The Essence of Trumpism Is the Avoidance of Consequences

[Nevilledog]

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Tweet text:

Peter Strzok
@petestrzok
"It’s all about gaslighting and cos-play and never admitting a mistake and never saying sorry. Which combines to give permission to people who never want to take responsibility for their actions."

See, e.g., the post-arrest howls of Peter Navarro

thetriad.thebulwark.com
The Essence of Trumpism Is the Avoidance of Consequences
The through-line for January 6.
10:39 AM · Jun 10, 2022

https://thetriad.thebulwark.com/p/the-essence-of-trumpism-is-the-avoidance?s=r

1. Consequences

I wrote something last night and then deleted it, because it sounded bloodthirsty when I meant it sincerely: Why didn’t the Capitol Police use deadly force against the insurrectionists?

Don’t get me wrong: I’m glad the police didn’t start shooting. Many, many people would have died. The police managed to protect the lives of those who worked in the Capitol without firing on the aggressors, with the exception of a single round discharged from within the House Chamber that killed Ashli Babbitt as she attempted to breach the door.

That’s extraordinary police work. But also, it is maybe not the norm?

If you or I assaulted a random cop, we might reasonably expect to be shot. Yet the people who stormed the Capitol did all of that and much worse—and were treated instead with forbearance and professionalism. The Capitol Police seemed to understand the gravity of the moment, they understood the consequences of escalation even when their personal safety was under threat. The very system that the Trumpists were trying to undermine and overthrow, saved these people from experiencing the same immediate consequences that most people would experience in an attack against the police.

And that’s a theme running through Trumpism. It’s all about gaslighting and cos-play and never admitting a mistake and never saying sorry. Which combines to give permission to people who never want to take responsibility for their actions.

There was a clip played during the hearing of two very fine people inside the Capitol in which one explained that he was willing and eager to “lay down his life” for Donald Trump. (See the clip at 9:54 in the video below.)

*snip*

[Walleye]

1. As the officer said, they were not trained in combat.

They were trained for detaining small groups breaking up small fights, providing security. I think they showed a lot of intelligence not throwing a bunch of shots around in an enclosed area with a crowd like that. It was probably just instinct. I understand perfectly well how you feel though. They probably all questioned to themselves their actions that day, later on. The result possibly being suicides.

[Blue Owl]

2. K&R -- nailed it!

From one grift to the next with no time to reflect...

[msfiddlestix]

3. k&r