Former President Trump has been indicted and arraigned in four separate cases that focus on various schemes on which he has been accused. Two of these cases are local and two are federal.

Trump’s first indictment was in Manhattan, where he was charged with crimes revolving around hush-money payments made to Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 presidential election. 

Subsequent to this is the federal indictment of Trump and two co-defendants in his hoarding of classified documents held in his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago. Similar charges are alleged of military officials many times annually, often ending in guilty pleas. A guilty plea, however, is not likely from Trump. 

On Aug. 1, Trump alone was federally indicted in a D.C. courthouse for his attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. 

Similarly, Trump and 18 co-defendants were indicted in Fulton County, Georgia for attempting to disrupt the 2020 presidential election in the state. This is where Trump said, “I just want 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have” to Georgia Secretary of State, Brad Raffensperger.

The rule of law is an idea that originates from Ancient Greece, an idea of which is laid out in the founding documents of the United States. An idea that has been repeated in every single Civics or Government class.

But has it, and will it be upheld? That is a question that is being answered by these four indictments which pile to 91 felonies accused of a former President.

Like any and everyone else, Trump is constitutionally guaranteed the right to a fair trial, and is presumed innocent until proven guilty. 

Some claim that the prosecution of former leaders shows the decline of a democracy, but the prosecution of Trump only reinforces and demonstrates that the virtues this country stands on are alive. 

According to Axios News, since the year 2000, former leaders have been prosecuted and/or jailed in 78 countries. Among these countries are France, South Korea, and Israel, fellow democracies and our allies. 

Spurring off of the indictments – 2 lawyers from the Federalist Society, a conservative legal organization, have made an argument that Trump is in violation of the constitution and therefore can be disqualified from running for President once more. 

These attorneys, William Baude and Michael Paulsen, claim that through inciting an insurrection to stop the certification of the 2020 presidential election on and leading up to January 6th, Trump is in violation of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. In this section it is stated that no person shall be President who has engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States.

Don’t get me wrong, the prosecution of a former President has major political implications, but that doesn’t mean Trump should be exonerated. 

As the constitution intends, it is up to a jury of his peers to decide whether or not he is guilty of what he is accused of in these four indictments. 

Despite four indictments, in the Republican presidential primary, Trump is still king. According to ABC News he polls at 52%, with his closest challenger, Ron DeSantis only polling at 14.7%. The indictments likely won’t serve him well in the general election however.

These indictments are uneven ground for the country, as per the constitution however, everyone must be tried equally. That’s the rule of law, and no matter what you think of the indictments it is still important for these cases to play out in court for Trump as a defendant, and for the nation as the victim of his alleged crimes.