The idea that if you lose an election, you should delegitimize the winner, is dangerous business that, once put in motion, can swing out of control. Similarly, if you lose a Supreme Court nomination fight, impugning the court as a whole is no less dangerous.

No party has had clean hands in the last 25 years. Republicans went after Bill Clinton hard, even eventually impeaching him; I vigorously opposed those moves then and pointed fingers at the Republicans for playing a dangerously divisive game that ultimately boomeranged on them.

Today, Hillary Clinton declares that Democrats do not have to be civil until the party wins back a branch of government. Implied in her statement is that the Democrats don’t have to be fair, truthful, or condemn the outrageous actions of fringe groups like Antifa. They do — and her comments have so far only been a gift to Republicans.

I think campaigns should be hard-fought. They should have ideas, and point out the legitimate flaws of opponents. But our democracy must be the envy of the world, not a laughing stock.