Former Republican deputy AG: Prosecutions of Trump prove 'democratic rule of law' is 'supreme'

A veteran of the United States Department of Justice recently wrote that despite the unprecedented nature of a former American president facing criminal charges in multiple jurisdictions, the prosecutions of Trump should be celebrated as a win for democracy.

In a December 7 essay for The Atlantic, Donald Ayer — a former deputy attorney general under President George H.W. Bush — wrote that even though the final outcome is unknown, former President Donald Trump's ongoing criminal proceedings in state and federal courts still prove the supremacy of the American judicial system.

"These three pending criminal cases—and the civil cases involving E. Jean Carroll and the New York attorney general’s allegations of systematic business fraud—all show [Trump], day by day as events unfold, to be subject like everyone else to society’s rules of conduct," Ayer wrote. "Not only the convictions that may well result, but the judicial proceedings themselves are graphic demonstrations for all to see that our democratic rule of law, and not Donald Trump, is indeed supreme."

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He continued, "The filing of charges in any criminal case is a watershed moment, ending what may be many months or years of laborious investigation with no predictable outcome. A criminal indictment states the claims of society against the defendant. At that point, the rights of both the defendant and the public to a speedy trial kick in, and the flow of events becomes more orderly and predictable."

Ayer lauded the by-the-book approach that the Biden administration took to its predecessor, despite taking office just weeks after the deadly January 6 attack on the US Capitol. He remarked at how President Joe Biden took office prioritizing the distribution and avaioability of the Covid-19 vaccine and getting America through the pandemic over punishing Trump. He also noted how Attorney General Merrick Garland carefully avoided the political obstacles of spearheading Trump investigations himself, opting instead to leave that job to special counsel Jack Smith. Ayer also touched on the Garland "concern" for restoring the norms of the DOJ.

"That concern also counseled that initial enforcement efforts relating to the events of January 6 should focus most attention on the violent offenders, against whom cases could most readily be made, with the idea of following leads upward to ultimately reach the organizers and leaders," Ayer wrote. "The earnest pursuit of that project led to more than 500 arrests within six months of January 6, and ultimately made it the largest investigation in the department’s history, with charges filed against well over 1,000 defendants in almost all 50 states."

Ayer concluded that the Trump investigations prove that "our rule of law is durable and works," and suggested Americans follow the guidance of former President Abraham Lincoln when he said the rule of law should be made "the political religion of the Nation."

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Click here to read Ayer's full essay.