Share and Follow
Think that headline is too hyperbolic? The Justice Department of the sitting president of the United States just indicted his chief rival on charges that seem trivial at best—charges similar to ones that the DOJ has repeatedly refused to use against the likes of Hillary Clinton, who wiped hard drives that had been subpoenaed, or Joe Biden himself, who has classified documents spread all over the place that predate his presidency.
Trump is being indicted for holding on to “classified documents” that he came into possession of during his presidency. Oh, the horror! Former VP Mike Pence had a bunch too, but I don’t see an indictment for him. Biden, meanwhile, kept a pile in his unsecured garage and at other locations, but has he been ordered to appear in court to face criminal charges? Nope.
Rarely discussed, however, is just what these classified docs might contain. NUCLEAR CODES! Ok, so what—what would Trump actually do with them? They’re useless once he’s no longer Commander in Chief. One would imagine they changed them after Joe’s inauguration, don’t you think? It’s not like Trump can go to his Xbox, punch in a few digits, and launch Armageddon on the world. A letter from North Korean strongman Kim Jong Un? Again, who cares? Frame it and put it on your wall.
Even if you think he did incorrectly hold onto some documents, a criminal prosecution is way overboard.
I’ve written about the culture of secrecy in the United States government, and now they’ve weaponized it to try to take down the most popular Republican in the country. You might love Trump, you might despise him—but it doesn’t matter, this is wrong wrong wrong.
I have few kind words to say about former President Barack Obama, and even fewer (read: none) about current President Joe Biden. Still, if this kind of banana republic justice were served on them, I would denounce it loudly because our country is more important than individual personalities.
As my colleague Becca Lower reported, Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) may have had the best take:
Sitting president indicts leading challenger. Totally normal. pic.twitter.com/vzioLzGlKc
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) June 9, 2023
Watergate journalist Bob Woodward is still alive. So is Carl Bernstein, his cohort and co-author of “All the President’s Men,” the seminal investigative chronicle that helped take down GOP President Richard Nixon. Where are Woodward and Bernstein now? They celebrated the anniversary of their book’s star-studded 1976 Hollywood adaption last year, but have they contributed anything useful as we’ve watched a nitro-fueled Justice Department led by the partisan, corrupt Attorney General Merrick Garland launch an assault on fairness in this country?
No, they are MIA, except for the occasional ponderous tome by Woodward or the unhinged partisan appearances of Bernstein on far-left cable networks. Once, they stood for something. Now, they’re willing to stand aside as we watch abuses by this administration that far outweigh what Nixon did. They should be ashamed.
(Read: The WaPo Basks in the Glory Days of Woodward & Bernstein Even as Its Reputation Burns)
During the Trump presidency, we constantly heard from serial misinformation spouters like Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) about how Orange Man Bad was the greatest “threat to democracy” we’ve ever faced. Watch the parrots:
But the truth is, today’s politicized Department of Justice is the greatest actual threat to democracy we’re facing, and most “journalists” are asleep at the wheel.
The Courageous Defense of Democracy:
If @elonmusk takes over Twitter, it’s the end of democracy.
If Republicans take the house, it’s the end of democracy.
If Trump wins in 2016, it’s the end of democracy.
If you disagree that the best way for 5-year-olds to learn reading is…
— Gad Saad (@GadSaad) June 9, 2023
