Today is the day of impeachment. Most of what you read will be focused on what happens today. We’ll hear all of the rehearsed talking points, speeches, indignation, outrages, and tweets galore. I will acknowledge these stories (and comment on them accordingly as my time online slowly winds down) but at the same time I will be looking beyond them.
It is, after all, just as important to see where one is going, isn’t it?
Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats have stated plainly that if the President is not impeached and removed from office it will set the precedent of absolute authority in a President-King. Personally I believe her. At the same time I also believe that the Republicans will excuse his transgressions and will not remove him from office out of political expediency and fear of their own constituents as there is no personal incentive for them to do the right thing, only the incentive to do what is right for the country.
Based on their track record one would argue that no, they’re not going to do what is best for the country.
So no matter how we got here, I think it’s seriously time to consider the consequences of a President-King. In a previous blog I discussed what that rulership under Donald J. Trump might look like. But what I really didn’t get into much is what will actually happen to the United States itself in the event of a rejection of traditional principles in exchange for a sovereign. This in turn brings forth entertaining the absolute horror of an apocalypse in 2020. What are the odds of this?
I guess it really depends on if you are an optimist or a pessimist. On one side you could argue that this is all simply politics as usual and simply a hyperpartisan atmosphere that will be settled out with elections next year. Or, you could argue that there are consequences for absolute power being within the grasp of the perfectly stupid.
There is one aspect in this dynamic that Republicans are not taking into account and it qualifies as insanity under the definition of doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result: There is still this belief by the Republican establishment that they can somehow guide or control Donald Trump, and that they can save him from himself and his own catastrophic decisions that are done out of base anger and a reactionary position. John Kelly believed this. James Mattis believed this. Rex Tillerson believed this. All of them are gone. Others like Nikki Haley are in retreat and are having a difficult time defending their positions despite multiple interviews and books that try to explain their side. Lindsey Graham ever remains a faithful lieutenant but even he is in denial over Trump’s adventures in Saudi Arabia and the greater Middle East. Mitch McConnell probably wants another drink.
But none of them are going to be able to control or put any more guard rails upon the Presidency. What is worse is that there will be no more effective challenges to the President’s authority after this impeachment. There will be no more special investigations, no further impeachment proceedings, no further admonishments. All that will be left is a man with impotent anger and an axe to grind whose very power lies within the division of this nation and its peoples.
One could argue that the Presidency itself has simply been imbued with far too much power. I personally believe that this is so simply over the sheer amount of impeachments and attempted impeachments of Presidents that have occurred over the past 50 years. The Presidency is on the verge of becoming an authoritarian figure and this rejection of the Constitution by the Republicans is going to be the last straw. How great is this authority? Well, technically, if the President wanted to, he could have Nancy Pelosi arrested for treason, the Democratic party classified as a terrorist organization and have all ringleaders indefinitely detained without a due process or a trial. He could declare martial law and suspend the Constitution. He could crash the economy with a few simple decisions. Or he could pursue a military adventure without Congressional approval. At this point it is now even debatable if the President requires Congressional approval for funding in light of his court battle to re-allocate Defense spending for his wall.
Nature abhors a vacuum. If the United States is going to spend its time endlessly defending and seeking to remove an incompetent ruler with absolute power the rest of the world (including our adversaries and enemies) are not going to sit around idly and wait for it to all settle out. I am personally not a betting man, but a new reality is dawning upon this nation and the consequences. If the Democrats and Constitutional scholars are to be believed will be terrible in its premise and execution. The United States has spent the past 75+ years creating a multi-polar world based in cooperation towards a better tomorrow for all peoples. It will be relegated to the scrap heap in an abandonment of leadership due to incompetence.
It does seem that the odds for an Armageddon in 2020 are rather high….