My day started by hearing Trump on CNN speak to a gathering of reporters. He was listing all the things in the world that he thinks are wrong (not himself, of course), and how they are all Biden’s fault. At one point he hesitated and then said, “the stock market is, in a sense, crashing.” The market is not doing badly at all, and how can it (or anything, for that matter) “in a sense, crash?” Trump’s pre and post-trial rants are tiresome and repetative, and it’s hard to report on them. But this is an historic few weeks.
The trial today was the continuation of testimony of the National Equirer CEO, David Pecker. The prosecution laid out, step-by-step, how Trump and his people had Pecker kill bad stories about Trump right before the election in 2016, starting with the Playboy model Karen McDougal’s claim of an affair. In very drawn out testimony, Pecker told how he helped Trump kill stories by buying them, and that the payment for this action was hidden as coming from made-up companies in order to avoid election interference accusations. Also key, Pecker said that he never heard Trump say that the qashing of these stories was to protect his family. Pecker assumed these efforts were political.
At one point, Pecker was asked if he feels any ill-will towards Trump. He considers him a friend and mentor. This to me is so bizarre. According to the NY Times, “He says that he hasn't spoken to Trump since 2019. ‘Even though we haven't spoken, I still consider him a friend,’ Pecker adds, as he testifies against Trump at his criminal trial.”
The defense cross-examined Pecker in the afternoon and attempted to “muddy the waters.” The defense probed Pecker, saying the catch-and-kill deals were really “standard operating procedure” and thus not illegal. The attorney repeats that often as if trying to sear that in the jury’s brain.
According to Maggie Haberman of the NY Times,
“This is also part of the Trump ethos: that everything and everyone have some dirt on their shoes. No one is morally superior.”
As Judge Merchan dismissed the jury for the day, he said to the defense lawyer Emil Bove in an annoyed tone, “I don’t think you’re responding to what I’m saying.”
Also this morning, there was a dizzying amount of breaking news. The Supreme Court is hearing Trump’s immunity claim concerning January 6th, and the New York’s top court reversed the Harvey Weinstein conviction. I don’t fully understand it, but I think it was on a technicality concerning the trial. Weinstein will probably remain in jail in California for the rest of his life, however. Thank god
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Happy Thursday, see you tomorrow.
Those two women in your second cartoon are great! The speaking woman echoes the thoughts I’ve had for years: that the media’s non-judgmental and unequal coverage of Trump got him elected in 2016, and is threatening a repeat performance in 2024. (Typo alert: Shouldn’t her word “every” be “ever”?)
Nothing about Trump. Wouldn’t that be lovely.