Government

After Demanding Delay Of NY Sentencing Until After Election, Trump Demands Sentencing Be Canceled Because Of Election

Chutzpah.

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Opening Statements Begin In Former President Donald Trump’s New York Hush Money Trial

(Photo by Yuki Iwamura-Pool/Getty Images)

Of all the crimes that Donald Trump is going to get away with, the murder of irony and shame are some of the most heinous. Okay, yes, mounting a coup is worse. But after a jury convicted him for 34 felonies, this guy is going to skate because his lawyers are willing to say with a straight face that he’s far too busy preparing to be president to waste time with the criminal justice system.

AT THE VERY SAME TIME, HE IS REFUSING TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION PROCESS BECAUSE IT WOULD REQUIRE HIM TO SIGN AN ETHICS PLEDGE TO AVOID CONFLICTS OF INTEREST ONCE IN OFFICE.

It’s … a lot.

New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan was scheduled to rule today on Trump’s motion to set aside his conviction based on the presidential immunity decision in Trump v. US. The Supreme Court majority, in their infinite wisdom, ruled that evidence of official acts can’t be used to convict a president of crimes, even if those crimes have nothing to do with his office. Trump’s conviction was secured in part thanks to testimony from former White House aides Hope Hicks and Madeleine Westerhout, so Trump demanded that the verdict be vacated. Trump’s own lawyers demanded that any ruling, along with Trump’s sentencing, be postponed until after the election to avoid the appearance of political interference.

But Justice Merchan did not issue that ruling today. Instead he acceded to a joint request by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and Trump’s lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove to — once again! — stay all deadlines for a week to allow the DA to apprise the court of “appropriate steps going forward.”

In the attached correspondence, ADA Matthew Colangelo cited the “unprecedented circumstances” which “require careful consideration to ensure that any further steps in this proceeding appropriately balance the competing interests of (1) a jury verdict of guilt following trial that has the presumption of regularity; and (2) the Office of the President.”

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Of course, Donald Trump is not the president, and requiring him to sit in a courtroom for an hour will make no difference to the presidential transition. Nevertheless, Blanche and Bove insist that “The stay, and dismissal, are necessary to avoid unconstitutional impediments to President Trump’s ability to govern.”

In support of this, they cite to the Presidential Transition Act of 1963, specifically this note:

The Congress declares it to be the purpose of this Act to promote the orderly transfer of the executive power in connection with the expiration of the term of office of a President and the inauguration of a new President. The national interest requires that such transitions in the office of President be accomplished so as to assure continuity in the faithful execution of the laws and in the conduct of the affairs of the Federal Government, both domestic and foreign. Any disruption occasioned by the transfer of the executive power could produce results detrimental to the safety and well-being of the United States and its people. Accordingly, it is the intent of the Congress that appropriate actions be authorized and taken to avoid or minimize any disruption. In addition to the specific provisions contained in this Act directed toward that purpose, it is the intent of the Congress that all officers of the Government so conduct the affairs of the Government for which they exercise responsibility and authority as (1) to be mindful of problems occasioned by transitions in the office of President, (2) to take appropriate lawful steps to avoid or minimize disruptions that might be occasioned by the transfer of the executive power, and (3) otherwise to promote orderly transitions in the office of President.

In 2020, Trump doggedly obstructed the presidential transition, refusing to allow the GSA Administrator Emily Murphy to sign the certificate of ascertainment which would allocate office space, brief the incoming administration, or release statutorily allocated funds to the incoming Biden administration. When Murphy finally did sign it, she insisted that she’d received no direction from the White House to delay her determination and whined that she “did, however, receive threats online, by phone, and by mail directed at my safety, my family, my staff, and even my pets in an effort to coerce me into making this determination prematurely.” 

Trump’s absolute refusal to participate in the presidential transition last time forced Congress to modify the Electoral Count Act to remove the GSA Administrator’s ability to unilaterally hold up the transition process. And yet, just four years later, he is so deeply committed to ensuring a smooth transition that he can’t spare an hour for the orderly administration of justice on a day specifically requested by his own counsel just three months ago.

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Sometimes cheaters win.

Liz Dye lives in Baltimore where she produces the Law and Chaos substack and podcast.

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