Granted, it seems like we’ve been waiting for an eternity to see Donald Trump indicted and placed on trial for various criminal charges including bank and insurance fraud as well as money laundering and conspiracy. The question, however, keeps being asked: When do we reach the denouement that sees justice catch up with him?
While none of us are good at predicting the future, two longtime political operatives, Arick Wierson and Bradley Honan, believe Tuesday’s election in New York — most notably the race for District Attorney of Manhattan — is the matchup to watch because it could be very bad news for the failed, one-term former president.
In an op-ed they penned for CNN, Wierson and Honan write:
“Whoever wins the election will be handed a caseload that will include, in all likelihood, the prosecution of the Trump Organization in what could be the most consequential legal case in our nation’s modern history. For more than two years, the office of Cy Vance Jr., the current Manhattan DA, has been conducting a sprawling investigation into the inner workings of the Trump Organization’s finances stemming in part from hush money payments made to women who said they had extramarital affairs with Trump (which he has denied). The Manhattan DA’s office has also suggested it is looking into allegations that the Trump Organization inflated property values in statements to lenders and insurers while undervaluing assets for tax purposes.”
Vance is retiring at the end of the year, so whoever replaces him will have a lot on their plate when it comes to the Trump family and Trump Organization. Right now, that appears to come down to two candidates:
“Many political insiders believe it’s really a two-horse race between Democratic candidates Tali Farhadian Weinstein, a former federal prosecutor and general counsel for the Brooklyn district attorney, and Alvin Bragg, a prosecutor in the state attorney general’s office.”
Weinstein is the wife of a hedge fund manager, Boaz Weinstein, and also interviewed with the Trump administration to fill a federal judgeship which was never offered to her. However, her coziness with the Wall Street crowd could hurt her chances of winning the D.A.’s race.
Alvin Bragg’s base of support is in Harlem and he has also been endorsed by the New York Times. The fact he has experience as a prosecutor is certainly an advantage for him as he seeks to be the top law enforcement official in the borough of Manhattan.
No matter who prevails when the votes are counted, he or she may wind up making a major name for themselves by prosecuting the Donald and his company, Wierson and Honan conclude:
“If Vance’s office doesn’t bring charges before he leaves office, then it will be left to the incoming DA to make that call, and come January 2022, the new Manhattan DA will be drinking from the fire hose with no time to ease into the job — which suggests that someone with high-level prosecutorial experience might be best positioned to succeed this time around.
“With numerous candidates on the ballot, Manhattan voters must choose wisely come Tuesday; whoever ends up winning the Manhattan DA race must not only have the wisdom and moral compass that the role has always required, but ample amounts of strength, fortitude, political smarts and cojones to take on the former president.”
Whoever wins will forever endear themselves to the people of New York and the majority of the nation if they continue to move forward aggressively and LOCK TRUMP UP!