There's a reason crowds chanted "Drain the Swamp!" as Donald Trump was campaigning for president in 2016. It's the same reason Trump's supporters broke into shouts of "Lock Her Up!" when he referenced Hillary Clinton.
Trump voters were, and remain, tired of so many blatant violations of law and policy going unpunished. Hillary's use of a private unsecured email server for sensitive communications when she was secretary of state was an egregious no-no, yet the FBI had only paid lip service to prosecuting her while in reality giving her a pass.
Everything that has come out on the conduct of so many officials in the FBI and the Department of Justice continues to spark outrage among those who are looking for real justice to be done, yet so far, no progress has been made. There's a rogue's gallery a mile wide here -- Comey, McCabe, Strzok, Page, etc. -- yet other than for some of them losing their jobs, none have suffered any real punishment for their misdeeds.
Even the modest efforts to move forward with inquiries by the current administration have been met with criticism. "You just don't investigate your political opponents," liberals admonished Trump.
Well, you do if they've done something wrong.
That's what's so amazing about the Trump-Ukraine deal. This isn't a case of Trump trying to take down a potential political rival. It's a perfect example of him trying to discover and punish corruption in his predecessor's administration.
Anyone notice that as soon as Nancy Pelosi announced an impeachment inquiry into Trump, the press quit talking about Biden's dirty dealings with Ukraine by holding American aid hostage until the prosecutor got fired? This is the real scandal, but impeaching Trump is the shiny object that catches the attention of the media that will be completely in the tank next year for Biden, Bernie, Fauxahontas, or whomever the Democrats nominate.
Truth be told, the media had never given the Biden matter the attention it deserved. It didn't fit their agenda. And now the impeachment inquiry has given the press all the cover it needs to ignore the story. How many people have heard that the "whistleblower" whose turned hearsay into a five-alarm fire is a "never Trumper" liberal with a political vendetta against the president? That's certainly relevant to the discussion, yet there's been barely a mention of it in the media.
Had this story broken when Biden was vice president, would there have been calls for his impeachment? Wait, don't answer. That's a rhetorical question.
Barack Obama continues to make the laughable claim that his administration was scandal-free. For all the criticism of Trump playing fast and loose with the facts, this one's a real doozy. Fast and Furious, Benghazi, Lois Lerner/IRS, overlooking Hillary's security violations, and now Biden strongarming Ukraine to protect his son. Here's an undisputable fact: Obama's presidency makes Trump appear to be living at the foot of the cross.
Jim Comey and Andrew McCabe aren't criminally charged with anything yet. Joe Biden faces no fallout from his acts. Here, folks, is evidence that the swamp protects itself. It doesn't want to be drained. That's why the entrenched interests so bitterly opposed Trump's candidacy. It's why establishment Republicans work so hard against conservative tea party types. Swamp dwellers crave power. They want to be the kings of their playground and don't want to relinquish control. Biden's the quintessential swamp creature. Of course, his fellow swampers are going to rally to his side, distract, deflect, obstruct, and do whatever else they can to turn attention away to him and reflect it back on those who are trying to drain the swamp.
It's why Trump's presidency makes so many in both parties so uncomfortable. There's a new way of doing things and they feel threatened by it. They're used to tradition and convention and precedent and getting their own way. Trump brought a new playbook and a fresh set of rules to Washington. He's not beholden to the old methods. And it frightens them to the point they'll do anything to hang on.
We can't allow the swamp to turn this into a Trump problem. It is first, foremost, and solely, a Biden issue. It's vital we remind the world of this at every opportunity.
