What if there is a "cover-up" but no underlying crime?  And what if the biggest "cover-up" in the history of the Republic was the first impeachment of President Trump, to thwart an investigation into allegations of Biden family corruption in Ukraine?  The Wall Street Journal, in its lead editorial, "Trump Is Charged With a Coverup," does not consider these questions.  Instead, it opens with a suggestion of the political cliché that the cover-up is worse than the crime and echoes accusations against President Trump issuing from the administration out to defeat his 2024 candidacy by hook or by crook — in the first half of this editorial.

In its attack on the president, the WSJ seem to be trying to catch up to the New York Times in anti-Trump viciousness.  The Times led with a bizarre attempt to resurrect that Russia collusion hoax to raise an "obstruction of justice" issue in the indictment concerning the documents seized by the FBI in its unprecedented raid on the Trump residence at Mar-a-Lago.

Piling on the president, the WSJ writes that Trump "stands accused of trying to delete incriminating Mar-a-Lago security video."

This is mentioned before the editorial reminds readers: "Special Counsel Jack Smith charged Mr. Trump with unlawfully retaining national-security information, as well as concealing classified files at his Florida club."

The accusation that the former president is a threat to national security is a typically baseless charge that the left includes in its efforts to tear down Donald J. Trump.  It appeared in the first Trump impeachment; it appeared in the second Trump impeachment.  And now it is embedded in Biden's desperate attempt to destroy Trump's bid for re-election next year.

The editorial goes on: "Mr. Trump is entitled to a defense and presumption of innocence, yet this is a damaging allegation."

And yet, two paragraphs on, the WSJ points out: "Prudential questions about the wisdom of this prosecution remain. Mr. Trump appears to have kept the files out of pigheadedness, not because he wanted to do something nefarious like sell them to an adversary.  The FBI raided Mar-a-Lago to recover the documents."  After further chastising the former president, the editorial asks: "But is this conduct that truly gives President Biden no choice except to ask a jury to jail his leading opponent in next year's election?"

The WSJ should have answered its own question — "alas, it becomes increasingly clear that when it comes to treatment of his political opposition, President Biden does not have a single magnanimous bone in his body."

In its concluding paragraph, the WSJ suggests this clarion call: "The best revenge for Mr. Trump's supporters would be to nominate a Republican who can beat Biden."  Provided there is a fair election, that nominee would be Donald J. Trump.

Image: National Archives