My only hope is that when Trump is long dead and gone, and if America ever does discover some level of decency around his time in office, that his younger enablers, who still might be around, would be shunned for their shameful behavior.
But somehow I think this whole era will be rug swept.
They'll all be fine. They'll be commentators on Fox news et al, they'll do speaking engagements, they'll work at think tanks. They'll be fine. They're not some plebes who are scattered when their trucking firm or family restaurant goes belly-up.
Some people have said that they voted for Trump because they were on the left but felt that the left and the right were so similar that an authoritarian would wake people up and cause a snap back effect and lead to more progressive wins in response.
I find this view to be abhorrent because the people who make it are privileged enough to not feel the repercussions like, say, a child starving to death because of USAID cuts or an Iranian schoolgirl buried in rubble.
It does seem like they’ll get what they want though. I don’t hear a lot of Obama era “moving on” talk. It’s a lot more about accountability and repercussions in the discourse. The old democratic congress people are seen as a liability instead of experienced statesman.
I don’t think Trump will ever face justice but I do think this era will be remembered with shame and the people who helped enable it will be ostracized or pretend like they opposed it all along.
I hate thinking about the possibility so much I didn’t bring it up, but you’re right. There’s a non-zero chance that 2024 was the end of our representative democracy. But boy, us libs sure did get owned.
You give them too much credit. The people on the fence don't understand nuance or even what an authoritarian personality style is. They're easily manipulated morons that Trump's populist rhetoric works on. They're also authoritarian themselves, and seek to dominate out groups to make themselves feel superior.
All of the reasons that they tell people they voted for Trump because of are bullshit topical talking points. They have no self awareness, they just go for easy excuses for their inexcusable behavior.
It's the real American tradition. That and exploiting labor. Oh, and war. And dumping untested or inferior products to Africa. What else...racism...any ism really...football? I'm bored...oh, yeah, and apathy and selfishness hiding behind religious hypocracy.
I don’t think shunned is enough. They broke the law. For us to see any form of justice, we need our own Nuremberg trials to make sure these people pay for their crimes
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u/raging-peanuts 10h ago
My only hope is that when Trump is long dead and gone, and if America ever does discover some level of decency around his time in office, that his younger enablers, who still might be around, would be shunned for their shameful behavior.
But somehow I think this whole era will be rug swept.