Trump indicted on federal charges

Donald Trump has been indicted on seven charges relating to classified documents.

I blogged that the charges in the Manhattan case were weak and even dubious.

This case is very different. There is a huge amount of evidence in this case, and the consequences of a conviction are more serious also.

This case will not be about Trump having had classified documents he wasn’t meant to have retained, as has happened with a number of other people including Pence and Biden. It will be about what he did after he was asked to return then. It will be about lies and perjury and obstruction of justice. There may be evidence from his own lawyers that Trump lied to them or instructed them to lie.

If Trump had returned all the documents when asked, the public probably wouldn’t even know there had ever been an issue. It is about him lying to the FBI and the Government. If convicted, it will be because he is petulant.