Having endured Donald Trump in their faces for nearly a decade now, one would think more Republicans would understand better the man they've kept as their party leader. Instead, they are running to reporters, professing shock and outrage at the cast of dangerous clowns he is tapping to serve in his cabinet. Regarding Pete Hegseth, who Trump nominated to run the Defense Department, an anonymous person linked to Trump's transition team professed "frustration" to the Washington Post, complaining, "He hadn’t been properly vetted."

No level of "vetting" can turn a Fox News host into someone capable of running the world's largest military, but the immediate cause of this complaint appears to be an accusation of sexual assault made against Hegseth in 2017. The details of the allegation are disturbing. According to the Washington Post, a memo sent to the Trump team claims Hegseth "raped the then-30-year-old conservative group staffer in his room after drinking at a hotel bar" after she was tasked with getting the visibly intoxicated man to bed. Hegseth later paid her, in exchange for a non-disclosure agreement, but the Post verified the police had investigated the incident without filing charges. Hegseth claims the sex was consensual.

The ability to commit crimes — even sex crimes — and get away with it is part of the allure of Trumpism.

However cranky members of Trump's team seem to be about this, however, Trump himself continues to be pleased with Hegseth. Maggie Haberman at the New York Times reported Trump is "standing by" Hegseth, and his spokesman........

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