The looming arrest of former US President Donald Trump is part of a larger effort by Democrats to keep the ex-commander-in-chief tied up in legal matters ahead of the 2024 presidential election, an analyst told Radio Sputnik.
The former president took to his Truth Social platform on Saturday to allege that he would be arrested on Tuesday over what he referred to as "old & fully debunked (by numerous other prosecutors!) fairytale."
Accusations referred to by Trump tie back to hush payments given to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who allegedly had sexual relations with Trump in 2006 but was paid off in the run-up to the 2016 election to keep quiet. The $130,000 payout was made by former Trump fixer Michael Cohen but was repaid at Trump's direction through a 2016 campaign committee. Trump has repeatedly denied the allegations.
Jim Kavanagh, a writer at The Polemicist and Counterpunch, told Radio Sputnik's Political Misfits on Monday that "it's quite clear that [Manhattan] District Attorney [Alvin Bragg] and the Democrats are trying to get something on Trump."
"This is out there and it's a thing that’s real," Kavanagh told show hosts Michelle Witte and John Kiriakou, detailing that while the goal may "not necessarily" be to obtain a conviction, it could very well be about getting Trump "wrapped up in the legal system because they’re afraid of him politically... that’s got to be acknowledged, that’s what’s going on, that’s the big picture."
The proceedings are part of a "big legal fight that’s a cover for a political fight even if the legal issues are real," the author of "Over the Rainbow: Paths of Resistance after George Floyd" continued.
However, Kavanagh further speculated that the legal dust-up is potentially connected to an even larger issue.
Touching on the legality of the New York investigation, which centers on hush payments given some seven years back, Kavanagh told Kiriakou that there were three legal issues at the forefront of the case: jurisdiction, statute of limitations and intent.
Ultimately, Kavanagh underscored that the case and anticipated arrest warrant would turn into a political win to Trump, who more than likely would use the development as a means to corral his supporters at the polls.
"This is going to end up politically beneficial to Donald Trump because it really demonstrates they’re afraid of him, and it demonstrates for his supporters it's going to certainly be a political persecution," he said.
In 2018, a campaign investigation into the hush payments ended with Cohen pleading guilty to federal charges and joining ever-growing band of the Trump critics. Cohen stated earlier Monday that the Manhattan district attorney had in his possession documentation that validated his testimony on the case.
Although initial reports suggested that an arrest warrant may come Tuesday, US media has suggested that an indictment - if it is issued - could instead come as early as Wednesday. If so, it would mark the first time a former president has been indicted.