Strangely, when my grandmother used to babysit for my wild cousin, she would occasionally give him an unexpected spank. She would say, “that’s for something you might do later that I will not see.” I never quite understood her thinking, how the punishment could precede the bad deed.

It’s always been the norm in society for a wrong to be discovered first, which would spur an investigation. Then, if the defendant was proven guilty, punishment would follow.

But the Democrats seem to have taken a page from my grandmother’s playbook.

Before the Democrats launch this investigation, they should be able to first identify a crime. I mean, isn’t that the way it’s supposed to work in America?

Instead, Democrats will investigate and punish first as they search for a crime – Russian style.

Democrats, who once tried to protect Mueller’s investigation as if it were something sacred, are now crushed by the fact that he has come up empty-handed and they’ve abandoned him.

He must have missed something, we need to conduct another investigation. Isn’t that double jeopardy?

Mueller had tremendous resources at his disposal, access to classified FBI and DOJ documents and a team of 17 highly trained, full-time prosecutors, all of whom are Democrats. They have worked for 22 months and have conducted a thorough investigation.

What is it specifically that House Democrats believe Mueller’s team may have overlooked?

To justify their investigations, Democrats point to the “endless investigations” conducted by House Republicans over Hillary Clinton’s role in the Benghazi attacks.

They’re forgetting about the treasure trove of evidence in that case starting with four dead Americans. Unwilling to admit six weeks before a close election that they hadn’t crushed Al Qaeda after all, Hillary and Obama falsely blamed the attacks on an anti-Islam video. It was clear Hillary knew immediately it was a terrorist attack, because she had told her daughter so in an email as events were unfolding that night. There were records of Ambassador Christopher Stevens’ repeated requests for additional security. She and Obama then sent Susan Rice to appear on four Sunday talk shows to lie about the cause of the attacks. They had the producer of the video arrested and even placed ads, complete with the US Embassy Seal, on Pakistani television condemning “that awful anti-Islam video.” Their wrongdoing could not have been any clearer. Thus, an investigation followed.

Before being allowed to waste more taxpayer funds to look for a crime they can’t yet name, they should be required to provide their rationale for it.

Because nobody has the authority to stop House Democrats from pursuing the new investigations into every aspect of the President’s life, they will proceed.

But they will pay a price for their overreach. The Wall Street Journal’s Holman Jenkins, Jr., who is a Never-Trumper, sums it up best.

[I wonder if Democrats] understand how apparent their cynicism will be to millions of middle-of-the-road voters.

Americans, after hearing Russia, Russia, Russia for 24 months, will not fail to notice that Mr. Trump is being assailed over routine financial and tax matters that nobody thought worth investigating before he became president.

Add it all up, and the end result of Democratic efforts may be only to reinforce the public’s sense that something is seismically out of whack in Washington and that Donald Trump remains the available antidote.