One thing he generally does a good job at is framing the discussion in his favor with his people so anything less than total vindication looks like he was robbed, In this case, first he said he was going to be indicted and tried to frame it as a witch hunt, then he wasn’t and the Gj was awesome, then the evidence was weak when he realized it could still happen, now he is being indicted again. Even his sycophants must see through this silliness at some point.
The DA has the discretion on if and when to move on a Grand Jury indictment. The GJ must have voted before it convened, and the NY DA decided now, for whatever reason, was the right time to indict. The big question regarding the case isn't guilt. Trump paid the hush money. It's whether or not the NY DA can tie it to the election, which would make the crime a felony instead of a misdemeanor. There may also be a question about jurisdiction because Trump was running for a Fed office, and this is a state case, but if you want to get technical, the election for POTUS isn't direct, and Trump was running in a state election to try and and win the state of NY electoral votes, with the election run completely by the state of NY.
We need one or two of the other cases to reach a similar stage before this case gets adjudicated. Because if he gets acquitted on this it will scare off the other prosecutors, and those are the stronger cases IMO.
Trump lost the last election by nearly five percent, and that was before Jan 6. This will fire up his base, but not much beyond that. Also remember he still has 3 other cases pending, which are seemingly stronger than this one. He may be in jail by the time 2024 rolls around. Or barred from holding public office. Or people just so tired of the drama that surrounds him that even his sympathizers will find someone with the message and not the baggage. In any case, I don’t buy the “he will win as a martyr” hope. No one is changing their minds about him and he has been toxic for years now.
My favorite quote of the day: “The mug shot is going to really upset his fragile ego,” Cohen told NBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/30/donald-trump-indictment-live-news-and-updates.html
I’m actually a bit sad. Although I knew he was a crook its jarring to have a president as a full on criminal.
You too, man? Get out there on the Streets! At least tip over a newspaper machine, or something… this is pathetic… Don’t make Trump look like a liar!
No need to get histrionic yet. This may well be just the first of several indictments, and the least punitive.
Sorry for starting another thread, but this one does not appear on my feed. Guess whoever started it is on my Ignore list. Just here to say: This is just the beginning. The first of many indictments. Justice isn’t coming yet, but there’s a lot of ***-circling. TIME TO CELEBRATE JUSTICE TO THE BIGGEST EVIL TO EVER DARKEN THE DOORS OF OUR GOVERNMENT. And a sharp rebuke to all of his worshipers and his enablers in Congress.
But here’s the thing they sent Cohen to prison for in part the same thing (yeah I know the taxi medallions were part of it). Why shouldn’t Trump face the same punishment for the crime he orchestrated? I’m all reasonable like that..
