Welcome to the online version of From the Politics Desk, an evening newsletter that brings you the NBC News Politics team’s latest reporting and analysis from the campaign trail, the White House and Capitol Hill.
In today’s edition, chief White House correspondent Peter Alexander walks through the voluminous list of other potential turning points still to come in the 2024 election. Plus, senior legal correspondent Laura Jarrett traces the legal origins of the case that saw a jury find Trump guilty Thursday — and where that case could go next.
Trump’s conviction won’t be the last big event to rock 2024 race
By Peter Alexander
Thursday was one for the U.S. history books: For the first time, an ex-president — who just happens to be his party’s presumptive presidential nominee — was convicted of a crime.
And Donald Trump’s conviction could potentially change the contours of what’s been a stable presidential contest, though it’s equally possible the overall environment doesn’t change much.
But don’t forget there are other moments over the next five months that also have the potential to influence — or event upend — the race.
They include guaranteed events we know are coming:
- The criminal trial of Hunter Biden, the president’s son, which begins on Monday, June 3.
- The first presidential debate set for June 27 (and the second one for Sept. 10).
- Trump’s sentencing on July 11, four days before the start of the GOP convention.
- Trump’s eventual vice-presidential pick.
Then there are the possible events that could shake up the race. They include:
- Developments in Ukraine, Gaza and possibly even North Korea.
- A health scare involving either the 81-year-old president or his 77-year-old challenger.
They’re all reminders that one significant chapter has concluded in the 2024 presidential race. But the book is far from finished.
Inside the long trail to this week’s big verdict
By Laura Jarrett
For years, it was known as the “zombie” case within the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. Many thought it had natural jury appeal, but the application of the law was new and untested.
On Thursday, the zombie sprang back to life.
“Guilty.” A word uttered 34 times by the jury foreman in a stuffy, austere courtroom — to the world’s most powerful defendant.
The law on the books benefits the prosecution, without a doubt. The state took a misdemeanor books-and-records case and raised it to a felony, years after the events in question. And prosecutors only had one witness — convicted of lying under oath — who directly tied Trump to the alleged crime. Yet the jury was also told they couldn’t convict on Michael Cohen’s word alone. And they were instructed to leave any bias for or against Trump at the door.
Until one of them speaks, the public will not know what happened among those 12 New Yorkers in deliberations. But having watched them in court nearly every day for almost seven weeks, the jurors were engaged and alert, even under trying circumstances and long days.
The political fallout over this conviction will unfold in due course. But as a legal matter, it’s just getting started. Appeals, potential delays and more arguments are inevitably on the way. Only time will tell if the zombie will be put down again for good.
More Trump verdict coverage from NBC News
🙋 In the states: NBC News talked to more than 30 battleground-state voters about their reactions to Trump’s verdict, ranging from wondering if it’ll hurt him to believing there will be backlash in his favor. Read more →
🕵️ Brief case: The guilty verdict Thursday in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial likely will not affect plans by U.S. intelligence agencies to provide him with briefings after he is formally named the Republican presidential nominee, a U.S. official told NBC News. Read more →
🌀 Spin cycle: As the dust from the verdict began to settle, Trump and his backers sought to flood the zone to insist the system was rigged against him the whole time. Read more →
What else happened today …
- ✅On the ballot: The Ohio Legislature has approved legislation that will allow Biden to be on the state’s November ballot even though he was going to be nominated after the state’s deadline. Read more →
- ⛳Flag flap: It turns out that the “Appeal to Heaven” flag, the Revolutionary War-era flag that had been adopted by Jan. 6 rioters and was flown outside Justice Alito’s house, had been flying on city property in San Francisco for decades, The New York Times reports as the flag has been taken down. Read more →
- 📬A Middle East proposal: Biden announced that Israel is proposing a three-part plan that would lead to a cease-fire and the release of all hostages, news that comes after a top Israeli security official told families of those being held by Hamas that Prime Minister Netanyahu wouldn’t agree to a deal to end the war in exchange for releasing those hostages unless polls showed it to be a popular move. Read more →
- 🟣Mister Independence: West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin is leaving the Democratic Party and registering as an independent, raising speculation about whether he’s still planning to leave elected office at the end of the year. Read more →
- ⚖️Texas abortion ban upheld again: The state Supreme Court unanimously rejected a challenge to its abortion ban over concerns about its application to pregnancies that jeopardize the health of mothers. Read more →
That’s all from The Politics Desk for now. If you have feedback — likes or dislikes — email us at [email protected]
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