The Indictment that Matters Most

With the just-announced third indictment of Donald Trump, Jack Smith and the DOJ confront the tragic assault on American democracy

January 6, 2021: “Fueled by lies.” (Photo by Jon Cherry/Getty Images)

It’s happened. This third indictment of Donald J. Trump announced Tuesday is not just another indictment. This is the one that addresses his criminal efforts to hold onto power after losing a second term as president. This is the one that confronts his role in ending the two centuries-old history of peacefully transferring power from one president to the next, among the most sacred traditions of American democracy.

“Despite having lost,” the new indictment charges, “the Defendant was determined to remain in power.”

These words, no matter how surely we know their truth, have lost none of their power to stun when we reflect on the brazen desecration they represent. In a simple declarative sentence, they define a tragedy, its scale still being measured.

The indictment describes the flood of lies employed to overturn the results of the election: pushing state officials to ignore the real outcome, pressuring VP Mike Pence to change the results, organizing slates of “fake electors,” demanding that the Justice Department insist ]election fraud took place, exploiting the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s victory.

“These claims were false, and the Defendant knew that they were false,” the 45-page indictment asserts. “In fact, the Defendant was notified repeatedly that his claims were untrue—often by the people on whom he relied for candid advice on important matters, and who were best positioned to know the facts—and he deliberately disregarded the truth.”

The indictment, decided Tuesday by a grand jury in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., details four charges:

Conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government: The indictment alleges Trump conspired with six as-yet unnamed co-conspirators to “assist him in his criminal efforts to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election and retain power.” (Details in the indictment suggest the co-conspirators include Rudy Giuliani, Sydney Powell, John Eastman, Jeffrey Clark and Kenneth Chesebro—lawyers all.)

Conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding: This is focused on his efforts to obstruct Congress’ confirmation of Joe Biden’s win.

Obstruction of an official proceeding: This too is focused on Trump’s efforts to block Congress’ certification of the election on Jan. 6.

Conspiracy against rights: This charge specifically confronts Trump’s actions to block “the right to vote, and to have one’s vote counted.” This charge was first employed against the Ku Klux Klan after the Civil War, making it criminal to “injure, oppress, threaten or intimidate” people’s expression of their constitutional rights.

Special Counsel Jack Smith made clear in announcing the indictment what he thinks it all means. "The attack on our nation's Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was an unprecedented assault on the seat of American democracy," he said. "As described in the indictment, it was fueled by lies. Lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the U.S. government.”

Predictably, Trump used this moment to insist it’s all just politics—"nothing more than the latest corrupt chapter in the continued pathetic attempt by the Biden Crime Family and their weaponized Department of Justice to interfere with the 2024 Presidential Election."

But political manipulations won’t stop the legal process now. Trump is scheduled to be arraigned in Washington, D.C. at 4 p.m. on Thursday.

In the coming days and weeks, we’ll have plenty more to discuss about the details of the indictment and what they portend for the defendant and the country.

But I offer here my conclusions from the early months after the Jan. 6 attack in a piece that depicted the significance of Trump shattering the sacred tradition of the peaceful transfer of power. Its title: “When a Jewel of Democracy is Lost.”

We all know how far his refusal to concede defeat has taken the country toward the destruction of democracy. That most Republicans doubt the outcome of the election and believe Trump is the “true president” demonstrates how powerful a lie of election fraud repeated over and over can be.

I’d like to say that the time will come when we can put this destructive behavior behind us. But much like the consequence of a child who grows up in an erratic, unstable home, real stability is lost; the wound can never be fully fixed. All that can be counted on is thoughtful people acting diligently to repair what’s broken and shine a light on the inspirational examples and positive values that can motivate the best among us to expand the majority committed to democracy and make a version of healing possible.

There will be rocky days ahead, but let’s not lose sight of the goal. May the latest indictment move the country a little bit further on the path toward repair.

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