 Campaign Report |
Campaign Report |
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Trump legal issues draw frustration from all sides |
Former President Trump's legal battles — from alleged hush money payments to federal election interference — are starting to come to a head, and updates spanning two cases he faces show he's not the only one growing frustrated with the ongoing disputes. |
Former President Trump is fighting legal issues from New York to Florida. All of them seem to be coming to a head as he ramps up his campaign to regain the White House. Special counsel Jack Smith already appeared to be growing frustrated by the handling of the classified documents case and the pace toward trial. In a filing this week, Smith accused Judge Aileen Cannon of handing Trump a "fundamentally flawed legal premise" that covered documents found at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. Cannon asked both sides to propose jury instructions that would take into account Trump's view on the Presidential Records Act (PRA), which dictates how records are handled, and later archived, after presidents leave office. Authorities found boxes of documents, some classified, stored in unsecured areas in Trump's resort. Smith's team argued that accepting Trump's theory about his default declassification "would distort the trial." "The PRA's distinction between personal and presidential records has no bearing on whether a former President's possession of documents containing national defense information is authorized under the Espionage Act, and the PRA should play no role in the jury instructions," prosecutors wrote in the filing. "Indeed, based on the current record, the PRA should not play any role at trial at all." The Espionage Act prohibits the willful retention of national defense information. The former president faces an obstruction of justice charge after he allegedly tried to conceal the records from authorities when they demanded he return them. The Hill has a handy Trump case tracker to help keep you up on the latest developments in the cases the former president faces. |
Welcome to The Hill's Campaign Report, I'm Liz Crisp. Each week we track the key stories you need to know to stay ahead of the 2024 election and who will set the agenda in Washington. |
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Key election stories and other recent campaign coverage: |
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Most Americans say democracy is important to the U.S.' identity, but that the nation's democratic system is not functioning well, according to a new poll. The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found 76 percent of Americans saying "a democratically elected government" is extremely or very important to the U.S.' identity as a nation. Only 13 percent of Americans said that "a democratically elected … |
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| Former President Trump shared articles critical of Judge Juan Merchan and his family on Wednesday, appearing to test the bounds of the gag order placed on Trump in his New York hush money case. Merchan expanded the gag order Monday to prevent Trump from discussing his family, after the former president made comments critical of Merchan's daughter, Loren. Trump was already barred from speaking about court employees and witnesses … |
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| Republican strategist Karl Rove urged Democrats to "go hard" at former President Trump's rhetoric surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, calling the former president's pledge to free imprisoned rioters a "critical mistake." "If they were smart, they'd take the Jan. 6 and go hard at it. And they would say, 'He wants to pardon these people who attacked our Capitol,'” Rove said told MSNBC's Ari Melber. "One … |
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Upcoming news themes and events we're watching: |
- 102 days until the Republican National Convention
- 137 days until the Democratic National Convention
- 215 days until the 2024 general election
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Branch out with a different read from The Hill: |
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An attempt to change Nebraska to a "winner-take-all" Electoral College system failed a key procedural vote late Wednesday, despite support by former President Trump, Gov. Jim Pillen (R) and Sen. Pete Ricketts (R). Switching Nebraska's Electoral College vote distribution in the Republican-dominated state would bring it in line with much of the rest of the country and could net Trump an extra vote this November, though an … |
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Local and state headlines regarding campaigns and elections: |
- Georgia GOP leader demands vice-chair resign after he was sanctioned for illegal votes (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
- 2024's 'extremely active' hurricane season could bring 23 named storms, experts say (Florida Sun Sentinel)
- Las Vegas woman aims to fight 'period poverty' (KLAS)
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Election news we've flagged from other outlets: |
- "George Santos' Second Coming — This Time It's Personal," (The Daily Beast)
- NATO plots Trump survival strategy on its 75th birthday (Axios)
- Trump Courts Palm Beach Billionaires as Power of His Rallies Fades (Bloomberg)
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Key stories on The Hill right now: |
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The judge overseeing former President Trump's Georgia election interference case on Thursday rejected his attempt to toss his charges under the First Amendment. Trump and some of his co-defendants had contended their charges must be tossed because their efforts to contest the 2020 election comprised constitutionally protected "core political … Read more |
| The last time former President Trump and his ex-fixer, Michael Cohen, publicly came face-to-face, their courtroom encounter during a civil business fraud trial ended with Trump storming out in a huff and Cohen swearing his old client would "ultimately be held accountable" for his actions. The two men aren't rid of each other yet. … Read more |
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Opinions related to campaigns and elections submitted to The Hill: |
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You're all caught up. See you next time! |
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