The events of early January, nay the events of the preceding two months or since the November election, have sent unfortunately mixed messages about what democracy stands for. Maybe even that it doesn’t always work. But the military didn’t seize power. The protesters eventually went home. They weren’t gunned down on the steps of the capitol, but several hundred have been invited back to answer for their actions. Democracy, embedded in our society, has and will continue to triumph, despite the best efforts of some, lately Republicans to show their true intentions. Congress came back and completed its mission – to certify the election results. The transition happened two weeks later. But we can ask ourselves, with shaking heads, what are the optics of a sitting president stirring up a crowd followed by images of him sitting watching the events unfold on television with a smile on his face, until presumably one or two of his legal team suggested it could be problematic? Then, he issued a half-hearted response. Really? The rest of the world was more outraged than some Americans. This the way we do things in the world’s most potent democracy?
Yet the actions of some will always leave us shaking our heads. For example, we’re hearing Governor Abbott of Texas blaming alternative fuels for the recent catastrophe of Texas’ power grid, which now we’re hearing was operating in isolation and with limited regulation. He’s publicly stated that, had they been using more fossil fuels, this wouldn’t have happened. Bill Gates, one of the world’s most successful and forward-thinking humans on the planet, came back with information that the Governor simply was not correct. He pointed out states from the Midwest to the Canadian border use wind turbines that won’t freeze, like the ones in use in Texas. I’m not sure about my readers, but I certainly know who’s word I’d take here. The man that’s invested billions and billions to develop alternative energy sources, after decades of work with innovative technologies, knows about what he’s talking. The Governor, on the other hand, boasts as his agenda on his website, “improving disaster preparedness” and “reining in regulatory regimes that strangle innovation.” Perhaps those “strangling” regulations include building turbines that don’t freeze up when a winter storm hits.
Another interest news story emerging this week is that another Texan, Senator Ted Cruz, headed off on a Mexican vacation during the storm. So, while his state was freezing and thousands were without heat and water, the senator left his Houston home and flew to Cancun. His explanation? “Trying to be a good dad.” His daughters wanted to go, and he’s apparently not smart enough to say, “My precious daughters, this isn’t a good time.” He jetted back the next day, realizing that this wouldn’t look good, but leaving his family to stay on longer. Let’s not forget either that he fought tooth and nail against the Affordable Care Act, then enrolled his family in it once it became law. Well done, Senator. Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette would be so proud. “Let them eat frozen cake.” Adding to the festival of stupidity, Donald Trump Jr. tweeted that we should all be focusing on the failures of the “Democratic Gov.” He doesn’t realize that Governor Abbott is a conservative Republican. This is the same brain trust that shot an endangered animal in Mongolia in 2019, and Daddy had to step in to clean up that mess.
While we’re on the “taking off” theme, let’s talk for a moment about the former president’s timing for hitting the golf course. Here’s a man touting his media savvy. Yet in his final months in office, a time of unparalleled surge of the coronavirus and national panic, we saw him alternately on the phone threatening state election officials and heading off to his golf course. There, we were treated to some nice shots of him on the course, white jersey and cap gleaming in the sunlight, climbing in and out of a golf cart. It painted a nice picture, not unlike Nero in the final days of Rome. This coming from the man that determined the late Rush Limbaugh worthy of a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Again, really? Is he really in a league with Maya Angelou, Pablo Casals, and Desmond Tutu? Contrasting the presidential golf cart are images of President Biden in the Oval Office, signing orders to deal with the pandemic – expanding manufacture and distribution of the vaccine, climate change, and a new round of economic stimulus assistance for all Americans. He’s unravelling the mess surrounding immigration policy that split up families, and rebuilding alliances around the world. Nary a golf club in sight.
While we’re on the topic of political “optics”, kudos to former Vice President Pence. Here’s a man with whom I’ve agreed, well, never. He’s been a constant apologist and silent sidekick for an increasingly erratic president. Yet, in his final hours, Mr. Pence was a profile in courage. He was graceful and unbending on Capitol Hill on January 6th, and he was the very definition of dignity at the Inaugural two weeks later, when President Sand Wedge was a no-show. Well done, good and faithful servant.
This from Associated Press, commenting on recently released report on income inequality:
“The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 was the largest tax overhaul in over three decades. It was rushed through congress and it’s working exactly as it was intended to do so: to line the pockets of the wealthy at the expense of the working class. Optically, it was championed as a way to boost the economy, but the fact is that unemployment was already low and the cuts came amidst a long bull market.” Ah, let’s hear it for Republicans and those subscribing to the mythical notion of “trickle-down economics”. Of course, Mr. Trump’s tax returns, which we were never, ever meant to see, revealed that he’s not paid income taxes in the better part of twenty years, while purporting to control a business empire worth somewhere in the billions.
We might also look at the optics of Supreme Court nominations. Senate Majority Leader McConnell refused to consider President Obama’s nomination, even though Mr. Obama had almost a year to go in his term. No, no. That would be right to rush that. Of course, with the death of Justice Ginsburg and a looming election that all indications were the sitting president would lose, we’ll rush through an arguably unqualified justice with barely three years on the bench – actually any bench. That was pushed through to maintain a lopsided control of the court. Let’s hear it for double standards and manipulating the system. I sometimes wonder how Sen. McConnell looks at himself in the mirror in the morning.
Finally, this in from the far-right Christian world. Pentecostal pastor Johnny Enlow has made a startling prediction about a return of Donald Trump. He’s expecting that Mr. Trump will return to the White House in the next election cycle or two. It’s a vision from God, apparently. He’s not alone. Pink-haired evangelist Kat Kerr from Florida echoes that sentiment. “Kat Kerr, a preacher from Jacksonville, Florida, declared repeatedly last month that Trump had won the election “by a landslide” and that God had told her he would serve for eight years.” It would seem that God failed to follow up his message to Kat with something more substantial at the ballot box. Kat may have a small credibility problem in her predictions in the future.
Despite the optics of politics, it’s particularly interesting to note that some are held to a high standard, a “we won’t forget” mentality, if you’re Hillary Clinton, among some voters, while other regularly receive a pass. Whether that is a short-term memory problem, a capacity to look-the-other-way, or just an inability to accept reality, we’ll possibly never know. Among the world’s leaders, though, it’s a striking irregularity. Mr. Putin’s penchant for poisoning his opponents with plutonium doesn’t seem to provoke the widespread horror and outrage, a gigantic “rising up” if you will, from his own people that the rest of the world had been expecting. He’s surprisingly popular among the Russian people. In authoritarian regimes, one can expect that the populations simply don’t know what’s going on. That’s how the Ferdinand Marcos, the Kims, the Castros, stay in power for so long. But here in the United States, with lots and lots of news and information coming at us every hour, every day, when we see politicians fumbling badly, making wildly inappropriate, inaccurate, or downright ridiculous claims, how is this possible? How do the Louie Gormerts and the Marjorie Taylor Greenes even get elected? So, are we holding everyone accountable for their words and their actions? Sometimes, sometimes not. Sadly, it depends on the reaction. But overall, I’m thinking . . . . . . . . not really.
I'm Thinking...No! 