by Shelton Bumgarner
@bumgarls
Impeachment is a political, not criminal, process. As such Republicans are growing increasingly desperate to change the media narrative so we’re not talking about Trump’s numerous impeach-and-convict worthy crimes, but the whistleblower on a personal level.
Republicans — especially Lindsey Graham — are itching to do to the whistleblower what they feel was done to Kavanaugh at his confirmation hearings — it wasn’t policy that almost sank him, it was his personal life. So, Republicans want to out the whistleblower so they can first having public hearings where they scream at him for 11 hours but also so they can “kavanaugh”him in the eyes of the public.
Now, what’s bonkers about all of this is it really plays into the Republican base-only strategy. While about 35% of the electorate is fully prepared to dismiss the now-confirmed accusations on the part of the whistleblower because he was apparently Joe Biden’s pointman on Ukraine, the rest of the electorate can process this as rational human beings. Just because someone who you think doesn’t like you points out you did a crime, doesn’t mean you don’t have to face any consequences in the eyes of the law.
But, I suppose, Republicans feel as long as they can discredit the whistleblower strictly on his possible political motivations for 35% of the electorate, Trump survives in the Senate and they continue to rob the treasury, get young hack MAGA judges and drink a flood of liberal tears.
While on the face of this, this is a potentially winning strategy, there are some known unknowns that might — just might — give Republicans pause of thought before they go all-in on this strategy. Trump could get so worked up that he has a throwaway tweet along the lines of, “Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?” Some fucking fuckwit MAGA person murders the whistleblower with an AR-15 and the Republicans have to go on TV to spin THAT. (Which, of course, they will do.)
But that’s just a risk. I guess if you’re a fucking racist, misogynistic, criminal fascist organization like the modern Republican Party, as long as the Dear Leader is still in power at the end of the day, the rest is a lulz.
