We had another busy week in politics–except in the North Carolina legislature. The GOP leadership here still has not delivered the budget they promised to have completed by July. The delay is holding up Medicaid for tens of thousands of working North Carolinians who can’t afford health insurance. But, hey, at least they got to beat up on LGBT+ folks last week. Keeps the “Christians” happy.
We got a lesson in international politics about how different countries deal with coup plotters. Here in America, we go through a long, laborious legal process that builds skepticism of the system and allows for those alleged of plotting a coup to make an appeal to the masses through friendly interviews and propaganda. Over in Russia, they shoot them out of the sky with no warning. It’s quite a difference, to be honest. Of course, the Russian coup plotters did have tanks. I expect the NRA approved.
Which gets to another point. Part of the reason the Big Lie persists is that we do have a justice system. The threat of immediate consequences is relatively low. In a lot of other countries, the Proud Boys and Oat Keepers who broke into the Capitol wouldn’t be facing long prisons sentences two and half years after their attempt to take control of the government. They would be dead or disappeared.
That’s not how we do things here. Instead, we believe in due process. As every prosecutor has made clear, Donald Trump and his alleged co-conspirators are innocent until proven guilty. His supporters should be thanking the American justice system, not deriding it. In Russia or Hungary, Donald Trump would have likely fallen out a window or died suddenly of unknown causes by now.
In this country, we allow grifters, opportunists, and would-be authoritarians to attack our very system in an effort to bring discredit to outcomes they might not like. If Donald Trump ends up acquitted of all the charges, a very real possibility, the right will be suddenly be hailing the system they swear today is driven by politics, corruption, and vindictiveness. If Trump gets convicted, they are sowing seeds of doubt about our system that suggests nothing in the government can be trusted.
Elected Republicans making the case that Donald Trump did nothing illegal and that the indictments are politically motivated are doing damage to our country. None of them that I’ve heard dispute the facts in the cases. No, they argue that Trump and his had a right to demand elected and appointed election officials find them more votes. They say it’s freedom of speech. They argue the same for the fake electors. They don’t deny that the scheme was meant to overturn the election. They just deny that it was illegal. Seems like an argument the justice system should sort out.
Which brings us to the GOP debate that Trump skipped. Everybody on the stage except former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson said they would support Trump, even if he were convicted of crimes. That’s alarming since they all know that he will not accept defeat in 2024. They also know that next time could be worse than January 6 because Trump and his allies will know where they made mistakes and who is loyal and who is not. In other words, all of those candidates have told us that they don’t believe in our system of justice unless the outcome suits them. To hear Chris Christy and Mike Pence make the case that Trump is corrupt and possibly treasonous and then say they would support him is disturbing, to say the least.
Of course, the scariest person on the debate stage was Vivek Ramaswamy. He’s clearly studied Trump better than the rest of the field. He’s not just loyal, he’s trying to imitate him. DeSantis may have tried to make himself Trump’s successor with a political resume, but part of Trump’s appeal is the lack of political experience. Ramaswamy sounds like a huckster, which apparently appeals to a lot of Americans. Like Trump, he’s following the old P.T. Barnum maxim, “There’s a sucker born every minute” and, with the help of social media, he understands that he can talk to them all at once. None of the politicians on the stage spoke that language very well.
Like Trump, Ramaswamy uses his ignorance of government, history, and policy to his advantage. He can communicate to a whole lot people who have less knowledge than him to still sound smart. It’s the simple answers for simple minds approach to politicking. He can convince a mass of very ignorant people to support simple and bad policy ideas based on the idea that everything that they don’t understand, the justice system, for example, is corrupt. Just like Trump. And according to the show of hands on that debate stage, there’s nobody in the Republican Party with the courage to oppose those lies or the patriotism to defend our country.
The whole situation feels a bit Orwellian. The system that has kept Trump out of jail so far is under attack by people who don’t think he should be in jail. The guy who will almost certainly claim victory if he’s on the ballot in 2024 has the support of Republican opponents who say openly that he’s corrupt and tried to usurp our democracy. And the so-called responsible Republicans like Mitch McConnell justify their inaction by pointing to the Supreme Court. Defeating these people is the most patriotic thing anybody can do right now.
Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Thomas spent twenty years as a political and public affairs consultant. Learn more >
Ramaswamy is Baby Billy from Righteous Gemstones
More than fifty lawsuits brought by Donald Trump and his marry little group of racketeers and deadbeats challenging the election or its outcome have been dismissed by state and federal judges. Many of the judges were appointed by Trump. The lawyers pursuing these actions on Trumps behalf have been disbarred or on their way to disbarment. The current Georgia RICO case grew out of Trumps attempt to bully a Republican Secretary of State into committing election fraud. “Just find me 11,800 votes, just one more than we need”.
Irony is difficult for folks who lack the ability to comprehend something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning. One of the features of a person convinced they are serving a righteous cause and that all means are justified (essential to a good cult member) is the inability to take a series of facts expressed in words and to understand and manipulate the information to solve a specific problem.
To say Puton is highly efficient in dealing with folks who present problems for him would be an understatement. The legal system in this country may not be as efficient as Putin in dealing with criminal behavior. But it is fair and backed by a series of checks and balances designed to protect the accused. Trump will be tried by a jury of his peers, if found guilty he will have the right to appeal. A true believer cannot understand this notion. They are so wrapped up in the righteousness of their cause, they lose sight of reality. They are willing to believe their cult leader (in this case a failed real-estate huckster and TV personality) over family members or their religious leader. They will even turn their back on their country. This is a pathetically ignorant person.
That Mills claims to have 20 years of experience as a political consultant defies comprehension. Mills’ so-called ‘comprehension’ of the Republican Party is abysmally ignorant.
He starts this latest detestable screed with the snarky suggestion that the Russian system of simply eliminating dissidents off the face of the earth is MUCH more effective, MUCH more competent than allowing them access to a neutral court system which just might allow them opportunity to defend themselves. O, the sheer horror of a system which allows for equal representation under the law!
Which gets us to the REAL ‘Big Lie’. Democrats persistently hammer on Trump’s assertion that the 2020 election was tainted with fraud as The Big Lie. Never mind that there IS enough available evidence of ballot fraud and mishandling to merit a review of the election. To the radicals on the Left who are convinced that Trump is suffering from a delusion, I would point you to Democrat candidate Stacy Abrams, who—to this day—stoutly asserts that she really did win the election that, in fact … she really DID lose! So—Democrats can continue to believe a Big Lie, but if Trump—who DOES have evidence to back up his claims of ballot mishandling—if Trump claims he was defrauded, somehow THAT’S a lie, but Abrams’ blather is OK??
Mills goes on to note: “In this country, we allow grifters, opportunists, and would-be authoritarians to attack our very system in an effort to bring discredit to outcomes they might not like.” Oh, the sheer IRONY of that statement! Mills—do you NOT comprehend at ALL the staggering amount of evidence that indisputably PROVES the Biden Crime Family Syndicate is nothing but a cabal of perversion and corruption—on an international scale!?? Talk about grifters and opportunists—that’s all Joe Biden has been thru-out his entire dysfunctional career! The man is dumber than a box of rocks, but he IS shrewd, and he IS a clever manipulator! Hunter Biden didn’t fall too far from the family tree, did he??
With deep alarm, Mills then notes with grave concern how GOP candidate Ramaswamy very dangerously “…can convince a mass of very ignorant people to support simple and bad policy ideas…” Seriously, Mills??? What do think Biden and his cabal of drooling idiots has been doing ever since he got into the White House?? For proof, I offer you the daily dose of ‘stupid’ from his White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre—who very clearly is simply the stupidest individual to have EVER stood behind that podium! Talk about ignorant people talking, and supporting bad policy ideas!!
And then—at the end of this article—Mills observes that “The whole situation feels a bit Orwellian.” Really, Mills?? Do you have ANY comprehension at all what ‘Orwellian’ really suggests…? It suggests a political regime which is functionally incapable of seeing the difference between right and wrong. It suggests a political entity which is so awash in corruption, so twisted, so wicked, that it cannot (or will not!) allow for freedom of thought, without persecuting those who dare to pursue that avenue of independence. ‘Orwellian’ suggests group-think—believing Big Lies, no matter how absurd or unsupportable by sheer logic or fact! Welcome to the Biden Administration! America will not survive another four years of this doddering idiot!
wow…you are so full of s___ it’s not funny, but scary, like so many of your MAGA brethren…
Perhaps, those ultraconservative, reactionary, arch conservatives, paleo conservative, ultrarichest dowdy, blimpish, fogyish,red tie wearing Trump Cult members will grow up when he and his little band of racketeers, and near do wells find a new home in prison. They can reword the lyrics of Sam Cook’s hit song the “Chain Gang”. “Hoh Ah, Hoh ah, uh ah, uh ah”, that is the sound of the boys and girls of Trump’s chain gang. Trump can star in a new TV reality show, “apprentice convict” brought to you live from within the walls of Georgia State Penitentiary. The show’s theme song could be “If I were only a bird” song by the members of Jan 6 Choir.
The only adult in the room – and the only one sticking to the truth – was the woman.
She raised her hand when the question was floated, would you vote for Trump if he is convicted! She would be willing to vote for a man a judge called a rapist.
NOTE: My initial posting was intended as a parody of some folks who love to use a multiplicity of adjectives available to them in word processing programs. My point is that a word processing program will not add years of education or experience, nor impress folks, other than themselves.
Yes indeed, people should fear Donald Trump might become President again. Why? Because of what he is, what he is capable of doing, said he would do if he gets power back, and what he has already done. A man whose range of vision doesn’t exceed the tip of his own nose. A man who, if you listen, has managed to meld his wants and desires to the dreams and aspirations of others. What affects him likewise affects them. He’s the proxy for all the evil manifested on you. Bullshit. The only interest Donald Trump has in anyone else is what they can do for him. Reciprocation is not in his vocabulary.
And make no mistake, this all about him, win or lose; winner take all. And he intends to take it all or destroy it trying. If that is your idea of what America should be, you need some new ideas, better thoughts, a more positive outlook on life. I am a “Never Trumper.”
Seven Munchkins showed up for the debate, all identically dressed in blue suits, white shirts, and red neckties: Trump’s uniform of choice. They must all want to be seen as Mini-Trumps, as if the original wasn’t bad enough. Wait until Ron DeSaster decides to put on a blond wig.
The same applies for the Democratic Party also. Our only hope is third party victory as the 2 major parties are so corrupt as to be treasonous. Both must go.
I wouldn’t worry too much about Vivek Ramaswamy. There is precisely zero chance that Fat Donny Two-Times will tolerate an imitator out-Trumping him, and even less chance that his cult will adopt a cheap, foreign made knockoff as a substitute. Tangerine Cthulhu is the Grifting Highlander — there can be only one.
As for the Cavalcade of Derp that is the rest of the field, given the RNC’s penchant for loyalty pledges, and the near inevitability that Agent Orange will bring home the nomination, there should be a liberal dusting of salt applied to their oath of fealty to Cheeto Christ Stupid Czar. The sort of HAVE to say that, or be booted from the next debate. And every one of them knows that THEY can’ t get away with skipping out on the debates and sill have a hope in hell of winning, so hey can ill afford to piss off the RNC and Faux News.
But there was one bright spot in my morning news read. It seems that the chair of the Karen Kaucus, Empty Greene, got her little feelings bruised when they wouldn’t let her or Matt “Butthead” Gaetz into the”spin room” after the debate. But Fox had made it clear long before the debate every happened that n surrogates for non-participants would be allowed into the after party. And the only comment under that article at the time was form a self-identified rump voter, who said (paraphrasing) that’s not censorship; you knew going in that they weren’t going to allow you in, so quit your whining. I almost had a Schädengasm.
Why don’t you try re-posting your petulant little commentary again? This time, try real hard not to use cute liberal buzzwords, and silly pejoratives that no one–outside of a clueless 10-yr old–can possibly understand, let alone comprehend whatever it is that you’re trying to say. Writers to this website seem to literally quiver with the fear that Donald Trump might once again become President, and it sends them into paroxyms of absolute rage! Bless your illiterate little hearts–you’ll get over it, schmuck-boy. Try to put together something a little more comprehensible next time.