Democrats and the Trump Indictment Spectacle

Donald Trump pleaded not guilty in federal court in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, as the world’s cameras focused on the spectacle of a former President and current candidate in the dock. The legal case will play out in the coming months, but the political point to keep in mind is that this is exactly where Democrats want voters to focus: On Mr. Trump all day, every day.

The more the press is preoccupied by Mr. Trump’s courtroom dramas, the less public attention there will be to President Biden’s declining capacities or to the facts emerging about Mr. Biden’s promotion of the family business. (See nearby.) The indictments keep all eyes on Mr. Trump’s troubles rather than on Mr. Biden’s record or debates about the next four years.

Mr. Trump on trial also means his competitors for the GOP presidential nomination can barely get media attention. The press asks first and last what they think about Mr. Trump’s indictment, and then upbraids them if they aren’t sufficiently critical. Their policies, or differences with Mr. Trump, might as well be shouts in the forest. Chris Christie, who is Mr. Trump’s most vocal critic, is ignored except for what he says about Mr. Trump.

All of this has Democrats elated because they want Mr. Trump to be the Republican nominee. They hope GOP voters will respond to the indictments by nominating Mr. Trump as a form of political retribution. No matter that this essentially means Republicans would be letting Democrats choose their nominee.

And so we careen, without an apparent off-ramp, toward a 2024 campaign debate about a sitting President’s age and family business and what a former President did in 2020 as he tries to stay out of jail. To mention a quaint notion: This isn’t good for the country.