People are jumping the gun in their reaction to the indictment of Donald Trump.
Today's post risks being a killjoy amidst the mixed sounds of cheering and outrage. I feel like a designated driver at a raucous party.
Comments coming from the anti-Trump world of mainstream commentary and Twitter celebrants are giddy at the prospect of Trump in prison. Meanwhile, Republican officeholders have closed ranks echoing Trump. They call it an outrage that a former president would be subject to criminal investigation and prosecution by a Democratic District Attorney.
People need to calm down, slow down, and wait for justice to play out. It is good citizenship. It is also good politics.
There is no shortage of images circulating of Trump in prison looking glum and punished. Michael Cohen, who was sentenced to three years in prison for his part in Trump's mess, posted this image:
An indictment isn't guilt, conviction, and sentencing. It is just an early step in the process. Commentary in non-Trump media are calling it historic, "the first ever indicted president," and speculating about whether Trump can run for office from prison. Oh, what a delicious subject for them.Meanwhile Republicans are apoplectic. The response goes beyond parody as they fulminate with angry indignation that Trump is being indicted, and by a puppet of George Soros no less. Trump called it "an attack on our country the likes of which has never been seen before." Ted Cruz raises money saying "Once again, the Left is weaponizing our legal system!" DeSantis said “The weaponization of the legal system to advance a political agenda turns the rule of law on its head. It is un-American.”
Republicans are not claiming Trump is innocent. They know better than to climb out onto that limb. The attack is on the prosecution itself.
There is another way either party could handle this. It would be to make an entirely different point. Demonstrate patriotic commitment to equal justice and the rule of law. Treat the indictment with sober seriousness. This is our legal system, not a sporting event. Simultaneously condemn celebrity culture and the entitlement of the rich and famous. That would help make a serious subject more popular.
There is a tradition to look back to. Presidents, former presidents, billionaires, sports stars, and movie stars are subject to the same laws as everyone else. At the height of his popularity Elvis Presley was drafted--just like other young men. It legitimized the draft and government generally. At the height of his career Mohamed Ali resisted the draft and was tried and convicted. Before he went crazy, Rudolf Giuliani became popular by perfecting the "perp walk" of the rich and powerful. He was an equal-opportunity prosecutor. The Watergate hearings and subsequent prosecutions of "all the president's men" demonstrated an American consensus about justice. Crimes are crimes. The scofflaw southern governors of the 1950s and 1960s who defied integration laws were the villains, at least to a majority of Americans.Republicans are missing an opportunity here. They could be communicating that they are the party of reform, clean government, the opponent of privilege. They want credibility with working class and suburban Americans, and claim to be the opponents of elitists. So why are Republicans rallying against a District Attorney investigating and prosecuting a crime against a person of privilege? Is Trump too important to obey the law They are on the wrong side of this.
Democrats, too, need to chill. Don't openly savor guilty verdicts before we even know the nature of the indictments. It shows disrespect to the process. Democrats want to regain credibility as a party of law and order. Many Democrats say openly that they suspect police officers profile minorities and presume them guilty. So don't gleefully presume Trump is guilty. It feeds White working class resentment that Democrats indulge Blacks and pick on Trump. Trump tells White voters that Democratic attacks on him are really targeting them.
Democrats shouldn't take the bait. The high road is also the politically smart one. Stand for sober, equal justice. Praise justice, not victory.
Trump has led the GOP into a bad spot, where they celebrate defiance of the law. They say it is all a game and it is rigged against them. The better frame for Democrats is to contrast themselves against the GOP by endorsing calm, adult justice.
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16 comments:
Of all the potential indictments against Trump, the porn star payoff is undoubtedly the least consequential, but it doesn’t really matter which comes first. If he were being indicted for inciting an armed insurrection, Republicans would still be rallying to his defense – in fact, they already have. One of the few true comments Trump ever made is that he could shoot someone in the middle of 5th Avenue and not lose any votes. The worse he acts, the better his cult followers like him and without them, there wouldn’t be much left of the GOP.
I completely agree and have said so previously. The Hunter Biden "situation" (whatever it is, if anything) should be handled similarly.
Here are a few other rich, famous and/or privileged people who have paid a price for their crimes (in no particular order and obviously it is not a complete list): Bernie Madoff, Jeffrey Epstein, Martha Stewart, Bill Cosby, Michael Avenatti (Stormy Daniels' former lawyer), the USC celebrity parents that got caught in the admissions bribery scandal (Felicity Huffman was one), the "Housewives of NJ" couple that went to prison (Joe and Teresa Guidice, I think). Also, the "taxes are for little people" woman (Leona Hensley?) and the Enron guy, as I recall.
Bill Clinton was impeached and dragged through the mud. John Edwards was dragged through the mud and prosecuted, but not convicted.
Secretly, some Republicans probably are jumping for joy. The former Occupant, a billionaire (supposedly), gets to use this as another opportunity to beg for money from his cult.
After reading our local newspaper this morning, I was kind of surprised to see this post. So I went back and checked--sure enough, no story about Trump in there. There is, however, some excellent coverage of our local unhoused population. I think it's sad that so many media resources are wasted on a disgraced former leader and his disillusioned rabble. In my opinion, this is a legal issue, not a political one.
I wonder if his attorneys will let him testify under oath. Considering his history of lying, it might make it even worse for him. They might suggest he keep his mouth shut and not take the stand. Supposedly, there’s around 30 separate charges. That will an interesting list. He still has Georgia to answer to and January 6th. And the hits just keep on coming.
His mug shots will be on t-shirts by Wednesday.
We don't know what he is charged with. The indictment has not been made public. How can any reasonable person have an opinion as to whether he did it or whether there is probable cause to believe he did it?
After the indictment is made public, he will certainly enter a not guilty plea. At that point he is presumed innocent. No fair minded person could take any position other than he is innocent.
At trial, unless we read every page of transcript or attend the trial in person or by electronic means we won't know what the evidence is and must continue with the presumption of innocence, assuming we are fair minded.
When the verdict is read the legal presumption is that the verdict is correct. At that point we all can have a valid basis for our opinions. Disagreement with the verdict is valid, although, to be fair minded we should have some rational basis for disagreeing.
This may seem hard to some, but it is how we achieve justice.
As the Torah insists, “Justice, justice shall you pursue.”
"Simultaneously condemn celebrity culture and the entitlement of the rich and famous."
Wonderful satire! but I digress...
MSNBC, arguably the most liberal news organization, is falling over backwards with cautionary rhetoric. My current drinking game is to take a shot every time I hear the word "alleged".
The outrage on the right however, is off the charts. Especially Lindsey Graham, though it's understandable because he's under scrutiny as well. You can smell the fear.
Anyway, for most of us I think it's basically a sigh of relief. Our system continues to function; let's take a moment and celebrate that whatever the outcome justice is being pursued, and by the way at no small personal risk to those involved.
Re “ This is our legal system, not a sporting event”. Don’t you think we are far beyond that now Peter? Political theater these days is more like WWE with manufactured heroes and villains. But the stakes are much higher now.
Sage words, Peter. Phil, too.
Anonymous said, "I think it's sad that so many media resources are wasted on a disgraced former leader and his disillusioned rabble."
What's even sadder is that he remains the leader of the Republican Party and their probable candidate for president in 2024. Unfortunately, what he says and does still matters because of that.
Most of the people I know have a visceral reaction of revulsion and disgust towards Trump. The reaction is so strong that it seems to me that it distorts their thinking.
I don’t personally have that reaction. I don’t want Trump to be president for reasons having to do with competence. I liked some of the things he did as president and disliked others, but I didn’t have that kind of emotional reaction in either direction.
But then again, I had exactly the same reaction about Hillary, who I absolutely couldn’t stand. I guess it goes to show that we are all different people, and we need to do our best to get along with each other.
You’re right, Peter. People are a bit overexcited. On the other hand, I’m a bit harkened by reading that Lindsay Graham was so alarmed by the indictment that he almost cried :)
And no, it’s not a sporting event. Would that it were a sporting event, featuring attention-hog Trump at the center of a large, crowded coliseum, and involving lions or gladiators :)
I predict that Trumps legal team will seek a change of venue, probably to Moscow, where he can perhaps get a friendly judge. Lol.
Well said, Rick!
Phil, most people believe that the indictment itself, following presentation of evidence, is Probable Cause, though certainly not Proof.
I'm guessing photoshopped mugshot tees and sweatshirts are already silkscreen and ready to hit the interwebz.
I totally agree with Peter; as tempting as it is, Democratic followers need to cool it, and let the system work, no matter how difficult they find it.
I did see one report which claimed that Trump wanted to be handcuffed and perpwalked, to aid in his "I'm a victim, send money" appeals to his base.
It's true that Mohammed Ali was prosecuted and convicted for resisting the draft, but that isn't an example coordinate with the others you give of people not being above the law. Ali opposed the war, but he was a Muslim minister and entitled to a ministerial exemption. That was his claim. It was later upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, but not before professional boxing stripped him from his titles. His case is an example of unequal justice under the law.
Ali was, indeed, a CO, and his conviction was reversed on appleal
My point was that all those people, including Mohamed Ali, submitted to legal process. They did not consider themselves exempt from the law. For the Ali case to have differed from the others, Ali would have said that he was a champion and the USA should honor that boxing title and keep an American as champion. Or, that as a minister, he listened to God, not American judges, and the law was illegitimate when applied to him. He didn't. He submitted to the law and it's process. He had a bad outcome, appealed and then won using the law's procedures.
Peter Sage
Ali said he didn’t want to kill anyone. He just wanted to beat them up.
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