A Week (And Hopefully Just a Week) That Will Live in Infamy.

Like many of my fellow Americans, the events of this past week have been very stressful and confusing for me. The scenes of an angry mob surrounding our Capitol, with many actually breaking in, were surreal and frightening. They were also undeniably wrong and criminal in nature. People were injured and killed, including several guardians of our House and Senate. Those involved should be arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

I cannot however, say that I was surprised by what transpired. For weeks I had been warning that violence was a real possibility on January 6th. With my very next breath I argued strongly against such violence. Shockingly, too many of our police and security professionals downplayed that threat. They failed miserably at their primary responsibility. They too should face appropriate sanctions.

The day following the assault on our government, I called out the selective outrage of many political leaders (and most of the media) that condemned the assault but excused the same egregious behavior as America’s cities were being burned and ransacked during 2020. If “equal protection under the law” means anything, then BOTH should have received equal condemnation and swift police and prosecutorial action. The failure to denounce violence-- whenever and wherever it happens--- simply begets more violence. Hopefully that lesson has now been learned.

Years ago, I swore an oath to defend our Constitution. In my mind, that oath has no expiration date. That oath is not to a person or a party. It is to our founding document that governs all of us in this remarkable country.

Mr. Biden has met all the constitutional requirements of the 12th Amendment and as such will be the 46th President of the United States. I accept that. I accept it not only because it is the right thing to do but also because I refuse to be a hypocrite. I strongly criticized the many detractors of President Trump that never acknowledged his election. I won’t wallow in anger and resentment for the next four years. It is not healthy for our country and it is not healthy for one’s own emotional and physical well-being.

That being said, I cannot suppress my doubts about the election of 2020, no matter how hard I try. The changes made to our electoral processes created an environment that may have resulted in countless ballots being “harvested” or obtained falsely. I will now channel my concerns and focus them on our state legislatures to enact stricter voter ID and signature verification rules. We must ensure that our election results meet more than just the letter of the law--- they must be patently fair and transparent. Massive mail-in balloting is ripe for tampering as the Carter-Baker Commission of 2005 concluded. I will push for a return to in-person voting and a prohibition on absentee voting unless you are elderly, gravely ill or working or serving overseas. In the 21st century, election results should be known within hours of the polls closing not weeks or months afterward. In-person voting allows that to happen. America doesn’t ask much of its citizens. All of us can and should vote every two years--- in the flesh. 

I will also fight tooth and nail against the suppression of free speech, including offensive free speech that the First Amendment was expressly created for. Only speech that directly calls for violence should be sanctioned and punished. The bar for criminal prosecution should be that high.

I do not believe that the President’s comments on January 6th reached the level of an impeachable offense. The House decision to do so is wrong.  At least two constitutional scholars that I respect, Jonathan Turley and Alan Dershowitz (who I know personally) agree with me. President Trump’s comments on January 6th were rancorous and ill-advised. They do not however, constitute an impeachable offense and making them so eviscerates the very essence of the First Amendment. He is worthy of our criticism and maybe even censure (a word that should not be confused with “censor”) but this President must be allowed to finish his term. It will end shortly.

Finally, I remain concerned about the potential for more violence in our land. Cooler heads need to prevail in our national discourse. We must appeal to the “better angels” in all of us. Americans who feel disenfranchised should not be punished or shamed. If we continue to marginalize or censor them, we are sowing the seeds for even more trouble. You simply cannot force your will on others without dire consequences. If our leaders truly want unity, they need to find a way to address their concerns about this election and assure them that we are indeed “One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”