By Calvin Hill
As we watch the reality show president destroy our republic one norm at a time, one law at a time, and lie after lie over time, the more inherent danger has become the Congressional Republicans and the faux conservative media that have willingly been body snatched by Russian propaganda. This might be very entertaining as a sci-fi television series, but we are literally living in a virtual Lost In Space America with patriots, not robots, shouting, “Danger democracy. Danger democracy!”
“Swear to God!” That was the addendum to Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s open statement in front of a cadre of Republican colleagues, that Donald Trump was one of two people he believed were being paid by the Russians. Then reigning House Speaker, Paul Ryan, told his crew that McCarthy’s statement was not to be shared or repeated outside of their little hallway cabal. But when the audio and video did become public, McCarthy claimed that he was just joking. Nobody immediately swears to God after a statement and claims they were joking, even comedians say, “Swear to God, true story.” Apparently, many California voters may have taken the statement seriously because Dana Rohrbacher, the number two in ‘one of two’ that McCarthy mentioned lost his House seat in 2018.
After a 22-month investigation into the Russian sabotage of the 2016 presidential election, perhaps the more damning indictment of Donald Trump’s behavior came when Special Counsel, Bob Mueller, testified that the President could be prosecuted once out of office. Either out of his absolute fear, or abject stupidity, the day after Mueller’s verbal indictment, Donald Trump initiated a phone call to the newly elected President of Ukraine and unleashed a crime spree involving enough members of his administration to rival the Watergate burglars. Lost in the Republicans’ illogical defense of Trump’s criminal solicitation to retain power, are the thousands of dead Ukrainians who were unable to defend themselves without our congressionally approved funds. The faces of the many changing defenses indicate how pathetic the Republicans and their pseudo conservative media voices have become to protect a man whose documented history reveals, what many will only say off the record, a belief to have an enormous debt to Vladimir Putin. Sadly, as the Republicans vilify the media as fake news who hate, and are against the President, it shows them to be the highest of hypocrites who, by their own off the record statements, have been overtly violating their oath of office while enjoying the very protection of the press and the journalism standards of integrity not to out them. And the integrity challenged Republicans, who quietly evoke their disdain for their amoral President, have become loud proponents of behavior they formerly admonished under the guise of being good, loyal Americans. Thus, they are content to listen to the President of the United States pontificate over toilet flushes, light bulbs and how orange they make him look, before we’ve even buried the servicemen murdered in Pensacola and Pearl Harbor.
These formerly tariff rejecting, immigrant supporting, deficit despising, subsidy hating, Russian distrusting Republicans in the Congress, on talk radio, and the sycophantic Fox News Channel, primetime and early morning, have turned their belief system topsy-turvy to defend the propaganda of a geo-political enemy who manipulates an American president via speed dial. They have displayed more outrage over the Russians blood doping their athletes in worldwide competitions than their murder of journalists and political opponents, invasion of allies, hacking us and our allies, attacking our voter rolls and infrastructure, and compelling the US Commander-in-Chief to cower approaching a microphone in Helsinki. What makes this whole Ukraine meddling story so unbelievable is not just that Dr. Fiona Hill testified that it is false Russian propaganda. We know that Donald Trump would have produced evidence as swiftly as he produced his Sharpie altered weather map and his Sharpie laden “I want nothing” talking points if it bore any truth. Adding to his infinite hypocrisy, as he repeatedly rallies his supporters that CNN is “fake news,” it was on CNN that Donald Trump directed Ukraine’s President Zelensky to make the public announcement of his bogus investigation.
There are published biographical tomes indicating that the Russians have been after Donald Trump for decades. When the cheers went up in the Kremlin on election night in America, the Russians knew their “active measures” campaign had been a rousing success. Felix Sater’s earlier assurance that, “We can get our boy elected,” had come to pass.
Donald Trump’s ego inspired ability to boast about his immoral, amoral and unsympathetic way of life made him a sucker for Vladimir Putin. Even the generally street smart Mr. Trump never caught on that Trump Tower Moscow was never going to be anything more than a carrot. He was an easy mark. However, the GOP knew Trump was unfit to be president. They spent more than two years saying so. What made them succumb, so easily, to this reality show huckster who governs by ignorance and overt corruption? Everyone who refused to perform his illegal requests has been fired. Those who bent to the will of his corrupt campaign are in jail, waiting to go to jail, cooperating to stay out of jail, under criminal investigation, or hoping to be pardoned. When Jeb Bush warned his fellow Republicans that a Trump presidency would be a chaos presidency, even he never thought that the party who built overwhelming state majorities would be this weak and this fickle. Why are the “national security” and “law and order champions” echoing Kremlin talking points about corruption, but are silent when the President’s cash strapped, security risk son-in-law travels overseas, having classified information, and returns with an unexplained financial bonanza? How could this happen?
In retrospect, this has to be laid at the feet of Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell. When President Obama went to them to make a joint statement to the American people that the Russians were all over social media spreading false information and creating false identities to spread lies and propaganda, the Republican leaders balked. It was their decision that the American people did not deserve, and would be better off not knowing the truth. One false social media story compelled an American to shoot up an innocent pizza parlor. The Kentucky Senator has also unilaterally decided that American votes are not sacred enough to be fairly counted.
Armed with the knowledge that Senate Majority Leader McConnell now welcomes the idea of keeping the truth from the American people, Donald Trump has inundated the atmosphere in America with a torrent of lies. McConnell remains silent and loyal to Trump’s dishonesty by refusing to have any Democratic led, bipartisan legislation reach the Oval Office. What better way to insure that Mrs. McConnell, Elaine Chao, remains on the taxpayer’s payroll? Approaching the eve of impeachment votes and a looming Senate trial, this President has had lawyers argue in federal court that if he shot someone on 5th Avenue, he could not be investigated, and that Article II of the Constitution gives him the authority to do whatever he wants, we find that Mitch McConnell is fine with that. And, save for the forcibly ousted Rep. Justin Amash, the Republican Party is fine with that. Worse still, is that the American people are being subjected to a major political party dancing to the music of Vladimir Putin’s puppetry. None dare call it treason. But we may certainly call it treachery.
The Op-Ed Alternative 