The Politics of Stupid

As a partisan Democrat, I admit I relish the Republicans’ political stupidity that is on full display. They used to be smarter and more strategic. Not anymore.

When Speaker (in title only) Kevin McCarthy handed over 40,000 hours of footage from the deadly, violent and unpatriotic insurrection of January 6, 2021, to perennial liar and senior conspiracy theorist Tucker Carlson of Fox “News,” they thrust the horrific event right back into the spotlight. That’s not a winner for Republicans as their leader and grand patriarch of the party Donald Trump sparked the attempted coup.

Polls have indicated the public’s anger at the attempted insurrection of January 6 was on the wane despite the excellent work of the bipartisan House Select Committee investigating January 6. The magnitude of the event had been receding in the rear-view mirror as the days and months went on.

But leave it to McCarthy who only received the title of Speaker when he sold his soul (and probably the country’s) to the far-right fringe of the Republican caucus in Congress—the majority of which denied the valid election of Joe Biden—to resurrect this day of infamy. Tucker exacerbated the problem for Republicans by cherry-picking the images to suit a bizarre and totally unbelievable narrative that the rioters were, in fact, peaceful, patriotic sightseers. Dumb move.

Here’s the rub: just about everybody had seen the events in real time and in subsequent news reports, Trump’s second impeachment and the presentation and report by the House Select Committee. People realize, except for those misguided MAGAs, that Carlson is a complete loon, and he is insulting the intelligence of Americans with his production of alternative facts. Clearly, he has made Republicans look foolish because not many of them publicly denounced this gambit so it will stick to the party like Velcro.

If that wasn’t enough, House Republicans are beginning to launch multiple probes into January 6, including examining the Select Committee’s actions from the last Congress, the security failures from that day and potentially even the treatment of January 6 defendants. 

All these efforts will keep January 6 front and center, a situation that is causing ugly divisions within the party and the donor class. It’s an unforced error as revenge has trumped common political sense, and I am delighted they are keeping the flame alive. Democrats must continue to equate Republicans to January 6.

The antics of McCarthy and Carlson will extend the January 6 shelf life.  But even after the Carlson fictional production eventually fades as a news story, January 6 may burst back to the spotlight as potential indictments of a former president may land.

Tourists, my ass!

Long on Delusion, Short on Grandeur

The scales of justice have been recently tipping against former president Donald Trump. A civil suit by New York State Attorney General Letitia James to the tune of $250 million against his business practices is the latest legal hurdle Trump, his family and business must deal with. Even worse, his financial reputation and brand are on the line, which to Trump is more of a threat than any criminal probe.

Those potential criminal actions include investigations of his handling of classified information, his efforts to overturn his election loss in 2020 (cases in D.C. and Fulton County, Ga.), and his role in the insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021.  For good measure there will be the final scheduled hearing from the next January 6 Select Committee, which I think will be a doozey that the evidence presented may eventualy lead to a criminal referral.

All of these investigations and lawsuits will move slowly as attempts to stonewall and delay will be the primary legal strategy on the part of Trump and his fluid legal team. While full accountability and justice may not take place for several years, if at all—a pace which is guaranteed to frustrate the anti-Trump crowd—the investigations will hover over Trump, his Republican congressional sycophants and his cultists like a gray, damp fog for the foreseeable future.

What has been predictable is that Trump, his lawyers and his supporters believe that these investigations and lawsuits are politically motivated witch hunts orchestrated by Democrats that are based on fear of losing the presidential election of 2024 to the most powerful Republican.

That’s total nonsense. Democrats didn’t incite the insurrection on January 6, nor did they try to use fake electors to change the outcomes in states in 2020.  Nor did any Democrat ask a state official to "find" additional votes. And no Democrat removed classified documents and left them around unsecured at a country club, whose purpose is open to speculation. Trump’s actions triggered the investigations, not Democrats.

Courtesy of Mediastouch (Instagram)

Keep in mind that Trump has yet to declare his candidacy. I personally believe he ultimately will not run, but he will try to stay in the game to lure more bucks from his gullible base. You know, legal fees can be uber-expensive; someone has to pay them, and it won’t be Trump. Count on it.

To be sure, Trump lost in 2020 and there is little reason to expect him to garner more votes the next time. Yes, inflation may still be high and wrongly blamed on Biden, but Trump and the GOP have yet to offer a specific plan to address it other than bromides and fantasies.

The baggage from the ongoing criminal and civil probes and litigation will haunt the former guy and make for an abundance of fodder for his opponent to exploit. The vengeful actions of House Republicans, should they win back the House, will nauseate a large swath of the population and doom any Republican presidential candidate. Trump and the investigations even if not yet brought to a resolution will cost him with independent voters and suburban women with whom he had trouble winning over in 2020.

To say these investigations were launched strictly to prevent Trump from winning in ’24 is delusional and political spin. He will not be formidable if he runs, and he will be extremely lucky if he is not indicted by that point.

The Case for Prosecution

As the January 6 Select Committee continues to unveil through witnesses and documents more evidence that former President Donald Trump may have committed punishable crimes, the question becomes not will he be prosecuted but should he.

To be sure, there is a cornucopia of possible crimes committed by Trump from inciting a riot, to seditious conspiracy to witness tampering and a whole bunch in between. The panel has been so effective in bringing these indiscretions and possible crimes to the surface that three in five Americans believe Trump should be prosecuted. And that is before Cassidy Hutchinson’s explosive testimony given to the Select Committee and to the viewing public on June 28.

Since I am not a lawyer, I will gladly yield the floor to the legal experts who can debate whether Trump has committed crimes that could lead to an indictment. They can argue whether or not the evidence is sufficient to prove a federal case beyond a reasonable doubt. But if the evidence exists and is compelling enough to take it to a grand jury, then yes, the Department of Justice should proceed and prosecute even though a conviction would be improbable.

In advocating against a potential prosecution of Trump, several conservative columnists have summoned up President Gerald Ford’s pardoning of disgraced Richard Nixon prior to a likely indictment as a means to heal the county. He took this action in an effort to put the Watergate episode behind us, and as a result, he damaged himself politically.

Though Nixon’s lying to cover up a botched burglary of Democratic headquarters at the Watergate was and remains a national stain, it does not even come close to the severity of conspiring to execute a coup in an attempt to overturn a lawful election. Moreover, the country was not nearly as divided it is today making it easier to heal.

Following Trump’s “fight like hell” command at his infamous rally at the Ellipse, he knowingly dispatched armed insurrectionists to the People’s House. Seven people lost their lives directly or indirectly with hundreds of police officers injured, many seriously on that fateful day. Millions of dollars of property damage resulted, and the Capitol was so violated and defaced, the riot seen all over the globe became a national embarrassment.

The healing concept offered by opponents of prosecuting Trump is intriguing, but it is one-sided. Prominent Republicans vowed to go on a revenge tour should they reclaim both chambers of Congress regardless of whether or not Trump is indicted.

They have already tipped their hand when senators Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Lindsey Graham—all of whom were personally humiliated by Trump during the 2016 primaries and have become pathetic Trump sycophants—support impeachment proceedings concerning President Biden.  House Republicans promise endless investigations, and, of course, private citizen Hunter Biden, the boogeyman of the MAGA crowd, will be front and center.  Never mind their likely push to roll back hard-fought rights at the federal and state levels that may include dismantling popular entitlement programs will be on the agenda. That’s not healing.

Declining to prosecute Trump for provable crimes will not heal the country, especially if the blood-thirsty vengeful Republicans are in charge. In fact, not punishing someone who was and continues to be a stake through the heart of our democracy and the rule of law will be a tragic mistake and something our nation will not recover from for many years. Without setting an example, this blot on our history could repeat itself.

If the anti-prosecution folks are so bent on healing the country, they should have persuaded Trump to concede the election in the first place and allow a peaceful transition of power—the hallmark of our democracy.  And they should have voted to certify the election results.

What good is healing if we do not have accountability, a democracy or rule of law?