In a normal, healthy political environment, Trump’s Arlington National Cemetery controversy would probably dominate the political conversation for months.

And if Harris were caught up in a similar mess, she’d likely face calls to quit.

If we were to stop the story here, it would already be the basis for a legitimate controversy. Indeed, Esquire published a memorable headline alongside a Charles P. Pierce column this week: “How The Hell Was Trump Allowed To Use Arlington National Cemetery As A Campaign Prop?”

But that was before the story managed to get even worse. NBC News reported:

Arlington National Cemetery on Tuesday confirmed an incident took place when former President Donald Trump visited there Monday to commemorate the third anniversary of the Abbey Gate attacks in Afghanistan. “We can confirm there was an incident, and a report was filed,” the statement read.

The details of what transpired are still coming together. NPR reported, for example, that that two members of Trump’s campaign staff “had a verbal and physical altercation” with an official at Arlington National Cemetery, but that hasn't been independently confirmed by MSNBC or NBC News.

Other relevant details, however, are clear.

“Federal law prohibits political campaign or election-related activities within Army National Military Cemeteries, to include photographers, content creators or any other persons attending for purposes, or in direct support of a partisan political candidate’s campaign,” the statement added. “Arlington National Cemetery reinforced and widely shared this law and its prohibitions with all participants.”.....

I don’t imagine we’ve heard the last of this story, but as it progresses, it’s hard not to wonder what the political world’s reaction might be if a Democratic candidate were caught up in a similar controversy. How many GOP officeholders would call for him or her to quit the race?