McConnell concluded by noting that, "We have a criminal justice system in this country. We have civil litigation. And former presidents are not immune from being held accountable by either one." For McConnell, this was a throwaway line, spoken only for the purpose of diverting responsibility from the legislative to the executive branch of our government. But it also poses a momentous question for President Biden and the American people. Are we going to let Trump get away with treason, and be a candidate for president in 2024?
The majority of Republicans are uniting around the goal of voter suppression, retaking control of Congress and re-electing a traitor. The have refused to cooperate in a bipartisan investigation of the Jan. 6 insurrection, and they will not admit that the 2020 presidential election was valid and fair. We are trapped in a two-party system in which one party no longer cooperates in governance. According to a recent George Washington University poll,
"Over half of Republicans (55%) supported the possible use of force to preserve the "traditional American way of life," compared to 15% of Democrats. When asked if a time will come when "patriotic Americans have to take the law into their own hands," 47% of Republicans agreed, as opposed to just 9% of Democrats."
I'm not suggesting that Democrats should imitate Republican readiness to "take the law into their own hands." But the Biden administration should use the law that is in their hands to prosecute Trump in criminal court, not just for financial crimes, but for the much more serious crime of treason. There is a dangerous arrogance in the GOP's attack on the electoral process and its support of a traitor for re-election as President. We should have enough self-respect to stop the GOP from trampling on our democracy.
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