It has been a U.S. presidential campaign from hell—on that point I think the great majority of us can agree. We have had to endure more accusations and counter-accusations of sexual assault and straight-up rape than most municipal court systems probably see in a month. We have had to endure infantile back-and-forth name-calling, as well as the charge/countercharge of immorality and illegality on a near-daily basis. The debates have been more spectacle than informational. The leading contender for president, in some spheres, is a giant (and sweet) meteor of death, for Christ’s sake.

And yet, amidst all this vile sewer rot through which we have collectively waded over the past year, one particular aspect of this election season stands out as infinitely more troubling than all the rest. You have the singularly unique and shocking phenomenon of one American political institution—the Republican party—calling for and praising the assault on another (the Democratic party) by a hostile foreign entity.

I speak, of course, of Russian-backed Wikileaks and its relentless and one-sided assault of the Democratic party during this election season. Now, if you are a true American patriot, and care about the personal privacy of all American citizens and the integrity of our election process, how can you possibly advocate for, let alone encourage, the hacking of an American political institution for electoral gain?

Do you not care that Russia is working in its own interests in supporting Wikileaks behind the scenes? Do you not realize that throwing American politics into chaos serves the interests of Vladimir Putin and Russia? Do you not see that, no matter if it comports with your political views or not, a foreign power working to destabilize our elections hurts only us?