Please televise Trump's trials
We need to see the former (and possibly future) President making a fool of himself in front of judges.
Before I begin, let me double check and make sure I still have my job.
[checks to make sure I still have my job]
Yep, I’m good. I’m still employed.
Considering I’m self-employed I needn’t have worried in retrospect. But after a week which saw the firing or resignation of iconic football coaches Nick Saban, Bill Belechick and Pete Carroll, and Formula 1: Drive to Survive legend Gunther Steiner, I don’t think I can be blamed for exercising an abundance of caution.
This week also saw Chris Christie take my advice and end his quixotic run for the 2024 Republican Presidential nomination. But he very pointedly did not endorse Nikki Haley, and in fact was caught shit-talking her on an open microphone.
As someone who thinks Haley, for her many faults, is the least bad Republican challenger remaining, I was initially a bit ticked off that Christie didn’t encourage his supporters to vote for her.
But the more I think about it, this might be the best course of action for both Christie and Haley.
Christie knows all too well what it’s like when “mainstream” Republicans sell their souls to Trump. Considering he was one of the first who did so in 2016, you might say he’s an expert on the subject.
And as long as Haley remains unwilling to offer anything more than extremely muted criticism of The Donald, I cannot fault Christie for refusing to back her considering she’ll likely be (publicly) full MAGA at Trump’s planned coronation in Milwaukee.
As for Haley, she’s likely going to pick up most of Christie’s supporters anyway, which should widen her lead over DeSantis (remember Ron DeSantis?) in Iowa and make her even more competitive with Trump in New Hampshire. And considering how unpopular Christie is with most GOP primary voters - in the Republican Party of 2024, no good deeds go unpunished - his endorsement would probably hurt her in many states.
In fact, Christie’s hot-mic comments give Haley something to push back against, leading some to wonder if this is 5-D chess.
So, this is potentially win-win for everybody. Christie, still doing penance for his role in the rise of Trump, gets to maintain some integrity and Haley’s chances of pulling off the upset have doubled.
Doubled from a 1% chance to 2%, mind you, but unlikely outcomes happen all the time.
Don’t we know it.
Meanwhile, I think we’re all worse off for not getting to see this in person:
In contrast to some professional media critics who say Donald Trump receives too much media coverage, I maintain that he’s been getting too little coverage.
That is, his outrageous and often terrifying (and admittedly hilarious, sometimes even intentionally so) public statements have become so thoroughly normalized, they’re barely considered newsworthy anymore.
Which, if you want to make sure this man isn’t allowed anywhere near the Oval Office again, is a serious problem. When Trump is in the news and everyone’s memories of him are thoroughly refreshed, his numbers go down. When he’s faded into the background and we’re all distracted by other shiny objects, his numbers creep up again.
I’ve been lawyering for over 25 years (yikes!) and I’ve seen a lot of unhinged people going off in court, even telling off the judge, while his or her lawyer contemplates a less stressful line of work like underwater welding. If the above report is accurate, Donald Trump’s courtroom behavior ranks with the worst.
We need to see that for ourselves. More importantly, we need to see the judge smacking him down when his behavior gets out of line.
It appears this judge kept his cool in the face of the famous defendant ranting and raving. (In my experience, this could mean a particularly scathing ruling against Trump.) But what I wouldn’t give for one of the many trial judges presiding over trump trials this week will drop the hammer, Judge Wexler style:
Broadcast the trial, yes. Televise it - NO!!!!!! Do you not recall the OJ trial? do you think Trump wouldn't turn the proceedings into a circus? Look what he did yesterday and think about that being on television.