SLOAT vs GOAT - Trump found guilty of falsifying business records to hide monies paid to porn star Stormy Daniels to buy her silence weeks before the 2016 presidential election - Judge Juan Merchan said judgement reserved until July 11 10 am ET - He can send him to jail or let him out on probation - Trump still eligible to contest Presidential election and also vote

 

Donald Trump found guilty on 34 counts for falsifying business records in the adult star Stormy Daniels Hush Money Trial – Judge Juan Merchan to announce sentencing on July 11 Trump can still run for presidency

By Ashe N Ayer

In a dramatic turn of events, ex-President Donald Trump was found guilty of all 34 counts in falsifying business records to hide the monies paid to adult star Stormy Daniels – money of $130,000 was paid by his attotrney Michael Cohen and he was reimbursed after Trump became President in 2016 as legal fees to cover the expenses.

It is for the first timein the history of the United States that a President has been convicted of  felony which is unprecedent and historic.

As the jury pronounced its verdict, Star Witness Michael Cohen called Trumps attorney the STupidest Lawyer of all Times (SLOAT) and Tod Blanche shot back calling Cohen the " Greatest Liar of All Times". ( GLOAT). What ever anti Trump voters are GLOATING over the verdict while pro Trump voters are vowing revenge .

The Manhattan jury in New York under Judge Juan Merchan, who issued several gag orders against Trump during the trial and fined him a total of $10,000 for nine violations of the order, reserved his judgment until July 11 when he will finally announce the sentence for the ex president committing a felony.

Manhattan jury found Donald Trump guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in his hush money criminal trial, an unprecedented and historic verdict that makes him the first former president in US history to be convicted of a felony.

Trump said he would hold a press conference at Trump Tower. Judge Juan Merchan set a sentencing hearing for July 11. Trump's sentence is up to the judge, and it could include prison time or probation.

Prosecutors accused Trump of taking part in an illegal conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 presidential election and an unlawful plan to suppress negative information, which included concealing a hush money payment to an adult film star.

While a felony conviction of a former US president or party frontrunner is unprecedented, Trump, who is the 2024 presumptive GOP nominee, can still run for office.

The judge scheduled Trump's sentencing for July 11. Here's a look at the potential sentence he could face 

Judge Juan Merchan set Donald Trump’s sentencing date for July 11 at 10 a.m. ET.

A panel of New York jurors on Thursday found the former president guilty of all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records after deliberating for nearly 12 hours over two days.  Not only is Trump the first former president to be found guilty of a felony, but he’s also the first major-party presidential nominee to be convicted of a crime in the midst of a campaign for the White House. And if he defeats President Joe Biden in November, he will be the first sitting president in history to be a convicted felon.

The July 11 sentencing hearing happens just days before the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. The convention is scheduled to announce Trumps nomination officially for presidency on behalf of the Republican party for the 2024 race to the White House.

While prison time is a possibility, the judge is not required to sentence Trump to jail. Merchan could sentence Trump to probation or a sentence of up to 4 years on each count in state prison, with a maximum of 20 years.

Here's a further breakdown of the potential sentence Trump could face:

The maximum penalty for each count of falsifying business records is four years in prison, the judge has discretion over how long any prison sentence for each count should be, and whether the sentences would run consecutively (one after another) or concurrently (at the same time).

Even if the judge orders the sentences to be served consecutively, New York law caps total sentencing for this type of low-level felony at 20 years. The judge may also consider imprisoning him for a period that is a fraction of the maximum penalty.  

But it’s entirely possible the judge could forego prison entirely and sentence him to probation and/or a fine, especially in light of the non-violent nature of the charges and because the former president does not have a criminal record. 

Trump allies rally to his defense after guilty verdict. Here's what some are saying 

Trumps allies rallied to his defence.Oklahoma Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin said Trump's guilty verdict "reinvigorates the base" and "doesn't change the outcome" of the upcoming 2024 election. "It's been weaponized," Mullin – among one of the first Republican senators to endorse Trump in the GOP primary – told Kasie Hunt on CNN This Morning of the judicial system.

North Dakota Republican Gov. Doug Burgum said that the guilty verdict in Trump's criminal hush money trial does not give him pause about possibly serving alongside the former president as his running-mate. Burgum called Thursday a "sad day for America" and said its "tough" for Trump to get a fair trial in New York. He criticized how the case ultimately got to court and stressed that if legal experts don't understand the charges, and then neither will voters.

How does the hush money trial conviction alter Trumps chances in the presidential campaign and voting rights

Now that a New York jury has convicted former President Donald Trump of all 34 felony charges of falsifying business records, the next obvious question is: Can a convicted felon run for president? The US Constitution lays out just three requirements for presidential candidates. They must:

Be a natural-born citizen, Be at least 35 years old, Have been a US resident for at least 14 years.

Trump meets all three requirements. There is, arguably, another criterion laid out in the 14th Amendment, which states that no one who has previously taken an oath of office who engages in insurrection can be an officer of the US. But the US Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that Congress would have to pass a special law invoking this prohibition. That’s not happening any time. 

Does Trump enjoy voting rights still after conviction? It depends. Each state makes its own rules. Trump is now a Florida resident – and Florida voters, in 2018, overwhelmingly backed a referendum to re-enfranchise convicted felons. In an interview with CNN, Neil Volz, deputy director of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, an organization that works to help re-enfranchise formerly incarcerated people, predicted Trump will have little problem voting since Florida actually defers to the jurisdiction of a felony conviction as to whether a felon can vote. In New York, after a law passed in 2021, any convicted felon who is not incarcerated is eligible to register to vote.

Even if the judge ultimately tried to give Trump prison time, it is highly unlikely that Trump’s right to appeal his conviction would be exhausted before Election Day. If, somehow, Trump was convicted in one of the two federal criminal cases against him before Election Day, that might be another story.

Right-wing media personalities vow revenge after Trump's historic conviction

Donald Trump’s media allies are demanding retribution in the wake of his conviction., CNN reported saying following weeks of attacks targeting the historic hush money case against the former president, prominent right-wing media figures immediately flooded the public discourse Thursday with extreme and disturbing rhetoric after Trump was found guilty on 34 felony counts.

On Fox News and other right-wing outlets, pro-Trump media personalities erupted in anger, blaming everyone from Judge Juan Merchan and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to President Joe Biden and the entire US justice system for the “disgraceful” conviction.

Unsurprisingly the right-wing media banter had its  intended effect, burning away public trust in America’s core institutions and leaving a lasting impact on the legitimacy of the rule of law in the United States.  The toxic commentary is also enflaming desires of retribution held by Trump supporters, with popular right-wing media figures openly declaring their hope that the GOP candidate to nakedly seek revenge against his critics should he emerge victorious in November and return to the Oval Office.

How world leaders are reacting to Trump's historic conviction

World leaders and top officials have reacted to Donald Trump's historic conviction after a jury found him guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records in his hush money criminal trial.  The unprecedented and historic verdict that makes him the first former president in US history to be convicted of a felony.

Here are some reactions to Trump's verdict from across the world:

Hungary: Prime Minister Viktor Orbán prompted Trump to "keep on fighting." Orban said: "Let the people make their verdict this November!" he said.

Italy: Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said Trump was a “victim of judicial harassment and a process of political nature.” Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has not commented on the conviction.

Russia: Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that it is “obvious” political rivals are “being eliminated there through all legal and illegal means,” in reaction to Trump being found guilty on 34 felony counts by a New York jury.

Now whats next in Trumps conviction the hush money trial ? A New York jury convicting Donald Trump on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records brought the former president’s weekslong trial to a close but ushered in a new phase.

Now, Trump faces the possibility of a prison sentence or probation for his crimes stemming from a hush money payment scheme he helped facilitate ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Trump – who is known for mounting lengthy appeals of court rulings against him – is also likely to appeal the conviction, which could significantly delay his sentencing, currently set for July 11.

When will Trump be sentenced?  Judge Juan Merchan has set Trump’s sentencing for 10 a.m. ET on July 11. For now, the former president will remain out of prison as he awaits his sentencing. Prosecutors did not ask for Trump to post any bond.

Can Trump appeal his conviction?  Shortly after Trump was convicted, his attorney Todd Blanche asked Merchan for an acquittal of the charges notwithstanding the guilty verdict. The judge rejected the pro forma request.

Can Trump still be elected president?  Nothing in the US Constitution bars a convicted criminal from running for the nation’s highest office, University of California, Los Angeles law professor Richard L. Hasen has consistently said.

“The Constitution contains only limited qualifications for running for office (being at least 35 years old, a natural born citizen, and at least 14 years a resident of the U.S.),” Hasen continued.

Will the conviction cost Trump his right to vote? Trump is a Florida resident. When it comes to the Manhattan guilty verdict just rendered, Trump’s right to vote in Florida in November’s election will depend on whether he is sentenced to a term in prison and if he has finished serving that prison sentence by the time of the election.

Florida’s felon voting prohibitions apply to people with out-of-state convictions. However, if a Floridian’s conviction is out of state, Florida defers to that state’s laws for how felon can regain their voting rights.

Analysis: Trump conviction heralds a somber and volatile moment in American history

Donald Trump’s first act on becoming a convicted criminal was to launch a raging new attack on the rule of law, laying bare the gravity of the choice awaiting America’s voters. In one sense, Trump’s conviction on all counts in his first criminal trial affirmed the principle on which the United States is founded — that everyone is equal and that no one, not even a billionaire and former and possibly future president, enjoys impunity, CNN analyst reported. .

But Trump’s authoritarian outburst minutes after the guilty verdict in New York and a race by top Republicans to join his assault on the justice system underscore how threatened those bedrock values now are.  “This was a rigged, disgraceful trial. The real verdict is going to be November 5, by the people, and they know what happened here and everybody knows what happened here,” Trump said.

President Joe Biden’s campaign echoed his opponent’s belief that the ultimate judgment on the former president will come in the general election.  “There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president,” said campaign communications director Michael Tyler.

Among an electorate that Trump has constantly polarized, the verdict is likely to be greeted with fury by his supporters and jubilation by his critics. But in truth, this is a sombre and even tragic passage of US history. Americans have never seen an ex-president convicted of a crime, and a country already torn apart by bitter political and cultural polarization is likely in for a rocky time.

The implications are enormous.

Alvin Bragg spoke to reporters following Trump's guilty verdict on Thursday. Here's what he said

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg held a news conference shortly after the jury in Donald Trump's hush money trial found the former president guilty of 34 felony counts.  Bragg began the conference by thanking the jury, and went on to applaud the prosecution team and defend the work of his office.

"Our job is to follow the facts and the law without fear or favor, and that's exactly what we did here," Bragg said, adding that while there are "many voices out there, the only voice that matters is the voice of the jury." He also noted that both the trial and verdict were arrived at “in the same manner as every other case that comes through the courtroom doors."

However, Bragg declined to answer questions on Judge Juan Merchan potentially sentencing Trump to prison, or on how the district attorney's office would respond to an appeal. "I'm going to let our words in court speak for themselves when we get to the sentencing matter," Bragg said. "I'm not going to address hypotheticals. They raise arguments, we'll respond."

Star Witness Michael Cohen says he’s “relieved” but little surprised by Trump guilty verdict

Star Witness Michael Cohen, who personally handed over the hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels to buy her silence weeks before the 2016 presidential elections, said he was “relieved” and wasn’t surprised by the verdict.  “This has been six years in the making,” he told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow.

 When Maddow asked if he was surprised by the verdict, Cohen said: “No. I was not.”

“At the end of the day, the facts are what prevailed here,” Cohen said. “It’s accountability, it’s exactly what America needs right now.” Cohen praised the judge and prosecutors for their work, and said he stayed off social media in respect for the judge and the process.

He said he faced difficulty dealing with the anxiety of the trial.  “I was nervous because so much was riding on the result of this, and I wanted to ensure that my testimony was perfect. I knew that there could be no deviation from perfection,” he said.

Cohen called Todd Blanche, Trump’s attorney, a “SLOAT” – stupidest lawyer of all time. During his closing arguments, Blanche had called Cohen a “GLOAT” – the greatest liar of all time.

What the Biden campaign thinks Trump's historic verdict mean: Well before the Manhattan jury finished deliberating on Thursday, most of President Joe Biden’s advisers concluded that a guilty verdict wouldn’t drastically alter their 2024 election strategy.

Bidens supporters feel that if 12 people voted to find Trump guilty then the undecided voters would be the target and how to figure out and convince them to l vote against him to keep him out of the White House.

Aides have discussed among themselves whether the Biden campaign would use the term “criminal” to describe the likely Republican nominee in their messaging, even as they acknowledge the former president’s legal issues are largely baked in and voters care about other issues more.  Still, a guilty verdict is a guilty verdict, and 34 of them hardly make for bad news for Biden’s campaign five months before Election Day, media reports said .

The convictions may not move the election barometer or the temperatures up in a major way in the election, those close to the Biden reelection effort told CNN, but an acquittal could have really helped Trump – and that makes Thursday’s historic decision a win for the Biden campaign, if only because it is not a loss.

Inputs : CNN and US