Trump Has Broken Many More Laws Than He’s Currently Being Charged For

As we cowl the historic arraignment of former President Donald Trump, we take a look at the crimes for which he has not been charged. We communicate with Ralph Nader, longtime shopper advocate, company critic and former presidential candidate. Nader says that although “all presidents violate legal guidelines,” Trump has “taken it to a brand new and various peak.”

TRANSCRIPT

This can be a rush transcript. Copy might not be in its remaining type.

AMY GOODMAN: That is Democracy Now! As we cowl this historic arraignment of former President Donald Trump, we take a look at what he has not been charged with — properly, not less than but. We’re joined on the telephone by Ralph Nader, longtime shopper advocate, company critic, former presidential candidate many instances.

Welcome again to Democracy Now!, Ralph. Your response to what came about yesterday? It was historic, first-ever ex- or sitting president charged, criminally charged. He’s charged with 34 felonies. And he additionally has been impeached twice. However speak about what he did get charged with and what he didn’t.

RALPH NADER: Properly, it was historic within the sense it was massively overdue. Let’s begin with Donald Trump’s infamous assertion in 2019, which lays the idea for his lawlessness day after day as president. He stated, quote, “With Article II, I can do no matter I would like as president,” end-quote. Actually? However he went on to show it, earlier than 2019, when he made the assertion, and after. And so, the broader body of reference right here is that he turned the White Home right into a every day crime scene. John Bolton, who was his particular assistant, in his memoir, stated, “Obstruction of justice within the White Home was a lifestyle.” That’s a critical crime. Within the Mueller report, they outlined 10 main obstruction of justice in opposition to regulation enforcement in a really crude method. There wasn’t any subtlety about it.

However what Trump has performed, brazenly, overtly — there’s nothing furtive, like Nixon, about Trump — is that within the White Home, he set a historic report for defying over 150 congressional subpoenas. That’s prison contempt. He bought away with it.

He shoveled round billions of {dollars} from one program to a different, most notoriously from army housing tasks to increase the wall on the Mexican border. That could be a violation of a prison regulation referred to as the Antideficiency Act. He bought away with it.

He used the White Home as a political reelection base, had occasions there, brazenly, proper on the White Home garden, and compelled the Treasury Division to place his identify on tens of millions of checks going out through the pandemic to tens of millions of Individuals. That could be a crime. It violates the prison prohibition within the Hatch Act from utilizing the facility of the federal authorities in opposition to your electoral opponents. He bought away with it.

It’s essential to say additionally that every one presidents violate legal guidelines. He’s simply taken it to a brand new and various peak. However he’s doing it so overtly that if he will get away with it, he’ll proceed to contribute to the institutionalization of lawlessness by presidents of the USA. Let’s face it, each Bush, Obama and Trump have violated every kind of legal guidelines in extending the empire. Obama, for instance, decreed, informally, that he might select anyone on this planet and, as prosecutor, choose, jury, executioner, and in secret, wipe that particular person out. And he did it. After all, Bush was the large struggle prison, with Cheney, invading Iraq. However then Obama took out the regime in Libya and not using a congressional debate, and not using a congressional authorization, appropriation of funds or declaration of struggle. And that’s, to this present day, producing chaos and violence, goaded by Secretary of State Clinton, who pushed Obama to do that, and he later admitted it was the most important mistake of his administration.

So, we have now every kind of different tax violations, obstruction of voting, marketing campaign finance violations, by no means thoughts his assault and battery of girls, which he appeared to be happy with. So, this occasion yesterday represents the primary turnaround. Why did the Democrats wait so lengthy? They’d 12 impeachable offenses in 2019. We bought them within the Congressional File, December nineteenth; Congressman John Larson put them in. Nancy Pelosi simply went with the Ukraine matter — not precisely a kitchen desk difficulty, affecting tens of millions of Individuals. They’d significantly better points. So that you had one get together letting the opposite get together get away with it, partly as a result of the Democrats additionally violated legal guidelines on the presidential degree.

So I believe the American individuals have gotten to see this as a chance, a gateway, to reverse the method the place presidents are above the regulation. They’ve been above the regulation. Individuals world wide have suffered and died as a result of these presidents have been above the regulation. So, we have now to —

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Ralph?

RALPH NADER: — broaden it out, as a result of what the GOP goes to attempt to do is give attention to yesterday and Alvin Bragg’s prosecution, when the prison lawlessness —

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Ralph?

RALPH NADER: — of Trump is huge.

JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Ralph, I needed to ask you about Trump’s — Ralph, I needed to ask you about Trump’s assaults on the IRS, and particularly since in all probability his most constant historic violations have been in evading his personal — the taxes, his private taxes and people of his firms. Might you speak about that?

RALPH NADER: Properly, sure. David Cay Johnson has written about this. He was in your program yesterday. He’s been underneath common audit, 12 months after 12 months, by the IRS. There by no means appears to be any decision. It turned out that the IRS was so strapped in its price range, it simply had one auditor on this huge business sprawling empire of Trump, utilizing each attainable tax evasion, tax avoidance system conceivable. So he actually has gotten away with that.

However worse, apropos your query, is he labored with the Republicans 12 months after 12 months in ravenous the IRS price range in order that it couldn’t have the expert auditors to go after the tax evasion of the tremendous wealthy and the multinational firms. The truth is, one research, out of Berkeley, identified that over 20% of the highest super-rich Individuals in the USA had been evading billions and billions of {dollars} of taxes, and the IRS was handcuffed. And to this present day, the IRS is underneath strain by the Republicans, going after their price range — fortuitously, they don’t management the Senate, to allow them to’t get it by means of. However, clearly, Trump and the Republican Social gathering had been actively and purposefully engaged in aiding and abetting tax evasion by the tremendous wealthy and firms, every kind of cash that might have gone to good works in our nation.

AMY GOODMAN: We solely have a minute to go, Ralph, however in the event you can speak about how Congress, how the president can maintain not solely President Trump accountable, however different Republicans and — as you say, that is typically bipartisan — Democrats, as properly, on the vital points that you just care about? And this entire difficulty that isn’t being talked about as a lot, particularly because the Republicans attempt to body what’s taking place right here in New York because the DA saying he gained’t go after misdemeanor crimes, as not going after critical crime, however as a substitute utilizing this political goal of Trump — in different phrases, however as a substitute going after company crime. For those who can speak about how novel that is for individuals to see problems with company crime entrance and middle?

RALPH NADER: Properly, I want they might use the phrase “company crime” extra as a substitute of the antiquated “white-collar crime.” We’re in a company crime wave on this nation. All you bought to do is learn The Wall Road Journal, The New York Occasions, Washington Submit, hearken to Democracy Now! And the quantity of enforcement price range is minuscule. It’s like having 20 police in Manhattan throughout against the law wave. And so, you’re proper to level out.

Congress is the focus right here, whether or not we prefer it or not. It’s the most accessible department of presidency. There are 535 women and men. Individuals know their names again residence, and so they’ve bought to get mobilized, as a result of what Congress can do is redress the imbalance of energy, rein in empire, rein within the army price range, redirect public budgets to public requirements on this nation, and, above all, provoke its prison contempt energy. This concept that congressional subpoenas of the White Home will be defied with impunity as a result of it takes too lengthy for Congress to work by means of the federal courts as much as the Supreme Courtroom is a false concept, as a result of the Congress has a generic prison contempt energy. They will arrest. They may have arrested Trump when he defied the January sixth subpoena. They may have detained him. That truly occurred within the Nineteen Thirties. However quite a lot of members of Congress don’t even know that they’ve the prison contempt energy and don’t have to undergo 4 years of judicial appeals, and so forth.

So, Congress is the hope for the American individuals. It’s the hope to redress this. It’s the hope to reorder our priorities. It’s the hope to essentially make it possible for no person is above the regulation at excessive political and company crime ranges. The company CEOs are clearly, in some ways, fully above the regulation. Take a look at the Boeing criminality. There’s been no motion in opposition to Muilenburg and the opposite CEO, the current CEO now of Boeing. They bought away with it. And folks all around the nation know that the large boys get away with it. There’s a double customary of justice. So, individuals on the market, get on prime of your senators and representatives. Present them you’ve bought a pulse. their numbers. their emails. You know the way to succeed in them. With out you, Congress can’t act. With out Congress, we don’t have a republic. We now have an rising fascist motion on this nation, and Trump proved it by his phrases yesterday at Mar-a-Lago.

AMY GOODMAN: Ralph Nader, we wish to thanks for being with us, longtime shopper advocate, company critic, former presidential candidate. He’s the founding father of the Capitol Hill Citizen, which is popping out in just a few weeks, a newspaper, and in addition the granduncle of Samya Stumo, who misplaced her life within the Boeing crash in Ethiopia.

Arising, we take a look at main progressive victories, from Chicago to Wisconsin. Stick with us.