Rule Of Law

The Ten Greatest Political Villains Of 2022! And An Addendum!

Ronald 3 Comments

Yesterday, I published a post on the ten greatest Political Heroes of 2022.

So now, it is time to indicate who I believe are the ten greatest Political Villains of 2022!

In no special order, I would list the following:

Republican House Minority Leader, possibly Speaker of the House (hopefully not), Kevin McCarthy of California, who time again and again showed he had no spine, being a supplicant to Donald Trump, and demonstrating no principle or ethics in his crazed desire to be Speaker, two heartbeats away from the Presidency. The thought of him being that close in the line of succession is horrifying, not that there are very good alternatives!

Election Denier, and symbol with clenched fist, Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, who promoted sedition and treason! He faces reelection in 2024 and should be soundly defeated!

Election Denier and most obnoxious Senator (with other competitors), Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, who this author and blogger thought in 2016 was the most dangerous Republican running for President, even more than Donald Trump! He faces reelection in 2024 and should be soundly defeated!

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a man who once had some intelligence, but after Arizona Senator John McCain died, has become a total Donald Trump sycophant!

Republican Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, a very unstable and unpricipled excuse for a human being, who, somehow, was able to defeat one of the best US Senators of modern times, Russ Feingold, in 2010 and 2016, and then a very talented Lieutenant Governor, African American Mandela Barnes in 2022. Johnson is one of the worst figures in Senate history!

Republican Congressman Jim Jordan of Ohio, an obnoxious and unprincipled man who, sadly, is likely to become House Judiciary Committee Chairman in the 118th Congress in 2023!

Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott, who won his third term as Governor in 2022, despite his horrendous policies and lack of compassion, and is likely to pursue a Presidential candidacy for 2024!

Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, who won a vast reelection victory in 2022, and is seen as the front runner for the Republican Presidential nomination in 2024, despite his intolerant and authoritarian bent, and his high level of arrogance and cockiness, on a multitude of issues. These include the COVID 19 Pandemic; Gay and Transgender Rights; Racial and Religious Minorities; interference in the teaching of History and Literature, and Manipulating School Boards and Libraries; and extreme Gerrymandering of Congressional Districts, which took away two African American seats, and gave the Republicans the control of the House of Representatives in the 118th Congress!

Arizona Republican Gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake, who used the same tactic as Donald Trump, promoting the “Big Lie” about her defeat in the recent elections in her state. She has just been repudiated in court in her attempt to reverse a clearcut victory by her opponent, Secretary of State Katie Hobbs. Good riddance to the most obnoxious woman imaginable!

Finally, on this list, former President Donald Trump, the most dangerous and worst US President in American history, twice impeached, and a close ally of totalitarian dictators around the world, willing to overthrow the US Constitution, rule of law, and American democracy. He needs to be prevented from running again for President, and indictment and conviction on the four charges brought against him by the January 6 House Committee is essential, to prevent any future tyrant from taking the kind of actions that this most evil man took! He harmed so many Americans during his term, as well as having the responsibility for the deaths, destruction and violence, in the worst attack on the US Capitol since the War of 1812!

And now an Addendum:

The Supreme Court has become a disgraceful, power hungry, extremist right wing organization!

Chief Justice John Roberts has lost his desired reputation as the leader of his Court, and in particular, Clarence Thomas (appointed by George H. W. Bush) and Samuel Alito (appointed by George W. Bush) have been totally out of control, and both will go down as two of the very worst Supreme Court Justices in American history! The names and reputations of both Bush Presidencies are permanently besmirched as a result!

Trump’s Call For Suspension Of The Constitution Is Beyond The Pale!

Ronald 3 Comments

Donald Trump has been controversial and dangerous since he announced for President in 2015, but now he has gone beyond the pale, by calling for suspension of the US Constitution, a clear power grab by a dangerous Fascist authoritian personality!

Trump leads a dangerous cult of about 30 percent of the American people, who are willing to overlook all of his outrageous statements and actions, and he and his group are a menace to the rule of law and American democracy’s survival!

And yet, so far, Republican leaders have not reacted to his lawless call for suspending the Constitution that has been in effect since 1789!

Every Republican must be put on the record as to their reaction to Trump’s call for suspension of the Constitution, and no one who accepts his assertion should be allowed to hold public office!

The time for tolerance is over, and Donald Trump must be held accountable for his crimes and promotion of violence, and face prosecution NOW!

And if his supporters choose to cause more violence, then it must be met with swift reaction by all law enforcement agencies!

Happy 80th Birthday, President Biden, A True Treasure To American Democracy!

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Happy 80th Birthday to President Biden, who has been a true treasure to American democracy!

When history is written of these times, the years after Fascist authoritarian Donald Trump attempted to destroy American democracy, the Constitution, and the rule of law, it will be recorded that Joe Biden came along as the savior of our heritage of freedom, joining with Abraham Lincoln in the Civil War in the early 1860s, and Franklin D. Roosevelt in the World War II era in the early 1940s!

Now, another 80 years after 1860 and 1940, Joe Biden committed himself to defy the dictatorial nature of Donald Trump, and restore faith in America and its heritage of freedom and democracy!

Like Lincoln and FDR, Biden has been subjected to relentless character assassination and ridicule, but like Lincoln and FDR, he has stood tall and proud and brave, and has committed his later years to his country!

Do not forget that Biden is finishing 50 years of public service, since he was elected to the US Senate a few weeks short of the minimum age of 30 in 1972!

And he has been a public servant in office for all of that half century, except for the four years after leaving the Vice Presidency, having chosen not to try to run for the Presidency in 2016, due to his deep mourning for his son Beau, who died in 2015!

Just as Biden suffered through the loss of his first wife and young daughter in a traffic accident weeks after his Senate election and before he took the oath, so he suffered again in 2015 with the loss of his older son!

But he rose from a low moment to serve his nation and the world, and save it from not just foreign terrorism, but the ever greater threat of domestic terrorism!

His record in office has been superb for his first two years, and was good enough to promote the least loss of power and influence in the past 90 years in a first term midterm election!

His decision whether to run or retire should be respected, and while reaching the age of 80 is a daunting number to have so much responsibility for the nation and the world, Joe Biden, despite some shortcomings at times, runs rings around Donald Trump in knowledge, ability, intelligence, and most importantly, compassion, empathy, and common decency!

May God bless him to a long life, and commitment to his nation and the world, as history records the greatness of this man!

Nancy Pelosi Is The Greatest Elected Woman Leader In US History!

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Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, California, is giving up her leadership of the Democratic Party in the lower chamber, as a result of the Republicans taking over as the majority by just a few members, basically a switch from the Democratic slim margin in the 117th Congress, to the Republican slim margin in the upcoming 118th Congress.

Pelosi will remain, however, as the representative of her district, and will contribute her expertise and skills to the new, younger generation leadership of the Democratic Party, led by New York Congressman Hakeem Jeffries.

Pelosi has served for 36 years, and has been a massive figure in the history of Congress.

Without a doubt, she is the greatest elected woman leader in US History, and has borne the burden of vicious personal attacks on her person and that of her husband.

She is truly a heroine for the ages, and was of great assistance to Democratic Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, but also came to the support, when needed, of Republican President George W. Bush.

Pelosi is irreplaceable, but Hakeem Jeffries, hopefully the future Speaker of the House in the 119th Congress (2025-2027) is certain to outshine the mediocre, self serving, traitor to the Constitution and rule of law that Kevin McCarthy represents, being beholden to Donald Trump, after rightly condemning him immediately after the US Capitol Insurrection on January 6, 2021.

McCarthy will be condemned in history for having been subservient to Donald Trump!

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Is Appealing To Right Wing Authoritarians!

Ronald 5 Comments

It has become clear that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is perceived as the likely alternative to Donald Trump, among other Republicans who might seek to run for President in 2024.

What is clear is that Ron DeSantis is smarter, more intelligent than Donald Trump, which makes DeSantis very dangerous.

DeSantis is appealing to right wing authoritarians, based on his utterances and actions in office.

He has promoted the “Don’t Say Gay” legislation in Florida, persecuting gays, lesbians, and transgenders in the public schools, and dictating what can be said by educators in classrooms regarding sexuality and students.

Along with other Republicans, he is aiming to avoid the subject of race in the teaching of history, distorting the truth of the American past. He has attacked CRT (Critical Race Theory), which is not taught in schools, but he also does not want the unfortunate reality of racism and discrimination in the American past to be taught at all in schools and universities.

DeSantis is promoting book banning, affecting libraries and schools, and encouraging parents and school boards to promote censorship, interfering with students right to read books that should continue to be available.

He has promoted the anti abortion movement, and weakened gun safety laws, making the state much more dangerous to its citizens.

Anyone who is critical of him is attacked, including Walt Disney World, and Democratic prosecutors elected to office, who he dismisses from their positions on political grounds.

DeSantis has suppressed the vote, aiming to make it more difficult for the basic right of citizens to vote.

He has promoted gerrymandering that took away two House of Representatives seats from African Americans.

DeSantis resisted the COVID 19 Pandemic, working against vaccination requirements, face mask mandates, and stay at home orders, and this has led to Florida having the third most deaths, but not far behind California and Texas, although they have much larger populations.

He sent 50 Venezuelan refugee migrants who had applied for political asylum legally to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, as part of his political strategy to challenge the Biden Administration, but showing no concern about the cost to the state of Florida, and the lack of concern or respect for people escaping a left wing authoritarian dictatorship in Venezuela.

DeSantis is very hostile and antagonistic toward the news media, and bans them from many press conferences, only allowing right wing news media, including Fox News Channel to be present.

He is seen as appealing to right wing authoritarian promoters, and therefore, is seen as a threat to American democracy and the rule of law, were he to be nominated for and elected to the Presidency!

Donald Trump Threatens Violence If He Is Indicted, But Justice Department Must Not Be Intimidated!

Ronald 1 Comment

For the first time in American history, we have a former President threatening violence if he is indicted for his crimes, which clearly are sedition and treason.

Donald Trump stated so a few days ago, apparently trying to intimidate Attorney General Merrick Garland to overlook his incitement of the January 6, 2021 US Capitol Insurrection, and the illegal removal of national security documents to his Palm Beach, Florida estate of Mar A Lago.

This presents a difficult situation, but the answer is not to cave in to Donald Trump or any other lawless person, as it is essential that the rule of law applies to all Americans equally!

Constitution Day: 235 Years And Counting, But Question About Its Survival In Future!

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Today is Constitution Day, the day in 1787 when the Founding Fathers signed the Constitution.

No one in their right mind would think that those who signed the Constitution believed there should be no changes ever made, or that what was in the Constitution was cement that could not be altered.

And yet, today, we have a majority Supreme Court which thinks we should go back to 1787, what is called “Originalism”.

This is pure insanity, and undermines the ability of government to adapt to changing times.

Most of what is considered “normal” today in constitutional terms is far from just the original document, and reflects the changing times.

And we are faced with a threat, greater than the Civil War or the Great Depression and World War II, to our ability to maintain a constitutional government based on the rule of law, as Donald Trump and his minions are a dire threat to America’s democratic future!

Republican Party Clearly On “Suicide Mission” On Abortion, Entitlements, And Donald Trump!

Ronald 1 Comment

With eight weeks until the Midterm Elections of 2022, it now seems clear that the Republican Party is on a “suicide mission”, and will likely, hopefully, suffer massive losses and be repudiated by voters.

Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina is now promoting a national abortion ban, at a time when massive numbers of new voters, the vast majority females, are registering to vote to save their basic right to control their own bodies and their futures.

Also, the proposal of Senator Rick Scott of Florida to move toward a five year window for Social Security and Medicare, with the aim of ending these programs from Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal and Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society, is extremely alarming, after nealy 90 and 60 years duration of these social programs that millions of Americans depend on!

And the refusal of almost all Republicans to hold Donald Trump accountable for his taking of national security documents to Mar A Lago, and covering it up continuously, makes the Republican Party look as a lawless party, against basic accountability for his promotion of the downfall of American democracy and the rule of law!

If the Republican Party somehow overcomes these massive deficits, it will be clear that the majority of voting Americans have lost their minds, and are willing to go down the road of Fascist Authoritarianism!

The Republican Party has become a party outside the mainstream of American politics and history, and must be smashed to have a chance to revive as a normal, mainstream political party, the aim of former Republicans who have formed the Lincoln Project to overcome the tragedy the party has become!

Joe Biden Makes Clear In Philadelphia Speech The Dangers Presented By “MAGA” Republicans!

Ronald 3 Comments

President Joe Biden delivered a blistering attack last night in Philadelphia, the “Cradle of Liberty” against former President Donald Trump and the threat of “MAGA” Republicans to American democracy and the rule of law!

Biden pulled no punches, abandoning the idea of bipartisanship, which he had promoted for so many years in the US Senate, as the vast majority of the Republican Party has become, as Biden calls it, “Semi Fascist”.

The speech reminded this author of similar speeches by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in defending his “New Deal” in the time of the Great Depression, and FDR’s strong rebuttals of “isolationists”, who opposed his foreign policy in the lead up to World War II!

It also reminded this author of Harry Truman challenging the Republican Party in 1948, the famous “Give Them Hell Harry” campaign for reelection, which seemed hopeless, but with the result of a stunning election victory against all public opinion polls at the time!

Women And Young People Are Registering To Vote In Record Numbers, Due To Abortion Issue!

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Women of all ages and backgrounds, and young people in general, are registering to vote in record numbers, and the main reason is the denial of abortion rights by the Supreme Court in June.

That, plus the danger to American democracy represented by the “MAGA” Republicans, who are Fascist in orientation and empower Donald Trump, no matter what is emerging about his treason and sedition, are motivating Americans to realize that the Midterm Elections of 2022 are crucial for the future.

While the Democrats have a major problem historically, with the reality that the party out of power gains in the midterm elections that follow, this time, more than ever before, it is absolutely essential that Democrats keep control of both houses of Congress and do better in state legislatures and governorships, as otherwise, the Consitution and rule of law will be in danger!