Wartime President Trump Signals Surrender to COVID-19

The third world war is in progress with all nations aligned against a common enemy, COVID-19, also known the novel coronavirus. The attack from this viral enemy from another world was swift and started in China and quickly spread around the globe. It appears COVID-19 may have come for the animal kingdom and made the jump to humans who had no immunity, vaccination or therapeutic treatments to battle the respiratory disease. With an infection and mortality rate higher than influenza it appeared the best way to battle the spread of the novel coronavirus was to keep people separated from each other, so nation after nation reluctantly instituted policies that effectively shut down their economies to slow the infection rated of COVID-19. Individuals were ordered to stay at home and most business closed down to fight the march of COVID-19.

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The novel coronavirus came to the United States on a flight with a United States citizen who had visited relatives in China. Despite alerts that COVID-19 was coming; President Trump seemed to blow it off and called it a Democratic hoax, said it would go away or not be that bad. While the President was the denier in chief other nations like Italy and Spain were crippled by COVID-19 with infections and deaths mounting while their healthcare systems were overwhelmed. As the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 as a global pandemic, Trump reluctantly imposed social distancing restrictions that largely shut down many businesses across the nation, but he did not impose a national stay at home order to keep people apart so governors and local official across the country did so on their own. The United States ended up with a patchwork of regulations in some areas and no regulations in other areas to keep people away from each other. The stock market crashed. Medical professionals indicted the worst was yet to come and due to the late start the United States got in fighting the virus the peak of infections was not known. Trump stated he saw himself as a wartime President, but this enemy has no soul, no political agenda and can’t be spun with political rhetoric or deceived with lies.  

After what seemed like less than two weeks of war against COVID-13 with pleas for medial masks, ventilators and more hospital beds than could be mustered, Trump appeared to be weary of the battle. The novel coronavirus had an ally in the failing economy that worked on Trump’s psyche and possibly generated visions of his reelection slipping away. Against the advice of almost every scientist and medical professional around, President Trump began talking about reopening the United States for business within a few weeks by saying the cure could be worse than the disease, in short, Trump was signaling surrender. POTUS Donald J Trump alarmed many by stating he may be willing to sacrifice and untold number of soldiers on the battlefield to get the economy running again. Let us not forget that we, all American residents, are the solders that will be put in the line of fire. We don’t fight COVID-19 with a shiny new gun, but by staying away from it and starving it of a fresh host to spread it to someone else. If Trump reopens business prematurely it will be a tragic trade-off of lives for commerce and one of the most tragic chapters in the history of the United States.

GUILTY! You're Free To Go!

Guilty! You're Free To Go!

Retiring Republican Senator Lamar Alexander released a statement stating the Democrat House Managers proved the Donald Trump froze aid to pressure Ukraine to investigate the Bidens, but he would vote no on hearing from witnesses because Trump's actions were improper and did not merit removal from office. In effect Alexander said to Trump, you're guilty and free to go. 

 

How a President getting caught withholding Congressionally approved defense assistance funds to a foreign ally to strong-arm them into announcing a false investigation into a political rival who was beating him in election polls is not impeachable is beyond me. What would Trump have to do to get impeached and removed from office by a Republican controlled Senate, give Alaska to Russia? The real problem with what Republicans are doing with Trump is that he is getting treatment the average citizen, including rabid Trump supporters, would never get in court, which is no consequence after being deemed guilty. Let that sink in, Trump won't get probation community service or have to pay restitution after being deemed guilty. Tell that to those rotting in prison for minor drug possession and other offenses far less than coercing a foreign power to interfere in United States elections.

 

 Living In The Age Of White Reparations

The complete statement from Senator Lamar Alexander is below:

 

Alexander Statement on Impeachment Witness Vote

Posted on January 30, 2020

“I worked with other senators to make sure that we have the right to ask for more documents and witnesses, but there is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the United States Constitution’s high bar for an impeachable offense. …The Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this year’s ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate. 

“The question then is not whether the president did it, but whether the United States Senate or the American people should decide what to do about what he did. I believe that the Constitution provides that the people should make that decision in the presidential election that begins in Iowa on Monday. …Our founding documents provide for duly elected presidents who serve with ‘the consent of the governed,’ not at the pleasure of the United States Congress. Let the people decide.” – Senator Lamar Alexander

  

Washington, D.C., January 30, 2020 -- United States Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) today released the following statement on his vote regarding additional evidence in the impeachment proceedings:

“I worked with other senators to make sure that we have the right to ask for more documents and witnesses, but there is no need for more evidence to prove something that has already been proven and that does not meet the United States Constitution’s high bar for an impeachable offense.
“There is no need for more evidence to prove that the president asked Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden and his son, Hunter; he said this on television on October 3, 2019, and during his July 25, 2019, telephone call with the president of Ukraine. There is no need for more evidence to conclude that the president withheld United States aid, at least in part, to pressure Ukraine to investigate the Bidens; the House managers have proved this with what they call a ‘mountain of overwhelming evidence.’ There is no need to consider further the frivolous second article of impeachment that would remove the president for asserting his constitutional prerogative to protect confidential conversations with his close advisers.

“It was inappropriate for the president to ask a foreign leader to investigate his political opponent and to withhold United States aid to encourage that investigation. When elected officials inappropriately interfere with such investigations, it undermines the principle of equal justice under the law. But the Constitution does not give the Senate the power to remove the president from office and ban him from this year’s ballot simply for actions that are inappropriate.

“The question then is not whether the president did it, but whether the United States Senate or the American people should decide what to do about what he did. I believe that the Constitution provides that the people should make that decision in the presidential election that begins in Iowa on Monday.

“The Senate has spent nine long days considering this ‘mountain’ of evidence, the arguments of the House managers and the president’s lawyers, their answers to senators’ questions and the House record. Even if the House charges were true, they do not meet the Constitution’s ‘treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors’ standard for an impeachable offense.

“The framers believed that there should never, ever be a partisan impeachment. That is why the Constitution requires a 2/3 vote of the Senate for conviction. Yet not one House Republican voted for these articles. If this shallow, hurried and wholly partisan impeachment were to succeed, it would rip the country apart, pouring gasoline on the fire of cultural divisions that already exist. It would create the weapon of perpetual impeachment to be used against future presidents whenever the House of Representatives is of a different political party.

“Our founding documents provide for duly elected presidents who serve with ‘the consent of the governed,’ not at the pleasure of the United States Congress. Let the people decide.” 

We would all hope to be so privileged to have a deciding juror like Senator Lamar Alexander if we are proved guilty but odds are that we will not get Trump justice.