The First of Many
The Historic Indictment of a Former American President and Why it Had to Happen
“No one is above the law.” That sentence is one that so much of what we now know to be the basic norms of democracy are built upon. The idea that no one is exempt from breaking the laws of the land is supposed to be one of the great levelers in all of society, ensuring that those who lead us are no less subject to the rules that guide us as we are.
We can argue about what that looks like, the differences in the application of said laws and if those who lead us get lighter treatment from the authorities, but the basic standard still applies. But there are times when events demand that we have a reminder of that fact, when someone comes along and tries to act as if this basic principle of legal gravity does not apply to them. Last night that time came in the United States of America, and it wasn’t much of a surprise:
The 45th President of the United States has broken new ground, and not the good kind. While there will likely be a sense of satisfaction for many in the United States and around the World to see mugshots of Mr. Trump next week, this moment isn’t one that I think is one for glee. Seeing any former American President brought up on legitimate criminal charges because of their conscious actions isn’t something that I think we should be happy about, even if it is what had to be done and was the absolute right thing to do. And this won’t be the last time that we are faced with these feelings, as multiple other charges in various other jurisdictions likely await Trump in the future.
It is that last reason that gives me pause on popping any champagne corks like an F1 driver who just won his first Grand Prix. There is a reason why this norm has never been broken before Trump came along; because most past American Presidents never forced the people to deal with someone with such disrespect for the laws of the land and actively tried to break them consistently. The one exception before Trump would have been Richard Nixon, with the pardon that he was given by Gerald Ford, that left him outside the grasp of federal authorities. But even with Nixon, his general contempt for his political opponents and his willingness to break the law to get at them, even he would have only been up for charges in one incident that we know of where he clearly broke the law. And when he resigned from office, he slunk into the shadows and became a tarnished political figure to the vast majority of Americans until he passed. Where the law didn’t punish him, American society for the most part took care of that.
That is where Trump has broken the mould, one that needs to be reset by the assertion of the legal system and proving that that no one is truly above the law. Trump has thoroughly put that principle into question through his actions, prior to, during and after his Presidency. He’s kept pushing the legal envelope, daring prosecutors to hold him accountable for his actions while making bellicose threats to burn the country to the ground if they dare to hold him to the same standard as the rest of us.
In a sense, Trump has reason to honestly believe that he is above the law. He’s used this formula of threats and menacing public prosecutors to strong effect to date. The case that he appears to be indicted on last night came during the election campaign, so well over six years ago. In the case of his attempts to try to get Georgia officials to “find” votes out of thin air and overturn the election results, he hasn’t been indicted on yet. That happened 28 months ago. And his role in inciting the storming of the American Capitol on January 6th, 2021, no indictments at all after 27 months. Hundreds of the people he encouraged and incited that day have been charged, found guilty or are waiting for their cases and instead of denouncing what they did, he’s pimping a song many of those defendants made with Trump’s words it in to raise money for their legal defense. I am having a hard time thinking of a better “F-U” to give to those upholding the law then throwing a Billboard chart spot in their faces as evidence of his flaunting of how untouchable he thinks he is.
That kind of narcissistic behaviour needs to be corrected and brought into line because we know that if anyone else was doing it, their asses would have been brought up on charges for their alleged crimes long ago. You only need to look at the chorus singing behind Trump for evidence of that. If anything should be crystal clear at this point, it is that he’s not going to stop or change his ways. Most criminals who keep getting away with breaking the law don’t, until they finally face a consequence when they are caught.
It is important for the law to reassert itself now because if it cannot, it will seriously erode the strength of our democratic system. Look at what has been playing out in Israel over the past weeks, where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been trying to neuter the judicial system there, all while he also happens to be facing corruption charges. In trying to remove the only true check and balance on the power of an elected government, Netanyahu has set off weeks of protests from all across society, business and the military, knowing that if this proposal becomes law, it could start to spell the end of Israeli democracy.
In this case against Trump, and the others that will surely come, it’s important for the law not only to be applied equally, it is important to show that Mr. Trump is not above the law. If the law cannot do that in such an egregious case, think of the message that would send to someone who might come next and try to push the envelope even further than the 45th President has. Who knows, maybe that person will also sell T-shirts to mark their indictment. Yes folks, that’s how far down the rabbit hole we’ve gone and while I don’t like the drama and crap that will come along with this, it has to happen. Because if the law can’t hold Trump responsible in these circumstances, we honestly must ask ourselves if they ever will be able to. And a negative answer to that question should scare the living Hell out of everyone who cherishes the democratic values that we clearly are prone to taking for granted.