network externalities. high school graduation? And all three times the judge responded with, essentially, “eh, we’ll see.” And the presumptive GOP nominee kept asking Judge Juan Merchan to cut him loose to attend other matters:

 

Donald Trump is learning a hard lesson: Criminal defendants don’t get to set their own schedules.

ICYMI, Monday was Day 1 of America’s first-ever criminal trial of a former president. And the presumptive GOP nominee kept asking Judge Juan Merchan to cut him loose to attend other matters:

Could he attend his son Barron’s high school graduation?

Could he skip the trial to attend Supreme Court arguments about whether he’s immune from special counsel Jack Smith’s charges?

Could he be exempt from any proceedings that may arise on Wednesdays so he can campaign?

And all three times the judge responded with, essentially, “eh, we’ll see.”

Day 1 of the trial – in which Trump is accused of falsifying business records to buy the silence of porn star Stormy Daniels – focused on vetting potential jurors, though that was delayed for hours when prosecutors moved to hold him in contempt and fine him $3,000 for violating a gag order.

But by the end of the day, Trump seemed less focused on the substance of what happened and more on the judge’s refusal to accommodate his calendar.

“He won’t allow me to leave here for a half a day to go to D.C. and go before the United States Supreme Court, because he thinks he’s superior,” Trump told reporters outside the courtroom.

And he griped about possibly missing Barron’s graduation: “I was looking forward to that graduation, with his mother and father there, and it looks like the judge does not allow me to escape this scam.”

It’s a jarring new reality for Trump. He’s used to setting the agenda, and after he left the White House, he’s been bouncing between his sunny Florida resort and political rallies full of adoring fans. But now, Trump the defendant faces serious restrictions on where he can go and what he’s allowed to say – in addition to staring at potential jail time if convicted.

Read the full story at the link below.

Pool photo by Jabin Botsford/Washington Post

Both Apple and Microsoft benefit from strong network externalities — loosely speaking, everyone uses their products because everyone else uses their products.