So yes, this is a thing. Republican senators who are supposed to be sitting as impartial jurors in the impeachment trial of Donald J. Trump are actively trying to meddle with the Democratic caucus in Iowa by throwing dirt on Joe Biden.

And just so we’re clear, this is dirt. Scott’s ad is one of the most brazenly dishonest political ads you’ll ever see. It doesn’t just cast aspersions. It actually posits a reading of facts that is the opposite of what Scott knows to be the truth.

It’s almost as though Republicans are terrified of Joe Biden and doing everything they can to protect Donald Trump from having to face him in November.