You would think that the Jimmy Kimmel affair might have given President Donald Trump pause about his “retribution” campaign. After being cocky in the week when Kimmel was off the air, MAGA operatives were surprised when he returned to late-night television. Furthermore, his ratings were higher than ever, so high that Sinclair and NEXSTAR instructed their affiliates to rescind their ban on Kimmel’s show.

But the lessons were not learned. Trump then turned his fury on James Comey, former FBI Director. He was indicted on vague and thin charges, with a rookie prosecutor handling the case. Comey immediately met the challenge and showed little fear. Moreover, he welcomed a trial while Trump once more returned to Truth Social and launched a tiring screed against Comey. Of course, Fox followed the White House lead without fear or evidence.

Why Trump chose this course is a mystery. Comey is a skilled lawyer with no shortage of friends. He comes over as a Jimmy Stewart character, a straight shooter. Furthermore, more than anyone, he made Trump’s 2016 election possible. Kimmel proved a tough target; Comey is already formidable. It is a thin beef that carries more risk than the returns would justify.

Comey is in precisely the same position as Robert Stevens, the Army Secretary, who was challenged by Joseph McCarthy in 1954. McCarthy had nothing but innuendo and bile, which made him vulnerable to attack. To ward off Stevens, he attacked an associate of Stevens’, the highly skilled attorney Joseph Welch. Welch turned it on McCarthy, who tried to bully him by accusing a member of his law firm of having been a member of a communist group in the 1930s. With one line, Welch defanged McCarthy, “Have you no sense of decency, sir?” which was captured on television. Even McCarthy’s legal advisor, Roy Cohn, attempted to dissuade him. Like a catcher, shaking his head at a pitcher, determined to throw a fastball, when a curve would have better served him. Welch parked the ball over the proverbial green monster; after all, he was from Boston.

Retribution campaigns are useless. Success in governing is a far better way to extract revenge. Revenge is a dish best eaten cold; anger is no way to start getting even. Moreover, if it is a form of warfare, as Steven Bannon constantly stresses, the retribution efforts are tactically flawed. Kimmel was a village, vulnerable and small, and he won anyway. Comey, by comparison, is like the Rock of Gibraltar, both invulnerable and strong. Trump will be well advised to let the matter drop.

Even Richard Nixon had John Mitchell, an excellent lawyer and a strong Attorney General; Pam Bondi is not in his class, and Mitchell eventually was overwhelmed by Watergate. Trump continues to dig a hole when he should be vigorously conducting his administration. The indictment could damage his prestige and possibly derail his second term.