ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA

Former US President Donald Trump was formally indicted on April 4 on 34 criminal charges. This is the first such incident in the American history. Remarkably, the former US leader believes the whole prosecution campaign is staged to prevent him from becoming president again in 2024.

Hush-money by voters

The main allegations against Trump are the falsification of financial documents. The most serious of these is the so-called Stormy Daniels case, a former pornstar who received $130,000 from the politician to keep her mouth shut (hush-money). In general, hush-money has no criminal component. But the former president is accused of solving his personal affairs from the election fund, which is made of his supporters' donations. Moreover, he did not pay any tax (a terrible crime in the US!) and disguised the payment as if for the provision of legal services.

The charging document refers to articles of falsification of business records, but is considered a crime if it is done to cover up another violation. District Attorney Alvin Bragg said the falsification of papers was done to conceal "illegal actions that suppressed information that could have harmed Trump in the eyes of voters during the 2016 election campaign". But this has yet to be proven. It remains a mystery why such a wealthy man as Trump would not pay his mistress out of his own pocket and take such a reckless risk...

When Trump arrived at the courthouse, he was arrested for several hours. Court officials took his fingerprints and profile photos for the case. However, after the judge read out a list of charges, cleared the arrest and set a date for the next hearing, the former US leader left the courthouse and went to the airport, from where he headed for his Florida residence in his private plane.

According to the US media, the punishment for the 45th White House president could be a large fine or... 136 years in prison, if the court decides that Trump is guilty on all counts and imposes the maximum possible punishment for each charge. Of course, the likelihood of such a turn of events is low. Trump's lawyers call all the charges "disappointing, unsupported by any evidence" and promise to fight to victory.

Remarkably, after the court appearance, Trump did not speak to journalists and chose social media as his mouthpiece. That is where he called what was happening a surreal act, an order and a political persecution. "I never thought something like this could happen in America, the only crime I have committed is fearlessly defending our nation from those who are trying to destroy it. The country is going to hell," the former White House leader said, as usual. He also called New York, the traditional city of American Democrats, a place of "unfair trial".

American justice

Indeed, the incident is more about a precedent observed in the American justice system rather than the essence of charges against Trump. One can claim that it is the cornerstone of the system. Especially since the current allegations of financial fraud are not the first against the ex-president. For example, there are ongoing investigations into the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021, Trump's pressure on Georgia to rig the 2020 election, and the illegal use of secret documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence. 

The response of other politicians to the situation is also a precedent. For example, Trump's former adviser John Bolton suddenly made the following interesting comment on the arrest of his former boss: "You show me the man, I'll show you the crime", a phrase widely attributed to Lavrenty Beria, a symbol of repressions in the USSR back in 1937. This comment becomes even more interesting given Bolton's frequent critical views on Trump. Nevertheless, he has now sided with Trump, as has the former Vice-President Mike Pence, who also has very strained relations with Trump, as well as Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (in quarrel with the former president). Pence, for example, openly stated that the investigation "reeks of political persecution".

The question now is how this will affect the rest of the restless billionaire's political career. And there are a lot of interesting things here. Firstly, American laws do not prohibit a head of state from serving his term even while in prison. Certainly, this will not prevent Trump from continuing his campaign, especially since the former president's rating has crept up after his indictment. For many, Trump already looks like a victim of harassment of political opponents, first time in the US history.

We are all Trump

Trump is even being compared to Jesus Christ. "Jesus was arrested and killed by the Roman government. There have been many people in history who have been arrested and persecuted by radical corrupt governments. And it's started now in New York," Trump supporter, Marjorie Taylor Green, said. "This case against Trump is all about power and the Democrats' decision to hold onto it at all costs," said Senator Josh Hawley.

The American Spectator ran the headline We're all Trump now. Finally, the chief critic of the Biden administration, Tucker Carlson of Fox News, said that it was impossible to imagine a bigger interference in the election and a more aggressive attack on democracy than this "attempt to gag a presidential candidate". The situation is like a show Americans love so much. For example, T-shirts with Trump's portrait and an inscription "Innocent!" are on sale now. They cost $47 each—this money will go to the campaign coffers, and we can only hope that this time Trump will use them as necessary. Also, before Trump's court appearance in New York, a skyscraper in the Fifth Avenue hosting his apartment and the criminal court complex, was cordoned off, with helicopters hovering over Manhattan all day long.

When you allegedly spend a couple of hours under arrest actually being in the focus of all the media outlets, promise to appear in the court in six months and then depart in your own helicopter to your own estate, you have a pretty good chance of moving into the presidential office. Although Trump's political rivals are trying to use the allegations to put the billionaire out of business. That is, to prevent him from winning the Republican primary. For example, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg asked Judge Juan Merchan to hold former President Donald Trump's trial in January 2024, which is just before the Iowa caucuses traditionally kicking off the national race on February 5.

To be or not to be

Whatever it is, it is clear that the scandalous and charismatic Trump remains a noticeable figure both in the US and international political agenda. Trump's Twitter feed is quoted and sometimes analysed by most of the world's media. He continues to claim that the Democratic Party rigged the 2020 election and has consistently criticised the current White House administration. That said, the prosecution of the former president, when viewed from this perspective, shows that he continues to be a danger to his rivals, who do reckon him. Trump is now leading the Republican candidates by a wide margin, ahead of the second most popular candidate, Ron DeSantis. The big question, however, is whether the Republicans themselves want to allow him to run for president. There is certainly no consensus within the Republican Party on this. Can the interests of Democrats and those Republicans who oppose Trump coincide? Quite likely.

Meanwhile, the Democrats are also actively preparing for their own campaign. The media is full of news that Alexander Soros, the 37-year-old son of billionaire George Soros, an avid supporter of the Democrats, has become active in Washington. Also, lawyer Robert Kennedy, 69, a nephew of the former American president John F. Kennedy, has filed to run for the US presidency in 2024.  Interestingly, according to various polls on whether the former president can be criminally prosecuted, the opinions of ordinary Americans are divided evenly. Thus, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, 49% of all Americans think it is right to prosecute a US president or former president. This is a very distinctive indicator, even without Trump or his actions in mind. So the next US presidential election can be the most memorable in the modern history of the country. Memorable and momentous. Both for Americans and for the world.