The judge who oversaw President-elect Donald Trump’s so-called “hush money” case, in which he was convicted of felonies, is considering tossing the case entirely.
Trump is set to be sentenced in the case on Nov. 26, but the New York Post reports that Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan may simply toss out the convictions. He reportedly will decide by next Tuesday, the outlet said.
Trump’s overwhelming election win will further embolden his legal team “to make sure that sentencing never happens,” CNN chief legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid noted late Wednesday.
“Here, they’re going to argue to the judge that the sentencing should never happen because now that Trump is president-elect,” Reid reported. “They will say that he is entitled to the same constitutional protections as a sitting president and should be protected from state actors, and in this case, state prosecutors.”
Trump faces a potential sentence of up to four years in prison after being convicted on 34 counts of felony falsifying business records related to payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
Some legal experts have already predicted Trump won’t face any prison time.
“Merchan doesn’t have the stomach to imprison a former president or president-elect,” former prosecutor Neama Rahmani said. “Now that Trump has won, his criminal problems go away.”
Meanwhile, Susie Wiles, who was co-chair of Trump’s wildy successful 2024 campaign, was named as his chief of staff to begin his second term.
Wiles used to work for Trump’s Save America super PAC and was a point person for the president’s campaign in Florida during his winning 2016 campaign.
The Trump campaign revealed Wiles’ appointment on Thursday.
“Susie Wiles just helped me achieve one of the greatest political victories in American history, and was an integral part of both my 2016 and 2020 successful campaigns,” Trump said in a statement.
“Susie is tough, smart, innovative, and is universally admired and respected. Susie will continue to work tirelessly to Make America Great Again. It is a well-deserved honor to have Susie as the first-ever female Chief of Staff in United States history. I have no doubt that she will make our country proud,” Trump added.
Several world leaders contacted President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday to congratulate him on his history-making comeback and victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.
“Dear Donald and Melania Trump, Congratulations on history’s greatest comeback!” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on the X platform.
“Your historic return to the White House offers a new beginning for America and a powerful recommitment to the great alliance between Israel and America. This is a huge victory!” he added with a photo of himself, wife Sara, and Trump.
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In Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who had his own contentious involvement in the U.S. election campaign, expressed a tone of hopeful unity regarding Trump’s potential assistance in addressing the Russian invasion of his country.
“I recall our great meeting with President Trump back in September, when we discussed in detail the Ukraine-U.S. strategic partnership, the Victory Plan, and ways to put an end to Russian aggression against Ukraine,” he wrote in a lengthy X post.
“We are interested in developing mutually beneficial political and economic cooperation that will benefit both of our nations. Ukraine, as one of Europe’s strongest military powers, is committed to ensuring long-term peace and security in Europe and the Transatlantic community with the support of our allies,” Zelenskyy wrote, adding he was looking forward to seeing Trump in person again.
According to Fox News, other leaders congratulating Trump included El Salvador’s President, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
