Nullification: Negated, Minimized, or Rendered Ineffectual by Al Sikes

“I consider trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which government can be held to the principles of its constitution.” Thomas Jefferson, 1788

The trial is now over. My overwhelming reaction is sadness. Sadness for the country, for the rule of law, for the Trump family. And especially for our truest measure of justice, the courts. The effort to nullify the courts, will continue, indeed intensify and most regrettably have a long tail.

It has been said over and over by Donald Trump and his partisans in the media that he could not get a fair trial in New York City (NYC). Trump slammed the prosecutor, judge and jury daily. And he took his anger toward witnesses for the prosecution as far as humanly possible. What about the justice system as sentencing and appeals play out?

To begin we have layers of appeal courts to scrutinize the trial court and the actions of the prosecutor, judge, trial procedure and jury. If an appeal court finds error under the law the verdict will be reversed.

Now let me get out from under the verdict itself and the central elements of our justice system—the courts and its procedures.

Trump, the defendant, did everything he could to ridicule the promise of fairness under the law. He, personally aggrieved, did all he could to nullify the integrity of courts. Why else, for example, would he attack the sentencing judge? Or say repeatedly that the jurors were incapable of being fair. Outside of a desire to nullify, these attacks were insane.

Many of you will think that the NYC courts should be ridiculed. My wife and I both served on jury panels when we lived in NYC and both found the system well organized and directed. We were also inspired by an orientation film on our role as a potential juror in making America just.

Yes, I am sure Trump is not as popular in NYC as he might be in say Orlando, but he choose to live and work and form companies in the state of New York. He enjoyed the life of the rich, became a minor celebrity and then The Apprentice lifted him even further. I can recall his royal march into a restaurant with aides trailing behind.

Donald Trump has also spent more than three years attacking the 2020 election and in the last year has sought to undermine all court decisions as they pertain to him. Perhaps attacking the integrity of courts is fair game, although I don’t recall a moment when he has made any recommendations to reform the courts. Inaction can be instructive.

And he has also had plenty of success nullifying the integrity of the Republican Party. When he emerged in the 2016 election cycle, almost all of the Republican big wigs attacked him in harsh tones. As he succeeded, knees were bent—orthopedic therapy might be needed. Unfortunately politics has been monopolized and the ambitious make fools of themselves in their often slavish adherence to the most strident wing of their Party. President Biden has certainly bent a knee toward the hard-edged Left of his Party.

Elections. Courts. They are the best humans can design; not perfect but the best, honed over 200 years. Beyond that, they are foundational and those who choose to parrot Trump in demeaning our court system might consider where they would prefer to put their reputation and treasure on the line. And if you say, not in the state of New York, then you probably should avoid living and working there. The courts throughout the United States secure our rights; they do not serve individual litigants.

Early in my career I was frequently a trial lawyer in both civil and criminal cases. The law and its application are embedded with protections that favor the accused. In the case against Donald Trump, for example, the jury of seven men and five women were told that to convict they must find him guilty “beyond a reasonable doubt”. And the jury was not twelve persons selected to be polled on their political preferences.

When Courts across the United States heard dozens of cases brought by Trump allies challenging the results of the 2020 Presidential election (I don’t recall any of those cases beginning in NYC) the courts uniformly affirmed the election result. Trump decided then that he would try to use his Vice-President, Mike Pence, as a tool to overturn the election. The Trump media followed suit. Thankfully Mike Pence stood firm under intense pressure to reverse the result as intense partisans and thugs attacked the Capitol.

In short, the former President that the Vice President got to know is not the one his most ardent supporters think they know.

Reality: in this country we strive to make sure no one is above the law. Next up, Hunter Biden.

Al Sikes is the former Chair of the Federal Communications Commission under George H.W. Bush. Al writes on themes from his book, Culture Leads Leaders Follow published by Koehler Books.