America, Trump, Dictatorship, and the Big Lie

This January 6, we must see Trump for who he is

It is the first anniversary of the capital insurrection. Thousands of people, supported and incited by Trump, descended on the capitol to try to stop the certification of the election by Congress. They broke the barriers, sought leaders throughout the halls of the capitol, and it is anyone’s guess how things may have gone had they found the people the capitol police already moved to safety. The day involved over 1,000 assaults on police officers.

The assault on democracy that day did not start that day, nor has it ended as of today. Trump and his right-wing allies continue to promote the lie that the election was stolen, and that lie has created a corrosive effect on our democracy. Election officials are under attack both through threats to their personal safety. New legislation criminalizes their efforts to get the vote count right. In some states, people cannot provide food and water to people standing in line to vote — it is now a crime to do so — while at the same time, they limit drop boxes for ballots to one in a city of a million people.

These new laws are supposed to stop fraud, especially the kind of fraud that supposedly stole the election. But facts are facts:

• 80 courts have reviewed the evidence and found no merit to cases alleging voter fraud and thrown them out
• Trump’s own supporters, including William Barr the Attorney General who whitewashed the Mueller investigation findings on Trump’s behalf, refused to support Trump’s claim of a stolen election
• The Republican partisan recount in Maricopa County confirmed Biden’s win, and the same is happening in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania

There is no widespread fraud. The election was not stolen.

The Danger

The danger is, a whole lot of people still think it was stolen, and that’s because Trump continues to assert the big lie. For a long time, commentators, the press, and people in private conversation indicate that these assertions “raise questions.” They no longer raise questions. We can now see exactly what is going on. This is an undemocratic attempt to hold onto power and it is destroying people’s confidence in our institutions. People talk about corrosion as if it is a side issue. But it is not. The destruction of the American people’s confidence in democracy and western liberal values is exactly the point! It is not a side issue. You cannot bring to power a fascist dictator in a country where the confidence in democratic institutions is solid. But you can where it is not. In fact, every dictator to rise in the west in the last 120 years did so in conditions where people had lost faith in the institutions of democratic government. It is seen as dishonest, incompetent, incapable, and corrupt. That’s how Mussolini, Hitler, and Franco all came to power. It is a pre-requisite.

The Plan

That this was always the plan for Trump is not hard to see. All the way back in 2016, Trump was setting up the mind game for his supporters: “If I lose, the election was rigged.” He laid out this idea over and over for months, in a different language, and different settings. His people were primed. All he had to do was say, “See, I lost. It was rigged.” People were ready to protest them. But of course, when he won, it was not rigged.

Even before he ran, however, Trumpworld developed its cloak of language to cover its purpose. When they speak about the “deep state,” they are talking about the institutions of democracy. The right-wing radio and TV people were all talking about the deep state. But what the deep state means is this: It is a consensus on the principles, values, and interests of the United States of America, both domestically and internationally. During Trump’s presidency, he blew up relationships, commitments, and treaties with countries that shared those values, and he embraced wicked dictators like Erdogan, Kim, and Duterte. The deep states are those people and institutions inside our government who are committed to furthering those relationships, commitments, and treaties that represent our interests.

Those very commitments must be removed in order for Trump to dictate. His first impeachment is evidence of that. Many people in the State Department and the White House were appalled by what Trump said to Zelensky in Ukraine because he was seeking to get a foreign government enlisted in to help in his election prospects. Colonel Vindeman and others who reported this are precisely the deep state — civil or military servants who took Trump to task for this anti-democratic behavior. No wonder he and Trumpworld view them as enemies.

Well, the same thing has happened since January 6, 2021. But now, the deep state consists of election officials at federal, state, and local levels. Trumpworld has created an unprecedented level of threats against election officials. Election officials are having their practices for ensuring safe elections criminalized with new legislation.

Let’s Be Clear

Today we can remember and we must declare. There are no longer uncertainties here. Trump is attacking American democracy and undermining democratic institutions to this day. The goal is a dictatorship. If he is successful, it will come first with the cover of legality. But as he takes charge of the Congress via Republican majorities, as he cleans out the judiciary, and as he continues to assault the executive branch institutions, power will accrue to him and his vision.

Americans now need to make a choice. Trump is a ticket to dictatorship. Any continued support for him is a support for his dictatorial power. He is not constitutional. He does not support our freedoms. He is anti-democratic. No further evidence is needed than before January 6, the day of January 6, and everything he has done since January 6. If he can, Donald Trump will destroy America.

Gadwall Jackson

Writing the Unspeakable Truth