Alan Zendell, December 12, 2023

When Donald Trump’s lawyers filed a motion that the criminal charges against him should be dropped because as a former president he should be immune from prosecution for any alleged crimes he committed while he was in office, they didn’t expect a favorable decision, and so far they haven’t received one. Trial Judge Tanya Chutkan denied the motion, writing: “Defendant’s four-year service as Commander in Chief did not bestow on him the divine right of kings to evade the criminal accountability that governs his fellow citizens.”

Her decision demonstrated that she understands the Constitution and remembers what the American Revolution was all about. It was primarily about assuring that neither the British monarchy nor any other would ever rule over the United States and assuring that all citizens had a vote in choosing their president. Unfortunately, in 1779, “all citizens” meant white, male landowners, but let’s not quibble. It only took 141 years to correct that oversight. It could all be undone in a matter of months.

Trump didn’t expect to win that battle. The filing was simply a key part of his legal defense strategy to delay his criminal trials until after the 2024 election. Should Trump be re-elected, he would be immune from prosecution for four more years, and in the view of many legal scholars, could pardon himself for all past and future crimes. Judge Chutkan knew that maintaining the scheduled March 4, 2024 trial date was essential if American voters were to know whether Trump was guilty of serious felonies before Election Day.

Special Counsel Jack Smith, the well-respected prosecutor who is managing the DOJ indictments and trials of Trump, also understood Trump’s defense strategy, and knew that it would likely be successful unless he took action to avert what might have been a years-long adjudication of Trump’s claim. Instead of waiting for Trump to appeal Judge Chutkan’s ruling, he petitioned the U. S. Supreme Court to take up the question in an expedited fashion.

Two critically important things are at stake. One is the question of the Court’s integrity. The other is the fate of our democracy, should the Court choose loyalty to Trump over preserving the Constitution’s intent that no one is above the law. We don’t yet know if the Court will grant Smith’s request, but in a hopeful sign, it ordered Trump to respond to Smith’s petition by December 20^th.

Most of us knew, on the day Trump descended the escalator in Trump Tower spewing hate and racist taunts, that he was a threat to our democracy. An extreme narcissist skilled in the use of Orwellian Doublespeak, Trump has always known that chaos, obfuscation, and confusion were his greatest allies. He has never been about truth, laws, or facts. He responds only to the demands of his ego, and his own recent statements make it clear that he has visions of being a dictator should he win re-election.

It took Adolf Hitler only four months to subvert and undermine the court system he had been elected to defend, and before long, his Brownshirt militias were marching through the streets of German cities intimidating anyone who didn’t bend a knee to the Fuhrer. If Trump escapes prosecution and wins re-election, the insurrection at the Capitol may turn out to be only the first act in a second American Revolution, in which The Proud Boys evolve into an American Gestapo. As long as Trump retained a rabid base driven by rage and hate, it had to come to this eventually. Jack Smith’s Hail Mary to SCOTUS simply brought matters to a head sooner than we anticipated.

If the Supreme Court grants Trump monarchic immunity from prosecution, they will essentially end the basic protections in the Constitution that underpin our republic. A president with Trump’s values and personality disorders who believes he has the power to act with impunity at all times will do exactly what he told us he would do. He will appoint an army of sycophants and thugs, order them to violate any laws he finds inconvenient, and use his presidential pardon power to assure their continued loyalty.

We were raised to believe the United States was special. We weren’t like other countries, and no matter what the challenge our anointed status somehow made us immune to insurrection and political coups. But every civilization that had the hubris to believe it had reached a level of presumed enlightenment quickly devolved into decadence, corruption of values, and eventually total collapse. If you think it can’t happen here, check out Sinclair Lewis’ famous novel of the same name, or Margaret Atwood’s A Handmaid’s Tale. It surely can, and it will if people like Trump are permitted to go unpunished for their crimes and people like us sit by and do nothing to stop it.