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Tues 28 May 2024 🧵 #ClosingArguments to Begin in #TrumpTrial

#Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection w/a #HushMoney payment made to a porn star to influence the 2016 election. The case could be in the jury’s hands as early as Wed.

#law #ElectionInterference
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/05/28/nyregion/trump-trial-closing-arguments?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb

reshared this

in reply to Nonilex

#Trump will be joined by several members of his family in court today: Donald Trump Jr; Eric & wife Lara Trump who is also co-chair of the #RNC; & Tiffany Trump & husband, Michael Boulos.

Non-family members joining Trump are Steve Witkoff, a real-estate investor & “friend”; Will Scharf, a #Republican candidate for Missouri AG & a Trump lawyer in another case; & Deroy Murdock, a #conservative #political “commentator”.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Trump spent Monday both posting on social media about this case & attacking #EJeanCarroll.

Trump also falsely claimed the prosecutors in this case were somehow getting an undue edge by getting to deliver their closing arguments after the defense; that is actually the #law in NY.

Trump & entourage are in the courtroom. Alvin Bragg has joined as well.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics #GagOrder #StochasticTerrorism

in reply to Nonilex

After 5 wks of testimony, prosecutors & defense attys now present #ClosingArguments aka summations. Closing arguments give each side several hrs to highlight the #evidence that best proves its case. While similar to the opening statements delivered at a trial’s start, closing arguments tend to be more forceful.

When both sides are finished, Judge Juan #Merchan, will instruct the jurors on the #law & how to apply it to the evidence, & they will be sent off to deliberate.

#Trump #TrumpTrial #law

in reply to Nonilex

Todd #Blanche, #Trump defense lawyer, says his closing argument will take ~2½ hours, & Joshua #Steinglass, the prosecutor, responds that his will be between 4-4 ½ hours. The judge says that means we may or may not finish at 4:30, & that he will ask the jurors if they can stay late in order to finish closing arguments if necessary.

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney

in reply to Nonilex

Before he summons the #jury, the judge warns to the lawyers, asking them not to comment on the #law in their closings. That is his job, he reminds them, telling them to focus on the facts.

The jury is in. They have had almost a week off, but now, the focus of the #TrumpTrial is shifting to them. The judge explains how closing arguments work, that they'll hear from the defense first & then the prosecution. “The lawyers may not speak to you after that,” the judge says.

#Trump

in reply to Nonilex

Justice #Merchan cautions the jurors that the lawyers are simply making “arguments for your consideration.” He underscores that their words are not #evidence.
Already, the judge, both in & out of the presence of the jury, is dictating clear lanes. 1st he told the lawyers, then the jurors,that his instructions on the law were the only remarks on the #law that mattered. Merchan will listen to the closing arguments, & may be compelled to weigh in as each side objects to the other’s argument.
#Trump
in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche, #Trump’s atty begins by thanking jurors then reminds them of that in the court system, they decide the facts “not the prosecution… not the judge.”
Blanche says that his client is innocent, that the prosecution hasn’t met its burden of proof & that the evidence presented “should leave you wanting more.”
He says the case “is about documents. It’s a paper case.” It is not, he says, about an encounter w/ #StormyDaniels, noting that the defendant has denied it occurred.

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Blanche says he is going to talk a lot about #MichaelCohen today. “You cannot convict *President* #Trump on any #crime beyond a reasonable doubt on the words of Michael Cohen,” Blanche says, adding that Cohen took the stand during the trial & told “lies” while there.

#ClosingArguments have many visual components. #Blanche is currently breaking down #evidence that is being displayed on screens.

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche is focusing on the 34 docs that led to the 34 #felony charges. He sounded as if he was getting close to making a #legal argument about “intent to defraud.” The #jurors would have to find that #Trump acted w/ #intent to #defraud when he directed the falsification of the docs in order to find him #guilty.

Justice #Merchan appeared to glare at Blanche as he came close to commenting on the #law. But the defense lawyer moved away & the judge said nothing.

#criminal #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche talks about the first batch of docs: 11 invoices that were sent by #MichaelCohen. The invoices said that Cohen required payment for #legal services, but Cohen testified at trial that he was directed to say that by the #TrumpOrganization. Prosecutors say #Trump himself initiated the false documents.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche emphasizes the image of #Trump in the WH, conjuring up his long days in the Oval as the “leader of the free world.” 🥱It seems to be an effort to flatter Trump & put distance between him & the docs, while also reminding the jury that the defendant was —unlike every other #criminal defendant ever—an American president.

#law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

As busy as he may have been, jurors have heard from numerous witnesses that #Trump is a lifelong micromanager. For instance, he frequently sought to reduce the size of bills he owed. For decades he insisted on signing pretty much every check leaving the Trump Organization.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Todd #Blanche argues that the documents weren’t false because #MichaelCohen really was doing #legal work for #Trump in 2017. He’s casting aspersions on the government’s theory of Cohen being repaid for his payment to #StormyDaniels, saying that if that were so, Cohen would have been doing unremunerated legal work.

Blanche’s voice rises as he again insists Cohen lied in his description of the work he was doing for Trump.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche said during the trial that #MichaelCohen had an “oral” retainer agreement with #Trump, meaning that he had agreed to do legal work on Trump’s behalf. So in his closing, just now, when he said there was a retainer agreement, he may have been out on a limb. We’ll see if & how the prosecutors respond in their own closing.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche manipulates the phrase “retainer agreement.” He has insisted loudly that #MichaelCohen testified there was no retainer, multiple times. Then he gestures toward an email from #AllenWeisselberg, #TrumpOrganization’s CFO, referencing an “agreement.” But that email says nothing about a “retainer agreement” specifically, & in fact, per Cohen’s testimony, refers back to his agreement w/ Weisselberg & #Trump to disguise reimbursements for the #HushMoney payment.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

In NY, written retainer agreements are generally required between lawyers & their clients, though there are exceptions that might apply in the case of #Trump & #MichaelCohen. Specifically, lawyers don’t always need to establish a written retainer when they are performing the same type of legal work they’ve done previously.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche key themes:
the documents —referring to this as a “paper case.”
Distance from it —#Trump, saying the leader of the free world had nothing to do w/the way documents were classified at the #TrumpOrganization.
+ Attack #MichaelCohen as a liar who was too greedy to do #legal work for free.

“What makes more sense?” Blanche asks now, asking whether the prosecutors’ allegations are more logical than the simple idea that Trump agreed to pay Cohen for legal work.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche is now mocking prosecutors’ inclusion of #Trump’s own words in one of his partially ghostwritten books from years ago, which was entered into evidence as proof of him being a micromanager. “If the government reads to you quotes from a book a decade, more than a decade earlier, you should be suspicious,” Blanche says. “That’s a red flag”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche argues that the 12 ledger entries at issue in the case were classified as #legal services because the #TrumpOrganization's software used a dropdown menu in which one of the limited options provided is: “legal expense.”

Needless to say, the dropdown menu does not have a “repayment for hush-money deal” option.

That Cohen did actual legal work for #Trump around when he received the payments from Trump has always been one of the defense’s strongest arguments.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche argues #MichaelCohen’s testimony about an all-important meeting w/ #Trump in Jan 2017, in which the president-elect signed off on the repayment scheme, is not “corroborated by anything, there’s not a shred of evidence.” And it's true that no one other than Cohen has directly testified about that conversation.

But it’s not true that there is not a “shred of evidence” — in fact, there is lots & lots of circumstantial + documentary evidence about what happened.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Evidence including notes made by #AllenWeisselberg about how #MichaelCohen would be repaid for the #HushMoney, & an email that the defense just highlighted in its own closing referring back to the agreement.

#Blanche depicts #Trump as too distracted to focus on the matters of the checks & the payments. Cutting against a long-acknowledged #Trump trait: his proclivity for attention to minutiae in times of stress.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche says that #Trump wasn’t known for overpaying, & testimony suggested #MichaelCohen didn’t deserve to be paid much for his campaign work, particularly #HopeHicks's testimony that Cohen occasionally went “rogue”.
Blanche: “That’s not exactly a glowing performance evaluation that justifies a larger bonus.”

At the same time, Blanche argues the $420k Trump did pay Cohen was for unspecified #legal work.

That’s a serious contradiction in #logic.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Confusing: Blanche highlights that “some sort of tax scheme” was involved in the repayment to #MichaelCohen. Prosecution’s theory of the case is that #Trump falsified records to cover up a #conspiracy to #influence the 2016 #election — & one way to prove the conspiracy is that #tax #crimes were involved. It’s unclear why Blanche would draw the jury’s attention to an important aspect of the prosecution’s case.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

In his follow-up to this argument about a #tax scheme, #Blanche asks why #MichaelCohen didn’t remember the amount he was meant to be owed each month & why the checks didn’t always come from #Trump. Again, even as he seeks to cast doubt on the prosecution’s argument, he reminds jurors of what the other side wants them to believe.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche argues there was no #intent by #Trump to #defraud — a #legal concept at the heart of the case. Every time Blanche says the phrase “intent to defraud,” the judge looks at him — but so far, Justice #Merchan has not interrupted him.

Blanche argues the prosecution must show that Trump “caused” the false records. He’s correct about the wording in NY’s #FalseRecords #Law, but “caused” is not a super high bar.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

The prosecution alleges that #Trump was present when his employees hatched a plan to falsify the records, & did not stop them from doing so. The prosecution could even argue that Trump, as the boss, effectively approved the plan & thus caused it.

#Blanche shows the #jury the #tax documents sent to #MichaelCohen & the #IRS as #evidence that the payments to Cohen were all above board.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

FYI: declaring a payment to the #IRS doesn’t automatically make it #legal (it’s called #TaxFraud & it’s a #crime we know #Trump commits regularly).

Blanche is repeatedly calling #MichaelCohen both a liar & Trump’s personal attorney.

The jury is going to have to grapple reconcile something Blanche isn’t, namely that Trump hired Cohen & worked w/him for over a decade.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche tries persuading the #jurors that in order to #convict, they must find that #Trump sought to promote his own candidacy for president “by unlawful means.” Blanche is trying to cast doubt on some of the “unlawful means” the prosecutors will argue later.

Blanche says that it didn’t matter if there was “a conspriacy to win an election … Every campaign in this country is a conspiracy.”

[umm, okay…]
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche: “This is the #campaign, this is an #election, this is not a #crime.”

Blanche argued this in his opening statement, when he said “spoiler alert” — campaigns try to #influence elections.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche is trying to suggest that the meeting that Trump & #MichaelCohen had in 2015 w/ #Pecker, of The #NationalEnquirer, when prosecutors say they hatched a plan to suppress damaging stories about #Trump & promote negative ones about his rivals, was SOP between a presidential #candidate & the #press. It was not.

Blanche suggests that bc Pecker’s relationship w/Trump, & their #CatchAndKill agreement, was not an #election #conspiracy bc it predated the campaign.

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche reminds #jurors that The #NationalEnquirer #Pecker testified that #Trump was a top celebrity who sold magazines.

“Absurd.” “Preposterous.” “Makes no sense.” Blanche’s closing is filled w/terminology ridiculing the government’s argument.

He argues it’s absurd to think that Trump would have entered a #conspiracy w/ The Enquirer to sway a national election, because they’re a tabloid.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

While it’s true that circulation for The #NationalEnquirer wasn’t huge, #Trump had a hugely popular Twitter feed & giant rallies, & during the 2016 campaign, he & his allies would post & he would talk about this stuff to amplify them.

+ The Enquirer has broken several stories over the yrs involving politicians & celebrities having affairs, incl’g fmr Senator John Edwards, who was a presidential candidate, & Tiger Woods.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche says that despite the prosecution arguing that David #Pecker agreed to suppress negative stories on #Trump’s behalf in 2015 — a practice known as #CatchAndKill — the phrase "catch & kill" was not used at that meeting. “Make no mistake about it,” Blanche says.

Blanche argues there was “nothing unusual” about catching & killing, & that Pecker testified that The #NationalEnquirer only published ~½ of the stories it purchased.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Meanwhile, President #Biden's campaign is holding a news conference outside the courthouse in Manhattan, a guarantee of attention since the media has been stationed here for week.

The speakers have focused not on the #TrumpTrial, but largely on the insurrection by #Trump supporters on #Jan6, 2021, & the threats the Biden campaign argues Trump poses to #democracy & the nation's future.

#criminal #law #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche addresses the 3 specific #CatchAndKill deals prosecutors allege #Pecker was involved in, all of which they say were designed to protect #Trump. Defense argues all 3 stories are false.

He characterizes the 1st, involving a doorman at a #TrumpOrganization bldg, as “literally a made up story designed to harm President Trump.”

Blanche talks about Playboy model #KarenMcDougal who sold the rights to her story of an affair w/Trump to The #NationalEnquirer's parent co, #AMI.

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche doesn’t harp on the idea that her story was a lie to damage #Trump. But he is very animated as he argues that McDougal, who did not testify, was not initially interested in selling her story.

Blanche argues both that #CatchAndKill deals are normal & that these weren’t catch-&-kill deals.

FYI #AMI, #NationalEnquirer's parent co, was fined $187,500 in 2021 by the #FEC to settle accusations that it violated #CampaignFinance #Law by making a 6-fig payment to McDougal.

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Prosecutors have objected to #Blanche 2X,
w/1 overruled & 1 sustained, as #Blanche talks about #Pecker saying he consulted lawyers about the deal.

Blanche attacks the phrase #CatchAndKill as if it were central to prosecution’s case. Prosecutors have stayed away from using it. It wasn’t in their opening statement, or the portion of the statement of #facts they released when #Trump was #indicted explaining their theory of the #conspiracy.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche claims that #MichaelCohen fully fabricated an encounter that he had w/Pecker in which #Pecker expressed anger that he had not been repaid for 1 of the #HushMoney deals. “Ladies & gentlemen, that lunch did not happen,” Blanche said. “Cohen made it up.”

Blanche doesn’t provide any #evidence Cohen made it up. Instead, Blanche reminds jurors that they should pay close attention to documentary evidence in assessing Cohen’s testimony.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche is skipping around in his summation, which is making it a little hard to follow.

He now turns back to the recording that #MichaelCohen secretly made of a conversation he had w/ #Trump about the #KarenMcDougal payment.

Blanche suggests there is some kind of dispute over the authenticity of this recording. There isn’t. The recording sounds exactly the same as the one CNN played in 2018.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche attacks the recording. “This conversation is Mr. Cohen & President Trump literally talking past each other about what is going on,” he says, arguing that his client “has no idea what #MichaelCohen is talking about.”

Blanche comes up with an alternate version of why #Trump asked about “financing” in their taped conversation: that Trump was simply caught off guard & had no idea what was being discussed.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Blanche mocks #MichaelCohen's suggestion that there would have been essentially a duffle bag of cash that was used to make the #HushMoney payment, & says Cohen made it up. Perspective: #Trump was once paid a portion of a lease for a parking garage in gold bricks.

Defense's closing argument has now been going for >2 hrs. Blanche attacks Cohen, but he’s not focused on the docs at issue, or Trump’s role in creating them. Instead, he’s all over the place.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche moves on to the 3rd #HushMoney payment at the heart of the case: The one #MichaelCohen made in 2016 to #StormyDaniels, who said she'd had sex w/ #Trump a decade earlier.

Blanche lays the groundwork for his most important attack on Cohen, saying he is the only witness who testified that Trump knew everything about the hush-money payment to Stormy Daniels.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

While other witnesses testified about #Trump’s knowledge of the payment — notably #HopeHicks — #MichaelCohen connected Trump to the case like no other witness, including when he testified about the Jan 2017 conversation at Trump Tower, when Trump okayed the arrangements to hide the reimbursements.

“There is no way that you can find that President Trump knew about this payment at the time it was made w/o believing the words of Michael Cohen — period,” Blanche says.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche argues that if #StormyDaniels's allegations were so scary to the #Trump campaign, why didn’t it swing into action in April 2016, when a woman working w/ Daniels got in touch w/The #NationalEnquirer's parent company?

Obvious answer: the #AccessHollywood tape

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

After the break, #Blanche says that he has ~½ hr left of his closing argument. Judge Merchan says the jurors have agreed to stay late if needed, meaning closing arguments may end today.

Blanche discusses statements by #StormyDaniels that she testified she was coerced into making. This doesn’t seem to have much to do w/the case but is the kind of client-pleasing shit we’ve seen from #Trump attys.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche 2X notes that #StormyDaniels denied having sex w/Trump.
While this is technically true —she did put out a statement denying they had an AFFAIR in early 2018— she subsequently provided her account of the sexual encounter to “60 Minutes,” in a book, in a documentary & in this trial, on the stand, where she testified under oath.

#Trump has repeatedly denied the sex occurred, but has never done so under oath.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche, draws on a 2018 recording in which #StormyDaniels's lawyer at the time said that his client had “settler’s remorse” for having agreed not to tell her story. Blanche claims that Daniels changed not because she decided to tell the #truth, but because she wanted to make #money.

Blanche introduces what he calls a “separate conspiracy” between Daniels, #GinaRodriguez, her manager at the time, & #DylanHoward, who was the editor of The #NationalEnquirer.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Neither Rodriguez nor Howard testified, & their absence may give #Blanche room to *spin* his theory. He notes that, in a text, Howard said that he was not working on #Trump’s behalf. Blanche suggests Howard was acting against the interests of David #Pecker, his publisher.

Blanche again tells the jury, that NDAs are not inherently problematic, adding that there is nothing “illegal,” “sinister” or “criminal” about them.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Blanche alternate theory re #StormyDaniels's motive is that Dylan Howard, editor of The #NationalEnquirer, & Gina Rodriguez, Daniels’s manager, seized an opportunity in Oct 2016 to make $ from Daniels’s story.

Problematically, his alt version doesn’t address the falsified documents on which there were weeks of testimony from Pecker, #MichaelCohen & others.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche argues the #AccessHollywood tape, in which #Trump boasted about grabbing women by the genitals, is being portrayed by prosecutors as something it wasn’t: a “doomsday event” for his presidential campaign. Anyone who covered that election can tell you that the people around Trump & the broader #GOP thought it was catastrophic for his chances. So much so that there were talks of dropping Trump from the ticket.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche says that #Trump’s reaction to the #AccessHollywood tape was not what is being depicted by prosecutors — “He was concerned about his wife, he was concerned about his family,” he says — though he adds, moments later: “I’m not suggesting that it wasn’t a big deal for the campaign. Of course not. It was.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche argues #StormyDaniels was called to testify in order to inflame the jurors’ emotions & to embarrass #Trump. Prosecutors object, but Justice #Merchan allows it.

Blanche seizes on testimony from #MichaelCohen, who told Daniels's lawyer in a recorded call in Oct 2017 —before Trump turned against him— that he cared about his boss & he wasn’t going to play “penny wise, pound foolish” & betray him. Cohen then says “I’m sitting there & I’m saying to myself, ‘What about me?’”

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche moves on to #MichaelCohen’s relationship w/ #RobertCostello, a lawyer who Cohen testified had been part of a pressure campaign to keep him from flipping on #Trump in 2018 (& whose testimony was insane)

Blanche argues there is “no doubt” that Costello, who is 1 of only 2 witnesses the defense called, served as Cohen’s atty —the trial presented plenty of doubt about the nature of Cohen & Costello’s relationship.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche mocks #MichaelCohen’s testimony about the evening of 24 Oct, 2016. The testimony on which the defense lawyers felt they had scored a key point, because they presented #evidence that Cohen had talked to #KeithSchiller, #Trump's bodyguard, about a 14-yr-old pranking him. Cohen clarified on redirect that he had talked to both Schiller & Trump during the call & prosecution entered into evidence photos of Trump & Schiller next to each other mins before the call.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

But the defense clearly thinks it has a winning argument here. “It was a lie,” #Blanche yells of #MichaelCohen’s testimony. He calls it “perjury,” emphasizing each syllable in the word.

Blanche reminds jurors that there is an oath to tell the truth & says that it “matters to most.” 🤣🤣

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche lists the people who he says #MichaelCohen has lied to, which includes his wife, his children, his banker, the #FEC & “every single reporter he talked to for about a year.”

Blanche tries what sounds like an attempt at a punchline: “He’s literally like the MVP of liars.”

There’s no audible reaction in the courtroom.

Irony is rolling in its grave.

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche replays defense exhibits in which #MichaelCohen sounds giddy as he reacts to the news that #Trump has been indicted.

Blanche shows a tweet in which Cohen promoted a t-shirt featuring a cartoon drawing of Trump in an orange jumpsuit behind bars.

Blanche says before he concludes, that he will offer a list of 10 pieces of evidence that should induce #ReasonableDoubt in the jury.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche again argues that #Trump was in the #WhiteHouse when he signed 9 of the checks. Implying Trump was distracted when he signed them, & that his signature does not suggest his knowledge of the scheme.

‼️Using a slide labeled “manipulation of evidence,” Blanche now argues (again) that #MichaelCohen somehow tampered w/the digital evidence from his phones, including recordings. (Objection to just the label FFS!)

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche says #jurors cannot trust those recordings, & they cannot rely on #MichaelCohen himself — which, the defense has said many times, is a reason not to #convict #Trump.

Blanche then listed 10 reasons that he believed the jury should have #ReasonableDoubt as to Trump’s #guilt. But the list was hard to follow. He misstated the 4th point, which he then broke into 3 parts. He gave them all equal weight & barely mentioned some of them in the rest of his summation.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

The last reason for #ReasonableDoubt on Blanche’s list is simply: #MichaelCohen.

#Blanche calls Cohen: “The human embodiment of reasonable doubt, literally.” (Umm, no not literally)

Blanche introduces the acronym G.O.A.T., commonly used to stand for “greatest of all time.” He then applies the acronym to Michael Cohen. “Michael Cohen is the G.L.O.A.T.,” Blanche says. The “greatest liar of all time.”

#Trump wrote this right?
(Idiot)

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Blanche reminds the #jury that deliberations should not involve their views of #Trump, & this is not a referendum on the ballot box.

Trump & his campaign have argued for the last several years that the trial is a politically motivated sham that is about the ballot box

Blanche concludes, thanking the jurors. He tells them if they pay close attention to the #evidence, “this is a very quick & easy not guilty verdict.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Before he concluded, #Blanche asked that #jurors not send his client to #prison. Now, w/the jury excused, Joshua #Steinglass, who will give prosecution’s closing argument, stands up & objects.

“That was a blatant & wholly inappropriate effort to call sympathy for their client,” Steinglass says, asking for a curative instruction.

Justice #Merchan is excoriating Blanche for making an “outrageous” statement.

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Justice #Merchan, furious, reminds #Blanche, & not for the first time, that he was a prosecutor long enough to know it was out of bounds for him to basically beg jurors not to send #Trump to #prison.

Merchan told the court that he plans to give jurors a curative instruction — in other words, general direction that is aimed at clearing up an erroneous statement.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Back from lunch, #Trump has returned w/ Don Jr. & Eric& Lara, & Tiffany.

When we left, #Blanche was admonished by Justice #Merchan for imploring #jurors not to send Trump “to prison” on #MichaelCohen’s words.

The issue is that Blanche told jurors Trump could face prison due to their decision.

Jurors are ONLY responsible for deciding whether he is guilty or not guilty of the charges, sentencing is not in their purview.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Prosecutor Susan #Hoffinger reminds the judge that before the trial began, he himself precluded the jury from hearing anything about potential punishments for #Trump. “Mr. Blanche was certainly on notice that this was an improper argument,” Hoffinger says.

Hoffinger also argues that the defense misstated the #law when it came to how #legal retainer agreements work in NY. #Blanche argues that he is willing to litigate the issue further this evening.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Justice #Merchan calls in the #jury & instructs them that #Blanche’s comment about sending #Trump “to prison” was “improper” & that they must disregard it. He reminds them that a #prison sentence is NOT required in the event of a #guilty #verdict.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

Joshua #Steinglass opens prosecution’s #ClosingArgument by reminding the #jury that during opening statements, his colleague said that the case, at its core, is about “a conspiracy & a coverup.”

He then delineates 3 elements that the prosecution must prove: That there were false business records, that they were used as part of the conspiracy & that #Trump himself was involved.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass says that the defense seemed to question the prosecution’s integrity when referring to certain documentary #evidence.

“There’s nothing sinister here, no manipulation,” Steinglass says, explaining that all relevant calls are in evidence. Then he argues that in a defense exhibit showing calls between #MichaelCohen & another lawyer, #RobertCostello, the defense “double counted half the calls.” (prosecution got the witness to admit it on the stand)

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

↑This goes directly at 1 of the 10 reasons for reasonable doubt that #Blanche kinda listed at the end of his closing. Blanche questioned whether the #evidence was handled properly.

Next, #Steinglass says that one of the defense’s narratives is “this notion that #StormyDaniels is trying to extort the defendant … threatened to go public unless she was paid off. But that's just not reality.”

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass quickly disposes w/some of #Blanche’s arguments, including the idea that there was an alternative #conspiracy involving #StormyDaniels, her manager & a #NationalEnquirer editor. He says that the defense is trying to distract from a key issue in the case, adding, “In the end, all of this doesn’t really matter.”

[thank you! This is about falsifying business records]
#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass list the many witnesses who testified who are still loyal to #Trump: #HopeHicks, #MadeleineWesterhout, #JeffreyMcConney, #RhonaGraff & David #Pecker. Steinglass says that Pecker has “absolutely no reason to lie here,” & adds, “and yet, his testimony is utterly devastating.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass addresses #StormyDaniels’s testimony, saying that while she does not like Trump — & wants to see him convicted — her testimony about her sexual encounter w/him was credible, w/details that had the ring of truth.

He says, the encounter itself was important, because if the jury finds Daniels's testimony credible, it explains why #Trump would have sought to buy her silence.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

“If her testimony was so irrelevant, why did they work so hard to try to discredit her?” #Steinglass asks, adding, “#StormyDaniels is the motive.”

Steinglass reminds the jury of the many ways defense worked to discredit Daniels.

Steinglass moves on to #MichaelCohen. He agrees that Cohen wants #Trump convicted, but says that Cohen is “understandably angry that to date, he’s the only one who’s paid the price for his role in this #conspiracy.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass tells jurors #Trump would not have paid a lot of money to #StormyDaniels just because someone had a photo of them on a golf course.

Steinglass says anyone in #MichaelCohen’s shoes would want the defendant to be held accountable”

“Mr. Trump decided, like he often does, 'I’m not going to pay this bill,'” Steinglass said, of the payment to the tech firm for which Cohen was eventually overpaid when he was reimbursed in 2017.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass notes that the defense accused #MichaelCohen of stealing for overstating the amount he was owed for paying the technology firm. Steinglass acknowledges that Cohen was wrong to steal. But, he says, “it’s not a defense to a false business records charge that one of the conspirators is also guilty for stealing from another.”

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass addresses another problem w/ #Blanche's argument — that he is trying to both say this wasn’t a reimbursement & it was also a legitimate legal expense.

“Their arguments are not necessarily consistent, but they’re passionate,” Steinglass says, about the defense's contradictory arguments at one point they argued #Trump didn’t know about the reimbursement & at another point that he did.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass says #MichaelCohen sells #Trump merch & will continue to, regardless of the outcome of the #TrumpTrial.
He says you can “hardly blame him for making money from the one thing that he has left, which is his knowledge of the inner workings of the Trump phenomenon.”

Steinglass describes Cohen lying to Congress about his dealings w/a Trump project in #Russia. Steinglass says Trump has “chutzpah”—Cohen lied to help Trump, & now Trump is using those lies to undermine Cohen.

#criminal #law

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass telling the jurors something #MichaelCohen has long said about #Trump:
“These guys know each other well. They speak in coded language, & they speak fast.”

Steinglass counters defense's argument that Cohen called Trump's bodyguard, #KeithSchiller, not Trump himself, on the evening of Oct 24. Defense argued that the call was about a teenage prank caller, not about arranging the #HushMoney payment, as prosecutors had said.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass starts a timer & pretends to have the exact same conversation, he adds a bunch of asides & silences. He plays the role of Cohen, talking first to #KeithSchiller & then to #Trump.

The call feels loooong. When Steinglass stops the timer, it’s only been ~49 secs, about as long as the call in question.

The point:
#MichaelCohen could have easily talked to both men, as he testified.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass points out #MichaelCohen could have told whoppers about #Trump or attributed far more damaging comments to him. Steinglass says that Cohen didn’t do any of that “because he’s limited by what actually happened.”

#Steinglass reframes Cohen for the #jury. “Michael Cohen was really more of the defendant's #fixer than his #lawyer,” he says, calling Cohen “the guy w/the boots on the ground that could #bully people & #threaten them w/lawsuits.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass asks #jurors to remember that “we didn’t choose #MichaelCohen to be our witness. We didn’t pick him up at the witness store.” Then he raises his voice & says that #Trump chose Cohen “for the same qualities that his attorneys now urge you to reject his testimony because of.”

Steinglass adds that Trump chose Cohen “because he was willing to lie & cheat on Mr. Trump’s behalf.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass is making the significant points that this case is not about #MichaelCohen, & that Cohen was exactly what #Trump wanted in a lawyer.

This is always the issue w/cooperating witnesses. As Jonah Bromwich put it, “if you want to know what happens in the gutter, you have to talk to the rats.”

Steinglass reminds jurors that Michael Cohen testified he went to his family who questioned his “blind loyalty” to Trump.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass notes that #MichaelCohen has been consistently describing the events that took place in this case for 6 yrs.

Steinglass moves on from Cohen & turns to the documents prosecutors say were falsified. He displays a chart on the screens in front of jurors but says they don’t have to understand it just yet.

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass outlines their theory of the Aug 2015 meeting between #Trump, #MichaelCohen, & David #Pecker, of #NationalEnquirer, in which they agreed to a plot to suppress negative stories about Trump & promote negative stories about his opponents.

Steinglass punctures one of #Blanche’s go-to arguments —that The Enquirer is like all publications & Pecker's arrangement w/Trump wasn’t unusual. There is nothing normal or standard about what the tabloid was doing w/Trump.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass addresses #Blanche’s interest in the term #CatchAndKill, drawing a distinction between the phrase & the practice.

Steinglass says while the phrase may not have been used much during the trial, the practice was exactly what had been agreed to, & argues that suppressing those stories amounted to committing a #fraud on American voters, pulling the wool over their eyes “in a coordinated fashion.”

He calls The #NationalEnquirer “a covert arm” of #Trump's campaign.

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass notes that while NDAs are not inherently #criminal, but they are “indeed illegal when they serve an unlawful purpose.”

#Trump atty #Blanche barely stitched together a story, but tried to distance Trump from the documents & ended by attacking #MichaelCohen.

Steinglass tells a sweeping narrative about a #fraud on the American people, & argues that Americans had the right to determine if they cared that Trump slept w/a porn star while his wife was home w/their new baby.

#TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

“This scheme, cooked up by these men, at this time, could very well be what got President Trump elected,” #Steinglass says, concluding the portion of his closing that refers specifically to the #Trump Tower meeting. He moves on to the first of the #HushMoney deals, which involved the #TrumpOrganization doorman who was hawking a story about Trump fathering a child out of wedlock.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass goes back over The #NationalEnquirer’s Pecker’s testimony.

#Pecker came off as a genteel & soft-spoken person who still loves #Trump. And he offered some of the most damaging testimony of the trial.

FYI: criminalizing what Pecker & parent co AMI were doing is not part of the charges.

Steinglass shows how their actions & practices went far beyond what reporters actually do. The details of Pecker’s testimony demonstrate that the aim was to help Trump’s candidacy.

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass uses the case of the #TrumpOrganization doorman to illustrate a point about looking at testimony in its full context.

#Blanche had noted that #Pecker said he would have printed the doorman's story, about #Trump fathering a child out of wedlock, regardless of whether it was true. But Steinglass shows the jurors that Pecker added that he would have waited until after the election to do so. “Because that was what they agreed to do.”

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass now talks# about the 2nd of 3 hush-money deals, which involved #KarenMcDougal & was arranged by The #NationalEnquirer. He says that #Pecker & #DylanHoward of The Enquirer & #KeithDavidson, McDougal's lawyer, spoke in code. But you don’t have to be a codebreaker, he says, to understand what they were talking about

Steinglass also notes that the trio was communicating w/ #MichaelCohen, who testified that he had been charged w/keeping #Trump apprised of their progress

#law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Steinglass is highlighting David Pecker’s testimony that he discussed Karen McDougal with Trump. Steinglass says it offered “powerful evidence” of Trump’s involvement in her hush-money deal, and showed he knew about the payment and was actively involved in arranging it.

Steinglass also notes that the testimony does not rely on Michael Cohen in any way.

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass notes that after closing the #HushMoney deal w/ #KarenMcDougal, the editor of The #NationalEnquirer did not immediately call his boss. Instead he placed a call to #Trump atty #MichaelCohen, underscoring, again, that The Enquirer was working on Trump's behalf.

We’re over hour 2, & Steinglass has a way to go, this won’t be done today.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass tells the jury that #Pecker was willing to sacrifice his bottom line in service of #Trump’s campaign, & adds that this deal was “the very antithesis of a normal legitimate press function.”

Steinglass shows through call records the degree to which Trump would have had knowledge of the discussions around acquiring #KarenMcDougal’s life rights. Cutting against Blanche’s portrayal of Trump as a dupe who people took advantage of.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass plays the recording of the conversation between #MichaelCohen & #Trump discussing the #KarenMcDougal deal in Sept 2016.

Steinglass argues that the conversation shows Trump’s “cavalier willingness” to hide this payoff & “unequivocally shows a presidential candidate actively engaging in a scheme to influence the election.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass resumes after the break w/the release of the #AccessHollywood tape in Oct 2016, & describes #Trump’s comments in that tape as having discussed “grabbing women by the genitals.”

He reminds the jurors that #HopeHicks testified that the news eclipsed that of a Category 4 hurricane on the East Coast.

Steinglass reminds jurors that the “Access Hollywood” tape was “vulgar to say the least” & said that #Trump sought to spin it as “locker-room talk.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

Steinglass describes the #Trump campaign’s reaction to the #AccessHollywood tape, & notes that the Trump campaign responded publicly that his words on the tape were “locker-room talk,” while they were quietly scrubbing the internet for anything that might be damaging to him. He shows that #HopeHicks relied on #MichaelCohen to use his media contacts to fight back against the negative press.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass shows the jurors video clips of #Trump himself acknowledging that the “#AccessHollywood” tape & its aftermath could swing a very tight election. “If 5% of the people think it’s true, & maybe 10%,” Trump says in one clip, “we don’t win.”

Steinglass takes jurors through testimony from #HopeHicks describing what a disaster Trump understood the “Access Hollywood” tape to be, because she was “in the room where it happened.”

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

Now, having painted a picture of just how desperate the #Trump campaign was as it spun the #AccessHollywood tape, #Steinglass reintroduces the jurors to #StormyDaniels (well done Josh).

“During the exact same month that the defendant was desperately trying to sell the distinction between words & actions, he was negotiating to muzzle a porn star who was preparing to go public,” Steinglass says.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

“#StormyDaniels was a walking, talking reminder that Trump was not just words" at a time when Trump was trying to distinguish between his words & both Clintons’ actions, #Steinglass said.

Steinglass notes that Trump had not shown much interest Daniels' story until after the #AccessHollywood tape came out.
He shows phone records w/a huge increase in communications between #KeithDavidson, #DylanHoward, #MichaelCohen & #Trump.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Trump atty Todd #Blanche, during his closing, tried to convince the jury that the prosecution’s case relied entirely on #MichaelCohen. Josh #Steinglass is taking that argument on directly & indirectly. As he moves through the case’s timeline, showing every piece of documentary #evidence the prosecution has, he is reinforcing just how much does not rely on Cohen, but on the testimony of witnesses who are friendly to Trump & on phone records you can’t dispute.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

To believe defense, you’d have to take #Blanche’s word #MichaelCohen went rogue & #Trump was clueless about the #StormyDaniels deal.

Steinglass details calls between #Pecker & #MichaelCohen, w/ #HopeHicks occasionally in the mix, reminding jurors how enmeshed Cohen was & how much he talked to the campaign.

As he takes jurors through the mountain of documentary evidence, he sympathizes, “We don’t need to show all these calls & emails… they’re in evidence if you want to see them.”

#TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass needs to show the jurors that the *alleged* #Trump Tower conspiracy between David #Pecker, #MichaelCohen & #Trump involved using “unlawful means” to aid Trump’s election.

Steinglass displays one of the unlawful means, a document called a business information overview that Cohen created as he sought to obtain the cash to pay #StormyDaniels.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass is talking about & showing evidence from 23-25 Oct 2016, a few days from when #MichaelCohen actually sent a #HushMoney payment of $130k to a lawyer for #StormyDaniels.

“There’s this crazy flurry of phone activity among the co-conspirators here,” Steinglass points out, & then rattles off the proper names — Michael Cohen to David Pecker, Pecker to Cohen, Cohen to Keith Davidson — to illustrate just how much phone activity there was over just 30 mins.

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

On 26 Oct, ONE DAY BEFORE making the #HushMoney payment to #StormyDaniels's lawyer, #MichaelCohen talks to #Trump on the phone twice.

“This is damning, right?” #Steinglass says, using conversational language as he highlights the records.

He argues that Cohen was getting the final sign-off from Trump before he initiated the sequence of financial transactions that would conclude w/him wiring $130k.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference

in reply to Nonilex

“As part of this process, yet another false business record is created,” #Steinglass says, leaving a trail of potential #UnlawfulMeans that jurors could draw on during deliberations as they seek to determine whether #Trump unlawfully influenced his election victory.

On 27 Oct 2016, the money was sent, & on 28 Oct, just 11 days before the #election, #StormyDaniels signed the NDA.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass lands his argument by saying that while the sex between #StormyDaniels & #Trump took place in 2006, the payoff wasn’t until 2016 because his concern was NOT his family, as his lawyers have suggested, but the #election.

Though many of Trump’s family members have been staring at their phones throughout this summation, all of them looked up when Steinglass said that.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass now goes into 4 Nov 2016, four days before the election, the day that The WSJ broke a story about The #NationalEnquirer’s deal w/ #KarenMcDougal on #Trump’s behalf.

Steinglass reminds jurors that #HopeHicks sent over a statement for the story on behalf of Trump, & that Trump lied in the statement, saying he didn’t know anything about the Karen McDougal deal. Steinglass says Trump did know about it because he was on tape 2 months earlier talking about it.

#criminal #law #TrumpTrial

in reply to Nonilex

#Steinglass:
“And then, on Nov 8, the defendant was elected president.”

He notes that some of the conspiracy’s characters were aware of their roles in #Trump's election. “What have we done?” #StormyDaniels’s atty texted the #NationalEnquirer editor.

Steinglass: “we’ll never know if this effort to hoodwink the American voter” made the difference in 2016. But prosecutors don’t have to prove that it did — they just have to show that Trump was a part of a #conspiracy to aid his victory.

#law

in reply to Nonilex

Justice #Merchan thanks the #jurors for their patience & flexibility as he dismisses them for a 20-min break. Then, after they leave the room, he tells the lawyers, “they look pretty alert to me” & says that he will seek to finish closing arguments today — likely sometime in the evening, people are saying 7PM-ish. (My fingers are not thrilled)

#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney #MobTactics

in reply to Nonilex

In the break #Trump posted “BORING!” & “FILIBUSTER” (separately. Also no such thing as filibuster in a court of #law).

#Steinglass says that after the #conspiracy to #influence the election & getting elected, #Trump still had to ensure no one found out “but here’s the problem, #MichaelCohen was out $130k.”

Steinglass says Trump couldn’t just write Cohen a check, & jurors should make no mistake: While Cohen wanted a head pat from his boss, “he also wanted his money back.”

#TrumpTrial