President Trump's Cabinet applauded him this week after he described Somali immigrants as "garbage" who "contribute nothing. He unapologetically condemned an entire community, with no fear of political backlash.

Why it matters: Guardrails against racist, xenophobic or dehumanizing rhetoric have all but vanished on the American right. What was once disqualifying — or the exclusive domain of online trolls — is now a fixture of national political discourse.

Flashback: Before Trump came on the scene in 2015, it was common in modern American politics for elected or appointed officials to face consequences for making racist or bigoted comments. • As far back as 1976, Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz was forced to resign after telling a racist joke about Black Americans on a flight returnin

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