Two major Democratic clients of the daughter of the judge overseeing Donald Trump’s secret trial have collected at least $93 million in campaign donations – and used the deal in their solicitation emails – raising new concerns that the lawyer may have a major conflict of interest.
Trump’s lawyers are now considering filing another motion demanding that Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Mercan recuse himself from the trial scheduled to begin April 15, sources said.
The judge’s daughter, Loren Merchan, is president of Authentic Campaigns, a Chicago-based progressive political consulting firm whose major clients include California Rep. Adam Schiff, who was the lead prosecutor in Trump’s first impeachment trial, and the majority PAC in the Senate, a major party fundraiser.
“Authentic Campaigns, and therefore the judge’s daughter, is actively making money from this sham attack on President Trump, which puts Judge Merchan in conflict,” Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung told the Post, adding that the evidence of bias is even clearer now than it was before. August when Merchan rejected Trump’s first motion to recusal.
“The judge should do the right thing and recuse himself immediately to show the American people that Democrats have not completely destroyed our justice system. . . his continued involvement in this witch hunt led by Crooked Joe Biden constitutes a complete violation of applicable rules, regulations and ethics.
Schiff’s campaign for U.S. Senate has raked in a staggering $20 million in donations since he began soliciting donations for the presumptive Republican nominee’s unprecedented 34-count indictment in last April, according to Federal Election Commission records.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to charges of falsifying business records related to alleged secret payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal. He denied having an affair with Daniels. If convicted, he faces up to four years in prison.
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Schiff’s fundraising email began: “It is a dark and unprecedented time for a former president to be indicted, but his alleged offenses are also unprecedented.
“Trump will respond as he always does – by playing the victim and blaming others for having the temerity to investigate him in the first place,” Schiff continued in the emailed request to his supporters for a $10 donation last spring.
The Senate Majority Political Action Committee, which supports Democratic Senate campaigns, has taken in $73.6 million since it also began sending fundraising emails following the indictment of the ex-president.
“BREAKING NEWS: Donald Trump indicted by Manhattan grand jury. This is an important moment for our democracy, but our work is not done,” the group said in an email, Fox News reported. “We must continue to protect our Senate majority from GOP extremists. Please rush to contribute $10 (becomes $60) to help defend the Senate.
The super PAC has done more than $15 million in business with Authentic since 2019, including email fundraising and branding help, while Schiff’s Senate campaign paid Authentic more of $10 million for digital advertising and other consulting services last year, records show.
Constitutional and criminal law attorney Alan Dershowitz said that if the judge’s daughter is involved in anti-Trump politics, “there appears to be a basis for the father’s impeachment.”
“Under the law, close relationships can sometimes be grounds for disqualification,” he told the Post.
Loren Merchan— who worked for Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2020 presidential campaign as “director of digital persuasion” — said her father hated politicians using Twitter, an apparent reference to Trump.
“I actually had a few conversations with my dad recently where he was like, ‘I hate it when politicians use Twitter,’ and ‘that’s really unprofessional,’ and you know, ‘That’s not the way.’ a politician should behave’, and I explain that yes, I think there are many cases where it is not used, like when our president (Trump) tweets whatever he thinks, and this n “That’s not why he should use it,” the 34-year-old president said. -old Merchan proposed during a podcast appearance in June 2019.
Judge Merchan, 61, imposed a limited silence on Trump on Tuesday, barring him from publicly disparaging witnesses — like his foe-turned-enemy Michael Cohen — prosecutors, court staff and jurors.
Trump, 77, will still be allowed to rip Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democratic elected official whose office is prosecuting the case, under the ruling. This also does not prohibit comments about Merchan or his family.
Trump took aim in his Truth Social on Tuesday, writing: “Judge Juan Merchan, a man of very distinguished appearance, is nevertheless a true and certified Trump hater who suffers from a very serious case of Trump Derangement Syndrome . In other words, he hates me!
“His daughter is an executive at a super-liberal-Democratic corporation working for Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff, the Democratic National Committee, the Senate Majority PAC and even Crooked Joe Biden,” added Trump, who also referenced to an image of himself behind bars. which was posted on the girl’s unique personal X account.
A spokesperson for the New York state court system said Merchan deleted the account — which was once linked to Authentic — about a year ago and that she no longer controlled it.
“Maybe the judge is so hateful because his daughter makes money working to ‘get Trump,’ and when he rules against me over and over again, he makes his company, and her, more and more rich,” Trump wrote.
Judge Merchan, who donated $15 to President Biden’s campaign in 2020 and has supported other Democratic causes, did not respond to messages. Messages left for his daughter and her company were also not returned.
New York Post
