January 6th was an appalling display of the scope of ignorance that exists among Americans when it comes to the constitution, how a democratic, constitutional republic functions, and of most of our national history. I don't care how much support of the public education system is part of being politically "liberal." I'm politically liberal and recognize that our public education system, when it comes to its value in preparing students for their responsibility as American citizens, has been an abysmal failure in this subject area, more so than our student's math and science scores compared to Japan, Germany and Canada.
Extremist right-wing media outlets like Fox, Breitbart and Newsmax, could not exist if a majority of Americans knew their nation's Constitution and history like they should.
Where's this coming from? I'm watching a news program where journalists are interviewing selected individuals who have participated in anti-government militia groups, including the January 6 insurrectionists. Their words demonstrate either that appalling ignorance of how constitutional government works that I referenced at the beginning of this piece, or a complete lack of respect for the principle of equality that was a requirement for its success from the beginning, and which was the key to its survival. The American constitution not only survived and eventually defeated slavery in this country, but its very existence crushed the European aristocracy and was the inspiration for virtually every democratic revolution in Europe. But now, a growing group of Americans have begun to coalesce around politicians and pundits who are advocating for oligarchy, motivated mainly by bigotry based on race.
The Trumpian Anti-Democracy Movement
Trump doesn't have any concept of what the real world is like. He's always been insulated from it, and his money has allowed him to create an alternative world in which he can move without having to face the realities of life. He was a pathological liar long before he ever pondered a run for the White House. He creates illusions with money, where he creates the outcome he wants by simply scripting it and everyone plays the roles they are assigned. He gets infuriated and out of control when he has to face realities that he doesn't like, expecially the outcomes of elections he didn't win.
Listen to the man's long, rambling speeches at his rallies, and in particular, the speech he made when he incited the insurrectionists to interfere with the certification of the electoral vote. There are no references to anything in American history, no references to the founders, their principles, their writings or speeches, nothing. The few references he makes to events in American history he gets wrong. He's not interested because it doesn't serve his purpose. And he attracts people who are more interested in their own rights than they are in anyone else having theirs.
Trump's Political Mentors
Every aspiring dictator has their ideological mentors and if you look at Trump's, it's easy to see where things would have been headed had January 6th been successful from his perspective. Roy Cohn, who was one of the most reviled men in American political history and who was counsel for Joseph McCarthy's notorious Senate committee, made a career out of getting indicted for things like, oh, extortion, obstructing justice, perjury, all of the things high on the Trumpie list of values and morals. Of all of Trump's political mentors, Cohn stands as the single most anti-Constitutional name on that list.
Steve Bannon, a crafty propagandist who has a knack for making falsehoods sound plausible, joins Cohn on that list. Bannon has the manners of a pig and has been said to look like what body odor smells like. These are both men who believe that only suckers pay taxes and who have figured out how to avoid paying debts and slip past creditors by banking out of the country illegally. Cohn, thankfully, is dead, but his lack of moral values, ethics and a conscience live on in Trump. Bannon has been kicked in the teeth by Trump on more than one occasion but still hangs around for the scraps like a starving puppy.
Enforce the Law or It's Over
Arresting political opponents is always tricky because the word "politics" covers a multitude of sins. And that's the veneer behind which Trump, and his entourage, are hiding. They might be able to get away with that claim, except for some principled Republicans like Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. I rarely find myself in agreement with Cheney's politics, or Kinzinger or any traditional Republican for that matter. But it's their position and their presence that keeps this from being "political," in any respect. They are mainstream, grass roots Republicans. Trump, as an anti-constitutionalist, is not an ideological Republican. Nor are those who vote for him.
Cheney and Kinzinger and any Republican who see January 6 for what it is and who stand for Republican principles and values make it very clear that Trump is way outside the circle of mainstream Republicanism. Their presence on the select committee and their insistence, as Republicans, on seeing this for what it is confirms that going after Trump and any of his cronies who were involved in this, including his sons, is not political at all. The opposition sees this exactly the same way as the party in power sees it. So arresting him and all of those who helped, putting them on trial, convicting them and imprisoning them is not political at all, it's justice.
A Third Political Party Has Developed
There is an ideological gap between the often incoherent and inconsistent ramblings of Trump and the party platform of the GOP. Oh, I think Republican leadership like Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy would jail their own mothers if it led to their political benefit, but there's a difference between Republicans like them, who simply ignore constitutional provisions that don't suit their political agenda and use those that do, and Trump, who is willing to torch it, watch it burn and turn the United States into an oligarchy or dictatorship.
The lines are blurred, but there is a segment of the GOP, mostly the uneducated who are easily duped by conspiracy theories and who are ignorant of the country's history, who are genuine anti-constitutionalists. That's the crowd that showed up at the Capitol on January 6th and demonstrated their contempt for the United States as it exists today, as well as their preference for a government that favors their interests at the expense of everyone else. The Republican party leadership that's left is not strong enough to oppose such a movement within their own ranks. It's up to the Democrats and there's not much time left.
The people in a constitutional republic can decide not to be a constitutional republic any more. That's an unwise, dangerous move but it is where we are at the moment. What gets done in defense of the constitution must work well and must be effective. The evidence is clear, and we are waiting to see if our current government leadership is going to pull this off.
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