“I’m sure the Department of Justice will indict former President Trump,” Bennie Thompson, head of the House committee that investigated Donald Trump’s involvement in the January 2021 storming of the Capitol, told CNN.
The latter – made up of seven Democrats and two Republicans – unanimously recommended this Monday that criminal proceedings be initiated against former President Donald Trump for calling for insurrection, conspiring against the US State, obstruction of an official procedure (certification of a presidential election ) and false statements.
On January 6, 2021, supporters of Donald Trump, claiming -erroneously- like him that Joe Biden had “stolen” the 2020 presidential election, violently attacked the headquarters of Congress in Washington to prevent the certification of the results, causing shaking American democracy.
Imprisonment sentences incurred in case of prosecution
The reasons, cited by the parliamentary commission, can lead to prison sentences and the prohibition to hold any public office on the other side of the Atlantic.
But the commission’s vote is largely symbolic, as its members cannot impeach the former real estate mogul.
In the United States, only the attorney general has the power to impeach the former president. This non-binding call for justice is no less historic, because it is addressed to a former head of state.
In the coming weeks, therefore, it will be up to the Justice Department, which has appointed a special prosecutor, Jack Smith, to independently investigate Donald Trump, to decide whether or not to prosecute him.
However, Bennie Thompson said he was convinced of Donald Trump’s accusation because the commission has “clear” evidence that will be released in full on Wednesday in a final report.
Donald Trump is ‘unfit’
Although it is unlikely that a criminal process will be initiated, and even less that prison sentences will be imposed for the status of former president, the members of the commission advocated for fair justice among all citizens.
“No one, including a former president, is above the law,” Bennie Thompson said Monday.
This was developed by the number two of the commission, the Republican Liz Cheney, Donald Trump’s favorite hobby, who judged that his actions had shown that he was “unfit” to occupy new public functions. Therefore, the parliamentary commission considered that the republican could no longer be eligible for the elections.
However, the former president recently announced that he was relaunching the race for the White House by 2024.
This Monday night, Donald Trump denounced “false prosecutions” in what he denounces as a maneuver that seeks to prevent his candidacy by 2024.
Other “threats” are coming
Donald Trump is also accused of having pressured his vice president Mike Pence and election officials, particularly in Arizona and Georgia, to try to invalidate the presidential election.
The open investigation in the southeastern state of the country continues to be the most worrying for the 76-year-old man, according to specialists.
While denouncing voter fraud just after his very narrow 2020 defeat in Georgia, Donald Trump had asked Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” 12,000 ballots in his favor to overturn the result of the vote. His phone request had been recorded and made public.
“Accusing him is really a big deal. And I don’t know if it’s going to happen, but I think Georgia has always been the biggest threat to him,” David French, a conservative political analyst, said last August.
Until now, Donald Trump has always maintained his innocence in matters that concern him and refused to appear before the parliamentary committee last month.
Source: BFM TV
