Neal Katyal reveals why he 'strongly suspects' Trump will be convicted in hush money case

>>> ON FRIDAY DONALD TRUMP AND

>>> ON FRIDAY DONALD TRUMP AND

HIS LAWYERS FILED A MOTION

ASKING THE JUDGE OVERSEEING HIS

CRIMINAL FRAUD TRIAL IN NEW

YORK TO RECUSE HIMSELF AGAINST

THE CASE.

THEY ARE ACCUSING THE JUDGE OF

POLITICAL BIAS AND IMPROPRIETY.

THAT ALREADY REJECTED IT IN

AUGUST.

AND THE LAST ATTEMPTS FOR TRUMP

TO DELAY THE COURT PROCEEDINGS.

WE'VE SEEN THIS BEFORE, WHICH

ARE SET TO BEGIN IN JUST EIGHT

DAYS.

SO AS WE ALL PREPARE FOR THE

FIRST CRIMINAL TRIAL OF A

FORMER PRESIDENT IN U.S.

HISTORY, IT IS IMPORTANT TO

TAKE A MOMENT TO REMIND

OURSELVES WHAT EXACTLY THIS IS

ALL ABOUT.

I MEAN WE ALL KNOW TRUMP IS

CHARGED WITH 34 COUNTS OF

FALSIFYING BUSINESS RECORDS TO

SILENCE ADULT FILM ACTRESS

STORMY DANIELS.

THAT'S WHY WE OFTEN CALL IT THE

HUSH MONEY CASE.

BUT AS SALACIOUS AS THAT

SOUNDS, IT'S NOT ABOUT HOW HE

COVERED UP HIS ALLEGED AFFAIR,

BUT ABOUT WHY.

LET'S REWIND THIS FOR A SECOND,

THE CLOCK BACK TO OCTOBER 2016

AND THE RELEASE OF THE INFAMOUS

HORRIBLE HOLLYWOOD TAPE.

HE WAS CONDEMNED IN RESPONSE TO

THAT BY MEMBERS OF HIS OWN

PARTY, TRUMP WAS.

SOME EVEN PULLED THEIR

ENDORSEMENTS.

SEVERAL CALLED ON HIM TO DROP

OUT IN THE IMMEDIATE AFTERMATH.

HAD THE DANIELS STORY GOTTEN

PUBLIC AT THAT TIME, SHE COULD

HAVE DAMAGED TRUMP'S CANDIDACY.

SO THE SCHEME TO PAY FOR HER

SILENCE AND COVER IT UP WASN'T

TO SAVE TRUMP FROM SOME

PERSONAL EMBARRASSMENT.

IT WASN'T JUST THAT.

THE PURPOSE IS THE INDICTMENT

MAKES CLEAR TO HIDE DAMAGING

INFORMATION FROM THE VOTING

PUBLIC.

THAT'S IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER.

JOINING ME NOW IS OUR IN-HOUSE

LAW FIRM, EVERYONE'S FEEL LEGAL

AIDE, THE FORMER ACTOR OF

SOLICITOR GENERAL, AND THE

FORMER GENERAL COUNSEL AT FBI,

ROBERT MUELLER'S TEAM.

AND SO LET'S START WITH THE

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS, SHOULD WE

SAY?

ON FRIDAY, YOU KNOW, AS I JUST

WALKED THROUGH.

TRUMP'S TEAM ATTEMPTED TO DELAY

THIS FURTHER BY ACCUSING THE

JUDGE OF BIAS BECAUSE HIS

DAUGHTER IS INVOLVED IN

POLITICAL WORK.

CLEARLY THERE IS NOT A LOT OF

BASIS THERE OR NO BASIS.

I KNOW YOU AND ANDREW HAVE SAID

THAT.

IS THIS JUST TO SOW DOUBT?

WHAT IS THE PLAY HERE?

>> YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.

THERE'S NO BASIS, JEN.

LET ME START BY SAYING AS

SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY PAYS HIS

TAXES, I'M GLAD TO SEE APRIL 15

ACTUALLY HAVING SOME

CONSEQUENCE FOR DONALD TRUMP.

THAT WILL BE THE DAY THE TRIAL

WON'T START.

I THINK THAT IT WILL START

DESPITE THE LAST-MINUTE ATTEMPT

TO EUDILIA.

>> YOU DON'T THINK IT WILL BE

DELAYED?

>> I DON'T.

TRUMP'S DECISION, ALL

THROUGHOUT HIS LEGAL STRATEGY

AND HIS FIRST LIE AND THEN DENY

AND DELAY.

WE ARE ON THE DELAY PHASE OF

THIS AND HIS LAST DITCH EFFORT

TO SAY THE JUDGE IS GETTING,

YOU KNOW, KICKBACKS FOR SOME

MONEY FROM HIS DAUGHTER THROUGH

THIS.

IT IS SOMETHING THAT IS PROPOS

THROWS.

I STRONGLY SUSPECT THAT DONALD

TRUMP WILL BE CONVICTED AT THE

END OF THE TRIAL.

THE FIRST FORMER PRESIDENT TO

HAVE BEEN CONVICTED CRIMINALLY.

>> MAYBE.

THERE IS A LOT TO WATCH AND IT

IS IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE TO

REMEMBER.

SO ANDREW, AS YOU NOTED ON TOP

OF FALSIFYING THE BUSINESS

RECORDS, BUT WE FORGET AS THIS

IS WHY IT WAS SO IMPORTANT TO

ROLL UP THROUGH IT.

BUT TO CONCEAL HIS MOTIVE,

WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY TO HOLD

BACK INFORMATION FROM VOTERS

HERE.

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

I'M ASKING YOU TO GO A LITTLE

META HERE.

BUT WHAT DO YOU THINK THIS WILL

TELL US ABOUT WHAT HE'S CAPABLE

OF OR HOW HE MIGHT APPROACH

THIS MOVING FORWARD.

>> WELL, I THINK WE SAW THE

SAME STRATEGY THAT HE USED IN

2016 AS ALLEGED.

WE SAW IT IN CONNECTION WITH

THE IMPEACH -- THE FIRST

IMPEACHMENT WITH HIS EFFORTS TO

GET UKRAINE TO SAY THAT THEY

WERE DOING AN INVESTIGATION

INTO THE BIDENS.

NOW REMEMBER THAT'S ALL HE

CARED ABOUT.

HE JUST WANTED THE APPEARANCE

OF AN INVESTIGATION.

WE THEN SAW IT IN ITS EFFORTS

WITH JEFFREY CLARK AT THE

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.

HE WANTED THEM TO SAY THAT

THERE WAS AN INVESTIGATION INTO

FRAUD.

AND ALL OF THESE ARE EFFORTS TO

MISLEAD THE PUBLIC IN AN

ELECTION.

AND THE BIG DIFFERENCE BETWEEN

THE ALLEGATIONS IN 2016 THAT

ARE GOING TO GO TO TRIAL AND

WHAT WE'RE SEEING NOW IS A

LITTLE BIT LIKE WHAT YOU

COVERED WITH JANET NAPOLITANO.

JUST THE BRAZENNESS THAT NOW

HE'S OPENLY SAYING, YOU KNOW

WHAT, THERE IS NO SHAME.

I'M NOT GOING TO FIRE HIM

BECAUSE OF WHAT HE DID IN

UKRAINE.

I'M GOING TO HIRE A FELON.

I'M GOING TO RUN ON PARDONING

PEOPLE WHO HAVE HAD DUE PROCESS

AS JANET NAPOLITANO SO RIGHTLY

PUT OUT.

SHE'S GOTTEN MUCH MORE BRAZEN,

BUT IT'S THE SAME STRATEGY.

>> YEAH, I MEAN THE BRAZENNESS

IS SUCH A GOOD -- SPEAKING OF

BRAZENNESS.

I MEAN HE COMPARED HIMSELF TO

NELSON MANDELA.

I MEAN IN THE LAST 24 HOURS.

YEOMEN HE SAID HE WAS WILLING

TO GO TO JAIL.

HE'S, OF COURSE, EVEN DESPITE

THE GAG ORDER.

AND HOW DOES THIS IMPACT?

IT LOOKS LIKE AN OBVIOUS

QUESTION.

HOW DOES THIS IMPACT HIS CASE?

>> RIGHT.

FIRST OF ALL NELSON MANDELA, A

STEP DOWN FROM HIS EARLIER

COMPARISON TO JESUS CHRIST.

>> AND IT IS JUST LIKE YOU

CAN'T MAKE IT UP SOMETIMES.

>> LEGALLY NONE OF THIS IS

GOING ANYWHERE AND THAT IS THE

BEAUTY, 12 JURORS.

AND THESE KINDS OF NONSENSE

ARGUMENTS WILL GO NOWHERE.

SO THAT IS WHY IT WILL BE

CONVICTED AND I SUSPECT EVEN

DESPITE THAT NATURALIZATION

DOWN IN FLORIDA ON THE STOLEN

DOCUMENTS INVESTIGATION.

SHOULD THAT CASE GO TO TRIAL

AND HE'S TRYING TO MAKE IT SO

IT DOES NOT.

BUT IF IT GOES TO TRIAL, HE'LL

BE CONVICTED THERE AS WELL.

>> AND I MEAN WE WILL SEE.

WE ONLY HAVE A MINUTE LEFT, AND

YOU'RE A PROFESSIONAL.

I HAVE TO ASK ABOUT JUDGE

CANNON.

SHE REJECTED TRUMP'S MOTION TO

DISMISS THE CASE, BUT WON'T

RULE ON HIS ARGUMENTS.

IT'S HANGING OUT THERE THAT HIS

PERSONAL PROPERTY IS KIND OF

COULD BE A PART OF HIS, YOU

KNOW, VIOLATES THE PRESIDENT.

IT DOESN'T VIOLATE THEIR ACTS I

SHOULD SAY.

BUT IF YOU'RE JACK SMITH.

I MEAN WHAT DO YOU DO?

WHAT CAN YOU DO IN THIS CASE?

>> I THINK THAT HE WILL HAVE TO

PUSH HER FOR A PRETRIAL RULING.

THAT HE CANNOT WAIT FOR THIS TO

RESOLVE AT TRIAL AND BECAUSE IT

WILL CATCH THEM.

I SUSPECT THAT WE'RE GOING TO

SEE THAT CONTINUED EFFORT TO

GET A RULING.

AND THEN IF SHE DOES NOT RULE,

I THINK THAT THERE WILL BE SOME

SORT OF AN APPEAL, WHETHER IT

IS TECHNICALLY AN APPEAL THAT

THEY WON'T GET INTO THAT.

BUT I DO THINK THAT HE HAS TO

PUSH FOR THE PRETRIAL RULINGS

BECAUSE OF HER CONDUCT HERE.

>> EVERYONE IS GOING TO LEARN

THAT TERM.

SO YOU SHOULD GOOGLE IT NOW.

AND I'M SURE THEY WILL BE

TALKING ABOUT IT SOON.