I’ve wrestled with the idea of undoing all that has been done… and I’ve been taught that elections have consequences. Win OR lose, RESPECT should always be given to the Will of The People, and there’s no better time to figure out what’s on their mind than right AFTER an election.

But this moment is different. This moment is unique for MANY reasons, but most importantly, the trials and tribulations we’ve experienced so far have ALL been initiated with INTENT. Actions have been taken to create this situation…

This wound is self-inflicted.

I wonder, if given the chance, would President Lincoln have sought to UNDO the Presidency of James Buchanan? If it would have saved all the LIVES lost during his Presidency… if it were ME, I might have jumped at that chance, especially knowing what we know NOW.

What comes from our actions TOMORROW, begins TODAY. We hold the LIVES of millions in our hands right now. Do we choose to ACT, or do we let time march unopposed, dragging us ALL toward some pre-determined fate?

 

Liberals from the far left cheered and rubbed their hands in delight when Barack Obama was elected President in 2008. “Finally! We can UNDO the Presidency of George W. Bush and restore Justice.”

Conservatives cheered and rubbed THEIR hands with glee after GWB defeated Al Gore, ending 8 years of rule by the party of Bill Clinton. “Finally! We can UNDO the Presidency of Bill Clinton and restore Justice.”

But that DID NOT HAPPEN in either case. What happened was a CHANGE in legislative agendas, pursued by elected officials brought into power as THE PEOPLE saw fit. Never before in our NATION’S HISTORY has a newly elected President worked to erase EVERY legislative accomplishment of the PREVIOUS sitting President…

 

That was before Donald J. Trump.

 

Our system relies on legal precedent. No one was more keenly aware of this than George Washington. He knew every action he would take as President would be emulated by EVERY successive President. The limits of the Chief Executive and the expansive nature of the powers of The Office were established within those first 8 years.

How should we view the presidency of Donald J. Trump? Should any of the actions taken by him and his administration be viewed as legally relevant by a future President?

 

TODAY it’s immigrants from Mexico.

YESTERDAY it was immigrants from JAPAN.

BEFORE THAT  _______. (insert ethnic group HERE)

 

It’s disgusting that it HAS happened. It’s disgusting that it has happened AGAIN. Right now, there is NO WAY to limit what could happen in the FUTURE.

A strong Chief Executive is necessary for the defense of our nation. From foreign enemies to economic instability, from social unrest to natural disaster preparedness and response. The President must have unlimited access to whatever is necessary to defend our nation. In this, the Powers of the Presidency should NOT be constrained, we do so at our own peril in an hour of crisis.

A strong urge to DO SOMETHING, but an inability to ACT due to bureaucratic cowardice, STANDS as the legacy of The League of Nations. 100 years later, that legacy remains intact.

 

Article 1, Section 8, clause 12:

“The Congress shall have power to raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than Two Years.”

 

… and then came WWII.

 

And then we saw what evil truly looks like. And now we recognize, the only way to defend against it is to BE PREPARED. Never again can we sit idle as we did after WWI. The technological achievements realized during WWII have re-enforced that. Our nuclear arsenal must be manned at all times… so long as they are ARMED.

If we choose to pursue with reckless abandon, a political paradigm of revenge, we will devour ourselves rhetorically. PURITY will be prized over LIBERTY, and LEVERAGE over opponents will win the day instead of CONSENSUS or COMPROMISE.

 

…

 

When it comes to Justice and Equality, white men in this nation don’t particularly NEED an advocate… the Constitution was originally written with them in mind! And being ONE of those, I don’t want to see ANY of my rights degraded or removed… and I would fight like hell to ensure them! Speaking as a middle-aged white man, I’m outraged that EVERYONE in this country does NOT enjoy these rights EQUALLY.

EVERYONE who believes in the democratic principals this nation was founded upon should be outraged that the rights of HALF of its citizens can be so easily manipulated and disregarded. That’s STEP ONE of the dictator’s guide to CONQUERING nations…

STEP TWO is Rinse and Repeat.

 

The SHAPE and the COLOR of the body we inhabit should not determine the VALUE of the SOUL within it. Nor should it determine if an individual is WORTHY of Equal Justice Under Law. The Individual Human Experience is shared by ALL of us. What horrifies ME should also terrify YOU. Ensuring Liberty and Equality for EVERYONE guarantees it will continue… when you defend the rights of OTHERS, you defend those rights for YOURSELF.

 

So forgive me…

How can anyone justify locking up over 5000 CHILDREN for NO CRIME, other than doing what they were told to do by their guardian? Mother, father, aunt, uncle… they made a journey over thousands of miles and are taken from the ONLY familiar face they know.

An Obama-era policy, strictly enforced under a new administration, has led to KIDS in jail in a FOREIGN LAND without their PARENTS. Obama… Trump… Who CARES… is it WRONG. Should it STOP? Damn straight it should.

 

ONE is too many. One more day is TOO LONG.

 

Just as it was with the Bush-era practice of the President ordering Drone Strikes. A horrible precedent being established, it was then continued under a new administration and reworked to increase the efficacy, in ways previously unimagined.

 

 

Could NO ONE in power foresee the possible outcomes of allowing KIDS to be taken away from their parents? Have they never watched The History Channel?

 

Our government can’t even manage to get THE BASICS right anymore. Courtesy, common sense… decency and civility. Ideas and concepts American Citizens take for granted in everyday life, our Federal Government seems to have forgotten. It is as if we must teach our government how to WALK all over again.

 

Every step we take toward Equality brings us one step closer to realizing the Founders’ ORIGINAL INTENT. They were right in THEORY, if not in PRACTICE. Now, in order to secure it, we must have BOTH… we must PRACTICE what we PREACH. I don’t know about YOU… but that should be a pretty easy thing to DO, seeing as how ALL of us have already pledged an OATH to do just that:

“… with Liberty and Justice for ALL.”

Let’s get it done!

#MenForERA

 

JC