The anticipation with which Donald Trump awaited his own impeachment, the first of a former president in United States history, has over the past two weeks helped determine what is to come. He’ll be arrested, yes. You’ll take your fingerprints and frontal and profile photos that are inseparable from both this country’s justice system and its pop culture. They may be handcuffed. And you will hear another classic: the Miranda warning, which you will recognize from hundreds of films: “You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in court. You have the right to speak to a lawyer and to have a lawyer present at any questioning. If you can’t afford a lawyer, one will be appointed for you.”
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Trump is no ordinary defendant, but he will go through the processes of any citizen charged with a crime in New York. In his case, he is accused of making his attorney, Michael Cohen, pay $130,000 in the weeks leading up to the 2016 White House election to buy porn actress Stormy Daniels to remain silent about her an alleged extramarital affair 10 years ago.
According to prosecutor Alvin Bragg’s allegation, which the grand jury accepts, Trump falsified his company’s accounting to pass off that payment as something else. This is an offense punishable by up to one year in prison, which becomes a criminal offense if it is proven that the operation contributed to the commission of another offense, such as irregularly funding an election campaign or conspiring to vote to influence or prevent.
It could be several days before the former president, who denies everything, appears in court. First of all, because you need to get the indictment document first. It goes without saying that at this point the tug of war is already taking place in the negotiations on the terms of delivery. And nobody rules out that Trump will try to turn all of this into a show that will inflame his bases and give wings to his 2024 presidential campaign. For now, his attorneys have said he is willing to fly from Florida, where he is flying to his home in Mar-a-Lago, New York, to meet his legal obligations.
A supporter of former President Trump at the gates of his Florida residence on March 30. MARIA ALEJANDRA CARDONA (Portal)
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If he didn’t, there could be an unlikely event that he would have to be extradited. So it would be Ron DeSantis, the governor of this southeastern state, who would have to approve it. Coincidentally, DeSantis is currently the former president’s biggest enemy in his own party. And quite possibly his most serious opponent for the presidential nomination.
The New York court responsible for his indictment now faces a dilemma that is difficult to resolve. He must show that Trump is just another citizen, that he is not above the law, while not ignoring the exceptional nature of the process. Without further elaborating, the accused must be accompanied at all times by armed intelligence officers who, by law, are required to accompany him wherever he goes, for example when he goes before the judge to hear what he is accused of.
Not to mention the circus that is to become the entrance to the courthouse, an even bigger circus than the one that has been organized over the past two weeks at the mere presentation of a possible indictment.
Another doubt now open to Trump is whether he will require him to appear in handcuffs. Due to the nature of the processing, an exception might be made. Most of them will have their hands tied behind their backs, although the caveat is that if the offense is not that serious, they will appear with their hands tied at lap height.
Trump has already warned that he has no plans to withdraw from his presidential campaign if impeached. While there is no precedent in United States history for a criminally prosecuted former president, there is one candidate for office who has served from prison. It’s a dark memory, just because I love this country’s past: It happened in 1920, when Eugene Debs was a candidate for the Socialist Party of America while serving a prison sentence for violating the Espionage Act of 1917 for making speeches who criticized the role of the United States, united in the First World War. The guy only got a million votes. Trump is currently leading the Republican polls for his 2024 nomination as the Conservative nominee.
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