Those who revise what we all saw with our eyes and heard with our ears are at it … already.
Right-wing nut jobs are fomenting the lie that the riot that occurred Wednesday on Capitol Hill is the work of far-left political activists “disguised” as Donald Trump supporters.
The lie comes from Trump’s most frothing supporters in Congress, morons like Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida and Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama. They are suggesting that “antifa” followers are responsible for the carnage and vandalism we all saw occurring.
And yes, it occurred after Trump himself incited them the mob to do what it did. It occurred while Trump was praising them for expressing their anger and telling them he “loved” them.
We now are being urged to accept this B.S. from Trump sycophants that the riot was spurred on by those who despise Trump?
Be wary of the next Big Lie coming from the far right wing nut jobs.
Now that Donald J. Trump has issued a Twitter statement, that means it’s official.
He won’t attend President Biden’s inaugural.
This hits me at two distinct levels.
The first level is that it is no surprise that Donald Trump won’t be present to watch his successor take the oath of office and assume the presidency of the United States. How in the world could he attend, given the events of this week and prior? He would subject himself to immense demonstrations of scorn from those of us who are appalled at what transpired on Capitol Hill this week. Make no mistake, Trump was a major instigator of the mayhem that erupted.
The second level is that Trump’s absence will toss aside yet another custom associated with the “peaceful transfer of power” from one president to the next one. Trump said Thursday he will work toward that end now that Congress has ratified the Electoral College vote. It was a hollow pledge, given what has transpired.
Moreover, you can bet your last buck that Biden isn’t about to say a single word of thanks/praise/conciliation toward the individual who has fomented the Big Lie about “massive vote fraud” during the election. To that end, the transition has been anything but peaceful, given the riot that erupted on Capitol Hill.
So, what would be the point of Trump attending the inaugural of Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris? There is none.
So, see ya, Donald Trump. I want you to live the rest of your days in ignominious oblivion. He has earned all the disgrace that is sure to fall at his feet.
The tragedy of the riot that overwhelmed Capitol Hill this week will remain seared into our national soul for a long time.
What’s more is that even though the Perpetrator in Chief, Donald Trump, will be gone in (no more than) 12 days, many of his minions — those in power — will be on the job, manning their posts and perhaps trying to become the next spokesman for whatever cause Trump supposedly sought to move forward.
Truth be told at this juncture, I hope Trump is gone before President Biden’s inaugural on Jan. 20. He is a menace to the nation as he demonstrated by inciting the riot that stormed the seat of our government.
He’ll be gone. Soon!
Who will remain? The likes of Sen. Ted Cruz, the Texan who was among the ringleaders to challenge the Electoral College result that elected Joe Biden as president and Kamala Harris as vice president.
To hear Cruz say that “Democrats are playing politics” makes me want to scream at the top of my lungs. What in the name of bald-faced hypocrisy is he suggesting? That Republicans are pure and clean and filled only with righteousness? If there ever was a more political animal prowling through the halls of Congress, he or she would have to go a great distance to outdo the Cruz Missile.
I am ashamed to be represented in Congress by this individual. He has sickened me since the day he emerged out of nowhere to defeat Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in the 2012 Republican primary and then went on to be elected U.S. senator from Texas. It didn’t take much clairvoyance to determine immediately that Cruz had the White House on his mind when he entered the Senate. Sure enough, he sought the Big Prize in 2016, only to lose to Trump.
What slays me is how Cruz once referred to his GOP primary foe Trump as a “sniveling coward,” only to become that very thing as he lined up behind a president he once called a “pathological liar.”
Ted Cruz will be there after Trump exits. He will be joined by other sycophants. Make no mistake that I will think only of that riot and Cruz’s attempt to subvert the will of an electorate every single time I see his puss on TV or hear his voice.
I once said the party of Lincoln and Reagan is off taking a nap. The nap has become a nightmare for our nation. The GOP must awaken. The invasion of our Capitol by a mob, incited by lies from some entrusted with power, is a disgrace to all who sacrificed to build our Republic.
So said former House Speaker John Boehner in a Twitter message.
I want to share it here for two reasons. One is for the message it contains. Speaker Boehner is right to condemn the riot on Capitol Hill.
I also want to share it for what Boehner’s tweet doesn’t do. It doesn’t call out by name of “some entrusted with power.” It doesn’t mention that the individual to whom Boehner no doubt is referring is none other than Donald J. Trump and the toadies in the House and Senate who continue to foment the lie about “rampant voter fraud” in the 2020 presidential election.
Had the former speaker shown the courage to name names and to paste the “seditionist” label on those who are responsible for the insurrection we witnessed, I would be delighted to heap unqualified praise on him.
I just watched a 2 minute 41 second video of Donald J. Trump declaring that his fight to undermine democracy is over.
Yes, he acknowledged that President-elect Joe Biden will be inaugurated along with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. The time for “healing” has come, he said.
How astonishing that he would expect viewers such as me to believe he actually means the words he read from a prepared text, that the man who incited a riot this week on Capitol Hill now wants us to believe that his “only goal” in clinging to power was to protect the integrity of our electoral system.
Unbelievable.
I do not accept this individual’s statement — which doesn’t contain a single word of contrition for the role he played in igniting the mayhem that erupted inside the halls of our nation’s Capitol Building. We all watched as Trump egged on the mob, urging the rioters to walk to Capitol Hill to take back the government.
Donald Trump will, in the words of conservative columnist George Will, carry a “scarlet S” — standing for “seditionist” — for the rest of his life. That is his legacy … forever.
The drama we saw unfold this week on Capitol Hill as Congress sought to ratify the election of Joe Biden as president of the United States is a long way from its conclusion.
There will be more chapters to add to the tragedy we witnessed as Donald Trump incited a riot that threatened the men and women who sought to do their constitutional duty.
I am happy to provide what I hope is a glimmer of good news from the travesty. It is that any thought Donald Trump might have about running for the presidency in 2024 has vanished. Donald Trump’s political future is gone. Finished. He is toast. Stick a fork in him; he’s done.
Oh, I am sure there remains a radical fringe of Trumpkins who want Trump to seek the presidency in four years. They are beyond redemption, beyond hope, beyond any sort of revival.
There well might be a second impeachment in Trump’s immediate future. Or, he could be removed from office before his term ends in just 13 days if a majority of the Cabinet, along with Vice President Pence, goes along with invoking the Constitution’s 25th Amendment. If either event occurs, that would end Trump’s political life.
However, if Trump manages to serve out the remainder of his term — which I venture to say is likely — he can kiss goodbye any thought he might harbor of trying to reclaim the office that President-elect Biden tore from his tiny hands on Nov. 3, 2020.
To be honest, I have sought to find signs of hope from the melee that erupted Wednesday. That is the best I can find at this moment. The rest of that drama has depressed me beyond all measure.
Donald Trump will continue to bloviate and bluster long after he leaves office. That’s fine. Let him bellow. He won’t matter to me or to anyone who takes seriously the future that awaits him.
Good morning, everyone. Did you sleep well last night?
I did, to my surprise. What’s more, I awoke to the news that Congress completed the task that was interrupted Wednesday by the rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol Building, vandalized our property, ransacked the offices of high government officials and generally brought heaps of shame onto the country they purport to love.
Congress had gathered to ratify the election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as president and vice president of the United States. Then he sh** hit the fan as Donald Trump incited the rioters to march to the Capitol Building and take back the government … from whom is a mystery to me.
Congress finished its task in the wee hours. After the cops cleared the Capitol, the Senate and House reconvened to receive the Electoral College tally of votes. Then Vice President Mike Pence announced to the world what we knew: that Biden and Harris will take office on Jan. 20.
We witnessed a shameful display of petulance gone utterly mad. Donald Trump lost an election but his refusal to concede fanned the fires of anger among his cult followers.
Oh, today Trump tweeted something about pledging an orderly transfer of power, which is his sorry way of admitting that President-elect Biden defeated him. We’ll have to wait with bated breath to see how this transition takes place. To be candid, I do not have faith in anything that flows from Trump’s Twitter account.
I remain fearful of what this evil individual can do over the course of the next 13 days. I am of the belief he needs to be reined in tightly. We have that constitutional amendment that allows for his removal. Yes, it’s a stretch to think that a majority of the Cabinet and Pence will go along with it. The House could impeach Trump again in the next couple of days if it had the guts to do so.
Donald Trump’s demonstration of his utter unfitness for public office was on full and ghastly display.
What must we do? We must hold the seditionists who sought to contest an election result on phony assertions of fraud accountable for their horrendous conduct. Texas, I am ashamed to say, stands at the front of that line of shame, with the likes of Sen. Ted Cruz and several members of the House joining in that charade.
Donald J. Trump has carved his presidential legacy into stone.
It cannot be covered up, or ground clean, or wiped away. He stood this morning before a crowd of Trumpsters and egged them on, urged them to march on the Capitol Building, the heart of our government.
The mob took him at his word. They marched on the building, stormed into the House and Senate chambers. They sent our members of both chambers of Congress scrambling for their safety.
It’s all on Trump. It’s all on him. This insurrection, which forced a shutdown of Congress, ended a constitutional discussion aimed at ratifying the results of the 2020 presidential election.
If there was a more graphic, hideous and profound example of Donald Trump’s unfitness for the presidency, the man himself showed it in all its ugliness.
A woman was shot in the Capitol and later died. Others were injured in the melee. The capital police, assisted by Virginia and Maryland law enforcement officers fought to restore order. They did so, but at a terrible cost to the nation’s international standing.
The rioters bred fear into the hearts of millions of us who were watching from afar, not to mention those who are watched it up close.
The person who deserves the lion’s share of the blame for this? Donald J. Trump, the lame-duck president of the United States.
He should resign the presidency. Or the House should commence impeachment proceedings immediately. Or, and this also is a possibility now, given the hideous riot we witnessed, the Cabinet should meet to invoke the 25th Amendment to the Constitution to replace him immediately. Let the vice president serve the remainder of the current presidential term.
And spare me the “all sides are guilty” argument. No. This hideous demonstration of incompetence belongs solely to Donald Trump.
This man is a dire threat to our national security.
National media are full of pundits, analysts and others who are proclaiming their lack of “surprise” at the horrifying events that unfolded in the District of Columbia.
I am not going to join that chorus. Instead, I am going to offer an apology to those I have spoken to privately that the tragedy we witnessed today caught me by surprise.
Maybe I am slow on the uptake. Maybe I just didn’t take Donald Trump as seriously as I should have when he continued to fan the embers of mistrust about the 2020 election’s integrity. Just maybe I overestimated the quality of the rank-and-file Trumpkin Corps of believers in this guy’s cult of personality.
I suppose my surprise makes the events that unfolded today seem all the more frightening. Having been blessed tonight with a bit of hindsight over what happened, I know understand more clearly that we all should have been more alert to what could happen.
The cabal of kooks who sought to challenge President-elect Biden’s victory over Trump in November have committed an act of sedition against the United States. I have no doubt about that.
As a member of my family said tonight, perhaps their being forced to lie face-down on the floor under their desks while protesters stormed the Capitol building will persuade them to cease this idiotic, moronic protest of the Electoral College tally.
One would think.
However, I am left now to ponder a reality I truly didn’t see coming. It is that Donald Trump is a Pied Piper who leads a horde of mindless minions who today proved their willingness to stop a branch of our federal government from performing their constitutional duty.
Donald J. Trump has failed in a major way the nation he was elected to lead.
Rioters today have stormed the U.S. Capitol while Congress was meeting to ratify an election that Trump lost to President-elect Joe Biden. Someone was reportedly shot inside in the building.
We are witnessing a full-scale, frontal insurrection on our hallowed government and Trump says the 2020 election was “stolen” from him and that the rioters “need to go home.”
That’s it. He said he understands their anger, but that they have to cease and desist.
The Seditionist in Chief can do no better than that … for God’s sake?
Earlier in the day, he spoke to a crowd of Trumpsters, urging them to march on the Capitol. They did what he said … and look what in the name of all that is holy has happened!
This riot is on Trump. He is responsible for it. He is responsible because of his refusal to concede an election he lost, because of his unfounded insistence of “widespread voter fraud” in the 2020 election, because he cannot stand the thought of being labeled a “loser.”
It has come to this.
This is the most disgraceful political episode in our history. It belongs solely and fully to Donald J. Trump. That will be his legacy.
