‘Rigged conviction’: Trump meets probation officer ahead of hush money sentencing

Washington: Donald Trump has become the first former US president to meet a probation officer as he braces for the possibility of a jail term after being found guilty of a criminal conspiracy designed to sway the 2016 election.

After his historic hush money conviction in New York, Trump had a virtual interview at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Monday (Tuesday AEST), and used the opportunity to launch a fresh fundraising blitz for his bid to return to power.

Former president Donald Trump motions to the crowd at a campaign rally in Las Vegas on Sunday.Credit: AP

“I’m actually about to speak to a probation officer after my RIGGED CONVICTION!” he wrote in a fundraising email soliciting donations for his campaign against President Joe Biden in November.

“My only crime? Putting the AMERICAN PEOPLE, ahead of the COMMUNISTS, MARXISTS, AND FASCISTS that want to see our country DESTROYED.”

The interview will form the basis of a pre-sentencing report for Judge Juan Merchan, who is deciding what punishment Trump may face on July 11 after being convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal that could have derailed his chances of being president in 2016.

Defendants generally use the process to argue for a more lenient sentence, and are asked about everything from their finances and work to their criminal history, marital status and overall living arrangements.

Trump’s July sentencing hearing will take place days before the Republican National Convention, where he will be formally announced as the party’s candidate for the November 5 election.

Falsifying business records in New York is a crime punishable by up to four years in jail. However, given the non-violent nature of the offence and Trump’s lack of prior convictions, the judge could opt for a lesser sentence, such as probation, a fine, or community service.

Trump and his supporters nonetheless continue to insist his conviction was “rigged” by Democrats, and his legal team has already vowed to appeal, which would most likely halt the sentence until that process has played out in the courts.

His campaign team and the Republican National Committee also said last week that they raised $US141 million ($213 million) in May while his trial was under way and following his historic conviction.

Protesters outside Trump Tower as Donald Trump spoke.Credit: Bloomberg

In an email appeal to donors, Democrats described the fundraising haul as “terrifying”.

“We’re going to be blunt: if Trump’s supporters will donate that much money after his conviction, there is no telling what they will do in the future,” the party wrote in an email to supporters.

To slow his march to the White House, some of Trump’s former supporters have mounted a campaign to highlight his criminality as the election heats up.

The campaign, by Republican Voters Against Trump, involves billboards placed across the battleground states of Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, featuring voters declaring: “I’m a former Trump voter. I won’t vote for a convicted felon.”

Billboards showing Republicans who have pledged to not vote for Donald Trump following his conviction in the hush money trial. Credit: Republican Voters Against Trump

John Conway, the group’s director of strategy, said the aim was to win over Republicans and conservative-leaning independents who are hesitant about putting a convicted criminal in the White House.

“We’ve seen election cycle after election cycle that it’s Republican and centre-right voters who break away from Donald Trump and the Republican Party that decide these critical states,” he told this masthead.

“One thing we know from focus groups is we’re not going to build a pro-Biden coalition in 2024 – we have to build an anti-Trump coalition with these voters. They don’t love either of their choices, so it’s really going to come down to who they think is the most dangerous and who they hate the most – and these felony convictions are just one part of making that case.”

Trump was found guilty last month of taking part in a criminal conspiracy designed to sway the 2016 election that propelled him into the presidency.

Stormy Daniels recounted having sex with Donald Trump in a hotel room.Credit: Getty

A jury of New Yorkers found that he directed and then fraudulently reimbursed a $US130,000 payment to silence porn star Stormy Daniels from going public over a one-night stand they had in 2006, which he feared could have derailed his campaign.

Trump insists that he is innocent, and has also ramped up his rhetoric of retribution, including floating the issue of jailing his political opponents if he becomes president again.

“So, you know, it’s a terrible, terrible path that they’re leading us to, and it’s very possible that it’s going to have to happen to them,” Trump said in an interview with right-wing cable network Newsmax.

“Does that mean the next president does it to them? That’s really the question,” he added.

In another interview with Dr Phil, he noted that “revenge does take time” and “sometimes revenge can be justified”, while in an interview with Fox News ally Sean Hannity, he said of his enemies: “When this election is over, based on what they’ve done, I would have every right to go after them.”

Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world. Sign up for the weekly What in the World newsletter here.