No one is above the law

The recent conviction of President Trump on 34 counts of Falsifying Business Records has many people up in arms. Many are making claims of it being a kangaroo court, a show trial, that this was a miscarriage of justice and the court system is being weaponized for political purposes. Others assert that “no one is above the law,” and that Donald Trump broke the law and is rightly being punished. Perhaps we can gain some perspective by evaluating some other prosecutions (or lack thereof) in the past few years.

As much as I hate to keep bringing up Trump (and having to defend him), let’s first consider Trump being impeached for “Russia collusion.” The American people suffered through three years of hearing how all the evidence was there, and just wait until we saw it, then…nothing. Big, fat zilch. What we did find out along the way, however, was that President Obama’s staff was spying on Trump’s campaign, and that Hillary Clinton and her campaign financed the dossier upon which the Russia collusion hoax was based. Where are the election interference charges for Obama or Clinton?

There is also the second Trump impeachment for (allegedly) an alleged Ukrainian quid pro quo wherein Ukraine aid would be held up by Trump if Ukraine did not “provide dirt” on the Biden. This alleged quid pro quo was, as with the Russia collusion hoax, proven untrue. Of course, it later came to light that Joe Biden, as Vice President, threatened to withhold aid from Ukraine if they did not fire the state prosecutor who was investigating corruption involving the Ukrainian energy company for which Hunter Biden worked - and the prosecutor, in fact, fired. Joe Biden has even bragged openly about this. Where are the charges against Biden?

Then there was the time the FBI raided Mar-A-Lago to retrieve classified documents that Donald Trump retained, allegedly illegally, after leaving the White House, documents that were protected and for which he had the authority to declassify. Trump is being prosecuted for having held onto these files. It was later found that Joe Biden retained documents to which he was not entitled, and for which he had no authority to declassify. Where are the charges against Biden? He was deposed, a testimony that the government refuses to release, and deemed unfit to stand trial for such charges. Yet he’s fit to be President of the United States? Make it make sense. For that matter, why was a suit not brought against Hillary Clinton for using a personal email server to handle classified documents? Why did the government choose not to refer charges?

Now we have President Trump convicted on 34 counts of Falsifying Business Records because he classified a hush-money payment to a porn star as a legal expense. Is it a crime to have sex with a porn star? No. Unwise? Maybe. But not criminal. Is it a crime for someone to hide the fact that he or she had sex with a porn star? No. Morally questionable? Sure. But not criminal. Is it a crime for someone to pay a porn star to not say anything about a sexual encounter? No. Is it deceitful? Absolutely. Worth prosecuting? Considering Trump did not pay any less in taxes as a result, I fail to see the crime. If it is, where are the other suits? How many other businessmen have had illicit affairs, paid hush money, doctored some documents to hide it, and not been prosecuted? Where are charges against Congressmen for whom taxpayers have paid settlements to prevent sexual harrassment suits and to keep such allegations under wraps? For that matter, why was Bill Clinton not convicted in the Monica Lewinsky scandal?

Beyond Trump (and Biden), what about other cases? During the summer of 2020, BLM and Antifa rioters caused billions in damage to homes, businesses, and government buildings around the country, even taking control of some areas (and government buildings) in certain cities (like CHAZ in Washington state), and were responsible for looting and physical harm (including death) to many. How many were prosecuted and/or remain in jail? Few, if any. People in government at the time, like Kamala Harris, even helped to pay bail and legal expenses for any who were arrested or charged. Then those, who peacefully (which were the majority) walked the halls of Congress on January 6th, harming no one, causing less damage (yes, there was some damage), were jailed without trial, and many are still languishing in prison.

Between May 2, 2022 (after the draft of the SCOTUS Dobbs decision was leaked) and October 2022, over 100 pro-life organizations, pregnancy support centers, and churches were attacked, smashed, vandalized, and/or firebombed. A group touting the name “Jane’s Revenge” claimed responsibility for several of the incidents. According to a Fox News article from October 2022, to date, there had been no arrests or charges filed. Yet pro-life advocates have been arrested and prosecuted for the heinous crime of…gasp…praying outside abortion clinics, and allegedly obstructing entry (some may actually have obstructed entry - an act which does violate federal law) to the clinics. The most recent was a 75-year-old woman sentenced to two years in prison for her part in a protest that the judge characterized as “violent” (to my knowledge, no one was injured or attacked, and I am unaware of any “violence” that allegedly occurred).

There are multitude more examples that could be offered up, from speakers being illegally detained by, or having to leave under police escort to be protected from, protestors on college campuses, or the current pro-Palestine encampments blocking access to schools for many, to other protestors blocking roadways, and even to violent offenders in many cities being released on zero cash bail. And in all of those, I must again ask, where are the charges? When are the trials? Where has the prosecution gone?

There is definitely an imbalance in the current state of our criminal justice system, and it leans decidedly one way. Anyone still denying that is blind, willfully ignorant, or intentionally part of the problem.