On Wednesday, Donald Trump’s legal situation appeared to worsen.
Every day, the country moves closer to a political and judicial tipping point that could result in the first-ever indictment of a former president. The ex-commander in chief’s quest for the presidency in 2024 would exacerbate this historic twist, putting America’s legal and governing institutions, as well as its frail unity, to the ultimate test.
And Trump is not dealing with a single instance of potentially criminal vulnerability. Recent revelations on numerous fronts indicate that he may be indicted in several separate investigations, all of which appear to be going forward in a long-delayed crescendo of probable culpability.
A watershed moment is brewing in the midst of Trump’s wild rhetoric and predictions of his own arrest, a political tempest drummed up by his loyalists, and excitement among those who have long chafed at his penchant for lawlessness.
An increasingly circus-like atmosphere in Washington, New York, and Florida, where Trump currently resides, is heightening the drama around the numerous lawsuits – and, to some part, diverting attention away from what may be a dubious historical moment. Nevertheless, a growing partisan commotion driven by House Republicans appears to be geared to obfuscate the facts, distract from the evidence, and bolster Trump’s assertion that he is the victim of an unending political vendetta.
Trump’s several legal liabilities
Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing, has yet to be charged in any of the instances, and there is no guarantee that he will be. But, the pattern of recent days appears to imply that the legal clouds over him are darkening.
On Wednesday, an appeals court ruled that Trump’s defence attorney, Evan Corcoran, must testify before a grand jury in the case involving classified papers that Trump obtained at his Mar-a-Lago resort. The verdict was noteworthy because the Justice Department had to satisfy the court that there was enough evidence to indicate Trump committed a crime in order to breach the convention of attorney-client confidentiality.
The shattering of this basic legal safeguard, according to Norm Eisen, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and AWN legal expert, was exceedingly unusual and an omen for Trump, because Corcoran’s testimony may be used to suggest he committed a crime. This could include not only improper handling of secret documents, but also possible obstruction of justice. “It significantly increases what was certainly Trump’s most serious federal legal problem,” Eisen said on AWN’s “The Situation Room” on Wednesday.
This discovery came as all eyes were on New York after speculation this week that Trump could be indicted in a separate case involving an alleged conspiracy to pay hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. The suspense grew as the grand jury in the case did not meet on Wednesday. But, a source connected with the probe informed AWN’s John Miller that it will sit on Thursday.
There are indications that one witness may be called back. And sources told AWN that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who has been under fire from Trump’s Republican allies, was also taking a break amid the uproar. Miller reported that Bragg’s team is considering calling back a key witness – Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen – to rebut evidence this week by Robert Costello, an attorney who formerly represented numerous Trump friends and went before the grand jury at Trump’s request.
Several observers regard Cohen, who made the payment to Daniels, as a weak link in any trial because his credibility could be harmed by his own conviction for lying to Congress. According to AWN legal commentator Elliot Williams, Bragg would have to put Cohen’s trustworthiness to the test now, either before a grand jury or at trial. “It’s in their best interests to take a breather, sit back, and decide,” he said. “This happens all the time as prosecutors decide whether and how to file cases.”
There have been rising signals that an indictment is imminent, especially since Trump incorrectly claimed over the weekend that he would be detained this past Tuesday. But, the probable accusations in this years-long and relatively arcane case could centre on commercial breaches or campaign finance law offences. All of this begs the issue of whether it is actually in the national interest to cross the Rubicon and charge a former president in a case that may be difficult to explain to the public, may lack substantial constitutional ramifications, and may not be a slam dunk at trial.
— In a third Trump legal saga, Fani Willis, the district attorney of Fulton County, Georgia, warned in January that charging choices in an investigation into the ex-attempt president’s to overturn President Joe Biden’s 2020 victory in the key swing state were soon. Willis’ office, which is considering charging people with racketeering and conspiracy, could reach a decision this spring, according to AWN. In a last-ditch effort, Trump’s lawyers have asked a court to overturn the special grand jury’s final report.
— On a different legal track, the ex-president and his associates are being probed by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith for attempting to steal the 2020 election and inciting the US Capitol insurgency. Smith has subpoenaed former Vice President Mike Pence, who helped restore US democracy on January 6, 2021, to testify as part of the investigation. (Smith is also looking into Trump’s handling of classified information.)
Trump is torn between opposing emotions at the possibility of indictment.
In the midst of the chaos, the ex-president is playing a waiting game with advisers, who are preparing for various distinct scenarios including a probable indictment in New York, according to AWN’s Kristen Holmes. At times, Trump has rejoiced because he believes an indictment will help his campaign, but he has also grumbled that it would be “unfair.” Typically, the former reality show star and New York tabloid fixture has played with the idea of making a media spectacle if he is indicted, according to Holmes.
Underscoring one thread of the potential political drama, Trump’s potential Republican primary opponent in 2024 chose to twist the knife this week, while other future GOP White House candidates rushed to Trump’s support in the hush money case. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told a gathering on Monday that he doesn’t “know what goes into paying hush money to a porn star,” and subsequently hinted in an interview that if elected, he would be considerably more disciplined than Trump was during his chaotic four years in office. “There will be no daily drama; we will focus on the big picture and put points on the board,” DeSantis told Piers Morgan on TalkTV, just as news of Trump’s legal issues reminded Americans of the daily drama he served them for four years.
“The governor can’t afford to be ostracised from the start,” a DeSantis adviser told AWN’s Steve Contorno in the aftermath of Trump’s assaults on the governor. “He plainly calculated that it was time to push back.”
Trump’s attack on DeSantis, who has yet to declare his candidature, has heightened the GOP presidential contest to its most heated level yet, just as the former president’s legal problems appear to be exploding. “The fact is, Ron is a mediocre Governor, but by far the greatest in the Country in one category, Public Relations, where he easily rates Number One,” Trump stated in a statement released on Wednesday, slamming the man he once considered a protégé. “But it’s just a trick of the light; just look at the facts and data; they don’t lie—and we don’t want Ron as our President!” ”
The former president’s rage provided DeSantis, who won a double-digit reelection victory in Florida last year, with the most tense moment yet in his phoney campaign and could put Trump’s still substantial grasp on the “Make America Great Again” movement to the test. Yet, Trump’s legal quagmire may remind those who voted against him in 2020 and some of his favoured candidates in last year’s midterm elections why they were turned off by his erratic leadership.
DeSantis isn’t the only Republican looking for a political opportunity. Trump’s Republican House allies have been demonstrating Trump’s enduring strength with the grassroots voters who sent them to Washington by unleashing an extraordinary assault on the Manhattan DA, using the power of government to try to prevent him from being held accountable and to defuse his legal threats, as Trump once did. Republican House committee leaders, for example, have summoned Bragg’s testimony and promised to investigate whether his investigation used taxpayer monies.
All of this highlights the fact that, more than two years after Trump left office, the country is still grappling with the huge political and legal trauma of his presidency. Yet, if recent events are any indicator, Americans may be headed for another bout of upheaval.