Trump hit with 37 criminal charges
Most Republicans cry foul and ignore the details
This is a special Saturday edition of ‘Regular Order’ for June 10, 2023.
INDICTMENT. For the second time in just over two months, official Washington was greeted on Friday by an indictment of former President Donald Trump. The reaction was the same. Democrats spoke in grave terms about Trump's possible lawbreaking, while Republicans denounced the proceedings against the GOP favorite in 2024, with some seemingly threatening a violent response.
DETAILS. Trump faces 37 different criminal counts. Basically, he is charged with keeping possession of very highly classified military and intelligence materials after he left the White House. There are tapes of him showing off documents to people. There is evidence that he asked his lawyer to hide documents. There is evidence one aide - who was also charged - helped him hide classified materials. You can read the details at this link.
SUPER DUPER SECRET. Some of the documents found at Mar-a-Lago were so sensitive - that their classification markings were redacted in the indictment. Yes, there are evidently top secret ways to reference super top secret material.
CLASSIFICATION. The indictment alleges that Trump kept documents dealing with U.S. nuclear weapons programs, U.S. military attack plans, and vulnerabilities of American allies to a foreign attack - and that he was showing them to random people.
TURLEY. Even Jonathan Turley, the George Washington University law professor who comments on Fox News, found the details a bit overwhelming. "There are really some particularly bad parts of this indictment. I mean, this is a really devastating indictment in terms of its details, pictures, and audiotape."
NO CHARGES. One note - Trump faces no trouble over any documents that he returned voluntarily to the National Archives in early 2022. In other words - if he had just turned over everything, none of this would be happening.
DOCUMENTS ON THE FLOOR. Back when the FBI released a photo showing classified documents found in a search at Mar-a-Lago, Trump angrily accused the feds of trying to make it look like he kept secret documents on the floor. Welp, it turns out that's exactly what was going on.
SPILLING. "On December 7, 2021, NAUTA found several of TRUMP's boxes fallen and their contents spilled onto the floor of the Storage Room," the indictment states. In the papers was a document containing intelligence which could only be shared with the 'Five Eyes' intelligence alliance - the U.S., Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
SPEAKER. As he did after Trump was indicted in New York, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy immediately said that Republicans would investigate - taking aim this time at the Attorney General. "Merrick Garland: the American people elected us to conduct oversight of you," McCarthy said Friday. "We will fulfill that obligation."
SENATE. Once again, there was silence from top Republicans in the Senate. GOP Leader Mitch McConnell said nothing for days about Trump’s first indictment - and seems to be doing the same with the second.
REACTION. Most Republicans in Congress said nothing about the actual details in the indictment, instead turning their fire on President Biden. "Joe Biden shouldn't just be impeached, he should be handcuffed and hauled out of the White House for his crimes," said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
WEAPONIZED. "Our Constitutional Republic is supposed to guarantee 'Equal Justice Under the Law,' not 'Weaponized Justice Against Your Political Opponents,'" said Rep. Ben Cline (R-VA).
WAR FOOTING. Others put forward a more ominous tone. "We have now reached a war phase," tweeted Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ). "Eye for an eye."
LONELY VOICES. Only a handful of Republicans publicly rebuked Trump. "These allegations are serious and if proven, would be consistent with his other actions offensive to the national interest, such as withholding defensive weapons from Ukraine for political reasons and failing to defend the Capitol from violent attack and insurrection," said Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT).
MUSE OF HISTORY. June 10, 1964. After nearly three months of debate, the Senate on this date voted - for the first time ever - to end a filibuster against a civil rights bill. The cloture vote was 71-29. Final approval of the bill would come nine days later. Throughout that entire time, the official Senate calendar never moved - stuck on the legislative day of March 30. By keeping the Senate on the 'same day' for that period, Senate leaders avoided further possible dilatory tactics by those opposed to the civil rights measure.
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM:
The House will next have votes on Monday.
The Senate meets next on Monday.
President Biden’s daily schedule link.
Follow me on Twitter @jamiedupree. Email me at jamiedupree@substack.com
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Looking at the actual document I was struck by how easy it is to read and understand. Unlike many official documents it is relatively free of words and phrases that only someone familiar with legalese could grasp. Except for a handful of names and acronyms no one with a basic high school education will be unable to know what it says.
That said, I find it amazing that a lot of otherwise intelligent people still embrace conspiracy theories about what is happening.
“ In other words - if he had just turned over everything, none of this would be happening. “Just that simple