Budowsky: Why Trump indictments are a recurring GOP nightmare

For Republicans, the smart move when discussing the indictment of Donald Trump would look like that of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.): Say as little as possible, preferably nothing. 

For Democrats, it would look like that of President Biden: Say as little as possible, preferably nothing. 

What is striking is how so many high-level Republicans, including from almost all of the GOP presidential candidates, the most senior Republicans in the House of Representatives, and many (though not all) committee chairs, don’t seem to understand that there is something very wrong with a Republican who for years has attacked and demeaned the Department of Justice, attorneys general, judges, prosecutors and the FBI. How can they become virtually sycophantic supporters of his attacks against the American judicial system and rule of law? 

The recurring nightmare this forces for the GOP is this: 

Trump faces indictments in Manhattan this week, about alleged crimes related to his relationship with porn star Stormy Daniels.  

Trump very possibly faces indictments from the attorney general’s special counsel, Jack Smith, for obstruction of justice regarding classified documents held at Mar-a-Lago. 

Trump also very possibly faces indictments from the special counsel for his role in the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6. 

And Trump also very possibly faces indictments in Georgia for his alleged role to trying to pressure and manipulate Georgia election officials to “fix” the state’s electoral votes for Trump in the 2020 presidential election. 

It is possible Trump is ultimately not charged, is acquitted or achieves a hung jury in the Georgia case. It is also possible he is ultimately indicted, convicted as charged, and sentenced to prison.   

For that matter, it is possible Trump is not charged in any of the other cases, or that he is indicted and goes to trial in all of them. It is possible Trump is acquitted in these cases. It is also possible that Trump is convicted in any of them and sentenced to prison. 

In other words, while Republicans running in 2024 are campaigning and holding town meetings in their state or district, there is a realistic possibility that Trump could be indicted and put on trial simultaneously in up to four nationally prominent criminal cases from now until Election Day 2024. 

Do Republicans running in 2024 understand the implications for their campaigns if Trump continues to conduct himself the way he has in the Manhattan case? 

If Trump goes from case to case publicly saying there will be death and destruction if he is indicted in them, how will Republicans respond to the media? What will they say in town meetings? What will they say in television interviews, radio interviews, newspaper interviews and campaign debates? 

What will these Republicans say if Trump goes from case to case launching personal attacks or threats against prosecutors — for example, a social media post of Trump holding a bat over the prosecutor’s head?  

How will swing voters (and juries) react to this? Will Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) assign multiple House committees to investigate and attack all of these prosecutors, judges and grand juries? 

Most likely, in my view, Trump will act like Trump usually does, launching personal attacks and threats, and one or more judges will institute gag orders to stop it. 

And if Trump violates a gag order, he will soon learn that life for a defendant, under a judge, is much different than life for a Republican who has bullied and intimated those in the party he tries to lead. He’s already caused many election losses for his party — will Republicans let him continue?  

Budowsky was an aide to former Sen. Lloyd Bentsen (D-Texas) and former Rep. Bill Alexander (D-Ark.), who was chief deputy majority whip of the House of Representatives.