Former President Donald J. Trump’s hush-money trial has been scheduled to begin on March 25th, in the middle of the Republican primary season, a New York judge ruled on Thursday. This will be Trump’s first criminal case out of four, where he’ll go to trial in a Manhattan court on the charges of covering up a sex scandal to aid his 2016 presidential bid. The other cases will take place in Florida, Georgia, and Washington, D.C. This is the first-ever criminal case against a former president.
“Instead of being in South Carolina and other states campaigning, I’m here,” said Trump. “I’ll be here during the day and I’ll be campaigning during the night,” he added. “Biden should be doing the same thing, but he’ll be sleeping.”
Judge Juan Manuel Merchan will be presiding over the hush-money case and suggested that it will likely take 6 weeks to reach a verdict. Trump’s lawyers vehemently object to the date set by Judge Merchan.
“We strenuously object to what is happening in this courtroom,” said defense lawyer Todd Blanche. “The fact that we are now going to spend, President Trump is now going to spend, the next two months working on this trial instead of out on the campaign trail running for president is something that should not happen in this country.”
Manhattan courts charged Trump with 34 felonies deriving from his alleged covering up of $310,000 in “hush money” payments, which were used to stop porn star Stormy Daniels and ex-Playboy model Karen McDougal from going public about the sex scandal, which were made before the 2016 election. Trump then allegedly falsified business records to cover up his crime. Some of these felonies carry up to a 4-year prison sentence. Trump will be required to be present every day in the Manhattan courtroom for the hush-money case.
“It’s a rigged city. It’s a rigged state,” said Trump. “It’s a shame.”
