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What happened with Trump's trials in January

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What happened with Trump's trials in January

Former President Trump faces four felony criminal trials and several civil trials over the next few months as he’s running for re-election. Having trouble keeping up?

Here are the key developments in Trump’s trials in January.

Delays in the DC election-subversion case

Early in the month, a three-judge panel in Washington held a hearing about Trump’s claim that he is immune from prosecution on criminal charges that he plotted to overturn the results of the 2020 election.

Questions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia panel indicated the judges were inclined to reject his argument, but what most observers assumed would be a quickly issued opinion has dragged on for weeks. (Trump could still ask the full court to rule and then go to the Supreme Court, causing even more delays.)

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The case originally scheduled to begin March 4 has been on hold since December and there has to be time for both sides to file pretrial motions, objections, poll jurors, etc.

The court on Thursday took Trump’s federal election interference trial off its March calendar. A new date has not been listed.

Millions awarded in E. Jean Carroll’s defamation case

In the middle of the month, a jury heard and decided a second defamation case brought by longtime advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, and quickly awarded her $83.3 million. That amount comes on top of the $5 million a jury awarded her in an initial defamation trial last year in which the jury also found that Trump sexually assaulted Carroll in a Manhattan department store in 1996.

Jurors were asked to decide whether Trump should pay Carroll for two statements he made as president after a magazine published excerpts of Carroll’s memoir. Jurors were not asked to reconsider whether the sexual assault had occurred.

Trump attended much of the trial, unlike the first, even though he was not required to. Trump testified for just over three minutes after the judge limited what he could say, ruling the former president had missed the chance to argue his innocence in the first trial.

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Trump is appealing both awards.

Awaiting a verdict in the New York fraud case

Trump is awaiting a verdict from Judge Arthur Engoron in a New York civil fraud trial targeting his business, in which state lawyers seek $370 million after he was found liable for habitually exaggerating his wealth on financial statements he provided to banks, insurance companies and others in order to receive more beneficial loan terms.

State lawyers also seek to ban Trump, his elder sons and the Trump Organization from doing business in New York, where the bulk of his real estate empire is located.

Engoron has already found Trump liable for fraud in the nonjury trial, but the awaited verdict is expected to detail whether the former president violated other laws and the size of the penalty.

The trial has lasted for several months and has included several high tension moments, including two fines from the judge for Trump making unfounded claims about Engoron’s clerk and loud exclamations by Trump, including a lengthy speech during closing arguments.

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Questions arise about prosecutors in Georgia election-subversion case

Trump faces similar charges over attempts to stay in power after losing the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia. That case has not been scheduled but was in the news in January given allegations from one of Trump’s co-defendants that Dist. Atty. Fani Willis had an inappropriate romantic relationship with a special prosecutor she hired for the case.

An attorney for Trump co-defendant Michael Roman filed a motion seeking to dismiss the indictment and to remove Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade from the case. Trump has joined the filing and Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee has set a hearing on the matter for Feb. 15.

Neither Willis nor Wade have responded publicly to the allegations but are expected to respond in a court filing due before the hearing.

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Politics

Who Is Coming to the Inauguration — and Who Isn’t

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Who Is Coming to the Inauguration — and Who Isn’t

Three of the richest men in the world, foreign dignitaries, tech and business executives, former presidents and an assortment of performers and other celebrities are on the guest list for President-elect Donald J. Trump’s inauguration on Monday, even as much of the midday ceremony has been moved indoors amid forecasts of extreme cold.

It is unclear what impact, if any, the relocation of Mr. Trump’s second swearing-in ceremony into the Capitol Rotunda will have on the seating arrangements. Unlike the outdoor venue, the Capitol Rotunda only seats about 600 people.

Four years ago, Mr. Trump skipped President Biden’s inauguration in a snub to his political rival. Every living former president is set to witness his return to power, but some prominent Democrats are opting out.

Here’s the list of those who are planning to attend the inauguration, and notable no-shows.

Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos, three of the world’s wealthiest men, were reported to be among the major tech executives who would sit in a position of honor on the dais at Mr. Trump’s inauguration — before the event was moved indoors. Tim Cook, the chief executive of Apple, and Shou Chew, the chief executive of the imperiled social media app TikTok, had also been invited to sit on the dais.

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Seating for other high-dollar donors from the business world was already highly competitive even before the last-minute move indoors. Some offered donations to Mr. Trump’s inaugural committee as high as $1 million without receiving any access to the inauguration or accompanying receptions in return.

China’s vice president, Han Zheng, will attend the inauguration on behalf of Xi Jinping, whom Mr. Trump had invited to the inauguration.

Unlike at the inaugurations of President Biden and former President Barack Obama, a number of other world leaders will be in attendance. Many of them share Mr. Trump’s ideology and policy preferences.

From Latin America, Javier Milei, the right-wing populist president of Argentina, is reportedly planning to make an appearance. Jair Bolsonaro, the former president of Brazil and another right-wing populist, had intended to attend, but his passport was previously seized by federal police in Brazil and his request to a Brazilian Supreme Court justice to make the trip was denied.

From Europe, Giorgia Meloni, the right-wing prime minister of Italy, affirmed that she planned to attend. The press secretary of Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary who has a friendly rapport with Mr. Trump, told a Hungarian media outlet that the prime minister had received an invitation but would not be attending.

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Three representatives from key U.S. allies in the Asia-Pacific region will also be attending: S. Jaishankar, the external affairs minister for India; Penny Wong, the foreign minister of Australia; and Takeshi Iwaya, the foreign minister of Japan.

Mr. Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton will all attend Mr. Trump’s inauguration — as they did his first inauguration, eight years ago. They will not, however, attend a traditional lunch with the president-elect on that day, according to NBC News.

Former Vice President Mike Pence is also planning to attend the inauguration, according to two people with knowledge of the planning. He received an invitation, as is the custom for all former presidents and vice presidents.

Carrie Underwood will sing “America the Beautiful” at Mr. Trump’s inauguration, according to a program of events. Victor Willis, the last surviving founding member of the Village People — whose music Mr. Trump frequently plays at this political rallies — announced on Facebook on Monday that the group had accepted an invitation to participate in Mr. Trump’s inaugural activities.

NBC News also reported that several athletes and musicians would be in attendance: They include Antonio Brown, the football player; Mike Tyson, the boxer; Jorge Masvidal, the martial arts fighter; and Evander Kane, the hockey player. The musicians Anuel AA, Justin Quiles, Rod Wave, Kodak Black and Fivio Foreign will also attend, NBC said.

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Mr. Obama is scheduled to attend, but Michelle Obama, the former first lady, will not. A statement from Mrs. Obama’s office did not specify a reason for the scheduled absence but noted that she had not attended another event this month: She did not accompany her husband to the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter, which every other living former president and first lady attended.

Representative Nancy Pelosi, the former speaker of the House and a chief antagonist of Mr. Trump during his first term in office, will also skip the inauguration. Ms. Pelosi, 84, is still recovering from a hip replacement after falling while on an official trip to Luxembourg, but she has been attending votes in the House. A spokesman would not specify why she would not attend, but there is long-running acrimony between Mr. Trump and Ms. Pelosi.

Democratic members of Congress who have announced or told reporters of their plans to skip the inauguration include: Representative Adam Smith of Washington, Representative Judy Chu of California, Representative Delia Ramirez of Illinois, Representative Donald S. Beyer Jr. of Virginia, Representative Steve Cohen of Tennessee, Representative Jasmine Crockett of Texas, Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Representative Veronica Escobar of Texas.

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Trump wants to visit China again after he takes office: report

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Trump wants to visit China again after he takes office: report

President-elect Trump is discussing the possibility of visiting China again as president with aides, according to a report. 

The incoming president, who takes office on Monday, visited Beijing during his first term in 2017, and spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping over the phone on Friday. 

Trump has been threatening China with tariffs but has told advisers that he wants to strengthen ties with the communist country with the visit, possibly even traveling there within his first 100 days in office, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

“I just spoke to Chairman Xi Jinping of China. The call was a very good one for both China and the U.S.A.,” Trump wrote on Friday on Truth Social. “It is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately. We discussed balancing Trade, Fentanyl, TikTok, and many other subjects. President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the World more peaceful and safe!” 

HOUSE DEMS THREATEN TO BLOCK TRUMP’S BIG TARIFF PLANS: ‘UNACCEPTABLE’

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President-elect Trump is discussing the possibility of visiting China again as president with aides, according to WSJ report.  (Qilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

He didn’t say if they had spoken about a visit. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Trump transition team for comment. 

It is also possible Xi could come to the White House for a visit, the Journal reported.

TRUMP LEAVES CHINA GUESSING WHAT HIS NEXT MOVE IS WITH UNUSUAL INAUGURATION INVITATION

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Trump shaking hands with Xi

Then-President Trump shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Nov. 9, 2017.  (Qilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Xi also met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in Florida in 2017. 

Xi was invited to Trump’s Monday inauguration – no senior Chinese official has ever attended a U.S. presidential inauguration – but Chinese Vice President Han Zheng will be attending instead, in a first. 

Trump and Xi plan to establish a strategic communication channel, China said of their Friday phone call, adding that Trump said he was “looking forward to meeting with President Xi as soon as possible.”

Hang Zheng speaking

Chinese Vice President Han Zheng will attend Trump’s inauguration.  ( Lionel Ng/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Trump has also mentioned the possibility of going to India to aides, the Journal reported. 

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Trump expected to survey Los Angeles-area wildfire damage next week

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Trump expected to survey Los Angeles-area wildfire damage next week

President-elect Donald Trump will likely visit the Los Angeles area next week to view the wildfire damage, he said on Saturday. The trip is expected to be his first outside the nation’s capital after being inaugurated Monday.

“I will be, probably, at the end of the week. I was going to go, actually yesterday, but I thought it would be better if I went as president,” Trump told NBC’s Kristen Welker in a phone interview. “It’s a little bit more appropriate, I suspect.”

Representatives for Trump did not respond to requests for comment on Saturday.

At least 27 people have died and more than 12,000 structures have been destroyed during the catastrophic fires in Pacific Palisades, Altadena and surrounding communities. Asked whether he would sign disaster relief for the region after being inaugurated, Trump said his response will be conditioned to demand policy changes in California.

“We’re going to be [looking] at it from a lot of standpoints,” he said. “We’re going to be demanding that the water be released from the north into the lower parts of California.”

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Asked whether he has spoken with Gov. Gavin Newsom, who Trump has called on to resign over his wildfire response, the president-elect said he had not.

Newsom’s office invited Trump to view the devastation last week.

The governor’s office said that the president-elect’s transition team acknowledged receipt of the invitation but had not otherwise responded.

“As our invitation says, we hope Trump comes to California to see the devastation, to meet firefighters and survivors, and to get the facts instead of sniping from the sidelines,” the governor’s office said in a statement Saturday.

Times staff writer Taryn Luna in Sacramento contributed to this report.

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