Are we missing being fed a slam dunk here?
The GOP, led by Trump (followed by Rubio, Scott, DeSantis, hosts of others) are crying foul about the FBI moving on Trump because it’s “obviously political” and hey, he could be a 2024 candidate that makes him “hands off,” right? I even hear interviews on CNN that worry about crossing this line. What!?!?!?
Didn’t the GOP obliterate this very line starting in 2016?
Shouldn’t we be reminding the country how all during the 2016 campaign Trump openly encouraged law enforcement to get on Hillary’s case, and how it was all fine that the Comey letter emerged a mere two weeks before the election (not 3-4 months before a mid term where Trump isn’t even running!) ? And even then, was Trump respectful and did he decline to directly comment (as Biden is now staying mum) ? Nope. He politicized the hell out of it and used it to swing the election. I didn’t hear these same GOP naysayers have any problem with it then.
And it didn’t stop there. As we all know the examples of politicizing law enforcement only abounded during the four years of his presidency. Quickly firing Comey because it was clear Comey wasn’t going to be his all-the-time personal lackey. Continuing to opening nag the DOJ/FBI to investigate Obama, Hillary and Biden. And during the campaign itself, braying that both Obama and Biden should be indicted. During the George Floyd protests, leading his AG Barr around on a leash? And finally right after the election : openly ordering his DOJ to investigate and then strongly suggest they drum up some kind of case.
So my question is: why aren’t we making big HAY out of this obvious hypocrisy? We’ve got videos and tweets and all kinds of easy evidence to hang them with. We can even be classy about it: no, Joe is not directing the FBI or Merrick Garland -- but by the way, Trump certainly was and you hypocrites loved it.
I know the hard core MAGA crowd can’t be moved; their kool-aid is too strong- but there are always a crucial number in the middle ground for whom it pays to keep to keep the record straight. It really feels to me like we are letting a slow easy lob go by. Building perception is about proper marketing and repeated messages — so why stay mum?