From Cardi B to Donald Trump: Meet the High-Flying, Liberal Lawyer Defending the Former President in Georgia

Fox News Debate Prep • NYT’s AI Freakout • PragerU Takeover? [View in your browser]( | [Update your preferences](newsletter=vf) [Vanity Fair Hive logo image]( From Cardi B to Donald Trump: Meet the High-Flying, Liberal Lawyer Defending the Former President in Georgia Good Saturday morning! Donald Trump has something in common with Cardi B and Gucci Mane: attorney Drew Findling, Atlanta hip-hop’s most beloved criminal defense lawyer who is also now representing the ex-president against charges in Georgia. Chris Smith [phoned up]( Findling to figure out how the lifelong liberal, who has championed progressive causes (and even donated to Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney who brought [41 counts against]( Trump and 18 co-conspirators this week), defends defending Trump. It was a busy week at the Hive. Charlotte Klein [chatted with]( Fox News’ Martha MacCallum ahead of the network’s upcoming first GOP presidential primary debate. MacCallum, who will be co-moderating, warned that Trump’s competitors could easily walk into a “minefield” onstage. Caleb Ecarma [spotted]( the expansion of PragerU, the right-wing company that purports to be an educational resource, into public schools (starting with Florida, of course). Speaking of Florida, Abigail Tracy [found out]( why Kamala Harris has made a couple of trips to the Sunshine State, with new details about her 2024 plans. Plus, Bess Levin [kept us up to date]( on how Melania Trump is taking the fourth indictment (apparently pretty calmly), while Molly Jong-Fast [mused]( about the silence around George Santos, who remains a member of Congress. See you again on Monday. —Tara Golshan, senior editor— [Drew Findling, attorney for former US President Donald Trump at his desk]( [From Cardi B to Donald Trump: Meet the High-Flying, Liberal Lawyer Defending the Former President in Georgia]( By [Chris Smith]( [Drew Findling made his name as Gucci Mane’s attorney. He’s donated to Fani Willis’s campaign. So why defend one of the right’s most virulent figures?]( [Read more button](   [Fox News’ Debate Could Put Trump’s GOP Opponents in a “Minefield,” Moderator Martha MacCallum Says]( By [Charlotte Klein]( [With or without the ex-president on the debate stage, the other Republicans in the race will have to comment on Trump’s mounting indictments, MacCallum tells Vanity Fair. “This is a very high-stakes moment for them,” she says.]( [Read more button](   [The New York Times Has Had a Summer of AI Anxiety: “They’re Freaking Out”]( By [Charlotte Klein]( [Management sent a notice to staff to not put any proprietary information into AI tools as the newsroom dedicates about 60 employees to AI working groups.]( [Read more button](   [PragerU: Coming to a Public School Near You?]( By [Caleb Ecarma]( [Not an accredited teaching institution, PragerU just saw its right-wing curriculum approved for use in Florida. Two other states are considering the same, which one historian sees as a way “to replace American history with propaganda and indoctrination.”]( [Read more button](   [Image may contain: Tie, Accessories, Accessory, Electrical Device, Microphone, Human, Person, Suit, Coat, and Clothing]( [Why Has Kamala Harris Spent So Much Time in Ron DeSantis’s Florida?]( By [Abigail Tracy]( [Dogged by low approval ratings, Biden officials were reportedly fretting Harris could be a drag on the ticket just months ago. But now the Biden campaign is teeing up the VP as an attack dog on GOP extremism—issues political watchers think she’s better on than Biden himself.]( [Read more button](   Get on the list Subscribe to our Hollywood newsletter for your essential industry and awards-season news, every day. [Sign Up Now](   [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn](   This e-mail was sent to you by The Hive. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, vanityfair@newsletter.vf.com, to your address book. View our [Privacy Policy]( [Unsubscribe](newsletter=vf) Sent from Condé Nast, 1 World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007 Copyright © 2023 Condé Nast