Monday was a landmark day in the United States — and not in a good way.
Donald Trump became the first ex-president called to account at a criminal trial, adding yet another convention-crushing highlight to his checkered resume. And it went about as well as you would expect.
Trump is accused in New York of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to an adult film star in order to keep unflattering information away from voters before the 2016 election. Trump has pleaded not guilty and has denied having an affair with the woman, Stormy Daniels.
If he's found guilty, it's possible he could face prison time, though many legal experts question whether that is likely for a first-time offender.
The United States is not a nation accustomed to seeing its former heads of state on trial. If the Trump case is not extraordinary enough on its own, its impact is multiplied by the fact that Trump is not only America's most recent president – he could be its next one, too. And this is not even the only criminal trial he is facing — there are three others pending, arguably all of which concern more serious allegations to do with election interference and the hoarding of classified documents.
The former president is required to be in court every day the trial is in session — typically four days a week — which is crimping his campaign schedule less than seven months before the general election. Jury selection — a process that is likely to be long and laborious given the complications of putting the most famous man in the world on trial – started Monday and the entire trial could last around six weeks or two months.
It's hard to judge the future political impact of a conviction or an acquittal. Trump was successful in weaponizing his four criminal indictments into a narrative of political persecution during the Republican primary campaign. But GOP base voters represent the most fervent and pro-Trump slice of the electorate. And general election audiences might balk at Trump's ridiculous claims he's a political dissident like anti-apartheid Nobel laureate Nelson Mandela or the recently deceased Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny.
Trump scowled, smirked and bit his lip during the first exchanges of the trial on Monday but as soon as the court went into recess emerged to lambast the judge and prosecutors, seeking to turn the trial into a campaign trail circus. He complained Judge Juan Merchan won't let him go to Washington next week to sit in on the Supreme Court hearing on his expansive claim that ex-presidents are immune from prosecution for actions they took in office. Trump is not required to be at the Supreme Court case — but he's got no choice other than to attend his trial. "Your client is a criminal defendant," Merchan told Trump's attorney. "He's required to be here." The exchange was a reminder that the ex-president is in a position he is not accustomed to. Long the biggest energy force in any room, Trump created an aura of omnipotence in his business and political personas. But he's got no choice in court but to sit and do as he's told.
"He won't allow me to leave here for a half a day – go to DC and go before the United States Supreme Court because he thinks he's superior…," Trump complained to reporters when court was done for the day. "The judge isn't going to allow me to escape this scam, it's a scam trial."
It took only one day for Trump to find out that the antics that work for him politically don't cut it in court where everyone is equal under the law.
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