Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
We have a choice between Trump and truth
The most reliably moderate among us have often been the most politically delusional during the Donald Trump era. That’s bad for the health and future of our democracy.
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-utah, is the embodiment of that reality. His reaction to Trump becoming the first former president convicted of felonies is indicative of moderation blinding otherwise reasonable people.
Too many Trump fans are sycophants who trust the system when they get their way but declare it rigged when they don’t. Far too many liberals believe “conservative” is synonymous with “corrupt” and “vile.” Neither of them can see clearly, though only Trump fans have resorted to violence after losing. We saw evidence of that Jan. 6, 2021.
Moderates are desperate to see the world the way they want it to be, though the world changed under their feet, under all our feet, the moment millions of Americans began embracing Trump as he slowly came down that golden escalator in 2015.
Romney was the lone Republican to vote to remove Trump from office in February 2020, becoming the first person to do so against a member of his own party in such proceedings. Six other Republican senators joined Romney to convict Trump during the second impeachment trial, which was held after the violent Jan. 6 insurrection attempt on our Capitol.
Had more Republican senators joined them, Trump would be barred from holding office. Instead, he’s on the cusp of being the standard bearer for the “family values” party a third consecutive time and has a good chance of being sent back to the White House.
During the first impeachment, it was obvious Trump illegally used the power of the presidency to pressure Ukraine to open an investigation into his top rival, making Romney’s vote a genuine act of political courage. Romney was quickly and harshly attacked by the GOP and effectively blackballed by a party for which he has long been a loyal member. That happened even though Trump’s actions were more egregious than Richard Nixon’s during Watergate, an incident Republicans rightly deemed to be so un-american that they forced a Republican president to resign.
And yet, in the wake of Trump joining the ranks of those with criminal records, Romney reverted to old ways, a last gasp to find a middle path that often hasn’t existed during the Trump era. After a couple of days of silence, this is what he told The Atlantic writer Mckay Coppins: “(Alvin) Bragg should have settled the case against Trump, as would have been the normal procedure. But he made a political decision.”
There was no such option — because Trump wouldn’t allow it. A settlement requires a defendant to admit guilt. Trump has never admitted guilt. He is unlikely to ever admit guilt, about anything. Most everyone knows he’s lying about not having an illicit affair with porn actress Stormy Daniels or supposedly not directing his then-lawyer Michael Cohen — a man who spent a year in prison for his actions — to cover it up.
Had Trump simply told the truth, the Manhattan prosecutor’s office would have had an option to lower the charges from felonies to misdemeanors, saving New York taxpayers and the country from having to deal with the circus that accompanied the weeks-long trial.
Every rational, reasonable person knows an admission of wrongdoing and showing remorse are necessary to settle a criminal case before trial. Romney knows this. But in the Trump era, far too many otherwise reasonable people have struggled to accept that fact.
It’s either Trump or truth. Each of us must choose. The future of our democracy depends on it.