On Jan. 6, 2001, a dozen members of the Congressional Black Caucus spent less than half an hour trying to stop the certifications of the 2000 election results. Then Vice-President Al Gore, who was the President of the Senate and had won the popular vote of the 2000 election, did what he had to do. He ruled their objections and parliamentry procedures out of order. He had to. Why? Because to question the 25 electoral votes that declared George W. Bush the winner, they need support from a member of the Senate. Just one member. But none were showing their support.
Who knows why? Maybe it was because they figured Newt Gingrich was gone so the worst was over. Bush had been the first President since Benjamin Harrison in 1888 to win the Electoral Vote but not the popular. As a matter of fact, that is the only thing Harrison is known for. Grover Cleveland had won the popular vote by more than 91,000 votes.
The 2000 Election was a squeaker. Gore received 50,999,897 votes while Bush had 50, 456,002 and Bush received only five more Electoral Votes at 271 over Gore at 266. It was a close one and one of the history books. So, it could have been expected that there would be opposition from the Democrat Party, especially considering that Florida’s Secretary of State Katharine Harris had worked on the Bush Campaign as a conflict of interest. And Bush’s brother, Jeb, was the governor at the time. So, it wasn’t kosher seeing two people in high-ranking state jobs connected to the Republican candidate.
But what happened happened. Gore could’ve overstepped his bounds and duties and said that he would allow it as President of the Senate therefore he is technically a Senator. But no, he knew it was wrong and against the law. He knew there is a way of doing things that have been set in place and we just can’t change them on a whim to suit what we want. Even when Hillary Clinton lost the Electoral Vote but won the popular vote by a wider margin, there still was procedures to follow.
Unfortunately, this didn’t happen 20 years later on Jan. 6, 2021. No. People decided to change the way of doing things by fear and violence. And it was egged on by the person who had lost the race fair and square. People don’t show up at a non-violent protest with zip ties and erect a real hangman’s noose. They don’t beat law enforcement. They don’t become belligerent.
I do think some losers actually thought that it could be changed. I heard of some people thought that Trump was still going to arrest Joe Biden and Kamala Harris at the inauguration. People are stupid. Some people went in the Capitol Building on a spur of the moment idea but they had no malicious intent. It’s like when people rush the field when a football team wins. But they can’t deny that they weren’t supposed to be there. A lot should be lucky that the fatal shooting of violent protestor Ashli Babbitt didn’t result in felony murder charges for everyone there.
Earlier this week, the Jan. 6 committee recommended the Department of Justice file the following charges against Trump:
- Obstruction of an official proceeding;
- Conspiracy to defraud the United States;
- Conspiracy to make a false statement; and
- Conspiracy to defraud the U.S. by assisting, aiding or comforting those involved in an insurrection
While I think Attorney General Merrick Garland is making sure all the i’s are dotted and the t’s are crossed before he goes forth, he should have the holidays season to mull this over before he realizes it’s time to do something or not. I don’t think they’ll be charges filed before the end of the year. Maybe, it’ll happen in January, but two years is enough time to gather information Earlier this week, a coup was plotted to overthrow the government in Germany and they’re have been 25 people arrested within about 24 hours.
We watched this on live TV. People live-streamed and text and took pictures to social media of themselves inside the Capitol Building. They were there and they can’t deny it. And they can’t spin it anymore like they have. If there was a real threat to the President, the Secret Service would’ve moved Trump to a secure location. That didn’t happen. It’s because he didn’t think he was in danger. Garland and John L. “Jack” Smith, who is the special counsel, should take what the committee recommended and go from there. What other information do they need at this point?
And the Ways and Means Committee of Congress has voted 24-16 to release his tax returns from 2014 to2020 to the public. It’s obvious at this point that Trump is probably going to be the first President to be convicted and hopefully it will prevent him from being in office again. At the same time, the Democrats have attached provisions to the Electoral County Act of 1887 to the budget deal to prevent someone like Trump from getting in office again. Even Sens. Rand Paul and Mitch McConnell, both Republicans, have supported this.
I laugh at the irony that Trump got elected. Because the Electoral College was supposed to keep people like him out of office. It was also supposed to give the southern states a little more edge, but people were afraid rabble rousers would only visit the heavily populated areas and it would for, lack of a better word, trump the rural voters. But if we’re going to elect people by most popular wins, we got to count every vote. And if a big city outvotes those in the sticks, then so be it.
I have a feeling, like I’ve said in previous posts, that Trump is putting his money in off-shore accounts for the time he can get out of this country. If he’s prosecuted, it might be in absentia. Trump doesn’t seem to be the type of person who would face the music. He’s never really had to face responsibility. And how the Republican Party is ditching him and avoiding him for younger people, like Ron DeSantis, is evidence his time may be up for good.
The NFT announcement was a scam, a grift to get a few million dollars he can pocket in an off-shore account. The website wouldn’t allow for people to purchase more than 100 because that would’ve put it over $10,000 which means it’s not reported. Trump like so many people, since Ronald Reagan helped set thing in motion, have used loopholes and tax cheats to make as much money as they can by swindling others.
If we’re not going to prosecute Trump for what he did, then, it just means others will try it and they will be successful. Kari Lake is trying to do the same thing in Arizona, but I don’t expect there will be a similar reaction. But Republicans need to ask themselves, what if Gore didn’t follow proper procedures like they didn’t want then-VP Mike Pence to do. What would have happened if Gore was certified the winner of the election? Of course, there would’ve been a huge outcry from the right.
Republicans need to realize the door swins both ways. Setting a legal precedent like this applies to everyone. Republicans are always calling Democrats cheats and lowlifes all the time. You’d think they’d be willing to sacrifice one of their own to make sure Democrats dont get away either, wouldn’t you?
What do you think? Please comment.
Zane Says 