Donald Trump has been persecuted by Biden and Kamala. But that’s all been turned on its head.
And Trump landed a groundbreaking legal victory that changes everything.
President-elect Donald Trump’s stunning triumph not only marks his return to the White House, but it also likely ends four long-running criminal charges by the Biden Justice Department and Democratic state prosecutors.
In the most recent instance, Mr. Trump is scheduled to be sentenced on November 26 for felony convictions in New York City for fabricating business records. However, Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan was unlikely to sentence Mr. Trump to jail and must now determine whether to proceed at all during a presidential transition.
Mr. Trump might not have to do anything.
Multiple sites, including CNN and NBC, claimed that Mr. Jack Smith has began negotiations with Justice officials about how to end the proceedings in accordance with a 2020 memo that stated that sitting presidents cannot be prosecuted.
Democrats had anticipated that one or more of Mr. Trump’s prosecutions would ruin his re-election campaign. As president-elect, he will soon have oversight of the Justice Department.
House majority leader Steve Scalise called for the end of Mr. Trump’s criminal proceedings on Wednesday, just hours after he was elected president.
“The American people have spoken: the lawfare must end,” Mr. Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, tweeted on X. “I call on Attorney General Garland, [Manhattan District Attorney] Alvin Bragg, and [Fulton County District Attorney] Fani Willis to immediately terminate the politically-motivated prosecutions of President Donald Trump.”
Mr. Trump is expected to drop the two federal lawsuits against him brought by his Department of Justice following the inauguration, but a state-level case in Georgia concerning election involvement in 2020 may stay in limbo as Mr. Trump regains the presidency.
Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris will result in the swift resolution of lawsuits brought by special counsel Jack Smith. Mr. Smith was selected by the Biden Department of Justice, and Mr. Trump has promised to fire him in “two seconds” after becoming president.
“All the federal cases are gone, let’s say, one minute after noon on Jan. 20,” said David Schultz, a professor of politics and legal studies at Hamline University who is following Mr. Trump’s legal troubles. “These remaining trials are never going to happen at this point.”
Democrats hoped that the cases would topple Trump, but instead he leveraged his status as a defendant to boost his standing in the GOP primary. He also utilized the prosecutions as a potent fundraising tool for his followers, claiming that he was the victim of political persecution.
In the Manhattan case against his corporate empire, Donald Trump staged numerous press conferences outside the courtroom, telling reporters that he was being treated unfairly because of his role as the Republican presidential leader. The judge issued gag orders, but Mr. Trump primarily conveyed his message to his followers throughout the trial.
Despite becoming a convicted felon by the summer, he stormed to victory in the general election by undermining Ms. Harris’ claim that she would turn the page on the Biden administration.
For the time being, his criminal proceedings will continue to move forward while the Biden administration winds down.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan set filing deadlines for November and December in the complaint alleging that Mr. Trump conspired against the United States through his activities after the 2020 election.
However, attorneys may be able to postpone those filings. The case was already stalled by a Supreme Court battle over presidential immunity.
A federal court in Florida dropped a second indictment accusing Trump of illegally storing secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago club.
According to U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, Mr. Garland did not legitimately designate Mr. Smith. Prosecutors are appealing, but they are unlikely to succeed before Trump becomes president.
“These cases are now legal versions of the Flying Dutchman—ships destined to sail endlessly but never make port,” wrote Jonathan Turley, a professor at George Washington University Law School, on X. “If there is a single captain on that hapless crew, it is Special Counsel Jack Smith who is now a lame-duck prosecutor.”
Trump is also facing an election-related racketeering charge in Georgia.
Ms. Willis, who was re-elected on Tuesday, was allowed to continue working on the case despite concerns about a previous relationship with an investigator. However, the defense’s appeal of that decision delayed the trial. Even if the lawsuit is still feasible, Mr. Trump will most likely successfully argue that he cannot stand trial while serving as president.
On November 26, Trump is scheduled to be sentenced in Manhattan for 34 felony offenses. His lawyers have repeatedly postponed sentencing and will most likely try again.
Judge Merchan may wish to proceed, but he’s unlikely to throw the book at someone who recently won more than 70 million votes.
“I never thought he was going to give him jail time,” Mr. Schultz stated. “It’s going to be some kind of probation.”
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
