Republicans: It’s On You Now

If you want to support Trump because you think you are going to get some financial gain out of having him in office, that's your right. If you sincerely think that this country should limit overall immigration, that's also your right, although I suspect that you will be disappointed by what Trump actually does. If you think that trying to push the federal courts in a reactionary direction is a worthy goal, that's your privilege. 

But don't try to pretend that there's anything defensible about Trump's sense of duty to the country as a whole, or about his leadership disabilities. More than anything else, please stop trying to avoid the fact that Trump is the worst liar ever to hold the office of president. Nobody can expect to be able to believe what he says. By now, you ought to know that, so please stop trying to pretend. 

If you need the talking points, just take a look at this piece by Eric Boehlert by way of Daily Kos. 

And whatever else you do, please stop pretending that there is anything great about America that Trump can or will accomplish. 

These thoughts came to mind while I was listening to the radio while driving on the freeway the other evening. That's why I didn't have the time or ability to jot down notes about what I was hearing. But through the miracle of internet search engines, you can hear it for yourself or just read the transcript. It is shocking actually. The context was an NPR political discussion that managed to get congressman Tom McClintock to share his thoughts about the Mueller report. 

You would have thought that we were listening to Trump himself. Paraphrased lightly, his remarks add up to a confident assertion that Trump and his presidential campaign have been exonerated by the Mueller report. When the reporter asked about the list of instances in which White House staffers had refused to do illegal or unethical things for the president, the response was to quote right wing comedian Greg Gutfeld that "ten times nothing is still nothing." Oh, and we also got to hear one more time about Hillary Clinton's emails. This is supposed to excuse Trump's behavior in office? 

So, a clear pattern of conduct that would be called obstruction of justice against any person not sitting in the presidential chair was laughed off. 

During the Watergate era, there were Republicans who were forced by their own consciences and intellectual integrity to speak the truth. There are a few out there even now, but the idea that Republican senators would tell the president that it's time to go -- that doesn't appear to be in the works. 

Perhaps the most striking example of the overall approach is Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who was caught with her hand in the cookie jar right up to the shoulder. The Mueller report makes clear that she lied to the press, and did so repeatedly, on the claim that FBI agents had expressed their concern over the leadership of James Comey. When put in a position where lying had actual, real-world consequences, she 'fessed up that it hadn't happened. And now, caught in the headlights, she is attributing her lie to "a slip of the tongue." I wish I were clever enough to come up with a proper pun on her phraseology, but I'm stuck with the blunt, inescapable fact that Sanders lies the way other people breathe. And that last line isn't one of my own, but an old comment originally made about Donald Trump himself. 

So, to my Republican friends, colleagues, and political opponents, I ask: How much longer will you make fools of yourselves by pretending (at least in public) that there is anything defensible about Donald Trump's character? 

You could argue that Trump's domestic policies are policies you support, even though the man is a proven liar and has acted in ways that further the goals of Vladimir Putin, contrary to American interests. 

If you are capable of that level of honesty, then we can talk.

(Bob Gelfand writes on science, culture, and politics for CityWatch. He can be reached at [email protected])

-cw