Former President Donald Trump’s June 8 indictment by a federal grand jury in Miami was unquestionably historic, perhaps infamously so.
On June 13, he pleaded not guilty to 37 federal crimes related to his handling of classified documents and his refusal to give them back to the government.
Presidents and other national political figures have faced allegations of crimes before, most notably in our lifetime, Richard Nixon, and Watergate. In the fallout from the allegations that Nixon had been involved in a burglary, he resigned and was spared an ignominious fate when he was pardoned by his successor, President Gerald Ford who had been his vice-president.
The Wall Street Journal in an editorial on June 9 described the indictment as not only more than a dark day historically but dangerous to democracy:
“Whether you love or hate Donald Trump, his indictment by President Biden’s Justice Department is a fraught moment for American democracy. For the first time in U.S. history, the prosecutorial power of the federal government has been used against a former President who is also running against the sitting President. This is far graver than the previous indictment by a rogue New York prosecutor, and it will roil the 2024 election and U.S. politics for years to come,” wrote the Journal’s editorial board.
What’s different this time, argued The Journal in an editorial on Friday, June 9, are the political implications of prosecution stemming from the administration of President Joe Biden. The newspaper posited that both Biden and former presidential candidate, former Secretary of State and former U. S. Senator Hillary Clinton also could have been charged with mishandling classified government documents but were not and have not been charged.
”It was once unthinkable in America that the government’s awesome power of prosecution would be turned on a political opponent. That seal has now been broken. It didn’t need to be. However cavalier he was with classified files, Mr. Trump did not accept a bribe or betray secrets to Russia. The FBI recovered the missing documents when it raided Mar-a-Lago, so presumably there are no more secret attack plans for Mr. Trump to show off, ”wrote the Journal.
As Trump continues to run for his party’s nomination for president in the next election his upcoming trial and the news coverage that will continue about this controversy will possibly overshadow vital political debate about the many issues that confront both our country and the world.
His circus act that he perpetuates will add to the diversion and confusion.
Nevertheless, the country and democracy will survive as we have in the past.
Most reactions across the nation since the indictment was unsealed on June 9 have been predictable, falling along party lines and consistent with liberal and conservative views.
There appears to be no middle ground on this and other issues facing our country.
We often hear how political discourse in this country has never been as vicious and divisive as it is today. The glaring lack of historical knowledge about our government is alarming but what else can we expect in a world of Twitter and Facebook and Instagram?
Political opponents have fought viciously throughout our history. Have we forgotten that Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton dueled, and Hamilton was shot dead? Hamilton had criticized Burr in the press, allegedly defaming Burr’s character.
Today, Burr would write an op-ed defending himself, tour the Sunday television talk show circuit and tweet until his fingers hurt. Back then, he simply shot Hamilton dead and that was that.
Indicted for murder in both New York and New Jersey, Burr was never convicted. His post-duel business schemes, one of which involved an alleged attempt to create a separate country, resulted in an arrest and charge of treason. He was tried multiple times but never convicted.
He was, however, allowed to resume his practice of law. He died broke.
And, oh, by the way, on the day that Burr and Hamilton faced each other with pistols – July 11, 1804 – Burr just happened to be serving as vice president of the United States.
And we think politics are rough in 2023?
As early as 1850, a full 11 years before the Civil War, there was an instance in the U.S. Senate where one senator drew a pistol on another senator while both houses of Congress argued about slavery. Then there was the famous beating of Massachusetts Sen. Charles Sumner, who was writing at his senate chamber desk in 1856 when U.S. Rep. Preston Brooks of South Carolina walked up to Sumner, accused him of insulting a relative in a speech, and promptly beat him unconscious with a walking cane. Sumner suffered grave injuries.
Viciousness and law-breaking in the realm of politics and government are not new to this country or to this era of public life.
Trump and his problems will at some point fade into the darkness and dust of history books and perhaps amount to little more than a footnote as we continue our quest to perfect the world’s greatest experiment in democracy.
The disagreements that come with that quest must be allowed to run their course through processes that were established long ago and have remained viable in the face of daunting challenges.
The latest Trump indictment – he also faces felony charges in New York related to alleged hush-money paid to a porn star during the 2016 presidential campaign – now needs to proceed through the courts. Those in the peanut gallery would be best advised to direct their sound bites elsewhere. Much of what’s being said about the case at this point is chatter without substance – words filling time and space until the next explosion of sensational headlines.
The indictment is mind-boggling on its face – we’re talking about serious charges involving the safety and security of our country – but everyone needs to remember that Trump is innocent until proven guilty. He is accused of removing sensitive government documents from Washington and storing and hiding them at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida. The indictment includes 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information.
Democracy and the rule of law are being put to a test just as they have been throughout our history.
The predominance of social media, often reckless and without factual foundation, added to Trump’s equally reckless and bellicose nature, will intensify the ongoing controversy. But it’s all just noise until the courts do their job and sort the wheat from the chaff.
Not surprisingly, Trump’s poll numbers actually went up following his indictment and he remains the overwhelming front runner in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. He has a loyal and vocal base, and it remains undaunted. Whether or not that base can return him to the White House is another story, and highly debatable.
If he would simply shut up the clamor might subside, but Trump becoming quiet and reflective is as likely as a whale becoming a minnow. There have been few better examples of someone being his own worst enemy.
The beauty of America, among many other blessings, is that we have survived and even evolved as people and as a country. Through all our travails, we have remained the most influential and powerful nation in the world.
As we continue to grow and change, there will other crises and other confrontations, and future generations will decry the uncivilized rancor and discourse as being the “worst in history.”
They, too, will be wrong and guilty of not understanding the rock-solid foundation of our Constitution and our history of vigorous, often heated and sometimes violent dissension and debate while political parties and social movements jockey for dominance.
We have met and been equal to every test, even a Civil War that threatened our very survival. We will endure today’s turmoil and confront the future as we continue our fragile tightrope walk through history.