VICTOR JOECKS: 7 times Democrats and their allies were ‘above the law’
The unprecedented arrest of Donald Trump highlights how the application of the law frequently depends on the political affiliation of the suspect.
On Tuesday, Trump was arrested in New York City. He faces dozens of felony charges related to paying hush money to two women over alleged affairs. Trump isn’t just a former president. He’s the leading GOP candidate for the 2024 nomination.
Arresting and potentially imprisoning the leader of the out-of-power party is unprecedented in America. And for good reason. The potential for abuse is high. Arresting your political opponents when you control the levers of power is a lot easier than defeating them in a free and fair election. Look around the world. Dictators have long imprisoned their political opponents to cement their rule.
Many Democrats insist that’s not happening here. Sen. Elizabeth Warren said the indictment showed that “no one is above the law, not even a former president of the United States.” Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford echoed the same talking point, “Nobody — former presidents included — is above the law.”
But look around. Prominent Democrats and those whom Democrats have deemed as politically favored routinely break the law without consequence.
Start with Hunter Biden. There’s mounds of evidence that he is guilty of illegal drug use, falsifying information on a background check to purchase a gun, hiring prostitutes and tax evasion. Instead of prosecuting him or investigating influence peddling, the FBI worked to discredit his abandoned laptop as Russian disinformation.
Consider Hillary Clinton. In 2016, then-FBI director James Comey laid out how Clinton violated the law governing the handling of classified information. He then said criminal charges weren’t warranted because “no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case.” He forgot to add “against a Democrat.” Trump is currently facing an investigation into his handling of classified materials.
Look at illegal immigration. The Biden administration has released more than 1 million illegal immigrants into the interior of the country. The White House rolled out an app for would-be illegal immigrants to make an appointment with border officials. Even illegal immigrants who are arrested receive special protections. Sanctuary cities protect them from deportation by preventing local police from coordinating with federal law enforcement. Ford once co-sponsored a bill to make Nevada a sanctuary state.
Then there’s the 2020 BLM rioters and antifa. Magically, rioting for social justice didn’t spread the coronavirus, supposed public health experts opined. Many of those who broke the law that summer weren’t arrested. Even in Portland, Oregon, where rioters repeatedly attacked a federal courthouse, most of those arrested had their charges dropped or faced community service and probation,
Finally, there’s the movement among progressive prosecutors — including Manhattan’s Alvin Bragg — to go soft on most criminals. After taking office, Bragg issued a memo directing prosecutors not to even charge many offenses.
This is a woefully incomplete list, but you can see the pattern. Those who are useful to the political left frequently break the law with impunity. Trump is their political foe, so he’s arrested and aggressively prosecuted.
Contact Victor Joecks at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on Twitter.