Trump Found Guilty on All Counts in Hush Money Trial

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Facts

• A New York jury on Thursday found former Pres. Donald Trump guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to hide hush-money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.¹
• The verdict wraps up a weeks-long trial that included testimony from former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and others involved in the 'catch-and-kill' scheme ahead of the 2016 presidential election.²
• The presumptive GOP presidential nominee is set to be sentenced on July 11 — four days before the Republican National Convention kicks off. He faces penalties from a fine to four years in jail on each count.³
• Trump was indicted last year by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on claims that reimbursement checks sent to his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, were intended to cover up a $130K payment to keep Daniels quiet about an alleged affair she had with Trump.⁴
• Trump still faces criminal prosecution in Georgia and two federal criminal cases related to election subversion claims and his handling of classified documents after leaving office — none of which is expected to go to trial before the presidential election in November.⁵
• Though the first former US president ever to be convicted of a crime, Trump will be able to run for the White House again, given that nothing in the country's constitution forbids a convicted felon from becoming president.⁶

Sources: ¹FOX News, ²National Review, ³NBC, ⁴CNN, ⁵Wall Street Journal and ⁶USA Today.

Narratives

• Anti-Trump narrative, as provided by New York Times. This verdict shows that no one, not even a former president, is above the rule of law in America. Furthermore, it serves as a reminder ahead of the presidential election that Trump is unfit for office due to an incurable impulse to break the law for political gains — and his lack of moral virtue.
• Pro-Trump narrative, as provided by New York Post. Following a politically motivated trial that was anything but fair, Trump was found guilty of something that has yet to be explained since jurors were told they didn't have to agree on what he did wrong. In the face of such a travesty of justice, it's up to voters to protect the rule of law and vote out Biden.

Predictions