The confluence of the pardons of some of the most violent worse of the worse, with full immunity for the President, opens us up to an unleashing of American Brownshirts. Too dark?
So scary! Maybe a column on things we can do like Right Rev Marianne Budde? I was cheering her on but it seems she is getting a flurry of death threats 😰
Not much we can do that will affect Trump's behavior. Indeed, Budde comments may be soothing to the opposition but reinforce Trump and his base to "show these snowflakes" how to be tough. Moreover, the intimidation is part of the plan. Anticipatory obedience is already at work (see Bezos, Jeff; Ernst, Joni, etc.) Hopefully, by 2026 and then 2028, enough voters will realize that Trumpism wasn't worth the hope of getting eggs for $1 less.
Hello Ben. Vance was not unequivocal in his comment regarding pardons. As he pointed out in his interview with M Brennan, the original comment included these equivocating words. "Of course, there are gray areas." The following were among the examples of of what he said they found to be factors favoring the pardons.
- DOJ denied constitutional protections in the prosecutions
- Double standards in how sentences were applied to the J6 protestors
- incredibly unfair process and denial of constitutional rights
I think we have a Pardon Pancake. On one side egregious behavior by the pardoned. On the other egregious behavior against the pardoned. That's a tough pancake to swallow no matter which side we flip up.
Gordon: Thanks for the comment. Vance did, indeed, append "gray areas" at the end of this thought. Unfortunately he was even wrong about that, as Trump apparently saw only black and white. To have explored the "gray" would have required actually looking at each case.
The other factors favoring pardons you cite seem thin gruel, particularly for those who had the assault charges, which were so well documented by video. Of all the defendants, some had jury trials, all had appeal rights, and some, who were charged only with obstruction, did indeed have those charges (and their convictions) reversed. The only Constitutional argument boiled down to free speech. But you can't yell fire in a crowded movie theater. There are recognized limits.
My dream scenario for justifying pardons would have been for Trump to admit he was wrong about the 2020 election being stolen and accept responsibility for encouraging his minions to assemble and march to the Capitol. "I sent you there under false pretenses, and you have suffered in your support of me. My bad. I'm sorry." Hence, the pardons help heal. That might have been a worthwhile exchange.
I maintain that the egregious behavior was on Trump's part. I have some sympathy for the nonviolent prisoners who thought they were doing the right thing, but the violence of the smaller number could never be excused.
Again, I always appreciate the discourse with Pancake readers.
This is a coup, Trump's coup: ongoing, alive, active. We're in a cold civil war. Trump will try to take the US military, but for now, he has the ProudBoyz, standing back & standing by.
So scary! Maybe a column on things we can do like Right Rev Marianne Budde? I was cheering her on but it seems she is getting a flurry of death threats 😰
Not much we can do that will affect Trump's behavior. Indeed, Budde comments may be soothing to the opposition but reinforce Trump and his base to "show these snowflakes" how to be tough. Moreover, the intimidation is part of the plan. Anticipatory obedience is already at work (see Bezos, Jeff; Ernst, Joni, etc.) Hopefully, by 2026 and then 2028, enough voters will realize that Trumpism wasn't worth the hope of getting eggs for $1 less.
Sadly, I don't think you're missing anything positive. It's bleak. See, for example, two recent articles on Hitler's rise to power relative to the issues in your post: https://www.nybooks.com/contributors/christopher-r-browning/ ; and https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/01/hitler-germany-constitution-authoritarianism/681233/.
:-(
Hello Ben. Vance was not unequivocal in his comment regarding pardons. As he pointed out in his interview with M Brennan, the original comment included these equivocating words. "Of course, there are gray areas." The following were among the examples of of what he said they found to be factors favoring the pardons.
- DOJ denied constitutional protections in the prosecutions
- Double standards in how sentences were applied to the J6 protestors
- incredibly unfair process and denial of constitutional rights
I think we have a Pardon Pancake. On one side egregious behavior by the pardoned. On the other egregious behavior against the pardoned. That's a tough pancake to swallow no matter which side we flip up.
Gordon: Thanks for the comment. Vance did, indeed, append "gray areas" at the end of this thought. Unfortunately he was even wrong about that, as Trump apparently saw only black and white. To have explored the "gray" would have required actually looking at each case.
The other factors favoring pardons you cite seem thin gruel, particularly for those who had the assault charges, which were so well documented by video. Of all the defendants, some had jury trials, all had appeal rights, and some, who were charged only with obstruction, did indeed have those charges (and their convictions) reversed. The only Constitutional argument boiled down to free speech. But you can't yell fire in a crowded movie theater. There are recognized limits.
My dream scenario for justifying pardons would have been for Trump to admit he was wrong about the 2020 election being stolen and accept responsibility for encouraging his minions to assemble and march to the Capitol. "I sent you there under false pretenses, and you have suffered in your support of me. My bad. I'm sorry." Hence, the pardons help heal. That might have been a worthwhile exchange.
I maintain that the egregious behavior was on Trump's part. I have some sympathy for the nonviolent prisoners who thought they were doing the right thing, but the violence of the smaller number could never be excused.
Again, I always appreciate the discourse with Pancake readers.
This is a coup, Trump's coup: ongoing, alive, active. We're in a cold civil war. Trump will try to take the US military, but for now, he has the ProudBoyz, standing back & standing by.
Cold: for now.