This actually is far “Bigger” and “Worse” than Watergate!

It was more dangerous and more people involved

Earlier this week, current Trump top advisor Boris Epshteyn and former Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis plead not guilty to the nine felony charges each was charged with in connection with helping Donald Trump attempt to overturn the 2020 election in Arizona. Given all the pleas entered by Trump’s criminal associates over the past year, we should just refer to this event as: “Tuesday.”

When I read about these latest criminal developments by Trump’s allies, though, for some reason what popped into my head was Trump’s past comments calling numerous scandals “bigger” and “worse” than Watergate because he believed it helped him politically to say that.  In fact, Trump said that about everything from Hillary’s emails to his false claim that the FBI had engaged in surveillance of one of his then 2016 campaign advisor, George Papadopoulos.

The Watergate scandal was huge and it did send more people to jail than many may recall. As a quick refresher, like Trump’s 2020 illegal scheme, the goal of Watergate was to illegally impact a presidential campaign to help the incumbent Republican President win re-election. The Watergate scandal began on June 17, 1972, when several burglars connected to President Richard Nixon’s reelection campaign were arrested in the office of the Democratic National Committee. They had been caught wiretapping phones and stealing documents.

From there, a sprawling cover up involving President Nixon and top aides was launched ranging from providing hundreds of thousands of dollars in “hush money” to the “Watergate burglars” to a plan to instruct the CIA to impede the FBI’s investigation of the crime. By the time the criminal prosecutions came to an end, more than 40 people were charged with crimes relating to the Watergate scandal--—including high ranking Nixon administration and campaign officials.

Some of the best known include Nixon’s Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman who served 18 months for conspiracy and obstruction of justice, former U.S. Attorney General and reelection campaign manager John Mitchell who was found guilty of conspiracy, perjury, and obstruction of justice and served 19 months in prison, and top domestic policy adviser John Ehrlichman, convicted of conspiracy to obstruct justice and perjury. Others who went to prison included Nixon’s White House Counsel John Dean, legal counsel to the Nixon campaign G. Gordon Liddy, White House aide Jeb Magruder and more.

Nixon would’ve been charged with crimes if he had not been pardoned by Gerald Ford—a point former Watergate prosecutor Jill Wine-Banks has made on my SiriusXM show.

In the case of convicted felon Trump, though, what he and his criminal conspirators did was far, far worse both in terms of the potential impact on our Republic and the sheer number of people involved. Trump attempted to remain in power despite losing the 2020 election. And while Nixon lacked any ethics or morals, only Trump incited a terrorist attack on our Capitol on Jan 6 as part of his scheme to remain in power.

Plus—very importantly—the scope of Trump’s scheme involved both the federal government and various GOP state officials as well. Trump corrupted not just his White House associates but in essence the entire GOP across the nation—with few exceptions. Even Nixon didn’t do that!

For example, the most sprawling criminal case involving Trump and “All the President’s Men” is the one in Fulton County, Georgia, where 19 people have been charged with illegally interfering in the state’s 2020 election. The defendants include Trump and prominent Trump allies like Rudy Giuliani, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, Trump lawyers John Eastman, Sidney Powell, Kenneth Chesebro and more.  But also charged were numerous local GOP officials such as the former chair of Georgia’s Republican Party, a sitting GOP State Senator and the former head of the Coffee County Republicans.

Then there are the fraudulent elector charges brought against Trump allies in five states: Arizona, Nevada, Georgia, Wisconsin and Michigan. While Trump has not been charged in these cases, all the crimes were committed by Trump’s advisors, lawyers and local GOP officials in an effort to help Trump overturn the election results in their respective states so he could remain in power as President despite losing.

For example, in April, an Arizona grand jury  indicted 18 people—11 GOP elected officials and seven attorneys, aides and advisers affiliated with Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign-- on felony charges related to their efforts to subvert Joe Biden’s 2020 victory in the state. The people charged include some of Trump’s top people including former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, Rudy Giuliani, lawyers Jenna Ellis, John Eastman and Christina Bobb, top campaign adviser Boris Epshteyn plus local officials as well.

In Michigan, last July, State Attorney General Dana Nessel charged 16 Republicans who falsely claimed to be the state’s 2020 presidential electors with forgery and other felonies including the former state Republican Party co-chair.  While a Nevada grand jury in December 2023 charged six local Republicans who claimed to be electors with two felonies each for forging documents and attempting to file false documents.

Watergate focused on Beltway Nixon aides and allies committing crimes namely to cover up a break in and other election related crimes. In Trump’s case, more than 60 people tied to him have been charged with felonies in a sprawling conspiracy that spans various states all designed to keep Trump in power despite losing the 2020 election. Watergate was not even close!

But both Nixon and Trump have something else in common: Both surrounded themselves with morally questionable/bad people willing to commit crimes to help them. Trump’s long list of such people include Michael Cohen, Trump's onetime personal lawyer who was sentenced to three years in prison for crimes including violating campaign finance laws to help Trump. Roger Stone who lied to Congress and obstructed justice to help Trump—Trump ultimately pardoned him. Currently in jail Trump advisor Peter Navarro who refused to testify before Congress because he wanted to protect Trump, and former long time Trump CFO Allen Weisselberg who chose jail instead of turning on Trump.

And, of course, there’s Trump’s brain Steve Bannon who was recently ordered by a Trump appointed judge to report to prison on July 1 to serve his four month sentence for contempt of Congress. Bannon is also scheduled to stand trial in New York state criminal court later this year for money laundering, conspiracy and scheming to defraud Trump supporters who made donations to his organization to build a wall on the US-Mexican border. (Bannon was charged by Trump’s own DOJ in August 2020  for federal crimes in connection with this illegal scheme but Trump pardoned him before leaving office.)

Yes, we are witnessing something actually far “bigger’ and “worse” than Watergate. And it’s the crime spree of convicted felon Trump and his allies. This is the person the GOP chose to be their 2024 presidential nominee knowing full well this very history. Again, this reminds us of how dangerous today’s lawless and anti-democratic GOP is and why we must politically crush them this November in order to save our democratic Republic.

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