Trump will be first ex-president on criminal trial. Here’s what to know about the hush money case

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump will make history as the first former president to stand trial on criminal charges when his hush money case opens Monday with jury selection.

The case will force the presumptive Republican presidential nominee to juggle campaigning with sitting in a Manhattan courtroom for weeks to defend himself against charges involving a scheme to bury allegations of marital infidelity that arose during his first White House campaign in 2016. It carries enormous political ramifications as potentially the only one of four criminal cases against Trump that could reach a verdict before voters decide in November whether to send him back to the White House.

Here’s what to know about the hush money case and the charges against Trump: WHAT’S THIS CASE ABOUT?

The former president is accused of falsifying internal Trump Organization records as part of a scheme to bury damaging stories that he feared could hurt his 2016 campaign, particularly as Trump’s reputation was suffering at the time from comments he had made about women. The allegations focus on payoffs to two women, porn actor Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal, who said they had extramarital sexual encounters with Trump years earlier, as well as to a Trump Tower doorman who claimed to have a story about a child he alleged Trump had out of wedlock. Trump says none of these supposed sexual encounters occurred. Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, paid Daniels $130,000 and arranged for the publisher of the National Enquirer supermarket tabloid to pay McDougal $150,000 in a journalistically dubious practice known as “catchand-kill” in which a publication pays for exclusive rights to someone’s story with no intention of publishing it, either as a favor to a celebrity subject or to gain leverage over the person.

Prosecutors say Trump’s company reimbursed Cohen and paid him bonuses and extra payments, all of which were falsely logged in Trump Organization records as legal expenses. Cohen has separately pleaded guilty to violating federal campaign finance law in connection with the payments. WHAT ARE THE CHARGES?

Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. The charge carries up to four years in prison, though whether he will spend time behind bars if convicted would ultimately be up to the judge.

The counts are linked to a series of checks written to Cohen to reimburse him for his role in paying off Daniels. Those payments, made over 12 months, were recorded as legal expenses in various internal company records.

To win on the felony charge, prosecutors must show that Trump not only falsified or caused business records to be entered falsely — which would be a misdemeanor — but that he did so with intent to commit or conceal a second crime.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg did not specify the other crime in Trump’s indictment, but has since said that evidence shows his actions were meant to conceal state and federal campaign finance and tax crimes. Some experts argue it’s an unusual legal strategy that could backfire.

News organizations urge Biden and Trump to commit to presidential debates during the 2024 campaign

NEW YORK (AP) — Twelve “certainly today’s America news organizations on Sunday deserves as much.” urged presumptive presidential The Republican National nominees Joe Biden and Committee voted in 2022 Donald Trump to agree to to no longer participate in debates, saying they were a forums sponsored by the “rich tradition” that have been Commission on Presidential part of every general election Debates. The Trump campaign campaign since 1976. has not indicated it

While Trump, who did would adhere to that, but not participate in debates for did have some conditions. the Republican nomination, The campaign managers said has indicated a willingness to the commission selected a take on his 2020 rival, the “demonstrably anti-Trump Democratic president has not moderator” in then-Fox News committed to debating him host Chris Wallace in 2020 again. and wants assurances the

Although invitations have commission debates are fair not been formally issued, the and impartial. news organizations said it was The Trump campaign not too early for each campaign also wants the timetable to say publicly that it moved up, saying that many will participate in the three Americans will have already presidential and one vice voted by Sept. 16, Oct. 1 and presidential forums set by the Oct. 9, the dates of the three nonpartisan Commission on debates set by the commission. Presidential Debates.

“If there is one thing The Biden campaign Americans can agree on during declined comment on the this polarized time, it is news organizations’ letter, that the stakes of this election pointing to the president’s are exceptionally high,” earlier statement. There was the organizations said in a no immediate response from joint statement. “Amidst that the Trump campaign. backdrop, there is simply no But on Saturday, Trump substitute for the candidates held a rally in northeast debating with each other, and Pennsylvania with two lecterns before the American people, set up on the stage: their visions for the future of one for him to give a speech, our nation.” the other to symbolize what

Biden and Trump debated he said was Biden’s refusal twice in 2020. A third debate to debate him. The second was canceled after Trump, lectern had a placard that then president, tested positive read, “Anytime. Anywhere. for COVID-19 and would Anyplace.” not debate remotely. Midway through his campaign

Asked on March 8 whether speech, Trump turned he would commit to a debate to his right and pointed to the with Trump, Biden said, “it second lectern. depends on his behavior.” “We have a little, look at The president was visibly this, it’s for him,” he said. “See miffed by his opponent in the podium? I’m calling on the freewheeling first 2020 Crooked Joe Biden to debate debate, at one point saying, anytime, anywhere, any “will you shut up?” place. Right there. And we

Trump campaign managers have to debate because our Susie Wiles and Chris country is going in the wrong LaCivita said in a letter this direction so badly and while past week that “we have it’s a little bit typically early already indicated President we have to debate. We have Trump is willing to debate to explain to the American anytime, any place and anywhere people what the hell is going — and the time to start on,” Trump said. these debates is now.” There were no Democratic

They cited the seven debates this presidential 1858 Illinois Senate debates cycle, and Trump’s refusal to between Abraham Lincoln participate in the GOP forums and Stephen Douglas, saying depressed interest in them.