Not all equal under the law

To the editor:

Donald Trump, a sociopath and demagogue, pleaded not guilty to 37 federal counts, 31 of which are violations of the Espionage Act. The Trump indictment should not distract Americans from critically examining Espionage Act abuses and “rule of law” hypocrisy. 

Special Counsel Jack Smith said, “We have one set of laws in this country, and they apply to everyone.” This is nonsense. CEOs of major corporations, financial firms and banks are virtually never criminally prosecuted for the transgressions committed by their organizations. Also, the wealthy have avoided paying tens of billions of dollars in taxes that they owe. 

For a century, women have been prevented from passing the Equal Rights Amendment. In the 2022 Dobbs’ decision, the right-wing Supreme Court took away the 50-year-old constitutional right of women to have an abortion. The rights of the LGBTQ+ community have been under relentless attacks in at least 20 Republican-led states. Finally, the rise of the #MeToo and Black Lives Matter movements attest to the second-class treatment experienced by both women and Blacks, whether as victims of sexual abuse or from a racially biased criminal justice system. 

As for the Espionage Act, Smith said, “Our laws protect national defense information and violations of these laws put our country at risk.” He left out how the flawed 1917 Espionage Act has been improperly used by the executive branch. Government officials regularly leak classified information or declassify documents to promote their policies in the media and shape public opinion. The executive branch has used the act to silence dissidents and punish whistleblowers.  It is so broad that the government doesn’t have to prove someone intentionally wants to harm national security or aid a foreign nation. Juries can’t hear what was leaked or why, and whistleblowers can’t challenge the classification of documents. 

When high-ranking officials (Former CIA Director David Petraeus, President Joe Biden, former Vice President Mike Pence, Former Vice President Dick Cheney and aides) violate the Espionage Act, at most they get a slap on the wrist. By contrast, whistleblowers (Daniel Ellsberg, Edward Snowden, Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning) who expose abuses, violations of the Constitution, international treaties and laws, as well as war crimes, serve prison time or are threatened with long sentences. 

Howard Elterman