A favorite reaction to adverse events is the oft-quoted “this too shall pass.” While that is not a biblical verse, a more appropriate quote may be found in the scriptural verse Luke 4:13 “a more opportune time.”
For those who read the Bible, there is a story about Jesus being tempted in the desert by Satan. After being tempted for 40 days and 40 nights, Jesus tells the devil to depart. The Bible tells us that the devil left until a more opportune time. Temptation is never totally abolished but disappears until a more opportune time.
The temptation of demagoguery is always present in democracy.
In the 1930s, America had Father Coughlin, who drew millions to his radio program as he spewed anti-Semitic rhetoric.
In 1939, the most massive Nazi sympathizer rally ever in America took place at Madison Square Garden. Nazi sympathizers filled Madison Square Garden to profess support for Nazi Germany and their anti-Semitic rhetoric. The keynote speaker was Fritz Julius Kuhn, leader of the German American Bund, who was eventually deported.
In the 1950s, America experienced Senator Joseph McCarthy’s anti-communist fervor, which destroyed careers and reputations.
In the 1960s, America had George Wallace, who received nine million votes during the 1968 Presidential election and carried five states with an appeal to rabid racism.
In 2020, thousands descended upon Washington DC, including The Proud Boys, QAnon, American Guard, to insist that the election was stolen from the man they worship. Despite republicans and democrats, including Homeland Security officials repudiating fraud claims, Trump supporters are insisting on pushing conspiracy theories. The outgoing President has a legal right to contest the election. The problem is when the leader of the free world lies and spreads rumors about his loss, not for the nation’s sake but for self-aggrandizement.
In 2017, the day after the inauguration of Donald Trump, the Women’s March, an anti-Trump march, took place in Washington DC. The difference is that this march was for justice and equal treatment. The march on Saturday, which bordered on idol worship, was for a man who feels humiliated and seeks solace by reverting to conning his base into believing he has been wronged.
Perhaps this is a needed catharsis for people whose idol has been soundly defeated in the popular vote for the second time and the electoral college. They have every right to march and protest, and the reality is that even people who oppose them must defend their rights.
As Covid-19 continues to surge even amongst the secret service and thousands gathered to protest his loss, the outgoing President rode by his supporters on the way to one of his golf courses. Nero fiddled, and Trump golfs.
Like the 1939 Nazi rally, this will dissipate. Like the speaker for that event, Joe McCarthy, George Wallace, and Fr. Coughlin have all been discredited and occupy the dustpans of history. However, what must be remembered is that as these individuals became insignificant relics of history, others followed in their wake and will continue to do so.
Trump is not the first demagogue faced by a democratic society and will not be the last. From historical figures like Cleon, who called on Athenians to murder every man in the city of Mytilene, to today’s figure in the guise of Trump, demagogues will always find an audience susceptible to their narcissistic tendencies.. Trump’s influence will eventually diminish and remain as fodder for late-night comedians and SNL skits.
The real tragedy is that politicos such as Mark Meadows, Mitch McConnell, Bill Barr, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and Steve Bannon are complicit in this charade of dishonesty, leading people down the path to disillusionment. News organizations such as Newsmax and One America, sensing an opportunity to increase their viewership, are fanning the flames of disinformation. Unfortunately, it seems as though none of the marchers are sophisticated enough to understand they are being taken for a ride that serves to increase advertising revenue and political power. This will have an eroding effect on the nation’s democracy. How eroded it becomes remains to be seen.
This is not about America First or Make America Great Again. This is about raw naked power, and perhaps Trump creating maximum resentment to propel him to a 2024 GOP presidential nomination. As a result, GOP leadership may consist of elected officials who lack philosophical and moral integrity or a sense of duty to protect American democracy. Even worse is that their constituency will be associated with white supremacy, militias, and the cult of personality rather than a political paradigm that helps average Americans. They risk becoming analogous to the Know-Nothing party of the 19th century.
There is no doubt the warning of George Washington about political parties has come to pass when he said, “however [political parties] may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterward the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.”
This is not the first time a presidential election has been contested. The most recent would’ve been in the year 2000 when George W. Bush became President when the Supreme Court ordered the counting of votes to cease enabling Bush to win the state of Florida by 537 votes. One of the actions that took place was the Brooks Brothers riot. This action organized by Fox News Political contributor Matt Schlapp was used to intimidate people counting the votes in Florida.
More than likely, the majority of people who voted for Donald Trump have accepted the result of the 2020 presidential election and will simply move on to organize for the next election. A smaller segment will enable outgoing President Trump’s narcissism and the seeming cowardice of GOP leaders such as Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, to extend this farce.
Unfortunately, there is no recourse for the damage done by those perpetrating this pernicious lie about election fraud. After this is over, they will go on to lucrative positions with conservative think tanks and lobbyist companies. Despite the victory by Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris and their subsequent installation on January 20th, there has been damage done to the nation’s electoral process. Whether or not it can be healed remains to be seen.
America has gone through protests, voter suppression, assassinations, terrorist attacks, impeachment, riots, war and it will recover from this debacle, slightly damaged but well enough to continue its Democratic experiment. Nonetheless, there will come a time when a more sophisticated demagogue will lead the nation down a more destructive path.
Rick Wilson wrote the book “Everything Trump touches dies.” American democracy has proven resilient. One can only hope the democracy is strong enough to withstand the corroding effect of this moment.
Many demagogues have come and gone. The difference this time is that he holds the power of the executive branch until January. Given his propensity for vindictiveness and narcissistic tendencies, the next few months might result in further corrosion of American civic culture.
This too shall pass until a more opportune time.