Jury selection begins for Trump's hush money trial

Former US president Donald Trump appeared in a criminal court in Manhattan, New York City, on Monday in the hush money case, making him the first former US president to stand trial on criminal charges.

Trump arrived at the court in Lower Manhattan around 9 am amid a heavy presence of security guards, press representatives as well as activists from different political camps.

The former US president talked to the press briefly before entering the courtroom.

"The trial is a political persecution... It's an assault on America... it's a country that's failing," he said.

The case should never have been brought, he added, while also complaining about the gag order imposed on him.

In the past week, Trump's lawyers made at least three attempts to delay the trial but the requests were denied by judges.

Trump stands accused of 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with a hush money payment his former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, made to adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels, to cover up an alleged affair ahead of the 2016 election. Trump has pleaded not guilty.

Trading charges

The trial is expected to last six to eight weeks as jury selection kicked off on Monday, according to a release by the New York State Unified Court System.

The day ended without any jurors being chosen. The selection process resumed on Tuesday.

Carrying flags and banners, a number of Trump supporters and critics went to Collect Pond Park in front of the court building, where they traded barbs.

"Our legal system is corrupt, and I'm here to stand with Trump because he's much more honorable than our court system," said Steve Merczynski, a New Yorker, who supports Trump by marketing themed hammocks and hammock chairs.

Merczynski said the US judicial system is partisan and the problem makes people mistrust the system, noting he expected Trump to be found guilty as the vast majority of the jury in New York City are Democrats.

"The justice system is on trial... I think if Trump is found guilty, it shows we don't have a fair system here, because this case should not have been brought. If he's found not guilty, or if there's a hung jury, I have faith in the system that at least some people know of the baloney that this case is a mistake," he said.

Different opinion

For Marc Leavitt, nevertheless, "this is a beautiful day for a trial and for the rule of law."

"I believe strongly in democracy. No man or woman is above the law. Everyone has the right to be proven innocent or guilty," said Leavitt, who wore a placard criticizing Trump.

A group of protesters marched by the court building in the morning and carried a big banner which read "No one is above the law."

Trump, the Republican Party's presumptive presidential nominee in the 2024 United States general election, is facing four criminal indictments, and a conviction in one criminal trial would dampen his presidential campaign, analysts said.

A new AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll finds that only about one-third of US adults say Trump did something illegal in the hush money case, while close to half think he did something illegal in the other three criminal cases pending against him. And they're fairly skeptical that Trump is getting a fair shake from the prosecutors in the case — or that the judge and jurors can be impartial in cases involving him.

Still, half of US citizens would consider Trump unfit to serve as president if he is convicted of falsifying business documents to cover up hush money payments to a woman who said he had an affair with her.

Ai Heping in New York contributed to this story.

Xinhua - Agencies