Thread by @cmclymer

I've lived in D.C. for the better part of two decades. Nearly my whole adult life. Something folks aren't talking about--a giant elephant in the room--is the amount of "brand protection" going on right now.

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I don't mean fear of Trump or political persecution, although those can overlap.

When I say "brand protection," I mean the things someone in the political arena does to preserve their career longterm. It's not even necessarily "reputation protection," which is a somewhat different vibe.

"Brand protection" is more about not carrying your weight of the overall burden. Let others do the hard work. Let them take the risks of doing the obvious things that need to be done to protect democracy.

Those engaged in "brand protection" are the folks in politics who believe there's a decent chance we'll get through this, but they don't wanna spend any political capital to proactively help because they wanna come out on the other side of this thing stronger than ever, so they stay low-key.

There are a LOT of politicians, journalists, anchors, and pundits doing this right now. Most of these folks are doing at least pretty okay financially. Some of them are doing great. They have solid access, they get big party invites, they're primed for book deals and speaking gigs, promotions, etc.

And they don't wanna mess that up. They don't want this whole fascism thing to derail their timeline or deplete their capital. They've decided to wait it out. Not rock the boat. Throw a soft punch here and there but mostly keep their heads down. They want to preserve their network and their capital.

They are very consciously doing this. It's very much a choice. They're doing just enough to go along and get along and maintain their perch. You will not see them throw haymakers. If they come across what could be a big scoop, it's not enough for it to be airtight; it has to maintain their standing.

There a lot of folks in American politics and media who aren't really trying, not because of concern for their safety or triangulation toward a more important professional priority but literally because doing so would mean risking a slide down the pecking order a few notches.

So, this is all to say: you're not crazy. You're wondering if it's true that much of political media and many folks in political circles are complicit and enabling, or if you're just being too critical. And I'm here to say that you're not being too critical.

Years from now, god willing, when we get through this, there will be stories that come out about these folks covering something up or letting something slide or choosing not to do anything, and I want you to remember a lot of them didn't do it out of fear. They did it out of selfishness.

To them, it's mostly a giant game. And before Trump, it was mostly a giant game with comparatively low stakes. Who cares if you let something slide? It's not like democracy is gonna collapse. But in the Trump era, the consequences are very real, and they've decided to choose their ambition anyway.

It's why I admire folks like Bill Kristol and George Conway and Jen Rubin -- folks with whom, historically, I have not aligned on a number of things. Because they have honor. They chose democracy over their perch. They chose our country over their capital. Many of their colleagues did not.

If you look closely enough and make mental notes, you'll notice some of those who are going along to get along. It's not terribly difficult to track. Sometimes, it's embarrassingly obvious.

So, no, you're not crazy. It's definitely happening, and it's tragic.

/thread