Donald Trump is about to find out the hard way about Judge Merchan
Donald Trump is now asking Judge Juan Merchan to delay the sentencing hearing in his criminal trial until after the election. This isn’t a surprising move on Trump’s part, given that he always seeks delays. But I do suspect that Trump is about to find out about Merchan the hard way.
I’ve said a few times now that I truly don’t know what to expect from Judge Merchan when it comes to the sentence he’ll give Donald Trump. Trump was convicted on thirty-four felonies, but they are the lowest level of felony. Merchan does have a history of being tougher on white collar criminals than most other judges. But overall, only about ten percent of people who are convicted on this kind of felony end up being given prison time. Trump has no prior criminal record. But he has misbehaved and violated his gag order several times, which can be taken into account with sentencing.
That’s a long winded way of saying that I don’t know what kind of sentence Merchan will give Trump. But I do strongly expect that Merchan is going to refuse to delay Trump’s sentencing hearing. Trump has no argument other than “I’m a candidate” – and that’s not a legitimate legal argument for a convicted felon awaiting sentencing.
Donald Trump is about to find out the hard way that Judge Merchan is fair but he’s also no-nonsense. It’s as if Trump slept through his trial and doesn’t know who Merchan is. Oh wait, Trump did sleep through his trial. He’ll find out.
