I suppose the problem with it is that such "protest theater" could only work if the people who support the regime are capable of empathy for those who are objec

I suppose the problem with it is that such "protest theater" could only work if the people who support the regime are capable of empathy for those who are objecting. In this case the opposite is true - this administration won on an explicit platform of retribution against political enemies of the right and an erosion of the constitutional order. Which is to say... they're getting what they wanted. Presumably every reminder that they're causing distress amongst people they are targeting will only increase their satisfaction.