by Giuseppe Sarcina
A conviction for concealing or destroying classified documents goes to the Supreme Court
FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT
WASHINGTON Donald Trump was planning a special event to announce his candidacy for the 2024 presidential election. Sort of like descending the escalator into Trump Tower on June 16, 2015, the day the builder became the absolute star of American politics.
The FBI operation will in all likelihood change the program. As late as July 25, Mark Meadows, former Trump White House chief of staff, told Corriere that Trump was still deliberating with his advisers whether to announce the candidacy before or after the midterm elections scheduled for November 8. In the days that followed, it became clear what the Fuhrer’s goal was: to condense the Republican party as much as possible and crush the ambitions or the ambitions of possible outsiders. We don’t know if the Justice Department will actually go so far as to indict the former president. For the time being, judging by the signals seen yesterday, it has given it another boost. At this point, it is suggested that Trump will speed up the plans, portray himself as the victim of a political-judicial conspiracy, and appeal directly to voters.
On the other hand, only voices of support are raised from the conservative camp, of support for Trump. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarty even warned Attorney General Merrick Garland: Don’t make commitments and prepare the papers. As if to say, once we’ve reclaimed the chamber, we’ll begin investigating you. Tonight, a delegation of lawmakers will visit the persecuted leader at the golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. An appointment already planned, but immediately resumed with a defiant tone towards the judicial system, remotely controlled by the radical Democrats. The only potentially insidious opponent, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, has also taken up Trump’s thesis: The FBI search is a further escalation of the instrumentalization of federal institutions against political opponents of the regime. Correct: Regime with capital letters. And in the middle of the morning, former Vice President Mike Pence joined them: The FBI has been politically partisan for years. The Justice Department will have to explain the motivation for an unprecedented initiative.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that Trump can really count on a solidary front to the bitter end. The real internal opponents have decided to remain silent for the time being. Republican senator leader Mitch McConnell, as he so often does in the most complicated moments, chose to take the quick fall.
There is concern among the former President’s advisers about all these loose mines. Also on the fringes of the seminar organized by the American First Policy Institute Study Center two weeks ago in Washington, Kellyanne Conway illustrated the scenario: If someone is blamed for the attack on Capitol Hill, they should be punished, but I don’t think so that Donald Trump will be impeached. In fact, Trumpians are also gearing up for a long legal battle, because shaking the square with a series of wild rallies won’t be enough.
Donald’s legal team also considered the worst-case scenario for the former contractor: criminal charges for concealing or destroying classified documents. The law, the Presidential Records Act, provides for disqualification from public office if convicted. Trump could therefore not be nominated again. But Trump’s lawyers are convinced that they can appeal the possible verdict, if necessary up to the US Supreme Court. The thesis: It is up to the constitution alone to determine what the necessary requirements are to apply for the White House (US citizenship; minimum age 35). A 1978 Ordinary Act cannot add other stakes. Concepts almost certainly shared by the conservative bloc that dominates the Supreme Court, inspired by a literal, originalist interpretation of the Bill of Rights.
August 9, 2022 (change August 9, 2022 | 11:30 p.m.)
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