Republicans (apparently) agree Trump should be prosecuted and held accountable

Great news, everybody. It turns out Republicans ARE in favor of former President Donald Trump being prosecuted and held accountable!

I never thought such a thing possible. When news broke Tuesday that Trump had received a target letter from special counsel Jack Smith relating to the federal investigation into attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election, most GOP lawmakers parroted the former president’s conspiratorial rantings.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy railed inaccurately: “If you notice, recently President Trump went up in the polls and was actually surpassing President Biden for reelection. So what do they do now? Weaponize government, go after their No. 1 opponent.”

'Outrageous' and 'ridiculous,' if it's happening to Donald Trump

Florida Rep. Byron Donalds said, without offering a hint of evidence: “This is outrageous and Jack Smith is out of control.”

And Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said: “Yeah, it’s absolute bullsh-t. Yeah, that’s my reaction. This is the only way that the Democrats have to beat President Trump is to arrest him, smear him, charge him with ridiculous charges.” (That statement overlooks the fact that Joe Biden cleanly beat Trump in the 2020 election, and that the charges are coming from grand juries, not Democrats.)

On Wednesday, during a House Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing regarding the investigation of Hunter Biden, that very same Marjorie Taylor Greene said: “I would also like to say that when evidence and proof of a crime is presented, no prosecution should be denied no matter who the person is.”

Thanks for the free campaign ad! Marjorie Taylor Greene compares Biden to FDR, LBJ.

Republicans' desire for accountability is very case-specific

And Rep. James Comer of Kentucky, the committee head, started the hearing by saying: “This is an important joint effort that shows the American people that accountability matters regardless of your last name.”

That's two key phrases from two key Republican members of Congress: “no matter who the person is” and “regardless of your last name.”

President Joe Biden’s son has been investigated and charged with federal offenses. Last month, Hunter Biden agreed to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges and enter a diversion program to avoid prosecution on a gun charge.

Biden didn't call the investigation a witch hunt and didn't bellyache about the charges. And I and most liberals have long said: If Hunter Biden broke the law, prosecute him. Heck, if Joe Biden broke the law, prosecute him. That's the way it's supposed to work.

Comer and Greene and Co. are free to continue their hunt for something – anything – tying Hunter Biden’s crimes to the president, but so far they lack anything close to, in Greene’s words, “evidence and proof of a crime.”

With Trump, how much more evidence do you need?

For Trump, on the other hand, there has been enough “evidence and proof of a crime” to persuade two grand juries to indict him on more than 70 state and federal charges. There was enough “evidence and proof of a crime” for a New York jury in May to find Trump liable for sexually abusing and defaming E. Jean Carroll.

In fact, the judge in that case issued an opinion Wednesday clarifying that what the jury found was that Trump raped Carroll.

Gone in 60 seconds: At FBI director hearing, Republican conspiracies about Biden go 'POOF!'

In denying Trump a new trial, Judge Lewis Kaplan wrote: "The finding that Ms. Carroll failed to prove that she was 'raped' within the meaning of the New York Penal Law does not mean that she failed to prove that Mr. Trump 'raped' her as many people commonly understand the word 'rape.' Indeed, as the evidence at trial ... makes clear, the jury found that Mr. Trump in fact did exactly that."

So since, as Comer said, accountability matters regardless of your last name, he and his congressional colleagues should agree that Trump must pay Carroll $5 million, as ordered by the jury.

By Republicans' own words, Trump must be prosecuted, right?

And now, with the target letter signaling an all-but-certain indictment in the special counsel's case, how could someone like Greene possibly label the prosecution “bullsh-t?

I mean, in her words, not mine, “When evidence and proof of a crime is presented, no prosecution should be denied no matter who the person is.”

Glad to see Republicans have come around on this. Let the accountability begin.

Follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on Twitter @RexHuppke and Facebook facebook.com/RexIsAJerk

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's defenders in GOP say they support prosecution, just not his