Republican senators are downplaying the potential impact of the hush money trial beginning in Manhattan this week on the presidential race, expressing confidence that the outcome will have little effect on the election.
Most Senate Republicans believe that even if Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) secures convictions against former President Trump on the 34 felony counts he faces for falsifying business records related to payments to Stormy Daniels, it won’t alter the electoral landscape.
Some GOP senators argue that Trump might even benefit politically from the trial, citing his previous surge in the polls when the indictment was first announced.
Donald Trump (Credits: The New Yorker)
Critics of the case highlight its perceived weaknesses, such as the statute of limitations and the need to connect the alleged crimes to state and federal election violations to bring them to trial.
Senator JD Vance (R-Ohio) dismissed the case as preposterous and suggested that it would bolster Trump’s argument that he’s being unfairly targeted for political reasons.
While acknowledging that the trial could attract public attention, senators in both parties generally consider Bragg’s case to be the weakest among the criminal cases facing Trump.
Donald Trump (Credits: Sky News)
An AP-NORC poll found that while many Americans believe Trump violated the law in other pending criminal cases, fewer think he did so in the hush money case.
Despite concerns expressed by some voters, GOP senators remain skeptical that a conviction in the Manhattan trial would impact Trump’s electoral prospects.
Senate Republicans largely view the trial through a political lens and believe that voters have already made up their minds about Trump, regardless of the trial’s outcome.
