Will Stormy Daniels Finally Give Trump the Spanking He Deserves?
A New York judge has recently issued a ruling stating that Donald Trump does not possess presidential immunity in relation to his ongoing Stormy Daniels hush money case. This decision could have significant implications for the legal proceedings surrounding the matter.
The Update
Prosecutors can continue sentencing Donald Trump for hiding his hush money payments to Stormy Daniels, although the timing is uncertain. New York Judge Juan Merchan upheld Trump's conviction on 34 felony charges for falsifying business records. Trump manipulated these records to conceal payments to Daniels, who threatened to reveal their affair. His attempts to pause sentencing cited a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on July 1 regarding presidential immunity, which granted him significant protection from legal action. A New York judge on December 7, 2024, in Paris, decided Trump does not have presidential immunity in the Stormy Daniels case.
Why It’s Important
Prosecutors agreed that Trump cannot be sentenced while he is president. However, a ruling on Monday indicates he may be sentenced after leaving office in 2029. Trump's lawyers claimed the Supreme Court granted him immunity for actions taken as president and for related activities. They argued that prosecutors used testimony from Hope Hicks, a former White House communications director, about her talks with Trump regarding the scandal, as well as Trump’s social media posts. The judge ruled that these actions were private matters.
"The People's use of these acts as evidence of the decidedly personal acts of falsifying business records poses no danger of intrusion on the authority and function of the Executive Branch," Merchan wrote.
He also noted that the Supreme Court had specifically stated that a president's public statements, such as social media posts, can be used as evidence of criminal wrongdoing.
"To find otherwise would effectively mean that every statement ever uttered (or posted on social media) by a sitting president, whether personal or official, in his or her own interests or that of the country, would be protected by absolute immunity," Justice Merchan wrote.
What You Need to Know
Trump was convicted in May of 34 counts of falsifying business records that are directly related to his payments to Stormy Daniels. As a result of these convictions, Trump could potentially face imprisonment due to those 34 felony counts. Prosecutors are currently in agreement that the legal proceedings surrounding this case should be put on hold until after the conclusion of a second Trump presidency. However, they are advocating for Judge Merchan to move forward with sentencing Trump when he eventually leaves the White House.
There will undoubtedly be extensive legal arguments presented in the courts regarding whether or not the case can continue in the year 2029. Nevertheless, Judge Merchan's ruling on Monday has certainly opened up a strong possibility that Trump may eventually be sentenced for his actions.
Experts Weigh In
CNN reporter Kara Scannell, who covered the hush money trial, informed Anderson Cooper on Monday that a key decision will be whether sentencing can proceed in 2029.
She said Trump "will be working through the court system to try to get this conviction overturned, but this is a big decision here on presidential immunity."
CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin told the same show that Monday's ruling is very significant because this is the first case "that really analyzes what the Supreme Court decision means — what is unofficial conduct and what is official conduct."
"The Supreme Court was pretty vague about that distinction," he said.
He added that Merchan is stating that Trump's discussions regarding the payments made to Stormy Daniels are not protected from prosecution, "even though those discussions took place in the Oval Office and even though two of them included conversations with employees of the White House. That is considered unofficial conduct, and as such, it can be admitted as evidence in this particular case."
What’s Next
Trump will almost certainly appeal Judge Merchan's ruling to the New York Court of Appeals. Beyond that, the Supreme Court will likely hear the case, given the serious constitutional issues it raises in this high-profile legal matter. On Monday, Trump's spokesman, Steven Cheung, suggested that Judge Merchan had acted in clear violation of the Supreme Court's existing immunity ruling. He characterized the ruling as "a direct violation of the Supreme Court's decision on immunity," emphasizing the gravity of the situation.
"This lawless case should have never been brought in the first place, and the Constitution demands that it be immediately dismissed," Cheung stated vehemently in a formal statement.