OPINION:
In reporting on news of a federal indictment of former President Donald Trump, the Daily Mail posted a video of President Biden backing his Corvette into the garage, which contained boxes of classified documents. The next day, the British publication reported on a leaked audio recording in which Mr. Trump allegedly admitted he did not declassify secret documents regarding a military scenario for attacking Iran, which he is said to have taken to his private residence in Florida.
That tape will likely be used by the prosecution in a trial to prove Mr. Trump lied about his authority to declassify secret documents after leaving office.
Regardless, the 37-count indictment is bound to increase the anger Mr. Trump’s supporters feel toward this administration and their government overall. The indictment and trial of a former president can only divide the country further and ratchet up the anger many Republicans feel — even Republicans who don’t favor a second term for Mr. Trump — about what they regard as a two-tier system of justice.
Many Republicans remain angry about how former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton got a pass from then-FBI Director James Comey on her mishandling of classified documents. Mr. Comey said she didn’t intend to break the law. Try that excuse with a police officer if you are pulled over for speeding.
Fox News Digital reports that a source has told the FBI that while Mr. Biden was vice president, he and members of his family allegedly took a $5 million bribe from the Burisma natural gas firm where son Hunter was on the board in exchange for certain U.S. policy decisions. On Friday, Mr. Biden was asked about it. He replied, “Where’s the money?”
A look at family bank records might answer that question.
The Hunter Biden investigation by the U.S. attorney in Delaware has been going on for several years with no decision as yet. It took special counsel Jack Smith just four months to file charges against Mr. Trump. Newsweek reported that Mr. Smith’s wife worked on a 2020 film about former first lady Michelle Obama and contributed to Mr. Biden’s 2020 campaign.
One of the charges against Mr. Trump is that he violated the Espionage Act of 1917. That law makes it a crime to remove, copy or share national defense information or to “willfully [retain] national defense information” and “[fail] to deliver it to the officer or employee of the United States entitled to receive it.”
In view of the leaked audio cited above, that one may be easier for the prosecution to prove.
Many things could happen between now and the next election. The charges could be dismissed. If not, a trial might be delayed until the middle of next year’s primaries and possibly the election. Mr. Trump could go to trial and be convicted or acquitted. If convicted, his appeals could take months, and the Supreme Court might have to judge the case, which could further raise the ire of anti-Trumpers should the court overturn any conviction. If elected president again, Mr. Trump could pardon himself, which would be something else that has never before been attempted and would also likely be decided by the Supreme Court, provoking whichever side is the loser.
Mr. Trump has brought many of his legal troubles on himself through his attitude and behavior. Still, his supporters and even some of his Democratic detractors realize that prosecuting a former president could bring serious consequences to the country and future presidents.
The phrase “no one is above the law” has a corollary: No one should be below the law. Equal justice ought to be the goal, not using the Department of Justice as a weapon to destroy a political opponent.
• Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. Look for Cal Thomas’ latest book, “A Watchman in the Night: What I’ve Seen Over 50 Years Reporting on America” (HumanixBooks).
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