The Federal Indictment of Donald J. Trump: Historic…and Wild
Charlie Neibergall/AP
Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.The federal indictment of Donald Trump and his valet Waltine Nauta on 38 counts of retaining and withholding national security information, conspiring to obstruct justice, and lying to the FBI that was unsealed today is historic…and wild. It shows Trump at his Trumpiest, scheming to cheat, evading responsibility and accountability, lying, and apparently breaking the law. Of course, just allegedly. Since nothing has been proven, and he’s presumed innocent until there is a verdict. But overall, the indictment depicts Trump as a conniver who acts like a mob boss—perhaps a sloppy mob boss. He orders an underling to move boxes containing classified records so his lawyer won’t find the secret documents when he reviews Trump’s stash. He parks his booty in a shower stall in a bathroom. When an initial review uncovers several dozen classified documents, Trump signals to his lawyer—with a “plucking motion”—that this attorney should remove some of these documents from the folder they are in and make them disappear.
It’s all a bit comical but certainly damn serious. You have to wonder what Roy Cohn, the sleazy layer for Mafia bosses and other crooks who was something of a mentor for Trump, would say, were he still alive. Surely, there must have been a smarter way to steal and conceal government secrets. Would Cohn be disappointed with Trump’s carelessness in pulling off this caper?
The case against Trump looks strong. But it’s special counsel Jack Smith’s job to present a good first impression with the indictment. No doubt, there will be much shouting and many complications ahead in this case. Yet what has been revealed today is pure Trump. Here are some highlights—or lowlights—that caught my eye as I read the document.
Yeah, this is just fine, right? pic.twitter.com/hVtgKOJmlc
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
This doesn’t sound like Trump at all! pic.twitter.com/4IEgoaYw9g
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
That was then…. pic.twitter.com/QZpJeZFWD8
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
This was no accident. pic.twitter.com/Q2C3CDW1mx
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
Trump really treated this classified material as sacred. pic.twitter.com/3wviOSDeHV
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
There is some trolling in the indictment of Trump. pic.twitter.com/gY7lvM2OB5
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
Hard to imagine Trump trying to cheat, right? pic.twitter.com/5wg4BlGsiK
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
Wow. They have Trump nailed on this point. After he was subpoenaed for classified docs, one of his lawyers arranged with him to go through all the boxes to look for classified docs. Before that review, Trump ordered Nauta to remove about 64 boxes so his lawyer could not vet them. pic.twitter.com/glJIdUSuiv
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
Trump as mob boss. pic.twitter.com/N3wMbvYNIZ
— David Corn (@DavidCornDC) June 9, 2023
