A planet on fire, an economy riddled with debt run up by the millionaires that control it, the vast majority of people struggling daily to make ends meet, authoritarianism on the rise, and what is the corporate press (left and right) wringing its digital hands about?
Right. Who is the greater sinner when it comes to unauthorized possession of classified documents--Trump or Biden?
I'm going to start here with the larger point that everyone seems to be missing about this: how is it apparently so easy to obtain and hold onto classified documents long after the apparent need to possess them is finished? On the strength of both the Trump and Biden stories, it appears to be far easier than any of us might have previously thought. Which, in turn, ought to raise another question: how many more people, in and no longer in government service, are in possession of such documents? For what purpose? And is the National Archives aware of any such documents? Does it not have some sort of tracking system in place to ensure who has what, and what needs to come back to the Archives when the professed need for the documents has ended?
This, I think, is the larger scandal that's evidenced here. At some point, there has to be a congressional investigation of what happened, not only with regard to the Trump and Biden cases, but also to identify any other cases that might exist. At a guess, it's probably safe to assume that there are many more cases out there than anyone might have imagined. And, given the potential damage to American interests that might result from those cases, the sooner a bipartisan commission gets to the bottom of what's going on, the better. Of course, good luck with that in the House, given its current <ahem> configuration. Perhaps something can happen on the Senate side; if so, it should with all deliberate speed.
My second point: conceding that both Biden and Trump are on the wrong side of the law here, has the press coverage of this story descended into false equivalency territory?
I'm almost tempted to ask: what do you think (and, as always, you're more than welcome to leave comments).
Of course they have, and that is to be expected, because the corporate press lives to protect its profits rather than the public interest that the First Amendment is meant to help them protect. The differences between the way Trump and Biden have responded to their respective situations could not, in any case, be more different. Biden has extended the maximum amount of cooperation to the Justice Department. He has not pretended that the documents are his property, nor have any of his lawyers, staff members, or allies pretended that he has a right to them. There has been no need for a warrant, or an FBI raid. And, finally, the difference in the respective numbers of documents in each case differs, as of this point, by a factor of 30. A factor that weighs against Trump.
It's not surprising that Biden's political enemies have weighed in against him on this. It's marginally more surprising that some of his allies have gone so far as to suggest that he should step aside in 2024 as a result of it.
For whom?
Here's an example. Read it carefully. One thing you should notice: the absence of an alternative.
That's not accidental. The fact is that there is no viable political alternative. None. Zero. No one that has the same level of political recognition and support that Biden has. Even with this anchor tied around his neck. And his opponents on the left know that. All they have is a handful of future possibilities and a ton of wishful thinking.
My advice to my friends on the left: reframe the issue, along the lines of the points I've made here. Advocate for a bipartisan Senate committee for reforming not just the Archives, but the entire classification process, which is long overdue in any case. That's how you take charge of the narrative. And I would bet real money that, if such a committed is convened and launches an investigation, more sinners on both sides of the aisle will be identified.
Which means that the issue will lose its partisan punch, And Trump's far greater sins on this issue will fold back into the larger image of him as the most corrupt President in the history of the Republic. I can assure you that the process of this happening will be aided by the larger swirl of scandal surrounding him. That, and the indictments that I believe will finally be announced this year.
Stop letting the media wring your hands, folks, and don't lose sight of the real enemy. It isn't Biden, who is far from perfect. But you don't even want to begin to think about the potential reality of what GQP authoritarian might replace him.
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