Here's a political thought experiment for you: What if one of Donald Trump's most vocal critics suddenly became president? And what if that critic decided not to prosecute the former president, despite believing he committed crimes?

That's exactly the scenario Anthony Scaramucci laid out on Friday. The former White House communications director said he wouldn't go after Trump if he were president, even though he finds many of Trump's actions "illegal and reprehensible."

"God forbid, but let's say I was president tonight — I wouldn't go after Trump," Scaramucci said in a video shared on X. "You've got to heal the country."

The Banana Republic Warning

This is where it gets interesting. Scaramucci isn't saying Trump is innocent. He's saying prosecuting a former president could set a dangerous precedent that turns American politics into something resembling a "banana republic."

Think about it: If every new administration starts prosecuting the previous one, you create a system where power shifts lead to retaliatory justice. Scaramucci pointed to Brazil as a cautionary tale, where former presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Jair Bolsonaro have been caught in back-and-forth legal battles.

"[You'll] have a pendulum swinging back and forth between who they build a jail cell for next," Scaramucci said. It's the political equivalent of an endless revenge cycle — and once you start, it's hard to stop.

The Nixon Precedent

Scaramucci's argument isn't new, but his historical reference is telling. He brought up Gerald Ford's controversial pardon of Richard Nixon after Watergate.

At the time, Ford faced massive backlash for letting Nixon off the hook. But history has been kinder to that decision. Many now view it as necessary for national healing — even Ted Kennedy, one of Ford's biggest critics, eventually acknowledged it was the right call.

The lesson here is that sometimes political stability requires letting go of legal grievances, even when those grievances are justified. It's messy, it's unsatisfying, but it might be necessary to prevent the system from eating itself.

The 'Move On' Philosophy

Scaramucci concluded with what amounts to a plea for political maturity: "As much as I find him [Trump] despicable… let's move on."

This isn't about forgiveness or forgetting. It's about recognizing that deepening political divisions through legal warfare might do more harm than good to the country's stability. It's the political version of "sometimes you have to be the bigger person," even when you really, really don't want to be.

The Mooch's Brief Moment

For those who need a refresher on who's making this argument: Anthony "The Mooch" Scaramucci served as White House communications director for exactly 11 days during Trump's first term before being fired. His tenure was so brief it inspired the slang term "a Scaramucci" to describe something that lasts less than two weeks.

Before his brief political career, Scaramucci founded SkyBridge Capital in 2005. He previously co-founded Oscar Capital Management, which was acquired by Neuberger Berman in 2001, and worked in private wealth management at Goldman Sachs.

So when Scaramucci talks about Trump and presidential politics, he's speaking from experience — albeit a very, very short experience.