Listen to and follow ‘Matter of Opinion’With Lydia Polgreen in South Africa covering its elections, Ross Douthat out on parental leave and Michelle Cottle reporting from a saloon in Colorado, Carlos Lozada turns the “Matter of Opinion” mic over to his Times Opinion colleagues to respond to the news about Donald Trump’s guilty verdict in the New York hush-money trial. The columnists Michelle Goldberg and David French — who calls himself “a recovering litigator” — join the deputy Opinion editor, Patrick Healy, to discuss Trump’s 34 guilty counts and debate what they mean for the former president, whether he’ll face prison time and how it will affect the 2024 presidential race. Below is a lightly edited transcript of their conversation. To listen to this episode, click the play button below.

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Persons: Lydia Polgreen, Ross Douthat, Michelle Cottle, Carlos Lozada, Donald Trump’s, Michelle Goldberg, David French —, “, litigator ” —, Patrick Healy Locations: South Africa, Colorado, New