Imagine being 24 years old and working in the White House.

[Cyrano]

I can only speak for myself, but when I was 24, all of my values and beliefs were not yet fully formed. I didn't yet have enough life experience to know when I was being lied to and scammed. I could easily have been influenced in being steps away from the Oval Office and "The Most Powerful Man in the World." I might well have suspended common sense in such surroundings.

Cassidy Hutchinson was 24 years old. Many here are judging her harshly. Give her a break. You may be 24 now and be judging her by your own life experiences. Or, you may be the fully formed person you are today, and understand how much you didn't grasp when you were 24.

Ease up on her. And keep in mind that for a year or two, her life was at risk and she needed to be guarded around the clock by federal agents. She knew that by talking to the Jan. 6th committee, on live TV, she was putting her life on the line. Would you have done that at 24? And given the number of Trump fascists around today, she may never again feel totally safe.

Anyhow, just some thoughts about her that you may consider before judging her too harshly.

[Deep State Witch]

1. I Think Back To Myself at 24

I was about 2 years into my Federal Employment. Working rotating shifts. I was a GS-7, maybe a GS-9 by that point. There is no way in hell that I would have been in the position that Cassidy Hutchinson was in. One wonders how she got such a high-profile job a couple of years out of college.

(Well, it didn't hurt that she was attractive and reminded TFG of his daughter.)

[BeyondGeography]

2. She's about a year younger than my daughter

My mind reels about her undergoing the kind of stress that Cassidy signed up for.

She’s going up against a guy who powerful Senators won’t oppose in no small part because he and his supporters scare the shit out of them.

If you can’t summon up some respect for her on a human level you’ve let tribal politics get the better of you IMO.

[czarjak]

3. Serious politicians and professionals don't hire twenty-somethings for top office staff. Period.

[Javaman]

6. +1000 nt

[ellisonz]

8. Ageism.

You don't think young people bring talent that elders don't have?

[czarjak]

13. They don't bring experience. Which is what serious politicians and professionals require.

Did not say they couldn't be intelligent. Mark Meadows isn't a serious politician. Trump lackey.

[ellisonz]

15. Experience can be a canard.

Again, young people bring talent, and fresh perspectives.

[czarjak]

16. Yes, absolutely hired for a new outlook on The Donald's Shitshow.

[we can do it]

4. I didn't have the audacity to think I was qualified for that position at 24, just sayin.

[underpants]

5. Christopher Newport grad. I get your point.

And I understand the draw of working in the White House….but…

She knew who these people were (especially Trump) and she came from working for Ted Cruz.

[Cyrano]

7. Many of us grew up in Dem homes. She grew up in a Repub home.

Tends to give you different world views before you reach the point where you can think for yourself.

[gratuitous]

9. And after spending her salad days in that cushy berth

She's decided that she would like to be a regular human being again, please. Sure, she had flunkies at her beck and call, and she was in on high-level meetings with big shots. She adored her boss! But you have to understand, a girl's gotta make a living, and she has a book to sell. Please don't judge her for what she did in getting all those juicy tidbits for her book. When the death threats were being leveled at others, that wasn't really Cassidy's concern. She was in a secure place, protected by all the insulation a job at the White House could offer. It was only later that she found out first-hand what the howler monkeys on the right looked like from the front.

[Hekate]

10. TY for this, Cyrano. Before it was all over, she had discovered the depths of her own conscience...

I’m impressed that she sought out and read Butterfield’s book, to the point that it was well-dogeared, and took to heart his admonition about being able to look yourself in the mirror.

That’s rare to nil in MAGA-world.

[Oldvet]

11. It's a transitional age

But I think 24 is closer reasonable maturity - it's right on the line.

18-23 are all ages when you can be easily influenced still.

Think of it like this: Lewinsky was 22 years old during the Clinton affair.

[TSExile]

14. I have been thinking about that.

Obviously, the circumstances were completely different. But I have been reminded of Monica Lewinsky while watching Cassidy Hutchinson. They even physically resemble each other - dark hair, similar facial features, etc.

[Model35mech]

12. People mature at different rates, and a person's experiences can impact that

Some of us seemingly young, snot nosed kids, had service responsibilities that required acting responsibly for myself and others. That sort of thing will mature a person pretty quick.

I can imagine a 24 year old who has grown into responsibilities and maturity that others aren't asked to achieve by that age.

And for Hutchinson, I can imagine her experience dealing with Trump fallout has pushed her experiences dealing with that well beyond the maturity of most people her age.