The reactions to his guilty verdict say a lot about the true nature of Donald Trump, his party and the authoritarian turn he promises to undertake if he returns to the White House.
We already had a good idea of who Donald Trump is: an inveterate liar, a fraud, and a sexual predator, among other traits.
Now, no matter what he says, he is also a convicted criminal.
Trump refuses to accept the outcome of the trial unless he wins, just as he has already refused to accept the election results unless he wins. In short, he despises his country's institutions, except those he manipulates to his advantage.
On the other hand, Joe Biden says that he will accept the outcome of his son's trial, and that he will give up granting him a presidential pardon if he is convicted.
worship
The effects of the ruling confirm that the Republican Party has become a religious sect. We knew this, as Trump succeeded in making adherence to the “big lie” during the 2020 elections a test of loyalty to the party.
Now the so-called “Party of Law and Order” is rejecting the court ruling and lavishing millions on the Trump campaign (see below).
Although the evidence convinced twelve jurors beyond a reasonable doubt, it was forbidden to admit that the cult leader could have done anything wrong at all.
In Maryland, Republican Senate candidate Larry Hogan dared to challenge this dictate. The party threatens to cut off its funds, even if it has a chance to win this “blue” state. Trump's control of his party appears to be more important than the party's control of the Senate.
Meanwhile, a Democratic senator is on trial, and the only calls for his resignation are coming from his own party.
The authoritarian turn
We already knew Donald Trump's penchant for authoritarianism and his personal concept of the rule of law. His reaction to his trial ruling confirms these perceptions.
In an interview with Fox News, Trump promised to condemn those who committed the crime of opposing him or hold him accountable for his actions.
An expert in the art of projection, he accuses his opponents of behaving like tyrants when that is exactly what he intends to do himself.
For Trump, the election is primarily about avoiding prison and revenge. All of his convicted allies will benefit from a presidential pardon, including those involved in the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Law and order for others.
Even if the ruling clarifies matters (a little), it is not yet clear whether voters have fully understood what it means to bring to power a convicted criminal, backed by a religious sect, and intent on acting like a tyrant.
Opinion polls indicate that his conviction may deprive him of enough votes to defeat him, but the margin is still small.
Quote of the week:
“And when this election is over, given what they did to me, I will have every right to attack them“.
— Donald Trump, in an interview with host Sean Hannity on Fox News on Wednesday (June 5), insisted that he would seek to use the justice system to take revenge on his political opponents, without specifying what crimes they committed.
Week number
53 million dollars
The amount of donations raised in Donald Trump's campaign in the 24 hours after the New York trial ruling was announced, allowing Trump to make up his funding shortfall against Biden (The New York Times, May 31, 2024). Most of this money comes from millionaires who would benefit from seeing an extension of Trump's 2017 tax cuts.
Polygraph
In an interview with Fox News on June 2, Donald Trump said he never called for Hillary Clinton to be imprisoned or uttered his 2016 campaign slogan, “Lock her up.”
forged
This is a lie and a shameful attempt to rewrite history. The media has listed dozens of examples and quotes in which Trump says he wants his 2016 rival to be jailed, most of the time without going through the legal hassle of providing evidence or going to trial.
Picture of the week
Here we see emergency services come to the aid of dozens of Donald Trump supporters who suffered heatstroke during a rally in Phoenix, Arizona, in temperatures of over 45 degrees Celsius, on Thursday, June 6.
In Phoenix, Arizona, dozens of supporters were hospitalized on Thursday after being exposed to temperatures exceeding 45 degrees Celsius while waiting to participate in a campaign rally for Donald Trump. The rally was held in the middle of the day, as Trump was scheduled to meet with donors that evening.
France Press agency
