Lt. Kaffee: “Did you order the Code Red?”
Col. Jessup: “You’re goddamn right I did!”
– “A Few Good Men” (1992), written by Aaron Sorkin
I’ve watched and enjoyed many of Sorkin’s movies and television shows, but I really can’t say I’m a fan. The above excerpt is during the climatic scene from that movie – and it would never friggin’ happen in real life… unless you were Donald Trump.
Of course.
That nincompoop wouldn’t be able to stop from incriminating himself on the stand at his second impeachment trial. His hubris is too great and he’s so thick-headed, he probably wouldn’t even realize he did it. I suppose some friendly reassurance from sympathetic senators was why he didn’t take the stand. It’s just easier to know that you can ignore the proceedings because no one is going to convict you, right?
And it turns out, The Donald was right. Congress is filled with so many gutless, self-interested Republicans that they can’t admit to the truth even when it’s staring them right in the face! Our democracy’s slow decent into oblivion is due to this kind of political ass-saving while telling bald-faced lies to rationalize the action – or, in this case, inaction. Trump once famously said that he “could shoot someone on 5th avenue and not lose any voters”. The overwhelming majority of Republicans in the Senate proved this was, essentially, true. Couple the acquittal of Trump with the immediate reaction from various state Republican committees to censure those senators who dared vote against President Sore Loser and you begin to see how deep this rabbit hole has become. But there is another disturbing aspect to this whole charade of government that has reared its ugly head. I call it The Constituency of One
.
You have seen examples of The Constituency of One when people complain about how their tax dollars are being spent. No matter the objectionable program being pursued, it was paid for by “their” tax dollars. (Uh-huh). Those things complained about usually have the unmistakable quality of not being a direct benefit to the complainer.
Of course.
Yet another example has come up because of Trump’s impeachment trial. There are supporters of Trump who complain that their elected representatives weren’t elected to “vote their conscience.” This is typically what you will hear from voters who think that their representatives should vote how they want 100% of the time; basically just rubber-stamping whatever a griping voter thinks, thus, “The Constituency of One”. The problem with this kind of thinking is that no voting bloc anywhere, ever, is a consensus of opinion. It is the job of an elected official to determine the proper course of action. Those officials, you see, are supposed to be intelligent enough to make those types of decisions.
But in the case of the Inciter-in-Chief, rabid (and I do mean rabid) supporters of Trump are incensed that any Republican senator voted to convict despite the blatant evidence of Trump’s lies to incite! It seems I keep asking this question: what the hell is wrong with these people? Do they not have eyes? Do their brains not work? For if their brains did work, they would see that what they are espousing is a blatant disregard for the Constitution they pretend to hold in such high esteem, a disregard for law, and a disregard for needing to show evidence of wrongdoing before going off half-cocked making unsubstantiated claims. They just want Trump to win, it doesn’t matter what has to be done to make that happen. In short, what these people are supporting is corruption. A constituency that wants a government that has no guiding principles and no restrictions is driving this country to become what they claim they hate: China and Russia.
I know I’ve said it before that people deserve the government they elect. More and more sanity seems to be leaving public discourse and a stable government looks more fragile than ever. If nearly half this nation cannot condone the punishing of wrongdoing by public officials, then maybe what is deserved is life in an authoritarian hellhole. The U.S. has had some rough patches in the past, but when you have people who believe whatever they want to believe because it’s got an “R” by it, then we are in real trouble. And the corrupt will go laughing all the way to the bank.
Of course.
This is a list of senators who voted to acquit Trump even though they know his lying about election fraud incited supporters to commit the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol. They didn’t care about the evidence presented nor the ramifications of their disregard for the Constitution or the oaths they took to uphold the same. They were going to acquit regardless – partly because many, if not most, of them are complicit in spreading his lies. They should never be allowed to hold any type of leadership position now or ever again. They are unethical, indecent, corrupt, and need to be replaced with better people:
John Barrasso R-Wyo.
Marsha Blackburn R-Tenn.
Roy Blunt R-Mo.
John Boozman R-Ark.
Mike Braun R-Ind.
Shelley Capito R-W.Va.
John Cornyn R-Texas
Tom Cotton R-Ark.
Kevin Cramer R-N.D.
Mike Crapo R-Idaho
Ted Cruz R-Texas
Steve Daines R-Mont.
Joni Ernst R-Iowa
Deb Fischer R-Neb.
Lindsey Graham R-S.C.
Chuck Grassley R-Iowa
Bill Hagerty R-Tenn.
Josh Hawley R-Mo.
John Hoeven R-N.D.
Cindy Hyde-Smith R-Miss.
Jim Inhofe R-Okla.
Ron Johnson R-Wis.
John Kennedy R-La.
James Lankford R-Okla.
Mike Lee R-Utah
Cynthia Lummis R-Wyo.
Roger Marshall R-Kan.
Mitch McConnell R-Ky.
Jerry Moran R-Kan.
Rand Paul R-Ky.
Rob Portman R-Ohio
James Risch R-Idaho
Mike Rounds R-S.D.
Marco Rubio R-Fla.
Tim Scott R-S.C.
Rick Scott R-Fla.
Richard Shelby R-Ala.
Dan Sullivan R-Alaska
John Thune R-S.D.
Thom Tillis R-N.C.
Tommy Tuberville R-Ala.
Roger Wicker R-Miss.
Todd Young R-Ind.
But, because of the constituency they represent, they will likely be reelected over and over again.
Of course.
Accepting the travesty of the “only-the-other-party-does-bad-things” style of government is going to send this country to a place from which it will not recover without a war; and there’s a name for those who look to foment war: defeated.
