The oncoming conflict was so obvious. Heck the most notorious American conman alive was the opposition. Did anyone with even half a brain really believe he was there to save America.
It’s truly laughable! We knew he was a pawn…the overwhelming majority of us. A man so repugnant that his own reflection screams back “ImPeach.” Some of us chose to turn a blind eyes for selfish reasons, others out of fear they’d be labeled an alarmist, but we knew he had the stench of caviar and old fashioned American whiskey all over him…a pawn for the rich and putinful.
Even Obama…chose to put his faith in our institutions…The dreams of his ancestors and the audacity of hope…til the end. We would have listened to him. The majority, the military, all of us had he taken a stand. Had he taken that microphone on January 20th and said what the FBI had told him…how the Russians had interfered in our elections…attacked our most fundamental institution…an act of war.
We would have listened had he appointed an independent commission. Had he given them 90 days to confirm one question and one question only…had he conditioned the peaceful turnover of power on that one condition and that one condition only…
One question…ninety days.
Was Donald Trump fairly elected by and if he were to assume office would he be working for the American people?
In the interest of national security we would have listened. Ignored the rantings and protestations that would have followed. It wouldn’t have been easy but we would have listened.
I honestly believe Obama considered it. It was his duty to protect our security interests until his very last day in office. McConnell and the GOP efforts to strip him of his power a year early notwithstanding. A known and imminent threat slithered into the most powerful office in the world, it was not off caravaning many thousand miles away.
Perhaps it was our fault, the majority of like minded Americans who hold the ideals of this nation so sacred. Perhaps it was our responsibility to push this great experiment in individual freedoms forward. Perhaps Obama would have fought harder had it not all been so difficult. Had we fought more for Garland he may have believed he had a play. Instead he put his faith in hope.
There’s still a chance he is right. That we avoid the worst of this.
It’s not the institutions that will save us though. As nice as it is to see the lowest branch of Congress flex it’s oversight muscle the truth is they hold absolutely no ability to hold this caravan of the corrupt to account. Try as they may I’ve seen this story enough times to realize that the legislative branch is no longer a separate and equal branch.
The same is now true of what once was our independent judiciary. Two Supreme Court Justices hoisted into lifetime seats by a perhaps illegitimate leader. 25% of the jurors who will ultimately determine the limits of Executive Privilege hand selected by the Defendant. It still boggles my mind that our defenders of the constitution allowed such a blatant coup to take place.
That’s not all. The rot even more prevalent at our lower levels of justice. As of February 6, 2019, our Senate has confirmed 85 Article III judges nominated by a man who is an active target of a counterintelligence investigation, this includes 30 judges for the US Court of Appeals and 53 judges for the District Courts.
Yet here we stand debating about the need for the extreme vetting of already extremely vetted refugees of war. We restlessly await the unilateral declaration of a “national emergency” to contend with the unprecedented threat these war ravaged women and children pose to our national security.
Meanwhile the very men hired to defend our national security, the ones we actually rely on to keep us safe day in and day out remain largely unvetted. Rather than worry about a future theoretical threat or systematically failure perhaps Americans need to turn their attention to the present day actual threat.
Our system of checks and balances has failed. The constitutional crisis is here. The head of our National Security Agency was an ACTIVE agent of a foreign adversary when given the position. He remained in that role with unabated access to our nation’s most sensitive secrets for 19 additional days after the President learned that this was the case and that Flynn had lied about it.
For more than three months the man who has led our Department of Justice, charged with enforcing and overseeing our nation’s laws in accordance with the Constitution, has gone unvetted. When he finally appeared in front of Congress it was clear that he was an unqualified buffoon and clear benefactor of some type of presidential quid pro quo.
These examples aren’t outliers. We all know of the historic turnover and corruption that has taken place at the highest levels of this administration. We know of at least 30 examples of high level advisors receiving security clearances despite the recommendations of our intelligence agencies. We know of the advisory ethic opinions that have been ignored and disregarded. Forget extreme vetting, there isn’t even routine vetting of these protectors of our freedom.
We are past that point where we can rely on the vote as a legitimate check and balance. Yes, the Blue Wave was real but take note of the corruption and controversies that took place at the State levels. Pay attention to the widespread and overall successful suppression efforts that took place in Florida, Georgia, Texas and Carolina, key battlegrounds.
Our Comrade in Chief finds safety and job security in the chaos he stokes. He uses it to his advantage. Time is not on our side. We must continue to rally the vote and identify strong candidates for 2020 but more importantly we must act Stop turning a blind eye. Take to the streets in peaceful protest and make clear who we are. We are the majority.
To move forward the dreams of our ancestors we must demand answers. Take comfort in the audacity of hope and hold those who wish to trample on our ideals to account. The spirit of the American people has been a beacon of hope and freedom throughout the world for over two centuries. Our diversity our greatest strength, the backbone of our success.
There are days the optimism swells and it feels like we’re getting closer. Days when the news of the Mueller investigation inspire or public rallies prove effective. When Michelle Obama made her unexpected appearance on the Grammy’s stage it was one of those moments. When she walked out between Lady Gaga, Jada Pinkett Smith and JLo, in that moment it was as if they held a giant Mockingjay pin up to this administration. A symbol of hope, defiance and resistance.
And over the swell of the applause which reached all the way to my Virginia living room carried the voice of the Mockingjay with a welcomed and unmistakeable reminder…
Yes we can, yes we can, #YESWECAN
Pathway To Perdition 