Hutchinson: Indicted Candidate Should Drop Out in Nation’s Interest

Former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson is one of the few Republicans recognizing that the indictment of Donald Trump is a golden opportunity for a rational, moral Republican to jump into the 2024 Presidential campaign and try to reclaim the GOP from the barbarian dupes of Trumplandia. Hutchinson declared his intent to run yesterday on ABC This Week:

KARL: When I spoke to you earlier this year, you said you were thinking about running for president. Have you made a decision? Are you running?

HUTCHINSON: I have made a decision. And my decision is, I’m going to run for president of the United States. While the formal announcement will be later in April, in Bentonville [Arkansas], I wanted to make clear that, to you, Jonathan, I am going to be running. And the reason, as I’ve traveled the country for six months, I hear people talk about the leadership of our country, and I’m convinced that people want leaders that appeal to the best of America, and not simply appeal to our worst instincts [Asa Hutchinson, interview with Jonathan Karl, transcript, ABC: This Week, 2023.04.02].

Hutchinson says the indictment of a former President is “a sad day for America,” but he doesn’t say if the tears falling from his sad eyes are from a belief that the indictment is a political hatchet job or from the recognition that all the Trumpists crying about political hatchet jobs are just projecting their own corruption in an attempt to undermine confidence in the judicial system and the rule of law. But Hutchinson does suggest that Trump shouldn’t attack the justice system or lure voters into the distraction of discussing his personal legal troubles instead of real issues facing the country:

KARL: Do you trust this process in New York? Do you think he can get a fair trial, a fair hearing in New York?

HUTCHINSON: Well, the important thing is that the grand jury found probable cause and that’s the standard for any criminal charges in our society and then the presumption of innocence follows you and then there’s a trial and the determination of guilt or innocence. That’s the American system. Thousands of people face that, some are found not guilty, some are found guilty, but it’s the American system and so we don’t — while we might disagree with what’s happening, we don’t want to erode confidence in our entire criminal justice system, simply because we don’t like the beginning parts of the case.

KARL: And what about the way Trump has talked about this? I mean, obviously, there are just some vicious personal attacks that he has made on [prosecutor] Alvin Bragg. He’s called him an animal. He’s called him worse than that. And he has said that this will bring death and destruction to America.

HUTCHINSON: Well, let’s rephrase this because we don’t want the next 18 months to be focused simply on Donald Trump and his legal issues. And Donald Trump says a lot of things and they don’t always appeal to the best of America. And so I’d rather focus on what our future is about, and how we can solve problems and how we can come together as Americans [Hutchinson and Karl, 2023.04.02].

And Hutchinson says a reasonable, responsible candidate facing indictment would drop out, for his own sake and for the sake of the country:

KARL: You suggested recently that if Trump were to get indicted that he should drop out of the race. Do you believe that now that he’s been indicted, should he drop out?

HUTCHINSON: Well, I do. And for a couple reasons. I mean, first of all, the office is more important than any individual person. And so for the sake of the office of the presidency, I do think that’s too much of a sideshow and distraction, and he needs to be able to concentrate on his due process, and there is a presumption of innocence.

But the second reason is, throughout my eight years as governor and as a political leader, I’ve always said that people don’t have to step aside from public office if they’re under investigation, but if it reaches the point of criminal charges that have to be answered, the office is always more important than a person. And so there’s some consistency there. I do believe if — if we’re looking at the presidency and the future of our country, then we don’t need that distraction and he needs to be able to concentrate on the legal issues that he faces [Hutchinson and Karl, 2023.04.02].

The alleged frontrunner in the GOP primary has been criminally indicted. In any rational scenario, challengers should pounce on that indictment to knock the frontrunner out of the lead and out of the race. Let’s hope Hutchinson presses that advantage and takes his party back.

Related Reading: South Dakota Republicans John Thune and Kristi Noem lack the guts Hutchinson is showing, but they also make The Hill‘s list of prominent politicos who haven’t commented yet on the Trump indictment.