I hear people say things like “if Obama (or anyone left of Republicans) did what Trump did, there would be hell to pay.”
Why isn’t that argument taken more seriously by people on the left as an implicit admission that the left is politically weaker or less effective at wielding power?
If one side “can’t get away with” actions that the other can, doesn’t that suggest a real imbalance rather than moral superiority?
I interpret that sentiment completely differently from how you seem to. “Democrats would never get away with this” to me is not a statement about the Republican Party’s ability to wield power more effectively than Democrats, rather it is a statement about how Democrat Politicians and their constituents would never allow their leaders to behave the way Republican leaders do. Respect and belief in the core principles of American democracy, rather than a willingness to use technicalities and loopholes to win at any cost, is required and expected of Democrats by Democrats in a way that is not expected of or by Republicans.
I read it more that Democrats couldn’t push boundaries because conservative media is much stronger at pushing talking points, and would jump on a democratic Senate removing the filibuster even more than they did with Obama’s tan suit. Fox is powerful enough to influence other news media and the many centrist voters.