Slowly, Slowly…
Since last Thursday when the House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack had its first, introductory session and laid out their plan to prosecute their case against those who conspired to interrupt the peaceful transfer of power after the last presidential election. At the center of that conspiracy, according to the Committee, is none other than ex-President Donald J. Trump, who they believe they can prove both took decisive action and showed clear intent and is therefore guilty of sedition and contravention of the constitution. Every conversation I have had with people of like mind to myself who believe Trump is guilty as charged have shared the common element of a lack of conviction that the master of Teflon living will somehow once again go unpunished for his actions and intent. I have been at the extreme end of that spectrum, showing what I consider to be the essence of optimism that I consider to be one of my trademark characteristics. To some it will seem pessimistic, but I find great faith in our democracy in the thought that we as a country will not stand for such autocratic and divisive actions among its leadership. I have honestly believed for some time that Donald J. Trump will not be allowed to get away with his bad acts and that he will be criminally indicted and put on trial and ultimately convicted of what I will generally characterize as serious charges that will force the countries’ judicial system into the challenging task of setting a proper punishment for an ex-president who is something like a cult leader for some decreasing, but not inconsequential, portion of the American electorate.
This morning, the Committee hearings continue peeling the onion. They are doing what good prosecutors do, they are getting people of unimpeachable standing to give testimony, piece-by-piece, that Donald J. Trump knew that he had lost the election, knew that there was no meaningful evidence to suggest that any of the claims of voter fraud, knew that almost any credible member of his staff (legal and advisory, political and functional) felt that the Trump team had lost the election, and that over 60 legal actions were either summarily dismissed by courts (including courts adjudicated by Trump-appointed judges) or overturned on judgement. The orchestrators of the hearings have been sure to show footage of Trump team members, most significantly including Attorney General Bill Barr, until the post-election timeframe, one of the most loyal and respected Trump supporters and team members. Part of the onion peeling is not only about Trump choosing to ignore the advice of his sensible and legitimate advisors, but also about who might have influenced Trump’s thinking as to what he said about the election and what ideas he clung to for self-aggrandizing purposes with bravado, but no particular basis in fact.
One of the most damning pieces of evidence is that the most ardent pro-Trump advisor, Rudy Giuliani, who had been distinguishing himself as a political and legal buffoon (the Four Seasons Landscaping debacle and the hilarious Borat sexual encounter film clip) has been deemed by testimony of other members of the Trump campaign and advisory staff to have been intoxicated on election night and that he was one of the few who boldly suggested to Trump that he declare early victory as a way of willing that outcome into reality or at least setting the stage for Trump to claim fraud if the vote did not go his way. It was made clear in the testimony through video clips of statements from Trump himself prior to the election, that preparing the Trump base for the outrage of a “fraudulent” outcome was done with great tactical purpose. The fact that only an intoxicated buffoon and political hack of the ultimate order, like Rudy Giuliani, would suggest that the election results showing that Trump had lost were illegitimate. In a hockey game, one would call Giuliani the goon on the team, sent out to do the ridiculous and improper so that the real players could remain on task. The difference is that hockey team management usually does not listen to their goon on topics as critical as who won the game.
One of the more interesting twists in the fact unpacking process has been provided via the civil actions against those extreme inner-circle post-election advisors like Rudy Giuliani and Sydney Powell. Needless to say, faced with significant legal liability for defamation claims by people including the Dominion Voting Machine manufacturer, the only defense provided by defendants like Sydney Powell was that her comments about election fraud and malfeasance by people like Dominion were not comments that any reasonable person would accept as truthful facts. That is effectively saying that Sydney Powell, a close post-election Trump advisor had blatantly lied and that Donald J. Trump was either not being a “reasonable” person in his assessment of the election outcome or whether she was speaking truth or he was joining the lie. In the continuing narrative by Trump that the election was fraudulent and stolen, and his continued public statements to that effect indicate clearly that Trump is either not compos mentis or is a fraudster. Bill Barr has stated in sworn testimony that Trump had no interest in the facts. That is testimony that indicates that the Trump Attorney General, the highest legal authority in the land at the time, was not so much disconnected with reality as he was consciously avoiding reality. That, my friends, is a clear indicator of criminal intent.
The Select Committee is systematically striping the shreds of clothing from the emperor and in so doing is teeing up Trump for several importance realities. To begin with, while the editorials since the first Committee hearing have spent a great deal of time questioning whether this investigation will ever really land on Trump’s personal doorstep and lead to criminal indictment, there is now a groundswell of commentary that more and more Republicans are distancing themselves from Trump and the Big Lie (given Trump’s petulance on the issue and his insistence that everyone either side with him on the Big Lie or be deemed an anti-Trumper) and a fracturing of the Republican Red Wall is becoming more and more obvious.
Many of us believed that there would come a day when the dogs would turn on Trump as dogs do. That moment usually comes when the protagonist weakens to the point where the dogs do not feel they can be harmed by the protagonist. Many, including Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy, thought that moment would come after January 6th and the disapproval of that action was so high. Surprisingly, that didn’t happen as Trump’s base stood by him. Then, after the installation of Biden as President, people again figured that Trump would fade and become irrelevant, and then that didn’t happen. But the passage of time has chipped away at the Trump power base as more and more Republicans find themselves thinking that Trump is hurting rather than helping their cause. The order with which politicians got onboard with Trump in 2016 is the inverse of the order with which they are dismounting the Trump bandwagon, only much more slowly than anyone imagined. The extreme nature of the feelings that drive Trump’s base are what gives rise to this slow-play.
Few thought these Select Committee hearings would change opinions and as I sit here in the middle of the second hearing with several more yet to come, it seems clear to me that those thoughts were misguided. These hearings are effectively driving the stake into Trump’s political heart. Like all true forces of evil, it takes a lot to put Trump down, but make no mistake, he is going down. Slowly, slowly, the Select Committee is surgically tapping the stake and it is inching its way through this modern day heart of darkness.