The impeachment saga surrounding President Trump has made a number of things plainly obvious to most Americans. Among them is the fact that Democrats have no regard for due process and the rights of the accused.
Congressman Eric Swalwell (R-CA), who once famously threatened to use nuclear weapons against gun owners, stated about Trump’s refusal to provide witnesses to the impeachment inquiry: “Unless you send those to us, we can only conclude that you’re guilty, because in America innocent men do not hide and conceal evidence.”
You would think that someone with a law degree would know better, but maybe there is some truth to the aphorism that most people who go to law school do so because they don’t know what else to do with their lives. For the benefit of Rep. Swalwell, let’s quote the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution, something he should have learned in his first year of law school.
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
Democrats have been swearing up and down that President Trump’s conduct was a high crime, so he should be able to benefit from the Fifth Amendment’s protections. But here we have someone who wants to be one of the House’s trial managers declaring that Trump refusing to provide potential evidence against himself is proof of guilt.
The visceral hatred of the Democrats who suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome is so great that there is no right that they wouldn’t trample on in their desire to see Trump removed from office. Perhaps they ought to watch A Man for All Seasons, in which St. Thomas More’s character famously defends the devil:
Roper: So now you’d give the Devil benefit of law?
More: Yes. What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?
Roper: I’d cut down every law in England to do that!
More: Oh? And, when the last law was down, and the Devil turned round on you – where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country’s planted thick with laws from coast to coast – man’s laws, not God’s – and, if you cut them down – and you’re just the man to do it – d’you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I’d give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety’s sake.
Democrats should tread warily, lest they and their leaders find themselves the targets of the exact same witch hunts they’re now guilty of perpetrating.
Image: Gage Skidmore