Putting It On The Other Foot

SUPPOSE HILLARY CLINTON had been elected president, despite losing the popular vote by three million. Further suppose that she, as president, was being accused of sexual misconduct by nineteen people, that she referred to African nations as "shit hole countries", that she bragged that because of her fame and wealth she could hire any attorney she pleased, and, on top of all that, suppose that she was being investigated for possibly having accepted help from Russian operatives in winning the presidency. Suppose, in essence, that Hillary were in Trump's situation, and, for the sake of symmetry, that Trump were in her shoes, having lost the election, returned to private life. Would Trump supporters and America's conservative community be: A) proclaiming that the whole affair was nothing but a witch hunt, a vicious attempt to bring down the president? B) insisting that the investigation must proceed, that we must await the results, and that, until we have discerned all the facts, we simply cannot pass judgment? Or C) screaming, repeatedly: "lock her up"! We all know that the answer is choice "C". Imagine how president Hillary Clinton would be treated by conservatives if her behavior were identical to Trump's! We also know how conservatives in general, and Trump supporters in particular, have reacted to Trump's situation: by rationalizing, justifying, and by trying to convince us all that all negative treatment of Trump is nothing but a plot to destroy him, orchestrated by some imagined liberal elite, the mainstream media, or anyone else within distance. It is beyond the expectations of reason to pose that hypothetical to any Trump supporter, and to expect an honest, integrity based answer. And if, at the end of all the investigations, it emerges that Donald Trump has committed serious, criminal impeachable offenses, it will be most interesting to see how his supporters, especially the evangelical community, which is widely known, until recently, for its high moral standards, responds.