Ambition is a human trait assumed by the nation’s founders and incorporated into their design of our system, which pits ambition against ambition to check and balance power. Ambition can lead men and women to say things they don’t believe, to the detriment of their character. But his temptation also represents the more general triumph of a dangerous type of politics — the politics of delegitimization. This is the type of politics that Hawley is enabling — a form of politics that abolishes politics. This begins with a simple and sad recognition: The ambitions of this knowledgeable, talented young man are now a threat to the republic.

Source: Washington Post December 31, 2020 20:39 UTC