CHRIS CRUCIAL: The Friday 6-Pack
Crack open your weekend!
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As — I think — most of you know, I am teaching a class on campaign journalism this semester at Georgetown University. The class meets from 3:45-6:15 pm every Friday. Which, uh, makes it hard for me to write a full “Chris Crucial” during that time.
I am, candidly, still working out how best to solve this problem. For this week, at least, I am going to post a handful of stories and links that you need to see from the world of politics today.
If anyone has good ideas on how best to handle this Friday afternoon issue, I’d welcome them in the comments section!
— Chris
1. Donald Trump’s sentencing won’t be until after the election
Former President Donald Trump will not be sentenced in his New York criminal case until after the 2024 election, Judge Juan Merchan announced on Friday.
Merchan wrote in a new letter that he would sentence Trump on November 26 – if necessary – in response to a request from Trump’s lawyers to push back the sentencing.
Trump was convicted in May on 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up a hush money payment to an adult-film star alleging an affair with the former president. But Trump’s sentencing has been on hold for months after Trump’s lawyers have pushed to have the conviction tossed because of the Supreme Court’s ruling on presidential immunity.
Merchan noted the upcoming presidential election in his decision to delay sentencing, saying that part of his reason for doing so was to avoid the appearance that the sentencing was intended to influence the November election.
This should surprise you not at all. No judge wants to get in the middle of an incredibly contentious presidential election.
And as I have said many times: The way you get rid of Donald Trump is at the ballot box. Not in a courtroom.
2. Kamala Harris keeps changing her views
Expect this to be a MAJOR topic of debate at the, um, debate on Tuesday.
3. Donald Trump’s nutty “press conference”
Donald Trump talked (and talked and talked) Friday following an appearance in court over his defamation case with E. Jean. Carroll. He took zero questions. You should watch at least some of it.
4. Dick Cheney will vote for Kamala Harris
In the things-I-never-could-have-imagined-a-decade-ago category, this is pretty high. And his statement on the decision is a WOW.
5. Job Growth Disappoints
This chart, via Steve Rattner, tells the story of today’s August jobs report, which was not what Joe Biden (and Kamala Harris) were hoping to see.
6. A Little Fun…
I did the “Tony Kornheiser Show” podcast today. We did a deep dive on whether squirrels are color-blind. (They are not!)
You were doing it briefly in the summer before everything turned upside down, but I loved the idea of turning the Friday Chris Crucial over to some trivia.
If Dick Cheney of all people can endorse Kamala Harris, it's time for George W. Bush to speak up. Frankly, it's very disappointing he hasn't
Kamala Harris can change her position on another dozen or so issues, and it won't drive me to vote for Trump...