[alsaaro]

Remember, a Grand Jury indicted John Edwards, a vice-Presidential candidate, for essentially the same thing Trump is being accused of -- that is using campaign funds to hide an affair.

Prior to Edward's indictment he was thought be the future of the democratic party, if Edwards was convicted on all counts he faced up the 30 years in prison, he beat the charges though -- a rarity in federal prosecutions.

So there is precedent for indictments for this particular crime, not that this should matter, in a republic everyone is subject to the same law and jurisprudence.

[gibrown]

Sounds like there are 34 counts of falsifying business records so it is probably more than just that one payoff.

[sbaiddn]

Or the same crime stated 34 different ways. Prosecutors do this all the time

[bruceb]

>Prior to Edward's indictment he was thought be the future of the democratic party

Respectfully he wasn't seen that way. His indictment was in 2011. Obama was president and still had another election to do. Edwards had not been relevant since 2008, really since 2004, as no one thought he could be Hilary or Obama in the primary.

>So there is precedent for indictments for this particular crime

One could argue its shows this is a waste of time and money.

The country doesn't need this. Trump was fading away.

[zahma]

It is never a bad time to pursue justice and allow the rusty machinery of our democracy to operate. I don't really care what comes of it, though I have an opinion of what is right and also what will happen. Many people treat this like a zero sum game: either he wins or he loses, and that result is good for Red Team or Blue Team. It would be helpful to our Nation if we recast this indictment as whether a public hearing on the alleged crimes is beneficial to the longevity of our way of governing. To show that none is above the law sends a powerful and unifying signal. So many of us -- my self included -- have already lost faith in our institutions, and while one trial will hardly restore them to glory or depolarize our politics, we must give our laws and processes credence by engaging them. Otherwise for what good are they?

[thequadehunter]

The fact that you're factoring in how popular he polls to determine whether this prosecution is worth it cements in my mind that it is 100% worth it.

Popularity should be the last factor in whether someone is prosecuted for a crime.

[themitigating]

He's running for president is at the top or 2nd place in polls with Republicans

He is lying about election fraud, states tried to send fake electors, they used the courts to push phony cases.

[AnimalMuppet]

Your first paragraph is correct. Your second probably is as well, but it's not this case.

[themitigating]

Al Capone was finally locked up because of tax fraud and it's celebrated.

Same situation

[stuckinhell]

Not the same in the slightest, Al Capone wasn't a presidential candidate with millions who view him as the "god emperor".

[themitigating]

Yes, so it's more important he face justice

[eynsham]

Whether or not Trump was fading away has nothing to do with whether he should be charged, which is a function of his conduct and the law, not his political success or lack thereof.

[throwaway6734]

>The country doesn't need this. Trump was fading away.

Agree with the former, disagree with the latter. he's still the frontrunner to win the gop primary

[bruceb]

in 2015/6 The GOP field didnt know what do with Trump and for the most part only half attacked him thinking he was a side show who would burn out. He also had no political baggage and no prominent court cases

Now he as alienated a lots of people, he lost an election, facing multiple court cases. He will have at least one or two R candidates who will directly attack him. He will have to fight 'wars' on multiple fronts. Plus he is 8 years older than when he first started running. Closer to 80 than 70.

Is it possible he would have won nomination? Yes but I think was less likely and slipping away from him.

The bad thing for Trump might not be the indictment but that it didn't happen in December 2023.

[throwaway6734]

Why are you saying "would have won"? The primary has not happened yet and he's still the favorite

[xienze]

> So there is precedent for indictments for this particular crime

Sure, but boy does it seem like a Plan Z attempt by Democrats to get literally any kind of charge to stick to Trump after 7!!! years of trying. And this particular case is one that's been known about for pretty much that entire time but was shelved, probably because they know it's weak.

[stuckinhell]

It absolutely does even the New York Times is calling this a disaster!