What happened: Former president Donald Trump on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to 34 criminal charges brought by Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg (D.). Upon his return to Mar-a-Lago, Trump defiantly declared that the "only crime" he ever committed was to "fearlessly defend our nation against those who seek to destroy it."
As expected, the mainstream media covered the occasion with a breathless obsession indicative of mental illness. Though hysterically excited about the idea of Trump being indicted, even liberal journalists were not very impressed by the actual substance of Bragg's case against the former president.
Why it matters: Mainstream journalists are, by and large, partisan hacks who believe it is their moral duty to defend American democracy by helping Democrats win elections. When a Republican is charged with a crime, they will often insist the case is strong and entirely justified from a legal standpoint. So the fact that journalists and other liberal pundits have expressed even a moderate degree of skepticism suggests Bragg's case is a heaping pile of garbage.
What they're saying:
• "Legally weak." — Noah Feldman, Bloomberg
• "These are hard charges to get excited about." — Michelle Goldberg, New York Times
• "There are novel elements to this case that could complicate Bragg's legal pathway to a conviction while arming Trump and his allies with talking points about a supposedly overreaching prosecutor." — HuffPost
• "[Bragg is] plunging forward with a premise that has given pause to even some of Mr. Trump's toughest critics." — Charles Savage, New York Times
• "Dubious legal theory … painfully anticlimactic … It is unclear that the felony statute that Trump is accused of violating actually applies to him." — Ian Millhiser, Vox
• "You can't build a case on the testimony of [former Trump attorney Michael] Cohen and [porn star Stormy] Daniels." — Former media darling and convicted felon Michael Avenatti
Just to be clear: Mainstream journalists are still partisan hacks, and they also published a bunch of ridiculous takes on Trump's indictment, perhaps none more absurd than this New York Times report, headlined "Trump Will Be Arraigned Today. Clinton Will Be Honored."
Turns out that Hillary Clinton, the failed candidate who lost to Trump in 2016, was the guest of honor at some private club's black-tie dinner in Manhattan on Tuesday. She was being recognized for her "great contributions" and "accomplishments in society."
Bottom line: It's almost as if the substance of the indictment doesn't matter. Journalists and other Democrats are emotionally and financially invested in making sure Trump wins the Republican nomination in 2024, so they will do whatever it takes to keep him in the news and boost their ratings by giving him billions of dollars worth of free coverage.