Trump takes vengeance
Ed Martin, Trump’s new US attorney for the District of Columbia, has informed former members of the members of the January 6 Committee that he wants their notes and emails. Martin is a staunch “Stop the Steal” cultist and served as defense counsel for some of the January 6 insurrectionists. He is out for blood. He wants to prosecute everyone on the January 6 Committee because his toad-god Trump got his feelings hurt.
Needless to say, just as there was no successful impeachment of Joe Biden because he did nothing wrong, there will be no successful prosecutions of the January 6th committee. If anything, relitigating the case could prove to be bad for the Trump propaganda mill. So don’t be surprised if it’s conducted behind closed doors with limited access by the press.
The point is at least twofold. First, it will be enough that such an investigation is underway to convince certain mental lightweights that this is more than what it is, a nothingburger. Second, it’s intended to have a chilling effect on anyone who mounts an investigation of Trump in the future. It’s easy to forget that defending yourself in court can be expensive and comes with stress that can be life-changing, often ruinously so. Democrats aren’t over-represented by millionaires the way Republicans are.
These cases will be put before federal judges in Washington DC, people who are historically loyal to the rule of law and the Constitution. They will undoubtedly rule against the admission of spurious evidence against the defendants, and could throw out the cases altogether. They will see these cases for what they are, Donald Trump taking revenge on people who exposed his attempt to overthrow the government. The prosecution in this case will have a tough row to hoe, they will have to convince either a grand jury that the cases have merit or a federal judge. It’s unlikely that any of the cases will ripen into actual trials.
So Trump and his clown car of revenge-weenies can do their worst, just as they did with the 60 plus failed lawsuits they filed to try to overturn the 2020 election. It will all probably come to nothing. That would be fine if it weren’t for the unavoidable fact that MAGA will get mileage out of the propaganda and a lot of very good people will have to endure hate postings, death threats, stress and financial hardship.
Robert Harrington is an American expat living in Britain. He is a portrait painter.