Shock, awe, and the showman

NEW DELHI: In an unprecedented, but certainly not unexpected development in American politics, former US President Donald Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury for his involvement in paying hush money to adult entertainment star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign, in order to buy her silence over an alleged affair. The indictment gives Trump the dubious distinction of being the first former US president to face a criminal charge, something that could even upend his bid to retake the Oval Office in 2024. The office of the Manhattan DA confirmed that Trump’s lawyers have been contacted to coordinate his surrender on unspecified charges.

As per media reports, Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen paid Daniels $1,30,000 on behalf of the 45th President, which Trump reimbursed to Cohen after winning the election, by passing it off as legal expenses. As far New York law is concerned, this charge in the indictment can only be equated to a falsification of business accounts, which is treated as a misdemeanour. Trump can be prosecuted for a felony only if the DA can directly connect the fudged accounts to the former president, and also prove the books were cooked up to hide an altogether different crime, which might essentially make the case for a potential violation of campaign finance laws. Legally, such donations are to be disclosed in a transparent manner, and are subject to a certain threshold.

The legal aspects of Trump’s indictment are also being overshadowed by the sociopolitical and racial dimensions. For starters, the prosecutor in this case is Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who is black and a Democrat at that. Trump, who is never known to shy away from turning such developments into a spectacle, had issued a caustic response last week, describing his indictment as political persecution and election interference at the highest level. He even forewarned that the witch-hunt will backfire on President Biden.

Trump’s predominantly white supporter base within the MAGA brigade have also alleged that the legal system is being rigged and weaponised against him and that the current state of events is resultant of a miscarriage of justice. It needs to be said that even within the Republican party, there are several moderate lawmakers who might be looking forward to Trump’s ‘hubris’.

But then, the Democrats will also need to seriously consider whether this is the right time to pin down Trump with a case involving misdirected campaign funds, when there are so many more potentially serious issues that need to be addressed. The Justice Department is closely looking at business transactions of the Trump Organization, his part in inciting the Capitol Hill insurrection of Jan 6, 2021, and the withholding of critical classified information after exiting his presidential office.

The Trump episode is a potent reminder of the political polarization that now exists in America, something that has led to partisanship seeping into judicial and legal circles as well. Political analysts opine that dealing with the gamut of cases stacked up against him qualifies as one of the biggest challenges ahead of the polity since former President Richard Nixon resigned in the wake of the Watergate scandal. Unlike Nixon, who threw in the towel instead of donning the hat of a sitting president going to trial, Trump has proven himself to be a showman, who will milk these cases for all their worth.