Gilead
Donald Trump
Hush money
Fig. 1. Cartoon by Jesse Duquette, undated, via “Minneapple23” [pseud.] on Imgur, April 1, 2023, fair use.
Manhattan [District Attorney] Alvin Bragg told reporters in a news conference after [Donald] Trump’s arraignment that the indictment [for 34 felony counts of falsification of business records] centers on “34 false statements made to cover up [violations of New York election law].”
“These are felony crimes in New York state, no matter who you are. We cannot and will not normalize serious criminal conduct,” he said. . . .
Despite the heavy focus on [Stormy] Daniels before the indictment was unsealed, the charges outline a broad effort to conceal damaging information from voters before and after the 2016 election, including a so-called catch-and-kill scheme to identify, purchase and bury negative stories about Trump.
Other payments identified by the prosecution include $30,000 to a former Trump Tower doorman who claimed to have a story about a child Trump fathered out of wedlock and a $150,000 payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who also alleged that she had a sexual relationship with Trump. American Media Inc., which at the time owned the National Enquirer, has admitted in court to paying sources with allegations that could harm Trump politically to ensure the information they provided would never appear in print.[1]
For all the talk of Donald Trump inciting violence,[2] I’m not seeing any indication there’s been any.
Jelani Cobb, “Alvin Bragg, Donald Trump, and the Pursuit of Low-Level Crimes,” Puck, April 4, 2023, https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/alvin-bragg-donald-trump-and-the-pursuit-of-low-level-crimes
Jacob Gershman and Joe Palazzolo, “Case Against Donald Trump Leaves Defense Ample Openings, Say Legal Authorities,” Wall Street Journal, April 4, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/case-against-trump-leaves-defense-ample-openings-say-legal-authorities-518bea9d
Sarah D. Wire and Alexandra E. Petri, “Trump charged with 34 felony counts in alleged hush money cover-up case,” Los Angeles Times, April 4, 2023, https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2023-04-04/donald-trump-alleged-hush-money-investigation-indictment-arraignment
Coup attempt
Tina Nguyen, “Trump’s Jan. 6 Revival & the DeSantis RINO Trap,” Puck, April 4, 2023, https://puck.news/trumps-jan-6-revival-the-desantis-rino-trap/
- [1]Sarah D. Wire and Alexandra E. Petri, “Trump charged with 34 felony counts in alleged hush money cover-up case,” Los Angeles Times, April 4, 2023, https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2023-04-04/donald-trump-alleged-hush-money-investigation-indictment-arraignment↩
- [2]Jonathan Dienst, “Law enforcement agencies are prepping for a possible Trump indictment as early as next week,” NBC News, March 17, 2023, https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/law-enforcement-agencies-are-prepping-possible-trump-indictment-early-rcna75493; David Gilbert and Mack Lamoureux, “The Far Right Is Calling For Bloody ‘Civil War’ After Trump’s Indictment,” Vice, March 31, 2023, https://www.vice.com/en/article/5d9p9q/trump-indictment-civil-war-the-donald; Maggie Haberman et al., “Trump Claims His Arrest Is Imminent and Calls for Protests, Echoing Jan. 6,” New York Times, March 18, 2023, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/18/us/politics/trump-indictment-arrest-protests.html; Tom Nichols, “Trump Did It Again,” Atlantic, March 18, 2023, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/03/trump-arrest-indictment-protesters-mob/673437/; Joe Palazzolo and Corinne Ramey, “Donald Trump Braces for Potential Charges in N.Y. Hush-Money Case, Calls for Protests,” Wall Street Journal, March 18, 2023, https://www.wsj.com/articles/donald-trump-braces-for-potential-charges-calls-for-protests-dd879b1f; John Wagner and Hannah Allam, “Trump warns of ‘potential death & destruction’ if he’s charged in hush-money case,” Washington Post, March 24, 2023, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/03/24/trump-hush-money-death-destruction/↩