The Titanic, then the world’s largest ship, was considered unsinkable when it began its maiden voyage in 1912 — until it hit an iceberg and sank. Donald Trump’s presidential campaign is considered unstoppable by many today — but could be sunk by icebergs in the form of the criminal charges he faces.
The newest threats to the former Republican president’s hope of returning to the White House are the guilty pleas in Georgia Tuesday morning and last week by three of his former attorneys to charges involving Trump’s efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.
Trump and 14 co-defendants who have pleaded not guilty to charges in the Georgia election interference and racketeering case are awaiting trial. In addition to the new guilty pleas by lawyers Jenna Ellis, Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell, bail bondsman Scott Hall pleaded guilty in September to five misdemeanor counts of election interference in the case.
The guilty pleas are bad news for Trump, adding to the evidence mounting against him. They could also be used by Special Counsel Jack Smith to strengthen his federal prosecution of Trump on charges of trying to overturn Biden’s election victory. Powell and Chesebro are unindicted co-conspirators in that case.
Trump also faces federal charges involving his possession of classified federal national security documents at his Mar-a-Largo estate in Florida after leaving office, along with a New York state business fraud case involving hush-money paid to an adult film actress to cover up an alleged extramarital affair.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all 91 criminal charges he is facing in the four cases and is also fighting civil lawsuits. He claims he is being targeted for prosecution as part of an “election interference” scheme to derail his presidential candidacy.
The charges against Trump have so far done nothing to hurt his bid for the Republican presidential nomination, where polls show he enjoys the support of a majority of likely GOP primary voters.
But if Trump is convicted of crimes before the primaries conclude, there is a small chance he could be denied his party’s nomination if anti-Trump voters can consolidate behind one opponent.
The general election is another story. A conviction or even continued news coverage of his legal troubles would have a strong chance of hurting Trump enough among independents, conservative Democrats and moderate Republicans to help sink his candidacy in a race against Biden.
The guilty pleas by Ellis, Chesebro, Powell and Hall could be the first of several by lower-level defendants in Georgia.
In return for their pleas and agreeing to truthfully testify and turn over documents in the trial of Trump and his co-defendants, Ellis, Chesebro, Powell and Hall all managed to avoid prison sentences. Instead, they received only relatively small fines and several years ofprobation. That amounts to a slap on the wrist and incentivizes others charged to also plead guilty, since they could face prison terms if convicted at trial.
Like dominoes falling in a row as they knock each other down, each guilty plea makes it more likely there will be others.
The more people plead guilty, the stronger the case against Trump and his remaining co-defendants. In addition, shrinking the number of defendants will enable the trial to proceed more quickly.
Before entering their guilty pleas, Chesebro and Powell were scheduled to go on trial this month because each requested a speedy trial. If their trial had taken place, prosecutors would have been forced to present much of their racketeering conspiracy case before jurors in a televised trial, giving Trump and his remaining co-defendants a preview of the case against them and helping them prepare their defense.
Ellis pleaded guilty Tuesday to a felony charge of aiding and abetting false statements and writings.
Powell pleaded guilty last week to six misdemeanor counts of election interference. Before her guilty plea, she faced seven felony charges that could have brought her up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Trump absurdly claimed in a post on his social media platform Sunday that “MS. POWELL WAS NOT MY ATTORNEY, AND NEVER WAS.” But writing lies in all capital letters does not make them true.
Trump announced in a tweet on Nov. 13, 2020, that Powell was joining his “truly great legal team.” Powell attended an Oval Office meeting with Trump on Dec. 18, 2020 in which ways of overturning Trump’s election loss were discussed and Trump considered naming her a special counsel (but never did) to investigate election fraud. In addition, Powell made numerous media appearances in her role as Trump’s attorney to spread his false claim that he was robbed of an election victory.
Chesebro pleaded guilty last week to one felony charge of conspiracy to commit filing false documents. Like Powell, he was originally charged with seven felonies that could have sent him to prison if convicted.
The Georgia case poses perhaps the most serious legal peril for Trump because if he is elected president in 2024, he could drop the federal charges against himself or pardon himself if convicted by that time. Another Republican president could also drop charges or pardon him for federal crimes. But no president has the right to issue pardons for state convictions.
Just as all the passengers able to fit in lifeboats scurried off the Titanic as it was sinking, we can expect a growing number of Trump’s co-defendants in his criminal cases to leave his sinking ship. That will increase the odds that he will at long last finally be held accountable for his conduct.
Donna Brazile is a political strategist, a contributor to ABC News and former chair of the Democratic National Committee. She is the author of “Hacks: Inside the Break-ins and Breakdowns That Put Donald Trump in the White House.”