It's the classic defense closing argument: My client didn't do it, ladies and gentlemen — but if he did do it, it wasn't intentional.
This is the argument that Donald Trump's lawyer, Todd Blanche, tried out on the hush-money jury in Manhattan on Tuesday.
Yes, Blanche spent the bulk of his arguments denying that Trump committed the charges he's on trial for.
[...]
Trump was not involved with any such conspiracy to influence the 2016 election, Blanche told jurors in great detail on Tuesday — during a three-hour summation where he walked them through a more than 180-part slideshow presentation before they begin deliberating Wednesday.
But if he was involved, there was no intent to commit fraud, Blanche argued. How could there be, he asked, when Trump freely and repeatedly admitted to reimbursing Cohen?
Justice Juan Merchan scolded Trump’s attorney Todd Blanche for improperly invoking the threat of prison time facing the former president toward the end of the defense’s summation at the historic hush money trial.
“It’s simply not allowed. Period,” the judge boomed, saying Blanche should have known better as a former prosecutor and longtime defense attorney.
“It’s hard for me to imagine how that was accidental in any way.”
Blanche brought up the possibility Trump could go to prison toward the end of his summation.
Calling Blanche’s comment “outrageous,” the judge granted a request from prosecutors to instruct jurors to disregard it.
#BREAKING: The U.S. Secret Service has met with New York jail officials to discuss preparations for former President Donald Trump being taken into custody and placed behind bars, according to CBS News this is still developing pic.twitter.com/fszAmBkW8l
— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) May 28, 2024
Quote by BobR:
re: today's blog:#BREAKING: The U.S. Secret Service has met with New York jail officials to discuss preparations for former President Donald Trump being taken into custody and placed behind bars, according to CBS News this is still developing pic.twitter.com/fszAmBkW8l
— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) May 28, 2024
De Niro is a loser for reading scripts. Like GODFATHER II. Or TAXI DRIVER. Or RAGING BULL. Or GOODFELLAS. Or KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON. https://t.co/F360OvpfVn
— H. Perry Horton (@hperryhorton) May 29, 2024