“A body of men holding themselves accountable to nobody ought not to be trusted by anybody.”
Thomas Paine
During recent trips to a Honeywell plant in Arizona and an Owens & Minor warehouse in Pennsylvania both supplying Personal Protective Equipment, President Trump stood out by not using a face mask; showing disrespect for the workers and officers wearing them and exhibiting his belief he does not need to live by the same standards as his fellow citizens.
His latest firing of a fourth Inspector General without valid cause, together with constant stonewalling Congressional requests for documents and witnesses, reveals his contempt for accountability, oversight and investigations into potential malfeasance, fraud, waste, or abuse by the White House, any Executive Department or their personnel.
Last week the Supreme Court heard three cases involving subpoenas for production of Trump's financial records issued by congressional committees and a New York grand jury in a criminal case. How the Court decides these cases could permanently impair our constitutional system of checks and balances and irrevocably damage the balance of power among the three branches of government.
The common thread is whether a president who once famously remarked, "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot someone", without consequences can be held accountable.
Trump’s argument a president is different runs counter to the fundamental American principal that no person is above the law; for which we fought a Revolution.
Failing to rule in favor of the House Committees and New York AG’s office, the Court will be putting another nail in the coffin of accountable representative democracy in America.
