This week, the House January 6 Committee voted unanimously to refer criminal charges against former President Donald Trump to the Department of Justice. While this was a symbolic gesture on behalf of Democrats in Congress, legal experts say that these referrals are “theater” and will likely be ignored by the DOJ. They also believe this move could have a potentially counterproductive effect if the DOJ does decide to bring charges.
It’s no secret that Democrats have long been opposed to Trump and his policies, and this latest move is just another way for them to show their disapproval. To make matters worse, some Republicans are jumping on board with this referral as well — despite their previous vocal support of Trump and his policies. It would appear that these Republicans are now attempting to distance themselves from Trump ahead of the 2022 midterms. Unfortunately, this blatant political maneuvering is undermining what should be an apolitical process — namely, justice being served fairly and equally regardless of party affiliation or position in government.
The referral itself is also hypocritical because it fails to hold members of Congress accountable for their actions leading up to Jan. 6th — which were certainly not blameless. For example, many Republicans accused Vice President Mike Pence of treason after he refused to invoke his authority as president of the Senate to overturn Joe Biden’s election win on Jan 6th — yet did nothing about it when it happened.
The double standard here is clear; to appease their base and score cheap political points ahead of the 2022 midterms, Democrats and some Republicans alike are more than willing to overlook their hypocrisy while simultaneously attempting to hold Trump accountable for something they feel he should be held responsible for – regardless of whether there is actual evidence or not – simply because they do not agree with him politically speaking. This type of behavior has no place in American politics today and it serves only one purpose – further, divide our nation along partisan lines even further than before. We deserve better than that from our elected officials.
