Great comment by a NY Times reader . . .

[markpkessinger]

. . . and one that very much reflects what I've been feeling!

Mark 5 hrs ago
Houston

81 years ago next month, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. We did not waste time asking why the Japanese attacked us or who was to blame for not having better defenses.

24 hours after the attack, FDR was standing before Congress asking for a declaration of war. Within 4 hours, he got it.

The GOP intends harm to our country, and they have the means to do it. The relevant question is not how did we get to this point. The relevant question is, what are we going to do to stop them before they can do even more damage?

When we ask that question, we need to be looking at responses within a Pearl Harbor time frame, and not a Merrick Garland timeframe. Having to wait more than two years to stop an enemy is useless.

Here's a link to the comment: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/08/opinion/midterms-republicans-election-denialism.html#commentsContainer&permid=121378932

[ultralite001]

1. This kind of action...

should have occurred on Jan 6...


That is all...

[markpkessinger]

2. I get that the DOJ needed time to develop the case, but . . .

. . . 22 months is ridiculous! They've had plenty with which to indict Trump for months now!

Garland has let down the entire country with his foot dragging!

[Irish_Dem]

6. Does the US have the mechanisms and will to deal with traitors at the highest levels?

Not looking like it.

[EndlessWire]

33. Politely disagree

We are still not done with Midterms. Once this is done, something will happen.

In the last, let's say 14 days to be sure, stuff is happening in the MAL case which will further shape the case against Trump. People are saying that we will see the Special Master disappear. Trump is not really winning in court.

Further, whispers are that the groundwork is being laid for more search warrants. For instance, the people who know are saying that it is obvious that Trump made copies, and someone has those in other places. There's a reason that Trump offered to allow a second search of MAL (because he knows that he sent those documents elsewhere.)

It is, of course, entirely possible that Garland will fizzle, but I think that he has stated too many times that no one is above the law. I think he will step up, but first we have the DC Court and NARA to go through. And then they have to make an effort to find those missing documents. I don't know how messy it would be to run everything concurrently, but I can see where NARA has to testify first before moving on. So, we're not done yet.

[Irish_Dem]

36. I hope you are right.

Of course with new information, I will change my view.

All we have now are the facts in front of us.

[EndlessWire]

37. Try this

It's a good summation of latest plus near future developments:

[Irish_Dem]

38. Thanks, but this video makes me more skeptical.

Trump is winning.

He has framed the issue of his treason (stealing classified documents) as just a mere
paperwork dispute with the National Archives.

And Trump is delaying and delaying using the courts to obstruct justice.
Garland is letting him get away with all of this.

Disgraceful.

If anyone of us stole top secret documents we would be sitting in a federal supmax prison.
Not pretending it was all a paperwork problem.

[EndlessWire]

41. The law is clear.

If Donald Trump wanted NARA to apply, which carries no penalty, he needed to turn all the papers into NARA and then hash it out, not just steal the papers. I think that the Special Master will be closed because they filed in the wrong venue. Plus, the 11th Circuit is bound to deny that Cannon has the jurisdiction to make any decisions on the matter.

I'd really like to see more search warrants because think of how that would look, to find even more papers. His damage to the country is incalculable. All those buildings, searched at once. Plus, maybe Ivana dug up...RIP, Ivana, but not if you are buried with classified docs.

The danger we have is if Garland doesn't get to finish because of election results. There is a grand jury on the matter, and someone is doing something. He doesn't really have a defense. Don't lose hope.

[Irish_Dem]

42. Even if found guilty, what is the punishment for upsetting staff at the National Archives?

This is how Trump is framing it.

He has framed it as a paperwork error and a tiff with the National Archives.

The DOJ will look foolish pursuing Trump for mismanaging paperwork.

That is Trump's ground game on this issue.

You are correct, the damage done by Trump stealing highly classified docs is incalculable.
Knowing Trump, he didn't steal all of them for his scrapbook.

Yes of course all of his property should be searched immediately. The FBI had probable cause
after they searched MAL.

The whole thing is perplexing and disgraceful. Lives are at risk.
National security at risk.

[EndlessWire]

43. He blew it.

His chance to frame it as a tiff with NARA is long gone. It was gone when he shipped those docs to MAL. It was gone when he returned only a handful of docs to NARA, and had his "custodian of records" sign off on it. It was gone when the FBI had to obtain and execute a warrant on his ass.

That's far, far more than mismanaging paperwork. And, he is still dicking around in court opposing DOJ. He is very much a defendant looking to avoid prison time. No one is going to buy that he innocently thought the classified docs, or any of the other docs, belonged to him. Instead, everyone is wondering where the missing docs are, and who he sold them to.

There are some that are saying that 3 years punishment is at least something. I think that we have come this far, and we are strong enough to go for the whole enchilada. There are other actors who might be gotten if we try. I, too, go back and forth, but deep in my heart I know that we have to keep on the road until we sew this guy up.

Look at him. He's wheeling and dealing for a run at the Presidency, when he should be wondering what other country will be willing to take him in. The thing I would like most is seeing him pack up his boat or jet, and fleeing this jurisdiction, taking his wretched family with him. Barron can stay. Melania is not a threat, yet. But Trump has got to go.

[nightwing1240]

14. Preach it brother..

On the same page with you on this

[calimary]

27. Truly! It's taken THIS long and we don't have an indictment YET????

We haven’t seen enough YET???

We don’t have enough evidence YET???

Good Grief, what more do we need to see/collect/compile?????

[Handler]

39. I hear you . Trump should have been arrested weeks ago. For stealing classified documents, the

evidence is in plain sight for everyone to see. If he were anyone else he would be sitting in a federal lockup right now. Merrick Garland is dragging his feet to protect Trump. The fact that an election is going on now is bs. There is no law protecting a criminal because an election is in progress. There is some DOJ policy cautioning against becoming involved in an election but trump is not a candidate. There is no reason for him to be protected.

[CrispyQ]

3. The charges regarding the insurrection, I understand waiting for the J6 committee to make their

recommendations, but the stolen documents? WTF? He's playing fast & loose with national security & we're treating him with kid gloves. Whatever. I vote, but I no longer vote with any enthusiasm.

[ultralite001]

4. 24 hours after the attack,

FDR was standing before Congress asking for a declaration of war. Within 4 hours, he got it.

Justice delayed is justice denied...

America watched the assault on the Capital. Lives were lost... Those responsible have not been held to account.
Event organizers were not charged or tasked with repairs for damages or clean up... Elected officials were complicit.

Fairness has become folly...

[Irish_Dem]

5. We know how we got to this point. The question is what can we do to stop it?

How we got here is easy to explain.

Democracy is in the way of GOP goals.
They want an autocracy like China and Russia have.

[Elessar Zappa]

15. We absolutely could stop it.

There’s more of us than them but the problem is the apathetic third that aren’t fascists have to be willing to do the bare minimum to save the country. If they all voted reliably, GOP would never win again, even in most red states.

[Irish_Dem]

17. Yes the MAGAs want a one party system with white christian minority rule.

Democracy means the people they hate might get a say in how things are run.

[progressoid]

7. We've missed our window.

The idiots who stormed the capital will pay but the politicians and media won't.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

21. And you have clairvoyance that tells so? "missed our window"?

Will you eat your wet blanket when tRump is charged?

[progressoid]

22. Sure.

[Emile]

8. Merrick Garland timeframe has embolden republicans and

now they are threatening to overturn our democracy.

[Orrex]

9. Apparently Mark hasn't cleared this with defenders of The System

Certainly Mark would be aware that The System is perfect and just and incorruptible, and a delay of 8 or 16 or 24 months is a small price to pay to drop trifling penalties on the small fish in the big insurrectionist pond.

Shame on Mark for doubting The System. I hope that some high-minded individual swoops in to scold him and set him straight.

[erronis]

10. Very strong action should have been taken much earlier than Jan 6. The US gov't has been crippled

on purpose.

When the Bundy nuts took over the national park they should have been dealt with sternly. Instead they were allowed to walk away after threatening to kill officials and others.

When the bugaloos and other incels commit violence and threats, they are almost given special protections. They should be treated just like me - if I threaten another person's life I should be arrested, charged, jailed pending prosecution, and then dealt with for violence.

Maybe the western democracies have just become too unwilling to act effectively. I like that we have rules and laws. Let's enforce the ones in effect and revise the ineffective ones to deal with some new ones that didn't exists 250, 150, or even 50 years ago.

Our enemies (foreign and domestic) are taking advantage of us.

[jaxexpat]

28. The conspiracy is obvious.

TPTB have determined we will go forward without individual responsibility for the fat cats, the most obviously guilty. They're doing it for our own well-being. It's called trickle-up accountability and we're witnessing its trial run, its grand opening. When the bottom of the pyramid refuses to get over it after a long enough time the consequences will trickle up to the next level. Its a stupid plan but, well, they are, after all, TPTB.

[KS Toronado]

11. Apples & Oranges

Foreign country sinking our Pacific Fleet vs domestic terrorists lead by the soon to be ex-president.
Believe we'll see him arrested shortly after all votes are counted, a week or two.
And yes, it's about time.

[Escurumbele]

12. A lot of people in DU defend Garland, I cannot do that, he has enough to not only indict trump

but many of the horrible republicans currently in office, Mark Meadows being one of them. I am not sure that Garland has any intentions to do the right thing, I hope that I am proven wrong.

[nightwing1240]

13. Dragging your feet with known criminal actions never made sense to me

tRump and his cronies should all be at trial or in prisons for the attack January 6, end of. I fault Garland, not President Biden.

[Evolve Dammit]

16. Not disagreeing with a single post on this thread. We are losing America due to a feckless DOJ/AG

[area51]

19. +1 n/t

[Grumpy Old Guy]

18. I'm sitting in a hangar at Pearl Harbor

at this very moment. We visited the Arizona Memorial earlier today. A fitting visit for a historic election.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

20. Yes this☝️💯 KnR

Kick kick kiiiiccck.

[GP6971]

24. Welcome to DU

I guess.

[marble falls]

26. Another one takes the bus.

[GP6971]

29. It was an express bus at that. n/t

[republianmushroom]

25. I like it

[Progressive dog]

30. The Japanese were not American citizens.

Americans fall under the protection of our laws and constitution. It took the loss of over 100 thousand Americans, years of rationing and struggle, and finally an atom bomb to defeat the Japanese.
The insurrection is not comparable to the attack on Pearl Harbor.
The destruction was much less, and many of the insurrection ground troops are under indictment or convicted. The Japanese ground troops were never punished after the war.
None of the insurrection leaders have yet been indicted, but only the worst ring leaders of the Japanese were tried for war crimes years after Pearl Harbor.

[jimlup]

31. It is well past time for Garland to act ...

There is a danger and the whole "we had better be careful and not charge a former president" thing is a cop-out

[SMoss]

32. How we got here and why is simple.

The GOP has known since the time of Gingrich that they are a dying party. Their demographic, middle age to Old white guys is shrinking.
The very nature of being conservative means you resist change, that is resist new ideas. The country has a giant new problem, climate change that is increasing natural disasters and the pressure on people to migrate to places that will support their lives. New ideas and change are needed, but that is counter to conservative thinking.
The only option for GOPosaurs is to get rid of democracy. They can't win with new solutions they don't have.

[Caliman73]

34. Sorry but it is apples and oranges...

The commenter is comparing a clear military attack by a foreign government to an internal ideological struggle. I understand and actually agree with what the commenter is saying about Conservatives and their vehicle, The Republican Party. The analogy and comparison are just bad.

A more apt comparison is the prelude to the Civil War. It took years for the situation to come to a head. Once again the Conservative faction in American politics, this time the Democratic Party from the South, wanted to expand slavery and the liberal faction from the North (mainly Republican) wanted to not expand. This issue was debated for years before the war kicked off and there was significant opposition to Lincoln in prosecuting the war until the Confederates invaded the North.

Both questions are relevant. We do need to know how Conservatives, who are much smaller in number than non-Conservatives, acquired the means to hijack our politics.

Yes, we need to stop them from proceeding, but that is not only up to one person or one small group of people. FDR's declaration of war would have been meaningless if millions upon millions of Americans did not sign up for service or for work to support the military. We all need to be active in stopping the Conservatives from damaging the country.

[fleabiscuit]

35. A swing and a miss IMHO nt

[BigmanPigman]

40. I've been saying this for a year and

DU always defended him at the beginning. It seems like more DUers are finally losing their patience with him.