Quote of the Day

The bipartisan congressional committee investigating the January 6 coup attempt has found strong evidence that Donald Trump is a criminal. As the hearings reveal, the former president illegally plotted to stay in office after the American people voted to boot him out.

Now he must be indicted.

Trump’s criminality is proven not by the words of his enemies, but by the sworn testimony of Republicans he himself appointed or hired – including his own officials and staff, his attorney general William Barr, and Republican election lawyers and campaign personnel.

The evidence indicates Trump committed three major felonies. First, he corruptly tried to obstruct a joint session of Congress. . . . Second, Trump incited a riot. . . . Third, Trump attempted election fraud. . . . These are serious crimes – and the peril is growing.

. . . Will Trump finally be indicted?

The answer rests with Attorney General Merrick Garland, who swore an oath to “support and defend the Constitution against all enemies.” But Garland has been reluctant to confront Trump.

Garland needs to follow the evidence and honor his oath. If the chief insurrectionist is never charged, the message is plain: presidents are above the law and political violence is acceptable in America.

If the Constitution is to prevail – and if we are to avoid violence – Trump cannot enjoy impunity. The rule of law must be brought to bear and he must be indicted and tried.

– Mitchell Zimmerman
Excerpted from “There Is More Than
Enough Evidence to Indict Trump”
Common Dreams
June 23, 2022

NEXT:
Liz Cheney: Quote of the Day
– June 30, 2022

Related Off-site Links:
The Consequences of Indicting Trump – Robert Kuttner (The American Prospect, June 23, 2022).
The Challenge of Prosecuting Trump – James D. Zirin (The Hill, June 20, 2022).
George Conway: Hard for DOJ to Ignore Liz Cheney’s “Masterful” Statements Against Trump – Mary Papenfuss (The Huffington Post, June 10, 2022).
The 11 Most Consequential Lines From the January 6 Committee’s Prime-time Hearing – Chris Cillizza (CNN Politics, June 10, 2022).
“Attempted Coup”: First Public January 6 Hearing Puts Trump at Center of Plan to Overturn 2020 Election – Democracy Now! (June 10, 2022).
“Bullshit”: Bill Barr and Ivanka Trump Told House January 6 Probe They Didn’t Believe Stolen Election Lies – Democracy Now! (June 10, 2022).
Oops: Unearthed Footage Shows Ivanka Trump Was All In on Her Father’s Attempt to Overthrow the Election – Bess Levin (Vanity Fair, June 22, 2022).
The Insurrection Isn’t Over: January 6 Hearings Reveal Threat of Future Election Violence – Michael Latner (Common Dreams, June 10, 2022).
Nation “On the Precipice . . . of Fascism,” Warns Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – Andrea Germanos (Common Dreams, June 10, 2022).
Tattered Nation – Marianne Williamson (Transform, June 12, 2022).
Second Day of January 6 Hearing Offers Yet More Proof That “Trump Lied” and “He Knew He Lied” – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, June 13, 2022).
“Not Only Was There the Big Lie, There Was the Big Rip-Off” – Charles P. Pierce (Esquire, June 13, 2022).
A Drunk Rudy Giuliani Urged Trump to Declare Victory on Election Night, Trump Aides Testify – Democracy Now! (June 14, 2022).
“Detached from Reality”: Bill Barr Says Trump Embraced Lies and Conspiracy Theories After His Election Loss – Democracy Now! (June 14, 2022).
Pennsylvania GOP Election Official Tells January 6 Committee His Family Faced Death Threats Because of Trump “Hang Mike Pence!”: January 6 Hearing Shows Trump Targeted VP, Knew Plan to Overturn Vote Was Illegal – Democracy Now! (June 17, 2022).
Top Arizona Republican Testifies He Rejected Trump Plot to Overturn Vote, Then Faced Violent Threats – Democracy Now! (June 22, 2022).
“Whatever You Can Do”: January 6 Hearing Lays Out “Fake Electors” Scheme to Rig 2020 Election for Trump – Democracy Now! (June 22, 2022).
Georgia Poll Workers Falsely Targeted by Trump as “Scammers” Faced Racist Harassment, Lived in Fear – Democracy Now! (June 22, 2022).
House January 6 Committee Reveals “Seditious Six” GOP Lawmakers Who Sought Trump Pardons – Brett Wilkins (Common Dreams, June 23, 2022).

UPDATE: As First Series of January 6 Hearings Ends, Watchdogs Say Trump “Must Be Prosecuted” – Jake Johnson (Common Dreams, July 22, 2022).

See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Rep. Liz Cheney: Quote of the Day – June 9, 2022
• “How Can One Overreact to a Mortal Threat to American Democracy?”
• A Deeper Perspective on What’s Really Attacking Democracy
• “The Coup Attempt on Jan. 6th Was a Warning for What’s to Come If We Don’t Act”
• “My Biggest Worry Is for My Country”
• Republicans Pose an “Existential Threat” to American Democracy
• The Big Switch
• Two Conservative Voices of Integrity
• The Republican Party in a Nutshell
• Republicans Don’t Care About American Democracy
• Heather Cox Richardson on Combating the Republican Party’s “Rigging of the System”
• Refuting Surface Level Comparisons Between the Insurrection at the Capitol and Black Lives Matter Protests
• David Remnick: Quote of the Day – February 13, 2021
• Dan Rather on America’s “Moment of Reckoning”
• Michael Harriot: Quote of the Day – January 6, 2021
• Insurrection at the United States Capitol

Image: Citizens gathered in New York on February 2, 2022 to demand the indictments of everyone involved in the planning of the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. (Photo: Erik McGregor/Sipa USA)