Trump and 18 Others Indicted in Georgia
The Mobster-in-Chief Can't Pardon Himself for This RICO Charge
Vicious, conniving, and pitiless, this throwback to the era of Capone and Lansky was, this night, indicted by a Black DA whose vote he would have stolen. Unlike the three other cases against him — Bragg’s documents case in the Stormy Daniels hush money payoff case, Jack Smith’s Mar-a-Lago case, and the recently charged January 6th case brought in Washington, DC (the scene of the crime) — this one trains halogen on Trump’s attempt to manipulate Georgia state officials into forging more than 11,000 ballots so he could steal the election Joe Biden won.
Writes CBSNews:
The indictment names Trump as the top defendant and 18 others, including Rudy Giuliani, his former lawyer; John Eastman, a conservative lawyer; and Mark Meadows, former White House chief of staff. Other co-defendants include Jeffrey Clark, a former Justice Department official; and Sidney Powell and Jenna Ellis, conservative lawyers who pushed baseless claims of voter fraud. The filing lists 41 total counts, and the grand jury charges the defendants with "the offense of violation of the Georgia RICO Act for the said accused."
The screaming evidence was this. In a Jan. 2, 2021, phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, Trump told the Secretary: "I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have. Because we won the state."
Of course, Trump already knew he hadn’t won the state. He lost the state and was willing to commit fraud, lie, cheat, pull others into the scheme, rip off the value of Georgia’s voters, and steal the presidency of the United States.
Of all the counts—all of which are felonies—the RICO count, which is classified as a serious felony, is the most momentous. This is a racketeering charge—how beautiful a truthful rendering of reality is that?—for which he cannot ever pardon himself. If he were to be elected, he could pardon himself for every single charge so far brought by Special Council Jack Smith because they are all federal charges. Not so in this case.
Trump cannot pardon himself as president for any charges brought on a state level.
The indictments, delivered a grand jury convened by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, are brought based on Georgia state. It is the states, not the federal government, who are responsible for the viability and fairness of elections. In reflection of this Constitutional responsibility, states have deeply developed legal precedent against those tampering with elections—and they are far more severe than federal statutes both in sensitivity and penalty.
As Reuters notes:
The sprawling 98-page indictment listed 19 defendants and 41 criminal counts in all. All of the defendants were charged with racketeering, which is used to target members of organized crime groups and carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison.
The indictment notes:
"Trump and the other defendants charged in this indictment refused to accept that Trump lost, and they knowingly and willfully joined a conspiracy to unlawfully change the outcome of the election in favor of Trump."
Hence, racketeering. And that 20 years in prison should mean something to Trump: He can’t pardon himself out of it.
Trump said this week he wouldn’t strike a plea deal with anybody. I wouldn’t credit that with the cost of the ink it took to print it. But Rudy Giuliani will. And Mark Meadows will. And John Eastman will.
This afternoon, Mary Trump, whose exposure of her corrupt kin constitutes one of the most courageous acts by an American in this time, said that this case feels different.
It is different because this mobster, this Teflon neon god the Evangelicals made, can’t slide out of this very hot frying pan. And even if he could, the fire into which he would fall would obliterate him.
It is not a happy thing to crave violent justice. But the violence of this justice will not have been made by those bringing a case against a vile criminal: it has been made by the despicable crime against the soul of the nation and its most precious blessing: the vote.
To come yet are the cases brought by the injured of January 6th and the wrongful death lawsuits brought by families of those killed. Five people died either shortly before, during, or following the event: one was shot by Capitol Police, another died of a drug overdose, and three died of natural causes. Many people were injured, including 138 police officers. Four officers who responded to the attack died by suicide within seven months: that’s how seriously officers take their responsibilities.
Developing. More in the morning.
We at PolitiSage would like to apologize for these two weeks without posts: unexpected writing and editing responsibilities and close encounter with a nasty flu took us down for a bit. We’re soon to unveil a new schedule—and we invite you to write us with subjects you’d like us to investigate.
Warmest regards from all of us.
This does feel different….at last.