#Trump drops bid to move NY hush money case to federal court in sudden twist

Former President Trump in a sudden twist dropped his bid to move his hush money criminal case to federal court Tuesday.

At the time of publication, the reason the former president’s counsel moved for a voluntary dismissal of the appeal was unclear. 

The decision to do so means Trump will proceed in state court as he defends himself against 34 charges of falsifying business records, which revolve around hush money deals made with former adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. The women were paid a combined $280,000 to cover up allegations of an affair.

Trump’s filing Tuesday came one day before his lawyers were due to submit their argument in writing to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals as to why Trump’s case should be moved to federal court.

The Hill has reached out to Trump’s legal team for comment.

Trump’s appeal followed a federal judge rejecting the former president’s effort to move courts, ruling the case was not sufficiently connected to Trump’s role as president.

Hush money by itself is legal, but prosecutors charged Trump over how he reimbursed his then-fixer, Michael Cohen, for making the payments to the women in 2017.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s (D) office — which opposed Trump’s effort to move to federal court — alleges Trump improperly deemed the reimbursements a legal retainer in an effort to hide damaging information from the public ahead of that year’s presidential election. Trump pleaded not guilty.

The Hill has reached out to Bragg’s office for comment.

Trump’s New York criminal trial is scheduled to begin March 25, though that could change if timelines cross with his federal case over efforts to subvert the 2020 presidential election, which is set to begin March 4.