The Rittenhouse Verdict Will Backfire on Republicans

Today on TAP: Most Americans do not feel safer in a society policed by vigilantes—and the conviction in the Arbery case demonstrates that justice is sometimes served.

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The jury acquittal of self-appointed vigilante Kyle Rittenhouse left far-right militias and Republican Trumpers chortling. Seemingly, this win was a trifecta. It vindicates the strategy of enacting self-defense, open-carry, and stand-your-ground laws. It makes a hero of Rittenhouse. It intensifies the racist maneuver of leaving Blacks at the mercy of rogue cops and private militiamen, making it harder for Biden to keep faith with African American demands for justice without scaring off whites.

The right has gone to town with its dog-whistle messages caricaturing AP English classes that assign Toni Morrison as anti-parent; contending that the Democrat Party favors defunding the police; and claiming that the abstruse body of critical race theory is being used to brainwash public-school students. Now the Rittenhouse verdict seemingly adds another arrow to the quiver. 

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When Biden tried to walk the racial tightrope after the Rittenhouse verdict, he issued a tepid statement that seemed to emphasize the importance at keeping protest peaceful more than outrage at the verdict. It began: “While the verdict in Kenosha will leave many Americans feeling angry and concerned, myself included, we must acknowledge that the jury has spoken. I ran on a promise to bring Americans together, because I believe that what unites us is far greater than what divides us.” This mild criticism only further enflamed many Blacks without weakening Republican strategy. 

But think a little harder. Most Americans do not feel safer with 17-year-old trigger-happy vigilantes patrolling their communities with AR-15s. If Kyle Rittenhouse is the new face of the Republican Party, that’s a win for Democrats.

Most of the white American public is less racist than Republicans would like to believe. The murder convictions in the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery demonstrate that even in the Deep South vigilantes are not invariably given impunity. After the police murder of George Floyd, two-thirds of Americans approved of the Movement for Black Lives. That approval has declined some, but has stabilized at around 55 percent. After former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of Floyd’s murder in May 2021, three-quarters of Americans approved of the verdict.

Early polls show that a majority of Americans were uneasy about the Ritttenhouse acquittal. A YouGov poll found that a large majority of Democrats and a plurality of independents felt Rittenhouse was guilty of murder. 

A Morning Consult poll found that 71 percent of Republicans but only 43 percent of all those polled approved of the verdict. A plurality also said the verdict gave them less confidence in the criminal justice system. 

The strategy of lionizing vigilantes like Rittenhouse may deepen Republican support in hardcore Trump country. It will be a gift to Democrats in suburban swing districts where the 2022 midterms will be decided.

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