Now that the trial has come to an end and Trump has become the first former U.S. president to be found guilty of a felony, which includes 34 felony counts over allegedly falsifying business documents, the conviction will still have dire consequences for Black Americans. Why? Because even though Trump is convicted, he can still run for president.
According to the Constitution, the only prerequisites to holding the position are 1) being a natural born citizen who is at least 35 years of age and 2) being a resident of the U.S. for 14 years.
Since Trump has been found guilty, he will most likely receive probation and fines instead of actual prison time as a first-time offender in a non-violent case. All 34 charges that Trump currently faces are classified as class E felonies in New York.
This means that they are on the lowest tier of felony charges in the state and hold a maximum sentence of four years each. Ultimately, Trump’s fate lies in Judge Merchan’s hands.
He is expected to appeal the verdict.
According to USA Today, “Trump will also likely to remain at liberty until the election.
More from USA Today:
“As a first time felon, his sentence could be as light as probation... Even if he does receive a jailtime sentence, he probably push it off until the appeal is resolved.A few presidential candidates in history have campaigned after an indictment or conviction: Socialist candidate Eugene V. Debs ran for president for the fifth time in 1920 while in prison for sedition. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry ran for president alongside Trump in the 2016 Republican primary after being indicted two years earlier for abuse of official capacity and coercion of a public official, but he dropped out of the race a few months into the primary.
While Trump has claimed he is the least racist person in the world, his policies have time and again stoked racial strife, violence and divisions among the races. In fact, allegations that he is racist reaches back to the 1970s, according to the Associated Press:
From his earliest days as a New York real estate developer, Trump has faced accusations of racist business practices. He spent years spreading the lie that Barack Obama, America’s first Black president, was ineligible to hold office. When he was president, Trump derided “shithole countries” in Africa and said four congresswomen of color should go back to the “broken and crime-infested” countries they came from, ignoring the fact that all of the women are American citizens and three were born in the U.S.
But as he seeks the presidency for a third time, Trump is aiming to win over an unlikely constituency: Black voters.
“Have you seen our poll numbers with African Americans and with Hispanic Americans? But I’m not that surprised because I see it, I feel it,” Trump declared during a rally in Atkinson, New Hampshire, days before the state’s primary. “We did great in 2016, we did much better in 2020 but there is much more enthusiasm now.”
There’s little evidence that Trump is making significant inroads with Black voters, who polls show remain overwhelmingly supportive of President Joe Biden...
Despite Trump’s push for the Black vote, African Americans won’t forget he is now a felon and definitely won’t forget his actions against us.