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OP/ED - Throughout his presidency, former President Donald Trump created stark division, ultimately causing corruption to ripple throughout the American government and public mindset.
Some of the world’s other advanced democracies have seen their former leaders put on trial for crimes: In Israel, former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert spent over a year in prison for bribery and fraud charges, and the current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been dealing for three years with the issue of facing trial on corruption charges. In Italy, former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has dealt with nearly 3 dozen criminal court cases, including for tax fraud and bribing witnesses. In South Africa, former President Jacob Zuma was imprisoned in 2021 for corruption. In countries not experienced with democracy, the sight of former leaders heading to prison is quite common. Such as in Algeria, where a corral of three former Prime Ministers (Youcef Yousfi, Abdelmalek Sellal, Ahmed Ouyahia) was imprisoned in the same year (2019) for charges of corruption.
Yet in the United States, the prestige and honor of the presidency had until now seen each former occupant embark on a post career journey that was always both admirable and enviable. The tragedy of Donald Trump is that the veneer perception of the American Presidency and its occupants is no longer beyond reproach.
Trump’s March 2023 indictment on charges stemming from hush-money payments made during the 2016 presidential campaign is the first ever criminal filing against a former occupant of the office of the American presidency. The image of locking up former leaders is common in illiberal autocracies, but until now had never been witnessed in America.
Further tragedy is the tarnishing of the perceived belief that the occupant of the Oval Office is one who is selfless in their devotion to country. Trump’s proclamations that the 2020 election was rigged correlated into the January 6, 2021 attack on the American Capitol by his adherents whose mindset was to put him, his needs and his desires above country.
Americans now widely label themselves as anti or pro Trump. Such division forgets that as Americans we have historically known how to listen to one another's opinions without having to reflexively and vehemently defend one’s own point of view.
As Trump continues to phase in and out of media coverage, it is rational to think how there are perceivably more secrets that Trump may be hiding from public awareness. It is well known how throughout his presidency he refused to release his tax returns, as such documents narrate a financial journey and strategy. An indictment for financial fraud regarding how hush money payments were recorded on tax returns is but one known exposed case where the recording of money and its utilization has been concealed and revealed as being coordinated inappropriately solely for his own personal advantage and manipulation.
Win or lose in court, Trump is determined to bring us all into a summer-heat dumpster with him for as long as he can as he directly benefits from the intense focus he cultivates, mindless and regardless of the additional chapters of this American Tragedy that will be written.
Trump has already announced he is running again in 2024, which means his marketing prowess at dominating America’s conversation and thoughts will unfortunately continue; and the filthy values he spouts will continue to bring out horrible behaviors among his adherents.
Ultimately, the future is in the hands of all citizens, not just his sycophants. It’s up to us to decide if the American Tragedy he is directing via his mastery of dominating center stage will continue, or if our society will finally take a close look at the swirl of corruption, he surrounds himself in, and proclaim - enough is enough.
(Mihran Kalaydjian is a consummate leading member of the community and a devoted civic engagement activist for education spearheading numerous academic initiatives in local political forums.)
(David Alpern is an active leader in Southern California for more than 20 years on behalf of increasing education budgets, investment in the arts, carbon taxes, and the two-state solution to the Arab Israeli conflict.)
