A phalanx of reporters, cameras, and satellite trucks has surrounded the courthouse for weeks, monitoring the comings and goings of the grand jurors hearing evidence in the case.
There was very little when The Telegraph arrived shortly before 7am on Thursday, but by early afternoon a circus of pro and anti-Trump protesters filled Pennsylvania and Constitution Ave, the streets outside the court.
Once inside the building, reporters from across the globe jostled for one of the few seats in court room 22-A.
A court clerk jokingly offered to submit the waiting journalists to a quiz. Veteran court reporters knew better than to take up the offer.
Question one: how do you pronounce the magistrate judge’s surname? (For those not closely following, today’s proceedings will be overseen by magistrate judge Moxila Upadhyaya).
In the end, it was a lottery system to get a coveted seat in court.