President Trump is destroying the GOP by openly displaying that party’s willingness to promote plutocratic interests by authoritarian and demagogic means.
The pardoning of “Sheriff Joe” signals Trump’s willingness to pardon whomever he views as having promoted his own interests. Trump and other contemporary authoritarians have learned an important lesson. These authoritarians — in Turkey, Hungary and elsewhere — unlike the authoritarians of the mid-20th century, do not waste resources directly harming the innocent.
It is far more cost-effective to manipulate political and judicial systems so that the actions of morally reprehensible “friends” go unpunished and that they are amply rewarded for their past support.
Isn’t such manipulation also evident in the means whereby Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell promote the Republican Party’s agenda?
Andrew G. Bjelland Sr., Ph.D.
Salt Lake City