President Trump drew gasps from around the nation recently after firing Jeff Sessions from his post as attorney general and replacing him with Matthew Whitaker. The media and the president’s political opponents were shocked by his blatant subversion of the ongoing investigation into his affairs, despite the fact that this commander in chief has made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t think the rules apply to him in any way. Americans can’t let this gross abuse of power go unchecked – Acting Attorney General Whitaker must recuse himself if the integrity of our democracy is to be maintained.
Top congressional Democrats must keep their promises
The only good news emanating from Washington these days is that top congressional Democrats have pledged to fight Attorney General Whitaker’s overseeing of the ongoing Russia probe to the greatest extent possible. Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, for instance, is the incoming chairman of the powerful House Judiciary Committee, and he’s already vowed to subpoena Whitaker if necessary when investigating the president’s attempts to stymie investigations into his criminal wrongdoing. Progressives everywhere should applaud this kind of oversight and encourage their representatives to hold Whitaker’s feet to the fire.
That’s because the acting attorney general seems to think that the president is above the law, and has made it clear that he thinks Special Counsel Mueller’s probe into Russia interference in the 2016 presidential election needs to be ended. If this important investigation is shuttered before its findings can be revealed to the American people, voters should be ousting Republican candidates who support Whitaker in droves. The GOP has made it clear time and time again that it’s going to stand aside and do nothing while the president bashes the law enforcement authorities holding him accountable.
Only House Democrats have the power to investigate President Trump and guarantee that acting Attorney General Whitaker doesn’t meddle into Mueller’s probe. Americans everywhere need to make it loud and clear that they want protection for the investigation into the president’s wrongdoing. If we sit quietly by as the president and his cronies work to abuse their power, it will only be more difficult to stop him in the future when he bends the rules again.
Besides voting, progressives and concerned Americans everywhere can raise money for local candidates who promise to hold the president and his fellow crooks accountable to the fullest extent of the law. Similarly, we should all be discussing amongst ourselves the president’s continued efforts to subvert any investigation into his affairs, as only by speaking openly about his wrongdoing can be raise awareness. Finally, Americans of all stripes must get out and vote in torrential numbers when the president and his allies are up for re-election. Unless we make it clear at the voting booth that the GOP’s tampering with democracy won’t be tolerated, Attorney General Whitaker will never recuse himself. We must all work tirelessly towards preventing the president’s conmen from helping him subvert our nation’s laws.