In reaction to the unprecedented indictment of a former U.S. president on federal charges related to his handling of classified documents, Donald Trump said on June 8 that he was innocent and the target of a “witch hunt.”

In documentaries dating back to 2016, FRONTLINE has built a unique public record of Trump’s previous battles with the Department of Justice and a special counsel — including how Trump has used the term “witch hunt” in the past to rally his supporters and undercut investigations into his actions.

Amid the news of the federal indictment, which follows the former president’s indictment on unrelated New York state charges earlier this spring, explore FRONTLINE’s collected documentaries below. In addition to examining how Trump has previously battled the Department of Justice, these films probe his impact on American life, politics and democracy — including the aftermath of his refusal to concede his 2020 presidential loss to Joe Biden and his role in efforts to overturn the election results that culminated in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. 

That matter is also under investigation by special counsel Jack Smith, who leads the inquiry that resulted in this week’s federal grand jury indictment of Trump related to his handling of classified documents post-presidency. Last fall, with Trump once again running for president and President Biden likely to run for re-election, the DOJ appointed Smith as a special counsel from outside the agency to oversee both investigations, in an effort to underscore what Attorney General Merrick Garland said was the DOJ’s “commitment to both independence and accountability in particularly sensitive matters.” The DOJ later appointed an additional special counsel for an inquiry involving Biden and classified documents.

Lies, Politics and Democracy

From Michael Kirk and his team, this September 2022 documentary investigates how Trump and other American political leaders fed the public lies about the 2020 presidential election and embraced rhetoric that led to political violence.

American Insurrection

An investigation of how the threat of far-right extremist groups evolved during Trump’s presidency, from the deadly 2017 white supremacist Charlottesville rally to the January 6, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol. From a team led by Rick Rowley and A.C. Thompson, the documentary, updated in January 2022, is a collaboration with ProPublica and Berkeley Journalism’s Investigative Reporting Program, with support from the WNET Group’s Exploring Hate initiative.

United States of Conspiracy

How trafficking in conspiracy theories went from the fringes of U.S. politics into the White House — aided by an alliance among Trump, his longtime advisor Roger Stone and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. From Michael Kirk and his team, the documentary was updated in January 2022.

Plot to Overturn the Election

An investigation of how the myth about widespread election fraud made its way to the center of American politics. From FRONTLINE and ProPublica, this March 2022 documentary by Samuel Black and A.C. Thompson traces how a handful of people had an outsized impact on the current U.S. crisis of democratic legitimacy.

Trump’s American Carnage

Made in the weeks following the attack on the Capitol, this January 2021 documentary from Michael Kirk and his team examines the road to January 6. The documentary investigates Trump’s siege on his enemies, the media and even the leaders of his own party, who for years ignored the warning signs of what was to come.

The Mueller Investigation

For two years, special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election dominated headlines. Drawing on interviews with U.S. officials, Trump advisers, legal experts and journalists, this 2019 documentary, an updated version of the 2018 documentary Trump’s Showdown, offers an inside look into the investigation that Trump deemed a “witch hunt,” and examines Trump’s battle against Mueller, the FBI and even his own attorney general.

Trump’s Takeover

In this April 2018 documentary, Michael Kirk and his team went inside President Trump’s high-stakes battle for control of the GOP, examining how Trump attacked fellow Republicans and used inflammatory rhetoric that rallied his base and further divided the country in his first year as president.

Trump’s Road to the White House

From January 2017, this documentary by Michael Kirk and his team examines how Donald Trump defied expectations to win the presidency in 2016. 

The Choice 2020: Trump vs. Biden

Ahead of the 2020 election, FRONTLINE’s critically acclaimed series The Choice offered interwoven investigative biographies of both major-party candidates. This documentary from Michael Kirk and his team examines President Trump’s approach to power and how he responded in moments of crisis.

President Trump

Drawn from The Choice 2016, this 2017 documentary from Michael Kirk and his team offers an examination of key moments that shaped Donald Trump. Interviews with advisors, business associates and biographers reveal how Trump transformed himself from real estate developer to reality TV star to president — and how he adopted and honed a legal strategy of counterpunching. 

These and hundreds of additional FRONTLINE documentaries are available to stream on our website, in the PBS Video App and on FRONTLINE’s YouTube channel.

 

 

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