No no, I was sarcastically re-hashing an actual Ben Shapiro talking point above, sorry. I was assuming b_b was also joking, because Trump's state of mind was/is glaringly obvious, as handled in your second paragraph. Any defense of Trump is increasingly laughable and can be more and more easily dismantled, thanks in no small part to the J6 committee and the hearings.

I have indeed been watching. I thought Sydney Powell's taped deposition shown yesterday was particularly enlightening, because in true MAGA fashion, she clearly has zero remorse. Not like "so I was wrong about the Hugo Chavez thing, and it's unfortunate that we never found evidence of widespread voter fraud", but like "white house OLC was too pussy to help decapitate our democracy that day, yeah, it suckedddd". She knows it was all lies, and she always knew. And that's undoubtedly every single person on "Team Crazy". Including Trump.

Seriously though, fuck everyone who says "Trump truly believes his own lies" or "He lives in an alternate reality". Because (and you're not going to BELIEVE this:) that's another one of his lies, and an important one to avoid parroting, because it'll be his legal strategy.

The coup attempt is ongoing.

edit: Oh, and everyone lauding Mike Pence for not helping Trump? He must have seriously flirted with going along with it, if he was repeatedly meeting with John Eastman and/or Jeffrey Clark up to and on Jan. 5th. No one could listen to Eastman's "constitutional legal theories" without immediately realizing that what he's asking for is not only obviously illegal, but flies in the face of the spirit of the constitution. Sophisticated or not, I think we were a lot closer to a palace coup than is comfortable to admit.

edit2: it's more likely that the meetings were ordered by Trump. More possible evidence of orchestration and intent. That's an obvious 'plead-the-fifth' question for everyone, maybe until any plea bargains, approaching sentencing. A president doing literally everything he could do to stay in office, legally or illegally, doesn't matter. Recruiting literally anyone willing to help him, as long as they would tell his lies for him. ..but who wouldn't do that, amirite?? ARE YOU A BETA, BRO?!?!??

  [reported]

edit3: ok so these two texts, chef's kiss, between Brad Parscale and Katrina Pierson on the evening of J6:

Parscale: This week I feel guilty for helping him win [in 2016]

Pierson: You did what you felt right at the time and therefore it was right

I love that. This is perhaps a pinnacle form of moral permissions! "I was quite certain the _________s all needed to magically vanish, and slave labor is fantastic for production, so can you really blame me?". Very MAGA.