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GUEST COMMENTARY - The nightmare dystopia of unprecedented political sabotage in this country rolls on. There is no better example than the prosecution and persecution of former president Donald Trump by "legal authorities" in New York, who were voted in essentially because of George Soros' massive donations.
Author's note: Due to the political climate, I must clarify that I am not a big Trump fan. I am a registered independent, and before the Trump era, I voted for the blue team. I belong to the common-sense party, though it is reasonable to disagree regarding what is common and what makes sense.
What is happening to Donald is a disgrace to the principles this country was founded on; it is unconstitutional. It is a disgrace to our court system, makes a mockery of justice, and is just as bad as an East German Stassi Show Trial. It is showing not only the country but the world how the United States is devolving into a dictatorship of rogue judges and district attorneys with the blessings of the Department of Justice. These prosecutors are abusing their power for political means and ends, which is election interference. We are further damaged by the fact that higher courts, which are supposed to regulate the lower courts, are missing in action. Therefore, in their silence, they bless the gross abuse of power. These legally powerful venues are doing everything they possibly can to deny half the country the right to vote for the candidate of their choice.
The Constitution is the operating system and blueprint for this country. The former President's constitutional rights are being trampled on. Specifically, the 1st, 5th, 6th, 8th, and 14th Amendments are unrecognizable in his New York City cases. It's as if equal protection under the law has been erased from the Constitution. As the Constitution shreds, lawlessness grows. It is a mystery to critical observers that the higher courts have not quashed such farcical trials.
The trials in NY are manufactured out of thin air using vaporous constructs of law where there are no victims and no former precedents. He is prosecuted by prosecutors who ran on the platform to get Trump—a violation of the former President's 14th Amendment guarantees. Actual egregious NY law breaches seem to be ignored or are met with indifference. Typically, the severity of the alleged crime is reduced from a felony charge(s) to a mere misdemeanor. You can even beat up policemen, and the culprits were released a few days later without bail. The suspects that have been caught have fled NYC. Imagine that?
Take Leticia James, the District Attorney for the State of New York, suit against Trump. The trial, which was not a jury trial by jury, was about Trump getting favorable interest rates on his loans based on his real estate valuation. Every property owner thinks his property is more valuable than the most likely appraised value. If that is a crime, every property owner should be jailed for inflating the value of their real estate. Nevertheless, some of the largest banks in the world looked at the properties and did their own appraisals, and we're more than happy to do business with Trump and would be glad to continue doing business with Trump.
However, everyone knew that Trump was to be found guilty and that “justice” had to extract the harshest financial penalties possible. While he sought to appeal the verdict, he is being forced to put up a ridiculous sum of money in the form of a bond that the attorney general, who is not through punishing Trump (for having the temerity to run for President again), did not want to accept. These behaviors fully showcase that we are in the realm of a witch-hunt and political persecution for the crime of opposing the Biden regime.
The current trial is with Judge Juan Merchan a Democratic Donor. His daughter has significant contracts with the Democratic Party and has helped California Congressman Adam Shift and Vice President Harris with their campaigns. According to New York law, he must recuse himself from the trial. As of this writing, he is steadfastly pushing forward with prosecuting ledger entries and vouchers and writing money-good checks that may have been for election expenses. Unsurprisingly, the mainstream media has turned into the sensationalized "hush money" trial of the century.
Additionally, the judge has gagged Donald Trump for saying anything about the trial. In contrast, pillars of society such as Michael Cohen, a convicted perjurer, and Stormy Daniels, the porn star, and harlot can say the most vitriolic things about the defendant in this case. Additionally, the judge has insisted that Trump attend the trial every day the court is in session, denying him the right to hear his appeal in person to the Supreme Court and the opportunity to see his son graduate high school. It's the worst possible case of "after-school detention" for anyone, ever. It also prevents him from getting on the campaign trail during an ever-increasing need to rally support for his campaign. If Trump violates such orders, he could spend 30 days in jail. He has also been threatened with jail time for violating the gag order. This behavior from the judge is election interference.
It is not illegal to pay hush money or sign an NDA. If the alleged false business records were entered after the election, it is not election interference. It also is not illegal for Mr. Trump to donate any sum he wants to his campaign. Therefore, even if this is marked as a campaign expense, it was merely going from one pocket to the other, and there's no crime there.
Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan DA, charges Trump with falsifying business records to the first degree. This apparently means he put or caused check descriptions of expenses and vouchers to be in the wrong column. According to the Indictment, there are 34 instances of illegal ledger and voucher entries in the first degree, which is presumed to cover up criminal activity. Bragg does not have much of a case because you cannot identify the victim. You can't identify the case theory because it's about bookkeeping entries, like me putting my bocce-ball club dues in my spreadsheet and calling it a business expense. Does it matter? It might be true, too. The charges don't explain how Trump violated business-keeping records statutes.
Here's an example of how obscure, nebulous, farfetched, and improbable of a squinting non-sequitur these trumped up charges are. "Charge one: In violation of penal law statute 175.10 falsifying business records in the first degree the defendant (Donald Trump) committed as follows: In the county of New York and elsewhere (where is elsewhere? Chautauqua? Sheboygan? Uranus?) on or about February 14th, 2017, with intent to defraud (who?) and intent to commit another crime (what crime?) and aid and conceal the Commission (conceal the commission of?) thereof, made and caused a false entry (why was it a false entry?) in the business records of an enterprise, to wit, an invoice from Michael Cohen dated February 14th, 2017, marked as a record of the Donald J Trump revocable trust and kept and maintained by the trump organization".
So, what would he be pleading guilty to if Trump pleaded guilty? Causing an invoice to be posted to a ledger? Writing a check, paying his lawyer? It seems as non-specific as it can get. It could be anything the prosecutors say it was. There are 33 more counts that are just as meaningless and vacuous. Is bookkeeping on trial? The non-specifics open the former President to double jeopardy because you cannot define the crime from the Indictment. Because it is so non-specific. Perhaps as the trial moves forward, they will specify what the alleged criminal acts are, and we can see if there were any abuse of election laws.
This abuse and weaponization of the American criminal justice system is an embarrassment to the state of New York and the nation. It has been barely noticed that this lawfare has been going on to a lesser extent for years. Nobody cared because it was limited to outsiders and unknown dissidents. But now the whole world is watching, and they can see how the system has been repurposed, and that the United States is no longer that shiny beacon on the hill of truth, fairness, and justice (the American way). These trials in New York show the need for a vast institutional reform regarding the power attorney generals and judges have over people's lives. Until we do that, the entire criminal justice system looks like a joke from a third-world country to the entire world.
According to Isaac Newton's third law of motion, there is an equal and opposite reaction for every action. This is what the Democratic Party has now wrought for itself: Their reliable African American voters are now taking a much harder look at the former President, and the President's poll numbers among black Americans have been going up bigly. Black Americans are a voting bloc that the Democrats cannot afford to lose if they want to continue to control the White House, wrest control from the Republicans in the House and keep a Senate Majority.
"As much as people may have been abhorred by Donald Trump's statement weeks ago talking about how Black folks, he's hearing that Black folks find him relatable because of what he is going through is similar to what Black Americans have gone through, he wasn't lying! He was telling the truth," Steven A Smith told Sean Hannity. "When you see the law, law enforcement, the court system, and everything else being exercised against him, it is something that Black folks throughout this nation can relate to with some of our historic, iconic figures. We've seen that happen throughout society."
If this trial succeeds and the Justice Department and prosecutorial power are not reformed there is grave jeopardy for all of us. The weaponization of courts, laws and lawfare is a shocking development, and everybody, whether they like Trump or hate Trump, should be proponents for a fair and equitable rules flowing through the justice system. It should not be used to stifle political opposition. The proponents of these tactics should be impeached and removed from office.
Jim Nells quoted the words of Lavrentiy Beria in his 4/19/24 Blazemedia article. Beria, was Joseph Stalin's head of the secret police, he is quoted as saying "Show me the man, and I'll show you the crime." These words should start to scare us all. This philosophy of injustice and weaponization of law applies not only to Donald Trump but could be applied to any of us. Who’s next?
(Eliot Cohen has been on the Neighborhood Council, serves on the Van Nuys Airport Citizens Advisory Council, and is President of Homeowners of Encino. Eliot retired after a 35-year career on Wall Street. Eliot is a critic of the stinking thinking of the bureaucrats and politicians that run the State, County, and City. Eliot and his wife divide their time between L.A. and Baja Norte, Mexico. Eliot is a regular contributor to CityWatchLA.com – [email protected])
