Bolling: Trump Indicted

As anticipated, it appears as though Donald Trump has been indicted by a Grand Jury in New York City. The charge is criminally misrepresenting as “legal expenses” a payment of $130,000 to Stormy Daniels to suppress a claim in the midst of the 2016 presidential campaign that Trump had an illicit sexual relationship with Ms. Daniels.

Prosecutors allege that this payment should have been reported as a campaign expense since it was allegedly intended to influence the outcome of the election, not as a legal expense.

As this case proceeds, here are some important things to keep in mind:

1. Trump, like any defendant, is innocent until proven guilty. An indictment is not a conviction, it is merely a legal allegation; and as Sol Wachtler once famously said, “You could indict a ham sandwich.” Trump will have every opportunity to defend himself, and he may well be able to do so.

2. There are plenty of reasons to question the validity of this indictment. These include:

A. The facts and legal theory behind the indictment are suspect at best. In fact, a previous prosecutor who had investigated these allegations did not seek an indictment.

B. The prosecutor who ultimately sought these charges is a Democratic elected official who had promised to indict Trump during his campaign. He has been under tremendous political pressure to do so from fellow Democrats. As such, his motives are also suspect. (BTW, this is a problem in many high profile cases with prosecutors who are also politicians)

C. The prosecutions key witness is Trump’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, who has himself plead guilty to criminal charges in another case. His motivation in testifying against Trump is also suspect.

The point is, this case is far from over. Of all the investigations involving Trump, this may be the most suspect. Nonetheless, Trump needs to take it seriously and defend himself on the facts and the law.

However, from a political perspective, this case makes a different point. Regardless of the outcome of this case and other ongoing investigations, Donald Trump is seriously damaged goods. If Republicans continue to hitch their wagon to Trump’s 2024 reelection, they are almost assuring themselves of another defeat.

It’s time to cut Trump loose, wish him the best, and find another candidate.