The event everyone was waiting for occurred on Wednesday, as Bob McDonnell took the stand in his own defense. It was a late-in-the-day outing, so McDonnell will testify again today and, according to some court watchers, he could be on the stand well into next week.
Those I’ve talked to who have observed the trial in person say that McDonnell’s debut was excellent. But remember, this is under direct questioning from his own lawyers, who have every incentive to put their client in the best light. The real drama will have to wait until the prosecution opens its cross-examination.
They have a single aim: to destroy McDonnell, because they have no other choice.
The defense will continue to build on the theme that McDonnell did nothing, at all, to benefit Jonnie Williams. Did Williams give the McDonnells gifts and loans? Yes — because the McDonnells thought all along that Jonnie was a friend who was doing what friends sometimes do…lending a helping hand.
Oh, and Maureen was bonkers/stressed/out of control, so anything that appears to be too coincidental to be a coincidence is on her.
It’s a clever strategy that seeks to insulate Bob from everything. If he did nothing wrong, the government’s case — based as it is on circumstantial evidence — collapses. It’s also an exceedingly dangerous strategy.
Prosecutors have been waiting for this moment. McDonnell on the stand, and under their thumb. If they can crack him during cross-examination, he’s cooked regardless of what his wife may have done. And prosecutors will do everything in their power to make that happen.
It will be an ugly and painful test of wills. As I said above: prosecutors have no other choice. If they fail to get a conviction, their entire case will be seen as a political witch hunt. It will make the Ted Stevens case of a few years ago look almost tame in comparison. Prosecutors know this, just as they know that a failure to convict will tarnish not only them, but their Justice Department superiors. Expect the government’s lawyers, then, not just to question McDonnell, but to come as close to brutalizing him as the Judge will allow.
And let’s not forget that prosecutors had to give transactional immunity to Jonnie Williams for his testimony. That got him off the hook for a great many things related to Star Scientific. If the McDonnells walk, the federal deal with Williams will go down as yet another example of his ability to get the smartest people in the room to do something incredibly naive.
But as I’ve written before, if the jury sides with the McDonnells, agreeing that the government’s case is rooted in circumstance rather than tangible proof, the McDonnells do not necessarily win. Forget a Mark Sanford-like return to political life for Bob McDonnell. In order to avoid jail, he threw his wife to the wolves. It may be a brilliant legal maneuver that will be talked about and studied in law schools for a generation. On a personal level, it could not be more disastrous.
