OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former President Donald Trump warned that President Joe Biden could also face “indictments” under the “next president,” which appeared to be an off-handed suggestion that, should he win, he may choose to make similar legal moves against the 46th president.
“In a video posted on Truth Social, Trump spoke about his argument that he should be immune from prosecution related to the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol because the charges stem from actions he took as president,” the Independent Journal Review reported on Tuesday, adding that Trump went on to say that Biden directed his Justice Department to politically persecute him.
“[Biden] told his DOJ to do it, ‘Go indict him.’ Because he’s losing badly in the polls—so badly that he figures this is the only way he can win. The only problem is that thus far, it’s pushed us way up in the polls because people see it’s a scam,” Trump said.
His remarks come as he leads Biden by just over 2 points in the RealClearPolitics average of polling and amid Biden’s worst approval ratings of his presidency.
“Frankly, it’s never happened in our country before. It only happens in third-world countries or banana republics. They’re using their Department of Injustice to go after his political [opponent], and this is all him, a hundred percent him. He’s the one that told them to do it and they obey his orders. It’s a shame. Never happened in the United States before, but it’s happened now,” Trump continued before he appeared to drop a warning.
“And he has to be careful because that can happen to him also. The next president, whoever that may be, has a statute of limitations that go back six years. That’s a long time, Joe. You have to be very careful. We have to guard and protect our country. We have to do what’s right for our country,” Trump said, adding: “You don’t indict your political opponent because he opposes the corrupt election, which you know was corrupt… You don’t indict your political opponent.”
Trump is facing some 91 criminal indictments.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court has spent years avoiding inquiries about former President Donald Trump, but now it must decide the most important of them all: Does the 14th Amendment prohibit him from seeking the presidency because he is allegedly an insurrectionist?
Adding further political heat to an already contentious court case, a simple “yes” or “no” may not suffice. Despite the case’s abundance of novel and complex legal issues, the justices may attempt to sidestep a decision that would disqualify Trump from the election or give him an unqualified triumph in terms of public relations and the law.
The Supreme Court announced that it will hear Trump’s appeal of a Colorado ruling disqualifying him for his actions leading up to the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the Capitol at an expedited hearing on February 8.
“I certainly could understand if the court would like any of the procedural avenues that would avoid squarely addressing any of the merits. As a matter of first instinct, I think that would be attractive,” said Ned Foley, an election law professor at Ohio State University.
“It may help the court out from that perspective, but it may hurt the country,” he added while speaking with Politico.
Foley argued that if the decision is too technical or just puts off dealing with the main issue — which is whether or not Trump is eligible to hold public office again under the Constitution — then it could lead to even more chaos if the Democrats try to use the insurrection argument to prevent Trump from retaking office after he wins the election.
