CNN host Fareed Zakaria said he doubts the hush-money case brought against former President Donald Trump in New York would have been levied against anyone else.
Republicans “seem to be uniting behind Trump” as he faces multiple prosecutions while seeking another term in the White House and “whatever opposition he faced in the primaries has largely melted away,” Zakaria said on “GPS,” his Sunday morning show that airs on CNN.
“And the trials against him keep him in the spotlight, infuriate his base who sees him as a martyr, and even may serve to make him the object of some sympathy among people in general who believed that his prosecutors are politically motivated,” Zakaria added.
“This happens to be true in my opinion,” Zakaria continued. “I doubt the New York indictment would have been brought against a defendant whose name was not Donald Trump. A majority of Americans are skeptical that Trump will be able to get a fair trial, according to a CNN poll.”
🚨CNN’s Fareed Zakaria on Trump’s NY Criminal Trial:
“I doubt the New York trial would have been brought against a defendant whose name was not Donald Trump.”
— Andy Hidalgo (@RealAndyHidalgo) May 12, 2024
The results of a CNN poll conducted by SSRS released in late April showed that 13% of respondents nationwide felt that Trump was being treated the same as other criminal defendants.
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In a case brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to allegedly cover up payments, including to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, in a bid to conceal damaging information as part of a “catch-and-kill” scheme to influence the 2016 election.
Trump has pleaded not guilty and criticized what he says is a “political persecution.” The trial is ongoing. The former president is facing three other criminal matters on the state and federal levels as he runs for re-election and has insisted that he is innocent throughout the process.
Some experts have suggested Bragg’s case is on questionable footing because of a dubious legal theory used to gussy up misdemeanor charges to the felony level. CNN legal analyst Elie Honig recently said there would be “no chance of a conviction” if the case had been brought in a jurisdiction that was 50-50 split in support of Trump and President Joe Biden.