Controversial verdict has wide repercussions

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Here at THE TOPLINE, we deliver the pro-democracy take on all the news of the day, but today, we have some news of our own. Beginning next week, we're introducing a new publication schedule. THE TOPLINE will arrive in your email inboxes on Tuesday and Friday afternoons, rather than daily. We'll still bring you the same content you expect, from journalists, columnists, scholars, and officials you know and trust, as well as all the features you enjoy, such as "What's Your Take?," "Book Corner," and more. Thank you for being a loyal member of the TOPLINE community. We look forward to remaining your trusted source of news and opinions critical to democracy in the U.S. and around the world. —Melissa Amour, Managing Editor

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** 'There's a lot of people trying to profit on this'
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You'd think defense attorney Mark Richards would be nothing but happy. After all, on Friday, a jury found his client, Kyle Rittenhouse, not guilty on all charges in the killing of two men and injuring of a third with an AR-style semi-automatic rifle during a night of protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August 2020. Instead, Richards has slammed prominent Republicans, who cheered the verdict, of trying to profit off his client, calling it "disgusting." Rittenhouse has received internship offers from at least three GOP congressmen. Richards also issued a rebuke to Donald Trump, Jr., for encouraging people to support a gun rights organization that said it would "award" Rittenhouse an AR-15 for his "defense of gun rights." Richards didn't mince words. "He's an idiot," he said. "I don't have to expand on that because it speaks for itself." —Newsweek ([link removed])
* — And that’s not all. Hours after the acquittal, Fox News host Tucker Carlson announced that he not only would interview Rittenhouse tonight, but also had a film crew following the teen throughout the murder trial as part of an upcoming documentary he's producing for Fox Nation. Richards says he objected to having Carlson's film crew embedded with the defense team throughout the trial. "I did not approve of that," he said. "I threw them out of the room several times. I don't think a film crew is appropriate for something like this." Ya think? —The Washington Post ([link removed])
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* — Enough is enough. Carlson's disturbing, incendiary content has prompted two longtime Fox News colleagues to resign from the network. Commentators Stephen Hayes and Jonah Goldberg pointed to Carlson's three-part series on the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol as a breaking point. "It's basically saying that the Biden regime is coming after half the country, and this is the War on Terror 2.0," Goldberg said. "It traffics in all manner of innuendo and conspiracy theories that I think legitimately could lead to violence. That for me, and for Steve, was the last straw." —NPR ([link removed])
*
* — "The law gives even foolish men the right to defend their lives." Writing in The Atlantic, David French supported the Rittenhouse verdict but offered this balanced take: "An acquittal does not make a foolish man a hero. A political movement that turns a deadly and ineffective vigilante into a role model is a movement that is courting more violence and encouraging more young men to recklessly brandish weapons in dangerous places, and that will spill more blood in America's streets." Indeed. —The Atlantic ([link removed])

MORE: Ahmaud Arbery murder trial: Prosecutor rejects self-defense claims —The Wall Street Journal ([link removed])


** Rubin: Stop calling it 'polarization'
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"While it's true that the country is more deeply divided along partisan lines than it has been in the past, it is wrong to suggest a symmetrical devolution into irrational hatred. The polarization argument too often treats both sides as equally worthy of blame, characterizing the problem as a sort of free-floating affliction (e.g., 'lack of trust'). This blurs the distinction between a Democratic Party that is marginally more progressive in policy positions than it was a decade ago, and a Republican Party that routinely lies, courts violence, and seeks to define America as a White Christian nation." —Jennifer Rubin in ([link removed]) The Washington Post ([link removed])

Jennifer Rubin is an attorney and political opinion columnist at
The Washington Post.

MORE: Republicans' vilification of Trump critics is 'ruining' the U.S., says governor —The Guardian ([link removed])


** 'A horrible and senseless act'
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A treasured rite of the holiday season turned into a scene of mayhem yesterday afternoon as a speeding vehicle plowed into the annual Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin, killing five people and injuring more than 40 others. Authorities say a red SUV broke through the parade barriers and struck dozens of individuals participating in the parade as well as members of the crowd. The vehicle was recovered, and a suspect is in custody, charged with five counts of murder. The suspect, who has a criminal record, was reportedly fleeing another incident. No known connection to international or domestic terrorism has been established, and the tragedy does not appear to be connected to the Kyle Rittenhouse verdict in Kenosha. —Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ([link removed])


** Tufekci: The single most important lesson of COVID-19
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"We need a new public spirit: more people willing to recognize things aren't going to get better unless we fight for it. It's not easy, but we have nothing to lose but a lot of wooden-headedness and the next catastrophic failure. If this path could be taken, we already have everything we need—wealth, science, technology, know-how. It might not mean the end of pandemics, but it could mean there's not another one like this." —Zeynep Tufekci in ([link removed]) The New York Times ([link removed])

Zeynep Tufekci is a
New York Times opinion columnist, an associate professor of sociology at the University of North Carolina, and the author of "Twitter and Tear Gas: The Power and Fragility of Networked Protest."

MORE: U.S. COVID-19 deaths in 2021 surpass last year's toll —The Hill ([link removed])
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** Balz: If Americans hate gerrymandering, why doesn't anyone fix it?
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"Gerrymandering is the root of much that is wrong in politics, or so many Americans believe. But left in the hands of politicians—politicians of either major party—the opportunity to use the process of drawing congressional and legislative district lines for partisan gain is irresistible. … With the balance of power in Congress shifting every few elections, the high-minded calls for a less partisan approach to redistricting are being lost this year. For politicians in both parties and for their rank-and-file loyalists, maintaining or gaining that power is seen as more important than ever—and certainly more important than how maps are drawn." —Dan Balz in ([link removed]) The Washington Post ([link removed])

Dan Balz is the chief
Washington Post correspondent covering national politics, the presidency, and Congress.

MORE: As gerrymanders get worse, options to overturn them get weaker —The New York Times ([link removed])


** Focus on the Halifax International Security Forum
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A major national security conference in Canada this weekend was designed to rally the world's democracies against autocratic forces. And as expected, critics fired away at China, Russia, and other backsliding nations. Yet some of the harshest words were reserved for the U.S. Current and former diplomats and officials expressed fears and doubts about the health of American democracy and questioned Washington's international commitments. "The U.S. is by far the most important of the Western democracies," said Malcolm Turnbull, former prime minister of Australia. "We all have a vested interest in the health of American democracy. So, yeah, I think it is a real concern." ([link removed])
* — A major focus of the conference was the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Many foreign officials saw it as a betrayal of Washington's commitment to the country's struggling democracy. "We have been sold out to terrorists," said Sabrina Saqeb, a former member of the Afghan parliament. "There is an acknowledgment by the members of our delegation that the U.S. has let partners down in a number of aspects," said Sen. Joni Ernst, one of a bipartisan group of six U.S. senators in attendance. ([link removed])
*
* — "The rest of the world looked at Jan. 6 and was shattered." The insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was another major topic of concern. "When you see the absolute essential foundations of the democracy being challenged from within, and where you see a political party, the Republican Party—not all of them, but many of them—actually challenging the constitutional institutions on which this great democracy of well over two centuries depends, that's what really undermines public international faith in American democracy," said Turnbull. ([link removed])
*
* — China's worsening predatory behavior was another conference topic. Sen. Chris Coons suggested that the best way for the U.S. to counter Beijing is to "take decisive actions to heal our own democracy." The Jan. 6 attack "emboldened Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, autocrats around the world, those who wish us ill," Coons added. "I do feel like there's no ground for cockiness. Sometimes a little bit of humility actually enables you to make better connections with other nations because we're not really in a position to lecture," said Sen. Tim Kaine. —Politico ([link removed])

MORE: Axios AM Deep Dive: America's great reset —Axios ([link removed])


** Stapleton: What the Summit for Democracy must accomplish
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"A global democratic alliance must speak with a clear, unequivocal voice. No nation can accomplish the summit's objectives alone. This will require a team effort and a comprehensive approach for the next several decades. Progress may be slow, but impatience must be rejected. A sustained and committed effort will showcase a steely determination to succeed. This kind of resilience will strengthen democratic movements on every continent. An unshakeable resolve will be incredibly powerful." —John Stapleton in ([link removed]) The Hill ([link removed])

John Stapleton is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the managing editor at the International Republican Institute. He is a former senior professional staff member at the Foreign Affairs Committee and senior adviser at the Committee on Homeland Security in the U.S. House of Representatives.

MORE: Democracy slipping away at record rate, intergovernmental body warns —Reuters ([link removed])

Here's an experiment. Craft a 20-page paper titled "A Solution to America's Immigration Problem." (A length of 20 pages will discourage most people from actually reading it.) Now put a title page on it that says it comes from the Republican National Committee. Give a copy to a diehard Republican and another copy to a diehard Democrat. Ask them to read it and tell you what they think. I predict the Republican will respond favorably, and the Democrat unfavorably. Now wait two weeks. Give the same two people the same paper but with a title page that says it comes from the Democratic National Committee. Again, ask for their opinions. I predict the Republican will find it unreasonable, and the Democrat will find it reasonable. In our politically polarized nation, source means more than content. We must admit to this problem and find a way to overcome it. —Tim P., New Mexico

So true, Lee A. of Utah. The official Republican platform for 2020 was... nothing. The Republican Party no longer exists: only the party of Trump (POT). That's why we former Republicans, former Democrats, and independents support Evan McMullin and SUR. —Dave M., Colorado
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** The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Stand Up Republic Foundation.
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