First time a former US president convicted of a crime
Former President Trump found guilty of all 34 hush money charges
Sentencing scheduled for July 11th before Republican Party nomination
Trump barred from owning guns, holding public office, or voting in many states
In a stunning turn of events, former President Donald Trump has been found guilty of all 34 charges in his hush money trial. This marks the first time a former U.S. president has been convicted of a crime, and it is expected to have significant implications for the upcoming presidential race. The criminal case centered around allegations that Trump attempted to cover up a $130,000 hush-money payment to an adult film actress during the 2016 presidential election. As a result of his felony convictions, Trump is now barred from owning a gun, holding public office, or voting in many states. However, it remains unclear whether these convictions will have any impact on voters in the upcoming 2024 presidential election. Despite facing a potential sentence of up to 123 years in prison, Trump has maintained his innocence and falsely claimed that the trial was rigged against him. The sentencing for Trump is scheduled for July 11th, just days before Republicans are set to nominate him as the party's candidate for the 2024 presidential race. In response to Trump's conviction, there has been a noticeable divide within the Republican Party, with some politicians choosing to stand by Trump and others distancing themselves from him in light of the verdict. This split is expected to continue as the party moves forward into the 2024 election season.
A person close to Trump described the moment as a ‘civil war’ within the Republican Party.
Chris LaCivita, a top official on Trump’s campaign, replied to Hogan saying ‘You just ended your campaign.’
Accuracy
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 felony counts.
Trump is the first former U.S. president to be convicted of a crime.
Deception
(30%)
The author makes editorializing statements and uses emotional manipulation by describing the moment as a 'civil war' within the Republican Party. She also uses sensational language in her title and throughout the article. The author selectively reports information by only focusing on Republicans who are defending Trump and ignoring those who are criticizing him.
These types of defences align with Trump’s larger belief that many of his issues are not with individuals - whether they be voters or jurors. Instead, he feels that many of the bedrock structures of American government, like its electoral process and its judicial system, its media, its intelligence agencies, are fundamentally and unfairly rigged against him.
It’s a step that many Republican officials are wary of taking. It’s too early to tell whether this moment could still bubble into a civil war among Republicans or whether Trump’s years-long grip on his party will ultimately stifle any meaningful wave of dissent.
The historic nature of Trump’s criminal conviction is being leveraged by his campaign as a sort of roll-call vote to see which politicians will defend the former president and which of them will defend America’s legal system. It appears you can’t do both.
Fallacies
(80%)
The author makes an appeal to authority when quoting Florida Senator Marco Rubio's comparison of America's legal system to that of communist Cuba. This is a fallacious argument as it oversimplifies the complexities of both systems and ignores the significant differences between them.
“This is what you see in communist countries. This is what I grew up having people in the [Cuban exile] community tell me about. It happened in the days after the Castro revolution.”
Bias
(15%)
The author, Katty Kay, uses language that depicts one side (Trump and his supporters) as extreme or unreasonable by comparing the actions of the American legal system to those of communist countries. She also implies that those who do not support Trump are politically dead.
This is what you see in communist countries. This is what I grew up having people in the [Cuban exile] community tell me about. It happened in the days after the Castro revolution.
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a Manhattan courtroom
Trump is the first former U.S. president to be convicted of a crime
The criminal case centered around allegations that Trump attempted to cover up a $130,000 hush-money payment to an adult film actress during the 2016 presidential election
Trump is also the first person convicted of a felony who is on track to become a major party presidential nominee
Accuracy
][article.facts[0]][] Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a Manhattan courtroom.[/[
Donald Trump was convicted of 34 felonies in a New York hush money trial
Trump cannot own a gun, hold public office or vote in many states due to his felony conviction
It is unclear whether Trump’s felony conviction will have any impact on voters in the 2024 election
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(50%)
The article makes several statements that could be considered editorializing and emotional manipulation. The author uses phrases like 'stunning development', 'unorthodox presidential election', 'profound implications for the justice system and perhaps U.S. democracy itself'. These phrases are not factual but rather an attempt to elicit an emotional response from the reader.
a stunning development in an already unorthodox presidential election with profound implications for the justice system and perhaps U.S. democracy itself.
But in a deeply divided America, it’s unclear whether Trump’s status as someone with a felony conviction will have any impact at all on the 2024 election.
People react to the guilty verdict announced against former President Donald Trump outside Manhattan Criminal Court, Thursday, May 30, 2024,
Fallacies
(75%)
The article contains several examples of inflammatory rhetoric and appeals to authority. The author states that Trump falsely blasted a ‘rigged trial’ and attacked the star witness in a speech on Friday, which is an example of inflammatory rhetoric. Additionally, the author refers to the jury as a “blue-state jury” and quotes Republican officials who condemn the verdict as a miscarriage of justice by a politically motivated prosecutor. These examples demonstrate an appeal to authority and inflammatory rhetoric.
Trump falsely blasted a ‘rigged trial’ and attacked star witness in a speech on Friday.
Donald J. Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts in Manhattan
Trump is the first former U.S. president to be convicted of a crime
Dozens of interviews with voters in swing states found no supporter who had been pulled from Trump’s side by his conviction
Accuracy
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a Manhattan courtroom
Donald Trump was convicted of 34 felonies in his hush money trial
Deception
(70%)
The article contains selective reporting and emotional manipulation. The authors quote a Trump supporter making a false claim about the 2020 election being rigged, but do not challenge or correct this statement. They also present quotes from Democrats expressing skepticism that the conviction will make a difference without challenging or questioning this viewpoint. This creates an impression of two 'alternate universes' where truth is relative and facts are subjective.
“a kangaroo court,” said Marty Lee, 77, of Scottsdale, Ariz., who was wearing a T-shirt that read “We the People Are Pissed Off.” The trial was “a kangaroo court,” he added. (False claims that the 2020 election was rigged, pushed by Mr. Trump and his allies, have been repeatedly debunked, and there is no basis for the suggestion that the Manhattan case or the verdict rendered unanimously by a jury of 12 was rigged.)
