Dems have abandoned all principle by telegraphing approval of some rioting

Some, such as the excitable Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), are cheering the prospect of another round of Black Lives Matter riots, er, “peaceful protests,” if the Derek Chauvin trial doesn’t go their way. They’re also up in arms about a new Florida law that strengthens punishment for those who take to the streets to commit violence. Yet some of the same progressives are also demanding that authorities throw the book at Trump supporters who participated in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. They’re also on board with the DC authorities stonewalling demands for more information on the officer who shot and killed one of those entering the US Capitol. The double standard is overt and infuriating: One group of demonstrators, the left says, should be permitted to commit mayhem. Another group deserves to be locked up as seditious insurrectionists, and the police-involved killing of one of them can and must be brushed aside. It’s the clearest indication that the modern left subordinates all principles to the distinction between political friend and enemy: The Democratic Party sees itself allied with one group of violent demonstrators. That group’s excesses must be tolerated as an understandable reaction to racial injustice; the enemy must be punished.