Donald Trump once again dominated the news yesterday (we’re talking wall to wall all morning) simply by showing up in court.
In fact, with less than a week before the Iowa caucuses, he will spend two days in court (yesterday’s appearance in DC and Thursday’s closing arguments in the civil fraud trial in New York), although in both cases he will not You need to introduce yourself. . (In between, he’ll do that Iowa town hall on Fox.)
The three-judge federal appeals panel that heard Trump’s presidential immunity claim (two appointed by Biden and one by George HW Bush) was openly skeptical of the arguments offered by the former president’s lawyer.
Ironically, this comes as Joe Biden campaign officials complain to reporters brought to Wilmington headquarters that Trump should be covered more as a candidate and less as a defendant.
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Former President Donald Trump takes the stage during an organizing event at Fervent Calvary Chapel on July 8, 2023 in Las Vegas. (Ellen Schmidt/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
And yet, there is no doubt that the immunity hearing is crucial. If the appeals panel upholds Trump’s claim that he is immune from prosecution for anything that could be construed as an official act, the Jack Smith case of January 6 will be dead. If the panel rules against Trump, the prosecution continues before the election. Of course, like Trump’s appeal of voting bans in Maine and Colorado, it will ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court.
But by his mere presence in the downtown criminal courthouse — and speaking to reporters afterward — Trump increased the hearing’s visibility. By simply sitting in the same courtroom as Smith, he made her a part of his campaign.
And that’s been the play all along.
Each of the four accusations has boosted Trump politically, boosting his poll numbers and denying his Republican rivals much-needed oxygen, as Ron DeSantis has said. Trump’s loyal MAGA supporters see these charges as a Democratic plot to keep him out of the White House.
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The more media attention follows the former president to the courts, the more he can use them as a campaign vehicle.
Fueling the drama: another crushing incident, this one at Jack Smith’s house. Law enforcement officers showed up on Christmas after being falsely told that the prosecutor had shot his wife. The judge in the case, Tanya Chutkan, was also crushed.
Trump’s lawyer made the strange argument that no president can be impeached without first being impeached and convicted. The judges weren’t buying it, saying a hypothetical president could use the military to assassinate his political opponents and resign before impeachment. I would add that he could avoid an impeachment conviction if his party controlled the Senate.
Former President Donald Trump gestures on stage during the Alabama Republican Party’s summer meeting on August 4, 2023 in Montgomery. (Julie Bennett/Getty Images)
Judge Karen Henderson, a Bush appointee, said: “I think it is paradoxical to say that your constitutional duty to ‘see that the laws are faithfully executed’ allows you to violate the criminal law.” Audio of the hearing was available.
Biden attempted to change the trajectory of his campaign with his speeches near Valley Forge and in Charleston, launching harsh personal attacks on his predecessor as a liar who fomented an insurrection and is an advocate of white supremacy.
But most days, Biden is a low-key presence: He takes only two quick questions from reporters with terse answers, he conducts fewer interviews, and news conferences are as rare as a flyby of Jupiter’s moons. Trump, on the other hand, is constantly in the news. I never thought I’d see a moment where a former president outshone a sitting president, but here we are.
Former President Donald Trump speaks to guests at the NRA-ILA Leadership Forum on April 14, 2023 in Indianapolis. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
On pillow boy Mike Lindell’s video channel, Trump said: “And when there is a meltdown, I hope it’s within the next 12 months, because I don’t want to be Herbert Hoover.” This led to allegations in the media that he was supporting a crisis, especially since the stock market just hit new highs.
Trump made a video – a virtual requirement for television – saying that what was happening to him “only happens in third world countries or banana republics. They are using their Department of Injustice to persecute their politicians.” [opponent] and this is all him,” referring to Biden, “one hundred percent him. He’s the one who told them to do it and they obey his orders. It’s a shame.”
He added that “Joe” has to “be very careful… You don’t accuse your political opponent because he opposes a corrupt election, which you know was corrupt.”
When Trump spoke for 10 minutes outside the Washington courthouse yesterday, he said they had “a very good day.” But he added that if he loses the appeal, “it will be chaos in the country.”
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Both CNN and MSNBC soon parted ways. CNN’s Kaitlan Collins offered a snapshot fact check, saying there is no evidence of significant voter fraud in 2020 and that Biden is not prosecuting Trump.
Even after a controversial Pentagon news conference revealed that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has prostate cancer and that his refusal to disclose the serious illness is under investigation, the networks quickly returned to Trump’s court hearing.
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Another day, another news cycle, dominated by Donald Trump.
