Trump is charged with 32 counts of violating the ESPIONAGE Act and attempting a coup-it’s time Democrats remind voters about this daily!

Imagine what GOP would do if Biden was facing 91 felonies?!

Imagine for a moment if President Biden was charged with 91 felonies including 32 counts of violating the Espionage Act and for attempting a coup. How often would you predict the GOP and their media allies would talk about this?!  It’s almost a laughable question because they would be discussing it every day, all day.  After all, the GOP has repeatedly alleged President Biden engaged in wrongdoing with his son Hunter despite zero evidence to back that up.

Yet when it comes to Trump’s crimes, Democratic leaders don’t want to discuss the charges. The result is that that the only ones talking about the crimes are Trump and the GOP where they claim this is “lawfare” or the weaponization of the justice system to interfere in the election. That has to end now that Trump is the GOP nominee.

I don’t mean Democrats should be chanting “Lock him Up” at rallies. However, they need to pound home the fact Trump is charged with 32 counts of violating the ESPIONAGE Act and for attempting a coup as often as possible.

And they can be creative about it. For example, Trump as the presumptive presidential nominee for his party would typically be provided intelligence briefings.  However, given Trump is charged with more than 30 felonies for his mishandling and misuse of classified military secrets, Biden and other Democrats should be demanding that Trump not receive such briefings since he’s a national security threat.  Keep in mind these briefings are not mandated by law but were simply part of a tradition begun in 1952 by then President Harry Truman.

By raising this issue, it will cause more press in the heart of the 2024 campaign about what Trump has done.  And that is needed given the indictments against Trump for violating the Espionage Act came last June meaning many have forgotten what it states or weren’t paying attention. 

For starters, Democrats need to use the word “espionage and Trump” over and over until it becomes one of the main things people think of when hear his name. Trump was literally charged with 32 counts of violating Section 793(e) the ESPIONAGE ACT—not the “classified documents act.” Trump illegally held on to documents as the indictment lays out that “included information regarding defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries, potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack; and plans for possible retaliation in response to a foreign attack.”

Not only that, as the indictment notes, Trump illegally shared our nation’s military secrets with people who did not have military clearance.  One example in the indictment –which was recorded on audio and aired last year in the media—tell us that, “On July 21, 2021, when he was no longer president, TRUMP gave an interview in his office at The Bedminster Club to a writer and a publisher in connection with a then-forthcoming book.” There, Trump “showed and described a "plan of attack" that Trump said was prepared for him by the Department of Defense and a senior military official. Trump told the individuals that the plan was "highly confidential…and "secret."

As the grand jury noted in the indictment, Trump’s crimes “put at risk the national security of the United States, foreign relations, the safety of the United States military, and human sources and the continued viability of sensitive intelligence collection methods.”

Voters need to be repeatedly reminded of these facts and that Trump has been charged with 32 counts of violating the ESPIONAGE Act.

Democrats also must hammer Trump for attempting a coup. Democrats don’t even need to exaggerate on this point. That is exactly what Trump tried to do as the indictment tells us. In fact, they can read lines straight out of the indictment: “Despite having lost, the Defendant [Trump] was determined to remain in power.” “Shortly after election day—which fell on November 3, 2020—the Defendant launched his criminal scheme.”  “The purpose of the conspiracy was to overturn the legitimate results of the 2020 presidential election.” To do this, Trump “pursued unlawful means of discounting legitimate votes and subverting the election results.”

We all know Democratic leaders don’t want to talk these issues for fear of making the prosecutions appear partisan—but we are beyond that given Trump and the GOP have already made these charges part of their 2024 campaign.  Add to that, the stakes are too high for timidity or trying to appear above it. In reality, the Democrats continued failure to discuss Trump’s crimes further normalizes Trump.

Again, Trump is charged with 32 counts of violating the Espionage Act for putting our national security at risk by failing to protect our nation’s military secrets. Potentially worse, Trump was captured on an audio recording sharing that highly classified information with people who don’t have secret clearance after he left the White House. (Who knows who else Trump shared that information with after leaving office?!)

And Trump attempted a coup by committing crimes to remain in power despite losing the 2020 election. That is why he was charged by a grand jury with four felonies.

Trump is a clear and present danger to our democratic Republic. Repeatedly reminding voters between now and Election Day of Trump’s attempted coup and his 32 charges for violating the Espionage Act will ensure that our fellow Americans who haven’t been paying attention get that message.

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