It'd be amazing if people could give literally *any thought at all* to why the rule of law -- not to mention some shared reference to empirical reality -- is intrinsic to the project of democracy and not just, like, a total buzzkill.
The election results were certified by all 50 states, by officials of both parties. Challenges were denied by judges, again of all different parties, including the Supreme Court Trump himself packed. To the extent that *any* social fact is objectively true, the election result is objectively true.
So the fact that Trump continues to reject the election result and encourages others to do so means that he has excluded himself from our social world. Even leaving aside all his terrible crimes, that in itself should exclude him from participation in the democratic public sphere.
Or in sports. You agree to the rules before hand. If afterwards you’re like no, actually I won bc I didn’t want to follow those rules - that wouldn’t convince anyone. Even on a playground where maybe rules are a bit more vague, and not written laws & constitutions, it’s usually a losing argument.
And yet… there are millions right there with him in that alternative social world he’s built. If nothing else, he is truly the most amazing performance artist of the 21st century!
