This is the fifth article in this series; see Concerns About Trump Presidency Part 1: Important Intro.
A common defense against criticisms of a politician is to suggest that they’re little different than other politicians past and present. I suspect that most people with wealth will face some legal attacks, but these come in the form of law suits. Trump is the first president to face criminal charges and the first to be convicted of crime. This is not to say that other presidents have been saints—far from it. Arguably, some should have faced consequences for their actions. Nevertheless, Trump’s actions are concerning.
In addition to his alleged and convicted crimes, Trump has been impeached twice; only two other presidents have ever been impeached (Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton). All have been acquitted in the Senate along largely party lines. (The House only needs a majority to impeach while the Senate requires a 2/3rds majority to remove from office.)
We at least want to believe that citizens, even including our politicians, can’t commit crimes without consequence. In the U.S., no one is supposed to be above the law. Ironically, Republicans have at times positioned themselves as the party in favor of law and order and the ones who are tough on crime.
Ukraine
Trump was first impeached after it was learned that he attempted to coerce Ukraine (and other governments?) into investigating Biden and his son prior to the 2020 election.1 It is definitely concerning that Trump used his position as U.S. president in order to attempt to use other countries for his own gain.
Incitement of Insurrection
Shortly before leaving office, the U.S. House of Representatives impeached Trump for “incitement of insurrection” in regards to his encouraging his supporters to come to D.C., claiming he’d won the election, and suggesting that his supporters could forcefully prevent Biden from being formally certified as the next president.2 This is certainly one of the most concerning charges due to the deaths and injuries which this led to as well as the attempt at undermining the democracy of the United States.
Federal election interference
Trump was indited on 4 charges related to his attempt to hold onto the presidency despite having lost the election. What is most concerning isn’t the legal details though. It’s how he pressured everyone he could, filed numerous law suits, and encouraged his supporters such that they stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempted coup d’état in which 5 people were killed, 140 injured, and numerous others put in serious danger.3 Unfortunately, these charges have been dropped.4
Georgia election interference
Trump (along with others) was also indited in Georgia in relation to his attempts to have the results of the election changed in the state. Unfortunately, this case will probably not lead to any consequences for Trump as he is about to re-assume the presidency.5
Federal classified documents
Trump was indited for apparently intentionally keeping classified documents, denying he had more, and attempting to hide and hold onto them even after requests and investigations were made. Some may think about Biden being found to have classified documents as well after his vice-presidency. The big difference is in how they responded. Biden complied with all of the requested while Trump continually denied and attempted to block any actions. It’s this latter part which I find concerning. Unfortunately, it seems that this case will be dismissed due to Trump’s return to the presidency.6
Hush money (State of New York)
Trump has been convicted a 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in New York. Despite his conviction, he was unconditionally discharged, meaning no punishment.78
Beyond the inditements, there have been dozens of investigations and many concerns regarding conflicts of interest and Trump’s use of the presidency for his own gain. Additionally concerning is the Supreme Court’s decision which has made the president effectively immune even from criminal prosecution.9 The decision was apparently surprising and opposed by most experts.10
Overall, I find this disturbing because of the precedent it seems to set. It suggests that crimes are ok if you can get away with them. It also suggests that if you are rich and powerful enough, then you are above the law. This threatens our democracy because it goes against the system of law the country runs on which has brought us stability and threatens to replace it with corruption in which only the most powerful win and this at everyone else’s expense.
Interesting new development: https://www.newschannel5.com/politics/trump-indictments/special-counsel-jack-smith-has-resigned-after-submitting-his-trump-report-justice-department-says
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trump%E2%80%93Ukraine_scandal ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_impeachment_of_Donald_Trump ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_6_United_States_Capitol_attack ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_prosecution_of_Donald_Trump_(election_obstruction_case) ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_election_racketeering_prosecution ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_prosecution_of_Donald_Trump_(classified_documents_case) ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosecution_of_Donald_Trump_in_New_York ↩︎
- https://www.newschannel5.com/politics/trump-indictments/after-exausting-appeals-trump-set-to-be-sentenced-in-ny-hush-money-case ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trump_v._United_States_(2024) ↩︎
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trump_v._United_States_(2024)#Reactions ↩︎
