In the era of Trump, the surprises never cease.
Over the last decade of his political career, we have seen him overcome some truly bizarre obstacles and maintain his support base. From winning the election as a politically unseasoned underdog back in 2016 to being the likely 2024 GOP nominee after impeachment and an attempted coup, nothing seems to stop him. Now a convicted felon, former president Donald Trump’s prospects are somehow still promising.
On May 30, Trump was convicted on 34 counts of falsification of business records in the first degree for his fraudulent hush money payments to porn-star Stormy Daniels in order to hide a now long-past sex scandal. Just days before the 2016 election Trump’s lawyer Micheal Cohen paid Daniels $130,000 in hush money so voters wouldn’t find out and let it affect the election. Trump then re-paid Cohen in separate payments he falsely labeled as legal fees.
Despite clear evidence, testimony from Cohen and a conviction, Trump’s supporters remain steadfast. Many called for the jurors to be doxed and harrased (or worse). Others called for a repeat of Jan. 6, or a storming of the capitol with nooses. Fox even reported that the trial had many mistakes, and that despite a long appeals process, Trump deserved justice.
No matter Trump’s actions, his supporters are always behind him, often armed with violence and denial. He said it himself in 2016, “I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters.”
Our country has become so polarized and so full of hate that what Trump says is true. He can be a convicted felon and lead the country, and Biden can stand by war crimes in Gaza and lead the country too.
These days, the U.S. exists in three parts; die-hard Trump fans, die-hard Democrats and confused people somewhere in the middle. For voters in hope of an option that doesn’t support genocide, doesn’t commit countless crimes, doesn’t spout conspiracy theories and isn’t on death’s door, there are simply no options.
So, what now? The ballot is practically set for November, and Trump will almost certainly be on it. His sentencing is set for July 11, and he could receive anywhere from probation to four years in prison. If he’s in prison he can still campaign from behind bars, and still be elected president, regardless of not being legally allowed to vote for himself.
Recent polls show Trump as the top candidate, with Biden close behind. Support for Trump has only risen since his conviction, and even with the potential of campaigning from prison, he has a real possibility of winning and becoming the first convicted felon to be president.
The American people are stuck in a cycle created by our two-party system. To get enough votes, candidates often have to go to the extreme ends of their parties, dividing people between what feels like two terrible options. The system has left people without a voice on many things, instead guided by the strong arm of the military-industrial complex and self-interested politicians, and it is downright undemocratic.
Our political dynamic has become so divisive, so fueled by violence and hate, that there is not even a question of whether a convicted felon has a chance of being voted to lead the country from a cell.
