Trump vs. Jean Carroll: judge assigns dates in the midst of GOP primary kickoff

Jean Carroll again gets her way in the New York courts. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan admitted his latest lawsuit against Donald Trump and set the trial date for January 15, 2024. The date chosen by the federal judge in the Southern District of New York coincides with the GOP primary in which Donald Trump is running.

Carroll's lawsuit against the former president is for defamation. Specifically for Trump's remarks during CNN's town hall held just days after the first conviction in Carroll's favor in the sexual abuse complaint. In this new lawsuit, Carroll is seeking an additional $10 million.

Carroll denounced Trump for a series of controversial remarks made during the program. Trump, who appealed the judge's decision, claimed that Carroll was a "crackpot," among other adjectives, in addition to asserting different things about her cat, who was allegedly named "Vagina." She also noted that Carroll called her ex-husband John Johnson an "ape" several times in public. Johnson is African-American.

This new trial will hold its first part a week before the first Republican caucus in the country, in Iowa, a key state in the 2024 presidential election, as much as in the party's primaries. It is reasonable to think that, although Trump is ahead in the polls, a trial at this time would be unfavorable for his image.

In the coming 12 months, Trump faces three separate trials. The fraud trial against him and his conglomerate of companies is scheduled for October 2023. In March 2024 Trump has an appointment with District Attorney Alvin Bragg for another alleged corporate fraud. In the case of the Mar-a-Lago classified documents trial, the start of the trial has not yet been set.

Along with Carroll's lawsuit, these are some of the many open judicial fronts against former President Trump, who repeatedly pointed to the instrumentalization of Justice by his Democratic adversaries in what he calls a "witch hunt."