Donald Trump won a major legal victory with hours to spare, but you wouldn’t know it from much of the news coverage.
On MSNBC in particular, a surprising number of anchors and pundits broke the news of Trump’s appellate victory on Monday, but were quick to describe it as a bad ruling, saying that once again Trump had gotten away with something. I deplored the fact that it appeared to be the case.
They started the day in high spirits as a deadline loomed in which the New York state attorney general could freeze bank accounts, seize property and possibly sell off some of the iconic buildings.
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The reason, of course, is that Trump was unable to post the $464 million bail that would have allowed him to continue his appeal without forfeiting some of his real estate holdings.
But when five appellate judges suddenly lowered the bail requirement to $175 million and gave them 10 days to raise it, including the usual lead prosecutor, Andrew Wiseman, A battalion of Trump bashers attacked former prosecutors. Before Bob Mueller became a legal analyst at MSNBC, he helped lead the largely unsuccessful investigation into Trump. Wiseman pivoted to what he called an “ongoing schism” among Trump’s lawyers.
What most people interviewed for this article didn’t say was that the ruling was a scathing rebuke to trial judge Arthur Engoron and AG Letitia James. Requiring the former president to provide nearly $500 million in funding was punitive and excessive, and the judge gave James almost everything he wanted. Although there is no written opinion, it is impossible to read the appellate decision any other way, given that the judge reduced the harsh penalty by more than half.
Former President Donald Trump waves as he departs the Trump Building at 40 Wall Street in Manhattan, New York, Monday, March 25, 2024. Trump spoke to the media about the New York Court of Appeals’ decision to reduce his bail. He won more than half of his lawsuits over allegations of falsifying business records, giving him 10 days to pay $175 million. (Adam Gray, Fox News Digital)
What was Trump planning to do by fleeing the country? He’s running for president!
Indeed, this may only be a temporary reprieve. Trump was found to be responsible for inflating the values of some buildings and golf courses, even though the banks that lent him the money did their own analysis and repaid the funds in full.
James, a Democrat who campaigned on the platform of going after Trump, initially sought $250 million in damages, but the amount was later increased to $370 million. Engoron, as he had done throughout her case, turned her over and gave her almost everything she wanted.
So if Mr. Trump ultimately loses, the Trump Organization could be seriously injured and Mr. James could be barred from serving on New York corporate boards for three years, as requested.
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However, it is difficult to predict what the court will rule, but the Court of Appeals, which found the $500 million bond request to be unreasonably high, and the $300 million bond request that Engoron found to be similarly excessive. Could the $70 million fine be reduced?
Media coverage quickly gravitated toward the second court ruling against Donald Trump. However, this was widely expected.
Judge Juan Mercian ruled that the hush money case will begin within three weeks, on April 15th. Trump’s lawyers were holding a Hail Mary, asking for the case to be delayed further or thrown out entirely.
Such motions are rarely successful, and a judge had already granted a postponement from the originally scheduled mid-March start date.
Former President Donald Trump departs the Trump Building at 40 Wall Street in Manhattan, New York, Monday, March 25, 2024. Trump spoke to the media about the New York Court of Appeals’ decision to reduce his bail by more than 5,000 yen. Half of his lawsuit concerns allegations of falsifying business records, and he was given 10 days to pay $175 million. (Adam Gray, Fox News Digital)
The case, filed by Manhattan prosecutor Alvin Bragg, is the least significant and most openly partisan of the four charges against Trump. But the Stormy Daniels trial is almost certainly the only criminal case to be decided before the election.
Of course, the verdict could be appealed, but it’s not nearly impossible that a Manhattan jury, a borough largely opposed to President Trump, would convict him. Next, we’ll see if the hypothetical poll shows that some independents and Republicans are less likely to vote for a convicted former president.
Mr. Trump said this was a new opportunity for law enforcement to use weapons against him, especially since Mr. Bragg appears to have suspended the investigation and filed charges that would normally range from misdemeanors to felonies. They will try to convince their supporters that this is the case.
However, the media was so excited about the countervailing ruling that the Washington Post ran a headline that read, “Trump backs away from challenging court ruling as campaign disrupts court action.”
Former President Donald Trump waves to the crowd as he leaves the Trump Building at 40 Wall Street in Manhattan, New York, Monday, March 25, 2024. Mr. Trump addressed the media regarding the upcoming ruling by the New York Court of Appeals. He cut his bail by more than half in a case related to allegations of falsifying business records and gave him 10 days to pay $175 million. (Adam Gray, Fox News Digital)
reel? After an unexpected victory in the bail issue and a court date set as expected in New York?
Needless to say, any politician not named Trump would be indicted on charges of paying porn stars, which would be over within a day or two. But the media is convinced that all previous charges will hurt him, and everyone now agrees that they have boosted him in the polls.
At issue during the hearing was whether Mr. Bragg’s office gave Mr. Trump’s team enough time to review thousands of pages of documents obtained from federal prosecutors. But it turns out that only 300 of those pages were about Michael Cohen, a former Trump fixer who served time in prison and is now the trial’s star witness.
In the fall of 2016, Trump’s campaign feared that Stormy Daniels would release testimony that she had only one sexual encounter with Trump, a claim that she has always denied. Cohen arranged to pay her $130,000 to buy her silence. Mr. Trump is responsible for approving the reimbursement, but Mr. Cohen’s credibility can clearly be challenged.
Judge Marchand reprimanded one of Trump’s lawyers, asking him how much experience he had as a prosecutor. He said the defense’s claims about the documents were “incredibly serious” and added:
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“You are literally accusing the Manhattan prosecutors and the people appointed to this case of prosecutorial misconduct and trying to make me complicit in it.”
The former president vowed to appeal, saying, “I don’t understand how a trial like this could be held in the middle of an election, a presidential election.” However, jury selection is almost certain to begin on April 15th.
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By yesterday, the media had moved on to the horrific collapse of the Baltimore Bridge by a giant cargo ship, the raid on Sean “Diddy” Combs’ three homes, and, yes, Judge Marchand’s gag order against Trump as hush money. . case. His decision on Monday was divisive and quickly disappeared from the headlines.
