The Mob Boss Is A Wreck Worrying Who’ll Flip Next. Georgia Is Different

Maybe fourth time’s a charm. Murfster is fond of saying that once is happenstance, twice is a habit, third time it’s a fetish. Trump has gone through all those stages and is now at his fourth indictment. If there’s such a disease as terminal criminality, you would think that he would be the poster child. And Georgia is different. Somehow there’s been a sea change and everybody can sense it, including Trump. Him most of all.

Trump will fly down to Georgia tomorrow in his private jet, as he has for the other three arrests but this time he will be mugshotted, weighed, fingerprinted, business as usual. This is one of the reasons that this Georgia indictment is said to be a watershed moment in Trump’s criminal career. So far he’s been treated with kid gloves. Now he’s going to be treated like a criminal defendant — albeit one with a Secret Service detail and out on a $200,000 bail.

Nick Catoggio of the Dispatch had a must read column about Trump’s four cases:

The first indictment, charging Trump with falsifying business records related to the hush money paid to Stormy Daniels, is the problem child. This one might make something of itself in the long run, but it’s not very bright and no one’s expecting much from it. It’s a troublemaker.

The second indictment, charging Trump with concealing classified documents, is the dependable child. It’s no-nonsense, straightforward, and rock solid, the child you leave in charge when you have to run errands. If anyone’s going to deliver a conviction, it’s this kid.

The third indictment, charging Trump with crimes related to trying to overturn the 2020 election, is the ambitious child. This one means well and has big aspirations. It might very well go on to great things. But it risks biting off more than it can chew. Expect spectacular success—or spectacular failure.

The fourth indictment, handed down on Monday night for election tampering in Georgia, is the favorite child.

Absolutely. I can’t agree more. There is something special about this child. Manhattan was the succulent first starter, and the two Jack Smith indictments are the entree and terrific sides, but the dessert and fabulous wine is the Georgia indictment.

Eighteen people besides the man himself were charged in Fulton County. “This is basically a RICO indictment of the Republican Party. As it should be,” former Republican strategist Stuart Stevens tweeted afterward. “Every Republican elected official who refused to acknowledge the winner of the 2020 election is an unindicted co-conspirator.”

I agree. There are no “Trump problems” in the GOP, I’ve said before, only problems with lackeys and voters facilitating his most corrupt impulses. Georgia’s indictment is the first to reflect it. (Charges may yet be filed against the likes of John Eastman and Jeffrey Clark in the January 6 matter.) Whether Trump’s campaign was, as the document alleges, a “criminal enterprise” within the meaning of the law in January 2021 is for a jury to decide. But it was plainly a corrupt scheme with many willing participants—a racket, in short.

To see this lifelong shyster, forever babbling about “loyalty” and “rats” like a common mafioso, finally be accused of a classic mob crime like racketeering is gratifying in a way that the other indictments aren’t. Convicting Trump for concealing classified information would be nice but only in a getting-Capone-on-tax-evasion way. Convicting him in the January 6 case would be nicer but would still land awkwardly, as charges like “obstructing a congressional proceeding” don’t capture the magnitude of what he did.

Racketeering is true to the essence of the man. It’s morally, not just legally, correct. And, importantly, it captures the breadth of corruption within the party to a degree that no other indictment does.

That is a statement of wisdom. Racketeering is true to the essence of the man. That is who Donald Trump is. And like any mob boss, he’s worried now, yugely, about who’s going to sing. Page Six:

An insider tells us that the Georgia indictment has “brought about a change,” adding, “he’s not so confident anymore. He’s not acting so cocky anymore. He’s not lashing out so much. The arrogance is gone.” The source added, “It feels like it’s all setting [in] for him now.” […]

But behind closed doors, our source says that Trump is “nervous,” because “there are so many defendants, he believes that a bunch of them are going to make deals and flip on him.” Attorney Jenna Ellis — who has also been charged — asked on social media platform X, “Why isn’t MAGA, Inc. funding everyone’s defense?”

Good question. Jenna’s got a GoFundMe on one of the Christian fundraising websites going but she may not raise what she needs. Maybe that would cause her to flip. Rudy Giuliani is up the creek. A plea deal of some kind is definitely in his best interest. John Eastman doesn’t have any deep pockets defending him. We haven’t yet heard from Sidney Powell but we will soon.

Remember: Friday at noon is the witching hour. Surrender or bench warrants will be issued.