Former President Donald Trump’s unprecedented criminal trial began Monday morning with jury selection, the first day of a process that could span two weeks.
The trial is the first criminal trial of a president.
Democrat Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged Trump with 34 felonies, accusing him of falsifying documents to conceal a sex scandal. Trump could face jail time if convicted.
“When I walk into that courtroom, I know I will have the love of 200 million Americans behind me, and I will be FIGHTING for the FREEDOM of 325 MILLION AMERICANS!,” Trump posted on Truth Social Monday.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump attends the first day of his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affairs, at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City on April 15, 2024. (ANGELA WEISS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Trump is expected to be in the courtroom for a lot of the trial and could also take the stand — all while he campaigns for president. The trial may last into June.
The 12 jurors, once selected, will have to judge Mr. Cohen’s story themselves: He is expected to be the prosecution’s star witness, confronting a boss he once idolized and now despises.
Jury selection will be crucial for both sides. Prosecutors have some advantage, as the jury pool is drawn from Manhattan, one of the most Democratic counties in America. Mr. Trump’s team will be looking for red needles in a blue haystack.
Trump is also under a sweeping gag order. “I want my VOICE back. This Crooked Judge has GAGGED me. Unconstitutional! The other side can talk about me, but I am not allowed to talk about them! Rigged Trial!” Trump posted Monday.
The gag order, as Breitbart News’s Nick Gilbertson reported, prevents Trump from making public comments about witnesses participating in the trial, counsel other than Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D), “members of the court’s staff and the District Attorney’s staff, or … the family members of any counsel or staff member, if those statements are made with the intent to materially interfere with … counsel’s or staff’s work” on the case. It also encompasses prospective jurors.
The case is New York v. Trump, No. 71543-23, in the New York Supreme Court for New York County.
Wendell Husebo is a political reporter with Breitbart News and a former GOP War Room Analyst. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality. Follow Wendell on “X” @WendellHusebø or on Truth Social @WendellHusebo.