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| Brad Raffensperger on the left, |
My
obsession with American politics continues apace as does my horrified
‘can’t look away’ disbelief in Trump and his utterly immoral,
vindictive, narcissistic, self-pitying, mendacious character. I only
mention the latest unbelievable act, an hour long call to Brad
Raffensperger, Secretary of State in Georgia tasked with the overall
organisation and oversight of elections. I read of it first in
Heather Cox Richardson’s Letter from an American,
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| Professor Heather Cox Richardson |
which
a friend kindly sends me every day. Presumably all readers of this
blog will have already heard/seen almost non-stop media coverage of
this call in which Trump cajoles, threatens, begs, Raffensperger to
find 11,789 more votes which he needs to prove that he won Georgia in
November’s Presidential election. The call was recorded by
Raffensperger’s office to be used only if Trump publicised the call
himself or attacked Raffensperger subsequently. Inevitably Trump immediately did
both and the conversation was aired [many times] Totally the best
advice/comment came immediately from Michael Bromwich, former
Inspector General of the Dept. of Justice. “
His best defence
would be insanity.” Now there speaks the voice of reason! And
perhaps, compassion.
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| Michael Bromwich |
Among a
huge display of opinions about the Trump phone call, one Harvard
professor whose name I sadly didn’t note, grabbed my attention. He
said that Trump had moved over the four years in office, from ‘
little
lies’ [countless!] to ‘
big lies’, [‘I won
the election!’] and was now heading to what he termed, “
Mounting
a coup.” I hadn’t thought of Trump’s strange behaviour
beyond assuming the
continuing assertion in the contrary face of
reality, was just another scam by a look-alike Mafia mob boss. He has
gained, last I heard, over half a million dollars from ‘little
people’ sending him money to aid his fight to regain his
Presidency, illicit though that enterprise is; but channelled
immediately into one of his personal accounts. The man has always
been shameless! But listening to him yesterday I judged him to have
slipped further from reality into a dark swirl of anger and denial;
into an echo chamber of horrors which terrifies him. Hence the title
of this blog, borrowed from Michael Bromwich. I have always been
surprised, indeed, taken aback, by the reverence exhibited by
apparently all Americans for the office of the Presidency. There has
always been a superfluous reverence for The Office and by
association, for the man occupying the throne, as it were. Even for
crooks like Nixon and Trump.
 |
Mitch McConnell,
Senate Republican leader;
Trump-enabler. |
 |
Insurrection in Washington
Jan. 6th, 2021. |
The
above was written before the terrifying mob burst into the Senate, yesterday screaming for blood and fulminating against the 'faked' election
result. Trump had, through a public speech before cheering crowds,
and through the usual Twitter incitement, encouraged his many
supporters to storm Congress [
I’ll be there with you!] to ensure
the so-called ‘illegal’ election result was corrected. The chaos
and lawlessness [and eventual four deaths] have shaken Americans’
belief, oft-proclaimed, in their “
greatest democracy in the
world,” It has certainly rocked the world, supporters and
enemies alike. Even leading Republicans have been stung to shocked
criticism; a little late perhaps for these Trump-enablers who have
publicly, and cynically, backed his non-stop alternative reality lies over his lost
election. Trump’s refusal to acknowledge his loss, indeed his
strong apparent belief in what he says, confirms his psychologically-damaged,
seriously inadequate personality and underlines the danger of
installing him in any office. He would have problems in running a
sweet shop. But the truly alarming fact is that he has managed to
inspire over 70 million people to vote for him for President AND
subsequently, following a sizeable loss after an admirably-run
election, to convince a significant portion of the American populace
that Biden didn’t win, but stole, the election. One imagines the
rampaging mob in Washington yesterday to Right what Trump told them
was a Wrong, did not understand that it was also tearing apart
American democracy.
One
hopes sense will prevail and Trump be removed from office forthwith;
his attempted coup has failed. Two weeks in office remaining confer a dangerous
vacuum for him to convert delusion into destructive action.
 |
Confederate flag aloft in the heart of Government.
One can always rely on racism rearing its
ugly head in America. |
