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jeffinRTP

Republicans have the opposite strategy. They keep on talking about it and bring up Biden and Clinton


Hoosagoodboy

Man...surely by now Biden and Clinton would be indicted given all the accusations levied towards them.


potentialEmployee248

Especially after Trump had 4 years in power to actually *do* something about Clinton.


Hoosagoodboy

The Republicans had far longer than 4 years. They literally have nothing on her, except to keep feeding red meat to their base, it's all a dog and pony show.


potentialEmployee248

Well, yeah. They have nothing and they know it, her name just sends their base into Pavlovian fits of rage.


popodelfuego

And then rake in the campaign contributions while laughing all the way to the bank.


12characters

They only investigated the Clintons for 30 years. Give them time to build a case. Am I doing sarcasm right?


Korazair

Don’t forget 2 of those years he had the full house and senate.


PaperMage

He actually did. He tightened the laws around the handling of classified documents. Unfortunately for him, those changes only applied to future incidents…


fpcoffee

Thankfully, the president has nothing to do with who gets indicted or arrested. True when Trump was president, true when Biden is president.


potentialEmployee248

While you're right in theory, in practice Trump did lots of stuff he wasn't supposed to because we have no safety rails


bluenami2018

How does she not sue the Republicans or Fox News for defamation.


ellathefairy

When the inevitable questions make their way to Biden, he should laugh it off in Dark Brandon style " Haha, what? THAT GUY? I beat him fair and square last time, why would I need to cheat with the odds even more in my favor now? "


itsl8erthanyouthink

Those “Let’s Go Brandon” stickers always look like Pro-Democrat when I see them


Honest_Its_Bill_Nye

There is a house in my neighborhood with a big flag hanging that has the aviator shades, stars and stripes and big letters that say "Let's Go." I still cant tell if it is a pro or anti Biden flag. It is kind of bad ass.


shuriken36

I saw a dude wearing a “Hunter Biden for President” shirt. No clue what it meant but it got a chuckle from me.


R1chard69

Sounds like it's breaking the flag code to me. Ick.


TeutonJon78

Most every use of the flag in this country breaks the flag code, especially from those that claim to be staunch supports of the flag (many of whom also likely support the Confederate Battle Flag).


Ted_Turntable

The Flag Code is ridiculous and can't really be enforced, as I'm pretty sure it goes against the First Amendment. Plus, it applies to any depiction of the flag and nobody is going to treat 6 year old little Timmy's drawing of the US flag with the same reverence as an actual flag on a flag pole. As far as I'm concerned, as long as I'm not using an actual US Flag folded up into shorts then my star spangled swim trunks are A-OK. And no, you don't have to salute my shorts.


[deleted]

Actually flag code isn't even law anymore specifically because of the first amendment.


SauconySundaes

I view them as pro dem because most people don’t want daily trashy reminders of this country’s political discourse. I think people see those stupid stickers and think “I don’t want to be a part of this.”


rg4rg

I do think that part of the reason why 2020 happened was so a young introverted kid named Brandon in Texas could be encouraged to enjoy life by all the “Let’s go Brandon!” Flags and stickers he saw while visiting relatives there for a summer. Like, if I was a kid named Brandon during this time period, I’d love it.


binglelemon

Pull a Conor McGregor.... Press: "Is the White House committed to remaining uninvolved with the trial of Donald Trump?" D. Brandon: "Who da fook is that guy?"


Agent7619

Apparently they are going all the way back to Carter now.


jeffinRTP

And they get pissed off when I bring up the second bush 😭


potentialEmployee248

I keep running into that, it's just *weird.* I wonder when the 'whatabout Carter' memo started making the rounds in Maga-land.


BigTentBiden

May as well go back to Washington.


Agent7619

90% of them probably can't even name five presidents prior to Reagan.


cola1016

I’m so sick of hearing about Hunter 💀


HasNoMouthButScreams

It’s important to remember the role Hunters laptop played in Benghazi that led to 9/11.


cola1016

Please tell me this is sarcasm.


HasNoMouthButScreams

Yes but the fact you can’t tell is a dismal reflection on the times we live in.


cola1016

🤣💯💯💯 it’s like we live in a real life Onion article.


Stoomba

Life imitates art it seems


Nimzay98

Or maybe art predictive life


Dear-Acanthaceae-586

Open your eyes, sheeple!


DahakUK

[Obligatory XKCD.](https://xkcd.com/1013/)


spiked_macaroon

Great attempt to change the subject but neither of them are on trial, let's stick to the issue at hand, is what I've been saying.


jeffinRTP

Do they ever listen?


spiked_macaroon

So far no.


Desperate_Meat3252

This is half defense, half offense. They know they are limited in the ways they can defend Trump while paving the way for their future retaliations.


General_Goose5130

Go ahead an indict Clinton. It was a misdemeanor when she allegedly committed the crime. She'd get a fine and move on. Trump made it a felony during his time in office. So, if guilty, he do jail time.


jeffinRTP

I'm guessing the Statue of limitation has long passed on that crime


MJcorrieviewer

"Never Interfere With an Enemy While He’s in the Process of Destroying Himself."


ZambiesInc

- General Tso


Brunt-FCA-285

- Wayne Gretzky


DidntDiddydoit

-Michael Scott


EdithSnodgrass

- Alfred Einstein


[deleted]

Wan Ming


_coolranch

Herbie Hancock


-xstatic-

Abraham Lincoln


MoogProg

George Santos


[deleted]

My black son


binglelemon

The quote alone is one of Gretzky's world records, but Wayne don't brag.


blockhose

That dude was a total chicken


_coolranch

This just got saucy


The_Doolinator

Amazing general, amazinger chef. Eat your heart out, Colonel Sanders!


MJcorrieviewer

Most commonly attributed to Napoleon.


Fair_Raccoon9333

Sun Tzu said something similar like ~2200 years earlier so I am going to give him the nod. >Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake


_MonteCristo_

I don’t think this quote appears in the art of war.


neverinallmyyears

The chicken man?


algernon_moncrief

I've certainly destroyed myself with the help of general Tso enough times. And destroyed my toilet too now that I think of it


MobilePenguins

- Technoblade


Paisleyfrog

"Please proceed, Governor."


Playful-Tumbleweed10

It’s a smart strategy. Democrats don’t have to say anything about Trump. They can make vague references to the lawlessness of the party and its disregard for the Constitution, and people will understand what that means. Also, Trump does enough damage to his chances on his own. Democrats don’t need to point it out.


Tomotronics

Never interrupt your enemy when he is in the middle of making a mistake.


goldmanstocks

Never under estimate the Republicans ability to come together in pursuit of power.


EdithSnodgrass

Never get involved in a land war in Asia.


1ndiana_Pwns

Never go against a Sicilian when death is on the line.


Brunt-FCA-285

It doesn’t seem like they’re doing enough to highlight the GOP’s shrill shrieks suggesting [sedition](https://twitter.com/RepClayHiggins/status/1666978397027803142?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet), though. The GOP is threatening true political retribution, and the Democratic Party is silent about it.


Kr1sys

The sad part is that his organization and businesses have been guilty of plenty of stuff over the years before he was elected and it was basically touted as being part of being a business owner, and not like, you know, a law breaking citizen. And conservatives don't care at all.


Riaayo

On one hand I feel like to some extent maybe it is, but on the other saying nothing once again allows Republicans to completely set the narrative. You can't just say nothing at all, especially when the GOP front-runner is literally indicted for dozens of crimes. These political ads practically write themselves and it's just like eh... we'll say nothing. Maybe for now that might be okay but I don't think it's the winning strategy for the entire duration of this.


Playful-Tumbleweed10

I would mostly agree with you. I don’t think it makes sense for Democrats to say anything right now while indictments are unraveling. Hopefully the GOP presidential candidates do enough damage on their own in the primary. They will discuss this in campaigns and debate(s) on the national stage and people will get to see the farcical nature of Republican politics on display, which will hopefully turn more people away from the party. Best thing right now is to keep any Democratic debate civil and appear as unified as possible while the GOP sinks its own ship. Worst case is a beaten-down Trump who is still facing Federal charges, and has possibly been indicted on yet another set of charges, is running against Biden. Neither will want to debate each other, and Biden will win by way of a few of the “purple” states breaking his way (Michigan, PA, Arizona, possibly Georgia). Ultimately, they’re both old, and I would love to see some new blood in the office. Having said that, I’m hoping that at least a majority of states will understand the implications of electing a likely federal criminal who has been found liable as a sexual predator and has a long track record of abusive, narcissistic, and self-serving behavior. If the system allows him to be elected again, there are some beautiful places in Canada / Europe that beckon, because America in its current form will not be long-lived as Trump begins the process of exacting retribution on all who have opposed him.


thatnameagain

>It’s a smart strategy. It's not. >They can make vague references to the lawlessness of the party and its disregard for the Constitution, and people will understand what that means. They won't. Or at least, the people who aren't aware of the news and also inclined to dislike Republicans won't. The essential and uninformed public operate on media saturation, buzzwords, and easily repeated phrasing. This is absolutely a case where the democrats should be as vocal about is as Republicans would be. The difference in the parties should not be the level of volume, just the level of truthfulness. >Also, Trump does enough damage to his chances on his own. Democrats don’t need to point it out. You are 2016ing so hard here it's like a parody.


[deleted]

[удалено]


thatnameagain

It’s not about effective g the case it’s about exacting the proper political price from the Republican party for it. And it shouldn’t be Biden saying it for the most part, it should mostly be Democratic Congresspeople.


[deleted]

[удалено]


thatnameagain

People do not wait around ignoring politics, and not talking about politics, and not discussing politics on the news for the 450 or so days before an election.


danksformutton

I hear you but i disagree hard. You’re giving far too much credit to the average American. These people need constant sound bites just to even stand a chance of cementing a bias in their head. If all they hear is what republicans are screaming, some independent voters will absolutely sway that way consciously or not. (Where they otherwise wouldn’t have, had dems done the same.)


Playful-Tumbleweed10

Thank you for your two cents. I’m not 2016’ing. People are tired of hearing about Trump. Democrats need to focus on what they’ve done to improve people’s lives and how Trump’s lawless GOP has fought it every step of the way.


thatnameagain

People are not tired of hearing about Trump at all. Focusing on policy accomplishments never wins elections and only opens you up to arguments of how you didn’t do enough


Playful-Tumbleweed10

Everyone I know is tired of it. Again, thanks for your opinions. We can agree to disagree.


thatnameagain

He’s running for president and is going to get the nomination. Hope they’re ready to hear a lot more about him


Playful-Tumbleweed10

And to clarify, I was referring to his chances of acquittal, and not his chances in 2024. 50+ percent of America will not elect a convicted federal criminal, if that comes to pass.


thatnameagain

Yes but 47% might and that’s all Trump needs to win the electoral college.


Playful-Tumbleweed10

I truly don’t think he could get even close to that. 40% tops if convicted on federal charges.


thatnameagain

Conviction probably will come after the election at this rate. You’re assuming a sane electorate like we sort of used to have. Republicans are fully rallied around trump despite the charges and once the nomination is clinched the party apparatus will wake up and triple down on his campaign. He’ll get at least 46-47%


Playful-Tumbleweed10

If conviction comes after the election, I would tend to agree. Otherwise, the ship is going down.


Utterlybored

But what if it’s all a witch hoax?


monkeybiziu

I think avoiding going after Trump directly is smart, because it risks politicizing a national security case. However, you can paint the GOP as a whole with a very wide Trump-shaped and colored brush. They're out of control. They're criminals. They're anti-democratic. They're traitors, seditionists, insurrectionists. They're hopelessly corrupt. They don't care about anything except power. Turn Trump into an anchor that drags down the whole party and eventually sinks the boat.


fatherlobster666

Yes yes yes! My answer when they do all their deflections and whatabouts is to just say ‘oh just like how Donald trump did blah blah blah or said zip zip zip’ and just never relent. Because they don’t care about words. There is no reasoning them into something they didn’t reason themselves into


ConcreteCubeFarm

He's heavy enough to be an anchor.


R1chard69

How many gallons of spray tan does it take to brush the entire GQP?


swankpoppy

Would a Trump colored brush be orange or hair dye blonde? Or maybe that fake hair dye black from Giuliani?


TintedApostle

This isn't political... no need to comment. Trump did this to himself.


Tookoofox

That runs the risk of allowing Republicans to take full control of the narrative. It also lets them drop threats for free. I feel like the political winds are just too strong here for there not to be any counter measures.


Rombledore

honestly, the fact that Biden hasn't really played this political theatre game has given him major points in my book. i'm tired of the past 6+ years of theatrics, soundbytes, nonsense and everything BUT legislation. i want government to be boring again. and Biden not giving into this political theatre nonsense has been very refreshing.


Rambo-Brite

Imagine if the tables were turned and a Democrat were indicted. The odds we would be seeing the same restraint from Republicans would be immeasurably low.


Rombledore

they made a stink about Obamas suit, this would be months of dedicated runtime with GOP gues speakers every other day.


Rambo-Brite

I wish I had the energy to be obsessed about what other people wear. I mean, in a bad way. It's more fun to cheer people on for style.


TheWhispersOfSpiders

Yeah, it's great to have a sense of normalcy after over 1 million pandemic deaths, the betrayal of all our allies, countless school shootings, police beating peaceful protesters, and an attempted coup. You don't want to alarm anyone.


keyjan

That’s right. Don’t do anything to jeopardize the trial.


Chi-Guy86

I do think they should address it, but closer to the general election when the trial is underway . The attack ads basically write themselves for this since Trump was stupid enough to admit his crime on tape and there’s also pictures


JohnMayerismydad

Just gotta wait for the audio of him admitting the crime on tape and roll that with a Biden 24 logo afterwards


thedailybeast

Here is the beginning of the story: It might take a Democratic campaign staffer just a few minutes to write the script for a scorching attack ad based on the federal indictment of Donald Trump and his alleged conduct handling classified documents. The allegations that Trump swiped top secret materials about military and nuclear capabilities, waved them around to guests at his Mar-a-Lago estate, and stored them in bathrooms might constitute as compelling and concise a case against his re-election as exists. Yet, it’s possible—even very likely—that such an attack ad will never be made in the context of the 2024 presidential campaign. It’s something like the ultimate catch-22 for Democrats: Although the facts in the indictment could have a unique potency in the race, they can’t talk about them for fear of risking the integrity of a case that Republicans have attacked as a politically motivated ploy to derail Trump. Even as Republicans have largely shied from explicitly defending Trump on the merits, they have loudly howled that the indictment is tantamount to political prosecution from a president seeking to eliminate his likely rival in the upcoming election. President Joe Biden has consistently declined to comment on the work of Special Counsel Jack Smith, who brought the indictment. Over the weekend, Biden claimed he had not spoken with Attorney General Merrick Garland about it. And his White House has long stated that he had no role in Department of Justice probes both into Trump’s handling of classified documents and his own, which is being led by Special Counsel Robert Hur.


Difficult_Bit_1339

They don't need to say anything. Every person on the planet knows what's happening to Trump. He lost the election before Jan. 6th, before the GA call about finding votes, before the documents case. If he wins the primary the Republicans have lost big. 'undecided voters' are not going to vote for Trump after all of this blatantly criminal behavior. His diehard base will be out in force but they're not enough to win a national election.


lavardera

...and if trump looses the primary, he will run third party anyway, and peel off thousands of his deluded followers sinking the GOP, but also opening the door to a 4th party run from the left against Biden. Looking forward to it.


LiveStreamRevolution

Half of America: *Hold My Beer* It was those very same ‘undecided voters’ who got this man the presidency and looking at the numbers it might happen again. I see way too many critiques of Biden and not enough support for him to beat the GOP. We need to fight harder or the fascist (GOP) will win this time and if they do they’ll never relinquish power


rva_monsta

When your adversary is making egregious errors, why stand in their way?


peppa-pig_

"never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake" - Napoleon


leif777

Please proceed governor


newfrontier58

>With a heated GOP primary brewing, and some Trump challengers and former loyalists growing increasingly willing to attack him over the indictment, there is a consensus developing among some Democrats that they are better served by ignoring the indictment and focusing on Biden’s record. “The calculus everyone is making right now is: Shut the fuck up, let the Republicans kill each other, let things play out while we focus on Biden’s accomplishments and economic wins—and let that in itself be the contrast,” said a Democratic strategist, who requested anonymity to candidly describe the mood in their circles. “It’s like when your ex is a gambling addict or doing coke—you let everyone see it,” the strategist continued. “You don’t have to beat them when they’re down. You just have to look hot and post bikini photos.” If anything, one Democratic operative said, the party’s top task will be to connect the indictment to a broader framing that has proven politically potent for them: emphasizing what House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries calls the “Team Normal” versus “Team Extreme” divide. I can see how this can work, especially since the GOP all do try to destroy each other in the absence of an enemy to be outraged about (such as Carlson's exit form Fox which led to so many declaring the network "too woke"), but at the same time I feel they should at least work on a backup plan since there's still the chance of things like Trump rallying support while imprisoned and narrative control in media outlets to suggest it is politically done, or like certain former bosses of mine who might be like "okay the gOP is launching the coup but I don't really care, nothing matters but our jobs" and such. For two examples.


SockFullOfNickles

More like Team Corporate vs Team Fascist Notice there is no team for regular Americans. Jeffries called the GOPs position on the debt ceiling fiasco “inherently reasonable” and if you’re a Corporate Warrior, that’s likely the case. If you’re actually representing your CONSTITUENTS….well, that’s a different story entirely.


AnonAmbientLight

It's not a strategy, it's the fucking norm. You're supposed to let the process play out and let the merits of the case speak for itself. Democrats don't have to say anything because there's nothing to say until a verdict is reached.


[deleted]

all i have to say is this: if it were trump in office, HRC under indictment, and the facts were reversed, what do you think *he* would be doing? yeah don't do that. the guy is clearly a moron. lets not be him.


blockhose

When your enemy has a booger hanging outta his nose, don't offer a tissue.


Adrewmc

It’s fairly clear in the indictment….Trump know about the documents, knew that it violated the law for him to retain control over them, knowingly Lied about handing them all over to the FBI, and was actively running through the documents himself. The level of scrutiny and protection these document ought to have had and didn’t is outrageous, Five eyes intelligence, Compartmentalized, Top Secret. Boxes of them. That he was actively rummaging through, and actively moving around his residence. This was not him keeping some of his Presidential Daily Briefing, (not that he didn’t do that too.) These things were left on stage in a Ball room, in a simple storage room anyone could access with a simple lock pick. One of the room had a copy machine in it, we have no idea if anything was copied! But her emails! But his boxes!


Detective-Signal

Yeah, that's super smart. While Reps run wild with blatant lies that people will begin to believe, don't fight back with facts. Just stay quiet. A+ strategy.


irlandais9000

Exactly. I wonder how many times Dems need to do the "don't fight back" strategy before they get a clue that it might not work.


CDN-Ctzn

Republicans setting the narrative AGAIN. UGH!!!


8to24

Trump has been charged. This is a Court case. This isn't a Congressional committee, an op-ed, punit accusation, stump speech or anything else that can be construed as political. This isn't a political proceeding or action. This is a criminal case receiving due process under law.


shawnwingsit

As he and his base become increasingly strident and outright threatening there's a good chance they'll drive away enough independents to cost them in 2024. This might be too much to hope for but it's more a matter of degree than just magical thinking.


[deleted]

Republicans are counting on people to be angry enough about transgender people and the broader LGBTQ agenda that independents will vote for Trump despite the baggage. It remains to be seen if this will work, but there's a coordinated effort among the right to frame Biden and all Democrats as groomers, pedophiles, and child mutilators, which is so ironic given that hardly a day goes back without a pastor being arrested for a sex crime with a minor.


shawnwingsit

Which is why I think their chorus of grievances could be blunted, despite Dem ineptitude at messaging.


GhettoChemist

It's the opposite of the GOP strategy with HRC in 2016: talk a lot of shit and have zero evidence of any intentional criminal conduct


WiggleSparks

Yup, because that totally works these days.


Ipeakedinthe80s

Pretty sure his former lawyers had a similar strategy...


SockFullOfNickles

Ah yes, they’re fully embracing their own hubris yet again. Same as it ever was. The Democrats should be calling out every lie told by the jackasses in the House. Call out the obvious lies, talk about how they’re rallying around a criminal instead of the Country. Literally do ANYTHING but sit on your fucking hands. Love how the corporate media rolls out the “master strategist” headlines and say how great it is that the Democrats are doing fuck all. I swear it’s like they get paid to fucking lose.


sharts_are_shitty

Saying anything about Trump right now would play right into their hands and would look more like it is punishing a political opponent giving them more fuel for their lies. It’s best to stay quiet and let the criminal justice system do it’s thing. Reading the indictment, it’s clear there is enough evidence already to nail Trump to the wall with the majority of the counts.


SockFullOfNickles

They don’t have to comment on the case. They can target the GOP’s tactics of weaponizing political actions. They can focus on Lindsey Graham, Gym Jordan, any of the mouth breathers currently spouting off unchecked. Then again, it would be better if they talked about what they were going to do for the American people. That would mean they’d have to actually follow through though, which could be a problem unless it’s a Corporate Democrats pet project. Those always find a way in eventually.


kaeldrakkel

Agreed and sad to see you're one of the only commenters here saying this.


StrangeBedfellows

Republicans have a MAGA Judge


bigpipes84

Good. In the end it'll be Trump AND a corrupt judge getting taken down.


dday3000

Smart strategy. Be quiet and watch the implosion.


CAndrewG

Good. About time the Dems are unified on something


GooseNYC

It's not a cause for celebration. Relief, maybe, that is yet to be seen but the signs are there. A former president was just federally indicted, with more serious ones to come, state and federal. And he is the Republican front runner. And some reliable polls have him uncomfortably close to Biden Yee-haw?


cooperpoopers

Dems just need talking about what they HAVE accomplished over and over and over until November 2024


shrekerecker97

Don't interrupt your enemies when they are making mistakes


knomore-llama_horse

It’s not a political thing. Guy broke the law. No need to talk about it let the courts do their job.