Evan McMullin ran for President, more as a gesture of worry, of opposition, of a wake up call to America than in any serious thought of winning - he was available as a choice in one state, but his votes said something that we should listen to and he wrote an Op Ed piece this morning which will disturb my sleep for a long time - and should do the same to yours. And we begin with Trump's total ignorance of the Constitution and his refusal to learn.
When he was reminded that Article I assigns all Federal lawmaking to the Congress he cut in and spoke of Article XII - which does not exist! And not interested in learning at all, here is a paragraph to share with you - "He had questioned judicial independence, threatened the freedom of the press, called for violating Muslims’ equal protection under the law, promised the use of torture and attacked Americans based on their gender, race and religion. He had also undermined critical democratic norms including peaceful debate and transitions of power, commitment to truth, freedom from foreign interference and abstention from the use of executive power for political retribution. " The shivers are running down my back and I am wondering where in the hell on earth we can even run for sanctuary what with a most erratic demagogue in charge, one who relishes the thought of being the first dictator in America, voted into office and never out!!
His buddy, his much admired Putin even now sees that sometimes when one gets what one wished for it is not so good. Now he says..."And if he’s a smart person, that means that he will totally and quite quickly understand the different level of his responsibility. We presume that he will act based on this position.” Uh huh! The old saws are there for a reason and have lasted so long because there is truth in them.
He has threatened companies with punishments that he has no legal power or authority to do and yet instead of roars from groups connected to business, from companies we hear........correct - NADA and why? Because ".... groups stood nearly silent on Sunday, potentially worried about drawing the wrath of the president-elect."
There is a reason why he is bringing on so many former military officers, including interviewing yet another candidate for Secretary of State, a retired admiral. Dictators need the military to stay in power and can you just see Trump dressed up in a fancy military uniform full of gold braid and colored medals as he huffs and puffs along - and shuts down the democracy once known as the United States of America.
Trump is a man who threatens retribution, who threatens to jail people who disagree with him and act on those beliefs. He threatens to punish all, to revoke citizenship. He frightens people into sitting still, keeping mouths shut and I wonder - how does the rest of the nation not hear the echoes of Hitler, of demagoguery, does not hear the knell of the bell, tolling for us all. Throughout history most of the biggest dictators were people erratic in their behavior and thoughts and deeds. Be it Ivan the Terrible or any of the Tsars, Hitler or Mussolini or any of the dictators of the twentieth and twenty first centuries, turning hatred upon certain groups in society, be their names be Jews or Christians or a differing Muslim sect or Tutsis or another clan or tribe or even a rival terrorist organization - dictators cannot deal with opposition and will shut it down with the harshest of orders and illegal laws and then where will we be - living in a society that obeys these immoral laws because it IS the law? It has happened and can happen again. The Trump family is moving wholesale into the White House and into the lawmaking section of our country. Woe upon us if we do not heed the facts, follow the trends and not act accordingly. Impeachment is always there but there will be those who love Trump and his philosophy, the alt right, the crazy haters, the nasty dudes, the frightened who need a strong hand to feel safe. There is never an end to those who hang on and around hoping to gain something for themselves.
Here is a long piece from McMullin. " But the deeper objective is to weaken the democratic institutions that limit their power. Eroding confidence in voting, elections and representative bodies gives them a freer hand to wield more power.
As a C.I.A. officer, I saw firsthand authoritarians’ use of these tactics around the world. Their profound appetite for absolute power drives their intolerance for any restraint — whether by people, organizations, the law, cultural norms, principles or even the expectation of consistency. For a despot, all of these checks on power must be ignored, undermined or destroyed so that he is all that matters.
Mr. Trump has said that he prefers to be unpredictable because it maximizes his power...... Mr. Trump’s inconsistencies and provocative proposals are a strategy; they are intended to elevate his importance above all else — and to place him beyond democratic norms, beyond even the Constitution."
Peal after peal of the bells. Law after law collapsing, erratic judgements and a neglect of America's role in the world, frightened world leaders, even those who backed him. Would that I am wrong. Would that all the other voices who are speaking up are wrong. If only - but remember the old adage of if wishes were horses.....We had all better get on these damn horses and ride and ride and ride. It is up to us to preserve our democracy. We must make it clear to Trump that we will not allow him to ruin it all. Press your legislators and representatives. Speak up. Write letters.
And come March with Us on January 21, 2017 at 10 AM. Show the world that there are still people who value our rights, our history. Walk for these rights. Walk for justice. Walk for those who cannot. Walk for history. But walk.
Read and think about the following lines and understand why I and many others are frightened.
"The world will be hard
And the wrong will be great.
The age of the Beard
Of the Sword - shields will shiver -
The age of the Storm and the Wolf are to .
come.
Before the World falls,
Man shall have no more reverence for man.
"Voluspa" Henry Morley translator
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