Donald Trump is meeting with his probation officer today, and it’s set to be a disaster for him
Like all convicted felons, Donald Trump is set to meet with his probation officer today. The purpose of this meeting is a little different than the popularly understood definition of the word “probation.” In fact this meeting is about Trump’s sentencing.
The officer’s job is to ask Trump a series of questions about his criminal history, personal life, financial situation, living situation, mental health, and so on, so that the officer can make a sentencing recommendation to Judge Juan Merchan ahead of the July 11th sentencing hearing. Merchan can ultimately hand out whatever sentence he wants. But the probation officer’s recommendation is a starting point.
There is every reason to expect that Trump’s meeting with his probation officer today will go poorly for Trump. He’s incapable of telling the truth, and likely to get caught in all kinds of lies. He’s also often combative and easily confused, and he could end up turning the whole thing into an ugly argument.
Even if Trump ends up being passive, he’s still going to lie his way through this meeting. He’ll be asked about some aspect of his life, and he’ll respond with conspiracy theories about how he secretly won the 2020 election. He’s also extremely unlikely to show any remorse. He’ll be asked if he’s sorry he committed the crimes he’s been convicted of, and he’ll go on an ugly rant about the judge instead.
Trump may think he’s helping himself with this kind of approach. But in reality this is the worst way possible for Trump to handle his probation officer meeting. If he tries to turn this into a proverbial slugfest or a rally speech, it’ll give the probation officer cause to recommend a severe sentence. And that would be appropriate for someone who’s unhinged and shows no remorse.
The worse Trump decides to behave during his probation meeting today, the better it is for everyone who wants to see him sentenced to prison. So by all means, Donald, feel free to act like a clown today.
