sonora2sonoma

“The idea of donald trump, as president, has always hinged on the suspension of disbelief.” So wrote Lucas Mann in this morning’s Washington Post. But perhaps never in his administration’s history has this discipline been more necessary than in the last few days, where, between the “confession” of his press secretary, Mick Mulvaney, coupled with the second worst strategic blunder* in our country’s history—the pullout from Syria—with his lawless decision, later rescinded, to host next year’s G7 at his Doral resort, the bindings piecing that construct together have been frayed to the breaking point.

Stretched to the max, the question for many of us now becomes, how much longer can those bonds hold before they part ways entirely? For his republican enablers in the houses of Congress, that question should be keeping them up at night, pondering their future prospects much as the leaders of the Vichy government in France must have in the waning days of WWII. I say “should be” because, so far, they have shown little resistance to the increasingly erratic bumbling of the toddler-in-chief.

So, listen up, Republicans: For those of us who remain unscourged by the taint of Fox Views and Sinclair Broadcasting, it’s past time you provided us a little clarity on a few issues–

Does it bother you that your boy withdrew our forces from Syria without consulting anyone who has a stake in the matter, save Erdogan?

Do you believe that, minus guardrails, he might do something similar in the future?

If the answer to either of these questions is “no,” then what on earth are you thinking? If the answer is “yes,” then what in the world is keeping you from speaking out?

Perhaps a better question, judging by your silence thus far, would be what do you think you have to gain by not speaking up? You must realize by now that your boy remains unchecked because your continued silence allows him to be so.  What you should be thinking about is what you have to lose if you continue to allow this travesty to stand.

The leader of the Vichy Government during WWII, Marshall Pétain, proclaimed a national hero for his valor and leadership in the first World War, nonetheless spent his waning days in imprisonment as punishment for collaborating with the Nazis. Please explain to us, Republicans, how your misplaced fealty to mr trump should be rewarded any differently once our country is finally rid of this menace.

We all know you folks want desperately for your party to retain control of the White House; what you don’t seem to realize is, with this loose tool in the Oval Office, that bus departed the station some time ago; your dreams of controlling him are just that—dreams!

The normal and prudent response to behavior such as that evinced by the current occupant of the White House is to reprimand the child and send him to his room until he calms down and behaves appropriately. The Constitution provides an equivalent solution to apply when that behavior manifests in a Chief Executive. It’s called impeachment!

Tim Konrad

Petaluma, CA

October 20, 2019

*the worst being Bush’s invasion of Iraq.