David Harsanyi of the Federalist explains why he believes “there is no political tribe that deserves your loyalty.”
If you ever wanted to understand the corrosive power of tribal loyalty, there are two new articles for you to read. The first is a Daily Beast article exploring the reinvention of Maxine Waters, a congresswoman “once dubbed the ‘most corrupt’” in Washington. The second is a column titled “Why Conservatives Still Attack Trump,” in which radio host Dennis Prager attempts to figure out why so many Republicans refuse to walk lockstep with Donald Trump.
Let’s start with Waters, who is, of course, still corrupt — a dictator-loving conspiracy-theorist who’s abused her office for decades. She is now the recipient of standing ovations for her sharp attacks on Trump. The esteem Waters receives not only exposes the hypocrisy of many who claim to resist Trump on constitutional and ethical grounds, but warns against aligning yourself with people who don’t respect the norms they claim to protect. …
… If the survival of the United States hinges on the competence of the Trump administration, then the civil war is lost, I’m afraid. If, however, the survival of the United States hinges on a set of ideals and laws — which is what I have always understood Prager’s position to be — then there is no obligation to follow any man. Certainly not a man with malleable principles. And I’m sure if Trump were sending pallets of cash to Iran, even if his tax plan were better than Ronald Reagan’s, Prager wouldn’t be insisting on this level of support for Trump.
Prager circumvents this problem by claiming that the president has acted in a wholly conservative manner. Yet his recklessness and temperament certainly aren’t conservative, nor are many of his ideas. But setting that aside for a moment, if the case against President Obama was predicated not only on his policies but the way he abused the mechanisms of power, then surely Trump deserves criticism, as well.
