The ReTrumplican Party

By FRANK LINGO

Does anyone remember the Republican Party? It was the party that gave us Abraham Lincoln for President in 1860. It was the party that gave us President Teddy Roosevelt, who fought to constrain the power of big banks, and President Ike Eisenhower, who enforced the Supreme Court’s school desegregation ruling.

That party no longer exists. It has been replaced by the cult of a slick-talking grifter named Donald Trump. The members of the ReTrumplican Party have chosen their con-man leader and his racist regime, over the United States of America.

Is the choice really that stark?

Yes, it is.

ReTrumplicans believe The Big Lie perpetrated by Trump that the 2020 election was stolen by fraudulent voters. These devotees don’t care that since the election over 60 lawsuits to nullify the election were dismissed for lack of evidence by judges, including some judges appointed by Trump.

Never before has a defeated president held such sway over his party. Previously powerful politicians like Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy are now total toadies to Trump.

If Trump says it, ReTrumplicans believe it — no matter how ludicrous his lies. Trump’s 30,000 lies that journalists have documented are just fake news to them. “Fake news” is a term that wasn’t common until Trump used it repeatedly to falsely accuse the media of making things up, which is what he does all the time.

Honest Abe must be rolling in his grave. Would anyone ever say Honest Don? Not the hundreds of Trump’s employees and contractors who had to sue him for theft of services after he refused to pay his bills. Not the students at Trump University, which was forced to close down and fined $25 million for fraud.

But that’s old news. Trump’s current lies are far more dangerous because they damage our democracy. Coddling his behavior as the world’s worst spoiled brat, the majority of his party’s Congressional members voted to overturn the election’s legitimate results.

THIS WAS ON THE VERY NIGHT THEIR LIVES WERE THREATENED BY A TRUMP-INCITED MOB IN THE CAPITOL BUILDING!

In support of Trump’s lies, ReTrumplicans have introduced hundreds of voter suppression laws in state legislatures all over our country. These include efforts to undermine election officials and even overturn the vote results.

Thus the For The People Act is crucial to protect our voting rights. It has passed the House of Representatives but, as of this writing, its fate is uncertain in the Senate.

How important is this bill? The Brennan Center For Justice, which works to protect constitutional rights, says, “The current assault on voting rights across the country underscores the urgency of reform. The Act would thwart virtually every vote suppression bill currently pending in the states.”

Ending the filibuster could get the bill through and send it for President Biden to sign. There is a risk to trashing the filibuster, because the ReTrumplicans could do bad things if and when they re-gain the Senate majority. But it’s even worse to let it be a killabuster now of voting reform because without this bill, the ReTrumplicans will rig elections their way and destroy our democracy.

Frank Lingo, based in Lawrence, Kansas, is a former columnist for the Kansas City Star and author of the novel “Earth Vote.” Email: lingofrank@gmail.com.

From The Progressive Populist, July 1-15, 2021

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