On Monday, former Gov. Bill Weld (R-Mass.), who is challenging President Donald Trump for the 2020 Republican presidential nomination, accused the president of treason and said he deserves the death penalty. He referenced Trump’s call with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which Trump asked Zelensky — eight times — to work with Rudy Giuliani on a probe into Joe Biden’s son Hunter. Biden’s son stood to gain a few years back, when the then-vice president called for a Ukrainian prosecutor to be fired. The prosecutor was investigating Burisma Group, of which Hunter Biden was a board member.
Both Biden’s action and Trump’s call were shady, but Weld — clearly desperate for attention — had a full Trump Derangement Syndrome break-down.
“Right after he suspended $250 million in military aid to Ukraine, he called up the president of Ukraine and pressed him eight times to investigate Joe Biden, who the president thinks is going to be running against him. Talk about pressuring a foreign country to interfere with and control a U.S. election,” Weld said.
“It couldn’t be clearer — and that’s not just undermining democratic institutions. That is treason. It’s treason pure and simple, and the penalty for treason, under the U.S. code, is death. That’s the only penalty,” the former governor insisted.
The connection between Hunter Biden, Burisma, and Joe Biden’s call for the prosecutor to be fired needs to be investigated because President Trump seemed to use his position with Ukraine to ask a foreign government to launch an investigation with clear political implications in the U.S.
Trump’s call with Zelensky seems suspicious, but Americans should refrain from judgment until more about it becomes known. Bill Weld not only rushed to judgment, but went for the jugular.
Luckily, the U.S. Constitution defines treason, so Americans can know what it is. Unfortunately for Weld, Trump isn’t within a million miles of committing treason.
Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.
Trump’s call with Zelensky may be a scandal, but there’s no way it involved treason. Was Trump carrying out a war against the United States? Is Ukraine America’s enemy?
Bill Weld has approximately zero chance of unseating President Donald Trump in the Republican primary. Trump enjoys a very high favorability rating among Republicans, while Weld vouched for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election — even though Weld was technically running against her on the Libertarian ticket with former Gov. Gary Johnson (R-N.M.).
Weld is running for president for the exposure and publicity, not because he has any realistic chance of winning. Of the Republicans who have announced a campaign against Trump, former Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.) is the least bad, and that’s only because he didn’t either support Clinton in 2016 (like Weld) or tweet far more racist things than Trump while claiming Trump’s tweets disqualify him from the presidency (like Joe Walsh).
Weld also joined 370 former prosectors in urging obstruction of justice charges against Trump. It seems his Russia impeachment fever has grown into full-blown treason fever.
Demanding someone’s execution isn’t exactly a good political strategy against them, especially in a primary campaign.
Follow Tyler O’Neil, the author of this article, on Twitter at @Tyler2ONeil.
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