January 6th, 2021
More than 600 American citizens face criminal charges after storming our nation’s capitol building with hopes to overturn the presidential election results for Trump. The incident cost America $30 million in repairs and security damages, 138 police officers’ medical expenses due to injures from the mob, and five families lost a loved one form the violence, not to mention trust in America will never be the same.
“The last temptation is the greatest treason: to do the right deed for the wrong reasons.”
T.S. Eliot
“The Truth Shall Set You Free.”
If Donald Trump has nothing to hide, then why does he want to invoke the executive privilege to block subpoenas issued by the select committee investigating the January 6th, riot? Why does our former president see fit to withhold information and documents from Congress? Also, why is his long-time advisor, Steve Bannon, refusing to honor an official subpoena to testify?
“Leadership is not a position or title it is action and example.”
Donald McGannon
Good Leaders Guide By Example
If Trump truly wants to make America great again, why is he refusing to cooperate? His actions are telling America he believes he is above the law, does it not? How is that going to make America, the land of the free, great again? Freedom is a product of people obeying laws that infringe on others’ freedoms. If our head doesn’t abide by the same laws, what message does that send? Living above the law is a major red flag.
According to Reuters, this isn’t the first time Trump positioned himself above the law either. According to documents released by the General Services Administration (GSA—an independent agency of the U.S. government est. in 1949), Trump accepted “financial favors” from foreign governments and officials while President to keep his hotel in the black. “Provisions in the U.S. Constitution prohibit the president from obtaining payments, or ‘emoluments,’ from foreign governments,” (Reuters 10/8th2021). Is it too much to ask our leaders to live like the rest of us through Covid—with losses?
“No one will be above the law.”
Donald Trump
Trump Twitter Responsibly
Free speech in America is a double-edged sword. What we say can uplift others, but it also has the power to tear others down. In Trumps case, his own words somewhat incriminate himself. Public records, found on statista.com, list the total of daily active monetizable users on Twitter in the first quarter of January 2020 tally around 33 million people, and other sources report, Donald Trump has around 88 million followers. That’s a huge scope of influence, and Trump leaned heavily on his freedom of speech for good and bad.
Trump Unfiltered Posts
- “The Justice department and FBI have done nothing about the 2020 Presidential Election Voter Fraud, the biggest SCAM in our Nation’s history, despite overwhelming evidence. They should be ashamed. History will remember. Never give up. See everyone in D.C. on January 6th,” Donald Trump.
- “If the liberal Democrats take the Senate and the White House — and they’re not taking this White House — we’re going to fight like hell, I’ll tell you right now,” Donald Trump.
- “The U.S. Supreme Court has been totally incompetent and weak on the massive Election Fraud that took place in the 2020 Presidential Election. We have absolute PROOF, but they don’t want to see it—No “standing,” they say. If we have corrupt elections, we have no country,” Donald Trump.
Could our nations entire government, security divisions, and the founding father’s checks and balances system all be against Trump? Not likely. If we step back for a minute and think about it, the same principles that govern the rest of us still apply to him. I was always taught, when everyone around you is the problem, chances are they’re not the problem, you are. Sitting in the Oval Office does not suddenly mean you are free from flaws.
What Makes America Great?
Americans, what makes our country great? America is great because we have freedom, diversity, and opportunity. Benjamin Franklin, one of the first advocates for freedom of speech said, “If everyone is thinking alike, then no one is thinking.” Even, Franklin recognized the need for diversity. As long as I can remember, America has never agreed on politics.
“The greatness of America lies not in being more enlightened than any other nation, but rather in her ability to repair her faults.”
Alexis de Tocqueville
Perhaps, I Was Wrong…
There’s no question about it—America is divided. We are fractured and angry, but not doomed. Being divided is not the problem, however. If we all agreed, we wouldn’t be Americans. The problem stems when one group forces their opinion, beliefs, or way of life onto another. That’s not freedom.
“A leader is best when people barely know he [or she] exists, when his [or her] work is done, his [or her] aim fulfilled, they [the people] will say, we did it ourselves.”
Lao Tzu
In July, I wrote an article about unifying our nation. While I still agree people need to be more inclusive and stand up for others caught in the ugly of “isms,” unifying our political thought would be detrimental to problem solving. If Franklin is the genius we all praise him to be, then perhaps we should look at our division from another point of view. What makes America great? Not one woman, not the President, it’s us—the people. Being able to think opposing beliefs and live civilly is the American way, and frankly it’s better than being all the same. We don’t need Trump to help us be great. We need to remember we are nothing without each other.
