We Must Sue the Federal Government
Even a symbolic lawsuit for exactly nothing is important to ensure a legacy of accountability.
There is no doubt that the pandemic, even on a global but especially national scale, is largely the fault of President Donald J. Trump. Trump had knowingly destroyed any ability to respond to a pandemic for the sake of his own ego and power, and his defunding of the WHO may have contributed greatly to the pandemic spreading outside of China in the first place to become a global concern. We have a moral obligation to hold Trump accountable. Ideally, that accountability comes in the form of using peaceful protest to effectively force his removal from power altogether. That requires the coordination of millions of people, however. Something that may be just as effective but requires only the dedication of a determined singular group or even individual is deeply rooted in what had been touted as a proud American institution at the height of 90s litigation culture: the lawsuit.
Suing the President and the Federal government itself brings about it some quirks due to the very nature of who and what is being sued. For starters, strictly speaking, the President himself cannot be sued. That particular point is irrelevant, for reasons I’ll get into (and infact already have elsewhere). The larger point is that only the Federal Government of the United States itself can be sued, which is why it’s important to get a lawsuit off the ground while Trump is still President. The President is, after all, the Constitutionally designated Chief Executive of that Federal Government. Trump himself is the ultimate representative of the Federal Government; a lawsuit against the Federal Government under Trump’s administration is in fact a repudiation against Trump himself.
That distinction is the key to making a lawsuit against the Federal Government under Trump specifically during the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic successful. Trump has spent the majority of the pandemic categorically denying responsibility for it. A successful lawsuit, with a successful verdict, legally and undeniably assigns that responsibility to Trump, whether he denies it or not, as a matter of public record, for the duration of the existence of the United States itself.
Trump’s own ego has put himself into a precarious position where he’s especially vulnerable to accountability, even if no monetary award is given. In his own mind, he must be the greatest at everything. Including being President. His never-ending Tweet war with Obama is just one manifestation of this egotism. A lawsuit putting that accountability for the COVID-19 pandemic in the public record, for as long as the nation shall exist, will be an exceptionally powerful blow against him.
Even if only on a symbolic level, Trump must be held accountable. An enterprising organization such as the ACLU or even an individual with the means to carry on this lawsuit would become a national hero. Even if no money were to exchange hands, no compensation given to the families of those who have lost their lives to the pandemic, the simple act of holding Trump accountable has a powerful effect, and in no small way will bring about serving justice.
