SARAH VINE: Every second of Trump’s Messiah moment was pure box office

The madness was in effect yesterday, as those at both ends of the US political spectrum converged outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse where former President Trump was set to face charges.

They had gathered since dawn, beating their respective drums and displaying the typical “sophistication” of the modern political activist.

A Trump superfan, complete with MAGA hat and matching red lipstick, launched himself at an anti-Trump banner shouting, “I have Covid!” against anyone who stood in her way.

Another declared “F**k white people,” another “F*** you, you white trash Nazi,” while a Fox reporter was attacked by a mob of angry leftists.

Predictably, The Donald left his audience waiting. As the world tuned in to the Trump Tower entrance, nothing happened at all — for a long time.

Helicopters buzzed overhead; ordinary New Yorkers went about their business with an air of studied casualness; an ambulance was waiting on standby.

A group of security men shared a joke. Someone stifled a yawn. A door opened! Was it him? No. A few boys appeared and assumed the familiar leg-width, hands-folded posture of security guards, ears adorned with curling threads.

Then, almost casually – as if he was just coming for a burger – he came out through the revolving gold doors. Familiar red tie, jaw clenched tightly, The Don paused to raise a fist in solidarity with his screaming fans before sliding into a darkened SUV.

Excitement increased as the column drove off, chased by helicopters, gliding through the streets of New York unobstructed by traffic. Outside the court, packed with cameras and reporters, supporters and opponents waited for their man.

It only took him a few minutes to reach his destination; another wave, this time with a more gritty face and then a weary trudge to the courthouse entrance.

After his arrest, he was on the move again — careful to show an uncuffed hand by pushing open the door to the courtroom himself — before, finally, the money shot: a still shot of Trump sitting in the courtroom, surrounded by his lawyers.

There was a detached, solemn look in his eyes, as if he were weighed down by the grief of his own tragedy.

We saw less than a minute of him – and every second was pure box office.

Whatever you think of yesterday’s events and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s decision to formally charge Donald Trump with paying hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels, there is one person who will love every second of it. enjoy: Trump himself. .

In fact, if one—like so many of his supporters—was a conspiracy theorist, one might suspect that Trump fabricated the whole thing as a way to turn himself into a martyr at the hands of the evil Democrats.

After all, for a man as smart as he is to make such a seemingly schoolboy mistake in reimbursing his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, for the $130,000 advanced to Ms. Daniels in the form of several separate payments for “legal charges’ – giving the prosecution reasons to charge him with falsifying business documents – seems rather strange.

Trump is many things — vain, reckless, paranoid — but he’s not stupid and he’s experienced enough in business to know that something like that is a no-no.

Perhaps he did it all on purpose, knowing that sooner or later he would end up in court, knowing that Bragg—a staunch Democrat who has made no secret of hating Trump—would take the bait.

Then Trump would have his Messiah moment, parading past screaming crowds to a show trial, his loyal disciples ready to tear down the temples of democracy to free their savior.

If that were the case, it would make Mrs. Daniels a kind of 21st-century Mary Magdalene. Bonkers of course, but we’re talking about Donald Trump.

Everything is possible. Especially since his advisers have clocked the reputational value of a due process on television from recent appearances by Gwyneth Paltrow and Johnny Depp.

One thing I do know, though: we’re in unfamiliar territory. Not just because this is the first time in American history that a president has been prosecuted; but also because no politician has ever harnessed the unhinged and unpredictable power of social media in the same way Trump has.

For someone so quick to decry “fake news,” he’s a character who thrives online, whose armies of supporters range from self-proclaimed shamans to QAnon fantasists living their lives in front of flickering screens, lost in the depths of their own lives. paranoia.

And as we saw with the infamous storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021, he knows how to summon a crowd, how to grab the power of a social media buildup and turn it into flesh.

After spending an evening in his job, I have to say there’s something undeniably sinister about him. In 2018, I was fortunate enough to be invited to the state banquet in honor of his and the First Lady’s visit to Britain, in the presence of the late Queen.

It was an extraordinary occasion for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the presence of the extended Trump clan, which included his youngest daughter Tiffany and his eldest, Ivanka, along with her (decidedly creepy) husband Jared Kushner.

Unlike the current US president, Joe Biden, who reportedly turned down an invitation to the coronation, Trump was delighted to be in the presence of royalty.

There was a distinct sense that white tie and tails were where he felt he belonged and that being celebrated in such a way at the palace was something that had been on his bucket list for a long time.

He was bursting with pride, his ego beaming across the room like a giant orange sun.

But there was nothing warm about his presence. He showed no interest in anything but himself, no respect for anyone or anything – not even for the queen or his entourage.

He clearly gave the impression that he thought it was all – including Her Majesty – purely for his benefit. It was about him, the Donald. That’s where Trump’s ambition begins and ends, with himself.

And the only reason he wants to be America’s next president is because being POTUS means he’s the most famous man in the world and therefore has the full attention of the entire world, all day, every day.

Nothing less, you see, will feed his ego’s insatiable appetite.

That is it. That’s really all Donald Trump has to offer. That’s why after four years in office he’s still not one bit interested in politics, as I found out when I tried to get him involved in the subject. There is only one talking point for Trump – and that is Trump.

So: this won’t matter to him. Whether he is found guilty or not does not matter: the main thing is that all eyes are on him, that he will be at the epicenter of the drama.

Which, win or lose, is a tragedy for the American people — and for the Republican Party.

Because that’s not what they need right now. America needs a substantial person, not a permanently browned empty vessel like Trump (or, for that matter, a lanky old leftist addicted to virtue signaling and gesture politics like Biden).

Someone like Ron DeSantis (called “DeSanctimonious” by Trump, who recognizes him as a threat), a man who – as a keen observer of American politics recently put it to me – is part Ronald Reagan, part Rishi Sunak with a little Kemi Badenoch . In other words, authentic Right of Center with broad social appeal and the ability to get things done.

But while DeSantis gained ground, yesterday’s events somewhat overshadowed him.

While he has a slight lead over Trump in his home state of Florida, where he is governor, senior Republicans felt compelled to support Trump in response to what they see as a tribal attack on one of their own.

And that’s the problem with this indictment: it actually strengthens Trump’s case.

And as gratifying as it may be to see Trump put to the book (and I’d enjoy that outcome, for instance), with his giant ego dominating every news bulletin and headline, any true Republican candidate will find himself in a orange hurricane howls. .