The story for arresting Donald Trump has been a hot topic for months now, but no actual results are coming to the light of day. While some strongly believe that Trump will face jail, others are not concerned at all since Trump has proven in the past that he knows how to avoid criminal investigation and find a solution that solves every problem he faces.
Trump is feeling the pressure from multiple directions. From Trump Organization’s criminal investigation to Capitol riot events and Trump’s false claims of election. But indicting an ex-commander in chief might say more about America than it does about Trump and he knows that. And maybe that’s the reason why he is calm regardless the public pressure.
The history is on Trump’s side as not a single former president has ever been formally charged before in the history of United States. It’s not about if Trump really has to be charged or not. Charging a former president means a lot in a positive way, sending a message to everyone to no one is above the law, not even a former president.
But that somehow sends another, more important message in a negative way. The first concerning thing is that such an act will potentially normalize the use of prosecutorial powers against defeated political opponents. And this one is huge. United States is known as a country of free choice and free speech. Charging ex-president will completely change this picture of democracy.
It’s not that the country is not divided now, but charging a former president will further mean destabilizing an already divided country. If we take into consideration that we are talking about Donald Trump, it’s needless to explain his voter and supporter base and how much his MAGA-die-hard supporter are. We have been witnessing in multiple occasion how some of his fully armed supporters threatened to start a civil war. Let’s just not talk about the January 6 events.
Whether we like or not, president Joe Biden and the White House administration are also very aware of the fact that not a single former president has been charged in the history. They also know what this will mean for the country and how US’s allies will see America.
President Joe Biden has expressed unease about the long-term consequences of such a move, while also stressing he won’t interfere with his Department of Justice’s decision-making on Trump.
“I think it is a very, very unusual thing, and probably not very, how can I say it, good for democracy, to be talking about prosecuting former presidents,” Biden said shortly before entering the White House.
Knowing these facts, it’s hard for one to say that Trump will be really charged despite all the prosecutors’ efforts lately. It still remains unclear if the pressure over Trump will affect his idea for running for president again in 2024.
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