In an unbylined editorial, the conservative Washington Examiner stated it’s through with Trump following Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ aide Cassidy Hutchinson’s explosive testimony before the House Jan. 6 committee on Tuesday. (To be fair, I don’t regularly read The Washington Examiner, so I’ve no idea if they’d already 86’d him in the wake of any of his numerous past scandals. But they’re definitely off the bandwagon now.)
Noting that Hutchinson established her credibility—not to mention her conservative bona fides—by working in the highest echelons of Republican politics, the paper argues that Trump deserves a hearty heave-ho in light of the hearing’s gobsmacking revelations.
What Hutchinson relayed was disturbing. She gave believable accounts of White House awareness that the planned Jan. 6 rally could turn violent. She repeated testimony that Trump not only knew that then-Vice President Mike Pence’s life had been credibly threatened that day but also that he was somewhere between uncaring and actually approving of Pence’s danger. …
Also distressing to hear were Hutchinson’s accounts of Trump’s repeated fits of rage, including dining table contents overturned and ketchup dishes thrown violently across the room. The worst by far, though, was that people immediately returning from being with Trump in the presidential vehicle told of the president trying to grab the wheel of the car to force it to be driven to the Capitol and then violently reaching for the neck of Secret Service agent Bobby Engel, who headed the president’s protective detail.
Yeah, the neck-lunge story was weird, but are we really supposed to be shocked by it? If I’m surprised by anything, it’s that Trump didn’t slice one Secret Service agent open like a tauntaun, toss his carcass over his shoulders like an opera cape, and then ride the other agent like a horsey to the nearest Arby’s.
Hutchinson’s testimony confirmed a damning portrayal of Trump as unstable, unmoored, and absolutely heedless of his sworn duty to effectuate a peaceful transition of presidential power. Considering the entirety of her testimony, it is unsurprising that Hutchinson said she heard serious discussions of Cabinet members invoking the 25th Amendment that would have at least temporarily evicted Trump from office.
Gee, ya think? All I can say is … we told you. Oh, did we ever.
The editorial ends with a simple statement—and an even simpler ask: “Trump is a disgrace. Republicans have far better options to lead the party in 2024. No one should think otherwise, much less support him, ever again.”
Again, we told you this years ago. It was as plain as the wattle on Trump’s neck. I mean, the guy canceled his gravely ill nephew’s health insurance out of spite. A dude who’d do something that shitty is capable of almost anything.
But, whatever. Welcome to the reality-based community, Washington Examiner. Maybe send your pals over at Fox News an invitation to the party. We need all the MAGA refugees we can get.
Check out Aldous J. Pennyfarthing’s four-volume Trump-trashing compendium, including the finale, Goodbye, Asshat: 101 Farewell Letters to Donald Trump, at this link. Or, if you prefer a test drive, you can download the epilogue to Goodbye, Asshat for the low, low price of FREE.
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Author: Aldous J Pennyfarthing
