Two juries unanimously found four-times-indicted former president Donald Trump liable for nearly $90 million in total for defaming E. Jean Carroll. He seems not to make a good impression with jurors. He certainly demonstrated his lack of self-control in court, even with a jury present. Given all that, it might be time for Republicans to start considering the very real possibility that his criminal cases could go just as poorly as his civil trials have gone.
Even Republicans determined to ignore reality — including the mountain of evidence against him in the Jan. 6, 2021, case and the relative ease with which Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg racks up convictions for falsifying business records — might want to think through the consequences of possible convictions. It is long past time for Republicans to face an uncomfortable truth: Trump could very well wind up convicted of one or more felonies after receiving the nomination. What then?
The Constitution does not bar a convicted criminal — even one already sentenced — from holding office. (It is hard enough to bar him when the language of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment expressly prohibits insurrectionists and their helpmates from holding federal office.)
However, polls consistently show that Trump’s standing even among Republicans would plummet if he were convicted. A recent Gallup Poll shows that “less than half of Republicans (46%) are willing to vote for someone charged with a felony, and even fewer (35%) are willing to vote for someone convicted of one.” (One wonders if Republicans understand he already has been charged.) Only 21% of independents are willing to vote for a convicted candidate.
Even if MAGA cultists stick with him after a conviction, some Republicans and the lion’s share of independents would not. Surely, someone in the Republican Party should consider the ramifications of a possible conviction and what, if anything, the party can do instead of running a felon for…
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