Trump’s calculated moves aim to transform legal woes into political capital

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“On November 5, 2024, justice will be done. We will take back our country,” bragged former US president Trump in front of his supporters just a few hours after pleading not guilty in a South Florida courthouse to federal charges of allegedly mishandling classified information. 

Trump is trying to use his indictment, the first-ever in the US’s presidential history, to his advantage. His post-indictment belligerent moves are part of a strategic plan to turn his legal woes into political gain.

With a keen eye for political theatrics, Trump has employed a belligerent approach, defying conventional politicking and exploiting every opportunity to gain attention. Every step he takes is carefully choreographed to maintain a grip on his supporters’ pulse, ensuring that his name remains in the headlines. Trump is employing a calculated narrative, one that portrays the indictment as a direct assault on his presidency and a subversion of the democratic will of the people. Through this lens, he stokes the embers of resentment among his loyal followers, cultivating a potent brew of perceived persecution and systemic injustice. 

“[President] Joe Biden will forever be remembered as not only the most corrupt president in the history of our country, but perhaps, even more importantly, the president who, together with a band of his closest thugs, misfits, and Marxists, tried to destroy American democracy,” Trump said in his typical bullying style.

But beneath the theatrics lies a shrewd strategic calculus. Trump recognises the power of victimhood, and he is harnessing its emotional resonance to solidify his base. By presenting himself as the embattled underdog, he taps into a deeply ingrained sense of grievance, a belief that the establishment conspires against those who dare challenge its dominance. Through the indictment controversy, Trump is trying to distract the public, polarise the electorate and galvanise his supporters. 

In the realm of politics, adversity can be an unexpected ally, and Trump, ever the astute showman, is striving to turn the tables on his accusers. Through calculated moves and a flair for controversy, he endeavours to transform his indictment into a potent weapon, channelling it to reshape the Republican discourse and secure his political resurrection. In a characteristically elusive manner, Trump sidestepped addressing the specific charges levelled against him, instead mounting a defence of his decision to keep sensitive national security documents. 

Justifying his actions, he boldly asserted, “I had every right to have these documents. These boxes were containing all sorts of personal belongings. Whatever documents the president takes with him, he has a right to do so. It’s an absolute right. This is the law. ” 

Drawing on a questionable precedent, Trump has invoked what he calls the “Clinton Socks Case” in an attempt to establish a parallel that would justify his own actions. In this case, which unfolded in 2010, a conservative group known as Judicial Watch sued former president Bill Clinton, alleging mishandling of classified material. The group sought to have the National Archives take custody of audio recordings Clinton had kept in a sock drawer, claiming they were presidential records. 

But a district judge ruled that these recordings were personal rather than presidential records, undermining the case’s relevance to Trump’s situation. 

There is a big difference between the two cases: Clinton cooperated with the government’s efforts to retrieve the tape-recordings, but Trump obstructed attempts to reclaim the hundreds of documents he took from the White House to Mar-a-Lago, his home in Florida. His attempt to find solace in the “Clinton Socks Case” fails to withstand scrutiny and raises further questions about his handling of sensitive materials. 

Considering his track-record of misleading statements about Hillary Clinton’s emails, Biden’s papers, and Bill Clinton’s audio diaries, his detractors say he is resorting to such tactics to divert attention from his wrongdoings. Trump, as usual, has dismissed the charges against him as “fake and fabricated”, attributing them to a purportedly left-leaning activist-prosecutor. 

Trump’s ethical frailty is unparalleled in the annals of US political leadership, as he grapples with the legal problems. Like a typical populist politician, he flits from one excuse to another. At first, he insinuated that the FBI had staged the search at Mar-a-Lago in August, claiming they manipulated evidence and illegally leaked photographs to the press. Then he asserted his entitlement to unrestricted control over his papers, as if official government documents were mere trifles he could hoard at will. Yet suddenly, these papers transformed into a hodgepodge of souvenirs, ranging from shoes and T-shirts to personal snapshots. 

The cycle of shifting narratives continues unabated. This convoluted dance of evasion and contradiction exposes the fragility of Trump’s defence. 

His attempts to deflect accountability is incoherence, undermining his credibility in the face of mounting scrutiny. Despite the absence of political consequences thus far for Trump regarding the alleged mishandling of confidential presidential documents, the risks inherent in nominating a figure who might find themselves diverted from the campaign trail to attend a federal trial as a defendant cannot be discounted indefinitely. 

Furthermore, Trump faces the prospect of another trial next year in a separate state case initiated by Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg, accusing him of falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments to a former adult film actress. These charges, filed in April, marked the unprecedented moment of a former president facing criminal indictment. Trump has pleaded not guilty, yet the spectre of these legal battles looms. 

Ironically, Trump’s poll numbers continue to show a slight upward trend, defying expectations and highlighting the enduring loyalty of his support base. As the episode unravels, one is left wondering what desperate twist awaits. Interestingly, until now, despite such tribulations, Trump is confident about his return to the Oval Office in 2024, while all his challengers in the Republican party are far behind in the race.

Dr Imran Khalid is a freelance columnist on international affairs based in Karachi, Pakistan. He qualified as a physician from Dow Medical University in 1991 and has a master’s degree in international relations from Karachi University.