Oddly enough, the narrative coming from the Trump administration about voter fraud is not at all new. In late November of 2016 President Trump tweeted that he would have also won the popular vote, “if you deduct the millions of people who voted illegally.” Even though he provided no evidence for that claim then, it became a cornerstone of the rhetoric of his administration.
Trump declared that Baghdadi was a vicious and violent person that died “like a dog,” as a coward. In recounting the daring operation, Trump said that Baghdadi was chased by U.S. forces into a dead-end tunnel within the compound, “whimpering and crying and screaming all the way.” Trump said that Baghdadi had dragged three (3) of his own young children into the tunnel with him. After Baghdadi reached the end of the tunnel, realizing there was no way out, he ignited his suicide vest, collapsing the tunnel, killing himself and his three young children.
The phrase, quid pro quo, directly translates from Latin as “something for something.” In modern English this Latin phrase is used to mean an exchange of goods or services, in which one transfer is contingent upon the other. Ever since the story first broke regarding President Trump’s scandalous phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Trump has vehemently denied that there was any sort of quid pro quo. However, the Trump Administration’s acting Chief of Staff, Mick Mulvaney, admitted in a press conference last Thursday, October 17, 2019, that President Trump withheld aid from Ukraine as part of a quid pro quo.
From relatively small crimes such as copyright or intellectual property law infringement to large crimes such as violating the United States Constitution, Trump has done them both. In October of last year, the Prince Estate requested that the Trump Campaign “cease all use” of Prince’s songs after Trump used them on pre-Election Day rallies. On October 15, 2018 The Prince Estate received a response from Trump’s Campaign that noted they would not play any of Prince’s music in connections with its activities going forward.
On October 11, 2019 a federal appeals court rejected Trump’s appeal of the House Oversight Committee’s subpoena for his financial records. Although this is a win for Americans who value transparency in government, I fear that this is an issue that will not be resolved with this decision. We have to remember that throughout the end of President Obama’s second term in office, Republicans vehemently stone-walled even the idea of Obama nominating a new Supreme Court Justice to fill the place of the late Justice Scalia.
The administrations of Washington and Jefferson set the foundation for our Democratic Republic. They led the way in revolting against a tyrannical king in order to usher in a new world order in which the people hold the power. However, our current President seems to enjoy power and abhor any criticism, much like the tyrannical king we chose to separate ourselves from so long ago.
The Political Historian 