“The Grand Old Party has become little more than a Trump Booster Club”
USAToday
What in the past has been a presidential nominating convention for the Republican Party was transformed into an infomercial pageant directed by a media savvy President Trump.
Rather than allowing nominations other than Donald Trump, all voices not singing in unison with the president were silenced from the outset.
Rather than allowing differing and possibly conflicting viewpoints on key issues within the party to be debated, teh only voices heard were those who could be predicted to laud praise on Trump an dhis slef-perceived accomplishments.
Sounds remarkably like the controlled campaigns one would expect in Putin’s Russia, Xi’s China or the ayatollahs in Iran.
By contrast, while nominating Joe Biden, Democrats allowed Bernie Sanders nomination and engaged in serious debates on sometimes contentious issues including health care, environmental policies and racial justice. Isn’t that what democracy is all about?
No one should be surprised at this week’s Trump lovefest disguised as a political convention.
For the past four years, Congressional and other elected and appointed Republicans have become emasculated sycophants, terrified of challenging a president whose primary concerns are his image, keeping his financial records concealed and his re-election. Meantime, Trump’s support and defense of the constitution and commitment to such norms as truth, science, compromise and respect for others including those who may disagree with him are non-existent.
In staging this reality circus, the president tarnished several sacred institutions for partisan political purposes. Using the White House as a stage, pardoning a former inmate, holding a swearing in ceremony for new American citizens and having the Secretary of State speak while on official overseas business were downright inappropriate; and reminiscent of awarding loudmouthed talk show host Rush Limbaugh the Presidential Medal of Freedom during the State of the Union address.
From all evidence, Jon Ponder’s pardon was well-deserved and overdue, welcoming new American citizens is to be celebrated. These revered ceremonies are cheapened when packaged for partisan political purposes. Ignoring tradition and good judgment that foreign policy partisanship ends at the water’s edge, Pompeo’s speech from Jerusalem was highly improper, at best.
The White House is the “people’s house” and Donald Trump is simply a tenant with a four-year lease. As president he is uniquely allowed to use it for political purposes. However, any federal employees involved in these events violated the Hatch Act; as was Mike Pence when he gave his acceptance speech from Fort McHenry.
It was also not surprising during the White House speeches and ceremonies, very few were seen wearing a mask or social distncing.
Yet, when taken in context of Larry Kudlow describing the pandemic in the past tense; Trump and FDA Commissioner Hahn overstating the life-saving benefits of convalescent plasma; and revised CDC recommendations “If you have been in close contact (within six feet) of a person with a COVID-19 infection for at least 15 minutes but do not have symptoms, you do not necessarily need a test unless you are a vulnerable individual or your health care provider or state or local public health officials recommend you take one,” can anyone be surprised COVID-19 deaths now top 180,000?
The parade of cheerleading speakers included Trump family members, Don Jr.’s unhinged girlfriend, and other carefully-vetted speakers, including New York’s angry and discredited ex-mayor, portrayed Trump as a law-and-order unifier and the only person who could save America.
oticeably absent were any references to (a) Russia and its interferences in both the 2016 and 2020 elections and bounties on US service men and women, (b) climate change, (c) the ballooning national debt or (d) the “Black Lives Matter” movement and overwhelming number of peaceful protests for racial justice, other than some compassionate remarks by Melania but without mentioning those words.
The circus ended with a 70-minute acceptance speech by the president who, after a few opening remarks about the White House and its history, harangued about everything he saw wrong with America and placed blame for those evils on Joe Biden and China. As in 2016, he cast himself as America’s social and political savior while labeling Biden as a “destroyer”; predicting anarchy with radical leftist, socialists and Democrats destroying our government and taking away our constitutional liberties should Vice President Biden win in November.
Together, these and other words and actions of the president and his supporters exemplify how dramatically the Party of Lincoln has lost its way, perhaps forever.
Trump and his minions are the true RINOS (Republicans in Name only).
