This commentary is by Walt Amses, a writer who lives in North Calais.
The sudden lurch toward “unity” by congressional Republicans since their Orange Crush was impeached a second time is an example of their bag-of-smoke policies and “heads I win; tails you lose” governing philosophy.
Lamenting the division finally holding Individual No. 1 accountable will cause, they slither in and out of the shadows, praying no one remembers that they either perpetuated the monthslong lie of a stolen election or maintained a malevolent silence as others did their best to undermine democracy, culminating in the deadly insurrection of Jan. 6.
Their idea of “unity” is quietly moving on, ignoring the past even if the past was a month ago. They don’t want to talk about “that” anymore, which is precisely why we should. While it appears certain they will again play pretend, angrily denouncing the very idea of impeaching a “private citizen” as fervently as they denounced the possibility of indicting a “sitting president” one short year ago. See how that works? “Damned if you do; damned if you do.”
Call it fealty, call it fear, but however you slice it, their loyalty is certainly not to the American people, their oath of office, or the Constitution.
These Republicans couldn’t even be bothered creating a platform of their own in November, essentially prostrating themselves toward Mar-a-Lago, whimpering “Whatever Lola wants, Lola gets.” They no longer have any beliefs or even a governing doctrine. Once the party of “personal responsibility,” the GOP has become a cult of personality, condoning anything its members think, say or do except having the audacity to tell the truth.
Those who do are summarily harassed, condemned or censured while QAnon operatives like Georgia’s Marjorie Taylor Greene claim the deadly Camp Fire in California last year was sparked by Jewish “space lasers,” with hardly a hint of pushback. However whacked out Taylor-Greene may seem, she’s not nearly an aberration in this new version of the GOP, but rather a precursor of what’s waiting around the bend as the party provides safe haven for bizarre conspiracy theories, white supremacists such as the Proud Boys, and an assortment of other far-right, violent militias.
The foundation of the “Q” belief system is loosely rooted in evangelical Christianity, spreading the “theory” that the government — mainly Democrat pedophiles — is a consortium of Satan worshippers financed by wealthy Jews, feeding on a magical elixir made from the blood of murdered children.
In an interview with a former “believer,” CNN’s Anderson Cooper was startled by an apology, prompting him to say, “You actually believed that I was drinking the blood of children?” The answer was a chilling “Yes, I did.” If that’s insufficient to frighten you, consider this: The object of this week’s Senate trial is believed by Q-balls to be the messianic figure who will “bring them all to justice.”
All of which comprises exactly why the impeachment process must play out. If Senate Republicans are willing to support the seditious behavior we’ve seen since November, they should be pleased to go on record as having done so. That way, every voter would be able to see how willing their legislators are to risk democracy in favor of their own political survival. But of course, they’ll lie about that as well.
The GOP will make every effort to have it both ways, voting to acquit the guilty perp, but on a technicality rather than the merits; perhaps a convenient misinterpretation of the rules; or some other bogus question of constitutionality. The ultimate design of their angry, loud dissembling will be a smokescreen deflecting their forever leader’s culpability, not to mention their own.
Remember, this is the party where 147 members stuck with the plan to overturn the election even after the killing fury of the mob.
In fact, so unhinged are the proposed arguments that five lead members of the defense team have already fled the scene, refusing to perpetuate the ongoing fabrication of a stolen election, which Senate Republicans have yet to walk away from in support of the Devious Previous, who was never fit to be president and now doesn’t even look fit to stand trial, unless whichever lawyers remain are willing to go with an insanity plea — the defendant’s, their own or maybe the entire, splintering Republican Party’s.
What the Republicans consistently fail to recognize is that their overarching objective — illusions of unity — does nothing more than emphasize their delusions of unity. Their dramatic, last-minute Covid relief package, for instance, scales back the Biden proposal already on the table by over 60 percent, paring down or eliminating several vital components of the measure, rendering it dead on arrival. Supposedly a bipartisan solution for cash-strapped Americans, the Republican effort was universally decried as politics as usual. According to James Bouie in The New York Times, these Republicans have it exactly backwards, believing “it’s incumbent on Biden to compromise with them,” rather than vice versa.
But the GOP’s problems run far deeper than that. The party is at odds with itself, desperately needing credibility but seemingly unaware that the first step toward that end is simply telling the truth.
They could begin by finally dismissing all claims that the election was anything but legitimate and their guy lost fair and square. They could apologize for abdicating their responsibility, allowing months of presidential lies to go unchallenged, and escalating constituents toward the frenzy culminating in our darkest day in centuries.
However a heavy lift, the GOP’s only option at this point is to come clean. Find a spine, stand up, take responsibility for the self-serving intellectual apathy ripping the country so far apart that we can’t even agree on what constitutes objective reality. Stop accepting the Felonious Former’s promiscuous dishonesty before it’s too late. There is really only one way to accomplish any of this.
Face the truth. Erase the stain. Vote to convict.
