In 2010, on the verge of his second run for president, Romney released a book titled No Apology: Believe in America. In which he mentioned not a word — not a solitary word — about the Clinton pardons for pals and terrorists. The Obama pardon of convicted terrorist Oscar Lopez-Rivera would not come until, but of course, Obama was leaving office. (Which raises the question: What did Joe Biden know about the pardon of a Puerto Rican terrorist and when did he know it? Not to mention does Biden support it now?)

What Romney has displayed here — and not for the first time — is either a complete ignorance of this history of Democrats and pardons for pals and terrorists. Or, in view of his silence on Clinton and Obama’s pardons, a hate-Trumpism that is so breathtakingly cynical that he accepts that it was just no big deal when the two Democrat presidents did precisely this — and it was OK because they weren’t Trump. Which would explain why Romney never managed to speak up in opposition.

This issue, in fact, goes far beyond the commutation/pardon issue. It goes straight to the heart of a weak-kneed GOP Establishment that is unbelievably feckless, if not corrupt.