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How could Trump’s conviction impact June debate?

(NewsNation) — Could former President Donald Trump’s hush money conviction impede his ability to travel?

It’s what many voters awaiting the first televised 2024 presidential debate in June are wondering.


“I know many people don’t expect former President Trump to be at Rikers Island to serve his sentence,” said trial attorney and legal analyst Mercedes Colwin. “What there might be is some form of restriction that’s going to be placed on travel.”

Trump was found guilty Thursday of 34 felony charges for falsifying business records in an effort to keep information from voters ahead of the 2016 election.

The former president’s sentencing hearing on July 11 and the conditions he’s placed under could impact the first debate between Trump and President Joe Biden on June 27 on CNN.

Trump has said he would debate Biden “any time, any place, anywhere” in an effort to get the president to commit to joining him on stage ahead of November’s rematch of the 2020 election.

That, however, may not be entirely his call now.

The case was the first of four criminal cases against Trump and may be the only one to be decided before the election in November. The case centered around hush money payments made to Playboy model Karen McDougal and adult film star Stormy Daniels, who said they had affairs with Trump and were paid to stay quiet ahead of the 2016 election. Trump then allegedly paid former fixer Michael Cohen back for the payments.

Trump was charged with 34 counts related to falsifying business records to conceal damaging information from voters ahead of the election. Cohen previously pleaded guilty to violating campaign finance laws for orchestrating or making the hush money payments.