"Congress must demand that the president govern according to the laws and Constitution of the United States and tell him that he must obey the law or leave office. If Congress won’t perform this vitally important Constitutional duty, it will be our duty as voters next year to replace Congress."
It's pretty darn clear that Congress (the Republican majority) has no intention of telling Trump or any of his cronies that they must obey the law (although Susan Collins is quite concerned /s).
Whether we actually have until next year to replace Congress is uncertain (I lead an elections group in my local Indivisible). So that leaves massive protests, boycotts and other means of citizen's engagement. We must all do our part to get Democrats elected on both the state and federal levels. That means doing nuts and bolts activism. Phone banks, texting and knocking on doors. At least in my area far too few people have volunteered for these kinds of activities. It's past due for people to get actively engaged.
I am not interested in going back to the same kind of country we had prior to 2016, when president 47 rose to power. Our founding fathers, despite their flaws and imperfections, did include some ideals in our constitution that have yet to be realized by large groups of American citizens. Whether the founders really intended for them to be realized or not is irrelevant.
When introducing the Bill of Rights to Congress, James Madison spoke in terms of “the peoples’ rights,” not what Congress would not do to abridge those rights. Read the first amendment. It says “Congress shall make no laws….” Madison’s rights were rewritten by…Congress. Fortunately, the judiciary has interpreted, through the application of the 5th and 14th amendments, that these are rights. In practice, they are liberties, not rights, through the eyes of the executive branch. And there are no constitutional restraints on the executive branch in abridging those liberties. They are not constrained by the constitution, nor by any other secular writ.
Any form of government that follows the Trump reign of terror, must have a constitution that clearly and unequivocally spells out the rights of *every person* who is a citizen of this country. Nothing less! In addition, these rights must be protected by the full power of the executive branch. Any organization or person attempting to abridge these rights should be prosecuted. Corporate personhood should be overturned and stricken down.
That is a start from yours truly, Wry Banter, agent provocateur and defender of the written word.
Congress is controlled by the GOP which does not care to do anything that would even be perceived critical of the Felon in Chief. Congress is not going to "demand" anything of him. And SCOTUS under the inspired leadership of John Roberts has worked tirelessly subvert to ensure the supremacy of the freak who acknowledges the Constitution with his middle finger.
Do we want a country where it's a crime to insult the president? If so, move to Thailand. Our president seems to think he lives in a country where insulting him is a crime. That's what he's trying to make the US. Thailand is a beautiful country but it's not a democracy. What will we be?
Well-spoken, with great clarity, logic, and strength!! I think, in addition to voting Senators and members of Congress out of office who do not want a democracy, we can continue to call and write them, so they know how the public feels. Mike Johnson, and John Thune, by virtue of their positions in the House and Senate, respectively, deserve a call from everyone! Scary, horrendous stuff going on. We cannot let Trump win all the tricks. Congress must do its duty!
Yesterday Andrew Weissmann related to Jen an instance in which Justice Amy stuck up for Justice Sonia when she was impertinently questioned in a hearing, with the expectation that all SCOTUS justices are due respect of their position. This came up in the context of Pam Bondi's Congressional questioning, in which rather than answer a question by a Democrat, she would instead use a trove of oppo research to insult them to their face in an official proceeding. The point was that colleagues should support colleagues. (Norm Ornstein has another illuminating piece on this subject today: https://open.substack.com/pub/contrarian/p/senate-shame?r=1573wy&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false )
When Republicans in Congress willfully give up their power of the purse, for just one example, they harm their colleagues along with themselves, and everyone's constituents at the same time. Please remember that there are Dems in Congress who work hard, in good faith, who deserve support--both from voters and their own peers. It's a more complex problem than simply replacing Congress. Let's be mature as voters and retain what works while we seek to jettison the trash.
"I think that choice was made on Nov. 5 of last year: a dictatorship, unfortunately."
Despite the histrionics of the Left, we are not in a dictatorship. Nothing in the Constitution has been suspended or repealed, including the Bill of Rights. No extra restrictions have been placed on you or me. Government spending is still out of control but that's because both parties really don't care about the debt as much as they care about power. And hopefully the size of government will be reduced permanently, but that will take action by Congress as opposed to executive orders.
Trump has pushed the boundaries of executive power, just like all of his predecessors. Many of Trump's actions will ultimately be decided by SCOTUS, and that is a good thing. But Dems need to remember that it's a two-edged sword - whatever limits are placed on the Presidency will affect them as well in the future.
Trump has also potentially put the Repubs in trouble if he keeps tariffs in place at their current levels. Sometimes I think Trump is stuck in the age of mercantilism instead of capitalism (or corporatism that we actually have).
But the Dems have their own issues. First and foremost is their unwillingness to accept any blame for the loss last year and what the party needs to do in order to attract more voters. If the Dems wish to be the better alternative, they need to tell the voting public what changes they want to make, but I don't see that happening. I guess they are still for illegal immigration and boys playing in girls' sports and using their bathrooms.
Time is running out to preserve democracy in this country. Trump already has a majority on the Supreme Court overturning district and appellate court rulings against his unlawful and/or unconstitutional actions. Trump has weaponized the DOJ, getting Bondi and loyalists to indite political opponents like James Comey and Tish James. Trump controls virtually all Republican House Reps and Senators in Congress. These enablers default the constitutional powers of Congress to Trump so he can issue and enforce executive orders, many of which would not pass Congress because they are so patently illegal that not enough of his enablers would vote on the record for such bills. Trump has been trying to gain control of our military by firing many of its leaders and threatening the rest with firing if they "do not agree with me". And he has been normalizing a secret police force by sending masked troops into our cities. Trump has made fewer inroads into politicizing federal judges in district and appellate courts but he has replaced a few with his loyalists who are persecuting his political opponents.
Time is growing late. We have only to look at how Maduro quickly consolidated dictatorship in Venezuela once he gained control of its Supreme Court, its National Assembly and its military. Protests by citizens are now brutally suppressed, police and military arrest anyone who expresses opinions against the state and the courts try, convict and send them to prison.
Well, I long ago decided what kind of country I wanted to live in. However, after a lifetime of watching my fellow Americans vote against their interests, I get to live in a country that I now hate. So telling me "We must decide what kind of country we want" is pretty damned meaningless.
Well, presumably a majority of Americans don't want this kind of country. The critical question is who will mobilize them and lead them, and when? Tyrants only grow more powerful as they rule unopposed for all practical purposes, and all organs of government have been subverted and taken over or intimidated into silence.
The Democratic party needs to stop screwing around with lame attempts to scold this guy or make him play their lame game, and start getting mean. There are all kinds of ways that this could be fought by them, and they aren't doing any of it; still sitting in their bastions of comfort and waiting for a friggin' miracle to happen. He's doing all kinds of subversive, violent, illegal, confrontational and vindictive acts, and the Dems are playing pinochle. We have still got another year until elections. The Congressional Repubs are NOT going to challenge this guy and his minions in any meaningful way. It's up to the Dems to get organized, get very tough, and make the charge against this autocracy. The Dem leadership is weak, stuck in the past, and frankly, that is why they lost.
Please address in a follow up commentary what we can and should do if Trump invokes the Insurrection Act and suspends the midterm elections. Trump and the Republicans know their actions and policies are deeply unpopular and will likely lose control of at least the House and possibly the Senate if we have fair midterm elections. They appear to be willing to do anything to stay in power. We must be prepared and stop this madness.
"Congress must demand that the president govern according to the laws and Constitution of the United States and tell him that he must obey the law or leave office. If Congress won’t perform this vitally important Constitutional duty, it will be our duty as voters next year to replace Congress."
It's pretty darn clear that Congress (the Republican majority) has no intention of telling Trump or any of his cronies that they must obey the law (although Susan Collins is quite concerned /s).
Whether we actually have until next year to replace Congress is uncertain (I lead an elections group in my local Indivisible). So that leaves massive protests, boycotts and other means of citizen's engagement. We must all do our part to get Democrats elected on both the state and federal levels. That means doing nuts and bolts activism. Phone banks, texting and knocking on doors. At least in my area far too few people have volunteered for these kinds of activities. It's past due for people to get actively engaged.
I am not interested in going back to the same kind of country we had prior to 2016, when president 47 rose to power. Our founding fathers, despite their flaws and imperfections, did include some ideals in our constitution that have yet to be realized by large groups of American citizens. Whether the founders really intended for them to be realized or not is irrelevant.
When introducing the Bill of Rights to Congress, James Madison spoke in terms of “the peoples’ rights,” not what Congress would not do to abridge those rights. Read the first amendment. It says “Congress shall make no laws….” Madison’s rights were rewritten by…Congress. Fortunately, the judiciary has interpreted, through the application of the 5th and 14th amendments, that these are rights. In practice, they are liberties, not rights, through the eyes of the executive branch. And there are no constitutional restraints on the executive branch in abridging those liberties. They are not constrained by the constitution, nor by any other secular writ.
Any form of government that follows the Trump reign of terror, must have a constitution that clearly and unequivocally spells out the rights of *every person* who is a citizen of this country. Nothing less! In addition, these rights must be protected by the full power of the executive branch. Any organization or person attempting to abridge these rights should be prosecuted. Corporate personhood should be overturned and stricken down.
That is a start from yours truly, Wry Banter, agent provocateur and defender of the written word.
Congress is controlled by the GOP which does not care to do anything that would even be perceived critical of the Felon in Chief. Congress is not going to "demand" anything of him. And SCOTUS under the inspired leadership of John Roberts has worked tirelessly subvert to ensure the supremacy of the freak who acknowledges the Constitution with his middle finger.
Oops! Strike the word "subvert."
Click on the three dots next to your original post to edit.
Thank you Norm (& Jen) for your ongoing tireless efforts. 🙏🏻
Any truth to this trio pic of legally blondi, best friend jeff, & t?
https://substack.com/@ellenmitchell2/note/c-164879559?r=1kncci&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action
Do we want a country where it's a crime to insult the president? If so, move to Thailand. Our president seems to think he lives in a country where insulting him is a crime. That's what he's trying to make the US. Thailand is a beautiful country but it's not a democracy. What will we be?
One could turn that around and say that his criminality and presence in the White House is the insult.
Well-spoken, with great clarity, logic, and strength!! I think, in addition to voting Senators and members of Congress out of office who do not want a democracy, we can continue to call and write them, so they know how the public feels. Mike Johnson, and John Thune, by virtue of their positions in the House and Senate, respectively, deserve a call from everyone! Scary, horrendous stuff going on. We cannot let Trump win all the tricks. Congress must do its duty!
Americans are getting so fed up with this corrupt Trump mob that when their demise comes it will be like Mussolini’s.
Yesterday Andrew Weissmann related to Jen an instance in which Justice Amy stuck up for Justice Sonia when she was impertinently questioned in a hearing, with the expectation that all SCOTUS justices are due respect of their position. This came up in the context of Pam Bondi's Congressional questioning, in which rather than answer a question by a Democrat, she would instead use a trove of oppo research to insult them to their face in an official proceeding. The point was that colleagues should support colleagues. (Norm Ornstein has another illuminating piece on this subject today: https://open.substack.com/pub/contrarian/p/senate-shame?r=1573wy&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false )
When Republicans in Congress willfully give up their power of the purse, for just one example, they harm their colleagues along with themselves, and everyone's constituents at the same time. Please remember that there are Dems in Congress who work hard, in good faith, who deserve support--both from voters and their own peers. It's a more complex problem than simply replacing Congress. Let's be mature as voters and retain what works while we seek to jettison the trash.
With no due respect
It’s time for most of these brainless Republicans to go.
“Now is the time for all of us … to decide what kind of country we want to live in.”
I think that choice was made on Nov. 5 of last year: a dictatorship, unfortunately.
Walter Lippmann:
“Men will do almost anything but govern themselves. They don’t want the responsibility.”
"I think that choice was made on Nov. 5 of last year: a dictatorship, unfortunately."
Despite the histrionics of the Left, we are not in a dictatorship. Nothing in the Constitution has been suspended or repealed, including the Bill of Rights. No extra restrictions have been placed on you or me. Government spending is still out of control but that's because both parties really don't care about the debt as much as they care about power. And hopefully the size of government will be reduced permanently, but that will take action by Congress as opposed to executive orders.
Trump has pushed the boundaries of executive power, just like all of his predecessors. Many of Trump's actions will ultimately be decided by SCOTUS, and that is a good thing. But Dems need to remember that it's a two-edged sword - whatever limits are placed on the Presidency will affect them as well in the future.
Trump has also potentially put the Repubs in trouble if he keeps tariffs in place at their current levels. Sometimes I think Trump is stuck in the age of mercantilism instead of capitalism (or corporatism that we actually have).
But the Dems have their own issues. First and foremost is their unwillingness to accept any blame for the loss last year and what the party needs to do in order to attract more voters. If the Dems wish to be the better alternative, they need to tell the voting public what changes they want to make, but I don't see that happening. I guess they are still for illegal immigration and boys playing in girls' sports and using their bathrooms.
Time is running out to preserve democracy in this country. Trump already has a majority on the Supreme Court overturning district and appellate court rulings against his unlawful and/or unconstitutional actions. Trump has weaponized the DOJ, getting Bondi and loyalists to indite political opponents like James Comey and Tish James. Trump controls virtually all Republican House Reps and Senators in Congress. These enablers default the constitutional powers of Congress to Trump so he can issue and enforce executive orders, many of which would not pass Congress because they are so patently illegal that not enough of his enablers would vote on the record for such bills. Trump has been trying to gain control of our military by firing many of its leaders and threatening the rest with firing if they "do not agree with me". And he has been normalizing a secret police force by sending masked troops into our cities. Trump has made fewer inroads into politicizing federal judges in district and appellate courts but he has replaced a few with his loyalists who are persecuting his political opponents.
Time is growing late. We have only to look at how Maduro quickly consolidated dictatorship in Venezuela once he gained control of its Supreme Court, its National Assembly and its military. Protests by citizens are now brutally suppressed, police and military arrest anyone who expresses opinions against the state and the courts try, convict and send them to prison.
I fear it's not a question of what "we the people want" but what the billionaire masters want and get.
Well, I long ago decided what kind of country I wanted to live in. However, after a lifetime of watching my fellow Americans vote against their interests, I get to live in a country that I now hate. So telling me "We must decide what kind of country we want" is pretty damned meaningless.
Well, presumably a majority of Americans don't want this kind of country. The critical question is who will mobilize them and lead them, and when? Tyrants only grow more powerful as they rule unopposed for all practical purposes, and all organs of government have been subverted and taken over or intimidated into silence.
The Democratic party needs to stop screwing around with lame attempts to scold this guy or make him play their lame game, and start getting mean. There are all kinds of ways that this could be fought by them, and they aren't doing any of it; still sitting in their bastions of comfort and waiting for a friggin' miracle to happen. He's doing all kinds of subversive, violent, illegal, confrontational and vindictive acts, and the Dems are playing pinochle. We have still got another year until elections. The Congressional Repubs are NOT going to challenge this guy and his minions in any meaningful way. It's up to the Dems to get organized, get very tough, and make the charge against this autocracy. The Dem leadership is weak, stuck in the past, and frankly, that is why they lost.
Agreed.
Please address in a follow up commentary what we can and should do if Trump invokes the Insurrection Act and suspends the midterm elections. Trump and the Republicans know their actions and policies are deeply unpopular and will likely lose control of at least the House and possibly the Senate if we have fair midterm elections. They appear to be willing to do anything to stay in power. We must be prepared and stop this madness.
The only thing that felon trump and sycophant bondi need to do now is getting loose cannon on the bench as "judge".