Being a Republican isn't easy. One has to decide whether to stay with a party with whom I am in general agreement but turn tail at the sight of blood. Or go with the Opposition Party, with whom I am completely at odds but who are fighters. The spirit says go with the Democrat warriors; but the mind says no, stay with the Republican wimps.

The Dems have been shouting from the rooftops the day the Repubs claimed the presidency about the Trump/Russian election collusion. Somehow, in some unexplained way, this fanciful partnership cost Hillary the White House. As of this writing that was four months ago and they show no sign of letting up.

The Repubs' response to this unrelenting barrage is to whine about how the Dems are interfering with Trump's agenda and if they don't quit, then they will. That'll teach them.

Specifically, take Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (Please!). During the primaries, Ryan never missed a chance to rise from the weeds and bite Trump in the backside.

And when there was an opportunity to support the self-made billionaire, who was plowing through a field of 16 of the party's best, he remained as silent as a shadow.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had a different strategy. He was mute saying nothing favorable or otherwise. That's called being shrewd.

However, after Trump became No. 45 they, Ryan and McConnell, had a religious epiphany. They saw the light and sided with the President. At best they are fair-weather friends, and the water is getting choppy.

Storm clouds gathered over the Repubs when Trump unceremoniously cashiered James Comey, who is in the running to be the worst Director of the FBI---ever.

Keep in mind that immediately after the election the Dems blamed Comey for their loss. However, after their former nemesis got the boot, they pivoted 180 degrees and portrayed Comey's fall from grace as precipitating a crisis in government.

Comey's now on a revenge offensive. Eight days after he was terminated, he went public claiming that Trump asked him to “go easy” on the General Flynn investigation. This is supported by a memo Comey supposedly wrote on February 14 immediately after Trump's putative offer.

If Comey is correct, he is guilty of a felony. The law requires that any attempt to obstruct a federal investigation be reported immediately, not four months after the fact. Instead, Comey waited until after he was fired to seek not justice but revenge.

But during a congressional hearing on May 3, Comey stated under oath that no one had ever asked him to stop an investigation. Which story are you going with, Jim?

But no matter. Trump is guilty by default.

"We cannot have this constant chaos and serious questions being raised virtually every single day," said Sen. Susan Collins (R) who voiced an all too common sentiment among the GOP. She continued, "It is distracting from the ability to work on certain issues like health care reform, and the administration needs to get its house in order."

That's right Collins; it's Trump's fault. He “needs to get [his] house in order.”

Ryan, as expected, played it safe sitting on the fence: "We need the facts,” said he. McConnell stuck to his original game plan; silent Mitch said nothing. Neither Ryan nor McConnell gave their C in C the presumption of innocence.

Even noted Republican columnist Charles Krauthammer, a never Trumper, said, “I think what’s really stunning is that nobody, not even from the White House has come out in defense of the president here. You got an anonymous statement [Comey's memo], we don’t see any Republicans on camera.”

The latest in the Dems' scandal machine is that Trump gave “highly classified” information to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, according to a report in the Washington Post. The article cites anonymous sources as evidence of the intrigue. However, these unnamed sources are refuted by four witnesses who were present at the controversial Oval Office meeting.

Russian President Vladimir Putin described the clash between reality and the Trump/Russian conspiracy as “political schizophrenia.” Putin offered a complete transcript of the entire Trump-Lavrov exchange.

The fight card: Anonymous sources vs. named and quoted witnesses plus an unredacted transcript of the conversation between the two principles. The decision: It's unanimous; Trump loses.

But the Repubs still have a chance.

If the Republicans can exchange a Democrat warrior like Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi for her counterpart on the other side of the aisle, the treacherous Paul Ryan; and switch a Democrat give-no-quarter Minority Leader Chuck Schumer for his Republican counterpart, the fainthearted Mitch McConnell, then the Republicans will have a fighting chance.

I know. I know. It's a long shot.

Bob Scroggins

New Milford, PA