"I don't think Americans realize - like they have in the past- that you have to fight for democracy every single minute... All I'm saying to all our friends watching is this may be the year we lose our democracy. We may lose all sorts of rights. This is not a moment to sit on the fence. This is not a drill." - Historian Michael Beschloss on Rachel Maddow last night, re: the upcoming Jan. 6th hearings and why people need to pay attention.
"For the first time, I’ve begun to understand the plight of German Jews in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Some concluded that this time was different and acted accordingly, often by leaving the country. But most could not take the worst case seriously, or even conceive of it. We’ve seen bad times before, they thought, and we’ve always managed to get through them. Surely our friends and neighbors won’t believe unscrupulous demagogues. We’re all good Germans, aren’t we?"- William Galston, WSJ, 'What If It Can Happen Here?', p. A13, Jan. 6, 2022
"The right has doggedly resisted the idea of holding accountable the man — Trump — who called the rioters together, who exhorted them like Vince Lombardi in a pregame speech and aimed them like a gun at the heart of American democracy. This refusal to impose consequences, combined with the passage of laws designed to restrict Democratic-leaning voters’ access to the polls and the installation of Trump loyalists in positions of authority over state elections strongly suggests that the events of Jan. 6 will ultimately prove to be not an isolated event, but a dress rehearsal for something far worse. Because you see, they “love” America so. Oh, and their votes were “stolen.”
On this first anniversary, it seems appropriate — indeed, necessary — to call that claim out for the despicable crock it is." - Leonard Pitts Jr., The Miami Herald, Jan. 5, 2022, , 'Jan. 6 Rioters Do Not Love America, They Hate And Fear The America We're Becoming'
"It’s not the plague of “polarization” or “distrust,” some sort of floating miasma, that has darkened our society. Bluntly put, we are in deep trouble because a major party rationalizes both intense selfishness — the refusal to undertake even minor inconveniences such as mask-wearing or gun background checks for others’ protection — and deprivation of others’ rights (to vote, to make intimate decisions about reproduction, to be treated with respect).
There is a through line between celebration of a defeated president who demeans women, excuses neo-Nazi marchers and refuses to accept election results and the GOP’s appeals to White grievance, contempt for political compromise and displays of toxic masculinity — which celebrate unbridled access to guns.." - Jennifer Rubin, May 30, It’s time for Biden to strongly attack the White-grievance industry, The Washington Post,
The facts released in this welcome (and overdue) book showed how the attempted Trump coup was much more detailed, sinister and complex than most have been led to believe. Indeed, the authors make a strong case that the effort was merely a dry run for what to expect in 2024. This is all the more reason to pay attention to the Select Committee hearings and how the lines and connections and details are now clear about what transpired. Not paying attention or using the overworked chestnuts that "it's ancient history" or "we need to move on" are not options, except for losers.
Thus, the informed citizen, the real patriot who knows our real Constitution , knows these lying, obfuscating, dodging renegades- like Tucker Carlson- are really out to destroy this nation. And this is why their deplorable cult can never be allowed to have power handed to them again. If Americans don't pay attention starting Thursday night to how and why this god-awful plot almost succeeded we are all in deep shit, the deepest, because the bastards will try it again.
Jennifer Rubin's most recent piece also makes that clear when she writes:
"Ultimately, the widespread assault on democracy can only be stopped by voters. Last month, when receiving the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation’s Profile in Courage award, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) warned that “we face a threat we have never faced before — a former president attempting to unravel our constitutional republic.” It is not only Trump, but an entire party that has taken up that cause."
The Founders- let's recall- were patricians by birth, but set out to devise a new form of government in which ordinary people would participate and enable its stable function. That experiment is still going on, and its end point is not settled. This take is more than bolstered by the recent research of political historian Barbara Walter, leading to her book: 'How Civil Wars Start'. According to Walter from her text:
“We are
no longer the world’s oldest continuous democracy. That honor is now held
by Switzerland, followed by New Zealand, and then Canada.”
How Donald Trump Could Subvert the 2024 Election - The
Atlantic
Trump's seditious success hinges on whether too many voters are distracted, over wrought or have misplaced priorities - including being blinded by inflation to the detriment of the nation's future - and possibly turning the U.S. into yet another refugee country. A starting index will be how many tune into the hearings Thursday night - and not just political 'junkies' - and stay tuned in. The news circulating this a.m. (WSJ, p. A4, 'Pessimistic Mood Deepens') is that "Democrats face a dispirited electorate heading into November's elections" which is understandable given inflation woes - but also unacceptable.
Voters cannot allow themselves to be crushed into passivity, or worse, knee jerking to a disastrous "change" choice - which we will all regret. We must not end up like the 'good Germans' who made a similar terrible mistake 80 years ago. E.g.
See Also:
by Heather Digby Parton | June 5, 2022 - 7:24am | permalink
Excerpt:
The long-awaited public hearings for the House select committee on the Jan. 6 insurrection have finally been scheduled. The first one is set for next Thursday, June 9, in prime time. The committee previewed its plans this week, announcing on Thursday that it will "present previously unseen material documenting January 6th, receive witness testimony, preview additional hearings, and provide the American people a summary of its findings about the coordinated, multi-step effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and prevent the transfer of power." Committee leaders seem to be carefully choreographing the event, even drawing out the suspense by not naming the witnesses until next week.
The hearings, said Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., will "tell a story that will blow the roof off the House." We can only hope that is not unjustified hyperbole. These hearings will be the most important public record of an attempted coup, and the whole country should be watching.
And:
by Robert Reich | June 6, 2022 - 6:40am | permalink
— from Robert Reich's Substack
Excerpt:
The televised hearings of the House Select Committee on the January 6 insurrection, which begin Thursday, mark an historic milestone in the battle between democracy and autocracy. The events that culminated in the attack on the Capitol constitute the first attempted presidential coup in our nation’s 233-year history. The Select Committee’s inquiry is the most important congressional investigation of presidential wrongdoing since the Senate investigation of the Watergate scandals in the 1970s.
To a large degree, the success of those hearings will depend on the Wyoming Republican congresswoman and vice-chair of the committee, Liz Cheney. Although I have disagreed with almost every substantive position she has ever taken, I salute her courage and her patriotism. And I wish her success.
by Roger Bybee | January 13, 2022 - 6:55am | permalink
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