Editor's Pick: Grand jury indicts Trump for hush payments

Former U.S. President Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, a historic reckoning after years of investigations into his personal, political and business dealings and an abrupt jolt to his bid to retake the White House. The indictment stems from payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to silence claims of an extramarital sexual encounter. Prosecutors said they were working to coordinate Mr. Trump’s surrender, which could happen early next week. They did not say if they intended to seek prison time in the event of a conviction, a development that wouldn’t prevent the Republican leader from seeking and assuming presidency. Mr. Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing and has repeatedly assailed the investigation, called the indictment “political persecution” and predicted it would damage Democrats in 2024. Defence lawyers Susan Necheles and Joseph Tacopina said Mr. Trump “did not commit any crime. We will vigorously fight this political prosecution in court”. A spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney’s office said prosecutors had reached out to Mr. Trump’s defence team to coordinate a surrender. Mr. Tacopina said Mr. Trump is “likely” to turn himself in on Tuesday. He insisted that Mr. Trump would not take a plea deal: “There’s no crime.” The case centres on well-chronicled allegations from a period in 2016 when Mr. Trump’s celebrity past collided with his political ambitions. Prosecutors for months scrutinised money paid to porn actor Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who, he feared, would go public with claims that they had extramarital sexual encounters with him. Republicans rallied to Mr. Trump’s defence, denouncing the indictment. While the indictment, the first one ever against a former U.S. President, remains under seal and the specific charges are unclear at this stage, media reports indicate that Mr. Trump’s erstwhile attorney Michael Cohen paid $1,30,000 to Ms. Daniels on the 45th President’s behalf, apparently to stop her from going public. Mr. Trump is said to have reimbursed the amount to Mr. Cohen after he won the election, which was then passed off as legal expenses. In this regard the charge in the indictment is expected to be a falsification of business records, but that is only a misdemeanour offence in New York, not a felony. To prosecute Mr. Trump for a felony, the onus is on Manhattan District Attorney (DA) Alvin Bragg to not only link the falsified bookkeeping to Mr. Trump directly but also to show that the business records in question were falsified to cover up an entirely different crime. In an editorial, The Hindu raised the broader question underlying the indictment -- whether Democrats are scoring a self-goal. “While more serious issues that could be potential charges against Mr. Trump are on the scanner of the Justice Department, including certain dealings of the Trump Organization, his role in inciting the January 6, 2021 insurrection and withholding classified information after demitting office, the Manhattan DA’s reliance on the hush-money case could end up as blowback for the Democrats, especially given the dangers that it will polarise Americans further and be seen as pure political partisanship,” it said. With the 2024 presidential election a year away, Mr. Trump will raise the pitch of his return bid, and that makes it an important story. The Hindu’s Editorials Debatable indictment: On the Donald Trump case A busy season: On cricket at the WPL, the IPL and ICC events The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Who floated Waris Punjab De, a Khalistani separatist organisation? Amritpal Singh Deep Sindu Jagjit Singh Chouhan Harwinder Singh Randa To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 01 April 2023 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( Grand jury indicts Trump for hush payments Former U.S. President [Donald Trump has been indicted]( by a Manhattan grand jury, a historic reckoning after years of investigations into his personal, political and business dealings and an abrupt jolt to his bid to retake the White House. The indictment stems from payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign to silence claims of an extramarital sexual encounter. Prosecutors said they were working to coordinate Mr. Trump’s surrender, which could happen early next week. They did not say if they intended to seek prison time in the event of a conviction, a development that wouldn’t prevent the Republican leader from seeking and assuming presidency. Mr. Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing and has repeatedly assailed the investigation, called the indictment “political persecution” and predicted it would damage Democrats in 2024. Defence lawyers Susan Necheles and Joseph Tacopina said Mr. Trump “did not commit any crime. We will vigorously fight this political prosecution in court”. A spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney’s office said prosecutors had reached out to Mr. Trump’s defence team to coordinate a surrender. Mr. Tacopina said Mr. Trump is “likely” to turn himself in on Tuesday. He insisted that Mr. Trump would not take a plea deal: “There’s no crime.” The case centres on well-chronicled allegations from a period in 2016 when Mr. Trump’s celebrity past collided with his political ambitions. Prosecutors for months scrutinised money paid to porn actor Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who, he feared, would go public with claims that they had extramarital sexual encounters with him. [Republicans rallied to Mr. Trump’s defence]( denouncing the indictment. While the indictment, the first one ever against a former U.S. President, remains under seal and the specific charges are unclear at this stage, media reports indicate that Mr. Trump’s erstwhile attorney Michael Cohen paid $1,30,000 to Ms. Daniels on the 45th President’s behalf, apparently to stop her from going public. Mr. Trump is said to have reimbursed the amount to Mr. Cohen after he won the election, which was then passed off as legal expenses. In this regard the charge in the indictment is expected to be a falsification of business records, but that is only a misdemeanour offence in New York, not a felony. To prosecute Mr. Trump for a felony, the onus is on Manhattan District Attorney (DA) Alvin Bragg to not only link the falsified bookkeeping to Mr. Trump directly but also to show that the business records in question were falsified to cover up an entirely different crime. [In an editorial]( The Hindu raised the broader question underlying the indictment -- whether Democrats are scoring a self-goal. “While more serious issues that could be potential charges against Mr. Trump are on the scanner of the Justice Department, including certain dealings of the Trump Organization, his role in inciting the January 6, 2021 insurrection and withholding classified information after demitting office, the Manhattan DA’s reliance on the hush-money case could end up as blowback for the Democrats, especially given the dangers that it will polarise Americans further and be seen as pure political partisanship,” it said. With the 2024 presidential election a year away, Mr. Trump will raise the pitch of his return bid, and that makes it an important story. The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][Debatable indictment: On the Donald Trump case]( [Arrow][A busy season: On cricket at the WPL, the IPL and ICC events]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Who floated Waris Punjab De, a Khalistani separatist organisation? - Amritpal Singh - Deep Sindu - Jagjit Singh Chouhan - Harwinder Singh Randa To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. [Sign up for free]( Today's Best Reads [[IPL 2023 | Gill sizzles as Titans begin IPL title defence with five-wicket win over CSK] IPL 2023 | Gill sizzles as Titans begin IPL title defence with five-wicket win over CSK]( [[Indore stepwell roof collapse death toll rises to 36] Indore stepwell roof collapse death toll rises to 36]( [[Georgia passes resolution condemning Hinduphobia] Georgia passes resolution condemning Hinduphobia]( [[In Sri Lanka, a long and rocky road to economic recovery] In Sri Lanka, a long and rocky road to economic recovery]( Copyright @ 2023, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. 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