The remarkable timing of verdicts in unusual cases that captivated the country is highlighted by social media.
@CantorMatthew Matthew Cantor
On March 31, 2023, at 3:09 BST
a former president who was charged with paying a porn actress hush money. An affluent actor and health expert won their legal battle with a retired optometrist after a tense standoff. And it happened all in a matter of hours.
God help America, was the retort on Twitter.
Users quickly flooded social media to emphasise the remarkable timing of the verdicts. First up was the apparently untouchable Donald Trump, who was charged by a grand jury in New York for allegedly paying Stormy Daniels, an adult film actress, hush money during the 2016 presidential campaign. A jury found Gwyneth Paltrow not at blame for a skiing accident she had with Terry Sanderson at an upscale mountain resort less than two hours later, in a Utah courtroom, and gave her $1 in damages.
Trump will soon have his fingerprints taken and go through the felony arrest processing process, which will be a first for a US president. Trump’s other achievements include attempting to rig a fair election and consulting a pillow salesman for political advice. Paltrow, a former orgasm-candle saleswoman who is now a Hollywood nepo baby, enthralled onlookers during a contentious civil suit that provided a rare peek into what it’s like to be absurdly wealthy.
A few Twitter users responded with unadulterated delight.
Some people said they couldn’t have written a finer legal drama for an afternoon of television.
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More than one former president and current presidential candidate have been charged with crimes as a result of the flood of legal actions stemming from Trump’s administration. Lawsuits against Fox News for promoting the “big lie” of a rigged election by the former president also highlight how a poisonous, mutually reinforcing relationship between politics and the media can spread disinformation and tip democracy over the edge.
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