Monday open thread: As goes France?

Nicolas Sarkozy, by Jacques Paquier, CC BY 2.0

It seems like eighty-four years ago that I wrote this piece about the legal troubles former French president Nicolas Sarkozy was facing over corruption charges and what we could learn from his travails as pertaining to Donald Trump.

Well.

The former French president Nicolas Sarkozy was found guilty and sentenced to jail by a court in Paris on Monday on charges of corruption and influence peddling, only the second time in modern French history that a former president has been convicted of a crime.

Now, of course, this has no practical bearing on Trump's troubles in various jurisdictions. But it does put paid to the idea that presidents are immune from prosecution after their terms of office are expired. Sarkozy was one of the most powerful presidents in modern French history, and now he's going to cool his heels in prison. It's a signal lesson that there is accountability for the powerful.

If Trump does get convicted, I don't expect him to die in prison. But I do expect him to lose everything. He is facing not only criminal proceedings, but a welter of civil cases arising from the insurrection he planned. He will be in much worse shape than Sarkozy is now, as his house of cards is pulled down around his combed-over head. Forget about 2024; he'll be fighting for his life, not the White House.

As we embark on a new week, just remember: The wheels of justice grind slowly, but eventually they will get you.

This is your open thread.