Mary Trump believes televising Donald Trump’s criminal trials might help deprogram some of his supporters ― and predicts the former president will come to regret it.
Trump is expected to appear in a Fulton County courtroom next month for his formal arraignment following his indictment on racketeering charges over an alleged conspiracy to overturn Georgia’s 2020 election results.
Unlike federal or Manhattan courts, where Trump appeared for his first three arraignments, cameras are permitted in Georgia courtrooms with a judge’s approval.
“I think it’s going to have an enormous impact, because even for people who are his supporters and who think that this is a miscarriage of justice, this will be must-see TV,” the former president’s niece, a clinical psychologist and author, told MSNBC’s Katie Phang on Sunday.
“And Donald has always told them not to believe their lying eyes ― only to believe him,” she added. “However, when he’s the one they’re looking at, it’s going to be very difficult for him to spin away from what’s actually happening in front of our eyes.”
One of Trump’s attorneys, John Lauro, has pushed for cameras in the courtroom in the federal case concerning Trump’s attempted coup, telling CNN earlier this month: “I personally want the public to see what’s going on in this country right now.”
Democratic lawmakers have called for the same thing, arguing it’s important the public sees the strength of the evidence and how the trial is conducted
“I think it’s going to be monumentally important that there be cameras, at the very least in the Fulton County courtroom,” Mary Trump said, noting that Trump’s legal team had asked for cameras in federal court.
“I also think that it’s going to be something that Donald himself is going to regret,” she added. “And I think pretty quickly they’re going to find out that that’s really not something that they wanted after all.”
Watch the interview below.