Furor erupts over viral tweet about Donald Trump preparing to resign in exchange for SDNY criminal leniency [UPDATED]
With Donald Trump’s odds of winning the election continuing to dwindle, and the near certainty that he’ll face criminal charges if he loses, it seems logical that at some point he might try to cut a resignation plea deal. But now a viral tweet is claiming that Trump is already holding internal meetings to discuss resignation – and people keep asking me about the tweet.
Here’s the tweet, from former Democratic Coalition Chair Jon Cooper: “BREAKING: According to
@JewishNewsUSA, @realDonaldTrump held a meeting this morning with senior campaign staff, legal advisors and his children to discuss his possible resignation. Resignation would be contingent on a pardon by Pence, and the dismissal of SDNY criminal charges.”
I keep getting questions from Palmer Report readers about whether this tweet is true. The answer is that I have no idea. It’s worth pointing out that the @JewishNewsUSA account on Twitter hasn’t posted anything at all today, raising questions about where this came from.
This tweet aside, if Donald Trump does reach the point where he’s trying to cut a resignation plea deal, there’s one important thing to keep in mind. Despite its confusing name, the SDNY is part of the federal government, and would bring federal charges against Trump. The current grand jury against Donald Trump in New York is state level charges. While Trump could try to cut a federal plea deal with the DOJ and SDNY (or resign and have Pence pardon him), he would need to cut an entirely separate deal with New York State. Update, 4:04pm: the @JewishNewsUSA account has now been suspended by Twitter, casting further doubt on all of it.
