Fiat Justitia, Ruat Caelum

I was enjoying lunch with friends awhile back when the subject turned, as it often and sadly does, to Donald Trump — specifically the question of what might happen should he ever be arrested in connection with one or more of the various crimes for which he’s currently under investigation. One of these friends was adamant that we would see violence on a level that would make the January 6th attack on the Capitol look like a spitball fight. The phrase Civil War was invoked.

Now, with an indictment looming and Trump calling for people to “PROTEST” and “TAKE OUR NATION BACK,” many are wondering if just such a scenario could play out. Some are asking if it’s even worth it to charge him, given the wrath that could potentially be unleashed.

My feeling is that the fears are overblown, and for several reasons.

First off, Trump’s star power — if that’s what you want to call it — has been diminished the past couple of years. His election loss (debated though it may be among the zealots and the bottom-feeders), the defeats of his chosen candidates in the mid-terms and an overall sense of Trump fatigue have led many of his supporters to start shopping around for a new cult of personality to latch onto. He lost his biggest and best megaphone when Twitter cut him off, and Fox News — facing a lawsuit that might do its bottom-line genuine harm — seems to have decided he’s no longer worth the trouble.

Don’t get me wrong. Donnie boy still has his ride-or-die followers. And there’s no shortage of right wing media outlets that seem happy to shove their noses up the fetid, KFC-stained ass cheeks from which Fox has disengaged. But it feels as if there may no longer be the critical mass of sycophants necessary to inflict genuine harm.

If I’m wrong (and it’s certainly possible that I am), I don’t see these ignorant rednecks putting up much of a fight. The attack on the Capitol was shocking for how quickly it escalated and how near the wannabe insurrectionists seemingly came to thwarting the transfer of power. But it was also a moment when the deck was stacked in their favor in a way I don’t see happening now. The Capitol was woefully unprotected that day, and Trump famously did nothing to reinforce the troops or establish order. Sure, the rioters felt emboldened as hell when it was thousands of them against a couple dozen cops armed with bear spray. Faced with a heavy police presence armed with tactical gear, and some national guard troops to back them up, I suspect it will be a different story. We saw how quickly these people fell to pieces when prison sentences started being handed down (one of them couldn’t even get vegan food in his cell!). So let ’em parade around the Lower Manhattan Courthouse with their Walmart rifles. Once real bullets start flying, those guns are getting dropped faster than third period French.

But, of course, we’ve seen some crazy shit in recent years, so we can’t outright dismiss the possibility that there could be widespread violence. Real damage could be inflicted on our democracy. Should that happen, some will undoubtedly ask the question, “Was it worth it?” And that’s a question that shouldn’t be dismissed quickly either. Trump is out of office. The coming election very well may not play out in his favor. Is it maybe better just to leave well enough alone?

To answer that, I look to the legal maxim fiat justitia, ruat caelum — “Let justice be done, though the heavens fall.”

If we truly are a nation of laws, then the law has to be enforced, regardless of the consequences. I don’t say that lightly. I don’t relish the thought of violence or of seeing our democracy once again pushed to the breaking point. But that’s the chance we have to take if we are to remain a nation of laws.

So while I don’t believe we’re in danger of seeing a well-coordinated and serious effort to overthrow the government, I also don’t think we’d have the luxury of caving to that threat if it were real. Democracy doesn’t work when it’s being held at gunpoint. Sometimes you have to dare the fuckers to pull the trigger.

Trump is probably going to be arrested. He’s going to get cuffed. He’s going to get fingerprinted. His mugshot will be everywhere. And things could get ugly. His cult followers could use his arrest as a rallying cry for violent dissent, even overthrow.

Doesn’t matter. We, as a country, don’t have the luxury of just letting bygones be bygones.

Let justice be done, though the heavens fall.