The Paper Tiger King

Americans must understand who Trump is and what we as a nation and the vast majority of our citizenry are up against. We must come to grips that Trump has never been more than the paper tiger king in this battle. The Joe Exotic of American politics propped up by a supporting cast of deplorable characters.

Trump of course is the perfect rube. A literal caricature of every villain of every film ever made. A billionaire product of affluent affirmative action who sells himself as a man of the people. A self proclaimed tycoon who was placed directly at the top of the business pyramid. Never understanding what it means to actually lead; to advance on merit, not name.

The plate tossing, steering wheel grabbing, secret service choking character we witness today is the embodiment of a leader who was able to skip the lessons of middle management, the art of empathy, humility, accountability and communication. A “stable genius” only in his own mind who was so poor at business he literally bankrupted both casinos and real estate conglomerates at the height of the economy. In every way the opposite of a man who embodies the original American dream.

As if it wasn’t obvious before, the January 6th Commission and the courageous testimony of Cassidy Hutchinson and other witnesses has stripped the emperor of all remaining undergarments. Exposed Donald Trump as a man of flawed character. The embodiment of the 21st century American dream. A child of the 1% with no discernible talent, skills or virtue beyond that of self promotion. A self aggrandizing narcissistic sycophant with an unhealthy obsession for celebrity and fame. A self hating man child who overcompensates for his shortcomings by bullying, intimidating and surrounding himself with “yes men.”

A man in constant need of validation because deep down he fears he will never live up to daddy’s expectations, never be truly loved. A man with an ego so fragile he can’t deal with dissent or opposition. Who spent a lifetime avoiding accountability and consequences by silencing critics with bribes, quid pro quos and empty promises. Who justifies his deplorable behavior through incredible displays of cognitive dissonance; scapegoating, and otherwise shifting blame to the underprivileged, the disenfranchised, and those less able to defend themselves.

Like most bullies our so called President stands for nothing. He is driven by vengeance, looking only for the next score to settle, fight to win. All he knows is how to marginalize, belittle, conflate, de-legitimize and, when necessary, squash dissent and opposition. Each Trump Rally and “truth” allows him to continue to present alternative facts, only now without the alternatives. Lies then become truth, and perception reality.

Donald Trump is not the cause of America’s ails. He is simply its most recognizable symptom. The dry cough of the national pandemic that is the Republican Party. It’s time we vaccinate the public from the poison they spread before it chokes what little life remains of our system of checks and balances #LockHimUpNow

Sweet and Lower Than Low

We need to stop sugar coating the situation. America has a terrorism problem. A threat to freedom and our very way of life exists within our shores. A clear and present danger that jeopardizes the safety of our children even as they innocently sit in a theater, at a church, a concert or even a school yard. Unawares that a terrorist has him/her in his crosshairs and is about to fire the fatal bullets in rapid fire high capacity succession.

Of course it won’t be delivered by already vetted refugees. Rather it will be brought by the same domestic terrorists who have repeatedly attacked this country over the past 10 years. In spite of the rhetoric and Muslim bans. Regardless of what you may hear about caravans of refugees, or those SOB kneeling football players. There is no question. The greatest and most immediate threat to our national security lies within our shores. Most of us just choose to turn a blind eye

We know their names and the preferred methods they use to spread their carnage. Mass shootings at schools, shopping malls, grocery stores, places of worship and night clubs. They reap havoc and preach the words of fear in response. They carry tiki torches and storm our Capital to intimidate and bully all who try to call out the brazen lies and propaganda they preach.

Their influence extends far beyond the battlefields of their creation. Their disproportional political might enables them to block any attempts at sensible gun control. Filibuster any efforts to protect over 31,000 annual domestic victims of gun violence. They shriek faux outrage at the thought the 2nd Amendment may be in any way regulated, all while curbing the 1st and 4th.

Trump trounced on HRC for not saying the words radical Islamic terrorism. Let’s hear GOP leadership speak out. Condemn the rise of white Christian domestic terrorism #GunControlNow #EnoughIsEnough

American Horror Story

The very thought of it haunts me. There is no justification. No amount of mental gymnastics that make this okay. 40 minutes! 40 minutes before police entered that schoolroom! Even if the risk of further spread was contained babies lay dying in that room. Desperate for help and critical medical aid. Each precious second the potential difference between life or death.

Other children living in the face of terror. Covered in the blood of their peers. Hiding in corners, under blankets, scared to make the slightest of sounds or movements. Too young to even comprehend what death means but certain that they will soon find out.

Who delays in such moments? Where is the morality in this country? Would it be more impactful if we start referring to these massacres as retroactive abortions? Will that get the attention of the pro-lifers? America is a nation whose exceptionalism applies only to self-delusion and hypocrisy. Our morals and values are no longer even average, let alone aspirational #NoRationalArgument

Deja Vu, All Over Again

The numbing sensation washes over me like a baptism of American shame. The situation repeated so many times that like a Pavlovian dog, the mere vibration of a news alert triggers an automatic response within me. In the mere milliseconds it takes for me to reach and read my phone, my brain has already simulated a million scenarios;

“Where are my kids? My wife? Do I hear any nearby sirens? Might this be weather related? Any immediate sense of community panic? Do I know of any mass events that my siblings, parents, nieces or nephews may be attending?”

My body stiffens and by the time I nervously scan the headline, shock is no longer possible. My mind practically impervious to the details. The actual news article reads as a horrific mad lib of a preventable catastrophe anyways. “A (public place) shooting resulted in (number) casualties, with at least (number) of the victims being children. (City, State) authorities say the gunmen used a (type of gun) and fired (number greater than 250) of rounds in (number less than 60) seconds. Our thoughts and prayers to all victims of this senseless tragedy.”

My eyes close, often wet with tears. My immediate reaction a sickening relief that the innocent victims are likely strangers to me. The ensuing overwhelming mixture of shame and sadness. The modern day expression of American exceptionalism.

This is our American heritage. What “we, the people” have chosen to accept. The dreams of our ancestors transformed into our children’s worst nightmare. The words of our founding fathers distorted by the echoes of rapid fire semiautomatic blasts. The experiment in individual freedom and self-governance snuffed out by tribal interests and corporate lobbyists.

American UnExceptionalism

Stop your crying. Hold your faux thoughts and prayers. Raise those flags back to full mast. This is our American heritage. What “we, the people” have chosen to accept. The dreams of our ancestors transformed into our children’s worst nightmare. The words of our founding fathers distorted by the echoes of rapid fire semiautomatic blasts. The experiment in individual freedom and self-governance snuffed out by tribal interests and corporate lobbyists.

This is us.

So long as we continue to dehumanize minorities, outsiders and those who look different. So long as we characterize them as “rapists,” “animals,” “enemies,” and worse. So long as we see targets and avatars in our crosshairs, rather than sons and daughters,

This is us.

So long as a pro-life agenda only includes the unborn the living will be expendable. So long as we debate whether gun lockers have a greater right to privacy than our daughter’s privates. We maintain that the 2nd Amendment is absolute and unequivocal, but act to curtail and reverse the guaranteed freedoms of the 1st, 4th and 5th. So long as it is harder to purchase allergy medicine then it is a bullet,

This is us.

So long as we sling false equivalents that fail to differentiate between those who protest for equality and freedom, with those who represent hatred and ignorance. So long as we see the good in klansmen, neo-Nazis and white supremacists. Promote and legitimize their message of hate and violence. So long as we conflate the history of the Confederacy with that of the United States,

This is us.

So long as we allow those in power to divide our nation into two camps. Secure a status quo long past the point demographics will otherwise allow. Erect a permanent caste system. So long as we are “haves and have nots” and are labeled an “us”or “them,”

This is us.

So long as we allow the bully to play the role of victim. So long as we censor and shame the whistle blower and shield the accused. Enable and fail to hold the criminal to evade account. So long as we value celebrity and fame over character and virtue,

This is us.

So long as we falsely equate the child in the hoodie, hijab, yarmulke or Che tee with the ones wearing the white hood, cloaked in the sweater vest, draped in the Confederate flag, or adorned with the swastika tattoo,

This is us.

So long as we build walls instead of bridges. Invest in war instead of education and research grants. So long as we celebrate “American exceptionalism” but delay student loan reform,

This is us.

So long as we are persuaded by “alternative facts,” slogans, and double speak but tune out science, photographic evidence, and statistics. So long as ratings driven entertainment is consumed as a “fair and balanced” news source,

This is us.

So long as we buy the empty promises about the wonders of trickle down economics and reject efforts to raise the minimum wage. So long as oligarchs prioritize profits over people and individual tax savings over the public good,

This is us.

So long as we profess that Earth and all its things were created by God but deny global warming, pollute our waterways with plastics, rollback environmental protections and drill baby drill,

This is us.

So long as we are more offended by the black athlete who uses his celebrity to kneel in silent protest for equality than we are the white Christian billionaire who use his bully pulpit to disparage an immigrant nation,

This is us.

The GOP Coup

Pay attention to recent events in Florida. This is what autocracy looks like. The end result of what happens when checks and balances are removed, power is consolidated and self-interests are given priority over the common good. There is nothing representative about Ron DeSantis or his lackey state delegates. In a Democratic Republic representatives must advocate and serve in the best interests of all their constituents, not choose to only advance the self serving ones.

What more Democrats need to see? THE OPPOSITION PARTY DOES NOT BELIEVE IN DEMOCRACY! Republicans use their power to punish dissent, to ostracize free thought and to chill opposition. Their primary objective to preserve power, regardless of popular opinion or support. DeSantis is a prime example. He does not pretend to advocate for all Floridians. He serves only to advance the interests of his tribe above all others. There is no compromise or alternative agendas to consider. It will be either his way or the highway. This is very antithesis of a representative democracy.

Democrats must not continue to rely on traditional checks and balances to contain an unprecedented threat to our Republic. When the sitting “head of state” actively seeks to upend and overthrow the very political system they take an oath to protect, it should raise some alarms. It is not enough for Democrats to respond to clear instances of abuse of power with verbal condemnations and warnings that the GOP must be made to pay in the next election cycle.

DeSantis and many other GOP Governors are passing legislation to ensure control of the very thing Democrats place all their hope in, the next election results. Across the country legislation is being passed in the 30 states with Republican controlled legislatures to restrict voting rights and implement gerrymandered fail safes that enable handpicked sycophants to maintain control of state legislatures. As the case in Florida, 23 of those 30 states are also controlled by a GOP Governor. In these states attempts to preserve the status quo extend far beyond these traditional tools of suppression. In many places new legislation authorizes handpicked State Delegates to overturn free and fair election results, even absent evidence of widespread fraud or malfeasance.

To safeguard their hold on power and prevent the possibility of a Democratic takover, DeSantis and other GOP Governors, are proactively taking steps to rig the election and undermine majority will. If we are truly in a fight to save the “soul of our nation” Democrat leaders must act like it. They must lead with the same urgency as their GOP counterparts and coalesce around policy that supports that objective as their primary one. Take proactive measures and be as aggressive in efforts to safeguard our elections, to expand representation, as the opposition is in ways to restrict it.

It is time Democrats ostracize the GOP and no longer treat them as a legitimate political party. Time to protect the will of the people. Paint and treat the enemy of our democracy as just that. Recognize them for the threat they are. The Guardians Of Putin (GOP), agents of the rich, righteous and putinful. These enemies did not infiltrate through a Trojan Horse. They hijacked control from within. Used the strength of diversity to divide and disable us.

This is no longer about tradition or precedent. The most popular former President and the current Commander in Chief must use their powers to shape the perception of the majority. Take bold measure to communicate what is at stake. Advance informed consent and clearly explain why, in accordance with the rule of law and our constitution, certain bold actions must occur to protect the dreams of our founding fathers.

American Traitors

The revelation that Donald Trump Jr texted then Chief of Staff Mark Meadows ideas of how Trump will retain residence at the White House despite losing the election is hardly a surprise. We all know that Trump and his corrupt cabal of coconspirators, consiglieres and accessories after the fact were plotting a coup. The story is important though as it does confirm another thing that has also been evident for some time.

The Republicans are not a legitimate political party. They do not believe in a representative democracy. Do not abide their constitutional responsibility. Do not honor their oath of office. All who remain align to them are enemies of the American system of governance. Earn their moniker as the Guardians Of Putin (GOP), allied with the enemies of freedom and democracy.

The truth is America is a single party country. That is the root of all problems. We are no longer a representative democracy. Democrat or Republican is no longer a choice of social principles, fiscal policy or foreign diplomacy. It is a choice of authoritarian rule or democracy. Americans refusal to acknowledge this basic premise. By continuing to treat an enemy of our founding principles as a legitimate equal. It is undermining our democracy.

Republicans do not believe in our system of governance. Their oath to the constitution is meaningless because they don’t believe in it. They openly seek to preserve the status quo long past the point the demographics of a representative democracy would otherwise allow. That is their prime objective. It is the opposite of the land of opportunity. Their mission is to preserve only THEIR privileged status amongst our citizenry.

Democrats need to make a stand. Refuse recognition of the Republican party. Hold to account and use traitorous terms to describe any sitting Senator, Representative, or Judge or other official known to have either aided in, or who served as an accessory after the fact in Trump’s effort to subvert the will of the people and undermine our constitution.

Americans need to unite in defense of democracyp. Push the Trump Republicans towards the extreme; to the fringe where they belong. Out of the spotlight and away from the fragile china and nuclear secrets. Doing so will allow for the rise of a legitimate new opposition party. One comprised of conservative leaning ideology within the constraints of the democratic republic our founding fathers envisioned and memorialized.

Lifetime Recusal

The constitutional crisis is here. Calls for Justice Thomas to recuse himself from any case involving the January 6th Commission are not sufficient. Democratic leadership must demand that Justice Thomas resign or be removed from the Supreme Court.

This is not some mere pretext of impropriety or potential conflict of interest. Ginni Thomas, his wife, took part in a COUP. A brazen attempt to overturn the results of what was known to be a legitimate election, with no evidence of widespread fraud. The very separation of powers her husband is charged with defending she sought to destroy. The checks and balances upon which our republic depends, she sought to neuter.

It is not as if Ginni was a periodic advisor or passive participant in these efforts. She was a central figure. She coordinated legal strategy with the Executive Branch and members of Thomas Clerk World, a private listserv that is *exclusively* used by former Thomas judicial clerks, in furtherance of the plot to keep Trump in power* (see Seth Abramson Twitter for more details).

In a text exchange with Mark Meadows, Ginni thanks him for his support in the “fight of good versus evil!” I’m paraphrasing now but she goes on to note that between his pledge of support and the recent news she got from her “best friend” she’s feeling like her efforts to preserve the status quo may just pan out.

The idea that a Supreme Court Justice may view a political divide as a fight between “good and evil!” That to remain a nation of “good” will require half of our citizens be eradicated and removed from positions of power. That perception of Democrats vs Republicans is exactly how one comes to believe that the “ends justify the means.” It’s the kind of belief that allows a judge to rationalize setting aside Constitutional safeguards for the “greater good.” This possibility alone is enough to justify a lifetime recusal for Thomas.

To turn a blind eye to the obvious. To proceed as if our Constitition is not on fire is a dereliction of duty by the very elected officials who swore an oath to defend it. To restore our credibility. To once again be a nation of law and order there can be no doubt of the independence of our Judicial Branch. Conservative or liberal each justice is beholden to the Constitution and how the facts of each case before it relate.

Guardians Of Putin

Today’s GOP has no political ideology. They do not represent the interests of their constituents and openly oppose all attempts to alter the status quo, to dilute their privileged status. What they seek is a the permanent establishment of a caste system that delivers their tribe boundless riches and eternal salvation. One that will guarantee no one else will dare question their wealth, racial superiority or virtue again.

The fight to “save the soul of our nation” will not be won if we limit the battlefield to the shores of America. It is a war between democracy and autocracy. To succeed in the broader war ahead we, as a nation, must confront that the GOP’s objectives are identical to those of Putin. They are both enemies of democracy. Ukraine is currently ground zero in that fight, but their battle is all part of the same war that rages here within our shores. That’s the moral of this story, oligarchs be oligarchs, racists be racists, religious zealots, well, they be the root of all evil.

The very word “GOP” need be associated with betrayal, with anti-Americanism. Americans need make clear we recognize GOP for who they really are, the Guardians Of Putin. Pawns of the rich and putinful and traitors to democracy. The whole lot of them