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Integrity is a rare commodity in politics
“Perceptions,” by Gerry Warner
Op-Ed Commentary
So now he wants to delay the election. Could there be a better sign that Donald J. Trump is in deep political trouble?
That’s what you do when you fear deep down inside – if there is a deep inside in Trump’s narcissistic brain– you change the rules of the game as Trump suggested in a tweet Thursday.
But not even the loathsome lemmings in Trump’s Republican Party are backing him on this one, including his chief cheerleader Lindsey Graham from South Carolina. “I don’t think that’s a particularly good idea.”
Not particularly good! In fact, it’s particularly bad and for that matter it’s illegal because only Congress has the power to make such a change and the chances of Congress doing that are somewhere between zero and none.
In his latest Tweet, Trump said the election should be delayed because of the use of mail-in ballots in some states. “With Universal Mail-In Voting (not Absentee Voting, which is good), 2020 will be the most INACCURATE & FRAUDULENT Election in history.” Trump also hinted in the contentious tweet that it may not be safe to hold the election on its scheduled Nov. 3 date. “Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote???”
The fact that Trump would even make such a bizarre suggestion shows how desperate he’s become in recent weeks as his poll numbers crater and even Republican loyalists have started to criticize him publicly, which few would dare to do before in his uproarious regime.
Even Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Trump loyalist to the core, questioned the tweet. “Never in the history of the country, through wars, depressions and the Civil War, have we ever not had a federally-scheduled election on time. We’ll find a way to do that again this November 3,” McConnell said in a TV interview.
In another TV interview, Republican senator Adam Kinzinger of Illinois said: “Reminder: Election dates are set by Congress. And I will oppose any attempts to delay the 2020 Election.”
Like any other politician seeking re-election, Trump knows the biggest issue in November will be the economy. But the US Commerce Department reported Thursday the US GDP fell 33% in the second quarter of 2020. No amount of Twitter chicanery can overcome those numbers and if those numbers don’t improve in the third quarter Trump’s hot air balloon may have already popped.
Then there’s his inept and tragic handling of the COVID-19 pandemic; 4.5 million confirmed cases and 154,000 deaths, both the highest case totals anywhere in the world. Remember when the US was known for leading the world in most positive aspects of human existence? Now it’s the opposite.
No wonder Trump was recently seen wearing a mask in public for the first time. He must have given up on bleach! So, what is he resorting to? Denying systemic racism in his deeply racist country and issuing dog whistle barbs against Black Lives Matter and denigrating migrants, refugees and any other group that isn’t as lily-white as he and his most ardent supporters.
Let’s face it. Trump is an avatar of hatred and intolerance towards civil society and God forbid if he wins in November it will not only be a black day for the US but a black day for Western civilization. It isn’t China that’s the main threat to our way of life. It’s Donald J. Trump and his xenophobic supporters, some of whom I’m sad to say, reside right here in Canada.
Think about it.
P.S.
Despite all the awful things I’ve said about politics above, there are a few good men and women in politics and the late Jim Abbott was one of them. Integrity is a word not often associated with politics, but Jim wore his integrity like a glove. He will be deeply missed.
