Republicans can't abandon Trump now because they're all guilty

To condemn his sins would be to condemn themselves

Republicans.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Saul Loeb - Pool/Getty Images)

Public impeachment hearings for President Trump got underway Wednesday. The president stands accused of using his power to undermine democracy, and while these hearings might cover a lot of ground over the next few weeks — every day seems to bring some new report of wrongdoing by the president and his cronies — members of the House aren't likely to delve much, if at all, into how Trump's wrongdoing reflects the culture of the party he heads. And that's a shame, because if there is a story that defines the GOP in the 21st century, it's the willingness of its elected officials to use their power to undermine opponents and entrench themselves in office.

In other words, Trump's abuses of power mirror those of the GOP as a whole. Republicans can't turn on him, because doing so would be to indict their party's entire approach to politics.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Joel Mathis, The Week US

Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.