The Friday Brief

March 29, 2024

The Big Picture

Two Systems of Justice

If a white-collar criminal started posting about the children of a judge hearing his or her case, you’d expect immediate and firm sanctions from the court. You’d expect the same and perhaps more if a violent criminal did it. If a mob boss with a network of violent minions did so, you’d absolutely see them in jail, held incommunicado until trial.

There are two systems of justice in this country. Donald Trump is now threatening the daughter of the judge in his upcoming hush money fraud case. (See also, Blind Item 1 below.) This will not end well unless the courts start taking this more seriously. Someone is going to be harmed or killed.

I can tell you from very direct, very personal experience that the Trump system of intimidation and threats goes for the family first. They targeted my children to try to shut me up, and I will never, ever, ever let that go. I know what the judge is feeling, and it’s not pleasant.

The Trump team will roll their eyes if one accuses them of instigating it, knowing that the goons, thugs, online shitposters, harassers, and incel swatters can read their marching orders clear as day.

Any legal system that lets Trump get away with this — and so far, they all largely have — without sanction is a proof case of the fallacy that guardrails and institutions will save us.

Slap Trump with swingeing costs for this kind of behavior for the first incidence. Put his fat ass in Rikers for the second and see how long he keeps running his blubber hole.

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