June 6 marks the 79th anniversary of D-Day when the decisive battles of World War Two started to end Germany’s domination of Europe. High hopes and a great deal of worry existed over its outcome.
I was exactly four months old on that day. Throughout my childhood, wartime struggles and exploits were a staple of movies and books. Veterans provided explanations of how the Allies won the war. Surveying political events of recent days, that I feel the same commingled emotions of hope and despair inspired by events then.
Fascist tendencies abound as right-wing politicians seize on telling people what they can’t do, while simultaneously claiming they have a devotion to individual freedom. George Orwell explained this decades ago. Some of us thought it was settled history.
Donald Trump is the first American president to model his rhetoric and presidential behavior on that of a 20th century dictator. There are clear signs the heat from multiple probes into events, especially his illegal retention of classified documents, has him at an emotional boil.
In a two-hour session with Justice department officials this week his lawyers apparently presented their case against any criminal indictment for the ex-president regarding classified documents or any other aspects of the election or January 6 insurrection at the Capitol. Legally, The DOJ stays mum on all of this. But we can decode Trump’s immediate reaction after the meeting ended. From his all-caps post on his affiliated social media site Truth Social:
“HOW CAN DOJ POSSIBLY CHARGE ME, WHO DID NOTHING WRONG, WHEN NO OTHER PRESIDENT’S [sic] WERE CHARGED, WHEN JOE BIDEN WON’T BE CHARGED FOR ANYTHING, INCLUDING THE FACT THAT HE HAS 1,850 BOXES, MUCH OF IT CLASSIFIED, AND SOME DATING BACK TO HIS SENATE DAY WHEN EVEN DEMOCRAT SENATORS ARE SHOCKED. ALSO, PRESIDENT CLINTON HAD DOCUMENTS, AND WON IN COURT. CROOKED HILLARY DELETED 33,000 EMAILS, MANY CLASSIFIED, AND WASN’T EVEN CLOSE TO BEING CHARGED! ONLY TRUMP - THE GREATEST WITCH HUNT OF ALL TIME!”
Shortly after that the Republican National Committee tweeted footage of House Oversight Committee chair Representative James Comer (R-KY) suggesting that the “Biden family” has engaged in “a pattern of bribery, where payments would be made through shell accounts and multiple banks, in a system of “money laundering.”“
PURE PROJECTION OF SELF-IMAGE ON OPPONENT
This is a pure projection by Republicans, a tacit admission that the modus operandi of the Trump family closely reflects a Mafia clan. There has been no credible evidence, formally or even informally, to justify this exaggeration about Biden.
President Biden, on the other hand, has praised Republicans for a reasonable and cooperative end to the hostage situation around the default issue. However, expect the Democrats to make a big deal out of how they behaved as the “adults in the room” dealing with the “Radical Rightwing Republicans” (can we say RRR?) on this issue.
New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu ended speculation he would seek the GOP presidential nomination. Not doing it, he said, warning that abortion and women’s rights are crucial issues ahead. It was blunt: “Republicans should recognize that every time they open their mouths to talk about banning abortion, an independent voter joins the Democrats.”
After the Supreme Court killed the national right to abortion by overturning a 50-year-old ruling, Republican-dominated states passed new anti-abortion laws. Polling in a recent Wisconsin election that focused on the abortion issue showed a 11-point plus for the sensible Democratic candidate for State Supreme Court. Wisconsin is basically a 50:50 state in voting over the last 25 years.
Q: Bob LaFollette where are you when we need you?
A: The Wisconsin progressive died 98 years ago.
Saw a bumper sticker this week that said,
”FIGHT ABORTION,
Don’t have one.”
This issue should motivate younger voters in a sweeping rebuke to the ‘Freedom for Me, Not for You’ contingent hanging their hopes on a revolt against Woke.The definition of Woke is “Get off my grass.”
Let’s be empirical about election behavior. The MAGA crowd, with their anger kept at a boil by media built on fake news, are immune to contrary information.
Urban voter suppression is a state issue and erases some Democratic voters. The 2024 campaign will be won by women, younger voters, and suburban voters who recognize the shallowness of Republican philosophy in a party now controlled by Trump fanatics. The necessity is to create enthusiasm for young voters and some of the Independent voters. This might be enough to overcome the rural state advantage built into the Electoral College.
To build that requires some very progressive actions from the Dems, and aggressive activity on the Social Media that the younger people use. Conventional television advertisements only reach older voters because younger voters don’t watch broadcast television much anymore.
Will the Democratic National Committee uses social networking techniques to acquaint younger voters with a nominating convention next summer?
I started with D-Day. I end with this: The first set of political conventions I watched or listened to were in 1952. Pundits assured America the Republican choice was Ohio Senator Robert Taft.
Some Republicans had a different idea. They convinced the architect hero of D-day to be their candidate. Retired Army General Dwight David “IKE” Eisenhower became a two-term president.
History suggests it is wise to expect the unexpected.
