Today's trial was all about if the former US president Donald Trump misrepresented (falsified) business records to conceal criminal conduct concealing damaging information from voters before and after the US presidential election in 2016 to boost his electoral prospects!
He has, as one would expect, pleaded not guilty!
The business records related to hush money payments to cover up his alleged extra marital affairs!
He is accused of being behind the following payments to hide stories he has denied:
Payment of $130k to porn actress Stormy Daniels to prevent her from discussing her alleged sexual encounter with Donald Trump in 2006!
Payment of $150k to ex-Playboy model Karen McDougal to keep her from making allegations of having had sex with him!
Payment of $30k to keep a story from the public about an alleged child Trump out of wedlock!
Hush money is said not to be illegal but the charges are about disguising the payments as payments for legal services! This is said to be a criminal offence in the US!
The proceedings against Donald Trump is a case were honesty in business and politics is intertwined! That link is so significant that UK PM Rishi Sunak published his tax accounts publicly this year to be transparent and accountable to the public!
Democracy requires a balance in power! No super rich person should be able to rule the world! Perhaps, the super rich and powerful character in the thirteenth century was the King! Magna Carta ensured the power shifted and was spread, that individuals had the freedom and power they needed! Magna Carta was the foundation for the contemporary powers of Parliament!
Somehow the world powers are no longer the Kings or Queens but the super rich! However, we should remind ourselves of the basics of Magna Carta!
The fact that nobody is above the law (the rule of law) is the reason we witnessed today's hearing!
Donald Trump has been charged with criminal charges. The law has another important principle and that is everyone is innocent until proven guilty! The court is yet to make a decision about the charges! That is why in the writer's view he can still run his presidential election campaign!
The question is should our laws and policies adapt to the new world of power and wealth or are they good enough to deal with the issues we face today around the world?
Should political parties require candidates to observe the highest standards of honesty and integrity?
Should the super rich continue to be permitted to either pay hush money to conceal critical facts about their campaigns or to flood campaigns with money to publicise information which could be untruthful but beneficial to them? Or is it time that a new and more modern Magna Carta is drafted and implemented to balance the world powers!
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