他,是一個(gè)與紐約有著千絲萬(wàn)縷的聯(lián)系的男人。他是這座城市各大傳媒的最?lèi)?ài),這里有一棟大樓甚至以他的名字命名,他骨子里滲透著紐約人的傲慢與自信。今天,這個(gè)男人即將回到這個(gè)令他聲名雀起的地方,而這座他深?lèi)?ài)的城市,也即將給他帶來(lái)報(bào)應(yīng)。
他先是遭到了選民的拒絕,然后是抗議者的攻擊,接著是陪審團(tuán)的訓(xùn)斥?,F(xiàn)在紐約又有一樣新東西印著特朗普的名字——第71543-23號(hào)起訴書(shū)。
“他想待在曼哈頓,他喜歡曼哈頓。他有一種曼哈頓情節(jié)?!背D曜冯S他的特朗普集團(tuán)副總裁芭芭拉·雷斯說(shuō)?!拔也恢浪欠窠邮芰爽F(xiàn)實(shí),也不知道他是否相信這一點(diǎn)——但是紐約已經(jīng)背叛了他?!?/p>
特朗普的任何一段戀情,都沒(méi)有他對(duì)紐約的愛(ài)更持久。除了紐約,世界上沒(méi)有任何地方配得上他的古怪和浮夸。他對(duì)紐約無(wú)回報(bào)的愛(ài)頗有莎翁式的悲劇色彩,但比這更悲劇的是,這位墻倒萬(wàn)人推的“前總統(tǒng)”已經(jīng)成了這座城市的反面英雄。
特朗普是在紐約的皇后區(qū)出生和長(zhǎng)大的,他的父親是一位房地產(chǎn)開(kāi)發(fā)商,他的項(xiàng)目主要集中在皇后區(qū)和布魯克林區(qū)。但是特朗普從小就渴望渡過(guò)東河,在曼哈頓揚(yáng)名立萬(wàn)。他把破舊的準(zhǔn)將酒店改造成了金碧輝煌的君悅酒店,從而在曼哈頓站穩(wěn)了腳跟。他經(jīng)常與政商大佬和娛樂(lè)界名流同框,時(shí)不時(shí)出現(xiàn)在紐約54俱樂(lè)部等熱門(mén)地點(diǎn),通過(guò)不間斷地吸引媒體報(bào)道,確保自己始終成為輿論的焦點(diǎn)。
在“貪婪無(wú)罪”的80年代,特朗普已成了紐約的象征。在這個(gè)以世界中心自居的城市,特朗普更自認(rèn)為是紐約的國(guó)王。
羅格斯大學(xué)教授、《美國(guó)總統(tǒng)內(nèi)幕史》一書(shū)作者大衛(wèi)·格林伯格指出:“在特朗普的成長(zhǎng)過(guò)程中,他對(duì)那些比他名氣更大、財(cái)富更多、知名度更高的人充滿(mǎn)怨恨。而在曼哈頓的成功——比如建設(shè)特朗普大廈,或者成為80年代的曼哈頓社交名流,這些對(duì)他來(lái)說(shuō)意義重大?!?/p>
正所謂“一將功成萬(wàn)骨枯”。特朗普留下了一堆沒(méi)付的賬單,一大群被拋棄的工人,和無(wú)數(shù)普通的紐約人,這些人早已看穿了他無(wú)恥的自我推銷(xiāo)。
他可能是一個(gè)獨(dú)特的人物,但這座城市的800萬(wàn)人中,每個(gè)人都有自己的故事,他歸根結(jié)底也只是蕓蕓眾生中的一個(gè)。
這么多年過(guò)去了,特朗普在紐約的生活一直繼續(xù)著,就像這座日新月異的城市。他結(jié)婚又離婚,城市里無(wú)數(shù)摩天大樓拔地而起,無(wú)數(shù)企業(yè)注冊(cè)又破產(chǎn)。正是“眼看他起高樓,眼看他樓塌了。”
他從來(lái)不是一個(gè)普通的紐約人——早上通勤擠地鐵,在街頭小販那里買(mǎi)熱狗的那種。但在很多人眼中,他仍然是一個(gè)無(wú)傷大雅的存在。
但是,當(dāng)他連續(xù)多年造謠奧巴馬的出生地,特別是他在2015年6月16日宣布自己將競(jìng)選美國(guó)總統(tǒng)以后,紐約的很多人對(duì)他的尖酸刻薄已經(jīng)失去了耐心。
在洛克菲勒中心舉辦的《周六夜現(xiàn)場(chǎng)》上,特朗普成了節(jié)目的笑柄。而在華爾道夫酒店舉辦的一場(chǎng)慶典上,他也成了人們吐槽的對(duì)象。對(duì)于這座城市的很多人來(lái)說(shuō),他們對(duì)特朗普的厭惡已經(jīng)變成了仇恨。
即使是在共和黨內(nèi)部,很多共和黨人也把他當(dāng)作一個(gè)滿(mǎn)嘴胡謅的老騙子。特朗普雖然贏得了該州的共和黨初選,但并未說(shuō)服曼哈頓的共和黨選民。
福特漢姆大學(xué)的政治學(xué)家克里斯蒂娜·格里爾表示:“他已經(jīng)不僅僅是一個(gè)電視節(jié)目上的冒牌專(zhuān)家了。人們認(rèn)為,這個(gè)人是真有可能將這個(gè)國(guó)家乃至這個(gè)世界引向一個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的方向的?!?/p>
2016年的大選之夜,賈維茨中心里的民主黨人在默默流淚,因?yàn)橄@锏膭龠x派對(duì)無(wú)法舉行了。而在城市另一邊的希爾頓酒店里,特朗普的支持者們則正在為他的意外勝選而狂歡。雖然紐約人并不喜歡特朗普,但他們的不喜歡毫無(wú)意義。特朗普的臉被投射到了帝國(guó)大廈的正面,當(dāng)?shù)厝酥坏门ο磳⒊蔀榭偨y(tǒng)的事實(shí)。
接下來(lái)的幾天,各路政客和名流摩肩接踵地前往特朗普大廈,朝見(jiàn)這位候任總統(tǒng)。而在接下來(lái)的幾周里,關(guān)于他將成為一個(gè)怎樣的總統(tǒng)的預(yù)測(cè)鋪天蓋地。
當(dāng)時(shí)有一種猜測(cè)是,這位總統(tǒng)將頻繁穿梭于紐約和華府之間。后來(lái)有消息稱(chēng),特朗普的妻子和小兒子不會(huì)立即搬到白宮,于是人們更加堅(jiān)信,特朗普不可能完全離開(kāi)這座造就了他的城市。
但特朗普就是特朗普,在他任美國(guó)總統(tǒng)期間,他帶來(lái)了一個(gè)又一個(gè)爭(zhēng)議,打破了一個(gè)又一個(gè)常態(tài)。紐約則成了抵抗之都,不停地發(fā)生各種大規(guī)??棺h活動(dòng)。
他夢(mèng)想中的城市,已經(jīng)不再是他可以稱(chēng)之為“家”的地方。
“紐約已經(jīng)在地獄里了?!彼谂R近2020年選舉日時(shí)說(shuō)。
在清點(diǎn)選票時(shí),拜登在曼哈頓的支持者達(dá)到了特朗普的7倍,而且選舉人團(tuán)票也一邊倒地支持拜登。等到特朗普的任期結(jié)束時(shí),他自己煽動(dòng)了一場(chǎng)失敗的暴亂,然后離開(kāi)了華盛頓。但這時(shí)紐約也顯然不再適合他居住了。
像很多紐約人一樣,他退休后去了佛羅里達(dá)。
現(xiàn)在,就算他回到北方,大部分時(shí)間也待在新澤西州貝德明斯特的俱樂(lè)部里。這下,他與心心念念的曼哈頓再次被一條河隔開(kāi)。
據(jù)《紐約郵報(bào)》報(bào)道,特朗普卸任后第一次回到曼哈頓時(shí),只有一個(gè)人在特朗普大廈外面等著看他一眼。甚至連抗議者都懶得理他了。
起訴特朗普的曼哈頓大陪審團(tuán)成員包括一些支持城市通行權(quán)者,和其他一些負(fù)有陪審義務(wù)的公民。如果紐約大陪審團(tuán)堅(jiān)持以前的做法,那么它的成員將涵蓋不同社區(qū)、收入和背景,至少這些角色是很適合上電視的。
隨著特朗普被起訴的消息傳出,他與紐約的相愛(ài)相殺史終于有了即將劇終的感覺(jué)。就連曾幫助特朗普入主白宮的魯伯特·默多克的《華盛頓郵報(bào)》也拋棄了他。這家報(bào)紙?jiān)浴段易詈玫囊淮涡詯?ài)經(jīng)驗(yàn)》為題,報(bào)道過(guò)特朗普的婚外情,配圖是特朗普那張得意洋洋的臉。但上周《華盛頓郵報(bào)》在頭版稱(chēng)他“精神錯(cuò)亂”,并用大字稱(chēng)他“徹底瘋了”。
特朗普曾吹噓說(shuō),他就算在第五大道中間開(kāi)槍打死一個(gè)人,人們也會(huì)繼續(xù)喜歡他。但是現(xiàn)在,即使他在紐約的街上發(fā)現(xiàn)金,恐怕也無(wú)法贏得大多數(shù)當(dāng)?shù)厝说闹С帧?/p>
特朗普將曼哈頓大陪審團(tuán)的行為斥為“騙局”和“政治迫害”,并否認(rèn)自己做錯(cuò)了任何事。他說(shuō),此事完全是民主黨人的謊言和迫害,目的就是阻止他重返白宮。
這一次在法院外面,也有很多人在等著他,除了各路媒體,還有為數(shù)不多的幾個(gè)本地名流,比如花樣滑冰選手瑪尼·哈拉薩,她身穿豹紋緊身衣,戴著貓耳朵,還帶著一捆象征“封口費(fèi)”的假鈔票。上周五,她獨(dú)自一人站在法院門(mén)外,慶祝紐約最著名的兒子被起訴。
“紐約人精神上都在這里了?!彼f(shuō):“我覺(jué)得我代表了大多數(shù)人的心情。”(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
美聯(lián)社撰稿人Bobby Caina Calvan對(duì)本文也有貢獻(xiàn)。
譯者:樸成奎
他,是一個(gè)與紐約有著千絲萬(wàn)縷的聯(lián)系的男人。他是這座城市各大傳媒的最?lèi)?ài),這里有一棟大樓甚至以他的名字命名,他骨子里滲透著紐約人的傲慢與自信。今天,這個(gè)男人即將回到這個(gè)令他聲名雀起的地方,而這座他深?lèi)?ài)的城市,也即將給他帶來(lái)報(bào)應(yīng)。
他先是遭到了選民的拒絕,然后是抗議者的攻擊,接著是陪審團(tuán)的訓(xùn)斥?,F(xiàn)在紐約又有一樣新東西印著特朗普的名字——第71543-23號(hào)起訴書(shū)。
“他想待在曼哈頓,他喜歡曼哈頓。他有一種曼哈頓情節(jié)?!背D曜冯S他的特朗普集團(tuán)副總裁芭芭拉·雷斯說(shuō)?!拔也恢浪欠窠邮芰爽F(xiàn)實(shí),也不知道他是否相信這一點(diǎn)——但是紐約已經(jīng)背叛了他?!?/p>
特朗普的任何一段戀情,都沒(méi)有他對(duì)紐約的愛(ài)更持久。除了紐約,世界上沒(méi)有任何地方配得上他的古怪和浮夸。他對(duì)紐約無(wú)回報(bào)的愛(ài)頗有莎翁式的悲劇色彩,但比這更悲劇的是,這位墻倒萬(wàn)人推的“前總統(tǒng)”已經(jīng)成了這座城市的反面英雄。
特朗普是在紐約的皇后區(qū)出生和長(zhǎng)大的,他的父親是一位房地產(chǎn)開(kāi)發(fā)商,他的項(xiàng)目主要集中在皇后區(qū)和布魯克林區(qū)。但是特朗普從小就渴望渡過(guò)東河,在曼哈頓揚(yáng)名立萬(wàn)。他把破舊的準(zhǔn)將酒店改造成了金碧輝煌的君悅酒店,從而在曼哈頓站穩(wěn)了腳跟。他經(jīng)常與政商大佬和娛樂(lè)界名流同框,時(shí)不時(shí)出現(xiàn)在紐約54俱樂(lè)部等熱門(mén)地點(diǎn),通過(guò)不間斷地吸引媒體報(bào)道,確保自己始終成為輿論的焦點(diǎn)。
在“貪婪無(wú)罪”的80年代,特朗普已成了紐約的象征。在這個(gè)以世界中心自居的城市,特朗普更自認(rèn)為是紐約的國(guó)王。
羅格斯大學(xué)教授、《美國(guó)總統(tǒng)內(nèi)幕史》一書(shū)作者大衛(wèi)·格林伯格指出:“在特朗普的成長(zhǎng)過(guò)程中,他對(duì)那些比他名氣更大、財(cái)富更多、知名度更高的人充滿(mǎn)怨恨。而在曼哈頓的成功——比如建設(shè)特朗普大廈,或者成為80年代的曼哈頓社交名流,這些對(duì)他來(lái)說(shuō)意義重大?!?/p>
正所謂“一將功成萬(wàn)骨枯”。特朗普留下了一堆沒(méi)付的賬單,一大群被拋棄的工人,和無(wú)數(shù)普通的紐約人,這些人早已看穿了他無(wú)恥的自我推銷(xiāo)。
他可能是一個(gè)獨(dú)特的人物,但這座城市的800萬(wàn)人中,每個(gè)人都有自己的故事,他歸根結(jié)底也只是蕓蕓眾生中的一個(gè)。
這么多年過(guò)去了,特朗普在紐約的生活一直繼續(xù)著,就像這座日新月異的城市。他結(jié)婚又離婚,城市里無(wú)數(shù)摩天大樓拔地而起,無(wú)數(shù)企業(yè)注冊(cè)又破產(chǎn)。正是“眼看他起高樓,眼看他樓塌了?!?/p>
他從來(lái)不是一個(gè)普通的紐約人——早上通勤擠地鐵,在街頭小販那里買(mǎi)熱狗的那種。但在很多人眼中,他仍然是一個(gè)無(wú)傷大雅的存在。
但是,當(dāng)他連續(xù)多年造謠奧巴馬的出生地,特別是他在2015年6月16日宣布自己將競(jìng)選美國(guó)總統(tǒng)以后,紐約的很多人對(duì)他的尖酸刻薄已經(jīng)失去了耐心。
在洛克菲勒中心舉辦的《周六夜現(xiàn)場(chǎng)》上,特朗普成了節(jié)目的笑柄。而在華爾道夫酒店舉辦的一場(chǎng)慶典上,他也成了人們吐槽的對(duì)象。對(duì)于這座城市的很多人來(lái)說(shuō),他們對(duì)特朗普的厭惡已經(jīng)變成了仇恨。
即使是在共和黨內(nèi)部,很多共和黨人也把他當(dāng)作一個(gè)滿(mǎn)嘴胡謅的老騙子。特朗普雖然贏得了該州的共和黨初選,但并未說(shuō)服曼哈頓的共和黨選民。
福特漢姆大學(xué)的政治學(xué)家克里斯蒂娜·格里爾表示:“他已經(jīng)不僅僅是一個(gè)電視節(jié)目上的冒牌專(zhuān)家了。人們認(rèn)為,這個(gè)人是真有可能將這個(gè)國(guó)家乃至這個(gè)世界引向一個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的方向的?!?/p>
2016年的大選之夜,賈維茨中心里的民主黨人在默默流淚,因?yàn)橄@锏膭龠x派對(duì)無(wú)法舉行了。而在城市另一邊的希爾頓酒店里,特朗普的支持者們則正在為他的意外勝選而狂歡。雖然紐約人并不喜歡特朗普,但他們的不喜歡毫無(wú)意義。特朗普的臉被投射到了帝國(guó)大廈的正面,當(dāng)?shù)厝酥坏门ο磳⒊蔀榭偨y(tǒng)的事實(shí)。
接下來(lái)的幾天,各路政客和名流摩肩接踵地前往特朗普大廈,朝見(jiàn)這位候任總統(tǒng)。而在接下來(lái)的幾周里,關(guān)于他將成為一個(gè)怎樣的總統(tǒng)的預(yù)測(cè)鋪天蓋地。
當(dāng)時(shí)有一種猜測(cè)是,這位總統(tǒng)將頻繁穿梭于紐約和華府之間。后來(lái)有消息稱(chēng),特朗普的妻子和小兒子不會(huì)立即搬到白宮,于是人們更加堅(jiān)信,特朗普不可能完全離開(kāi)這座造就了他的城市。
但特朗普就是特朗普,在他任美國(guó)總統(tǒng)期間,他帶來(lái)了一個(gè)又一個(gè)爭(zhēng)議,打破了一個(gè)又一個(gè)常態(tài)。紐約則成了抵抗之都,不停地發(fā)生各種大規(guī)??棺h活動(dòng)。
他夢(mèng)想中的城市,已經(jīng)不再是他可以稱(chēng)之為“家”的地方。
“紐約已經(jīng)在地獄里了?!彼谂R近2020年選舉日時(shí)說(shuō)。
在清點(diǎn)選票時(shí),拜登在曼哈頓的支持者達(dá)到了特朗普的7倍,而且選舉人團(tuán)票也一邊倒地支持拜登。等到特朗普的任期結(jié)束時(shí),他自己煽動(dòng)了一場(chǎng)失敗的暴亂,然后離開(kāi)了華盛頓。但這時(shí)紐約也顯然不再適合他居住了。
像很多紐約人一樣,他退休后去了佛羅里達(dá)。
現(xiàn)在,就算他回到北方,大部分時(shí)間也待在新澤西州貝德明斯特的俱樂(lè)部里。這下,他與心心念念的曼哈頓再次被一條河隔開(kāi)。
據(jù)《紐約郵報(bào)》報(bào)道,特朗普卸任后第一次回到曼哈頓時(shí),只有一個(gè)人在特朗普大廈外面等著看他一眼。甚至連抗議者都懶得理他了。
起訴特朗普的曼哈頓大陪審團(tuán)成員包括一些支持城市通行權(quán)者,和其他一些負(fù)有陪審義務(wù)的公民。如果紐約大陪審團(tuán)堅(jiān)持以前的做法,那么它的成員將涵蓋不同社區(qū)、收入和背景,至少這些角色是很適合上電視的。
隨著特朗普被起訴的消息傳出,他與紐約的相愛(ài)相殺史終于有了即將劇終的感覺(jué)。就連曾幫助特朗普入主白宮的魯伯特·默多克的《華盛頓郵報(bào)》也拋棄了他。這家報(bào)紙?jiān)浴段易詈玫囊淮涡詯?ài)經(jīng)驗(yàn)》為題,報(bào)道過(guò)特朗普的婚外情,配圖是特朗普那張得意洋洋的臉。但上周《華盛頓郵報(bào)》在頭版稱(chēng)他“精神錯(cuò)亂”,并用大字稱(chēng)他“徹底瘋了”。
特朗普曾吹噓說(shuō),他就算在第五大道中間開(kāi)槍打死一個(gè)人,人們也會(huì)繼續(xù)喜歡他。但是現(xiàn)在,即使他在紐約的街上發(fā)現(xiàn)金,恐怕也無(wú)法贏得大多數(shù)當(dāng)?shù)厝说闹С帧?/p>
特朗普將曼哈頓大陪審團(tuán)的行為斥為“騙局”和“政治迫害”,并否認(rèn)自己做錯(cuò)了任何事。他說(shuō),此事完全是民主黨人的謊言和迫害,目的就是阻止他重返白宮。
這一次在法院外面,也有很多人在等著他,除了各路媒體,還有為數(shù)不多的幾個(gè)本地名流,比如花樣滑冰選手瑪尼·哈拉薩,她身穿豹紋緊身衣,戴著貓耳朵,還帶著一捆象征“封口費(fèi)”的假鈔票。上周五,她獨(dú)自一人站在法院門(mén)外,慶祝紐約最著名的兒子被起訴。
“紐約人精神上都在這里了?!彼f(shuō):“我覺(jué)得我代表了大多數(shù)人的心情?!保ㄘ?cái)富中文網(wǎng))
美聯(lián)社撰稿人Bobby Caina Calvan對(duì)本文也有貢獻(xiàn)。
譯者:樸成奎
His name has been plastered on this city’s tabloids, bolted to its buildings and cemented to a special breed of brash New York confidence. Now, with Donald Trump due to return to the place that put him on the map, the city he loved is poised to deliver his comeuppance.
Rejected by its voters, ostracized by its protesters and now rebuked by its jurors, the people of New York have one more thing on which to splash Trump’s name: Indictment No. 71543-23.
“He wanted to be in Manhattan. He loved Manhattan. He had a connection to Manhattan,” says Barbara Res, a longtime employee of the former president who was a vice president at the Trump Organization. “I don’t know that he has accepted it and I don’t know that he believes it, but New York turned on him.”
None of Trump’s romances have lasted longer than his courtship of New York. No place else could match his blend of ostentatious and outlandish. His love of the city going unrequited is Shakespearean enough, but Trump took it a step further, rising to the presidency only to become a hometown antihero.
Trump was born and raised in Queens to a real estate developer father whose projects were largely in Queens and Brooklyn. But the younger Trump ached to cross the East River and make his name in Manhattan. He gained a foothold with his transformation of the rundown Commodore Hotel into a glittering Grand Hyatt and ensured a spotlight on himself by appearing at the side of politicians and celebrities, popping up at Studio 54 and other hot spots and coaxing near-constant media coverage.
By the greed-is-good 1980s, he was a New York fixture. And in a city that prides itself as the center of the world, Trump saw himself as king.
“Trump grew up with a great deal of resentment toward others who he thought had more fame, wealth, or popularity,” says David Greenberg, a Rutgers University professor who wrote “Republic of Spin: An Inside History of the American Presidency.” “Making it in Manhattan — building Trump Tower and becoming a fixture of the Manhattan social scene in the 1980s — meant a lot to him.”
The feeling was never truly mutual, though. Trump left a trail of unpaid bills, jilted workers and everyday New Yorkers who saw through his shameless self-promotion.
He may have been a singular character, but in a city of 8 million stories, his was just another one.
So, for years, Trump’s life here continued as the city raced on around him. Marriages came and went. Skyscrapers rose. Bankruptcies were filed. Trump flickered in and out of fame’s upper echelon.
He may never have been a common New Yorker, packed in the subway on the morning commute or grabbing a hot dog from a street vendor, but for many he remained a benign, if outsized, presence.
That began changing with years of bizarre, racially-fueled lies about Barack Obama’s birthplace, and by the time he descended the golden escalator at Trump Tower on June 16, 2015, to announce his presidential bid, many in his hometown had little patience for the vitriol he spewed.
Rockefeller Center played host to a weekly “Saturday Night Live” that made him a mockery, and at a Waldorf-Astoria gala, he elicited groans. In vast swaths of the city, distaste for Trump turned to hatred.
Even among Republicans, many saw him as believable as a Gucci bag on Canal Street. Trump won the state’s Republican primary, but couldn’t convince GOP voters in Manhattan.
“He’s no longer just this TV show charlatan. People see this man is actually going to lead the country and the world in the wrong direction,” says Christina Greer, a political scientist at Fordham University.
On Election Night 2016, tears flowed at the Javits Center, where Hillary Clinton’s victory party never materialized, while giddy supporters of Trump reveled in his surprise win across town in a Hilton ballroom. New Yorkers’ rebuke of their native son meant nothing. His face was projected unto the face of the Empire State Building as locals digested the fact that he would be president.
In the days that followed, a curious parade of politicians and celebrities journeyed to Trump Tower to meet the president-elect and, for weeks after, predictions about his presidency were rampant.
Among the musings of observers was speculation of a commuter president shuttling between New York and Washington. When word emerged that his wife and young son wouldn’t immediately move to the White House, it gave credence to the idea that Trump could never fully part with the city that made him.
But Trump continued being Trump, his presidency gave way to one controversy and broken norm after another, and New York become a capital of the resistance, giving birth to persistent mass protests.
The city of his dreams was no longer a place he could call home.
“New York has gone to hell,” he said as Election Day 2020 neared.
When the ballots were counted, Manhattan had seven times as many supporters of Joe Biden than those for Trump, and this time the Electoral College followed. When Trump’s presidency ended and he left Washington after the violent insurrection he incited, it was clear New York would be inhospitable.
Like droves of New Yorkers before him, he retired to Florida.
When he returns north now, he spends most of his time at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey. The man who long tried to eschew his bridge-and-tunnel past is again separated from Manhattan by a river.
On his first return to Manhattan after leaving office, the New York Post reported a single person waited outside Trump Tower to catch a glimpse. Even protesters couldn’t be bothered with him anymore.
His rebuke came from New Yorkers taking part in a right-of-passage for city dwellers, jury duty, and if it fit the mold of prior grand juries, it brought together a quintessential Manhattan cross-section, from neighborhoods, incomes and backgrounds different enough to ensure a cast of characters fit for TV.
With word of Trump’s indictment now out, the story of his deteriorating romance with New York is gaining a sense of finality. Even the Post, part of the Rupert Murdoch media empire that helped Trump win the White House to begin with, has abandoned him. The paper that once documented his affair with a screaming “Best Sex I’ve Ever Had” headline beside Trump’s smirking face, last week called him “deranged” on a front page on which he was branded “Bat Hit Crazy” in huge letters.
Trump once bragged he could shoot someone in the middle of Fifth Avenue and remain popular. Today, he could hand out fifties in New York and still not win the support of most locals.
He has dismissed the grand jury’s actions as a “scam” and a “persecution” and denied he did anything wrong. Democrats, he says, are lying and cheating to hurt his campaign to return to the White House.
Outside the courthouse that awaits him, the spectacle has largely been confined to the hordes of media. Among the few regular New Yorkers to make the trip there was Marni Halasa, a figure skater who showed up in a leopard print leotard, cat ears and wads of fake bills strung into a “hush money” boa. She stood alone outside Friday to celebrate the indictment of one of her city’s most famous sons.
“New Yorkers are here in spirit,” she says, “and I feel like I’m representing most of them.”
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Associated Press writer Bobby Caina Calvan contributed to this report.