If you were going to draw up a list of the people most responsible for the latest indictment of Donald Trump, the former president himself would be at the top, followed by the prosecutors who have brought the case. Republicans in Congress perversely deserve a great deal of credit, too, since they could have exiled Trump from political life and perhaps spared him more intense legal scrutiny if they had voted to convict him in the impeachment trial over his role in the siege of the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Ultimately, however, you cannot tell the story of Trump’s historic indictment without Nancy Pelosi. It was the then-Speaker of the House who insisted that there be a congressional inquiry following January 6. And it was the work of the select committee she fashioned that finally appears to have spurred a reluctant Justice Department to action, setting in motion a more intense phase of criminal scrutiny focused on Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election. The resulting indictment closely tracks the select committee’s work and findings, presenting a factual narrative that traces — almost identically — the evidence presented by the committee of a sophisticated, multipronged effort by Trump to remain in power that culminated in the mayhem at the U.S. Capitol.
NY mag doing yoga with that stretch.
I don’t know how much credit can go to Pelosi specifically but the current indictment is absolutely due to the fact-finding of the congressional Jan 6 committee. If Liz Cheney and others on that committee had not done the work they did, there would not the current court cases. Jack Smith’s evidence is based on the evidence found during the committee hearings.
That’s fair and a good point. Repubs could have worked to break the committee as they often do. Instead, Liz played ball. It could also be recognized as an ‘unforced error’ on the part of Trunpian Republicans.
I have a problem with the kind of fanboyism that’s pushed in American politics, especially around mainstream Democrats who do as much to empower the status quo as Republicans, with Pelosi key amount them. It’s both a common Democratic fundraising teope but also, apparently, a small cottage industry among journalists.
I think we need to be very clear and frank with ourselves about how Democrats with their obsessions with decorum effectively supported Trump and his policies for the duration of his presidency. There were Democrats that tried to resist and they got told to sit down and shut up by leadership. I think this was very representative by that farse of an impeachment. And so finally we got some paper resistance after a coup and attempts on the speaker and vice presidents life. So is the expectation that Democrats need to let it go that far before truly knuckeling down and picking a fight? What exactly is being promoted here?
[not directed at you, simply asked more generally]
I’ll be deep in the cold cold ground before I praise Pelosi for anything
I’m reminded of the phrase, “Even a broke clock is right twice a day.” Liz, and that other Republican did a good job. Not praise, just a fact. Not that any Trump supporter sees their ® support of the committee as legit, but everyone else does.
Kinzinger is the other one.
As individuals, they seem to be people I can strongly disagree with on policy matters, but would still be able to hammer out reasonable compromises with. However, at this stage in the game, anyone who still holds on to the Republican party is complicit. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, for all the good things they have said and done in the context of the Jan 6 Congressional hearings, are complicit.
The article’s point is that the committee was successful because of who was in it, and Pelosi was the one who orchestrated that, not showing McConnell or McCarthy to get away with their shit.
It takes a village
No one deserves praise for this, the attorney general deserves termination for keeping Trump free
Lol, Trump is a criminal, rapist, and a traitor. And it’s about time he’s getting some consequences.
I didnt notice it could read that way, im mad at the DoJ for keeping Trump free all these years
Hah, that makes sense! Agreed.
Takes time to build a case, especially against a former head of state
Watergate didnt take this long. You got any examples of head of state investigations taking this long?
To be fair there hasn’t been a head of state that has committed so many crimes either. They all have to be investigated, that takes time, and add in the fact his people are still running interference for him, I can see why.
It doesnt take this much time
With as much as he’s done and the interference being run? What source are you going by?
We appreciate everything you’ve done, go retire now it’s time. And take the rest of the fossils with you
I sure feel that way about Feinstein, but Pelosi still seems to be one of the more effective politicians.
Effective at getting nothing done… What’s her greatest legislative victory?
Effective at crushing the progressive voices within her own party maybe. She doesn’t do much else. Have you watched her speak lately? She’s clearly reaching the age when she could go off the deep end any day. You want her to just stay in office until she’s drooling on herself and can’t remember whats going on?
I agree she’s not a progressive, and I wish she was. But I think she’s pretty effective at working the system to get things done, and she still seems pretty shrewd. I mean, the linked article makes a good case that she outplayed both McConnell and McCarthy.
she retired already
She retired from the house leadership, still remains a representative
ah my bad
The only one responsible for Trump is Trump.
Don’t let the 10s of millions of trump voters off the hook.
votersenablers
