The Dems have to keep this going and keep attacking the cops because they have nothing else for their base to get worked up over.
I’m not sure it works that way here.
Is there ANY Republican in the chain of command/authority ( real or perceived) to blame?
I don’t think there is. And there are a bunch of Republicans who have been outspoken over these kinds of capabilities and the possibility of them being abused. Since January 2009 it’s been the Obama Admin thats been putting MRAPS into the hands of local police forces.
The Dems own this mess, IMHO.
Also, consider that civil unrest can turn out people who will vote more Conservative.
Nixon (not a Conservative, but more conservative than his Dem opponents) capitalized pretty well on the uprising at the 68 Dem convention and resulting “police riot”, then did the same after the ‘72 Miami convention disturbances.