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The GOP Abdicates Their Responsibility to America [1]

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Date: 2023-10-06  

The Republican Party, as traditionally conceived, has ceased to exist. What remains is captive to an adjudicated career criminal, and as David Corn points out, a stochastic terrorist. The end of American democracy, as we have known it for many decades, is in sight. No longer the bright shining beacon on the hill, with fealty to Trump, the GOP is degrading the country to little better than a Banana Republic.

Because of tribal acquiesce, even those few remaining elected Republicans who consider themselves to “conservatives,” have lost all credibility and forsaken their responsibilities to the American people. By their silence in the face of obvious wrongdoing, they forfeit respectability afforded to a “loyal opposition.” Almost every member of the GOP, overtly or covertly, relinquishes their power and self-dignity to a wannabe dictator. Fearful of his ignorant base, they completely disregard facts and morality as they do his bidding and to the detriment of the nation.

As glaringly evidenced by the recent near-catastrophic shutdown of the US Government, the Republican members of Congress have proven they are incapable of governance. Captivity to their right-wing band of chaos has resulted in a historic removal of Kevin McCarthy as the Speaker of the House, a position third in line for the Presidency.

Hardly unexpected, Kevin’s fate was sealed in January 2023 when he accepted the demands from the coalition of chaos, including that any single member of congress could call for a motion to vacate. So self-centered and egocentric was he, that Kevin placed his personal ambitions above the needs of the country. So have the vast majority of Republican Members of Congress and the Senate.

Incapable of governance, obsequiously they acquiesce to the aggrieved whims of a multiply-indicted criminal who still manipulates them and the Republican Party. That is evidenced by the Congressional initiation of the ill-conceived impeachment inquiry of President Biden. Despite many claims of impending secret witnesses, “House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer said the panel had ‘uncovered a mountain of evidence. and claimed Biden used his official government role for his family's gain.” Always employing inference, Comer has made such claims yet always failed to produce hard facts showing a direct relationship and always focuses his attacks Hunter Biden, who is not a government official and cannot be impeached.

Instead of evidence, Forensic accountant Bruce Dubinsky, one of the star witnesses brought by Republicans, said, "I am not here today to even suggest that there was corruption, fraud or wrongdoing.” And another, law professor, Jonathan Turley, stated, “I do not believe that the evidence currently meets the standard of a high crime and misdemeanor needed for an article of impeachment.” It should be noted that most of the negative commentary revolved around the President’s son, Hunter “and others,” not Joe Biden himself. There is little doubt that Kevin McCarthy initiated this investigation at the behest of GOP puppeteer, and twice-impeached Donald Trump. In August, on Truth Social Trump wrote, “Either IMPEACH the BUM, or fade into OBLIVION. THEY DID IT TO US.” It does not take any imagination to know that was a directive to Kevin and the obsequious and obedient servants of the Republican Party.

In 2017 two Harvard political scientists, Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, who have studied the collapse of democracies around the world wrote How Democracies Die. In that publication they warned about the dangers posed by Donald Trump and his authoritarian proclivities. In their new book, Tyranny of the Minority, they state the degradation is even worse than they had predicted. They also address the structural deficiencies endemic from the founding of the US Constitution, especially how the Senate is apportioned. What better example of minority tyranny than when an unconstrained Matt Gaetz alone was able to foment the expulsion of Kevin from being Speaker of the House and thus stagnating Congress at a time when serious issues faced the country.

While the American people were the big losers in that process, there were bystanders who were big winners. The one who gained most was Vladimir Putin who is waging an illegal war in Ukraine. With continued US funding in the balance, Putin appreciated the opportunity to show potential weakness in the carefully constructed alliance that is supporting Zelensky and the Ukrainian people who are dying every day. He is also hoping for, and supporting Trump’s reelection. Notably, it was Trump in February 2022 who called Putin savvy and a genius for that egregious invasion. Through their silence, and by default, the Republican Party has become the supporters of Putin. By acquiescence to their acknowledged Party leader, those unintended consequences abound. No doubt geographically adventuresome President Xi of China was well aware of the fault lines.

Trump has long indicated he likes to be unpredictable with friends and adversaries alike. He is well-known for coded speech in a mafia-like approach to technically avoid responsibility for acts carried out by others. It should be noted that unpredictability often is perceived as unreliable. Unreliable is exactly what Trump is and the GOP has become. Behavior is believable, and silence is also behavior. Because of these traits of Trump, and deemed acceptable to the GOP, many other countries have viewed the US as unreliable.

Cognitive dissonance must run exceedingly high in the Republican Party. A September 2020 article by Jeffery Goldberg in The Atlantic informed the country that Trump really thought members of the military were losers and suckers, especially those who died or had been captured in combat. Possibly even worse, he stated that he did not want disfigured wounded veterans around him as it was “not a good look.”

Now we have confirmation of all of those derogatory statements from an impeccable source, retired four-star Marine General, John Kelly, who has served as Trump’s first Secretary of Homeland Security and finally White House Chief of Staff. To CNN Kelly stated Trump was, “A person that thinks those who defend their country in uniform, or are shot down or seriously wounded in combat, or spend years being tortured as P.O.W.s are all ‘suckers’ because ‘there is nothing in it for them,’” GEN Kelly continued, “A person that did not want to be seen in the presence of military amputees because ‘it doesn’t look good for me.’ A person who demonstrated open contempt for a Gold Star family — for all Gold Star families — on TV during the 2016 campaign, and rants that our most precious heroes who gave their lives in America’s defense are ‘losers’ and wouldn’t visit their graves in France.”

Yet today this person is the acknowledge leader of the Republican Party. And as they head toward election of new Speaker of the House, the leading candidates are adoring, slobbering, Trump sycophants. How can a Dan Crenshaw support any of them. While not an amputee, but being a sucker, he did lose an eye in combat as a U.S. Navy SEAL. Certainly, Trump would not want Crenshaw, with his eyepatch, in a photo with him. After, all, that would not be a good look for Trump.

To reinforce that notion, retiring Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark A. Milley, noted that “Mr. Trump had chastised him for choosing an Army captain who lost a leg in Afghanistan to sing “God Bless America” at a ceremony because “no one wants to see that, the wounded.’” In addition, Trump called GEN Milley, a veteran with over 42 years service including multiple combat zones, a traitor and suggested he be executed. To that, most Republicans remained silent – and silence is complicity.

As Cassidy Hutchison pointed out in her best-selling new book, Enough, Trump knows exactly how his mindlessly-enraptured followers will respond. While this was an unofficial death sentence, it was very likely viewed as an invitation for someone to follow through. Notably, the response from all Republicans was utter silence. Fearful of Trump’s base, you did not hear any of the Republican Congressmen publicly object. While everyone in Congress professes support for our service members, the behavior of the Republican members of Congress is believable and reprehensibly they all failed, even those who are veterans.

Here is a list of all of those Republican losers and suckers who currently serve in Congress. There are 82 Members in the U.S. House of Representatives who are veterans. Of those, 66 are listed as Republicans and despite what is known, most are willing to forsake their comrades and the country, all for fealty to a wannabe dictator, Donald J Trump.

Rep. Mark Amodei (R – NV) – Army

Rep. Brian Babin (R – TX) – Air Force/Army Reserve/NG

Rep. Don Bacon (R – NE) – Air Force

Rep. Jim Baird (R – IN) – Army

Rep. Jim Banks (R – IN) – Navy Reserve

Rep. Jack Bergman (R – MI) – Marine Corps

Rep. Mike Bost (R – IL) – Marine Corps

Rep. Vern Buchanan (R – FL) – Air NG

Rep. Larry Bucshon (R – IN) – Navy Reserve

Rep. Mike Carey (R – OH) – Army

Rep. Andrew Clyde (R – GA) – Navy

Rep. Elijah Crane (R - AZ) - Navy

Rep. Rick Crawford (R – AR) – Army

Rep. Daniel Crenshaw (R – TX) – Navy

Rep. Warren Davidson (R – OH) – Army

Rep. Dr. Neal Dunn (R – FL) – Army

Rep. Jake Ellzey (R – TX) – Navy

Rep. Pat Fallon (R – TX) – Air Force

Rep. Scott Fitzgerald (R – WI) – Army Reserve

Rep. C. Scott Franklin (R – FL) – Navy Reserve

Rep. Mike Gallagher (R – WI) – Marine Corps

Rep. Mike Garcia (R – CA) – Navy

Rep. Tony Gonzales (R – TX) – Navy

Rep. Mark Green (R- TN) – Army

Rep. Brett Guthrie (R – KY) – Army

Rep. Andy Harris (R – MD) – Navy Reserve

Rep. Clay Higgins (R – LA) – Army

Rep. Wesley Hunt (R - TX) - Army

Rep. Darrell Issa (R – CA) – Army

Rep. Ronny Jackson (R – TX) – Navy

Rep. John James (R - MI) - Army

Rep. Bill Johnson (R – OH) – Air Force

Rep. Trent Kelly (R – MS) – Army NG

Rep. Jennifer Kiggans (R - VA) - Navy

Rep. Nick LaLota (R - NY) - Navy

Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R – GA) – Air Force

Rep. Anna Luna (R - FL) - Air Force

Rep. Morgan Luttrell (R - TX) - Navy

Rep. Brian Mast (R – FL) – Army

Rep. Rich McCormick (R - GA) - Marine Corps/Navy

Rep. Max Miller (R - OH) - Marine Corps Reserve

Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R – IA) – Army Reserve

Rep. Cory Mills (R - FL) - Army

Rep. Barry Moore (R – AL) – Army NG/Reserve

Rep. James Moylan (R - GU) - Army

Rep. Troy Nehls (R – TX) – Army Reserve

Rep. Zachary Nunn (R - IA) - Air Force

Rep. Greg Pence (R – IN) – Marine Corps

Rep. Scott Perry (R – PA) – Army NG

Rep. August Pfluger (R – TX) – Air Force Reserve

Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R – PA) – Navy

Rep. Hal Rogers (R – KY) – Army NG

Rep. Gregorio Kilili Sablan (D – M.P.) – Army Reserve

Rep. Keith Self (R - TX) - Army

Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D – NJ) – Navy

Rep. W. Gregory Steube (R – FL) – Army

Rep. Chris Stewart (R – UT) – Air Force

Rep. William Timmons (R – SC) – Army NG

Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R - WI) - Navy

Rep. Michael Waltz (R – FL) – Army

Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R – OH) – Army Reserve

Rep. Brandon Williams (R - NY) - Navy

Rep. Joe Wilson (R – SC) – Army

Rep. Steve Womack (R – AR) – Army NG

Rep. Ryan Zinke (R - MT) – Navy

All of the House Republican veterans on this list who were in office during the latest impeachment of Trump for his incitement of the 6 January, 2021 attempted insurrection, voted against that action. So much for ethics. But it gets worse and the fealty to Trump, and fear of his MAGAt base continue. Despite the multiple warnings from many people who were previously in senior leadership positions and who closely have observed Trump in action, the Republican remain silent even as many iniquitous falsehoods prevail. This constitutes acquiesce and complicity as their Party supports the undermining the very foundations of American democracy reverberates loudly. As military officers, they swore an oath to “protect and defend the Constitution of these United States of America,” yet now by their actions, or lack thereof, for fear and self-reward of holding office, they categorically repudiate those oaths of office and demonstrate moral cowardice. Such is today’s Republican Party.

Repeatedly have they been warned, often by those with intense personal experience with Trump. On deaf ears do those warnings fall, as most in the GOP to the public remain willfully ignorant and silent about what many of them privately know.

There have been many highly qualified officers who have tried to work with Trump and come away disillusioned. GEN Mattis, another four-star Marine who serve Secretary of Defense and chose to resigned because of Trump’s actions. Later, in 2020 he went on the record stating in part, “Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try. Instead he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership.”

Regarding the J6 insurrection, Mattis bluntly stated, “"Today's violent assault on our Capitol, an effort to subjugate American democracy by mob rule, was fomented by Mr. Trump," said Mattis, who served as Trump's first secretary of defense, in a statement provided to ABC News. His use of the Presidency to destroy trust in our election and to poison our respect for fellow citizens has been enabled by pseudo political leaders whose names will live in infamy as profiles in cowardice." Despite a few immediate comments, these Republicans remained silent. Silence is complicity!

In addition to Trump’s many disparaging remarks about American Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, and Airmen, GEN Kelly also warned, that Trump had "contempt for our democratic institutions, our Constitution, and the rule of law." While many astute political observers have issued similar warning of a direct threat to American democracy, the Republicans remain silent.

Threatened by Trump with execution, in his retirement address, GEN Milley accurately stated, “We are unique among the world’s militaries. We don’t take an oath to a country, we don’t take an oath to a tribe, we don’t take an oath to a religion. We don’t take an oath to a king, or a queen, or a tyrant or a dictator. And we don’t take an oath to a wannabe dictator. We take an oath to the Constitution and we take an oath to the idea that is America – and we’re willing to die to protect it.” While the military may be will to die for a cause, not so with Republicans politicians who remain silent. Silence is complicity!

Even his sycophant Attorney General, Bill Barr stated that “Trump is an egomaniac who “Repels” voters” and Is “Unfit” for Office. He also stated, “that former President Trump will deliver “chaos” and a “horror show” if he returned to the White House in 2024.” Yet the Republican politicians remain silent.

Mark Esper, another Trump Secretary of Defense and former Army office, has taken the former POTUS to task for a variety of ridiculous directives. Those included shooting demonstrators in the legs and recalling retired officers who said derogatory things back to active duty to be court martialed. All of that is laid bare in Esper’s recent book, A Sacred Oath. Amazingly, Trump’s crazy idea about attacking Mexico has become mainstream Republican fodder. Regarding the post-election insurrection, Esper said “I think that given the events of Jan. 6, given how he has undermined the election results, he incited people to come to D.C., stirred them up that morning and failed to call them off, to me that threatens our democracy.”

Many, if not all of the veteran’s serving in Congress have, or had security clearances and should understand the importance of classifies material. There are many instances, including criminal cases in which Trump violated the law. By doing so, Trump has placed the lives of American military members at risk. There is no doubt that he illegally removed many classified documents and took them to Mar-a-Lago and then failed to secure them. Repeatedly Trump has been accused of illegally revealing government secrets to unauthorized people. As I write, a new allegation has come out that in 2021, Trump revealed some of the most highly classified secrets regarding our nuclear capabilities to a foreign national, Australian billionaire, Anthony Platt. At Mar-a-Lago, membership has its privileges - and Republicans don’t care.

Despite those Republican veterans knowing the sensitivity of national security information, their collective response has been resounding silence. Shamelessly, their silence is complicity in placing American lives at risk. Cowardice is the most appropriate word for those Republican veterans who turn a blind eye. There can be no justification for their silence, or that of any other Republican politician. Rationalization, to placate their conscience for this silence is totally inadequate to compensate the damage they have done to the country. Finally, the voters who put them and Trump in office also bear responsibility.

Cadet Bones Spurs Trump denigrated as losers both former President George H.W, Bush who was shot down over the Pacific during WWII, and presidential candidate Senator John McCain who was shot down and captured in North Vietnam. For the record, like them, I too was shot down and rescued in South Vietnam. As another sucker and loser, I take pride in my Purple Heart license plate.

Again, and most strikingly, GEN John Kelly stated Trump had "contempt for our democratic institutions, our Constitution, and the rule of law." Yet the current GOP accepts and acknowledges Trump as their leader. Therefore, they are complicit in the downfall of Americand democracy. To close, there is a Kelly’s prescient quote, “God help us.”

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