Former prosecutor warns Trump trial judge's past donations may hurt optics of court case
Former prosecutor Carol Lam told MSNBC that while the judge overseeing Trump’s case may have made a small donation to Biden’s campaign, "the optics are a bit problematic."
A former prosecutor warned on MSNBC that the judge overseeing Former President Trump’s criminal case having made political donations to progressive groups in the past has "troubling optics."
Trump was formally charged for crimes related to hush-money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, but the judge presiding over the case faces scrutiny for past political donations.
Federal Election Commission reports show that in 2020, Judge Juan Merchan made contributions to the Biden for President campaign committee, the Progressive Turnout Project and its subsidiary political action committee called Stop Republicans. Each contribution was for $15 or less.
On MSNBC, former Southern California U.S. Attorney Carol Lam warned that Merchan’s past political donations could hurt public perception of the trial.
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Carol Lam, a former federal prosecutor, served as an attorney in southern California. (MSNBC)
MSNBC host Lindsey Reiser noted, "We’ve also learned, during an FEC filing report, that Judge Juan Merchan, who presided over Trump’s New York arraignment, made a campaign donation to President Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign, it was for $15."
Reiser then asked, "Are the optics problematic here?"
Lam replied, "I think the optics are a bit problematic," and warned that political donations from judges are an ethical conundrum.
"To be clear, the donations were made in 2020, before Judge Merchan had either the Trump organization case assigned to him or, obviously, this case, but it is troubling optics, I think, for any judge to have made a political contribution, and then to have a party who is either the beneficiary or not the beneficiary of that political contribution before that judge in court," she said.
Judge Juan Merchan, far right, addresses former President Donald Trump, far left, regarding his rights and requirements, Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in a Manhattan courtroom in New York. Defense attorney Joseph Tacopina, center, looked on. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
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Lam added further that regardless of size, a donation of this can make a judge suspect to the public.
"Now, it was a trivial amount of money and this is a trial level judge. The judge in this case is not the ultimate trier of fact, the jury is, but the judge does call some balls and some strikes during the course of the trial, and if there’s a conviction, the judge is responsible for sentencing," she said.
"That is all subject to review on appeal. However, it is probably not the best course of action for a judge to have made political contributions while a sitting judge, with the possibility that such cases can arise before him," Lam said.
Judge Juan Merchan, the Manhattan Supreme Court justice who presided over the arraignment of former President Donald Trump (Marc A. Hermann/POLARIS)
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Trump appeared before Merchan Tuesday for his arraignment and has called the judge and his family "Trump haters" on social media. Merchant's daughter worked directly for Kamala Harris' 2020 presidential campaign and her consulting firm Biden-Harris 2020 campaign.
Fox News reporter Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
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