The Paradox of Republican Pain
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