Unintended Consequences
Donald Rumsfeld is dead. That’s the major news item of the day. That is until the indictments come down on the Trump organization. Oddly enough, those two stories are related. Oddly enough, Rumsfeld’s death is an uneasy reminder that I was wrong. I know. Everyone is shocked.
One of the things I was taught growing up was that almost everyone in our politics was operating from an understanding that everyone in our politics wanted what was best for America. So, even poor decisions were done with the best interest of America in mind. Occasionally, the lines of legality get blurred or outright erased. Even then, it is done with the best interest of America in mind.
When that happens you are given a choice. You can accept that as a part of politics. You can use it to defeat your opponent, defeat them, and then move on. You can also use political capital to punish them for their crimes. However, if you go with the second option you run the very real risk that the court system becomes a weapon in politics. It’s not an easy decision.
I grew up believing that the pardon of Nixon was on balance a good thing. I grew up believing that moving on from Iran-Contra was a good thing. I then came to believe that moving on from the possible crimes of the second Bush administration was a good thing. I’m a big believer in history and I figured history would treat them harshly enough. I figured people would remember. I figured a lot of things.
I was wrong. The Bush administration isn’t remembered as crooks. History has taught us something else entirely. The Nixon administration did what it did because administrations before had literally gotten away with murder. The Reagan administration did more because Nixon went unpunished. The Bush administration did more because the Reagan administration went unpunished.
Now, we get to the point where the people in power were no longer in it for the best interests of the United States. They were in it for themselves. Suddenly, Bush didn’t look so bad. Suddenly, Rumsfeld doesn’t look so bad. You could even catch the occasional progressive longing for the dark days of the Bush administration before Biden took over. At least you had a patriotic American possibly breaking the law to achieve his view of American interests. It sure beat a narcissistic jackass out to line his own pockets.
Now, I understand the lay of the land. There are two distinct historical trends at work here. First, Republicans tend to be corrupt. At least the ones in the White House tend to be that way. Secondly, when you don’t punish bad behavior it gets worse. Basic parenting should have taught me that, but I thought politicizing justice was wrong. It’s still distasteful, but it’s necessary. The humanization of Donald Rumsfeld should teach us that much.
Rumsfield is dead and Bill Cosby got a Get Out of Jail card … which damned bastard is worse?
1Cosby … 60 women can’t ALL be wrong!!!
Nailed it. Nixon was not punished. Reagan administration was not punished-need to move forward. If that administration had been jailed and shamed, Bush administration would have had fewer cabinet members. As it was they were allowed try to demolish and reconstruct a nation under graft, no timelines and supply side economics. It did not work. They were not reviled for the lies to start the war and legalized long term internment and torture. Public acceptance was buttressed by the culture enabled by the right wing noise machine. Now we have to deal with. Moving forward without punishment for the past four years will continue the cycle.
2I’m in the opposite category from you, Nick. I thought even at the time that the criminals in the Nixon, Reagan, and Bush admins should have been fully prosecuted and exposed for their crimes. With Nixon I suspect many other Americans agreed, and that was why Ford was a one-term wonder.
C-span has their historians’ ranking of presidents out: https://www.c-span.org/presidentsurvey2021/?page=overall
The first thing I did was scroll to the bottom to see where T**** was. Yup, you have to go back 150 years to find someone lower than him. And that was the only other president who refused to attend his successor’s inauguration.
3“First, Republicans tend to be corrupt. At least the ones in the White House tend to be that way.”
Second, the ones in the Senate tend to be that way.
Third, the ones in the House tend to be that way.
Fourth, the ones in the governorships tend to be that way.
Fifth, the ones in the state legislatures tend to be that way.
Check your county. Check your city. How far down does the corruption go?
Yes, Democrats aren’t perfect by any means. But, as a group, they don’t hold a candle to Republicans.
4Prime salient point, sir: “Secondly, when you don’t punish bad behavior it gets worse.” The corrupt need to feel the weight of a dump truck on them through the entire process of indictment, conviction and the years of relentless incarceration.
Hit them fast, hard, and accurately to remove any cracks in the case
5@The Surly Professor #3
I dunno. Reagan is high on that list. Just behind JFK and just in front of Obama.
IMHO, he started this race to the bottom. There is nothing whatsoever admirable about him. At. All. I’d have him tied with 45 for last place.
6you have stated what i now believe, starting with pardons and ending with knowing it was wrong. Breaking the law has always had consequences for the poor, now it’s time for everyone to pay for their crimes.
7Here ya go Kev… “I’ve had enough of her.”
“The floor recognizes Representative. Cheney to cross – examine Congressman McCarthy.”
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8OT Pelosi Names Liz Cheney To Jan. 6 Committee, Along With Seven Democrats Jul 1, 2021
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uUUEGfTIck
The Old Pretender is the acme of the GOP failure to have any self restraint or to believe in time honored principles. He gave all of them permission to do what a long line of them have wanted to do: rule this country as an oligarchy. Alexander Hamilton was a royalist (he just didn’t want George III). Today, they are saying, more or less, that they want a king. If they did read their Bibles, they’d know how that turned out for Israel!
9RE Rumsfeld: “They say never say nothin’ bad ’bout the dead. ‘He dead. Good.'” — Moms Mabley
Also, George Packer has a review of Rumsfeld in The Atlantic:
“Rumsfeld was the worst secretary of defense in American history. Being newly dead shouldn’t spare him this distinction.”
He “never expressed a quiver of regret” for his many totally wrong policies.
https://t.co/crH6OcB9hG
10Malarkey@6: hey, I did say I zoomed down to the bottom of the list. You’re right about Reagan. He also showed it was possible to have a genial, smiling Alzheimer’s victim as a front to allow all kinds of corruption and evil to flourish in the Executive branch.
Years later Ben Bradlee (old Washington Post editor) said that all of the elite media knew Reagan was doddering between senile dementia and Alzheimer’s in his first term. But they had dumped one president (Nixon) and thought it would be too much to have their reporting dump another one so soon. That cowardice enabled a whole string of Republican nasties to infest the White House without restraint.
I also object to Woodrow Wilson’s place on the list, but that’s small potatoes compared to Bush II and T****.
11Breaking: Trump’s Entire Company Indicted
Within moments of the indictment coming down, MSNBC’s Chief Legal Correspondent Ari Melber reports on highlights from the latest court proceedings in the Trump Organization criminal probe. Video:
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=mZymbOBWOrE&list=PLDIVi-vBsOEy-g6NYL8UomwTwpOCuQSvQ&index=4
I just got back from a trip to northwest Arkansas, a physically beautiful but somewhat weird place. As we were leaving a couple of days after Rumsfeld died, we stopped to fill up the car, and the gas station had a flag at half staff. My wife wondered why, and I figured probably because of old Rummy.
Here’s an interesting take on how he got to that point. I think it also speaks to why right wingers revere bullies so much. They like to call themselves alpha males and others betas, and lately I’ve seen them refer to themselves as apex predators, just the things we desire in our politicians.
Anyway, here’s Donald Rumsfeld as sex symbol:
13https://jeetheer.substack.com/p/the-forgotten-history-of-rumsfeld?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email&utm_content=share&token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoyNTc2NzAxLCJwb3N0X2lkIjozODMyMzg0OSwiXyI6IlJoT09RIiwiaWF0IjoxNjI1MzIxMjMwLCJleHAiOjE2MjUzMjQ4MzAsImlzcyI6InB1Yi0yOTU5MTkiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.8bF5hnYPHQ8nIjJYxSvEoCUBOg2EAc5_RHGMcHzXSKw