What happens if Trump goes on trial during the presidential campaign?  

Welcome to Friday’s Early Edition from i.

It may have been his third court appearance this year, but it was by far the most symbolic. The Washington federal court, just blocks from the scene of the 2021 Capitol riots, was “the same court in which hundreds of rioters have been sentenced,” noted one of the police officers who defended the building that day. Aquilino Gonell, who retired from service after suffering injuries carrying out his duties during the 6 January insurrection, was seen entering the courthouse. In a statement on social media later he said: “On that day, I risked my life defending everyone regardless of their political affiliation. Our democracy is worth fighting for. Not prosecuting is far riskier than having no consequences for alleged power grab attempts”. Trump, after pleading not guilty to conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results, later said: “So if you can’t beat ’em, you persecute ’em or you prosecute ’em.” Interestingly, he made his remarks to reporters while standing next to Walt Nuata, his co-defendant in the classified documents case. But enough of what was said. What happens now? Prosecutors have indicated they want to move swiftly. How soon will Trump be back in court, and how disruptive will this be to his upcoming presidential campaign? We’ll take a look, after the headlines.

 Today’s news, and why it matters

 Millions of Britons are willing to pay more for environmentally friendly goods and services, putting large swathes of the public at odds with Rishi Sunak’s backsliding on green pledges, a poll has suggested. Despite the cost of living crisis, 40 per cent of UK adults who responded to the Yonder poll said they are prepared to pay up to 25 per cent more for sustainable products.

Those who mistakenly believe Covid-19 has gone away have been surprised as new figures revealed a rise in the number of people with the virus, as well as a surge by a third in the number of Covid tests sold. Health experts told i the rise in virus cases is concerning, particularly for those with underlying health conditions and say the public should treat the increase as an “early warning sign”.

More than six million households face huge rises in their mortgage payments as the Bank of England indicated its base rate will average around 5.5 per cent for the next three years. Following Thursday’s rate decision, the Bank’s Governor Andrew Bailey warned that inflation was expected to remain persistent and that during three more years of stagnant economic growth interest rates would remain high.

Cancer patients and people with long-term illnesses are among those at risk of losing their home as government support for mortgages fails to keep up with rising interest rates. Over 200,000 low-income households received government help with their mortgage payments at the height of the 2008 financial crisis but this figure has plummeted to less than 12,000 today as homeowners find themselves squeezed by soaring interest rates.

Rishi Sunak is considering becoming the first prime minister in a decade to skip the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations, the Telegraph reports. It says the PM is is considering to instead focus on pushing progress on his five promises and preparing for the annual Conservative Party conference.

Four key questions arising from Donald Trump’s latest court appearance:

What are Trump’s next court dates? Magistrate Judge Moxila Upadhyaya set 28 August for the former president’s next one, but Trump does not have to attend. It will be at this hearing his trial date will be set. Special counsel Jack Smith has said he wants “a speedy trial” in just 90 days, but Trump’s lawyers believe it should be held after the presidental election. The August hearing will fall just five days after the first Republican presidential debate, due to be held in Milwaukee. However, Trump may not appear at that either. He recently posted on TruthSocial:” Let them debate so I can see who I MIGHT consider for Vice President!” Trump also faces a series of other court dates, relating to his two other indictments and a defamation case, and that could fill his diary up further if he is indicted in Georgia on another case relating to the 2020 election – which is expected to happen early this month. Here’s how his schedule looks: 4 December is his next court date for the case over alleged hush money payments to Stormy Daniels, 15 January 2024 is the trial date for civil defamation lawsuit brought by writer E Jean Carroll, 25 March 2024 his trial is set to begin in New York for the Stormy Daniels case and 20 May 2024 is the one for the classified documents case. Phew.

What legal defences might his lawyers use? John Lauro, Mr Trump’s lawyer, has already hinted that they are looking at the free speech defence – using the First Amendment to argue in his favour. “This is the first time that the First Amendment has been criminalised,” Mr Lauro, told NBC’s Today show, adding: “It’s the first time that a sitting president is attacking a political opponent on First Amendment grounds.” The 45-page indictment addresses this issue directly, stating: “The defendant [Mr Trump] had a right, like every American, to speak publicly about the election and even to claim, falsely, that there had been outcome-determinative fraud during the election and that he had won”. Experts say it’s a flimsy defence. “If all that this was about was lies or the alleged lies of President Trump, then he’d have a pretty good legal defence based on the First Amendment,” Floyd Abrams, a First Amendment lawyer at the New York-based Cahill Gordon & Reindell law firm, told Associated Press. “But the theory of the indictment is that the speech of the president and the falsehoods of the president were part of a general effort to steal the election.” Election law expert Richard Hasen pointed to two other possibilities. The first would be an attempt to “run out the clock” so that Trump is re-elected before any chance of conviction, meaning he could as president then pardon himself. The second strategy could be to argue that prosecutors cannot prove the charges. “For example, the government will have to prove that Trump not only intended to interfere with Congress’ fair counting of the electoral college votes in 2020 but also that Trump did so ‘corruptly’,” he wrote in Slate magazine. They could also argue that Trump genuinely believed his own lies about election fraud, in what is called the “delusion defence”. Axios points out such a defence “would force Republicans into the uncomfortable position of defending a candidate who can’t be trusted to distinguish reality from conspiracy — and who now wants to be president again.”

What happens if Trump goes on trial during the presidental campaign? Trump’s set court dates already clash with key events for his campaign trail. The civil trial brought by E Jean Carroll, accusing Trump of defaming her, lands on the same day as the Iowa Republican Caucuses. The Stormy Daniels trial begins just weeks after the Super Tuesday primaries. His federal criminal trial over the classified documents comes just as the final GOP primaries approach. The conflicts are likely to distract and physically take Trump away from the campaign trail. But some believe the having the trial coincide with the election campaign would not only deliver justice, but help uphold democracy. As Richard Hasen, an election law expert at the University of California, Los Angelos, writes: “Constant publicity from the trial would give the American people in the middle of the election season a close look at the actions Trump took for his own personal benefit while putting lives and the country at risk. “It, of course, also serves the goals of justice and of deterring Trump, or any future like-minded would-be authoritarian, from attempting any similar attack on American democracy ever again.” If the trial is wrapped up before the November 2024 election, there is the possibility that Mr Trump could be convicted and go to prison. But this doesn’t necessarily mean that he won’t also be president, which leads us to the next question:

Can Trump still be president if convicted? The extraordinary image of an elected president campaigning and then serving whilst behind bars is, even more incredibly, not impossible. The American constitution requires only three things of prospective candidates, that they must be a natural born citizen, at least 35 years old, and a resident of the US for at least 14 years. But it also contains some clauses that could potentially be used to throw him out of office. Section three of the 14th amendment prohibits anyone who has held any office from ever serving again if they have “engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof”. Robert Reich, the US professor and lawyer, previously explained “the reason for the disqualification clause is that someone who has engaged in an insurrection against the United States cannot be trusted to use constitutional methods to regain office.” Axios also reported that some senior officials are “encouraging 25th Amendment discussions” to remove him from office. The 25th Amendment was ratified in 1967 to address what happens in terms of presidential succession if a leader becomes incapacitated. It has been used previously to put vice-presidents in charge when the sitting president has had serious medical procedures, but has never been used to permanently remove a president. However the most likely scenario being discussed is that Trump could use a victory at the polls to pardon himself. This has also raised the cynical question of whether Mr Trump is running to avoid conviction. Whether a federal sentence would also have to be postponed is less clear, but the question might not matter if the new president used his pardon power to set himself free — or preemptively pardon himself from any pending federal charges. (The pardon power covers federal crimes, but not state crimes like the New York charges for which Trump was indicted this week.) David Stebenne, a professor of history and law at Ohio State University, told Politico earlier this year: “It provides a strange reason to run, but a powerful incentive. If Trump attempted to do that, it would probably create some sort of constitutional crisis.”

 Around the world

 The almost utter absence of criticism from Donald Trump’s GOP rivals for the 2024 presidential race shows the power of the Maga movement extends far beyond the former president himself, experts say. As one polling expert put it to i, all of them hope that Mr Trump’s lead over them in the polls is greatly reduced as a result of the charges. Yet, none of them want to say it out loud. None of them wants to be the one to “jump on the grenade”.

Two American volunteer fighters have been killed in a drone attack while fighting in Ukraine. i understands the men had been fighting with a unit called Chosen Company and were part of the Ukrainian ground force’s 59th motorised brigade.

The Canadian province of Alberta has pulled its support for a bid to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games, due to rising costs. The move comes just weeks after Australia pulled out of hosting the 2026 games in Victoria because of budget blowouts.

Italy’s prime minister is suing the lead vocalist of British rock band Placebo for insulting her during a concert in July. Brian Molko, who has British citizenship but grew up in Luxembourg, described Giorgio Meloni as a “piece of s***, fascist, racist” during a performance at the Sonic Park festival in Stupinigi, near Turin.

Images taken by the James Webb space telescope have revealed the death throes of a distant star in stunning detail. The pictures reveal the doughnut-shaped structure of glowing gas called the Ring Nebula, which lies about 2,600 light years from Earth.

Watch out for…

Sadiq Khan, who is funding a major expansion of the car scrappage scheme in London. The Labour Mayor says he will not scrap the planned expansion of the Ultra Low Emissions Zone but will instead offer more financial incentivies for Londoners to switch to non-polluting vehicles.  

Thoughts for the day

Dominic Cummings, remember him? Turns out he was right, after all. Progress in reshaping the state to make the UK a science superpower is just too slow, says Sebastian Payne.

The BBC is empowering Trump by bending over backwards in the name of ‘balance’. Our broadcasters’ emphasis on equal airtime goes too far, argues Michael Day.

I still love my ex-husband – here’s what Justin Trudeau needs to know for a good mid-life divorce. None of this is easy when you are experiencing a potent mix of anguish, anger, fear and regret that comes in the wake of separation, writes Linda Kelsey.

 Culture Break

 Miles Kane, One Man Band review: Kane can’t suppress his boyishness even after 20 years. There’s a childlike wonder and anticipation of an exciting future on this album. For an indie rock record, this is refreshing, writes Emily Bootle.

 The Big Read

I spent five years meeting people radicalised online – this is what I learned about social media. The stories were wide-ranging – from teenage students in the Midlands spending too much time on 4chan to wealthy pensioners in Scotland falling down a YouTube rabbit hole.

Sport

 Premier League referees told to crack down on aggressive behaviour and time-wasting this season. ‘We want to make football a positive place to be’, says Kevin Friend, who works for PGMOL as manager of the Select Group 2 referees.

 Something to brighten your day

 I went to a nude dinner party and being naked was the least cringe thing about it. Each day running up to the event I would have a new friend agree to come only to cancel the next day – and I fell into a frenzy, reveals Gizzi Erskine.