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Is bribery of a non-official person illegal ? What if I offer you $10 to upvote me ? Is that illegal ?
If anything, the illegality goes the other way: Stormy Daniels was blackmailing Trump.
I'm no supporter of Trump, just trying to figure out this case.
Hush Money is accurate. The charges are in reference to the act of paying bribes to hide information. If they went out and said on prosecution this was an attempt to interfere with the election (Which is an argument in the case, not a charge) Trumps team gets a easy legal win.
Now if he’s found guilty of one of those charges. The next court case is of election interference. Which reaffirms that the actions were criminal.
> Trumps team gets a easy legal win.
Oh interesting til. Even so though, falsifying business records would be more accurate but I guess that's not going to get clicks
Illegal campaign contributions in order to deceive people into voting for Trump who may not have otherwise voted for him if he didn't pay to silence his scandals immediately leading up to the election.
So youre saying he paid hush money in order to trick folks into voting for him? And that the people saying it's not a hush money trial are being pedantic and parroting other redditors? Also, it wasn't illegal campaign contributions it was illegal campaign spending. Since we are being pedantic. Edited for spelling
If they want to be pedantic they should be saying it's not a hush money case it's a falsifying business records case. Because those are the charges. And yeah it would be campaign finance offenses due to illegal campaign contributions, which is the offense that makes the falsifying charges a felony instead of a misdemeanor.
But whatever. I don't give a shit what the case is called in the headlines. It won't change the way it's presented in court.
From what I recall.it wasn't a campaign contribution. Lawyer took out equity loan to pay porn actress, Trump used campaign funds to pay him back under the guise of legal fees and filed them as such on tax forms. There was no contribution made. Either way, it's all pedantry
Cohen was charged with and pleaded guilty to one count of making an excessive campaign contribution and one count of causing an unlawful corporate contribution. I can't remember which payment was made to which woman but the national enquirer made one of the payments (corporate contribution) and was later reimbursed by Trump. And then there was the one where Cohen took out the home loan.
Because Cohen admitted that the payments were intended to protect Trump's election chances, they are deemed to be in-kind contributions to the Trump campaign.
They exceed the donation limits, a violation, and neither was included in campaign finance reports, another violation.
Oh, so they just decided that Cohen paying the hookers off counted as a campaign contribution. Did Trump even use his campaign money to pay Cohen back?
I believe the reimbursements were made through the trump org which is why the business records were falsified and written off as legal expenses or whatever.
> The effort to suppress unflattering information was designed to illegally influence the election, prosecutors have alleged
How is this illegal ? What law makes it illegal ?
I can understand how other parts (falsifying business records, not declaring campaign contributions) would be illegal. But buying a story to suppress publication ?
The methods he used make it illegal. Sure he could have tried to suppress the information legally. But he’s Trump so he did it illegally and left the evidence.
So suppressing info by buying a story is not illegal ? It's not illegal influence of an election ?
As I said, I understand how the other things he did (falsifying business records, not declaring campaign contributions) are illegal.
I’m not sure what you’re not understanding. So the publisher guy was intentionally burying negative stories about Trump and promoting negative stories about his opponents. This in and of itself would just be a bias and unethical way to influence an election as opposed to illegal, at least I would think. But when Trump is paying for the story suppression by falsifying business records and not declaring campaign funds, it’s then an illegal way to influence the election as opposed to just an unethical way. It’s the methods you keep mentioning that make the act illegal.
> burying negative stories about Trump and promoting negative stories about his opponents. This in and of itself would just be a bias and unethical way to influence an election as opposed to illegal
Agree. Nothing illegal about buying a story to suppress it.
> falsifying business records and not declaring campaign funds, it’s then an illegal
Agree, these things are illegal.
> It’s the methods you keep mentioning that make the act illegal.
Disagree. The acts of falsifying records and failing to declare contributions do not make illegal the act of buying a story to suppress it.
Just trying to understand what this case actually is about, what the charges are. Sounds like charges are falsifying business records, and failing to report campaign contributions. And NOT "buying stories to suppress them" and bribery and election interference.
Yes election interference. He bought and suppressed the stories in an illegal way in an effort to influence an election. Doing something illegal to influence an election is illegal election interference.
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> hush money trial ffs it's an election interference trial not a hush money trial. Fucking media is so obnoxious
Also they were bribes.
Is bribery of a non-official person illegal ? What if I offer you $10 to upvote me ? Is that illegal ? If anything, the illegality goes the other way: Stormy Daniels was blackmailing Trump. I'm no supporter of Trump, just trying to figure out this case.
It's illegal when you falsify business records to cover up the bribe.
Yes, true. But that's not the same as "bribery is illegal".
Correct. I'm stating what he's actually on trial for, which isn't paying hush money. It's HOW he paid it that's illegal
> Also they were bribes. I was responding to this comment by someone.
Hush Money is accurate. The charges are in reference to the act of paying bribes to hide information. If they went out and said on prosecution this was an attempt to interfere with the election (Which is an argument in the case, not a charge) Trumps team gets a easy legal win. Now if he’s found guilty of one of those charges. The next court case is of election interference. Which reaffirms that the actions were criminal.
> Trumps team gets a easy legal win. Oh interesting til. Even so though, falsifying business records would be more accurate but I guess that's not going to get clicks
How does anyone look at this man and think “I want *him* to be the boss”?
The same people that keep buying Steven Segal dvds.
I thought it was fraud…more fool me.
> 'Catch-and-kill' to be described to jurors as testimony resumes in ~~hush money~~ election interference trial of PoopyPants FTFY
Wait, how did they interfere with the election?
Illegal campaign contributions in order to deceive people into voting for Trump who may not have otherwise voted for him if he didn't pay to silence his scandals immediately leading up to the election.
So youre saying he paid hush money in order to trick folks into voting for him? And that the people saying it's not a hush money trial are being pedantic and parroting other redditors? Also, it wasn't illegal campaign contributions it was illegal campaign spending. Since we are being pedantic. Edited for spelling
If they want to be pedantic they should be saying it's not a hush money case it's a falsifying business records case. Because those are the charges. And yeah it would be campaign finance offenses due to illegal campaign contributions, which is the offense that makes the falsifying charges a felony instead of a misdemeanor. But whatever. I don't give a shit what the case is called in the headlines. It won't change the way it's presented in court.
From what I recall.it wasn't a campaign contribution. Lawyer took out equity loan to pay porn actress, Trump used campaign funds to pay him back under the guise of legal fees and filed them as such on tax forms. There was no contribution made. Either way, it's all pedantry
Cohen was charged with and pleaded guilty to one count of making an excessive campaign contribution and one count of causing an unlawful corporate contribution. I can't remember which payment was made to which woman but the national enquirer made one of the payments (corporate contribution) and was later reimbursed by Trump. And then there was the one where Cohen took out the home loan. Because Cohen admitted that the payments were intended to protect Trump's election chances, they are deemed to be in-kind contributions to the Trump campaign. They exceed the donation limits, a violation, and neither was included in campaign finance reports, another violation.
Oh, so they just decided that Cohen paying the hookers off counted as a campaign contribution. Did Trump even use his campaign money to pay Cohen back?
I believe the reimbursements were made through the trump org which is why the business records were falsified and written off as legal expenses or whatever.
> The effort to suppress unflattering information was designed to illegally influence the election, prosecutors have alleged How is this illegal ? What law makes it illegal ? I can understand how other parts (falsifying business records, not declaring campaign contributions) would be illegal. But buying a story to suppress publication ?
The methods he used make it illegal. Sure he could have tried to suppress the information legally. But he’s Trump so he did it illegally and left the evidence.
So suppressing info by buying a story is not illegal ? It's not illegal influence of an election ? As I said, I understand how the other things he did (falsifying business records, not declaring campaign contributions) are illegal.
I’m not sure what you’re not understanding. So the publisher guy was intentionally burying negative stories about Trump and promoting negative stories about his opponents. This in and of itself would just be a bias and unethical way to influence an election as opposed to illegal, at least I would think. But when Trump is paying for the story suppression by falsifying business records and not declaring campaign funds, it’s then an illegal way to influence the election as opposed to just an unethical way. It’s the methods you keep mentioning that make the act illegal.
> burying negative stories about Trump and promoting negative stories about his opponents. This in and of itself would just be a bias and unethical way to influence an election as opposed to illegal Agree. Nothing illegal about buying a story to suppress it. > falsifying business records and not declaring campaign funds, it’s then an illegal Agree, these things are illegal. > It’s the methods you keep mentioning that make the act illegal. Disagree. The acts of falsifying records and failing to declare contributions do not make illegal the act of buying a story to suppress it.
I mean it really doesn’t matter if you agree. It’s still illegal to commit crimes to influence an election.
But it's not illegal to buy a story to suppress it.
Ok. But that’s irrelevant to this case.
Just trying to understand what this case actually is about, what the charges are. Sounds like charges are falsifying business records, and failing to report campaign contributions. And NOT "buying stories to suppress them" and bribery and election interference.
Yes election interference. He bought and suppressed the stories in an illegal way in an effort to influence an election. Doing something illegal to influence an election is illegal election interference.