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Today’s best stories
Former U.S. President Donald Trump sits at the defendant’s table inside the courthouse as the jury continues deliberations for his secret trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 30, 2024 in New York.
Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images
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Justin Lane-Pool/Getty Images
A Manhattan jury found former President Donald Trump guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records. Jurors said they unanimously agreed that Trump falsified these business records to conceal a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels to influence the outcome of the 2016 election. Here are the details of these charges.
- NPR’s Andrea Bernstein sat outside the courtroom and I told Up First that Trump was “visibly unhappy” with the verdict. Speaking to reporters outside the courtroom, Trump denounced the trial as a “disgrace” and said “the real verdict will be delivered on November 5th by the people.” Bernstein adds that this time it’s different: Trump used his money and power to silence people and avoid consequences, a strategy that always worked for him – until yesterday.
- The jury heard from 22 witnesses over four weeks, and examined evidence including phone records, invoices and checks addressed to Michael Cohen, Trump’s former “fixer” who paid Daniels to bury news of her sexual relationship with Trump.
- Kim Wehle, professor of law at the University of Baltimore, According to this evidence, along with the fact that “the defense did not offer an alternative narrative,” this is ultimately what convicted Trump.
The charges carry a sentence ranging from probation to four years in prison, but legal experts told NPR that Trump is unlikely to be incarcerated.
- Lauren-Brooke Eisen, senior director of the nonprofit Brennan Center for Justice, told NPR’s Ximena Bustillo before the trial’s conclusion that it’s “very unlikely that a person who has never been convicted of a crime will go to prison…for their first offense, which is non- violent.”
- Trump’s legal team is also expected to appeal the verdict, which would further delay the potential consequences.
Trump’s sentencing is scheduled for July 11. just four days before the start of the Republican National Convention, where he is expected to become the Republican Party’s official nominee for president.
- 17% of voters said the verdict would affect their vote for Trump, according to the latest NPR poll. NPR’s Scott Detrow points out First it could be “a lot, given the proximity of the last elections”.
- How Americans vote will also affect the two federal criminal cases Trump is confronted. “If Trump becomes president, he can pardon himself from the accusations or derail the investigation,” Detrow said.
- Trump himself will still be able to vote in the elections, despite being a convicted felon. Indeed, he is registered to vote in Florida, which defers to the voting laws for felons in the state in which they were convicted.
- The Biden campaign emphasized the need for people to vote to keep Trump out of power.
Follow Detrow’s coverage of other Trump cases on the The Trump Trials Podcast.
Listening of the day
Supporters of presidential candidate Xóchitl Gálvez shout her name during her campaign rally in Los Reyes la Paz, just outside Mexico City, Wednesday, May 29, 2024. Mexico’s general elections are scheduled for June 2.
Fernando Llano/AP
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Fernando Llano/AP
Mexico is preparing to elect its first female president. The two main candidates in this race are women: Sheinbaum, the ruling party candidate, and opposition candidate Xóchitl Gálvez. NPR’s Eyder Peralta says that despite the possibility of a historic event being written out, what he hears most from people on the streets is skepticism. Some say they expect politicians to be corrupt, regardless of gender. Others, like feminist Elena Poniatowska, 92, credit hard work and feminist intent, adding that the “triumph” of a first female president in Mexico is no surprise.
🎧 Hear Poniatowska tell Peralta why it’s time the world knows the name of another Mexican besides Frida Kahlo.
Weekend Picks
Sonequa Martin-Green as Michael Burnham.
Michael Gibson/Paramount+
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Michael Gibson/Paramount+
Find out what NPR is watching, reading and listening to this weekend:
🍿Movies: Sometimes your favorite music comes from the fictional bands you once saw in a movie. Pop Culture Happy Hour debate of the best.
📺 Television: NPR TV critic Eric Deggans discusses Star Trek: Discovery as a pioneering show that laid the groundwork for later additions to the Star Trek universe.
📚 Books: What’s the secret ingredient that all famous people have in common? The new book How to become famous: lost Einsteins, forgotten superstars and the birth of the Beatles investigates what sets someone apart from the crowd.
🎵 Music: Vince Staples’ latest album continues the soul-searching he began on his Netflix show about what it means to be in the public eye within a limited audience reach.
❓Quizzes: NPR’s Holly Morris only has one question about Trump in this week’s quiz! If your brain survived the news after 5 p.m. ET Thursday AND the long weekend, you might just score 11/11 this week.
Before you leave
A Ukrainian soldier takes part in military training with French soldiers at a military training complex at an undisclosed location in Poland, April 4, 2024. For the last time before heading into battle against the Russian army, a group of Ukrainian soldiers rush into a muddy trench in Poland, under the serious gaze of French instructors who have been following them for several weeks. (Photo by Wojtek Radwanski / AFP) (Photo by WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP via Getty Images/AFP
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WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP via Getty Images/AFP
- Biden administration gave clearance to Ukraine strike inside Russia — using U.S.-supplied weapons, according to two U.S. officials, a change from its previous policy.
- Bruhat Soma, a 12 year old from Floridawon the 96th Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday. His winning word was “recall.” “I really can’t describe it. I’m still shaking,” he said after being named the winner.
- There is an airport in the world that claims to have never lost a piece of luggage: Kansai International Airport in Osaka, Japan. For his team leader, it’s all about respect and teamwork.
NPR News
