He’s on trial for misuse of campaign money and, possibly, for illegally trying to conceal sexual affairs that might have adversely affected his 2016 campaign. There is NO DOUBT that he is guilty. Witnesses and documentation will prove that beyond all discussion. During the trial, several factors will become apparent: (1) the details of his affairs will need to be established. Is there any truth to the rumor that Stormy refers to Trump as “little Donny”? We wonder if this will shake the fervor or his religious supporters or whether they are so hard-headed and arrogant that they still refuse to admit his character failure; (2) he will continue to use the trial as a campaign pulpit to hammer the “witch hunt” baloney. People will tire of that song as facts are revealed; (3) he will become more frustrated as evidence appears and will violate the gag order as his only retort to the damning information of each day; (4) he will use the trial as his excuse for not winning the election because it kept him from campaigning for several weeks. That won’t be the real reason for his losing; (5) he will attempt to raise campaign funds from the millions of paycheck-to-paycheck people he disrespects because they don’t see the grift; and (6) he will expose the US to violence as a last resort as the trial winds down and the conclusion is inevitable. The only concern we should have is his ability to spoil the jury by finding one or more members of the jury who will hang the decision either out of fear or greed. Control of that outcome is in the hands of the judge. One final thought: if the Prosecutor proves absolutely and unquestionably that Trump is guilty-as-charged and the jury is unable to reach a verdict or finds him not guilty–under either scenario–can the judge set aside the verdict and grant a summary judgement of guilt? In the case of a hung jury without a decision, can the case be re-tried? And what happens if a jury member buys a $10 million home and pays cash for it immediately after (or maybe during) the trial? What are the possibilities of a mistrial? Stay tuned. This is American jurisprudence on display on the big stage.

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