The Paradox of Republican Pain
Three charts explain why Republicans will defend Trump even while secretly hoping he gets indicted and then convicted.
Tomorrow night is likely to be a very lively TNB livestream. Mark it on your calendar now. I’ll be joined by Amanda Carpenter and Bill Kristol to talk about [gestures broadly] all of this.
Thursday, March 22, at 8pm in the East. Only for members of Bulwark+.
1. Secret Desires
Roughly speaking, there are six things an elected Republican could say about an indictment of Donald Trump:
Trump’s alleged actions are deeply concerning.
Let the legal process play out; I have faith in our justice system.
No comment.
Yes, Trump’s alleged actions are concerning; but because of various externalities, the wiser course of action would have been to not indict.
Democrats and this Soros-backed prosecutor are out of control. We will fight this to the bitter end.
Donald Trump is innocent of all charges; this is a miscarriage of justice.
This is not science, but my sense is that the distribution of these positions among elite Republicans will look basically like this:1