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The biblical Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse thundered in on Election Day.

Almost as if they conspired to make now-President-elect Donald Trump win, two are Democrats and two are Republicans. The four played distinct roles in a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions.

The first Horseman is, of course, President Joe Biden, like aged King Lear hanging onto his crown past his prime -- and time. Biden, an unpopular ruler of the realm, broke his promise to be a one-term president, a transition to the next generation.

He vainly deluded himself: "I'm still the only person to ever beat Donald Trump."

Nobody stopped him. His wife, Jill, egged Joe on. Life was good in the White House. Then the terrible June 27 debate crashed his party in their tracks -- all except Biden. He had to be pushed off the heath by party elders.

On July 21, Biden withdrew from reelection and opened the way for Vice President Kamala Harris to become the Democratic nominee. She gamely took on the challenge in the short time she had. However, her competitive political chops in a national election fell short against Trump's Anger Nation.

Think of the outstanding talent that missed out on a fair and open primary contest had Biden kept his word. Four governors come to mind as formidable candidates: Gavin Newsom (Calif.), Gretchen Whitmer (Mich.), Josh Shapiro (Pa.) and Andy Beshear (Ky.). That could make you cry.

Three other Horsemen were indispensable in electing Trump and should be shamed. In history's court, they are Attorney General Merrick Garland, Chief Justice John Roberts and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.

Garland, 71, and Roberts, 69, are Harvard men -- with Harvard College and Harvard Law School degrees. That gives a glimmer into our elite justice system.

Playing Hamlet, Garland hesitated and let many months go by until he acted upon Trump inciting mob violence against Congress to overturn the 2020 election.

Garland only opened a special counsel investigation into the Jan. 6 insurrection after then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi appointed a House Select Committee, which in 2022 held public hearings based on interviews with hundreds of witnesses. However, their fact findings did not give Congress the power to prosecute Trump.

Only in November 2022, near the halfway mark of Biden's presidency, did Garland take appropriate action against Trump. It turned out to be too little, too late. Once again, Democrats bring too little, too late to the ring of politics as blood sport.

In 2023, Jack Smith, the special prosecutor, announced two federal criminal indictments: one for the attack on the nation's Capitol, and a second charging Trump improperly took top secret documents when he left office.

Roberts appears a genial man of reason, yet he has a warrior side he conceals well. Remember, Shakespeare told us, "the prince of darkness is a gentleman."

In July, his Republican Supreme Court created, for the first time, a curious doctrine of absolute presidential immunity for "core" official functions. That handed Trump an enormous victory, running out the clock on the most serious pending case: inciting an insurrection.

Out of four criminal cases against Trump, just one, a New York state trial for election interference, ever made it to a jury verdict: guilty. All will soon be dismissed and vanish into the ether.

Then there's McConnell, 82, who detests Trump and wept at the insurrection. He gave a speech saying Trump bore the blame for the Capitol rioters. Pure preachy phony Polonius.

Tragically, McConnell had a chance to make it right, when the impeachment trial came to the Senate from the House.

To convict Trump, 67 votes were needed. Fifty-seven senators voted to convict, including seven Republicans. In high stakes, McConnell ducked the chance to vote against Trump himself and bring nine other Republicans to cross the bridge. The leader could have been a hero; conviction would have blocked Trump from ever running again.

But McConnell caved.

Back to Biden in March 2020, as the pandemic hit. Only by the good grace of South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn, Biden was the chosen one to clear the Democratic field and win Clyburn's home-state primary.

Biden declared he'd choose a Black woman as his running mate, which narrowed the pool considerably. He chose Harris, a weak primary contender.

Thanks, guys. The stage was set.

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The author may be reached at JamieStiehm.com. To find out more about Jamie Stiehm and other Creators Syndicate columnists and cartoonists, please visit creators.com.

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