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Trump faces a potential $370m fine and a lifetime ban on doing real estate in New York; Trump Georgia prosecutor due for second hearing after fiery first day
The hearing over the effort to disqualify Fulton County attorney Fani Willis from the sprawling election subversion case against Trump and his allies resumes this morning, with Willis expected to again take the stand for questioning.
The former romantic relationship between Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade is a sideshow to the case, which alleges Trump and his network tried to steal the 2020 election.
Former president and current Republican frontrunner Donald Trump appeared in a Manhattan courtroom yesterday for his first criminal trial, a case that revolves around hush money paid to the adult film star Stormy Daniels and the playboy model Karen McDougal. Trump’s run for reelection played into the president’s antics in and out of the courtroom.
Further south, in Georgia, the Fulton county district attorney, Fani Willis, sat for a hearing where her relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade was picked apart and questioned by a defendant in the Trump case, Mike Roman, who is seeking to have them both removed from the case, alleging a conflict of interest because of their romantic relationship.
At issue in the hearing were the timeline of the two attorneys’ relationship and any shared finances, like Wade potentially paying for trips they took together, as defense attorneys try to make the case that Wade’s payments for working the case somehow enriched Willis.
The Georgia hearing was salacious and heated, with Willis hitting back at defense attorneys questioning her with: “I’m not on trial, no matter how hard you try to put me on trial.”
The hearing resumes in Georgia today at 9am eastern. Judge Scott McAfee’s courtroom has a livestream here, or you can check out news stations’ livestreams.
Meanwhile, back in New York but in a different case from the hush money one, a ruling is expected today in a fraud trial where Trump faces a potential $370m fine and a lifetime ban on doing real estate in the state.
The New York fraud case came from the state attorney general’s office suing the former president for inflating the value of his assets on government financial statements.
If you’re having trouble following all the Trump cases, we have a rundown of them here, with the key players and details of the allegations in each one.
Beyond Trumpworld, news broke late yesterday that an FBI informant, Alexander Smirnov, was charged for lying to his handler about ties between Joe Biden, his son Hunter and a Ukrainian energy company, allegations that became fodder for Republicans.
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