Multiple news outlets reported Fridaythat security preparations are being made for a likely indictment of Donald J. Trump this week or next by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg following the work of an impaneled grand jury. While the exact charges in the case of the $130,000 hush money payment to pornstar Stormy Daniels several weeks prior to the 2016 presidential election remain unclear, the criminal indictment of a sitting or former U.S. president is without precedent.
At least four law enforcement officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to the Associated Press, said the initial discussions concern security, planning and the practical operations of a potential appearance by Trump in the Manhattan court. Signaling they know what’s coming, Trump’s lawyer Joseph Tacopina told the AP that, if Trump is indicted, “we will follow the normal procedures.” As for Trump himself, just this morning he took to his Truth Social to rant in all caps. Stating that he will be arrested on Tuesday and calling himself the “FAR & AWAY LEADING REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE,” he screamed, “PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!”
Beyond Trump’s dangerous incitement, it’s unclear what the “normal procedures” will be in this case. Will he be seen in public arriving at the Manhattan courtroom? Could he be in handcuffs? Will he be released after being criminally charged to make more incendiary and hostile remarks? The last point is most certain, of course—and it provokes questions about how possible further indictments in cases involving Georgia (election fraud), Florida (stolen classified documents) and Washington, D.C. (Jan. 6 attack) will be managed, both by law enforcement and Trump and his handlers.
I wanted to take this moment before the likely storm for us to reflect on the extraordinary nature of this increasingly likely event. I can tell you that my initial reaction is a surprisingly strong combination of excitement that we might finally be seeing some accountability for his criminality and sadness about the necessity of this and what it says about the country that put him in office in the first place. When the moment comes, I’m not sure that I’ll feel like clinking champagne glasses; I don’t expect to enjoy watching dancing in the streets like when Joe Biden was officially declared president in 2020.
But that’s me. What about you? How will you react if Donald Trump is indicted this week or next? Perhaps you also might want to comment on whether you anticipate violence among his followers or something less volatile. Expect more discussion of these issues in America, America in the coming weeks. As always, please do be respectful of each other in your comments.
*Photo by Michael M. Santiago via Getty Images of Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg and his prosecutors after the sentencing hearing of the convicted Trump Organization on January 13, 2023.
Mr. Trump is a career criminal and it is time the American legal system proves to the American people that no one is above the law, I will be happy to see an indictment and hope for a conviction. NickSones.substack.com
If he's indicted I will breathe a huge sigh of relief and perhaps imbibe in an adult beverage.
But his further inciting his followers to action in his defense has me determined to stay home for a week or so, puttering on projects around the house just in case someone gets the idea to do something stupid on his behalf.
That there are still people out there who think "saving Trump" is somehow synonymous with any notion of "saving our country" will never cease to confound me.
Joe Biden and Merrick Garland have been saying for the past 2+ years that no one is above the law, but until now that has been an easily exposed falsehood. With his lawyer having already gone to prison for the offense at issue in Manhattan, anything short of a prison sentence for Trump completely dissolves the fiction that all are equal before the law in America. The courts and criminal justice system have lost so much credibility in the age of Trump and its just going to get worse. It’s amazing any Americans still believe in the myth of American exceptionalism.
It feels like forever without any 'known' actions behind the scenes. If you're going to indict a past president, you better have all your ducks in a row, the case to be made behind each indictment charge, and have everyone in place who will play a part in bringing this case to justice. It is a process but in this case, it must be a strong case which requires perfection on the part of the prosecution. The AG chose Smith for a reason. His steady hand at assembling a case is unrivaled at the justice department. Be patient. It is a must of all of us to be patient and watch everything unravel for the former career criminal (as so stated elsewhere in these comments). I'd rather have the best outcome rather than a rushed case.
American exceptionalism ( a loose phrase) is not based on the history of mankind's brutality & ignorance but on the hope human beings might rise above that subjected past. The nation was created on fundamental principles of humanity, law and idealism. We've struggled to bring this to fruition. Both the struggle and the opportunity make this nation exceptional in world history.
You can’t be serious. A nation that had human bondage written into its constitution, and that committed genocidal atrocities against the indigenous population of the lands it occupied, was not created on humanistic principles. Yes there is a strand of idealism in American political thought, but you need to look at reality, where Americans are no better than other peoples.
I don't think this insurrection stuff stops with Trump. There's a clear movement in the American South & Midwest, and in rural areas of most states to turn this country into a Christofascist Nation. I think Trump is just a vehicle for them, and they're not going to stop.
I sadly agree with you, and the SCOTUS has a majority of the same ilk. Unfortunately, perhaps a majority of LE in this country and military enlisted may be also “Christofascist” as you say.
Accountability is deserved, for every illegal action he chose to perpetrate. Calling for more violence was expected considering his previous call for that response for an insurrection. A gag order is clearly a necessity for discouraging further violence, if it comes with stringent judicial immediate oversight. Allowing the ex president to continue to demand violence from supporters has the potential to undermine any effective legal consequences in the short term.
I have a bottle of Prosecco and one of Malbec and my son has some Johnny Walker Black Label. I think the real problem will be a run on the state liquor stores here in Utah. I do not diminish the fact that some trumpers will try to protest the arrest but Trump will make it a rally of sorts on the courthouse steps unless hit with a gag order right away. Like when Joe Biden won and there were International street celebrations, I expect the same. Trump has inflicted such harm and pain on our citizenry over the 4 yrs+ that he has led the maga that I will celebrate his self induced misfortune.
You said it best in the second to last paragraph. It'll be delicious to watch. But I'll still be melancholy given the deep societal infection still exists.
It’s about time Trump is held to the same standard as every American is. No one - Ko one is above the law. He must be indicted, processed, tried and if found guilty serve time for his crimes!
I can only echo your comment: “...excitement that we might finally be seeing some accountability for his criminality and sadness about the necessity of this and what it says about the country that put him in office in the first place.”
I think (I certainly hope) that all but his most rabid followers will take to heart the experiences of those who stormed the capitol in his name and at his urging. Not only that so many of them have been appropriately charged with crimes, but more importantly, the fact that though promised, the “blanket pardons” for all who participated never materialized before he left office. Trump abandoned all those who put themselves in harm’s way for him and he just didn’t care enough about his supporters to keep them from being (rightly) prosecuted. That alone may make his supporters think and think again about supporting him with violence.
I won’t be dancing in the streets, but clinking champagne in my mind, definitely! Should there be “street action”, I can only hope that law enforcement does the right thing...(but who knows?)
I think of these dark times as the body politic cancer eruption (who know just how long you’ve had this disease lurking, sir.) Docs are still meeting to determine how to best excise this malignant overgrowth. The outcome is perilous due to the insidious path we’re still napping on the patient wrapped around so many essential organs for continued life. Even if the surgical team succeeds we can not know the quality of life and pain management that will be endured afterwards. I pray the operation is a success AND that the patient recovers sufficiently to not remain on life support for the remainder of tortured existence. So yeah, bittersweet times.
A very happy day to see the arc bend towards justice. Hopefully we will see more accountability for all of his dirty deeds. Also it’s time to hold all accountable for 1/6. Also the Senators and House Representatives should be banned from ever holding office again.
There is the urge be jubilant but the sadness for our country overwhelms. How do we let all the well-meaning friends, colleagues, and fellow citizens know that sometimes we all get duped.? I voted for Nixon. And we learn and do better.
Since indictment is only the first step in ensuring TFG is held accountable, I’ll reserve my sighs of relief until he is found guilty, if he is. Glad to see this first step in what is likely to be a very long and difficult legal process.
You are correct Elizabeth, because whenever Trump is challenged, he perpetually claims that he has 'done nothing wrong', e.g. his coercive phone calls requesting that GA Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger 'find votes' in Georgia, were 'perfect'. TFG presents as an individual with NPD - Narcissistic Personality Disorder, characterised by a grandiose sense of his own importance, coupled with an overt need for attention and constant praise. A pathological liar with deficient emotional responses and devoid of empathy, Trump's segue into criminality was a natural evolution and consequence enhanced by his heredity and upbringing. Trump can never admit to an error, and he absolutely refuses to accept any loss. As they say, we need to buckle up!
I will be grimly braced for violence, sad that a former President has engaged in indictable behavior, and supportive of the process of our judicial system.
The presidency of the United States of America is the highest, most respected and honored office in any democracy. It is attached to to every American through our sacred duty to vote, if we intend to keep our democracy ... Voting. Is. Everything.
It was a truly sad day when Russia managed to throw our 2016 election to a cheap, money-laundering second-rate mobster. But it wasn't nearly as sad as having watched that same creep be party to acts of terrorism and criminal offenses, along with his depraved, passive-aggressive murder of hundreds of thousands of Americans during the covid crisis. That iceberg runs deep.
trump finally slipped on a slop that will insure his slide straight to he!!.
Will I celebrate. Definitely. Will the sadness still be there. Absolutely. Not sure if that will ever go away.
It is truly shameful and disgusting that Kevin McCarthy should publicly criticize the decision of the official NY prosecutor and an independent Grand Jury. The Federal government has no business interfering, especially publicly, in the functioning of a state court! This is not within Congress’ jurisdiction and the national Republican Party. McCarthy has breached an important dividing line. And he has done so for crass political reasons in support of an insurrectionist who not that long ago actually incentivized a “wild” mob to “hang Mike Pence,” to seize the Democratic Speaker whose office McCarthy holds without distinction, and a mob who McCarthy fled from in fear of losing his own life! So now he will publicly condemn the State of Georgia when its Grand Jury indicts Trump for insurrection there, when a Federal Grand Jury indicts Trump for secretly harboring Top Secret Classified documents, etc etc. When does your shameful conduct end, Kevin?
You are so right, Ira! And thank you calling attention to what no one else has even noted, so accustomed have we become to routine violations of established ethical norms and practices.
Kevin McCarthy is the Speaker of the House -- the third highest-ranking federal officer in our government. For him to publicly accuse a State Prosecutor and Grand Jury of "abuse of power" and "political vengeance" is indeed shameful and disgusting, especially given that there has not even yet been any action taken or announced by the State Court.
As a captive of the MAGA extremists to whom he traded away his authority, McCarthy is proving to be not only a weak leader but a dangerous one. He needs to be removed and replaced, and the minority MAGA faction's dominance of the chamber brought to an end.
( I represent a network of ordinary citizens who have been opposed to Kevin McCarthy becoming Speaker since early last December, and have been working to see him replaced ever since. Learn more at www.FeathersOfHope.net )
“I can tell you that my initial reaction is a surprisingly strong combination of excitement that we might finally be seeing some accountability for his criminality and sadness about the necessity of this and what it says about the country that put him in office in the first place.” No kidding, WE put him there, WE gave this unhinged lunatic the keys to the most powerful office in the world, WE allowed his criminality to go on and on. And we did it all *after* the credible abuse accusations, after “grab ‘em,” after the disabled reporter incident and so much more. We gave this creature, utterly unencumbered by any ethics or any desire to do good, those keys after he showed us exactly who he was. And that’s on us, and it’s utterly shameful and disturbing.
This, too, will pass. His followers will remain true. They have known about Stormy for years. Didn't matter. Only result has been the jailing of her crooked lawyer.. Trump will walk, indicted but walk. Perhaps he and George Santos could get together and clink diet coke cans. Marge, Junior and big mouth will go at it I suppose.
This, tho a first step, is small potatoes. I await Mr. AG Garland (and wait, and wait). THAT will be the big one. Hopefully, there will be no bail and his passport taken, tho I doubt Putin would want him. He would have his minions find a window in a tall building; he has enough troubles.
When Trump is indicted, perhaps within the next few days, for at least one of his criminal activities I will be concerned as to what will happen next. I will be concerned for the safety, physically and emotionally, for my fellow pro-democracy, pro-America citizens. A mountain of evidence from numerous federal and state courts and juries is solid proof that the former president has committed a long string of crimes over decades against America and its citizens. Trump IS NOT above the law and his criminality must be dealt with to hold him accountable. To allow him to continue to slap the face of decent citizens is a serious attack on the continuance of our democracy, our rule of law. Trump will encourage violent protests when he is indicted, and later tried and convicted for his numerous crimes, but I will not back down or retreat from my opinion that Trump must NOT be above the law.
Trump has already called for another insurrection on his "truth social". It appears that only trump can get away with doing this. If an activist tried calling for a riot or insurrection they would be jailed. Actually, union leaders, MLK, Alice Paul,Lucy Burns,Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Rep. Katherine Clark, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and countless other have been arrested for protesting injustices. How is that trump never get arrested?
Donald Trump proclaimed he was 'the chosen one', and his followers flocked around him, because he claimed he alone could fix things. MAGA supporters appear shockingly unaware and/or unconcerned about his nefarious deeds in business, and on the National and World stage. I guess ignorance can be bliss, if you consider life to be episodes of a Reality Show.
I have a sincere disgust for DJT but my angst is greater towards those people that worship him like a God. Honestly if not for them and their rising anger and hatred towards this country, he would be nothing but a loudmouth liar looking for his next grift.
I will accept whatever happens as history in the making and have already been calming myself down in anticipation of who knows what.
I live for the day djt is indicted. If he could be denied bail, that’d be perfect. At the very least, there must be a gag order and.or electronic ankle locator. Inciting violence is his thing. It can be prevented.
Just remember, every projection is a confession. Every threat is his fear. Trump is everything he pretends not to be: A weak, fearful, insecure little man who is still trying to gain his father’s approval...or the proxy for that like Vladimir Putin.
The problem is too many bozos who cannot, or will not see this because they are much the same way
I’ll be out on my front stoop; as I was most days during the fascist plague of ‘The Trump Curse’, banging my pots & pans, but if they indict the S. O. B. This week, I'll be dancing an Irish jig too!
I and my family will be celebrating quietly, but we know too, this will be played for years, going to the Supreme Court if he's able to wrangle that. I am a Republican, but he has destroyed the party. But again, our reaction, joy and relief. The sooner he is gone and off the dais, the better.
If it happens, I will be profoundly relieved. Failing to hold Trump accountable for his crimes would make a mockery of the rule of law - and it would be an open invitation for other aspiring authoritarians to continue his assault on democracy.
I will hold off on dancing in the streets until the bastard is actually in jail with no phone.
As for an indictment for the Stormy case, I’m really nervous. It’s not important. There are so many MUCH more important cases pending against him, that I fear if the first, not so important case, goes south, then all the others will tumble and he will indeed become untouchable. I know this is very pessimistic of me. So help me out of this funk. Somebody. Please.
A legal expert weighed in that an initial indictment, as if often the case in criminal prosecution, can be followed by additional charges being filed. I think the Prosecutors chose to downplay the situation by focusing on the campaign finance / hush money case first. We need to keep the faith that there is a grand design, i.e. strategy in how charges against Trump will play out.
I will be e gawd no! - he will be in the news every day using his “persecution “ to amplify his voice and reinvigorate his sagging’24 campaign- and he will probably find some sort of loophole and escape the consequences of his actions in the end
Trump's arrest is long overdue. I will not gloat; I will be happy that boundaries of the value of truth, right and wrong, and acceptable behavior are being set. If MAGSs hit the streets in violence, call out tge National Guard. Do not wait.
How will I react? Happy that at least someone has the balls to indict this piece of human dung, sad that he was babied and humored by Republicans when he should have been impeached and removed, and filled with a tremendous fear at the Pandora’s Box we are opening and what vengeful MAGA’s will do to future Presidents.
Same feeling I had as a child watching Wiley Coyote walk far past the point of a precipice, anxious for the moment. Soon, I'm going to laugh at the poof of his crash far below
I have so little faith in the U. S. legal system that it's hard to imagine a career grifter like Trump will ever be brought to justice. Our legal system favors rich white men and, though it's doubtful how rich Trump really is, he's connected enough to have more support than he needs to avoid facing the music. It breaks my heart what rich white men have done to this country and to the world. If Trump is indicted, I'm just not sure the whole matter will go anywhere substantial, matter less anywhere that serves the interests of justice.
Right-wing media will be ready as well, with the same kind of lies, spin and misinformation they have dealt out around the Mueller Report, the Kavanaugh hearings, the COVID emergency and the election.
Please do what you can to limit the reach of their lies:
+Repeat the truth, over and over and over. Don't repeat the lies.
+Call them liars in real time.
+Point out their cynical misinformation game as it happens.
I fully expect violence from trump’s most radical followers but I will be happy to see him indicted. Finally. And I hope there will be further indictments in the future. This man is a career criminal and must be held accountable. Any one who causes violence over his indictment must also be held accountable.
I'll be very disappointed if the first indictment is for the Stormy Daniel's payoff. The Georgia election calls deserve a higher priority. The Daniel's case will just delay the Georgia prosecution beyond the 2024 election. Georgia has a much cleaner case. Kevin Mccarthy will have a much harder time "investigating " the Georgia prosecutor who is holding three damning phone calls.
First a celebration, of sorts. Then, wait for his cult to do something very stupid.
I expect him to continue the rhetoric and work up the masses. His supporters still don't get that he cares little about them and he is terrified of going to jail. His ego will be crushed and he won't be able to live with that.
Some in Congress should be very worried because he will take all of them with him as he circles the drain.
It could be the action that starts the process of getting us back on level ground.
With a 2nd call to overthrow the government, the GQP should be labeled a terrorist organization.
Mr. Trump is a career criminal and it is time the American legal system proves to the American people that no one is above the law, I will be happy to see an indictment and hope for a conviction. NickSones.substack.com
Except that so far his has not been indicted or anything.
This hopefully changes this week... its about time those who break the law are held accountable... https://nicksones.substack.com/p/indictments
If he's indicted I will breathe a huge sigh of relief and perhaps imbibe in an adult beverage.
But his further inciting his followers to action in his defense has me determined to stay home for a week or so, puttering on projects around the house just in case someone gets the idea to do something stupid on his behalf.
That there are still people out there who think "saving Trump" is somehow synonymous with any notion of "saving our country" will never cease to confound me.
Joe Biden and Merrick Garland have been saying for the past 2+ years that no one is above the law, but until now that has been an easily exposed falsehood. With his lawyer having already gone to prison for the offense at issue in Manhattan, anything short of a prison sentence for Trump completely dissolves the fiction that all are equal before the law in America. The courts and criminal justice system have lost so much credibility in the age of Trump and its just going to get worse. It’s amazing any Americans still believe in the myth of American exceptionalism.
It feels like forever without any 'known' actions behind the scenes. If you're going to indict a past president, you better have all your ducks in a row, the case to be made behind each indictment charge, and have everyone in place who will play a part in bringing this case to justice. It is a process but in this case, it must be a strong case which requires perfection on the part of the prosecution. The AG chose Smith for a reason. His steady hand at assembling a case is unrivaled at the justice department. Be patient. It is a must of all of us to be patient and watch everything unravel for the former career criminal (as so stated elsewhere in these comments). I'd rather have the best outcome rather than a rushed case.
American exceptionalism ( a loose phrase) is not based on the history of mankind's brutality & ignorance but on the hope human beings might rise above that subjected past. The nation was created on fundamental principles of humanity, law and idealism. We've struggled to bring this to fruition. Both the struggle and the opportunity make this nation exceptional in world history.
You can’t be serious. A nation that had human bondage written into its constitution, and that committed genocidal atrocities against the indigenous population of the lands it occupied, was not created on humanistic principles. Yes there is a strand of idealism in American political thought, but you need to look at reality, where Americans are no better than other peoples.
I don't think this insurrection stuff stops with Trump. There's a clear movement in the American South & Midwest, and in rural areas of most states to turn this country into a Christofascist Nation. I think Trump is just a vehicle for them, and they're not going to stop.
I sadly agree with you, and the SCOTUS has a majority of the same ilk. Unfortunately, perhaps a majority of LE in this country and military enlisted may be also “Christofascist” as you say.
Sadly
I agree!
Accountability is deserved, for every illegal action he chose to perpetrate. Calling for more violence was expected considering his previous call for that response for an insurrection. A gag order is clearly a necessity for discouraging further violence, if it comes with stringent judicial immediate oversight. Allowing the ex president to continue to demand violence from supporters has the potential to undermine any effective legal consequences in the short term.
You have to read what Mr Flynn said this last week….
We need a gag order on Flynn, too.
I have a gag order. Whenever I see him or hear him speak, I think about the fact that we pay his pension and gag.
A sad day in American history and a happy day for those of us left who believe in ACCOUNTABILITY.
First I will exhale deeply. Second I will pray that there won’t be extreme violence!
It’s important for our nation to witness trump held accountable for his crimes, just like any American citizen would be! It’s TIME!
I will only celebrate when he is barred from running for/becoming POTUS.
I have a bottle of Prosecco and one of Malbec and my son has some Johnny Walker Black Label. I think the real problem will be a run on the state liquor stores here in Utah. I do not diminish the fact that some trumpers will try to protest the arrest but Trump will make it a rally of sorts on the courthouse steps unless hit with a gag order right away. Like when Joe Biden won and there were International street celebrations, I expect the same. Trump has inflicted such harm and pain on our citizenry over the 4 yrs+ that he has led the maga that I will celebrate his self induced misfortune.
You said it best in the second to last paragraph. It'll be delicious to watch. But I'll still be melancholy given the deep societal infection still exists.
It’s about time Trump is held to the same standard as every American is. No one - Ko one is above the law. He must be indicted, processed, tried and if found guilty serve time for his crimes!
I will leave out the breath I've been holding since 2015 then take another to hold until the entire nightmare is over.
I can only echo your comment: “...excitement that we might finally be seeing some accountability for his criminality and sadness about the necessity of this and what it says about the country that put him in office in the first place.”
I hope it's the first of many.
I think (I certainly hope) that all but his most rabid followers will take to heart the experiences of those who stormed the capitol in his name and at his urging. Not only that so many of them have been appropriately charged with crimes, but more importantly, the fact that though promised, the “blanket pardons” for all who participated never materialized before he left office. Trump abandoned all those who put themselves in harm’s way for him and he just didn’t care enough about his supporters to keep them from being (rightly) prosecuted. That alone may make his supporters think and think again about supporting him with violence.
I think you’re giving them more credit for being able to assess the situation correctly than they’ve demonstrated (at least so far).
Sadly, in many cases you may be correct…
I won’t be dancing in the streets, but clinking champagne in my mind, definitely! Should there be “street action”, I can only hope that law enforcement does the right thing...(but who knows?)
Many of them are Christofacists.
I think of these dark times as the body politic cancer eruption (who know just how long you’ve had this disease lurking, sir.) Docs are still meeting to determine how to best excise this malignant overgrowth. The outcome is perilous due to the insidious path we’re still napping on the patient wrapped around so many essential organs for continued life. Even if the surgical team succeeds we can not know the quality of life and pain management that will be endured afterwards. I pray the operation is a success AND that the patient recovers sufficiently to not remain on life support for the remainder of tortured existence. So yeah, bittersweet times.
Beautifully conceived and said.
Exactly!
I’m not holding my breath. If the person were anyone BUT tRUMP, prosecution and conviction would have be done and over years ago.
This must happen for all his crimes.
Isn’t this over a Stormy Daniels payment a violation against the Federal Campaign Law and therefore very serious?
I am happy about the indictment if true in spite of Trumps active threats
I believe he would have incited another coup no matter what - and it’s better to indict now before the election
The only true relief will be if he is remanded soon to a MAX Security prison in Isolation with no internet
Then we must deal with the Marjorie Taylor Greens
Thank you for your comments
A very happy day to see the arc bend towards justice. Hopefully we will see more accountability for all of his dirty deeds. Also it’s time to hold all accountable for 1/6. Also the Senators and House Representatives should be banned from ever holding office again.
Shining up my dancing shoes 🎊🎉🥳
There is the urge be jubilant but the sadness for our country overwhelms. How do we let all the well-meaning friends, colleagues, and fellow citizens know that sometimes we all get duped.? I voted for Nixon. And we learn and do better.
Since indictment is only the first step in ensuring TFG is held accountable, I’ll reserve my sighs of relief until he is found guilty, if he is. Glad to see this first step in what is likely to be a very long and difficult legal process.
You are correct Elizabeth, because whenever Trump is challenged, he perpetually claims that he has 'done nothing wrong', e.g. his coercive phone calls requesting that GA Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger 'find votes' in Georgia, were 'perfect'. TFG presents as an individual with NPD - Narcissistic Personality Disorder, characterised by a grandiose sense of his own importance, coupled with an overt need for attention and constant praise. A pathological liar with deficient emotional responses and devoid of empathy, Trump's segue into criminality was a natural evolution and consequence enhanced by his heredity and upbringing. Trump can never admit to an error, and he absolutely refuses to accept any loss. As they say, we need to buckle up!
I will be grimly braced for violence, sad that a former President has engaged in indictable behavior, and supportive of the process of our judicial system.
The presidency of the United States of America is the highest, most respected and honored office in any democracy. It is attached to to every American through our sacred duty to vote, if we intend to keep our democracy ... Voting. Is. Everything.
It was a truly sad day when Russia managed to throw our 2016 election to a cheap, money-laundering second-rate mobster. But it wasn't nearly as sad as having watched that same creep be party to acts of terrorism and criminal offenses, along with his depraved, passive-aggressive murder of hundreds of thousands of Americans during the covid crisis. That iceberg runs deep.
trump finally slipped on a slop that will insure his slide straight to he!!.
Will I celebrate. Definitely. Will the sadness still be there. Absolutely. Not sure if that will ever go away.
It is truly shameful and disgusting that Kevin McCarthy should publicly criticize the decision of the official NY prosecutor and an independent Grand Jury. The Federal government has no business interfering, especially publicly, in the functioning of a state court! This is not within Congress’ jurisdiction and the national Republican Party. McCarthy has breached an important dividing line. And he has done so for crass political reasons in support of an insurrectionist who not that long ago actually incentivized a “wild” mob to “hang Mike Pence,” to seize the Democratic Speaker whose office McCarthy holds without distinction, and a mob who McCarthy fled from in fear of losing his own life! So now he will publicly condemn the State of Georgia when its Grand Jury indicts Trump for insurrection there, when a Federal Grand Jury indicts Trump for secretly harboring Top Secret Classified documents, etc etc. When does your shameful conduct end, Kevin?
You are so right, Ira! And thank you calling attention to what no one else has even noted, so accustomed have we become to routine violations of established ethical norms and practices.
Kevin McCarthy is the Speaker of the House -- the third highest-ranking federal officer in our government. For him to publicly accuse a State Prosecutor and Grand Jury of "abuse of power" and "political vengeance" is indeed shameful and disgusting, especially given that there has not even yet been any action taken or announced by the State Court.
As a captive of the MAGA extremists to whom he traded away his authority, McCarthy is proving to be not only a weak leader but a dangerous one. He needs to be removed and replaced, and the minority MAGA faction's dominance of the chamber brought to an end.
( I represent a network of ordinary citizens who have been opposed to Kevin McCarthy becoming Speaker since early last December, and have been working to see him replaced ever since. Learn more at www.FeathersOfHope.net )
.
“I can tell you that my initial reaction is a surprisingly strong combination of excitement that we might finally be seeing some accountability for his criminality and sadness about the necessity of this and what it says about the country that put him in office in the first place.” No kidding, WE put him there, WE gave this unhinged lunatic the keys to the most powerful office in the world, WE allowed his criminality to go on and on. And we did it all *after* the credible abuse accusations, after “grab ‘em,” after the disabled reporter incident and so much more. We gave this creature, utterly unencumbered by any ethics or any desire to do good, those keys after he showed us exactly who he was. And that’s on us, and it’s utterly shameful and disturbing.
This, too, will pass. His followers will remain true. They have known about Stormy for years. Didn't matter. Only result has been the jailing of her crooked lawyer.. Trump will walk, indicted but walk. Perhaps he and George Santos could get together and clink diet coke cans. Marge, Junior and big mouth will go at it I suppose.
This, tho a first step, is small potatoes. I await Mr. AG Garland (and wait, and wait). THAT will be the big one. Hopefully, there will be no bail and his passport taken, tho I doubt Putin would want him. He would have his minions find a window in a tall building; he has enough troubles.
When Trump is indicted, perhaps within the next few days, for at least one of his criminal activities I will be concerned as to what will happen next. I will be concerned for the safety, physically and emotionally, for my fellow pro-democracy, pro-America citizens. A mountain of evidence from numerous federal and state courts and juries is solid proof that the former president has committed a long string of crimes over decades against America and its citizens. Trump IS NOT above the law and his criminality must be dealt with to hold him accountable. To allow him to continue to slap the face of decent citizens is a serious attack on the continuance of our democracy, our rule of law. Trump will encourage violent protests when he is indicted, and later tried and convicted for his numerous crimes, but I will not back down or retreat from my opinion that Trump must NOT be above the law.
Trump has already called for another insurrection on his "truth social". It appears that only trump can get away with doing this. If an activist tried calling for a riot or insurrection they would be jailed. Actually, union leaders, MLK, Alice Paul,Lucy Burns,Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Rep. Katherine Clark, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and countless other have been arrested for protesting injustices. How is that trump never get arrested?
Donald Trump proclaimed he was 'the chosen one', and his followers flocked around him, because he claimed he alone could fix things. MAGA supporters appear shockingly unaware and/or unconcerned about his nefarious deeds in business, and on the National and World stage. I guess ignorance can be bliss, if you consider life to be episodes of a Reality Show.
You just explained part of DJT thinking. His reality show. He actually believes that shit
Yeah, but NYC.
NYPD won’t put up with any garbage, no matter which side the protesters are on. They own the city, and you better behave.
I lived in NYC during the Lindsey administration and the garbage strike.
The cops did nothing the people told Lindsey end the strike make deal or your out.
Of course it won’t happen, but I’d give anything to see him do a perp walk, like every other common criminal
Celebrate 🎈🎆🎊🎊
Lock him up!!!!!
I have a sincere disgust for DJT but my angst is greater towards those people that worship him like a God. Honestly if not for them and their rising anger and hatred towards this country, he would be nothing but a loudmouth liar looking for his next grift.
I will accept whatever happens as history in the making and have already been calming myself down in anticipation of who knows what.
Peace be with us one and all
I live for the day djt is indicted. If he could be denied bail, that’d be perfect. At the very least, there must be a gag order and.or electronic ankle locator. Inciting violence is his thing. It can be prevented.
And we all know he will be treated with kid gloves.
And he will use that to continue inciting violence
Just remember, every projection is a confession. Every threat is his fear. Trump is everything he pretends not to be: A weak, fearful, insecure little man who is still trying to gain his father’s approval...or the proxy for that like Vladimir Putin.
The problem is too many bozos who cannot, or will not see this because they are much the same way
I’ll be out on my front stoop; as I was most days during the fascist plague of ‘The Trump Curse’, banging my pots & pans, but if they indict the S. O. B. This week, I'll be dancing an Irish jig too!
I and my family will be celebrating quietly, but we know too, this will be played for years, going to the Supreme Court if he's able to wrangle that. I am a Republican, but he has destroyed the party. But again, our reaction, joy and relief. The sooner he is gone and off the dais, the better.
If it happens, I will be profoundly relieved. Failing to hold Trump accountable for his crimes would make a mockery of the rule of law - and it would be an open invitation for other aspiring authoritarians to continue his assault on democracy.
I will hold off on dancing in the streets until the bastard is actually in jail with no phone.
As for an indictment for the Stormy case, I’m really nervous. It’s not important. There are so many MUCH more important cases pending against him, that I fear if the first, not so important case, goes south, then all the others will tumble and he will indeed become untouchable. I know this is very pessimistic of me. So help me out of this funk. Somebody. Please.
A legal expert weighed in that an initial indictment, as if often the case in criminal prosecution, can be followed by additional charges being filed. I think the Prosecutors chose to downplay the situation by focusing on the campaign finance / hush money case first. We need to keep the faith that there is a grand design, i.e. strategy in how charges against Trump will play out.
Big ass cigar time
I will be e gawd no! - he will be in the news every day using his “persecution “ to amplify his voice and reinvigorate his sagging’24 campaign- and he will probably find some sort of loophole and escape the consequences of his actions in the end
Yep
Trump's arrest is long overdue. I will not gloat; I will be happy that boundaries of the value of truth, right and wrong, and acceptable behavior are being set. If MAGSs hit the streets in violence, call out tge National Guard. Do not wait.
How will I react? Happy that at least someone has the balls to indict this piece of human dung, sad that he was babied and humored by Republicans when he should have been impeached and removed, and filled with a tremendous fear at the Pandora’s Box we are opening and what vengeful MAGA’s will do to future Presidents.
Exactly
Same feeling I had as a child watching Wiley Coyote walk far past the point of a precipice, anxious for the moment. Soon, I'm going to laugh at the poof of his crash far below
I have so little faith in the U. S. legal system that it's hard to imagine a career grifter like Trump will ever be brought to justice. Our legal system favors rich white men and, though it's doubtful how rich Trump really is, he's connected enough to have more support than he needs to avoid facing the music. It breaks my heart what rich white men have done to this country and to the world. If Trump is indicted, I'm just not sure the whole matter will go anywhere substantial, matter less anywhere that serves the interests of justice.
Right-wing media will be ready as well, with the same kind of lies, spin and misinformation they have dealt out around the Mueller Report, the Kavanaugh hearings, the COVID emergency and the election.
Please do what you can to limit the reach of their lies:
+Repeat the truth, over and over and over. Don't repeat the lies.
+Call them liars in real time.
+Point out their cynical misinformation game as it happens.
I fully expect violence from trump’s most radical followers but I will be happy to see him indicted. Finally. And I hope there will be further indictments in the future. This man is a career criminal and must be held accountable. Any one who causes violence over his indictment must also be held accountable.
I'll be very disappointed if the first indictment is for the Stormy Daniel's payoff. The Georgia election calls deserve a higher priority. The Daniel's case will just delay the Georgia prosecution beyond the 2024 election. Georgia has a much cleaner case. Kevin Mccarthy will have a much harder time "investigating " the Georgia prosecutor who is holding three damning phone calls.
First a celebration, of sorts. Then, wait for his cult to do something very stupid.
I expect him to continue the rhetoric and work up the masses. His supporters still don't get that he cares little about them and he is terrified of going to jail. His ego will be crushed and he won't be able to live with that.
Some in Congress should be very worried because he will take all of them with him as he circles the drain.
It could be the action that starts the process of getting us back on level ground.