The circus with the Republican clowns in the House of Representative just keeps getting uglier and uglier. It would be funny if it weren’t so serious. It would be funny if the world wasn’t going up in flames while these Republican idiots are so consumed with petty issues and petty grievances that they are unable to take actions for the greater good. One Republican said he voted against Tom Emmer, the latest Republican nominee casualty, because Emmer had voted to codify same-sex marriage. There are two major wars currently going on and the government is running up against a funding wall and this is cited as a reason for allowing this chaos to continue! What the hell!
In addition to these nonsensical ‘issues’, you had some of the idiots bow to Trump’s wishes to torpedo Tom Emmer’s speakership bid because of a personal vendetta. Emmer’s big ‘sin’ was that he voted to certify the 2020 election. He would not, in the end, go with ‘the big lie.’ And for that sin, Trump used his sycophants in the House to torpedo Emmer’s bid. The hell with the United States of America. The hell with Congress. The hell with the rest of the world. Anything for vengeance. If anyone has any doubt what a second term for Trump will look like, this is a perfect example. Trump will not care about governing. Trump will not care about what is going on in the rest of the world. Trump will use all the levers of government at his disposal to exact revenge. That will be it.
It seems like daily, however, the noose around Trump’s neck gets tighter and tighter. Today, Trump’s former attorney, Jenna Ellis, accepted a plea deal in the Georgia case and agreed to testify against Trump and the others named as co-conspirators. She joins Sidney Powell and Kenneth Chesborough who pleaded guilty in a plea deal previously. But even more importantly, Trump’s former Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows, accepted a plea agreement in the Federal case against Trump for trying to overturn the 2020 election. He is, no doubt, the most important prosecution witness to date. It certainly doesn’t bode well for Trump.
Given all these people in Trump’s orbit who are bailing like rats on a sinking ship, a rational person might think twice about continuing to do Trump’s bidding like these Republican idiots who torpedoed Tom Emmer’s speaker bid and who have thrown the House of Representatives into a political black hole with no apparent way out. I find it truly mind boggling.
I just started reading Rachel Maddow’s latest book, Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism. I initially thought the book was about the current march toward authoritarianism and fascism being conducted by the MAGA Trumpsters. However, it turns out this is not the first time the United States has been under an attack like this. Maddow chronicles the campaign prior to and during World War II when a group of people who were acolytes of Hitler engaged in a “sophisticated and shockingly well-funded campaign to undermine democratic institutions, promote antisemitism, and destroy citizen’s confidence in their elected leaders, with the ultimate goal of overthrowing the U.S. government and installing authoritarian rule.”
That sounds scarily familiar to what is going on today. Fortunately, the campaign during that era failed and America prevailed as a democratic institution – flaws and all. It just goes to show that democracy in the United States cannot be taken for granted and it has been in the past and will continue to be today and in the future a constant fight. It requires vigilance, engagement, and action.
It just struck me that preserving democracy is a lot like preserving sobriety. It requires constant vigilance because its all too easy to take a misstep and ‘fall off the wagon.’ There is a saying in AA circles something to the effect that when you are sober, your addiction is still there in the background doing pushups. I you fail to maintain your vigilance and slip; your addiction will come back stronger and with a vengeance. Just because the United States prevailed over authoritarianism and fascism before, there is no guarantee the country will be successful the next time. Make no mistake about it – democracy is under attack in this country today. The election in 2024 will be a crucial pivot point for this country that will reverberate for generations. Let’s hope we choose wisely.
