On March 1, 1974, seven people including Nixon White House aides, the former Attorney General, a former Assistant Attorney General, and four others were indicted on charges of conspiring to obstruct justice in connection with the Watergate break-in. They were accused of hiding the fact that they knew about the break-in but did not disclose it when questioned. Please note: these people did not break in and probably would not have sanctioned the break in because Richard Nixon was far ahead in the polls for re-election. Their only crime was to collaborate on a conspiracy to hide the truth. Fast forward to 2024. Donald Trump has been indicted on 91 felonies–most of which would be a slam dunk conviction for even the “greenest” prosecutor. Video and audio evidence from several sources confirm guilt in matters touching on national security for ourselves and our allies. The charges reveal a total contempt for authority and responsibility. Trump’s actions are deny, delay, distract and double down. In the 1974 Watergate situation, the four top officials were convicted in early 1975. What Trump has done is so much more damning and dangerous than the 1974 lesson but he stands an ever-increasing chance of “beating the rap” — all 91 of them. Has our ethical standard fallen so far that obvious criminal activity escapes any punishment? does this mean that we are setting a precedent whereby any criminal act can be exonerated because–in a case of obvious guilt at the highest level of government and on extremely serious subject matters–Trump walks free? How does our judicial system ever justify itself in the future with the words “no man is above the law” or “justice delayed is justice denied” or “equal justice under the law” (on the front of the US Supreme Court building)? We are treading on the proverbial “slippery slope” here and right now we don’t see anything to break the fall. Remember, your vote may be the last bastion of survival and honestly deserved retribution.
Comments are closed