They Don’t Get It
Indictments Matter
Why won’t the GOP look seriously at the most recent indictment of the former president which clearly points out how he retained classified documents involving national security and refused to return them when required to by a subpoena? Why don’t they acknowledge that he endangered our national security?
To date, most of the GOP presidential hopefuls have either risen to the former president’s defense or remained silent about his most recent legal problems. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy defended the former president while Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnel has stayed remarkably quiet. Members of the House Freedom Caucus have jumped on the “Biden has weaponized the Justice Department” conspiracy bandwagon.
Some GOP outliers have offered critical comments. Former Attorney General Bill Barr told reporters that if half of the allegations in the indictment are true, “he’s toast.” Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie offered the most damning reflections on the indictment hoping to boost his own presidential ambitions.
Make no mistake, the indictment of the former president is a big deal. Complete with pictures of boxes filled with documents stored in Mar a Lago bathrooms and ballrooms near a high-speed copier and the clear trail of lies and distractions, the indictment shows those charged knew what they were doing and that it was against the law.
The former president’s public comments after the FBI searched Mar a Lago under the authority of a judicially issued search warrant and the investigation was going on clearly cut off many of his potential defenses at the knees. His lawyers, while trying to think about defenses, found their client hamstringing their best efforts. The smart ones bailed out once the grand jury approved the indictment.
The alt-right base continues to support the grifter in chief seeing him as their best hope for white nationalist supremacy led by an authoritarian strong man who will continue to enable their reckless dismantling of American Democracy. Those Republicans still in the seats of power and those who aspire to follow in their footsteps have no choice but to follow along if they have any hope of remaining in office or getting there. GOP leaders do not see any other path forward.
The alt-right lurch we have experienced since the 1980s has reached its zenith. There is no place left to go. A majority of the electorate is finally waking up and seeing that GOP politics has nothing to offer that will help everyday folks live better lives. Divide and conquer politics does not work in the long run as all those groups divided out finally come together to form a more progressive, inclusive, and tolerant majority that rejects theocratic governance.
President Biden once again has shown his mastery of the political discourse. He has stayed out of the former president’s legal morass, refusing to comment. He knows, as many of us do as well, that the former president’s legal problems will just continue to mount. Investigations into secret documents being shared at his New Jersey golf resort, the January 6th insurrection, attempts to create votes that did not exist in Georgia and the pending hush money case in New York will combine shortly making the GOP presidential primary a free for all jousting tournament.
All President Biden needs to do to win a second term in stay the course already set. Building the economy, fixing the roads, building strong international alliances, keeping people employed, defending and supporting the marginalized, and maintaining Social Security and Medicare will get it done. The GOP has nothing to offer but culture wars which are just feeble attempts to dismantle our democracy and keep white supremacists in power.
We still need to stand against the fascists and bigots the current GOP has enabled. We need to ensure fair universal voting, restore all women with the right to reproductive healthcare, and continue work towards a more inclusive and diverse democracy where all have a seat at the table.
No comments:
Post a Comment