It’s been a few days since Donald Trump militarized the nation’s capital, resulting in a great many arrests. One, however, stands out.
The defendant’s name is Sean Charles Dunn, but you might know him as “sandwich guy.” According to the criminal complaint filed against him, Dunn — a military veteran and Justice Department lawyer — had a confrontation earlier this week with a Customs and Border Protection agent. There was some shouting, culminating in Dunn, as the complaint put it, “forcefully” throwing a “sub-style sandwich” at the agent.
Former Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, who’s now the top prosecutor in Washington, D.C., has charged the sandwich guy with felony assault. Dunn has also been fired from his job at the Department of Justice. (According to his lawyer, the government sent 20 police officers to his home on Wednesday night to take him into custody.)
Time will tell what, if anything, comes of this case, but take a moment to consider how some of the relevant players have talked about the alleged crime:
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“Assault a law enforcement officer, and you’ll be prosecuted,” Pirro said.
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“Assaulting a law enforcement officer is a crime. The Trump Administration will always stand up for law enforcement officers and hold those accountable who seek to do them harm,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said.
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“If you touch any law enforcement officer, we will come after you. … You will NOT work in this administration while disrespecting our government and law enforcement,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said.
Towards the end of the first “Zoolander” movie, Will Ferrell’s Mugatu character becomes overwhelmed by the madness around him. “Doesn’t anybody notice this?” the exasperated character says. “I feel like I’m taking crazy pills!”
I had a similar reaction seeing Team Trump’s reaction to the charges against the sandwich guy.
I can’t speak to the merits of the case against Dunn. Maybe the bread was stale, making the sub more dangerous? Maybe Dunn has the throwing strength of a major league pitcher? All of that will be sorted out in court.
But on Jan. 6, 2021, a whole lot of insurrectionist rioters violently clashed with police officers, and many of them ended up in prison. Donald Trump handed each of them presidential pardons.
“Assault a law enforcement officer, and you’ll be prosecuted,” Pirro said. What she neglected to mention is that after the prosecution, if the president decides he approves of the motivation of those who committed the assault, they’ll be shielded from any consequences for their actions.
“The Trump Administration will always stand up for law enforcement officers and hold those accountable who seek to do them harm,” the White House said, conveniently overlooking the time Trump decided not to hold felons accountable for attacking law enforcement officers.
But Bondi’s rhetoric — “You will NOT work in this administration while disrespecting our government and law enforcement” — was especially amazing because just last week the public saw video evidence of a former FBI agent named Jared Wise encouraging his fellow rioters to “kill” police officers on Jan. 6.
Months after he received a Trump pardon, Wise was hired to work in Bondi’s Justice Department — which, when asked about Wise’s record of endorsing deadly violence against cops, referred to him as “a valued member” of the DOJ.
In recent months, Team Trump has repeatedly acted as if Jan. 6 either didn’t happen or has already been forgotten. This week, however, the pattern descended into farce.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
