Justice Dept Must Not Allow Trump To Use Candidacy As “Cover” To Block Investigations

Fred Wertheimer’s Weekly Note | November 10, 2022

The Department of Justice for some time has been conducting criminal investigations into former President Donald Trump’s activities.

These investigations include whether Trump led a conspiracy to illegally overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, and whether he illegally took top secret and other government documents from the White House and improperly stored them at Mar-a-Lago.

(Criminal investigations involving Trump are also occurring in the states, including an investigation by the Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney in connection with the 2020 election.)

Prior to Tuesday’s election, Trump signaled that he would announce his third run for President next week. However, with the surprisingly weak showing of Republicans in congressional races and with criticism for his damaging role in the elections, Trump may postpone his announcement.

Regardless of his timing, Trump’s announcement is expected to trigger intense attacks on Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Justice Department by congressional Republicans and other Trump supporters.

These attacks will include claims that the investigations of Trump, as a former President and a current presidential candidate, are unprecedented and that it is improper for a Justice Department in a Democratic Administration to indict and prosecute a leading presidential candidate from the other party.

Trump supporters will argue that these investigations constitute improper interference in a presidential campaign. “Let the voters decide,” they will likely argue.

The efforts to protect Trump will also include threats to impeach Garland and the launch of congressional investigations of the investigators, assuming Republicans gain control of the House and/or Senate.

If Republicans control the House, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), in line to become Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, already has indicated he plans to investigate the DOJ search of Mar-a-Lago for classified documents.

If Republicans control the Senate, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), in line to become Chair of the Homeland Security and Government Affairs Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, is ready, according to his office, to investigate the “corruption and politicization of federal law enforcement and our intelligence agencies.”

Attorney General Garland must ignore these attacks, complete his investigations, and pursue any indictments and prosecutions of Trump that he concludes are appropriate.

It is vitally important to the credibility of our legal system and the commitment to the rule of law – a cornerstone of our democracy – that Trump be held accountable for any criminal activity in which he may have engaged, as any other citizen would be.

This was the position taken by congressional Republicans when they supported a criminal investigation of President Bill Clinton that occurred during his presidency.

Attorney General Garland has repeatedly made clear that “upholding the rule of law means applying the law evenly, without fear or favor. … All Americans are entitled to the evenhanded application of the law.”

These are standards Garland must meet in the case of former President Trump.

There have been anonymous reports recently that Garland is considering the appointment of a special prosecutor to handle these cases.

This should not happen.

If Garland wanted a special prosecutor, he should have acted at the beginning of these investigations. Today, it is simply too late in the process.

Making such an appointment would cause long delays because a special prosecutor would have to undertake the role leading the investigation starting from scratch. It would play into Trump’s time-honored approach of pressing for interminable delays in any legal matter he faces.

Furthermore, the appointment of a special prosecutor would not insulate Garland or the DOJ from Republican attacks on partisanship. These attacks will continue regardless of what Garland and DOJ do on this front.

If Trump is allowed to use his presidential candidacy, for an election that does not even begin until 2024, as cover for avoiding accountability for potential criminal actions, it will set a terrible precedent and undermine the rule of law.

Attorney General Garland has the duty and responsibility to prevent this from happening.

________________________

Fred’s Weekly Note appears each Thursday in Wertheimer’s Political Report, a Democracy 21 newsletter. Read this week’s newsletter here. And, subscribe for free here and receive your copy each week via email.