Rove: NY sentencing could have sealed Trump victory if held on schedule

The ongoing legal battles faced by former President Donald Trump have been a key thread running through his 2024 campaign right from the start, but key developments on one of his cases last week have sparked debate among the punditry about who reaped the benefits.

While Trump himself was likely relieved to learn that he will not be sentenced in his New York hush money case on Sept. 18 as scheduled, political strategist and Fox News contributor Karl Rove suggests that such an event could have actually helped him win in November, as Mediaite reports.

Sentencing delayed

As NBC News reported, it was last week that presiding Judge Juan Merchan once again delayed sentencing of Trump for the criminal convictions obtained against him earlier this year.

According to the judge, Trump will now have to wait until Nov. 26 to learn his fate, pushing the proceedings until after the presidential election.

In outlining the rationale for his decision, Merchan wrote, “This is not a decision this Court makes lightly but it is the decision which in this Court's view, best advances the interests of justice.”

Merchan noted that the Manhattan D.A.'s office had not objected to a postponement and suggested that broader concerns about public perceptions influenced his decision.

“The public's confidence in the integrity of our judicial system demands a sentencing hearing that is entirely focused on the verdict of the jury and the weighing of aggravating and mitigating factors free from distraction or distortion,” Merchan said, indicating his belief that the upcoming election was poised to prevent such a process from taking place.

Rove weighs in

Discussing Merchan's move in the context of electoral maneuvering, Rove first praised the judge and then opined on what might have happened had he moved forward with sentencing as originally planned.

“Well, first of all, it's a reasonable decision. I think even the judge figured out that it would be enormously disruptive to the country and reflect badly on the judiciary if he attempted to insert himself into the middle of the final stages of a presidential campaign.”

Rove also concurred with a number of other pundits who said that “if he had gone forward with this, it would have, ironically enough, served the interest of Donald Trump.”

“Donald Trump has risen in the polls the more the people have reacted negatively to his treatment in the courtroom. And if the judge had gone ahead with this, it could have easily been the October surprise,” Rove opined.

Whether Trump even needs the sort of boost of national outrage a harsh sentence from Merchan would have almost certainly brought is something that remains to be seen, but for now, the nation will have to wait a few more months to see where this particularly notorious case of selective prosecution ultimately goes.