out of sight from onlookers lining the streets. inside that courthouse, the former president processed. his fingerprints taken, and his personal information recorded. he was not placed in handcuffs, and there was no mug shot taken. authorities deeming it unnecessary, because he s one of the knost photomost photographe world. the arraignment described as routine, though the defendant and the charges are anything but. just before 4:00 p.m., trump entering a large courtroom on the second floor to appear before a magistrate judge. already inside, federal prosecutors and special counsel jack smith himself off to the side. smith could be seen looking at trump. the former president, franked by his attorneys at the defense table, looking around the courtroom. at one point, staring directly back at jack smith, too. the two face-to-face for the first time since june 13th, his last arraignment. trump s hands clasped on the table. waiting for over 20 minutes before the judge entered the
time. they need time, too, to defend trump. the judge responded, you will get a fair trial. on the issue of timing, the magistrate said, take it up with the judge who has been assigned the case. the hearing taking just under 30 minutes. also in the courthouse today, officers who defended the capitol on january 6th, capitol police officers harry dunn and aquilino gonell, and d.c. metro police officer daniel hodges, who was pinned between two doors by rioters. his aide, walt nauta, who is charged with trump in the classified documents case, holding the umbrella for the former president. trump speaking to the cameras in the rain, before taking off to new jersey. this is a persecution of a political opponent. this was never supposed to happen in america. david: the former president at reagan airport. the whole team with me here tonight. first to pierre, and it wasn t
just donald trump in that courtroom today. the special counsel, jack smith, also there. well, trump spoke today, but smith did not fr. from now on, we will only hear him speak in court. he was there to speak volumes. number one, i did this, i am prosecuting you, donald trump. and he wanted to support his staff. hearing is coming up august 28th. the case will start to unfold. david: august 28th, just a couple of weeks from now. pierre, thank you. let s get to katherine faulders, live outside the courtroom. katherine, the first legal fight in that courtroom today was over timing. jack smith s team pushing for a speedy trial. donald trump s legal team pushing back. reporter: yeah, the first real debate over timing for this trial. prosecutors said they were already prepared to turn over to trump and his legal team a substantial amount of discovery. but trump s lawyers said the special counsel has had years to investigate, and they wanted the opportunity to fairly defend their client.
august 28th, the hearing, just days before a republican debate. mike pence is fighting to make it on that stage. donald trump hasn t decided if he ll be there, but you could potentially have the defendant on the stage and the star witness in this criminal trial. that first hearing just five days after that first republican debate. and we already have a trial date, may change, but the trial date in the documents case is just weeks before the republican convention next summer. you are seeing a convergence of the political world and the legal world, and donald trump s message, his legal message is now virtually indistinguishable from his political message. they re indicting me, he tells his supporters, because the real target is you. he sounds like somebody who is campaigning as much to stay out of prison as he is campaigning to be in the white house. david: he did say in recent days, i ve been indicted for you. just incredible. jon karl, thank you. this appears to be life in america
assured trump s lawyers that they would have fair process and a fair trial. and that any concerns they had would be addressed at another hearing at the end of this month. david? david: katherine faulders over the fight on timing right away. let s bring in dan abrams. dan, who controls the timing here? and how significant is this? will this play out before the election? so, it s the judge, tanya chutkan, who is going to make the decision here. and she s someone who has issued some tough sentences for some of the other january 6th defendants. she also ruled against donald trump when he was trying to keep some of his white house files from the january 6th commission. so, at first blush, she s someone who may move the case pretty quickly, but remember, it really is something that the defendant has more control over than the prosecution, as to the speed of the trial. the big question, of course, is going to be, do they have this trial before the 2024 election? david: dan, thank you. j