Washington Update From a DC Insider

[Mike McKenna is a long-time analyst/advisor/polling professional in Washington, DC. Also a former Trump staffer, he currently writes op/eds for the Washington Times. He sends out comprehensive state-of-play reports to a select email distribution, and allows me to share them with paid subscribers here. This is his report for March.]

From:  Michael McKenna

Date:   June 15, 2023

Re:      June 2023 Monthly note

           Three months in a row out the door on the ides.  Probably time to retire.

I suppose we should begin at the beginning, which would be the indictment of President Trump.

Let me make it clear at the outset that – like most Americans -- I don’t really care about the indictment as a legal matter, and I don’t think it is going to be important at all in the presidential campaign (except as a way for Mr. Trump to raise cash).

With respect to the legal process, there has been enough prosecutorial misconduct (including witness tampering and defective guidance to the grand jury) in this instance that eventually a judge is going to throw out the entire case.  If it ever does get to trial (maybe 2 years from now) I doubt very seriously that the prosecution will be able to empanel a jury in Florida that might convict Mr. Trump.

With respect to the rule of law, the indictment makes it clear to everyone who can speak, read, and write English that the federal law enforcement machine really, really wants to put Mr. Trump in jail for something, anything.  The fact that he has been charged with “crimes” that are essentially identical to those committed by his vice-president, by his successor, and by about a half million people – none of whom have been charged with anything – would lead an impartial observer to conclude that the law, at least in this instance, is being administered in a prejudicial fashion.