Great essay JL. I can feel your bewilderment. I too, despite having studied this situation for a while, am gobsmacked by how the GOP was turned into the Gestapo Operatives Party virtually overnight. We are in for a couple more wild years to come, as the rule of law grinds against the continued fascist sentiments in our nation. My recent piece may interest you: https://medium.com/@daneke/full-frontal-fascism-what-is-really-at-stake-in-the-trump-trial-a74d8c3503a4 and thank you for following me.