I ran across a reminder of why I reflexively defend Donald Trump against his critics, despite not liking the guy.

The answer is simple: the people going after him are tyrannical liars, or at the very least so blinded by their hatred that they have abandoned reason. And because they hate Trump with a white-hot passion that outshines the sun they are willing to destroy America.

Donald Trump is their Great Orange Whale, and they are determined to kill him whatever it takes. Law, truth and reason all must bend or be broken if the destruction of Trump is the end result.

“Donald Trump is guilty. The only remaining question is what he is guilty of.” Who thinks like that?

Totalitarians, like Soviet Secret Policeman Lavrentiy Beria, who famously said “Show me the man and I will show you the crime” do.

That Max Boot, a prominent neoconservative, could become so twisted that his hatred of Trump that he became a distorted version of a Soviet secret policeman should be amazing, but it is actually quite a common occurrence in the annals of Trump hatred.

Totalitarianism is a small price to pay if Donald Trump is put behind bars.

I do not doubt the essential high-mindedness of many NeverTrumpers. Many of them I once respected as thoughtful men and women, often idealists. Of course, most Trump antagonists are motivated by less noble goals, seizing an opportunity for money or power, or fame. Think the Lincoln Project types making a nice living off of Donald Trump.

Partisan Democrats have an obvious reason to hate Trump and destroy him and his. That they would break the law and undermine American values is quite on brand for them.

What they all have in common is a blindness or indifference to the facts: Donald Trump is many things, but a traitor or insurrectionist he is not.

Moreover, he actually abused his power as president less than most. Perhaps this is so because he was less sophisticated in the ways of Washington than his cosmopolitan predecessor and successor, but the reality is that both Obama and Biden abused the intelligence and justice systems and turned them into their personal Stasi, while Trump did not.

Trump never sent the FBI to raid Hillary Clinton’s or Joe Biden’s house. Guess who did?

Trump SAID “Lock her up,” but left her alone. Biden is actually trying to lock up Trump and has turned the Justice Department into his family’s legal team. His Justice Department just tried to give a plenary “get out of jail free” card to his son by deceiving a judge. Imagine if Trump did such a thing.

I re-read Boot’s piece and one thing stands out above others: most of the “evidence” he marshals is complete tripe, made up by Trump’s enemies. Invented out of whole cloth, or distorted beyond recognition. It is, in a word, embarrassing. Just as embarrassing is that Foreign Policy, an establishment mouthpiece if there ever was one, published this junk.

Except Trump’s opponents, who see themselves as defending decency, have abandoned it and are incapable of embarrassment. How many have apologized to Trump or their own readers for pushing the Steele Dossier? For claiming that Trump colluded with Russia to steal the 2016 election? For any of their crazy theories spun out of the fever dreams spawned by their obsessive hatred of Trump?

None, as far as I know. They still are focused on killing the Great Orange Whale, because that is their mission in life. Nothing else matters, including the burning down of this country.

I have made it quite clear that I do not like Trump and think he is a bad human being. And while I think he is the better choice than Joe Biden in 2024, I sincerely hope that somebody else is the Republican nominee. America can do better.

But Trump’s opponents are far worse still than Trump. Their obsession has led to the self-destruction of the MSM, the utter corruption of our justice system, the FBI lying to the FISA Court, the mass censorship of Americans, and so many other harms to America. Their hysteria has divided the country and led to much unnecessary hatred.

Defending Trump is a tiring and thankless task, like mucking a pigpen. We all wish it didn’t have to be done, and it is easy to resent the pig for crapping where he lives.

But it isn’t the pig’s fault it must be done.

The alternative is to let the crap fester and disease become ineradicable.