ADD YOUR NAME: I’m prepared to hold the incoming Trump administration accountable, even if our legal system won’t.

John, a New York judge just decided that Donald Trump will receive no criminal penalties for the 34 felonies he’s been convicted of. [1]

You read that right.  

Despite being found guilty of covering up hush money payments, which Common Cause first exposed as illegal back in 2018, Donald Trump is getting off without even a slap on the wrist solely because of who he is.

But Donald Trump acting like the rules don’t apply to him is nothing new. And unfortunately, this isn't the first or last time our institutions will fail to hold him accountable.

That means it’s up to people like you and me to fill the gap. That’s what Common Cause is all about, and no matter what, Donald Trump will go down in history as the first president convicted by a jury of his peers on felonies you helped us blow the whistle on.

The courts failed. Congress failed. The Department of Justice failed. With your help, we won’t. Will you pledge to hold the incoming Trump administration accountable today?

ADD YOUR NAME

This case – kicked off by Common Cause’s watchdog efforts – was one of the only ones remaining after the Supreme Court ruled last summer that presidents can’t face criminal charges if they can claim that their crimes were “official acts.” [2]

And yesterday, four Supreme Court justices went along with Trump’s demand that he be exempted from sentencing entirely. Notably, Trump called one of those justices, Samuel Alito, just hours before his team filed a motion to block his sentencing [3] – a significant ethical lapse that has unfortunately become all too common on the Roberts court.

Now, even though the other five justices voted to let Trump’s sentencing go forward, Judge Merchan’s last-minute decision to let Trump off the hook sets a terrible precedent for the next four years of his presidency.

A bedrock principle of our democracy is that nobody is above the law – but today’s ruling, combined with other decisions over the past four years to let Trump off the hook for serious wrongdoing, seriously jeopardizes our rule of law.

If the public officials we entrust to provide checks and balances won’t do their jobs, We The People are the last line of defense. That makes the role of Common Cause – and members like you – more important than ever.  

Donald Trump’s second presidency will call on all of us to defend the principles we hold dear – our civil rights, the rule of law, and democracy itself. That fight begins anew today – can you add your name to say you’re with us?

Thanks for all you do,

Daryl Lobban, Senior Vice President of External Affairs
and the team at Common Cause

[1] https://apnews.com/live/trump-sentencing-hush-money-new-york-updates
[2] https://www.commoncause.org/press/delayed-dangerous-scotus-ruling-allows-trump-to-avoid-january-6th-trial-until-after-the-election/
[3] https://abcnews.go.com/US/trump-speaks-justice-alito-amid-push-halt-criminal/story?id=117386419