Will the first criminal indictment of Donald Trump come from the Department of Justice? Or from Fani Willis, the Fulton County district attorney investigating Trump’s find-me-the-votes efforts to change the electoral outcome in Georgia? Or maybe the indictment will come from Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan DA who has just convicted the Trump Organization of a 15-year-old tax scam featuring off-the-books payments for luxury apartments, high-end cars, and private school tuition?
If Bragg, a progressive prosecutor who has taken heat over what critics have called more lenient attitudes towards violent criminals, were to indict and convict the Corleone crime family as an entity, it would hardly be a great boost for law enforcement or the prosecutor. Vito, Sonny, Michael, and even Fredo would be free to commit more crimes and even run for office because a conviction of Genco Olive Oil is not the same as sending the Don to Sing Sing. The same is true for Trump and the Trump Organization. The 45th president is free to commit crimes even if his company has been found guilty.
No one has gotten around to indicting Trump over the January 6 insurrection or the Mar-a-Lago documents. However, criminal referrals from the congressional committee investigating the insurrection are forthcoming for all they may be worth. Bragg managed to get a tiny notch on his belt when he convicted the Trump Organization. But, as the man said, “Mighty oaks from little acorns grow.”
Why…
