Allegiance
Allegiance – an asserted obligation one voluntarily takes to commit to a principal cause or political position expressed as loyalty to an individual, group, government, nation, or any sovereign that seeks a power or authority to govern the citizens to which one serves.
?Independent-thinking folks generally do not commit to dedicating an allegiance predicated specifically on a single biased philosophy, one-sided political ideology, unintended misspoken comments, or to find absolute fault in a single action or consequence to which a decision is most often made by a group or committee, not a single person. Most independent inquiries are driven by an insatiable quest to seek the truth in what is said by: critically re-examining past actions, testing future assertions by gathering credible factual information, and incorporating defensible evidence to firmly support or reject the assertions of individuals as potential candidates for positions of authority. Popularity contests measured by a smiling face, an attractive personality, and pleasant disposition are superficial criteria that have no relevance in a person’s ability to lead and accomplish the people’s business. Merit is earned by competent decisions, pro-actions taken, and positive results obtained. ????
?There cannot be a reasoned, prudent, rational defense for accepting an individual aspiring to hold the position of President and Commander-in-Chief of this country when there is a plethora of evidentiary documents, eye witness accounts, ‘real time’ videos, and established legal discoveries leading to indictments, prosecutions, and legal findings of guilt. The Republican frontrunner candidate for President of the United States is Donald J. Trump, a past President seeking reelection. He is currently facing nineteen legal actions including financial wrongdoings, his role in the January 6th 2021 insurrection, an alleged interference in the 2022 Presidential election, and sexual misconduct. The following list encapsulates in more detail his legal problems.
? A 2022 lawsuit that alleged Trump dramatically inflated the value of his assets in which on February 16th, 2024 Judge Arthur Engoron asserted Trump was guilty of fraud, ordered him to pay over 364 million dollars in penalties, and barred him from conducting business in New York state for three years.
? In 2020 Trump was indicted in the state of Georgia for allegedly participating in an effort to overturn the 2020 Presidential election. He was indicted on thirteen charges including, racketeering:
? Three counts of solicitation of violation of oath by a public officer.
? Conspiracy to commit impersonating a public officer.
? Two counts of conspiracy to commit forgery in the first degree.
? Two counts of conspiracy to commit false statements and writings.
? Conspiracy to commit filing of false documents.
?????????????????? ? Filing false documents.
?????????????????? ? Two counts of false statements and writings.
? Manhattan Hush-Money Case. On March 30th, 2023, Trump was indicted on charges of falsifying business records resulting in 34 felony counts in a hush-money scheme to silence allegations of extramarital affairs.
? A Federal 2020 Election Case. Trump’s actions are alleged to have obstructed the transition of power to Joe Biden, officially elected President of the United States.
? Federal Classified Documents Case. On June 8th, 2023, Trump was indicted for unlawfully hoarding national security documents after he left the White House, and lying to F.B.I. officials who sought to recover them from his Mar-A-Lago estate in Florida. Trump faces 41 federal felony charges relating to mishandling of classified documents, obstructing justice, and making false statements (lying).
? 32 counts of willful retention of national defense information.
? Conspiracy to obstruct justice.
? 4 charges for withholding, concealing, or scheming to conceal a document.
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? Asserting false statements and representation.
? 2 charges related to altering, destroying, or attempting to mutilate an object.
? Two defamation cases were brought forth by E. Jean Carroll in which Trump was found guilty of sexual abuse and misconduct in the first case, and ordered to pay 5 million dollars in damages to Ms. Carroll. On January 6th, 2024 a jury found Trump once again guilty and ordered him to pay Ms. Carroll an additional 83.3 million dollars for continued defamation, harassment, and sexual abuse.
?Additional legal suits include:
?? Eleven members of the United States House of Representatives are suing Trump, his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, the Oath Keepers, and Proud Boys for conspiring to incite the violence at the nation’s Capital on January 6th, 2021.?
? Representative Eric Swalwell is personally suing Trump for allegedly inciting violence at the nation’s Capital on January 6th, 2021.?
? Seven Capitol police officers are suing Trump for emotional and physical injuries incurred during the riots that occurred on January 6th, 2021 at the nation’s Capital.
? The district attorney’s office in Westchester, New York is investigating Trump’s underreported property values to reduce its tax liability on his golf course.
? The Washington D.C. attorney general is accusing Trump’s 2017 inauguration committee of misusing assets to profit the Trump family.
? Mary Trump, his niece, is suing him and his siblings for defrauding her out of inheritance money.
? An anonymous group of plaintiffs accused Trump, three of his children, and his company of misleading people to invest in bogus business opportunities. It was later revealed Trump was a paid spokesperson for one of those companies which was featured on The Celebrity Apprentice.
? The NAACP is suing Trump and the Republican National Committee for threatening to overturn the election results in Michigan.
? Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a former top Ukraine expert in the Trump administration, is accusing Trump and Rudy Giuliani of violating the Ku Klux Klan Act.
? Trump's former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, is accusing Trump and the U.S. government of sending him back to prison as a retaliatory measure after Cohen wrote a tell-all memoir about his work for Trump. Cohen’s credibility has been restored from comments made by Judge Author Engoron when he concluded Mr. Cohen was ‘telling the truth’ as disclosed in his testimony during the 2022 New York State fraud case. ?
Truth be disclosed, most citizens in this country were raised with a set of values that should have become the standards of behavior forming the foundation for a healthy, civil society. Values include: honesty, truth, fairness, empathy, balanced judgment, trust, honor, integrity, ethics, morality, law, respect for law, justice, compassion, tolerance, responsibility, discipline, moderation, wisdom, and fortitude. These basic behavioral principles are discussed further in an essay, https://www.academia.edu/102181104/Human_Behavior_and_Social_Graces. It seems some folks have lost sight of these valuable behavioral traits, some have never learned them, while others apparently choose to ignore them. So, how is it that a significant number of people justify supporting someone (Trump) strapped with a plethora of moral and legal problems such as those previously listed? Too many people will cast their vote based upon personal biases, racial prejudice, a single issue they opposed, or rather than addressing factual truths, they simply ignore them citing any number of baseless excuses. Is this behavior a matter of not being well-informed, ignoring the wisdom and legal decisions of professionally trained, experienced jurists practicing the highest form of law and order, failing to seek credible information from established meritorious sources, deception by the news media, political bias, opinions developed through associations with folks of similar feelings and beliefs, preferential ignorance, embarrassment at the thought of being wrong in judgment, or simple blind faith. An argument citing too old to serve is in itself an indefensible reason for disqualifying a candidate when there reside septuagenarians and octogenarians serving in this nations congress, jurists serving at every legal district including the nation’s Supreme Court, C.E.O.’s of corporations, university faculty and administrators, medical professionals; practically every imaginable career has experienced seniors in residence.
?Frankly, there is no defensible, well-measured reason to support someone who has already been found guilty of fraud, twice impeached by the nation’s Congress, twice convicted of sexual misconduct, sexual abuse (rape), defamation, and personal harassment in a court of law. Many federal indictments have yet to be addressed in a formal court of law, however, the evidence in support of these charges is overwhelming. Entrusting this candidate (Trump) with running the financial/economic affairs of the country, and allowing him access to the nuclear codes is a frightening scenario that this country cannot afford to allow. If in a twisted, shallow-minded opinion an autocratic, dictatorial leader is desired, then perhaps one should consider moving to Russia, China, or North Korea where a new lifestyle would be in keeping with those desires. It has become abundantly clear there are a group of spineless, gutless wonders in the United States Congress that are too afraid of losing their coveted positions to support the Constitution and carry forth their responsibilities as representatives of the citizens who elected them into office. These individuals are holding the country hostage by pledging allegiance to a man (Trump) who has already been established as a traitor, Russian sympathizer, and totally dedicated to destroying the nation’s Constitution and democratic experiment in favor of becoming an autocratic dictator and partner with Vladimir Putin. If one supports this profoundly flawed individual, then stare into a mirror and observe the reflection of yourself. Next ask, how does one defend supporting this candidate to children, grandchildren, and still truthfully accept a clear conscience for this choice?