Thankfully, not all Republicans are spineless demagogues that buckle under partisan pressure and leave their principles behind for political gain. Kudos to Georgia’s Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger for his professionalism and level-headedness during the phone call with President Trump on Saturday. The insanity of this administration has been exhausting, but we will not give in to lunacy just yet.
Although the Trump administration and his supporters have tried to dismiss the economic crisis as collateral damage from the pandemic, he is undeniably partially responsible. The rhetoric of the right deflects away from such realities, even though Trump’s “strong economy” was and is part of the foundation of his presidential campaign and platform.
In his prepared statement President Trump characterized the allegations of police brutality and systemic racism as part of the “radical left ideology” that has contributed to the creation of what he called a “violent mob.” He further called the “anti-police” rhetoric “dangerous” but assured that the “bad apples” would be dealt with by the system.
Last night, in nothing other than a tweet, President Trump again abused the power of his office and broke the law in order to enrich his friends and family. Unfortunately for President Trump, such actions, like the “use of public office for private gain,” either for oneself, a friend, or relative, is illegal. Whether the president is aware of that or not is unclear.
Yet again, we see simplicity and ignorance on display in the highest elected office in the United States of America. The president has made it undeniably clear time and time again that his views of people are solely based on what they have done for him, can do for him, or have said about him. Everything in his world revolves around him, and if that isn’t a dangerous characteristic to have as president then what is?
President Trump continued to praise the federal agents in Portland as very strong and highly trained, even though a DHS memo revealed that these officers were not properly trained to handle mass demonstrations. The president and his administration has consistently characterized Antifa and protesters as “anarchists and agitators” that are causing all of the violence in protests around the country, despite recent studies that show that right-wing extremism has been much more deadly and prevalent over the past two decades.
The Political Historian 