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- Unpacking the Trump conviction
Every time I think I’m done writing about Donald Trump, y’all drag me back into it 😭 By popular request, today’s newsletter is unpacking some of the detail around Trump’s conviction on 34 counts of essentially fraud. Let’s hit some of the basic details beyond the headlines first, then I’ll give my 2c about what’s pissing me off about it and wtf this even means for us in Aus.
The Essential Facts:
Convicted of? All 34 counts of ‘falsifying business records’ in order to cover up the $130,000 hush money Trump paid (via his lawyer, Michael Cohen) to porn star Stormy Daniels. These were state-level charges in New York, and he was found guilty by a jury of 12 people.
Why do we care about the hush money? It was paid to Daniels during the 2016 election campaign in an attempt to stop her from talking about their affair. The payments are considered illegal campaign contributions; it matters as this was an attempt to unlawfully influence an election. The irony is ironing.
What is his sentence? TBC, he will be sentenced by the judge on July 11. He intends to appeal the charges. The maximum sentence is four years but there is basically no chance that Trump will actually go to prison (due to his age and, let’s face it, his power).
How many trials is he still facing? Four. Two state trials – in Georgia for interfering in the 2020 election and New York for civil fraud. And two federal trials – for election interference, and mishandling classified documents. This ABC article covers the basics.
A word on voting rights…
You may have seen people talking about the irony that the conviction means Trump may not be able to vote in U.S. elections, but can still be the guy they vote for. This isn’t just a ‘quirk’ of America’s chaotic idea of democracy, but a super important point that should be discussed more often.
In the U.S., your eligibility to vote is determined by the state you are registered in. Almost every state restricts or bans convicted felons from voting in some way (in some states, the ban continues even after you have served your jail sentence). Only two states out of 50, Vermont and Maine, allow people to vote from prison.
In Trump's case, he is registered in Florida which allows convicted felons to vote in elections unless they would be banned from voting in the state where they were convicted. Trump was convicted in NY, which allows convicted persons to vote so long as they are not currently in prison. As I said, Trump is unlikely to go to prison so he will be unaffected.
Is it weird that there’s a small chance Trump could be elected to office while being barred from voting himself? Yes… because being convicted of a crime should not remove your right to vote in a democracy. The right to vote should be untouchable.
This breach of democratic rights is not a uniquely American issue. In Australia, people in prison are not allowed to vote in federal elections of referendums if they are serving a sentence of three years or longer. For state and territory elections, only SA and the ACT allow all incarcerated people to vote. The other regions restrict their citizens’ voting rights as follows: NSW and WA banned for sentences more than 12 months; QLD, TAS and NT banned for sentences more than 3 years; and VIC banned for sentences more than 5 years.
A rich, famous & powerful politician like Trump is a complete outlier as the person who is typically stripped of their voting rights by these rules. In Australia, the system disproportionately imprisons Indigenous people, young people, those with low levels of education, people experiencing mental illness, and low or no employment. We know that policing bodies and the justice system is deeply flawed; the type of crime you’ve committed or sentence your given should never be more important than your right as a citizen to vote.
If any good comes of Trump’s conviction, let it be a renewed push to restore voting rights for Australians in prison.
What does this mean for (A)us?
Ok, back to Trump’s conviction. I wrote a little bit about it last week: if Trump is elected President in November, I think Australia (and other allied nations) will be quietly re-thinking how they engage with the U.S. We should be thinking about that already. Trump is incredibly unpredictable; he appoints straight-up dangerous people into powerful government roles; his first presidency actively damaged American democracy and global stability. These are not the foundations of a good relationship (not that it’s necessarily good for us to begin with).
Does this have much to do with the fact that he’s now a convicted criminal? Not really. He is not the first and will not be the last politician to commit crimes; corruption is a certainty and for the most part we never hear about the shady shit that goes on behind closed doors. The National Anti-Corruption Commission has already led to three convictions.
But it doesn’t look good, and locally that’s what will matter. What can any Australian government that happily engages with a U.S. led by a publicly-declared criminal (convicted of election interference, no less) say to its own people about ‘justice’, ‘law & order’, about trusted partners or fighting for what is ‘right’ in the world? Those will be four very long years for Labor or the LNP.
If there is a step back from this relationship though, don’t expect it to be sharp or clear. It will be subtle, plausible-sounding reasons will be given – some are probably being prepped already, just in case.
Smart stuff on the Internet 💭
All the stuff I found on the web that made me think, smile, or have an ‘aha!’ moment. Spend your Sunday reading them – you'll be better off for it:
How Fame Ruined Vanderpump Rules on Glamour
"The thing holding VPR together all these years wasn’t ensuring that they remained broke, or that they kept all working at the same restaurant, or even that they all stayed friends. What was holding them together was the fact that none of them had become the actual star of the show, because then, all of them could believe that they were the star. Once it became clear that Madix now was the star, they couldn’t take it."
What do the kids know? on The Politics
Girlboss PM (Julia Gillard was on Sky News, saying things that are Islamaphobic and offensive to young people. My take: “According to the former prime minister, if only young people weren’t getting ‘wrong social media information’ they’d support the atrocities we see Israel committing… Gillard’s assumption that we just don’t understand what we’re seeing is paternalistic and transparent.”
Why Are Some First Nations People Saying ‘Reconciliation Is Dead’? on Pedestrian TV
Phenomenal piece by Phoebe McIlwraith: “Demands to pivot from the Reconciliation framework this week comes from a deep disappointment at ongoing dispossession and injustice that has been building for a very long time. The 30 years of this movement has not failed because of First Nations people… It has failed because of the unwillingness of power to change. “