Abbreviated Pundit Roundup: Trump is on trial, as is the media coverage

Abbreviated Pundit Roundup is a long-running series published every morning that collects essential political discussion and analysis around the internet.

Dan Pfeiffer/”The Message Box” on Substack:

Why Trump's Trial is a Big Political Problem

Others will write eloquently about this moment in the larger sweep of American history, but I want to focus on the political implications. Even though jury selection has just begun, defeatism is already infecting the coverage of Trump’s trial. No matter the verdict, Trump will suffer no meaningful political damage.

[...]

I could not disagree with this analysis more. The scale of his crimes (Donald Trump falsifying records to cover up an extramarital affair) seems like small potatoes when compared to his violent attempt to overthrow an election or stealing closely-held national secrets from the White House and then showing them to random people at his beach club. Trump is unlikely to be sentenced to prison if convicted. Still, a felony conviction months before a divisive election is nothing to scoff at.

This trial is a big deal with massive implications.