This story has been updated with new developments. Donald Trump's lawyers struck out yet again Wednesday with an attempt to delay his hush-money trial in New York. The AP reports that an appeals court rejected Trump's third attempt in three days to halt the trial indefinitely. Earlier, the New York Times reported the lawyers for the former president filed a civil action against the judge, Juan Merchan. It was sealed, but the paper's sources said the filing included, among other things, a request that the case be delayed so the appeals court can weigh whether Merchan should be removed from the case on grounds of a conflict of interest; the filing pointed to his daughter's work as a Democratic political consultant.
ABC News reports Trump's filing also took issue with Merchan's refusal to let Trump argue that he has presidential immunity. Merchan's prior take on both:
- "This Court finds that Defendant had myriad opportunities to raise the claim of presidential immunity well before March 7, 2024."
- "This Court has examined its conscience and is certain in its ability to be fair and impartial."
Jury selection is slated to begin Monday. "Staying the trial at this point would be incredibly disruptive," Steven Wu from the Manhattan DA's office said at Wednesday's hearing. "The court, the people, witnesses have made extraordinary efforts to make sure this trial can take place on Monday." (More
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