No! I am not equating, as birds of a feather, those who, in current and not very distant history, choose or chose a wearable symbol of political preference, such as a red hat (pro-Trump), a brown shirt (pro-Hitler) or a black shirt (pro-Mussolini). It is interesting how these color-oriented articles of clothing become ominous political nouns. Call someone a red hat, a brown shirt, or a black shirt, and you simultaneously speak volumes about his (or her) political leanings. For some reason, this seems to particularly attach to the more radically right and even to fascist elements of society here and abroad. However, four years ago in Paris, we saw the yellow-vest protesters (and the red-scarf protestors marching in opposition to the yellow-vest protestors). The Paris demonstrations were simply about new fuel taxes.
Now, Donald Trump, leader of the red-hat constituency, is not a fascist, as were those of another age who wore brown or black shirts. If he were, his Administration would not have been peppered with names such as Abrams, Kushner, Mnuchin, Miller, Neuberger, Cohn, Berkowitz, Kudlow, and others who would not have positions in a fascist government, nor would the American embassy in Israel be in Jerusalem, nor would The Abraham Accords have been pursued, let alone promulgated.
Donald Trump is simply an outrageously illiberal political neophyte who has, by fluke, been elevated to the forefront of American politics. By “fluke,” I mean Trump was elevated to the highest office in the land, having never served in any prior elected office, engaged in any public service, and never served in the military. Donald Trump literally jaw-boned his way into the Presidency, running against a seasoned politician who was more disliked than anyone imagined.
I have referred to the 2016 election as a poke-in-the-eye election. It was a voter minority but an electoral college majority that awarded Donald Trump the Presidency. But fluke or not, and for better or worse, depending on one’s political views, he has become one of the most influential politicians of our time. To this writer, that is a troubling indication of where America may be in the long arc of history. For several years, right-wing politicians have ascended in much of the world.
While Trump is not a fascist, there seems to be little doubt that those who have little respect or patience for American liberal democracy are solidly in his corner. He attracts them as candy attracts children, porn attracts voyeurs, and, yes, as illiberal strongmen attract those who feel left out of the political, social, and economic mainstream.
This is no small matter. January 6th 2021, is a case-in-point of what can happen when an illiberal politician, that is, one who has no respect for the separation of powers that define a liberal democracy, rises to the center of power. As readers of this column know, I consider January 6, 2021, to be one of the darkest days in American history and the precise day that will, ultimately, define the Trump Presidency.
We came within a proverbial hair’s width of nationwide civil disorder on that day. The recorded events of January 6, 2021, will be studied by those who never want to see such a spectacle again in our country, as well as by those who are intent on repeating the events of that day. Both sides are asking how they could have performed better on January 6, 2021.
When Donald Trump, while debating Joe Biden in 2016, infamously messaged on national television for the Proud Boys to “stand back and stand by,” few of us knew anything about the Proud Boys. I thought it was a strange comment, but it had come from a strange candidate, so, like most other viewers, I thought little more about the comment. As it turns out, the Proud Boys got the message. The Proud Boys were present and rioting at the Capitol four years later while Trump waited for hours during the mayhem to see how the attack on the Capitol would turn out. The fact that he waited hour after hour and ignored desperate calls for help confirms that what was happening at the Capitol is what he planned to be happening at the Capitol. It was another day in American history that will, and should, live in infamy.
Ten days ago, U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth, a Republican appointed by President Ronald Reagan, made crystal clear just how infamous was the January 6, 2021, outrage orchestrated by the past President of the United States. He told the court what he thought history’s judgment would be of the attack on the United States Capitol and of those who participated in that attack, and, by inference, he told the court what history’s judgment would be of the man who sent the rioters to stop the peaceful transfer of power for the first time in American history.
Listen to him.
“…I have been shocked to watch some public figures try to rewrite history, claiming rioters behaved ‘in an orderly fashion’ like ordinary tourists, or martyrizing convicted January 6 defendants as ‘political prisoners’ or even, incredibly, as ‘hostages.’ That is all preposterous.
“… So, let me set the record straight … this was not a protest that got out of hand. It was a riot, in many respects, a coordinated riot… those who breached and occupied the Capitol building and grounds halted the counting of the electoral college votes required by the 12th Amendment.
“…Although the rioters failed in their ultimate goal, their actions nonetheless resulted in the deaths of multiple people, injury to over 140 members of law enforcement, and lasting trauma for our entire nation...”
“This was not patriotism; it was the antithesis of patriotism…The public should understand that such notions are preposterous,” Judge Lamberth said.
And, I would add, equally preposterous is the reality that the man behind this greatest insult to our constitutional order since the founding of the nation is, once again, seeking the Presidency, and many of our fellow red-hat citizens are prepared to embrace his return to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue eagerly.
In “The Devil and Daniel Webster,” the short story by Stephen Vincent, the earth seems to shake when Webster, rising from the grave, asks, “How Stands the Union?”
We’ll know in about eight months.
Please consider our Of Thee I Sing 1776 Premium option. While my weekly column is always free, for just $5/month, you'll also receive my annual ebook, "Essays For Our Time," and my new Podcasts.
Recent podcasts have featured my commentary on Liz Cheney’s new book, “Oath and Honor,” US Representative Jim Jordan, Brian Kemp and Those Republicans of Georgia, the Trump Indictments, the Fox Corp Settlement, The CNN Trump Town Hall, the Hunter Biden plea deal, The New American Cult of Personality, and my interviews with
William Bratton, Retired Chief of Police, New York City, Los Angeles, and Boston
Rikki Klieman, Attorney, Network News Analyst, and best-selling author
John Thoresen, Executive Director, Barbara Sinatra Children's Center
Katherine Gehl, co-author of The Politics Industry and founder of the Institute for Political Innovation
Please consider our Of Thee I Sing 1776 Premium option. While my weekly column is always free, for just $5/month, you’ll also receive my annual ebook, “Essays For Our Time,” and my new Podcasts.
