Donald Trump: The First Ever U.S. Ex-President to Get Convicted
A New York jury has found Donald Trump guilty on all 34 counts in his hush money case. Trump was accused of paying money to porn star Stormy Daniels to keep her silent. This money was generated by falsifying business records. The business records were falsified 34 times, and the jury found Trump guilty on all 34 counts.
Theoretically, he can be sentenced to four years of imprisonment for each of the 34 counts, but he is likely to get probation. Donald Trump, a very popular ex-president of the Republican Party, was released without bail. (American law is different from Indian law, I suppose.) He is now a felon. However, Trump is not restrained from contesting elections against President Joe Biden in November this year. Can he contest from within a prison? His imprisonment is unlikely, though.
“I’m a very innocent man,” says Trump, adding that the “real verdict” would come from voters. He called the trial “rigged” and a “disgrace.” Does this not come under contempt of court? In India, it is a serious offense to disrespect courts.
All 12 jury members, after deliberating for 11 hours, came to this conclusion unanimously. Judge Juan Merchan set sentencing for July 11, just days before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Trump will be formally nominated as the Republican candidate at this national convention. The identity of the jurors has been kept secret, a practice typically followed in matters involving the Mafia.
Trump also faces charges of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election won by Biden. Additionally, he faces federal and state charges for hoarding secret documents after leaving the White House. Trump was convicted of falsifying business accounts to pay a sum of $130,000 to the porn star through his attorney Michael Cohen. This was done on the eve of the 2016 election to keep Stormy silent.
The trial featured lengthy testimony from the adult performer Stormy Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford. She described to the court in graphic detail what she says was a 2006 sexual encounter with the married Trump. The hush money was paid through his attorney Michael Cohen, who has now turned against Trump and was the key witness as a tainted former aide who had turned on his old boss.
Trump denied any sexual encounter with Stormy but did not testify in court. There appear to be multiple acts of crime involved:
- Having extramarital sex
- Trying to silence Stormy Daniels to prevent damage to his political image
- Falsifying business records to make payments to Stormy
Trump’s campaign against Biden is disrupted by this trial and conviction. However, Trump has taken advantage of this situation by playing the victim card and milking the media attention throughout. He also takes advantage of this situation by raising funds. He put out a fundraising appeal titled “I am a political prisoner!” and is likely to collect approximately $150 million in the coming days. Trump manages to convert his conviction into cash and a campaigning platform.
