By the time he appeared virtually in Merchan’s courtroom Friday morning, Trump knew full well that he would face no real penalty for his conviction. The judge was well-aware that we bubble-wrap presidents and protect them from legal proceedings and sentences that could undermine their ability to do their jobs.

Donald Trump was sentenced without penalty in the New York hush money case Friday after a symbolic – and historic and unprecedented – hearing following the first felony conviction of a former and soon-to-be sitting president.

President-elect Donald Trump spoke for six minutes. The judge talked for seven. In the end, the first criminal court sentencing of a former or future president took little more than half an hour.

Friday’s punishment was largely symbolic, but it ensured that Donald J. Trump would become America’s first felon president.

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Here's what is means when a court grants an unconditional discharge, as happened with President-elect Donald Trump's hush money case Jan. 10.

Donald Trump was not punished for his criminal conviction in the Manhattan hush money case, bringing a lackluster end to the legal saga that will make him the country’s first felon-turned-president. At a sentencing hearing on Friday,