Please Stop Cheering

There is nothing to celebrate in the latest and gravest federal indictment of Donald Trump

Former U.S. President Donald Trump enters Erie Insurance Arena for a political rally while campaigning for the GOP nomination in the 2024 election on July 29, 2023 in Erie, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

Until late Tuesday afternoon, the most sensational political story of the week was the New York Times/Sienna College poll showing that former President Donald Trump enjoys what looks very much like an all-but unsurpassable lead for the Republican presidential nomination—and that a head-to-head contest held today between Trump and President Joe Biden would be tied at 43 percent. Given the multi-point advantage Republicans have enjoyed in the Electoral College in recent presidential elections, this would almost certainly translate into a Trump win.

But then, around 5pm on Tuesday, this story was eclipsed by an even more sensational one—news of the third Trump indictment, this one involving the gravest federal charges he’s faced so far:

• “Conspiracy to defraud the United States by using dishonesty, fraud, and deceit to impair, obstruct, and defeat the lawful federal government function by which the results of the presidential election are collected, counted, and certified by the government.”

• “Conspiracy to corruptly obstruct and impede the January 6 congressional proceeding at which the collected results of the presidential election are counted and certified.”

• “Conspiracy against the right to vote and to have one’s vote counted.” 

We have no reason to believe the second sensational story has changed anything about the first. And that, I think, should be inspiring far more trepidation than I’m seeing.

Credulity Rises