Irrational Recount Is Dangerous

Jill Stein has determined, in her infinite wisdom, that we need a recount of the presidential votes cast in Wisconsin.  She has also alluded to recounts being considered in Michigan and Pennsylvania.  Hillary, who has conceded the election, and all her ardent followers are naturally in favor of this mischief which begs the question – WHY??? 

In 1960 Richard Nixon refused to allow a recount in Illinois where it was suspected, and highly probable, that Mayor Richard Daily rigged the voting machines.  Nixon’s contention was that such an action risked throwing the nation into a constitutional crisis.  While never stating it, it can also be reasonably assumed he was aware that even if he did win Illinois, he would still fall short of the Electoral College votes he needed to claim the presidency.  It would seem this patriotism and wisdom has escaped us today. 

As far as addressing patriotism; it is clear that such an endeavor would clearly be a waste of time and effort.  The contemporary view of such a notion only extends as far as the belief that if it’s something “I” want and believe in then it is patriotic to support it.  Colin Kapernick’s dissent was unpatriotic while Tim Tebow’s was patriotic or vice-versa??  Both were acts of courage protected under the First Amendment.  Yet good luck in trying to convince the hardliners and, one might reasonably suspect, the majority of Americans of that reality.  So where does one even begin in dispelling thinking this farfetched? 

As far as the numbers and their blunt reality:

·        To secure the presidency a candidate needs 270 Electoral votes

·        Donald Trump is credited with 306 Electoral votes

–     290 if one refuses to accept the outcome in Michigan

·        A recount in Wisconsin places 10 electoral votes in dispute

·        A recount in Michigan places 16 electoral votes in dispute

·        306 – 26 (Wisconsin Plus Michigan) = 280 – Still Enough for Trump to claim the presidency

·        A recount in Pennsylvania places 20 electoral votes in dispute

·        To topple the election, Pennsylvania must also be turned blue. 

Currently President-Elect Trump has a 22,252 vote lead in Wisconsin, a 11,612 vote lead in Michigan and a whopping 68,030 vote lead in Pennsylvania. 

A recently mandated recount in a Wisconsin election where the margin of victory was far less than the margin Trump enjoys, found only a 361 vote irregularity. So chances are excellent that a recount in Wisconsin will result in almost no change. 

While Michigan is a tossup, the chances of reversing a 68,000 vote lead in Pennsylvania while winning Wisconsin requires a very vivid imagination. 

Then we get to the ugliness that will be the ultimate result of this irrationality.  As we should have learned from Al Gore’s action in 2000, these recount actions will only serve to propel further hatreds on both sides of the political spectrum.  It will further divide us as a nation and retard, if not altogether prevent, the unity required to reach compromises in finding solutions to our current challenges. 

This behavior is what the country feared when Trump was saying the system is rigged.  Therefore, we had a reasonable expectation that Trump supporters would try to generate a constitutional crisis.   Yet what we are now witnessing is those who were forcefully opposed to this expectation now engaging in it.  

Would those Hillary supporters justifying this outrageous conduct justify it if Trump had won the popular vote and Hillary had won the presidency?  Would Hillary supporters still be adamant in their support of a constitutional crisis through recount shenanigans and the repeal of the Electoral College if it were all perpetrated by the Trump faithful? 

This is all very reminiscent of a father raising three daughters.  When they were four-years-old their father was the smartest man in the world.  By the time they reached 13-years-of-age he was an idiot.  The constitution, like a father, is okay as long it doesn’t forbid us from lying to authority figures or breaking curfew. 

We must all begin adopting Richard Nixon’s patriotism and wisdom. We must begin to recognize that when our own desires become more important to us than the constitution, we are no longer Americans.

Misplaced Frustration and Anger

MARK SHIELDS: “…I think the worst thing the Democrats could do is to follow the playbook that Mitch McConnell and the Republicans adopted in 2009 against Barack Obama. And that’s just total, all-out obstructionism….I think that America has had enough of it. It doesn’t work. And it’s not the best of the Democratic tradition.” 

Post-election outrage over Donald J. Trump's victory to serve as our forty-fifth president has not relinquished its fervor on social media.  Every silliness imaginable from embarrassing pictures, to mean-spirited, unfounded vicious criticisms of those who voted for him, to which entertainers will perform at his inauguration continues unabated.  It’s time to take a breath and count to ten. 

We did not elect an emperor, a monarch, a dictator, a czar, or an ayatollah.  We elected a president, whose power is NOT absolute.  That power is curtailed by our constitution, a congress and the American people, if we choose to be heard.  The continued hatred and mistrusted being promoted through fear mongering boarders on the absurd. It is primarily bitterness perpetuated by those unable to come to grips with our election process and its outcome. If wrath is a preferred method of expression, then perhaps one might want to focus it where it will provide some positive results and benefits.   

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) and the Democratic Party played a huge role in the election of Donald J. Trump.  They manipulated their nominating process to mandate no opposition (Bernie is an Independent) in their selection of the worst possible candidate to oppose Trump.  Hillary Clinton was the only Democrat Trump could have defeated.   

Also, over the last 36 years the Democrats have turned their backs on the underprivileged, poor, and middle class in favor of corporate support in the form of huge campaign contributions. 

As a result, some of the poor, underprivileged and middle class, having lost their political voice turned to Donald Trump in the hope of having that voice restored.  However, the vast majority of others betrayed by the Democratic Party simply stayed at home and didn’t vote. Trump lost the popular vote and only received support from a mere 26% of the voting electorate. 

The Democrats suffered one of their most humiliating defeats ever.  A big black eye which they earned and so richly deserved.  

So, where distain needs to be focused is on the Democratic Party in hopes they will return to the compassionate philosophy, principles and ideology of “The New Deal”, “The New Frontier” and “The Great Society.”  For if they do not embrace such a course of action, then rest assured, more tears will yet flow from blackened Democratic Party eyes.

  

Thanksgiving – True Spirit and Intent

At the urging of Publisher, Sarah Josepha Hale, Abraham Lincoln establish the current Thanksgiving Day holiday.  Lincoln was long dismayed by what he perceived as America’s arrogance in believing we alone were responsible for the many blessing bestowed upon us.  Lincoln therefore, viewed the establishment of a precise, single, national date of Thanksgiving as an opportunity to awaken and recapture a proper national sense of gratitude which he believed extended way beyond that of just human efforts and enterprises.   

Lincoln’s National Fast Day Proclamation - March 30, 1863

“We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven. We have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power, as no other nation has ever grown.  But we have forgotten God.  We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own.  Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.”  

Proclamation of Thanksgiving – October 3, 1863 

“Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the field of peaceful industry to the national defense have not arrested the plow, the shuttle, or the ship; the ax has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than theretofore.  Population has steadily increased notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield, and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.” 

“No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things.  They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.” 

“It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people.  I do therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.”

        

Supporting Our President

Our Republic was founded on the precept of a government that serves the common good and general welfare of all its citizens.  That not only requires hard work and commitment but most importantly doing what is right when it can be extremely difficult to do. 

Upon the election of President Barack Obama, the so-called loyal opposition immediately stated that their primary, if not their sole function, would focus on making Obama a one-term president.  He hadn’t proposed any new legislative action or initiated any policies of any kind.  

Those thinking more clearly saw this as partisanship or tribalism – some as racism and bigotry – a blind loyalty based upon some form of hatred.  The blindness is glaringly apparent in that the country was faced with serious difficulties requiring immediate attention and a unified course of action.  Yet a hatred of the new president was the most predominate element in their thinking.  Demonstrating, once again, the most destructive and evil nature in hatred. 

Now we are at it again. 

Some Americans are of the belief that support for President-Elect Trump should be withheld.  They argue that he won the election based on the support of bigots and therefore to support him would be to further the cause of hatred.  They also believe his failure to win the popular vote justifies their outrage and opposition.  Like President Obama, Trump has not proposed any new legislative action or initiated any policies of any kind.  We are supposed to learn from history to avoid repeating the same failings from the past.  It appears that wisdom is escaping us.  Yet, another residual of hatred. 

To be certain Trump’s lack of civilized and moral demeanor is a concern.  Yet we have no idea how his demeanor will affect his governing. Everything surrounding this objection is purely speculative.  

The other major objection is that he was elected without winning the popular vote suggesting his victory is bogus.  What is necessary here is a reminder that this nation is not a democracy.  We are a Republic based upon democratic principles.  This is crucial to the stated objective of our government to be representative of ALL its citizens.  Thomas Jefferson; “…that the MINORITY POSSES their EQUAL RIGHTS, which equal law must protect, and to violate would be oppression.” 

Next it would be wise for us to remember that the popular vote still has a strong influence in determining the outcome of an election.  To win the electoral votes in any state requires winning the popular vote in that state.  As well, the number of electoral votes is based upon the population of the state.  It’s a brilliant system in that it still gives a strong voice to the majority while also providing the minority with a voice that cannot be ignored. 

Trump is the fifth president to win election without the support of the popular vote.  There is absolutely no evidence that this has been extremely detrimental to our Republic.  Would Al Gore have been a better president than George W. Bush?  To believe that is completely speculative.  Al Gore would have to serve as president for us to honestly answer that question. 

Therefore, it is disingenuous to suggest that Trump’s victory was bogus.  He managed his campaign with the goal of achieving electoral votes, NOT with a goal of winning the popular vote.  Had the popular vote been his goal, he would have conducted his campaign in a far different manner.  The point isn’t that he would have won the popular vote, but rather, that it is hardly congruent to suggest he failed when he achieved what was required of him to win the presidency. 

We have mistakenly begun to believe that total opposition is justified upon one difference of opinion or misgiving.  We have never had a perfect president nor have we ever had a president we can all agree with in total. 

What is required of us is to evaluated thinking and course of action on each individual issue.  We then formulate an evaluation on the merits or drawbacks resulting from those thoughts and actions.  This sometimes takes years to properly assess.  Once a president’s time in office is completed a tally of his influence and direction can then be properly assessed.  None of this seems to be an exercise most Americans wish to engage in today.  

With the help of an irresponsible press devoting much of their time to supposition and speculation, we have become a knee-jerk society in our evaluation process.  This has not benefited to America. 

In the final analysis, if we are committed to strengthening our Republic, we must suspend all this irrational thinking.  We must abandon our polarization and intransigence.  WE must begin this process by supporting our president when he is serving the best interest of all Americans, regardless of how we FEEL about him.  We must recognize our criticisms surrounding flawed thinking and failings, while necessary, isn’t more crucial than our earned support.  We must realize that our support lends far greater credibility and legitimacy to our criticisms.  We must base those criticisms on issues and actions and NOT on some predisposition embedded in hatred.  We must act as Americans.

Must End Partisanship and Hatred

Cheap shots and wild-eyed speculation only serve to further weaken us. Expressing your distain may make you feel better, but there is far more at stake here than just individual comfort levels. Time to Grow up.

What we have seen over the last eight years is how hatred for the president has clouded our judgement and retarded our ability to solve our problems. By contrast we have seen how Hubert Humphrey’s working with Everett Dirksen, or Tip O’Neil working with Ronald Reagan resulted in benefiting our nation greatly. 

If we have learned anything through the political ugliness of the Obama Administration, it should be that we must dispel the demons that propel a bitterness and sense of frustration over the loss suffered by our candidate. We MUST rise above our own human failings and judge any actions, initiatives, or form of legislation on their merits and not some hatred toward those who support or oppose the proposals.
As a veteran I was appalled at what Trump said about John McCain. Whenever it is conjured up the anger grows even stronger. But that anger should not, and WILL NOT, allow me to withhold support for his initiative for an aggressive program to rebuild our infrastructure, demanding an end to China’s trade exploitations or any other programs that will clearly benefit our nation or solve our existing problems. To become as bigoted as the bigot and to model our thinking after what is most despicable about Trump’s thinking is not justification for stifling any proposals that will end the pain and suffering of so many Americans today. It only drags us down into the same gutter in which bigotry and hatred reside and the stink is the same.

Also, to allow our disappointment to negatively impact our view of our fellow citizens not only demeans the First Amendment to our constitution but is extremely self-destructive. There is ample evidence that validates the Trump vote was about CHANGE. Yes, there are racists and bigots that supported him but then racists and bigots vote in every election. To say half the American people are mostly or simply motivated by hate, bigotry, ugliness, greed, sexism is not only wrong but hurtful and mean-spirited. Advancing that thinking only further manifests the notion that our president should be despised. Had Hillary won, the charge would have been that Americans supported, lies, deceit and personal gain over the general welfare of our nation. That would have been as invalid as the charges now waged against Trump supporters. It was about pain and demanding CHANGE.

Finally let’s be realistic. Do we really believe that Trump will build a wall and if he does that Mexico will pay for it? Do we really believe he will appoint a special prosecutor to throw Hillary in jail? Do we really believe he will round up every illegal alien and deport them?  Do we really believe he can mandate hatred and discrimination toward Muslims by not allowing them to enter our country???  The point is that we have no idea what a president is all about – what he truly thinks – or what he will actually do, until he takes the oath of office. Until then we have an obligation to give him the benefit of the doubt and then act accordingly based upon the merits of his positions, thinking and conduct.

We must end this awful ugly partisanship and hatred. If we continue to allow it to dominate our thinking and behavior our pain and suffering will only intensify. 

History Is Our Guide To Ending Hatreds

The Vietnam War led to massive violent uprisings.  The hatred was enormous.  Private businesses, college campuses, government buildings were shut down by protesters.  Like today, activists wanted a complete overall of our government and way of life.  There would be no comprising.  It was their way or the highway.  They made every effort to circumvent the democratic process by attempting to thwart the 1968 Democratic Convention.  The awful ugliness on the streets of Chicago that was captured and witnessed by millions of Americans on television, will never be forgotten.

This resulted in the trial of the Chicago Eight.  What we witnessed there was a total lack of respect and adherence to our judicial system.  One of the defendants, Bobby Seale, had to be gagged and tied to a chair in the courtroom to prevent him from disrupting the legal process and proceedings.  Seale was so rebellious that his prosecution had to be severed during the trial, reducing the ugliness of the Chicago Eight to the Chicago Seven.  Others, on occasion, had to watch the court proceeding on closed circuit television from their jail cells. 

This led to strengthening the Black Panther Party.  Their very public callings for the killing of “pigs” (police officers) propelled heavy government scrutiny of the organization.  As arrests were made, the Panthers charged law enforcement officials with racism and oppression.  Police officers were targeted for death.  Some thirty-five police officers were gunned down by the Panthers.

Many young people decided to “turn off and drop out” of mainstream American culture.  Some just wandered the streets aimlessly, while others created and joined communes.  Everything they had and everything they could acquire, by any means, became the property of the commune.  “Free love” (licentious sexual behavior) and securing illicit drugs was their stated lifestyle. 

One such commune was started and controlled by Charles Manson.  He preached love and inner beauty while intoxicating his members with LSD and directing their sexual activities.  Some cult members believed he was the second coming of Jesus. 

Manson, a lifelong criminal, had one objective in mind.  He wanted to start a race war.  He believed if wealthy high-profile individuals were brutally slaughtered by what appeared to be the Black Panthers, “whitey” would rise up and attack the black community.  During the war, Mansion and his followers would remain hidden.  It was Manson’s premise that “whitey” would never defeat the superior physical traits of “blackie.”  But the blacks would not be able to govern themselves, at which point, Charlie would emerge to rule the world.  To get the war started, Charlie and his followers committed a series of nine murders at four locations over a period of five weeks in August of 1969.  This preceded the Chicago Eight trial by just one month.

Then on June 17, 1972 came the Watergate break in.  The prowlers had been caught attempting to bug the telephones of, and steal documents from, the Democratic National Committee in the Watergate office plaza in Washington D.C.   There is no evidence that President Nixon knew anything about the break in plot before it happened.  However, the combination of the national uproar over his handling of Vietnam and evidence of his involvement to cover up and forcefully silence the Watergate investigations led to his resigning from office on August 8, 1974.  Nixon was the only president to ever resign from the office.  Just six years earlier President Johnson announced (March 31, 1968) he would not seek another term as President.  The Vietnam War had forced him into early retirement.  

Enter President Gerald Ford.   He knew he had to stop the bleeding.  His first act was to pardon Richard Nixon for any and all involvement in Watergate.  This ended the scandal and the awful hatred it generated.  Just nine months into his presidency Ford also ended all United States involvement in Vietnam successfully slamming the door shut on that ugliness.   By 1975 all draft and military conscription requirements were ended.

Gerald Ford had to know that he was committing political suicide.  It didn’t stop him from doing what needed to be done to heal our nation. 

While so very many of events from the late 60’s and early 70’s parallel today’s events, the one missing element is whether we have a leader with the courage to lead – the courage to end the hatred and bitterness that plagues us today.  For it would appear that political suicide is necessary once again.