'Who else wants to pick up a defamation charge?' Why GOP ducks the Trump-Carroll verdict

Following writer E. Jean Carroll's defamation trial jury's order for Donald Trump to pay $83.3 million in damages — the silence from the Republican Party is worth noting, according to Politico politics editor David Siders.

He writes, "In the past, when prosecutors or the courts have smacked Trump, the former president fumed and the GOP rage machine spun itself into overdrive, framing the court developments as acts of political persecution. In the Carroll case, the first part happened, but not the second."

Former Michigan GOP Executive Director Jason Roe told Politico, "Everyone is just trying to pretend it didn’t happen," which ex-New Hampshire Republican Party chair and anti-Trump Lincoln Project founder Jennifer Horn says is "an acquiescence to the idea that they are going to nominate a despicable human being who has been identified as a sexual abuser."

Though Horn noted that her former party has a "long history of dismissing and demeaning issues that are important to women," it doesn't change the fact that "it’s really, really disappointing to see them be so silent," she said.

On the other hand, GOP strategist Bob Heckman said, "Trump chaos is baked in the cake at this point," which is why the party's collective "reaction was a big yawn."

Siders notes, "There are specific reasons that might be the case. The verdict came late on a Friday, on a big day in border talks in Washington. The presidential primary is down to just Trump and Haley, relieving Trump’s prior competitors of the pressure they once came under to immediately express outrage at the treatment of the frontrunner. And then there are legal matters specific to this case."

The Politico editor reports, "One Republican lawyer and strategist granted anonymity to speak freely, suggested Trump’s defenders would be wise to show some restraint in this instance lest they find themselves in legal peril too: 'Who else wants to pick up a defamation charge?'"

Politico's full report is here.