These aren't different bad things. They are the same bad thing! Trump wouldn't be able to blackmail Assange without credibly threatening him in the first place.

These aren't different bad things. They are the same bad thing! Trump wouldn't be able to blackmail Assange without credibly threatening him in the first place. No previous president has countenanced a prosecution so extremist in its attacks on basic journalism and whistleblowing. Even Obama, who certainly was trending in that direction, stopped before he got to this point. His administration didn't "set up" this prosecution because he correctly saw it as a threat to the freedom of the press. [0] Yet, somehow the legions of nattering Trump opponents who pretend to accept nothing he does have fallen into line completely with this outrageous miscarriage of justice. Some of them probably are stupid enough to think they oppose Trump by enjoying Assange's plight. [EDIT:] They aren't all that stupid, and weasel words like "To be clear, I don't think that's the case here" are a good sign of that. [0] https://theintercept.com/2018/11/16/as-the-obama-doj-concluded-prosecution-of-julian-assange-for-publishing-documents-poses-grave-threats-to-press-freedom/ https://theintercept.com/2018/11/16/as-the-obama-doj-conclud...