Monday saw the start of Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York, a historic event as it’s the first trial for a former US president. This development occurs amid the backdrop of the 2024 election, where Trump aims for a political return despite facing multiple controversies.

Trump has consistently dismissed the hush money case against him as baseless. However, the reality of the legal process became apparent as Judge Juan Merchan issued standard warnings for defendants and cautioned Trump against disruptive behavior, particularly on social media.

The charges against Trump relate to the alleged falsification of business records to conceal a purported extramarital encounter with adult film actress Stormy Daniels during his 2016 election campaign. Additionally, he faces other criminal cases involving mishandling of classified documents post-presidency and efforts to overturn the 2020 election result.

Trump’s Trial: Legal Maneuvers, Political Ramifications

During the trial’s initial proceedings, legal teams sparred over admissible evidence, with Trump often appearing disengaged, occasionally nodding off, according to reports.

The judge ruled against playing the infamous Access Hollywood recording but allowed its content to be presented as evidence.

Prosecutors also sought sanctions against Trump for violating a gag order aimed at curbing his social media commentary during the trial. Jury selection, expected to be lengthy due to the case’s publicity, was set to commence.

Trump, maintaining his trademark assertive demeanor, labeled the trial as an “assault on America” upon arriving at the courthouse. Outside, supporters rallied, expressing disdain for President Biden and the Manhattan District Attorney.

A conviction in the hush money case could carry significant penalties, potentially including imprisonment, though observers speculate fines as a more probable outcome. However, the specter of a convicted felon, Trump, contesting for the presidency adds unprecedented uncertainty to the upcoming election.

Trump’s expressed desire to testify further complicates the trial, as defendants typically avoid such risks. Jury selection involves screening for biases, including affiliations with extremist groups, while the charges primarily revolve around financial regulations.

The indictment accuses Trump of concealing payments to his attorney, Michael Cohen, who allegedly facilitated hush money payments to Stormy Daniels. Despite facing multiple counts, the outcome remains uncertain, with Trump vehemently denying the allegations.

President Joe Biden is advancing his latest proposal for student loan forgiveness, aiming to fulfill a key campaign pledge and engage young voters ahead of the upcoming election. The Education Department has initiated the process for a new regulation to enact the cancellation plan announced by Biden last week.

This proposal, subject to a 30-day public comment period and further review, targets more than 25 million Americans with a focus on specific eligibility criteria.

Unlike the previous plan struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court, this proposal adopts a different legal foundation and aims to address various categories of borrowers. While Biden has emphasized the transformative impact of the plan, conservative critics argue that it places an unjust burden on taxpayers who did not attend college and have threatened legal challenges.

The proposed regulation includes four eligibility categories outlined by Biden, with additional provisions addressing different forms of financial hardship set to be introduced later.

Notably, one category seeks to alleviate the burden of runaway interest by eliminating up to $20,000 for borrowers who owe more than their original loan amounts. Automatic cancellation of loans is also proposed for those with extended repayment periods or who attended programs with low financial returns.

Furthermore, the plan aims to streamline relief for borrowers eligible for existing federal forgiveness programs but has not applied due to complexity. The Education Department collaborated with various stakeholders, including students, college officials, and borrower advocates, during the formulation process.

While the rulemaking process typically spans several months, the Biden administration plans to implement certain aspects of the proposal as early as this fall.

However, Republican opposition remains steadfast, arguing against broad student loan forgiveness as an unfair bailout. Legal challenges and political debates surrounding the proposal are expected to continue in the coming months.

Former President Trump is facing a very important moment. He’s trying hard to delay the start of his first trial in New York. His chances to delay the trial are getting fewer and fewer as the days go by.

Trump really wants to postpone his trials until after the next election. If he can do that, and if he wins the election, it could mean his legal cases would be put on hold.

But things aren’t looking good for him. Judges have said no to some of his last-minute attempts to delay the trial this week. That’s a strong sign that his trial over a payment made to a woman named Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election will start on Monday.

Law professor Jessica Levinson says Trump’s strategy has always been to delay things for as long as possible. But now, time is running out for him.

Trump’s lawyers have been trying hard in court for the past few days to delay the trial. First, they wanted the trial moved to a different place, saying Manhattan wasn’t fair to Trump. They suggested Staten Island instead. But a judge said no to that on Monday.

Then, they tried to stop the trial by suing the judge who is overseeing the case. They didn’t like that the judge had told Trump to stop talking about certain things. But another judge said no to that on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Trump’s lawyers tried again to delay the trial by arguing against some of the judge’s decisions. But they got another no from the court.

Now, a group of five judges will look at these requests. If they say yes, the trial could be stopped. But that might not happen before it starts on Monday.

Even though Trump has been saying he didn’t think the trial would start on time, he now seems to accept that it will.

Trump is still trying other things too. He’s asked the judge to step aside from the case because the judge’s daughter works for a political group that Trump doesn’t like. But the chances of this working are very low, according to Levinson.

No matter what happens, it looks like Trump will have to face the trial soon. And that could have big implications for him, especially with the next election coming up.

A recent study found that fewer Black voters in seven important states want to support President Biden compared to the last time people voted.

The Wall Street Journal compared the results of its survey from last week to a similar survey done by AP VoteCast in 2020. The survey looked at a lot of people who were going to vote. The Journal’s study in these key states discovered that 57 percent of Black men were planning to vote for Biden, while 30 percent said they might vote for former President Trump.

In 2020, a different survey found that across the whole country, 87 percent of Black men supported Biden and 12 percent supported Trump.

The Wall Street Journal also found that 77 percent of Black women in these states were planning to vote for Biden, while 11 percent said they would vote for Trump. In comparison, in 2020, 93 percent of Black women across the country supported Biden and 6 percent supported Trump.

The survey by The Wall Street Journal talked to 218 to 354 registered voters from March 17 to 24. The mistakes in the survey could be around 5.2 to 6.6 percentage points.

Biden’s team has been trying harder to get support from voters of color lately. In 2020, most Black voters supported Biden, with 92 percent voting for him, according to Pew Research Center.

Recently, Biden’s team started showing ads directly to Black voters in states where the competition is close. The ads said that if Trump became president again, it would be very bad for Black people. This happened after other surveys showed that Biden was losing support from Black voters. For example, a poll by The New York Times and Siena College found that 22 percent of Black voters in six close states said they would vote for Trump.

Senate Democrats are saying no to requests for Justice Sonia Sotomayor to leave the Supreme Court. Some people on the left have been saying she should step down to prevent a situation like what happened when Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died four years ago.

Sotomayor, who is 69, is the oldest of the liberal justices. Some progressive voices want her to resign while the Democrats control the White House and the Senate. They compare it to when Ginsburg didn’t step down in 2014, even though then-President Obama could have picked a successor. When Ginsburg passed away in 2020, it gave former President Trump a chance to appoint a new justice and make the court more conservative.

Some folks who want Sotomayor to resign are worried about her health because she has Type-1 diabetes. But Democrats don’t think she should leave the court just yet.

“She’s not 70. I might remind some of my colleagues to look around, check their birth certificate[s],” said Sen. Peter Welch, a Democrat. “She’s going full speed ahead. I’m not aware of significant issues, and I am aware of extraordinary competence.”

Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin also said he wants her to stay on the court.

Many Democrats are surprised that people are even talking about this. Sotomayor hasn’t shown any signs that she’s thinking about leaving or that her health has changed recently.

“I think she’s doing a great job, and I think she should stay. I’m a little baffled by [the chatter],” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren called the talk “nonsense” and said she didn’t know where it came from. “I don’t want to add any fuel to the fire on this. I think she’s doing a great job, and I am grateful for her public service,” Warren said.

The idea of Sotomayor stepping down got more attention after Sen. Richard Blumenthal said Democrats should learn from what happened with Ginsburg. Ginsburg was replaced by Justice Amy Coney Barrett shortly before the 2020 election.

Republicans are watching closely. If they win big in the elections next year, they could have more power to influence the Supreme Court.

Democrats understand the concern but don’t think it’s time for Sotomayor to go. “The reality is if we do get a Trump presidency, we’re going to get another outrageous Supreme Court pick, so it’s not [an unfounded concern]. But I don’t think it’s necessary in the case of Sotomayor,” Welch said.

There are differences between Sotomayor’s situation now and Ginsburg’s a decade ago. Ginsburg was 82 in 2014 — 13 years older than Sotomayor is now.

Sotomayor has said that the workload has gotten heavier over time and that she feels “tired” because of the big cases. “And to be almost 70 years old, this isn’t what I expected,” Sotomayor said. “But it is still work that is all-consuming, and I understand the impact the court has on people and on the country, and sometimes the world. And so it is what keeps me going.”

The idea of Sotomayor resigning also upset groups who want her to stay. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus said she has been a “brilliant jurist” and they want her to keep serving on the Court.

Thursday’s three-way summit between President Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishidan, and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is showing China that it’s not part of the group. This meeting is the first time these three leaders have met together. It’s a strong move by the United States and its friends to keep China isolated as China tries to scare its neighbors in the South China Sea and other places.

This summit also supports one of President Biden’s main goals — making stronger connections with allies to stand against China’s increasing boldness in the Indo-Pacific area. A senior official from the Biden administration told reporters on Wednesday that this is like a network of partnerships in the region that support each other.

The official mentioned that President Marcos is feeling pressure because of China’s aggressive behavior in the Philippines’ Exclusive Economic Zone. This is the area around the Philippines that touches the South China Sea, which China claims as its own. The official said that both President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida will show support and determination to help the Philippines.

They also said that during the summit, there will be announcements about more cooperation between the countries in the military, Coast Guard, and disaster relief.

A person named Nick Szechenyi, who works at a think tank, said that this meeting is like starting a new chapter for these three countries. They want to focus on making sure China doesn’t bully them, especially in maritime security.

Both Japan and the Philippines are allies with the United States, which means they look to the U.S. for protection when China tries to start trouble. This means that the U.S. has military bases in Japan and rights to bases in the Philippines.

Japan and the Philippines also have their problems with China. Japan has a dispute over some islands in the East China Sea, and the Philippines has issues in the South China Sea.

There’s been tension in the South China Sea because of China’s actions. Chinese ships have been harassing Filipino boats, and there have been clashes between them. The head of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Adm. John Aquilino, said he’s worried about China’s behavior in the region.

But despite the tension, the leaders of the U.S., Japan, and the Philippines are working closely together. They recently had a joint military exercise, and they plan to do more in the future. They’re also working on infrastructure projects together to improve connectivity in the region.

This summit shows that these countries are standing together against China’s aggressive actions. They want to work together to keep peace and stability in the region.

National civil rights attorney Ben Crump has signed a big deal with Bantam Books to write a bunch of crime novels. These books will be all about a Black civil rights lawyer, kind of like Crump himself.

The main character in the series will be Beau Lee Cooper, who’s also a Black civil rights attorney. He’ll be taking on cases involving corruption and unfairness while also celebrating Black love and strength.

Crump shared his thoughts with Variety, a big entertainment news source, saying he wants to introduce a character who reflects the real struggles of the legal system, especially for those who are often ignored or silenced.

He hopes readers will get to see a world they might not usually notice and maybe even feel inspired to make things better for everyone.

Bantam Books, a well-known publisher that’s part of Random House, will be putting out the first two books in Crump’s series. Crump himself is super pumped to share these stories, drawing from his years of experience in court and his personal journey.

He’s known for representing families like Trayvon Martin’s, Michael Brown’s, and George Floyd’s, fighting for justice in high-profile cases. Some even call him “Black America’s attorney general.”

Crump wants to shake things up with his novels. He thinks a lot of legal thrillers focus too much on who committed the crime, not why it happened. He wants his books to explore the reasons behind injustice and how we can overcome it.

It sounds like Crump is bringing a fresh perspective to the world of crime fiction, and readers are eager to see what he’ll uncover in his stories.

A legal expert on CNN said on Wednesday that he would “plead” with former President Trump not to testify in his trial about hush money in New York, which is set to start next week.

Elie Honig, speaking to Jake Tapper on CNN’s “The Lead,” said that Trump’s lawyers should prevent him from testifying during the hush money case. Trump’s lawyers have been trying to delay the case from starting on Monday, but their efforts haven’t worked yet.

“So on that second point, first, I would beg him not to take this stand. You never quite know what Donald Trump will do. I think it’s unlikely he takes the stand, Jake, even though in movies and TV, the defendant seems to always take the stand, it’s quite rare in a criminal case,” Honig said.

Honig noted that Trump testified in the New York civil fraud case last year, but that it went “dreadfully” for the former president.

“So it’s always the defendant’s prerogative. He always has the right to testify, he has the right not to testify. I do expect him, if any sort of reason and sanity prevails here, not to take the stand,” Honig said.

Tapper also asked Honig about how Trump’s lawyers should prepare him to sit through this trial, noting that Trump has had “some difficulties with his courtroom behavior.” Honig said that he would “implore” Trump to “behave himself.”

“The jury is sitting just a couple feet away from you. They’re watching and evaluating everything you do. And if you’re hanging your head and grumbling and having a temper tantrum, they will see that they will hold that against you,” Honig said.

Trump is facing 34 counts of falsifying business records over reimbursements to his then-fixer, Michael Cohen, who paid porn actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 to stay quiet about an alleged affair with Trump. The former president has denied the affair and has pleaded not guilty to the charges.