re: #334 KGxvi

Because in democracy, institutions matter. Even if he’s a terrible person (he is) and has no respect for the institutions himself (he doesn’t), we have to preserve the institutions and norms as best we can. On a lot of levels, a functioning democracy - at least as how it is understood to exist in the Post-WWII epoch - relies on institutional traditions and norms. The two greatest threats to our constitutional system were Jackson ignoring the Supreme Court and ordering the Trail of Tears, and the southern war of treason because of an election result. I’d say the third was FDR’s court packing scheme, but the failure to impeach Trump may be rising up the ranks pretty fast. All of those incidents were (are) based on the parties involved rejecting established norms and traditions.

Disagree about FDR’s failed court-packing scheme: in fact, it was widespread (and bipartisan) defense of those “established norms and traditions” that sank the plan* - and tarnished Roosevelt’s reputation (still does, in most histories). But I agree that the reflexive partisan defense of Donald Trump - despite his manifest unsuitability for the office - is going to rank right up there with the others.

*that, and the Supreme Court’s eventual “revelation” that Roosevelt’s New Deal programs were not, after all, the heinous evil ravishment of the Constitution that the wingnuts of the day felt they were (and shockingly, still do in large part).