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Politics
Jared Mondschein, Director of Research, US Studies Centre, University of Sydney

Yes, federal charges against a former president are unprecedented - but so is Trump's political power

George Walker IV/AP/AAP

Since Donald Trump announced his presidential candidacy eight years ago this week, few words have been more overused than “unprecedented”. It was unprecedented for a previously unelected politician who had never served a day in the US military or government to become president. It was also unprecedented for a US president to twice be impeached.

Yet again, there is no historical precedent for the fact that a former US president has been indicted by the federal government. Specifically, for 37 counts and seven separate charges concerning his handling of classified documents after he left the White House.

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