Trump’s January 6 impeachment trial will overshadow all others

A letter from Special Prosecutor Jack Smith to the former president indicates an imminent new trial where democracy itself will be on the line.

It is not yet known the exact nature of the charges against Donald Trump in the January 6 case, but it is expected that there will be several very serious charges.

It is also the ability of the United States to resist an attempt to corrupt its democratic institutions that will be put on trial, and every voter will be a member of the jury.

shovel charges

Hundreds have already been convicted for their role in the attempted violent rebellion on January 6, 2021.

Many of them were responding to Donald Trump’s call. Some of them are serving long prison sentences for the crime of plotting sedition in his name. It is the role of the person without whom none of these would have happened to be prosecuted for their participation in these crimes against democracy.

The number of potential charges against Donald Trump in this case is staggering: incitement to insurrection, conspiracy to sedition, unlawful interference with the electoral process, pressure of Vice President Pence to exceed his powers, fraud of funds based on lies, lark. ..

All potential charges point in the same direction: Donald Trump attempted to corrupt democratic institutions to stay in power against the will of the electorate.

Historic trial

The federal criminal charges against Trump in Florida are no small beer, but in the upcoming trial, democracy itself is on the line.

This experience will be very different. First, it will be held in Washington, where you are far less likely to find a judge and jury biased in favor of Trump than in Florida. On the other hand, the facts are less stable than in the case of documents.

Moreover, if the administrative complexities associated with processing confidential documents risked delaying the trial in Florida by several months, we would not have this kind of impediment in the Jan. 6 case, which could begin the trial before the trial of the documents.

Trump or democracy

In the aftermath of Jan. 6, many Republican-elects have pointed to Trump’s responsibility. Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, in particular, has claimed that Trump is “practically and morally” responsible for these traumatic events.

These elected Republicans thought Trump’s “balloon” would deflate, but their party has remained a cult of his personality. Today, they are divided into four to defend the former president by declaring that the charges against him are part of the Democrats’ exploitation of justice as a tool.

He is a little mustard from a party whose leader encourages his supporters to demand that his opponents be imprisoned without trial. Moreover, Trump promises that if he becomes president again, he will abolish the independence of the judiciary and make the federal government his personal instrument of power. Obviously, if Trump is elected, he will end the federal lawsuits against him.

The final jury will be the American electorate, who will have to choose in 2024 between Trump and democracy. He can’t have both.