With another big shift in the American political landscape, Jackson Robb, takes you through the indictment of former President Donald Trump.
Former President, Donald Trump, has come under fire recently for claims that he violated election laws during the 2016 presidential election. The Manhattan District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, constructed a case that saw the former TV host face 34 counts of falsifying business records during the election. [1] The record refers to hush money paid to adult film star, Stormy Daniels, who claims Trump had an affair with her and was paid for silence using campaign funds. Payments were also found to be made to a former playboy model, Karen McDougal, who claims they had extramarital affairs, [2] and $30 000 to a doorman at Trump towers to suppress a story that Trump may have fathered a child with a former staffer. [3] Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges but has made history as the first president to be charged with a crime, excluding President Ulysses S. Grant who was arrested for speeding on a horse in 1872.
It's important to understand exactly what Trump has been charged for. The hush money payments only contribute to a portion of the investigation, as it was the timing that the payments were made that caused alarm. By paying out Daniels and the others during his campaign, Trump and his team made sure negative stories were not being published about him that would potentially damage the image he was presenting to voters. [4] The process, known as “catch and kill”, not only interfered with election results, but ultimately threatens the very fragile democracy America currently maintains. The former President also faces additional investigations regarding election tampering, as his team attempts to dismiss a special grand jury in Fulton County that are investigating his efforts to overturn the result of the 2020 election. [5]
Trump is no stranger to agitating the already unstable battle grounds of American politics. His strong political views and his incitement of the January 6th riots that saw him banned from Twitter, and the recent FBI raid on his Mar-a-Lago property to claim 15 boxes of White House documents are just some examples. [6] Trump made a statement regarding the indictment, with the former President being described as portraying a ‘political martyr’, saying “I never thought it could happen. The only crime that I have committed is to fearlessly defend our nation from those who seek to destroy it”. [7] Only perpetuating tensions, Trump also took to his app, Truth Social, to comment on being recently “INDICATED”, suggesting the case was a ‘witch hunt’ and claiming Bragg is the real criminal. [8]
Trump’s comments on app, Truth Social – Image via mashable.com
As new information arrives, the Trump indictment case is very far from over. With the next scheduled hearing set for December 4 or potentially the early months of 2024, [9] make sure to keep up to date on all the Truth Social posts, so you don’t miss the former President's next all caps rant about American democracy.
Grapeshot Magazine recommends not creating a Truth Social account or purchasing any Trump NFT’s
[1] Smith, David. “Donald Trump Attacks Hush Money Case in Grievance-Filled Mar-a-Lago Speech.” The Guardian, 5 Apr. 2023, www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/05/trump-vents-grievances-against-criminal-charges-from-the-safety-of-mar-a-lago.
[2] Yang, Maya. “Who Is Karen McDougal, the Other Woman in Trump’s Hush Money Case?” The Guardian, 5 Apr. 2023, www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/05/karen-mcdougal-trump-alleged-hush-money-payments.
[3] Nast, Condé. “Inside the Hush-Money Payments That May Decide Trump’s Legal Fate.” The New Yorker, 7 Apr. 2023, www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/inside-the-hush-money-payments-that-may-decide-trumps-legal-fate.
[4] Lerner, Kira. “Trump’s Indictment Is about More than Hush Money – It’s a Question of Democracy.” The Guardian, 5 Apr. 2023, www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/05/trump-indictment-question-of-democracy.
[5] Quinn, Melissa. “Trump Moves to Quash Report from Fulton County Special Grand Jury.” CBS News, 20 Mar. 2023, www.cbsnews.com/news/donald-trump-fulton-county-georgia-special-grand-jury-move-to-quash-report/.
[6] Intelligencer Staff. “Top-Secret Documents at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago: What We Know.” Intelligencer, 9 Sept. 2022, nymag.com/intelligencer/article/donald-trump-says-the-fbi-raided-his-home-at-mar-a-lago.html.
[7] Slawson, Nicola. “First Thing: Trump Attacks Hush Money Case in Grievance-Filled Mar-a-Lago Speech.” The Guardian, 5 Apr. 2023, www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/apr/05/first-thing-trump-attacks-hush-money-case-in-grievance-filled-mar-a-lago-speech.
[8] Binder, Matt. “Donald Trump Is Melting Down on Truth Social over His Indictment.” Mashable, 30 Mar. 2023, mashable.com/article/donald-trump-indictment-response-truth-social.
[9] Bromwich, Jonah E., et al. “What We Know about the Indictment of Donald Trump, and What Comes Next.” The New York Times, 31 Mar. 2023, www.nytimes.com/article/trump-indictment-criminal-charges.html.