I can't decide if it's a blessing or a curse that former President Donald Trump's Manhattan criminal trial hasn't been televised. On the one hand, I've had to rely on second — sometimes third — hand accounts from inside the courtroom in order to be able to prepare daily summaries of these unprecedented proceedings. On the other hand, had it been televised, I'd have been glued to that for 20 days and likely gotten nothing else done.
As it is, following the trial closely has been almost all-consuming. I've tried, best I can, to follow accounts from those who clearly aren't in Trump's camp and those who clearly are to get a decent flavor of how the various testimony has gone and whether sense can be made of the court's rulings and the parties' strategies.
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I've tried to recognize my own predisposition regarding the matter — my belief that the case was brought for purely political reasons and wouldn't have been filed against anyone else not named Trump — and take that into account when I assess Judge Juan Merchan's decisions. But it's inescapable that his rulings have largely favored the prosecution — and some of them have simply defied logic. So much so that I'm left with the belief that he's invested in the outcome and has let that color his conduct of the trial.
There will be a verdict (or mistrial) by the end of May. Who will emerge victorious? Juan? Or Don?
This “Moore to the Point” commentary aired on NewsTalkSTL on Wednesday, May 22nd. Audio included below.
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