This blog is intended to alert Americans to what I believe is a serious threat to our democracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I will be posting my observations and concerns about what is happening in the federal government, particularly the presidency. When a point is factual, I\u2019ll cite the source. Otherwise, these are my own conclusions. I encourage disagreement \u2014 but if you don\u2019t provide evidence and a credible source, my response will simply be: \u201cThat\u2019s your opinion.\u201d I welcome all interpretations, whether they align with mine or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So here we go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I recently read an editorial in The Denver Post<\/em> by Fred Wellman, a candidate for Missouri\u2019s 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives. He pointed to a social media post from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security showing a picture of the President with the caption, \u201cDid you remain loyal.\u201d If that doesn\u2019t concern you at least a little, you haven\u2019t been paying attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This kind of messaging from a federal agency is chilling. It echoes the authoritarian propaganda of regimes that demanded personal loyalty to a leader rather than fidelity to a constitution. The question \u201cDid you remain loyal\u201d is not a small thing. It signals a mindset that has no place in a constitutional republic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mr. Trump has shown himself to be a power\u2011hungry egomaniac. When he took office, he swore to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. As president, he is responsible for carrying out and enforcing the laws passed by Congress. Instead, he has assumed powers explicitly reserved for Congress and ignored laws he is obligated to enforce. To do this, he treats executive orders as if they were laws, despite having no constitutional authority to do so.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n When Mr. Wellman wrote, \u201cThe president owes loyalty to the Constitution. So does Congress,\u201d he identified the core problem of Trumpism. Congress has the authority \u2014 and the duty \u2014 to stop presidential overreach. Yet so far, Congress has been reluctant to confront it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What I see is a double\u2011edged conundrum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First, inaction is not neutral<\/strong>. When Congress fails to respond to presidential overreach, it isn\u2019t merely standing aside \u2014 it is effectively permitting it. Silence becomes consent. Hesitation becomes endorsement. A Congress that refuses to act is, in practice, supporting the very abuses it should be stopping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Second, Mr. Trump has made it clear that disobeying him invites retaliation. For professional politicians, that can be the kiss of death. Too many are allowing their political ambition to outweigh their constitutional duty, choosing self\u2011preservation over principle. These members of Congress have the authority to curb Trump\u2019s unconstitutional edicts. But authority means nothing without courage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Congress must find its backbone and defend the Constitution \u2014 not sit silently while it is mauled by a petty dictator. And here is the uncomfortable truth: Congress is still the one institution with the lawful power to stop this.<\/strong> That means the solution to Trumpism is not mysterious or unreachable. It is already written into the structure of our government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If Congress fulfills its constitutional duty \u2014 if it asserts its authority, enforces the limits on executive power, and refuses to be intimidated \u2014 Trumpism loses its oxygen. The danger persists only because Congress allows it to. The moment Congress chooses to act, the entire dynamic changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That is why public pressure matters. The American people cannot force the president to respect the Constitution, but they can<\/em> insist that Congress do its job. A Congress that remembers its role can restrain any president. A Congress that forgets its role endangers the republic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In other words, the path forward is difficult, but it is not hopeless. A functioning Congress is still a possible solution \u2014 and the only constitutional one.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n (Please confirm political information with trusted sources.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This blog is intended to alert Americans to what I believe is a serious threat to our democracy. I will be posting my observations and concerns about what is happening in the federal government, particularly the presidency. When a point is factual, I\u2019ll cite the source. Otherwise, these are my own conclusions. I encourage disagreement […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-692","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n