Donald Trump’s indictment will prompt an “open season”, where all former presidents could be subject to a similar treatment, according to a political commentator.
Trump became the first former president to face criminal charges after being indicted, however he denies any wrongdoing.
Office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has been pursuing the investigation, and confirmed he arranged plans to “co-ordinate” the surrender of the 76-year-old.
Speaking on GB News, Victor Davis Hanson says the treatment Trump has been subject to could set a precedent for all former and future presidents.
Victor David Hansen warns all ex-US Presidents are at risk
Reuters / GB News
He told Laurence Fox: “This was a city prosecutor, not even a state, so it’ll be an open season now on any emeritus president.
“It’s exactly what the founders in The Federalist Paper warned against. When Joe Biden leaves office, a prosecutor in Sacramento, California could say you broke the law here or there on your dealings with Ukraine or China or Russia, or you used a bank wire transfer in our state.
“Whatever slight relevance it might have to jurisdictional authority, you’re going to have an open season on the out party.
“It’s exactly what the founders and the federalists warned against. This isn’t new, Donald Trump is the first President to be impeached in his first term since Andrew Johnson.
Donald Trump faces competition for the Republican nominationReuters“He was the first person to be impeached twice, he was the first person to have his home raided by the FBI.
“He was the first person to be tried in the Senate in an impeachment trial as a private citizen.
“It’s a long pattern of the Democrats, they despise him and no one knows what their strategy is. They detest him so much that they feel they have to destroy him or they feel they can weaken him.”
Trump’s indictment has come under scrutiny from many, including his former Vice President Mike Pence, who warns it sends a “terrible message”.
"There are dictators and authoritarians around the world that will point to that to justify their own abuse of their own so-called justice system, so I, I'm very troubled by it," he said during an interview at the National Review's Ideas Summit.
Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen has said he made the payment to silence Daniels about an affair she says she had with Trump in 2006. Trump denies the affair took place.
Bragg's charges come at a critical time, as Trump is running for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.
Bragg, a Democrat, took office in January 2022, after his predecessor indicted the former president's family company and its top financial executive over a 15-year tax fraud scheme.
A prosecutor leading that probe, Mark Pomerantz, resigned in February 2022 after Bragg declined to charge Trump himself with financial crimes. Pomerantz has publicly criticized Bragg's decision not to bring charges and published a book about the investigation.
Pomerantz has said concerns about potentially losing the case should be weighed against the possibility of "promoting disrespect for the law" by not bringing charges when warranted.
Bragg has defended his decision.