Editorial: The United States v. Donald J. Trump
America's security secrets were stacked next to a toilet at Donald Trump's Palm Beach mansion.
Trump's contempt for United States national security, captured in a single photograph: pic.twitter.com/j9GY2ttwFC -- Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) June 9, 2023
A Department of Justice photograph shows more than two dozen white bankers' boxes, perched one on top of another, in a bathroom at The Mar-a-Lago Club, with a shower curtain and vanity in the background. According to the 49-page indictment, the illegally stored records included a Pentagon "plan of attack" and a classified map related to a military operation.
The picture is damning in its sloppiness and the casualness with which Trump treated sensitive national security information. It was released on Friday as the government unsealed a federal indictment that accuses Trump of 37 separate criminal charges related to mishandling hundreds of classified documents. Trump will formally answer to the charges Tuesday afternoon at a federal courthouse in Miami -- the first time in U.S. history that a former president is facing federal crimes. One charge, corruptly concealing a document or record, carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years; Trump is 76 years old.
More Context
What charges is Donald Trump facing related to classified documents?
It's historic. It's unprecedented. And naturally, it did not immediately destroy Trump's presidential ambitions. On the contrary, the norm-shattering Trump will exploit a grave indictment for his political advantage and use it to galvanize his MAGA political base and raise money. Who would publicly announce his own indictment, as Trump did, unless he saw a political upside?
"In any other decade, this would be more than enough to kill a presidential contender in the crib," Republican pollster Neil Newhouse told the Associated Press. "That's no longer the case, particularly for Donald Trump ... This comes as a surprise to very few Republicans."
In the greatest country on earth, the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination stands accused by the government he once led of violating the federal Espionage Act. That's breathtaking enough all by itself.
But it gets worse. This is Trump's second indictment in three months, following the 34-count filing in New York relating to secret hush money payments to two women who said they had trysts with Trump. At least two other criminal investigations of Trump are still pending.
It is a sad and weighty moment when a former president is charged with crimes against our country. That it could have happened to Richard Nixon 49 years ago, and in many people's opinions should have, no longer matters. It should be a point of pride that we have a Justice Department that is willing and able to uphold the principle that no one is above the law.
Like anyone else in America, Trump is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless and until the special counsel proves the charges against him beyond a reasonable doubt. These are unproven allegations at this point. Everyone else should hold their temper and their tongues and let the law play out.
But if no one is above the law, not everyone respects that.
The reactions of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy ("a very dark day in America ... we're not going to stand for it") and other Republicans are beneath contempt.
Once again, Republicans posture as if Trump, and by implication any other Republican president, should be exempt from the law. That is a hideously irresponsible message to send to the American people. In addition, the threats by Congressional Republicans to attack the Biden administration for allowing the law to work must be taken seriously.
The principle that no one is above the law is embedded in the Constitution in Article I, Section 3: "Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust or profit under the United States; but the party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to law."
Federal prosecutors want to try Trump as soon as possible, to avoid any possibility of interference with the 2024 presidential election. It already seems too late for that.
In the latest sign of how Trump retains a cult-like grip on the Republican base, most of his rivals for the nomination rushed to his defense Friday, led by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who tweeted: "The weaponization of federal law enforcement represents a mortal threat to a free society."
Of all our statewide elected officials, though, none was as pathetic and obsequious as Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, who tweeted, "He's a former President for God sakes ... beloved by tens of millions of Americans," as though Trump's popularity among his and Patronis' base voters should guarantee legal immunity.
As Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith said in a brief and highly unusual public appearance Friday: "We have one set of laws in this country and they apply to everyone."
The Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Opinion Editor Krys Fluker, Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson and Viewpoints Editor Jay Reddick. The Sun Sentinel Editorial Board consists of Editorial Page Editor Steve Bousquet, Deputy Editorial Page Editor Dan Sweeney, and Anderson.