny says he felt comfortable enough to ask MBS about the killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

The VF profile says MBS told Depp he didn't order Khashoggi's dismemberment, but took responsibility ... claiming he just wanted the reporter arrested because Khashoggi had become a rogue operative working to undermine the country.

Johnny definitely seems to be buying what MBS is selling in terms of a cultural revolution in Saudia Arabia.

Depp tells VF ... "Though I admit I was somewhat naïve at first to what was transpiring in the region, I’ve since experienced firsthand the cultural revolution that is happening there."

JD added, "I've had the opportunity to meet people from various parts of the region who have been most welcoming in sharing with me their culture, their traditions, and their stories."

Saudia Arabia is also financing Depp's next crack at directing a movie ... a biopic about Italian artist Amedeo Modigliani starring Al Pacino.