In addition to many terrific editorial cartoons, Part 1 also includes a long comment by me about all the things Donald Trump is being tried for in the court of public opinion.
Note: I’ll post more editorial cartoons in this evening’s edition, including ones that go online this evening and tonight.
For most editorial cartoonists, Donald Trump is a godsend. His often bombastic statements — and even more outrageous actions — evoke a multitude of reactions. Ridicule, amazement, shock, disbelief, grief, and anger are only the most obvious ones.
And that has been the case for years.
This past week was certainly no exception. His indictment by Special Counsel Jack Smith over the mishandling of secret classified documents last Thursday night ignited a firestorm of protest within MAGAworld. In spite of overwhelming evidence of wrongdoing, these faux complaints only serve to highlight an obvious political fact: when one of your own is in trouble, rationality goes out the window in how one reacts.
Cornered
Stay tuned as I expect an outpouring of cartoons in the next few days depicting the serious legal dilemma Trump finds himself in. In case the MAGA folks were unsure, Trump is in a boatload of trouble.
Fintan O’Toole writes in the current issue of the New York Review of Books.
Trump’s hoarding of official secrets is both breathtakingly careless and utterly calculated.
Secrets are a kind of currency. They can be hoarded, but if kept for too long they lose their value. Like all currencies, they must, sooner or later, be used in a transaction—sold to the highest bidder or bartered as a favor for which another favor will be returned. To see the full scale of Donald Trump’s betrayal of his country, it is necessary to start with this reality. He kept intelligence documents because, at some point, those secrets could be used in a transaction. What he was stockpiling were the materials of treason. He may not have known how and when he would cash in this currency, but there can be little doubt that he was determined to retain the ability to do just that.
Clinging to Power
Before the publication of the grand jury’s indictment, it was possible to believe that Trump’s retention of classified documents was reckless and stupid. The indictment reveals that recklessness and stupidity are the least of his sins. With Trump, it’s always a mistake to equate anarchy with purposelessness or to think that the farce is not deadly serious. Trump’s hoarding of official secrets is both breathtakingly careless and utterly calculated. At the heart of that calculation is a cold resolve to not give up the power that access to highly restricted information had given him.
Is there a way out for him?
It Can’t Happen Here
Uh, No!
Pssst! Wanna Buy Some Nuclear Secrets?
Definitely Not a Nice Man
Trump 2.0
Don’t Know About This Guy’s Prospects
Getting Right to the Point
No Way Out
Making It Clear
Suffocating for Democracy
Lindsey Graham’s Standards for Judging Presidents — Trump vs Clinton
From Former AG Bill Barr
Donald Trump’s onetime Attorney General William Barr said Sunday the former president is “toast” after being indicted by the federal government for mishandling classified documents.
“The government acted responsibly. It was Donald J. Trump who acted irresponsibly,” Barr said on “Fox News Sunday” of the 37-count indictment against Trump, 76, unsealed Friday.
“They’re solid counts,” Barr said. “Even if half of this is true he’s toast.”
Grounded
The Biggest Fish
See Over 40 Trump Editorial Cartoons by Mostly Foreign Cartoonists
The Trump Defense
I Can’t Hear Any Evil
Attribution for the Above Cartoon: Clay Bennett Editorial & Political Cartoons @EandPCartoons
Throwing Red Meat to the MAGA Base
Degrading Himself
The Blame Game
Words Won’t Save Trump; Actions Might Reduce His Jail Sentence
Not Gonna Work in a Court of Law
Isn’t Inciting Violence a Crime?
He Says He’s Innocent
The Fight of His Life
The Complaints Department is Closed
Straight from Brooks Brothers
Functionally Illiterate
Not Everyone is Unhappy About Trump’s Indictment
Kamikaze Pilot Chris Christie
He is Still Favored to Win the 2024 GOP Nomination
The Anti-Woke Crowd
Those Damn Republicans
Trump’s Golfing Buddies
Profits Over Principles
Money Talks and BS Walks
Always Listen to Your Caddy
The Changing Face of Professional Golf
Diary Poll
There are probably a number of reasons that compelled Trump to walk away with classified, even Top Secret documents. What do you think is the primary reason? So, you’ll have to choose one answer as I never give ‘All of the Above’ as a choice in my diary polls.