No matter the risks, democracy in action

For whatever it’s worth, the US Department of Justice is taking on a former president by indicting him on 37 criminal charges. We say this with a caveat because, as many commentators have stated, Donald Trump will be using his latest journey to the dock as yet another testament to him being targeted by the ‘powerful liberal cabal’. Be that as it may, Friday’s indictment – unlike the earlier one by a Manhattan grand jury for campaign funds misappropriation during the 2016 presidential campaign – marks a watershed moment in a mature democracy.

This is the first time the US federal government is using its powers against a former president, who is also a candidate running against the incumbent. Whether the charges stick in a court of law or not, in the court of public opinion, Trump is already playing the victim card. Half of America abhors him. The other half sees him as the answer to all their woes. It is this half that will see Trump’s constant refrain of him and what he represents being ‘targeted’ as a rallying cry. Whataboutery will ensue, as will accusations of ‘differential treatment’. Trump has already declared that he will contest even if convicted. Legally, he is not prohibited from contesting either as a convicted felon or from prison. But this is entering Batman villain territory.

It may be too early to say that with this federal indictment, Trump has secured Republican Party nomination, sweeping under the rug all questions about his fitness to be ‘leader of the free world’ again. But the fact that it is Joe Biden‘s government that has brought the charges will, in polarised America, serve to rally support for Trump. Even such a possibility, however, has not stopped this democracy from doing its rightful job.