Throughout its 248-year history, America has experienced dramatic, high-profile legal battles that have tested the law and torn apart the fabric of society, from the Haymarket Square Riots and the Scopes Monkey trial to the failed prosecution of a Hall of Fame NFL running back. I have witnessed it with my own eyes. O.J. Simpson’s gruesome double murder case.
But this country has never seen anything like the filmed trial scheduled to begin Monday in New York. The former president, who is also the current Republican presidential candidate, will appear before a jury in a criminal trial. He is trying to inflame the political rhetoric of an already bitterly divided country and gain control over its people. Public relations master Donald Trump has branded himself a political prisoner. New York state claims he is a common criminal who uses his stature to make a mockery of justice.
Its otherworldly canvas will be filled with the realistic details of a wealthy businessman paying a porn star to keep quiet about what she claims is an extramarital affair. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Trump violated the law by falsifying business records as part of a scheme to hide payments to Stormy Daniels. Trump insists he didn’t sleep with Daniels and that he didn’t break any laws when former fixer Michael Cohen hushed Daniels.
Among many Trump supporters and critics, as well as many legal scholars, the New York indictment has less public appeal than the indictment handed down in a federal case involving Trump’s efforts to preserve classified materials. The idea is that the impact on profits will be much smaller. It aims to overturn the 2020 election and overturn a Georgia court case that sought to overturn that state’s results in the same election.
Still, a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted from April 4 to April 8 found that two-thirds of registered voters said hush money demands were either “somewhat serious” or “very serious.” ing.
The loudest voices in politics have competing arguments that he is being unfairly targeted for his political views and that his status as a candidate unfairly protects him from criminal charges. is increasing the amount of
But at the same time, some in political circles see the upcoming circus as a painful episode in American history.
“It’s a sad moment,” said Rep. Jared Moskowitz of Florida. The district is located about 20 miles south of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago mansion on the Atlantic coast.
“I don’t think Americans should be celebrating the fact that we have a former president who has over 90 indictments and is simultaneously running for president and is going to trial,” Moskowitz said. “Obviously, he’s innocent until proven guilty. He deserves a fair trial. But also, what if he’s convicted and still running for president?”
There is nothing in the Constitution that prevents a felon from being elected president. But during this year’s Republican primaries, some Republicans worried that a conviction could devastate their chances of winning a rematch with President Joe Biden in the general election. Ta.
An NBC News poll from January showed Trump leading Biden nationally by 5 points, 47% to 42%. But when asked what he would do if President Trump was convicted before the Nov. 5 election, he reversed his stance. In that scenario, Biden led Trump 45% to 43%.
A Politico/Ipsos poll conducted in March found that a conviction in the hush-money case would be “hugely damaging” to Trump. The news organization reported that one-third of independents said they would be less likely to vote for Trump if they expected a conviction.
Mr. Trump’s allies argue that Mr. Bragg would benefit from being tried before special counsel Jack Smith, who successfully prosecuted Mr. Trump on classified documents and election interference charges.
“I like that Alvin Bragg is leading the charge,” said Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), who regularly discusses the campaign with Trump.
“His case is the most flimsy of facts and the most legally tortured,” Gates said of Bragg. “While the fact pattern asserted in Bragg deals with frivolous matters, there will be an attempt to be more serious in Jack Smith.”
They are also bullish on the possibility that the trial itself could sway public opinion in Mr. Trump’s favor.
Giancarlo Sopo, a Republican media strategist who led President Trump’s Hispanic ads in 2020, said, “It’s only natural that President Trump’s trial will begin in the wake of O.J. Simpson’s death.” Ta. “The media buzz surrounding their legal issues is similar, but with one key difference: The more you hear about the Simpson case, the more you think he’s guilty. Trump In his case, it’s the opposite.”
There is no doubt that Trump’s legal troubles rallied Republicans to his side during the primaries. His recovery from political crisis began in earnest when Mr Bragg first indicted him last year. But his audience at the time was primarily the hardcore Republican voters who dominated the party’s primaries. Democrats are also trying to make the New York case about election interference rather than an alleged affair with a porn star. Trump claims he broke the law and established a pattern to win the 2016 election.
Mr. Trump now has both the ability to avoid a guilty verdict and the ability to turn his indictment into an unparalleled voting machine that garners sympathetic votes from his base and those outside his base, regardless of the jury’s findings. I have to hope.
His continued efforts to delay all trials stem from fears that if he had the word “felon” tattooed on his brand, it would be even harder to win. It suggests that there is. If he loses the election and does not have the power to stop federal prosecution, these two cases could extend the amount of time a defeated political candidate can be prosecuted by the Justice Department of the person who defeated that candidate. become.
“What happens after he loses the election and the court case ensues?” Moskowitz said. “These are not great times for this country.”
