On his way out the door, former President Joe Biden seemed determined to cause as much trouble as he could for the Democrats. Worse than the pardons and kvetching about being forced off the ticket, Biden threatened to stay involved in politics.

But that’s one thing Democrats don’t have to worry about. Biden became utterly irrelevant at noon on Inauguration Day. The only people who want Biden in the spotlight now are Republicans.

As painful as it is watching President Trump back in the White House, the reckoning for the Democrats will be worse. The party is facing a toxic stew of angry activists, aging leaders, still potent identity politics and a nasty split among its elites. And they are stuck with Kamala Harris as their de facto leader.

It is difficult to overstate how much damage Biden did in his wheezing final moments. He single-handedly destroyed one of the main talking points for the left about Trump and Republicans — that they have no respect for the law. His indiscriminate clemency included a judge who had collected bribes for jailing dozens of children. It also included the perpetrator of the biggest municipal fraud in American history.

His encore, a mass pardoning of his own family members for unknown crimes and political VIPs, even drew condemnation from his own party.

Democrats are left re-litigating the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot as they air their “Trump is a liar” talking point and express overall self-righteous revulsion at his moral failings. Unfortunately for them, their own side has proven to engage in its own dishonesty and venality. Since the public does not pass judgment after carefully weighing the various lies, Democrats are stuck in a dead-end with their hypocritical moral crusade.

In addition, Democrats are hamstrung by........

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