Trump Appears in DC Court, Pleads 'Not Guilty'
Former Pres. Donald Trump appeared in a federal courtroom in Washington, DC Thursday — arraigned for allegedly attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. This comes after Tuesday’s indictment by a grand jury convened by special counsel Jack Smith.
Facts
- Former Pres. Donald Trump appeared in a federal courtroom in Washington, DC Thursday — arraigned for allegedly attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election. This comes after Tuesday’s indictment by a grand jury convened by special counsel Jack Smith.1
- Trump pleaded “not guilty” to all four federal charges before US Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhaya. Judge Tanya Chutkan — an Obama-appointed judge who handled several cases involving Jan. 6 protesters — will preside over the trial.2
- Trump landed in Washington in time for the 4:00 p.m. hearing, leaving from his private plane in New Jersey. Cameras are not allowed in the courtroom, but Trump was seated next to his attorneys while Smith was also present.3
- Judge Upadhyaya set the next hearing for Aug. 28. The next step in the process, pre-trial litigation, could take months.4
- Unlike the other indictments, Thursday’s proceedings were the first tying Trump to the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots. Trump faces the following charges: conspiracy to defraud the US (5 years), conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and obstruction of an official proceeding (20 years each), and conspiracy against rights (10 years).5
- Trump has insisted on his innocence and claims the onslaught of legal charges against him is intended to derail his 2024 presidential campaign. He is currently the frontrunner for the Republican nomination for president.6
Sources: 1CNN, 2FOX News, 3CBS, 4Al Jazeera, 5CNBC, and 6Associated Press.
Narratives
- Republican narrative, as provided by American Greatness. Americans have had a sense that they live under a two-tiered justice system for quite a while, but Jack Smith’s indictment of Trump shows the extent of the swamp’s grasp on power. The media, federal bureaucrats, and Democratic politicians have made this takedown their first priority for seven years, and now they may take the unprecedented step of arresting their chief political opponent. This is a sham, and justice may be dead in America.
- Democratic narrative, as provided by The Daily Beast. No one is above the law, even a former president of the United States. This is especially true when it comes to a man who tried to overthrow American democracy with a violent attack on the Capitol. Donald Trump attempted a coup after he lost the 2020 election, and just like any authoritarian, he did all he could to subvert the will of the people for his own power. Even after all the damage he’s done, Trump is still plotting his dangerous return to office.
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