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Prosecution Begins Closing Argument in Trump Criminal Trial

A lawyer for Donald Trump called for a “very quick and easy” verdict in his final presentation to jurors, who could begin deliberating by Wednesday.

 

Pool photo by Justin Lane
Updates From the Courtroom
Jonah Bromwich
Jonah Bromwich
Joshua Steinglass just took a potshot at the defendant. “Mr. Trump decided, like he often does, 'I’m not going to pay this bill,'” he said of the payment to the technology firm for which Michael Cohen was eventually overpaid when he was reimbursed in 2017.
Jonah Bromwich
Jonah Bromwich
Joshua Steinglass, the prosecutor, says that while Stormy Daniels does not like Trump — and, candidly, wants to see him convicted — her testimony about her sexual encounter with him was credible, with details that had the ring of truth.
Jonah Bromwich
Jonah Bromwich
Steinglass is listing a number of witnesses who testified and who are loyal to Trump: Hope Hicks, Madeleine Westerhout, Jeffrey McConney, Rhona Graff and David Pecker. Steinglass says that Pecker has “absolutely no reason to lie here.”
Maggie Haberman
Maggie Haberman
Justice Merchan excoriated Todd Blanche for making an “outrageous” statement (asking the jurors not to send his client to prison). Merchan is clearly furious, and reminds Blanche, and not for the first time, that he was a prosecutor for long enough to know that it was out of bounds.
Jonah Bromwich
Jonah Bromwich
Todd Blanche introduces the acronym G.O.A.T., commonly used to stand for “greatest of all time.” He then applies the acronym to Michael Cohen. “Michael Cohen is the G.L.O.A.T.,” Blanche says. The “greatest liar of all time.”
Michael Gold
Michael Gold
Blanche listed 10 reasons that he believed the jury should have reasonable doubt as to Trump’s guilt. But the list was hard to follow. He misstated the fourth point, which he then broke into three parts.
Jonah Bromwich
Jonah Bromwich
Using a slide labeled “manipulation of evidence,” Blanche argues that Cohen somehow tweaked the digital evidence from his phones, including recordings. Blanche says jurors cannot trust those recordings, and more broadly, they cannot rely on Cohen himself.
Jonah Bromwich
Jonah Bromwich
Blanche lists the people who he says Cohen has lied to, which includes his wife, his children, his banker, the Federal Election Commission and “every single reporter he talked to for about a year.” Blanche follows with an attempted punchline: “He’s literally like the M.V.P. of liars.”

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From left, Doug Emhoff, Vice President Kamala Harris and President Biden, walking to the Rose Garden at the White House.

Election updates: Robert DeNiro, speaking with the Biden campaign outside the courthouse, said Donald Trump should go to jail.

 

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Eyeing Trump, but on the Fence: How Tuned-Out Voters Could Decide 2024

Politically disengaged Americans are increasingly curious about Donald Trump, but President Biden has a shot at winning some of them back.

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Israeli Troops Keep Up Assault on Rafah After Condemnation of Deadly Strike

Israel said it was still operating in the Rafah area, even as outrage intensified in the wake of a deadly airstrike on a camp for Palestinians.

 

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Israel did not order Palestinians to leave the area where it carried out a strike on Sunday, killing dozens of people.

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The Great Read

A Final Graduation Requirement: Making Sense of Protest

As students in Columbia’s class of 2024 received diplomas, many of them were grappling with what intense activism on campus would mean for their futures.

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Opinion

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