2023-08-19 06:00:00
We have been hearing the vociferations of businessman and politician Donald Trump for seven years now.
Expressions like “deep state” or “witch hunt” are now familiar to us. His supporters are convinced that he is the victim of the relentlessness of the elites who cannot tolerate the intrusion of a hero of the people, the only one capable of putting an end to corruption in order, finally, to restore the country’s greatness.
A historical accumulation of expenses
Donald Trump did not invent corruption and influence peddling in Washington, far from it. A president like William Harding died before facing justice and we know better the story of Richard Nixon.
Faced with overwhelming evidence, Nixon chose resignation over the disastrous spectacle of the impeachment process.
Other times, other mores, the 45th president has already survived two dismissal procedures. Not because the evidence was insufficient, but because the process is eminently political.
Last week, Fulton County Georgia District Attorney Fani Willis filed charges against the former president and eighteen of his alleged accomplices.
This will be the fourth major trial that Donald Trump will have to face.
Accused in New York in a story of fraud, he is also twice faced with charges from special prosecutor Jack Smith.
The latter initially criticizes him for his management of confidential documents which he has refused to return on numerous occasions and he also accuses him in the file of the assault on the Capitol in January 2021.
Backed up against the wall, he bets everything on the political map
Faced with a grand total of 91 charges, already convicted of sexual assault, Donald Trump continues despite everything to lie and deny, while attacking prosecutors or judges.
Why act like this when elementary prudence should encourage restraint? Because many supporters still believe him and because he hopes to win the 2024 presidential election.
It is his supporters who, through their generous contributions, indirectly pay for his legal costs and it is they who keep him politically alive. For the Republican Party, Donald Trump’s candidacy is heartbreaking.
If we remain loyal to Trump, the odds of a defeat in 2024 are high. If he is pushed aside, it is his supporters who are provoked and, without them, there is no victory.
A criminal enterprise
After the recent charges in Georgia, three things should get your attention.
Initially, television cameras will be allowed in the room. If we fear that it will turn into a circus because of the nature of Trump, we must also consider that the live broadcast of the evidence will do nothing to restore the image of the billionaire.
Second, according to specific Georgia procedures, Donald Trump could not consider granting himself a presidential pardon if he wins in 2024. It would be difficult for him to obtain one from the state governor since the latter would not be not alone to decide.
Finally, prosecutor Willis will resort to a law (RICO) that is used for trials related to organized crime, the mafia.
Here we are in 2023. A former president tried to invalidate the results of a legitimate election. To do this, he would have coordinated his efforts with eighteen other defendants, imagining a scheme that intertwined intimidation, use of false documents, lies, breaking of oaths and obstruction of justice.
Once again, it is the fate of democracy and the integrity of the system that will be sorely tested.
#Donald #Trump #criminalization #politics