rationalization

Because, as slumping closer Tanner Scott came trotting into a nightmare ninth inning in Baltimore on Saturday night, the club’s color analyst on SportsNet LA immediately tried to offer a rationalization for his entrance.

This form of rationalization and denial is embarrassingly evident in a recent apologia by David Brooks, the New York Times’ notion of an ideal conservative.

She left the Daily Wire late last year, offering only vague rationalizations like, “I am ready to take on a new direction.”

These are the rationalizations of people who want to hate while denying they are hateful.

But this conspiracy theory isn't just an immoral rationalization of Trump's assault on free speech.