By E. T. Wilson

As tired as I am of Congress and the press prefacing their statements with “Now that we’ve seen the Mueller Report” (we still haven’t, we never will; stop fucking saying that), I think this latest sacrificial lamb at the altar of Trump might have finally exhausted my number of fucks to give.

Attorney General William Barr’s insidious manipulation of the American people’s perception of the investigation following the conclusion of the Mueller Report has demonstrated quite clearly that the last line of defense against tyranny — our own justice system — is now fully and openly toeing the line for the president; and not the country.

He lied to Congress, and he lied to America.

And even if Barr hadn’t reneged on appearing in front of a heavily democratic House, too few members have the brains or the legal chops to trip him up, even if he had.

They put up a show of a fight, I suppose; a few even brought their teeth with them Wednesday morning — like the fiery Senator from Hawaii, Mazie Hirono.

Good on you, Mazie.

Kamala Harris came prepared as well. If nothing else, she exposed that Barr hadn’t even looked at the underlying evidence before deciding not to bring charges against the President on obstruction. Senator Harris definitely had Barr in an uncomfortable position, which unfortunately was rare during the morning’s proceedings.

As I watched the sham and spectacle of a clearly pointless and predetermined dog and pony show — especially the ease with which a professional litigator of Barr’s caliber deflected nearly every incoming threat — I realized that the dream, the fantasy that America is a just and moral land, has nearly been beaten to death.

Now, I realize I have struggled through several rough patches of despondency via the Trump Effect in the past two years — as I am sure many of you have as well — but this feels different.

Perhaps it was Lindsey Graham’s grating, nasal twang assaulting my ears with every “Well, I never!”

Sure you have, princess.

Whenever I see his sagging twat of a face on the TV, all I can imagine as I squint in agony, is the puckered anus he must have had the night the Trump cabal dangled the Kompromat in front of him — the shit they had on him that they were willing to use to destroy his career — if he didn’t perform an immediate about-face, and get in line with the President’s defense.

So now whenever Lindsey gushes for Donny, I just imagine the smoke-filled back room where he learned how to kneel.

I suppose I could replay this lovely remix from today’s hearings in my head, whenever the Senator from South Carolina spreads his orange-tinged lips in a clear effort to slobber on Trump’s misshapen mushroom knob:

I just can’t wrap my head around the willingness of so many republicans to fall on their swords for literally the worst human being in presidential history. This can’t be an ideological allegiance — certainly not from Graham; he blows where the wind takes him.

Barr’s insane role in all of this is even more puzzling.

Unless they know the fix is in.

Democracy may not be dead yet, but when the GOP is done torturing it, I imagine it’ll look like some of our POWs after returning from captivity; hollow shells of their former selves. Democracy will never look the same again.

I don’t know about you, dear reader, but I plan on taking some time this summer to smell the roses — before the stink of this abomination sinks into the topsoil.