Mike Flynn, former national security advisor and convicted felon who was pardoned by Trump, called for a military coup like happened in Myanmar to remove Biden by force and instate Trump as dictator.  That’s right folks, just in time for memorial day, a retired career US Army officer and highest ranking security advisor called for shredding the Constitution and taking over the US government, Banana Republic style.  Where did he say this?  At a Qanon convention in Dallas. Yesterday.  Watch for yourself.

Here is the video of former national security advisor Michael Flynn saying that he thinks a coup like the coup in Myanmar should happen in the US. pic.twitter.com/7mGYjfXg18

— Mamie (@MC_Hyperbole) May 30, 2021

So, instead of sitting in a federal prison cell, insurrectionist Mike Flynn is calling for overthrow of the US government.  With the radicalization of one party, we continue to inch towards actual war.

Yesterday, Michael Gerson published a good piece in the Washington Post about how Republicans lying about the 2020 election are doing so with open eyes, and why that is corrosive to a free society.  He’s right in that Trump is a congenital liar, and everyone knows it.  The ones committing the most egregious lies are those enabling Trump’s lies, those party leaders and politicians who are passing the litmus test by knowingly telling the Big Lie to avoid the wrath and primary threats.

This lying, though, is not new.  Since Reagan, Repubs have made lying the foundation of the party.  Examples: cutting taxes increases revenue; cutting taxes for the rich trickles down prosperity to everyone;  “welfare queens” are lazy and always non-white; companies don’t need regulations since
the “free market” will drive them to do the right thing; Iraq was involved in 9/11; Saddam has weapons of mass destruction; if you’re opposed to war you “hate the troops”; Barack Obama was not born in the US; a gigantic conspiracy of thousands of poll workers, voting machine companies, elected officials from both parties, state legislatures, the US Congress, and even VP Pence caused the 2020 election to be stolen from Trump.  This last lie is now required to be told, and repeated, by all Republicans, no matter where they come from or role they play.  Those who refuse to tell the lie are censured or run out of the party.

When a party’s foundation is all based on a dictated lie as a litmus test, that party is dead.  The GOP has come a long way to this point, but I personally believe it has morphed from political organization to religious cult.  A lot of people reject drawing comparisons between the rise of Hitler to the rise of Trump.  I think they do that our of fear that it may be true.  I believe it’s absolutely the perfect analogy.  It’s well known that Hitler was a psychopath.  He tried to overthrow the Bavarian government in 1923 in the Beer Hall Putsch, which he planned to use as a springboard to take over the German government.  He was convicted of high treason, but during the trial became a national figure, and much of the public adored him.  Upon his conviction he swore to ignore the verdict saying he would be acquitted by the “Eternal Court of History”; indeed, Hitler served less than a year before he was released.  Eight years later he accomplished his goal in taking over the government, leading to World War II.  Hitler’s main weapon?  Lying.  Gargantuan lying, which he required repetition by his followers.  His lying lead to millions of deaths around the world and the collapse of Europe which took a generation to recover.

Trump is more like Hitler than anyone wants to admit.  He has the same personality traits including toxic narcissism and total disregard for human life.  Like Hitler, he freely used the levers of government to enrich himself, protect his co-conspirators, and punish his enemies.  He politicized everything from science to law enforcement.  If allowed back in, he will follow the same path as Hitler, and if we ignore it, the chance of history repeating itself is highly likely.

All the lights about Trump are flashing red, and his enablers are speeding along the road that will most certainly lead to disaster for all of us.

Facebook’s oversight board has apparently decided on the fate of Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts and is going to announce the decision on Wednesday.  The thought of the Orange Menace ranting again on social media sends cold chills, but based on Zuckerberg and Company’s terrible decisions in the past, it won’t surprise me a bit if they let him back on just to drive internet clicks.  Of course, Facebook was right (like Twitter) to finally ban his ass way too late, especially since he violated almost every rule in the book, especially in inciting violence against the US government, Democrats, and everyone not white, obese, gun-toting, or bible thumping.  I guess they finally decided to take steps after his followers attacked the US Capitol resulting in millions of dollars in damage, 200 injuries, and 5 deaths.  At least Twitter’s ban is permanent.

Trump has no business with a public voice ever again, and Facebook should permanently ban him along with his entire fucking family from the platform.  I won’t hold my breath, though.

Today was the second time that the US Capitol was assaulted in US history.  The last time was 1812.  Trump, along with his enablers, including Giuliani, Flynn, Gohmert, Hawley, and especially Cruz are DIRECTLY responsible for the violence today.  All of the major social media platforms froze Trump’s accounts today for “repeated and severe violations” of their Civic Integrity policies.  This action, which is way too little, way too late is at least something, but it is NOT enough.  The time is now long past for removal of Trump from office with the 25th Amendment.

There are 14 days now until the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.  We simply can’t trust Trump to preserve our republic for those 14 days, and it’s now time for Pence to lead the cabinet in a vote to immediately remove him from office before he does something REALLY stupid like starting a war or inciting more insurrection.  Do it now.  I mean NOW.

Then, the federal government should pursue, and arrest and charge, every single individual who trespassed into OUR Capitol building and defiled both chambers or our legislative branch.  This nonsense has to stop, and I mean NOW.

Here is what Lin Wood, the lawyer who’s advocating for Trump to overturn the election and steal the presidency for himself, was tweeting today:

That’s right folks, Wood is spinning a wild tale for how Trump is supposedly going to steal the election.  This wild tale contains several blatant falsehoods including:

• The Vice President, who also serves as President of the Senate, controls the Electoral College procedures in the House and Senate.  This is blatantly false.  The Vice President’s role is largely ceremonial.  McConnell controls the Senate, Pelosi the House.  In order to challenge the Electoral College votes in the states, one Senator and one Representative are required to both object.  That objection then causes a debate and vote separately in the House and Senate.  Both houses must agree by simple majority or the objection fails and the original electoral votes stand.  The Vice President has NO ROLE in the House vote, and an objection will fail.  Period.
• Wood is fantasizing that somehow, Pence is going to be jailed for somehow for treason, therefore forfeiting his Vice Presidency.  Then Pompeo would somehow ascend to that office and take control of the Electoral College process, which, as explained above, is not possible.
• Wood then says that Pence will be shot, and Meadows, and McConnell will then be arrested for treason.
• Lastly, the military will then side with Trump, take control of the Congress and the courts, awarding him the presidency.

In ordinary times, these would be the ravings of an unhinged madman, but in these times, there are millions of Americans who are actually following along on this lunacy and backing the notion that Trump can singlehandedly overthrow the US government and install himself as President dictator.

Fortunately for our democracy, this will never come to pass, but it’s terrifying we even have to consider its possibility.

You’ve probably heard about Trump politicizing the U.S. Agency for Global Media which manages Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty, and Radio Free Asia by installing loyalist Michael Pack.  Pack has packed the board of the agency, as well as senior staff with other Trumpists, ideologues, and conservative activists.  Biden has already signaled a housecleaning and fumigation of the agency when he takes over in a few weeks, but Pack is not planning on going quietly.

In secret, Pack has unilaterally attempted to execute binding employment contracts with said Trumpists intended to block any Biden firings for two years.  When the career staff found out what Pack was doing, they said not no, but hell no, and blew the whistle.  Day before yesterday, they sent a four page letter to McConnell, Pelosi, and Senate and House leaders, the Inspector General, and the presidential transition team.  The letter was signed by over two dozen staffers including the editorial board, the editor in chief, and all the heads of the global regional operations.  In the letter, they made this statement:

When Pack took over last June (after a two year Senate confirmation battle), he made sweeping changes to the agency including dissolving all of the boards of the agencies under his authority and packing the boards and staff with a rogue’s gallery of religious fanatics, activists, ideologues and weirdos.  What’s particularly galling is that in October a Superior Court Judge in DC ruled that Pack had acted illegally in dissolving the board and seizing control of the Open Technology Fund which was established to help areas of the world access to open and secure internet access.  Pack has ignored the court order and to reestablish the boards he dissolved.

Pack is a bad guy who represents all that is truly odious about Trump who is continually trying to destroy our democracy.  Many thanks to those career staffers and true Americans who stood up to Pack and said NO.

They are the only thing right now standing between democracy and the Trump abyss.