Trump On Trial Again?

Supporters of the former president are likely to see the revelations as the latest attempt to portray the mogul negatively

In an act that, whether intended or not, has enormous political implications, Special Counsel Jack Smith has amended the indictment of former president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, alleging that Trump’s efforts to retain power and overturn the 2020 election were made in a personal capacity as a candidate, not officially as president.

The amended indictment seeks to conform with the Supreme Court’s ruling that a president has limited immunity for official acts. Smith alleges that Trump’s actions occurred in his capacity as a candidate, not as president.

The amended indictment was filed last week and unsealed on Wednesday at the direction of federal District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is presiding over the case charging Trump with crimes linked to his effort to retain power despite losing the 2020 election.

The filing presents new details surrounding Trump’s actions before and after the vote, as well as during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol in which thousands of Trump supporters stormed the building in an attempt to prevent Congress from certifying the election results.

The case may not be ready to try before Election Day on Nov. 5. But whether or not it is, it will have an impact on the highly polarized U.S. political environment and the very competitive election campaign that is underway.

But no one is entirely sure how voters will view the amended charges and disclosures. Trump supporters are likely to see the revelations as the latest attempt to portray the former president negatively, but at the same time, the new details confirm his opponents’ worst fears that Trump is capable of doing anything for his own personal benefit.

According to the new disclosures, Trump knew he had lost the election. “It doesn’t matter if you won or lost the election. You still have to fight like hell,” the real estate mogul allegedly told family members and others aboard the presidential helicopter known as Marine One.

Moreover, Trump allegedly asserted that “the details don’t matter” even though his own lawyers told him that he could not sustain the alleged election irregularities in court, as proved to be true.

Trump’s remarks align with the philosophy Trump has maintained throughout his career as a real estate entrepreneur and as a politician: never accept defeat, always fight back, and claim victory no matter what the circumstances.

The fact is that if Trump wins, as may happen, Trump will likely order the Justice Department to dismiss the indictment in what many of his critics believe will herald an authoritarian system unprecedented in U.S. history.

Smith’s amended indictment, however, leaves us with the question: When is a president not a president but a candidate?