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John H Davis's avatar

So we should feed the beast, as it were, and let Trump continue to be unaccountable? That’s utterly unacceptable in what is ostensibly a nation of laws. Your argument boils down to a more polished version of, “Just do what they say, and maybe no one gets hurt.” After all, who is served by letting Trump skate? Certainly not the American people. And I’d encourage you to stay conscious of a key relevant fact: Having announced news of the search, Trump is solely responsible for the ensuing theatrics, as are the cynical and sociopathic politicians and commentators who are rushing to defend him without knowing what’s even happening. Because ultimately none of them really cares whether Trump is a criminal.

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Michelle Togut's avatar

You're not wrong in your analysis of the issue but, even realizing that the consequences of prosecuting Trump are likely to include rightwing political violence, the consequences of allowing the former president to flout the rule of law are equally horrendous. If Trump committed illegal acts (and he very likely did) allowing him to skate reinforces the already prevalent view that the rule of law applies only to the poor and the stupid. Prosecuting Trump will exacerbate pre-existing political fault lines, but those lines existed pre-Trump encouraged by Fox News grievance culture on the right and woke-ism on the left. The middle ground, like the middle class, has been hollowed out. We're left with opposing political camps who see each other not as rivals with differing views who share a love of country, but as mortal enemies. Whether the DOJ ultimately prosecuted Trump or not, those divisions won't be healed anytime soon.

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