Second Trump presidency a threat to US democracy

Donald Trump speaks during the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit held at the Tampa Convention Center this month. Picture: AFP

Donald Trump’s treasonous refusal to accept the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, his attempt to overturn it by pressuring his vice-president not to certify the result and his incitement of the Capitol riot resulting in death, injury and destruction is enough to warrant criminal prosecution and prohibition from running for president again.

The January 6th Committee, using documents and testimony from his closest colleagues and family, have revealed another side to the disgraced former president: his callous indifference to lives he placed in danger. It was sickening to learn in the hearings last week that Trump sat glued to the television while ignoring advice to call off the Capitol insurrection.

That Trump violated his presidential oath of office to “preserve, protect and defend” the constitution, let alone observe the long-established norms and conven­tions of US politics such as graciously accepting an election defeat and observing the peaceful transfer of power, has long been established by the committee.

The most damning evidence presented under oath does not come from disgruntled Democrats but rather his own White House advisers, campaign personnel, cabinet members, military leaders, Secret Service agents, Republican politicians and, most damning of all, his daughter Ivanka. The committee has factually proven Trump’s sedition and attempted coup d’etat.

It was chilling to learn that after speaking to supporters at the Ellipse, Trump wanted to go to the Capitol himself. Instead, he returned to the White House and sat in the private dining room near the Oval Office, mesmerised by the TV coverage of the riot. He sat there from about 1.25pm to 4pm and did nothing as the attack on the Capitol unfolded. At the Ellipse, Trump repeated his false claims of electoral fraud and a stolen election. He told supporters to march to the Capitol where the certification of electoral college votes was to take place. He called on vice-president Mike Pence, who was to preside over a joint session of congress, to reject the certification. Within 15 minutes of Trump stepping off that stage, the Capitol was under attack.

The cold-hearted unconcern Trump showed towards Pence and his family underscores how conceited and sick the former president is. Earlier that morning, Trump tweeted that if Pence “comes through for us, we will win the presidency”. At 2.24pm, as Trump sat safely in the White House and the Capitol was breached, he tweeted: “Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done.”

Former National Security Council member Matthew Pottinger testifies during a hearing by the House Select Committee. Picture: AFP

Trump escalated rather than de-escalated the situation, former deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger said. Former deputy press secretary Sarah Matthews said that tweet greenlighted the continued Capitol insurrection. Some rioters wanted to kill Pence. The mob came within just 12m as Pence fled the Capitol. Secret Service agents were so worried that some contacted their family to say their goodbyes.

While the Capitol was being ransacked, police assaulted and politicians feared for their lives, Trump blithely refused to intervene. He ignored the advice of Republican politicians, personal advisers and his family to do something to quell the violence. He was unmoved for hours. Instead, he called several senators urging them to delay certification.

It was not until three hours after Trump left the rally at the Ellipse that a video was released at 4.17pm in which he told the mob he had incited to “go home” but added: “we love you, you’re very special”. Out-takes from the video revealed that he was advised to concede the election but refused. “I don’t want to say the election’s over,” he said. He tweeted later that his “landslide election victory” had been “stripped away from great patriots”.

Earlier hearings of the January 6th Committee have documented how Trump undermined the election before votes were even cast, was determined not to accept the result if he lost and was at the centre of an attempt to subvert the democratic process by pressuring state officials, the Justice Department and Pence. Attorney-general Bill Barr told Trump his claims of fraudulent voting and a stolen election were “bullshit”. Ivanka agreed with Barr.

Trump’s actions resulted in five deaths, hundreds of injuries and destruction to the Capitol. He has damaged the conventions, traditions and institutions of governance. He remains an insidious and divisive force in US politics that threatens the survival of US democracy. He has not accepted defeat, let alone responsibility for any of his illegal actions.

Yet no president is above the law. Trump was impeached but not convicted for his role in the insurrection. He deserves to be prosecuted. Indeed, he could be indicted for violating two, perhaps more, federal criminal statutes: conspiracy to defraud the US and obstruction of an official proceeding. A Californian federal judge found that Trump “more likely than not” committed federal crimes in a civil case in March.

American voters, according to polls, are divided about a criminal indictment of Trump. Another option is that congress disqualify him from running for office again by enforcing section three of the constitution’s 14th amendment. This provides for the banning of an individual from seeking office if they “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” or gave “aid or comfort” to those who have. It was ratified and used after the civil war.

Trump committed treason against the US. His return to the presidency could result in an irreversible slide to authoritarian populism. The great republic is teetering and its survival as a democracy is at stake. Much depends on whether the Republican Party can loosen itself from Trump’s demagogic grip. What cannot be denied is that Trump was always unfit to be president and his actions on January 6 last year confirm it.