Americans like to see politics as a magical realm where there’s always some agency beyond or outside of our actual political institutions: “they.” In the current clusterf*ck, Republicans, who are action-oriented and mired in a conspiratorial mindset, think of this “they” as a sort of evil executive: They’re manipulating us! They won’t let the police / military do their job! They’re destroying our institutions! Democrats, on the other hand, who are married to a naive faith in legislatures and courts, think this “they” is deliberative and good: They should impeach Trump! They should subpoena! They should hold him in contempt! The problem with “they” is that either (a) there isn’t a they or (b) there is. If there isn’t a they, they aren’t going to do anything, are they? But if there is a they that can remove Trump from office, then we have a serious new political force on our hands. I don’t know the solution, of course, but I do know this: Every time you hear “they should,” ask yourself: (1) Who’s this they? (2) Based on what you know about them, are they really going to do that? And (3), if they do it, what else could they do? For example, based on what you know about this Congress, are they really going to impeach Trump? No. Or, based on what you know, is some mysterious combination of the FBI, the CIA, and the NSA really going to depose the president? I doubt it, but if they did, what else could they do? Politics isn’t magic, and there’s no “they.” So try saying we, as is “we should.” Then ask yourself the same three questions.