A letter from Special Counsel Jack Smith to the ex-president signals an upcoming new trial that will see democracy itself at stake.
The exact nature of the charges against Donald Trump in the January 6 case is not yet known, but it is expected that there will be many and very serious charges.
The ability of the United States to resist any attempt to corrupt its democratic institutions will also be put to the test, and every voter will be a member of the jury.
Allegations galore
Hundreds of people have already been convicted for their part in the attempted violent uprising on January 6, 2021.
Many of them followed Donald Trump’s call. Some are serving lengthy prison terms for the crime of a seditious conspiracy committed in his name. Now it is the turn of the one without whom all this would not have been possible and who has been brought to justice for his part in these crimes against democracy.
The number of possible charges against Donald Trump in this case is staggering: inciting insurrection, seditious conspiracy, illegal interference in the electoral process, pressuring Vice President Pence to exceed his powers, fraudulent fundraising based on lies, hoax. ..
All possible allegations point in the same direction: Donald Trump tried to corrupt democratic institutions in order to stay in power against the will of the voters.
A historical process
The federal criminal charges against Trump in Florida are no picnic, but democracy itself is at stake in the upcoming trial.
This process will be very different. First, it will take place in Washington, where the likelihood of finding a judge and jury biased in favor of Trump is infinitely less than in Florida. On the other hand, the facts are less clear than with the documents.
In addition, there is a risk that the trial in Florida will be delayed by several months due to the administrative complications associated with the processing of classified documents, in the case of January 6 not, since the trial could begin before the hearing on the documents.
Trump or democracy
After Jan. 6, several elected Republicans pointed to Trump’s responsibility. In particular, Senate leader Mitch McConnell claimed Trump was “practically and morally” responsible for these disturbing events.
These elected Republicans believed Trump’s “balloon” would pop, but their party remained a cult of his personality. Today, they split into four to defend the ex-president, proclaiming that the allegations against him are part of Democrats’ partisan instrumentalization (weapon) of the judiciary.
It’s a little mustard from a party whose leader encourages his supporters to call for the imprisonment of his opponents without trial. In addition, Trump promises that if he regains the presidency, he will abolish the independence of the judiciary and make the federal government an instrument of his personal power. Obviously, if elected, Trump would end the federal lawsuits against him.
The ultimate jury will be the American electorate, who will have to choose between Trump and democracy in 2024. He can’t have both.
