Trump may make history...again

The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday. [View in browser]( [Mother Jones Daily Newsletter](     February 15, 2024 Mark your calendars for March 25. That's the day that jury selection will begin for Trump's trial on charges related to the Stormy Daniels hush-money coverup case, as my colleague Russ Choma [reported]( today. But lest you think this will be just another day in court for Trump, keep in mind: If it goes ahead as scheduled, this would make Trump the first former president ever to be criminally tried. As Russ reports: It will also be the first criminal case to slot in place among the complicated judicial calendar Trump is facing in this election year, and it means Trump will almost certainly face a jury before Election Day. In three other jurisdictions—Georgia state court and federal courts in Florida, and Washington, DC—Trump has been indicted on charges related to the 2020 elections and his retention of classified documents, but the timetable for those cases remains unclear. As Russ also noted, Trump's attorneys—who had asked for the entire New York criminal case to be dismissed—[sparred]( with the judge in court today, complaining that the case amounted to "total election interference." And Trump, who was also in the courtroom today, echoed those complaints in [posts]( on his Truth Social, [calling]( the case "the Dems 2024 way of cheating!" As I [reported]( yesterday, these insults shouldn't be dismissed as your typical Trumpian temper tantrum: A report from Reuters [suggests]( that Trump's public attacks of federal judges and prosecutors presiding over his court cases may be a contributing factor to the more than doubling of threats against federal judges and prosecutors across the country since the 2020 election. “The threat environment right now that is causing me concern is when people disagree with the judicial process or the government, and that turns into those verbal attacks,” US Marshals Service Director Ronald Davis [told]( Reuters. “And that is the beginning of the process that threatens the judiciary and threatens our democracy.” Davis wasn't referring specifically to Trump, but the significance is inescapable: Democracy isn't just on trial when Trump—the [likely GOP nominee](—steps into the courtroom. It's also on trial every time he attacks judges or prosecutors who are simply doing their jobs. —Julianne McShane Advertisement [House Subscriptions Ad]( [Top Story] [Top Story]( [Donald Trump Will Be the First Former President to Face a Criminal Trial, Judge Rules]( Trump's New York case will begin in March. BY RUSS CHOMA [Fiercely Independent] Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. [Donate]( [Trending] [Report: Threats to federal judges have doubled since 2020]( BY JULIANNE MCSHANE   [What we lose by armchair diagnosing Biden and Trump]( BY JULIA MÉTRAUX   [Taylor Swift's Super Bowl jet-setting highlights carbon removal problems]( BY TIK ROOT   [The National Book Awards finally expands eligibility rules to include non-citizens]( BY NIA T. EVANS Advertisement [House Bookshop Ad]( [Special Feature] [Special Feature]( [The forgotten origins of a migration crisis]( Jonathan Blitzer tries to make “human sense” of the border and its politics. BY ISABELA DIAS Did you enjoy this newsletter? Help us out by [forwarding]( it to a friend or sharing it on [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Mother Jones]( [Donate]( [Donate Monthly]( [Subscribe]( This message was sent to {EMAIL}. To change the messages you receive from us, you can [edit your email preferences]( or [unsubscribe from all mailings.]( For advertising opportunities see our online [media kit.]( Were you forwarded this email? [Sign up for Mother Jones' newsletters today.]( [www.MotherJones.com]( PO Box 8539, Big Sandy, TX 75755