We are now
within a few months of the midterm elections of 2018 and I find myself in the
uncomfortable position to wish for a resounding defeat of the party that I have
felt most affinity with ever since coming to America and becoming a permanent
resident here. Fortunately, I’m not alone in this unfamiliar territory, as I
find myself in the company of credentialed conservatives like George Will, Bill
Kristol, Max Boot and David Brooks.
I believe in
a small, non-intrusive government and in delegation of governmental authority
to the lowest level at which the expertise and resource resides to address the
matters that governments are in charge of. In America, that means delegation to
State and Local institutions. I believe in a smart, effective, and compassionate
government that upholds the values enshrined in the nation’s founding documents
and−for that reason−commands the respect and envy of the
world. I believe in a government that recognizes and venerates America’s
heritage as a nation of immigrants and never puts up a sign that says that you
can visit (unless you are coming from a certain Muslim country) but you can’t
stay.
My
disagreement with the current president and the republican partisans who have
been supporting him in servile submission surfaces in almost every republican
orthodoxy, whether it is free trade, fiscal responsibility, human- and civil
rights, environmental protection, multilateralism or immigration. But most of
all, I object to the tone set by the nation’s chief executive. In his tweets
and in his staged campaign appearances, he whips his followers into a frenzy of
hate and vulgarity against the free press, against immigrants, against
political opponents, against our best allies, against or national security
apparatus and, sometimes, against members of his own administration. In setting
the tone like this Trump debases the decorum of the high office he holds.
Furthermore, I object to his disregard of facts and science and the ease with
which he feeds the public lies, half truths and fake numbers in his public
appearances. I object to his zero-sum approach to just about any issue of
political consequence. It seems he has never heard of a win-win situation. All
that matters is his own vindication.
Who can have
confidence in a commander in chief who changes his tune from one day to the
next on America’s relationship with its allies and its adversaries and
constantly questions the alliances and institutions that have kept the peace
ever since World War II and have fostered unprecedented growth and prosperity
on a global scale?
Everything I
believe in, when it comes to political governance, is at risk if the voters in
November don’t put the shackles on the imperial president now residing in the
White House. We need a shift in power in the Congress for all of the following
reasons:
· To open up a realistic opportunity
for a real republican to step up and challenge Trump for the 2020 presidential
election.
· To protect the Mueller investigation
and assure that its findings, if incriminating for the president, are not swept
under the rug.
· To show republican voters and
legislators that they have been betting on the wrong horse.
· To clear the Congress of some of the
worst nationalist populists.
It is
deplorable that the actions and utterances of one person have made it desirable
for the democrats, who have done nothing to lay claim to political leadership
since nominating Hillary Clinton as their flag bearer, to win this election.
A cloud of
trepidation hangs over the midterm elections for November. Will the outcome be
influenced by foreign interference? Will the voters turn it, at least in part,
into a referendum on Trump and his nationalist populist adherents and will the
voters come out in large enough numbers to legitimize the outcome of the
election? It will be a real test of the
strength of our democracy and God forbid that we fail the test.
The outcome
of the midterm election will give us a first chance to see in real numbers how
strong the Pied Piper effect of Donald Trump is. How many Americans−republicans, democrats and independents−really believe that Trump is finally putting America back on
track and that #NeverTrumpism is a dead-end street? The loudest voices always
get heard the most. But is there a strong silent majority that abhors the
narcissistic, imperial, above the law attitude and behavior of the current
occupant of the White House? That is what we urgently need to find out. Let’s
hope that the November election answers that question with an unambiguous
rejection of the populist takeover of the republican party, which can then be followed
by a restoration of a true republican platform for the GOP and a final exorcism
of the Trump aberration in the presidential election of 2020.
Democracy
preordains that elections have consequences. Will the voters follow the Pied Piper,
leading them like lemmings to the precipice, or will they opt for new
leadership that respects traditional American values and puts America back on
the track of global leadership and respect?
