The circus surrounding Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s hush money case against President-elect Trump will reach its crescendo on January 10, just ten days before Trump takes the oath of office for his second term. Judge Juan Merchan announced Friday that Trump will be sentenced virtually for his conviction on 34 felony counts related to payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels in 2016.
Trump’s legal team has long argued the case is a politically motivated attack with no legal standing, invoking presidential immunity, the Presidential Transition Act, and the Supremacy Clause. But Judge Merchan rejected those arguments outright, writing, “Neither the vacatur of the jury’s verdicts nor dismissal of the indictment are required.” In plain English: the conviction stands.
The sentence won’t involve jail time—a small consolation for Trump, who has repeatedly denounced the case as a “rigged hoax” and Judge Merchan as a “radical partisan.” Trump took to Truth Social to blast the ruling, calling it a “psychotic order” that defies the Constitution and undermines the presidency itself. His criticism isn’t without historical context; no former U.S. president has ever faced criminal conviction, let alone sentencing, while on the verge of taking office again.
The case stems from a $130,000 payment made by Trump’s former attorney, Michael Cohen, to Daniels in the final days of the 2016 election. Prosecutors allege the payment, labeled as “legal fees,” was fraudulently concealed to protect Trump’s campaign from potential fallout over an alleged affair. Trump has consistently denied the affair and maintains the payment was unrelated to campaign activities.
The political implications are as monumental as the legal proceedings are controversial. With Trump’s sentencing occurring so close to his inauguration, the spectacle will further fuel partisan divides and may provide Democrats with a rallying cry even as Republicans dismiss it as baseless lawfare.
Trump’s lawyers have vowed to fight the conviction, filing motions to dismiss and citing the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity. So far, those efforts have fallen flat in Merchan’s courtroom, but appeals are likely.
For Trump’s supporters, this case is another example of the deep state’s vendetta against their leader. For his critics, it’s overdue accountability. Either way, the January 10 sentencing ensures that the unprecedented legal saga of Trump will remain front and center as he prepares to re-enter the Oval Office.
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