The terrible, swift sword

What do we do with 74,222,965 Trump voters?

He hasn’t quit, so House Democrats say they plan to introduce article of impeachment charges for Donald Trump’s incitement of an insurrection.

Impeachment — or invoking the 25th Amendment — feels necessary, given Trump’s calling for and fanning the flames of last week’s violent attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Whether impeachment, the 25th, or the turn of the calendar page ends this presidency, the Southern District of New York seems to have plans for the soon-to-be-former president, so the failed developer/reality TV star could be distracted for a while.

So that leaves 74,222,965 people who voted for Trump, especially the ones who stormed the Capitol? Our better angels say we must forgive because it’s the right thing to do, and besides, if we don’t forgive them, Trump’s supporters will cause more unrest.

It’s like being handed the leash of a rabid dog and being told to take it home and care for it. The vengeful angels say just shoot the dog.

When Pres. Richard Nixon resigned his office, new Pres. Gerald Ford pardoned him. It was a “a full, free, and absolute pardon” for offenses “during the period from January 20, 1969 through August 9,1974.” It was time to heal, a notion Ford used as the title for his autobiography. You could make that argument — let’s join hands and admit this was a very bad time — or you could watch Ford’s pardon give birth of the modern-day Republican party, whose dirty tricksters learned precisely nothing except how to avoid getting caught, until now.

If we take a page from Pres. Ford, one day, Kaylee and Kellyanne will go the way of G. Gordon and H.R. History will remember the miscreants, but not much more than history remembers the architects of the Tea Pot Dome scandal (that was Albert, mostly, for what it’s worth).

The day after the failed coup, Forbes magazine promised to follow the “fabulists” (their word, and it’s a good one) of the Trump administration as they skitter back into the private sector and the lucrative world of political/corporate consulting. The magazine’s Randall Lane wrote:

Trump’s liars don’t merit that same golden parachute. Let it be known to the business world: Hire any of Trump’s fellow fabulists above, and Forbes will assume that everything your company or firm talks about is a lie. We’re going to scrutinize, double-check, investigate with the same skepticism we’d approach a Trump tweet. Want to ensure the world’s biggest business media brand approaches you as a potential funnel of disinformation? Then hire away.

Here in Connecticut, state residents who visited the capital city on Wednesday have watched their not-deleted-soon-enough selfies spread all over social media, and some of those images have been sent to law enforcement — including the FBI — an entity that has asked for help identifying the insurgents. (If you live in the Nutmeg State and aren’t following Al Robinson of “My Left Nutmeg,” do so. He takes no prisoners.) Nationally, insurrectionists find their extremist political activity can get them into hot water at their jobs.

Things can feel a little, well, pitchfork-y.

But are they? Or might this be righteous anger? For years, constitutional lawyers, people who run social service agencies, people who live in poverty, people of color, women, immigrants, immigration lawyers and others have been decrying Trump’s assault on decency and the rule of law. We wore out the word “unprecedented,” and last Wednesday’s attempted coup was the physical embodiment of a long and ugly campaign.

We are feeling our way through this, but let’s start by acknowledging that people need to explain themselves, and that there is sin in the camp, for which scriptural remedies are pretty clear.

For now, let’s leave aside the story of Achan in the Book of Joshua, who for bringing sin into the camp was stoned and burned, and then his corpse was buried under a pile of rocks. By contrast, Christian scriptures are loaded with examples of forgiveness, with a health dose of restitution (help us build institutions we can trust), rather than retribution (stand still while we stone you).

There are multiple ways to call for justice. During this dark era, savvy activists often targeted wallets. If a television show is offensive, find their advertisers, boycott them, and then spread the word. This works — though usually only for a little while, as witnessed by the death, burial, and resurrection of Glastonbury, Conn.’s own Laura Ingraham, a mother of three who picks on teenagers.

In response to a nasty Ingraham tweet in 2018, Hogg, a Parkland shooting survivor and activist, went on social media and shared the names of Ingraham’s advertisers. She lost support and went on an unannounced vacation, but returned only slightly chastened.

Lying is lucrative. And addictive.

In fact, the smoke had not cleared Wednesday when Trump architects and ringleaders began reframing the narrative — the press caused the insurgency, the insurrectionists are the real victims, DEEP STATE! — and they will successfully turn the truth on its head only if they are allowed to do so.

So what about the people who dipped a toe into the pool of trumpism? If someone didn’t march, but they voted for the guy, do they get a pass? Can someone be just a little bit trump-y? Can someone have just a touch of syphilis? A fundamentalist lives in black and white. So: No. They cannot. Can we have a conversation with the trumpish? I hope so. And so we move forward in a — yes! — unprecedented time, with awe at the opportunities.