I just read the CNN news feed about Garland’s recent memo, indicating that it is unlikely there will be any swift cases brought against high level officials, especially Trump, because the DOJ must follow its usual process. Even though Garland reiterates that no one is above the law, the lack of action has me TERRIFIED ABOUT THE MESSAGE OF ENCOURAGEMENT THAT SENDS to the OFFENDERS.
I agree with CNN commentator, SE CUPP , that we’ve known most of the story for 18 months and with or without the hearings, the fact that no charges have been brought against Trump translates to “Trump is above the Law.”
This is not Watergate, where the malignant action remained largely encapsulated until congressional and judicial process could gradually get to the bottom of it. THIS IS DIFFERENT.
January 6 was a tumor that burst open and continues to metastasize, bringing Democracy down by the day. It inspired the raft of anti-voting laws taken up by Red States. BIG LIE candidates now line the tickets, poised to get into Congress within months. Trump continues to rake in donor dollars based on supporting his crimes and is ready to announce another 2024 candidacy, which he surely will use as an excuse to extend his already illegitimate political immunity.
Hesitation by the Justice Department only intensifies the malignant effect of January 6, and serves as a tacit inspiration to continue the attack on democracy. The refs ain’t calling a foul, so our “cheating” must be okay. But it gets worse:
1. Lack of prosecution becomes Trump’s “proof” that no crime was committed, and he’ll yell that over and over.
2. Any return to power by Trumpists or Trump himself, will result in massive retaliation against all those on the Jan 6 committee, and especially on all the brave witnesses who came forward. You will teach the country to shut up and not risk coming forward.
3. Members of both parties are active on the panel (like Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger) and especially among the witnesses (Trump’s own staff), and therefore it is no longer “political” in the one sided sense to go after Trump. (And he’s not on the ballot for the November elections anyway.)
4. Given that Trump already violated the Hatch act in using the White House for the RNC convention, and Comey did the same to Hillary with his memo- and no legal consequences followed — means that the old political protocols are largely extinct. We serve nothing by acting one sided against ourselves.
The “we can’t look political” excuse is simply bullshit and an insult to democracy at this point.
In short, the DOJ is in the spotlight now, like it or not. Their lack of message actually sends a message. They are the referee/sports commission on an active court where major fouls are committed and all eyes to turn to the to see if they make a call. No call means the dirty tactics are just fine to continue, and the game is in process. It becomes a ruined game at that.
They should not play neutral, move slowly, nor hide behind gradual process, because we are in an active playing field here. A delayed message is taken as a beacon of encouragement by the offenders, especially the Offender-in-Chief.
What do we ordinary citizens, fans-in-the-stands do to express the urgency here?