THE SENATE EXCUSED the gentleman from New York. But an acquittal applies to a trial, not to proceedings in which there
were no witnesses. Thus, an acquittal is
one thing, an excusal another. And the image
is a sight to behold, because, as Alexander Hamilton observes, “it would
generally be impolitic beforehand to take any step which might hold out the
prospect of impunity.” (The
Federalist Papers, No. 74)
There were
only two charges—abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. But there could have been more.
During the transition, the gentleman from New York was warned about the Constitution’s
conflict of interest provision
by Richard Painter, former ethics lawyer to Bush the Younger, and Laurence
Tribe, professor of constitutional law
at Harvard University, among others. Despite
the warnings, he ignored the offer by Walter Shaub, then Director of the Office
of Government Ethics, to help him divest his holdings and place them in
Treasury securities to avoid the taint of foreign influence. Despite the warnings, the gentleman from New York ignored them and violated the
emoluments clause. (Article I, Section
9, Clause 8) By doing so, he immediately
failed to “take care that the laws be faithfully executed”; and because he failed
in that regard, he was in violation of the oath to “preserve, protect and
defend” the supreme law of the land, which means he was in violation from the
moment he said, “So help me God.” (Article
II, Section 3 & Article II, Section 1, Clause 8) And those failures meant that he was in
contempt of the Constitution. ALL OF
THOSE ARE IMPEACHABLE OFFENSES.
An adult with a
case of the terrible twos believes he can do anything. So the spoiled brat soils his diaper and does
the same to the Constitution.
The gentleman
from New York claims he has “the complete power to pardon.” Yet immediately after the grant, the
Constitution states a limitation—“except in cases of impeachment”; and in The
Federalist Papers, Hamilton shows how the power is to be used in extreme
and mundane situations, consistent with the standards of the Preamble—to
“insure domestic tranquility” and “establish justice.” (Article II, Section 2, Clause1 & The Federalist
Papers, No. 74)
The gentleman
from New York likes to brag about how he “won” the Electoral College. Little does he know that the institution has
two functions—popular choice and national security—neither of which
concerns nor justifies him. For the
supreme irony is that the Electoral College was designed to keep a demagogue
out of the highest office of the land. Therefore,
to avoid another lightning strike, the press and the politicians need to
educate the public, before the 2020 election, about the role of a misunderstood,
misrepresented, and misused institution.
Anything less by candidates for the Presidency is gross dereliction of
duty.
It would seem
that someone in occupation of the Federal City due to a political discontinuity—a
misalignment of means and ends where
a minority rules the majority—would proceed with caution. But the man with a thin veneer of legitimacy heads
a gang, not a government. And this is what
he fails to understand: All the powers
of the Presidency are to be used for the benefit of the Republic and, even in
an emergency, they are to be exercised within the parameters of the Preamble.
The American
Presidency was to be, according to Jacob Needleman, “a mirror reflection of the
character of Washington”—a position for those who are profiles in courage. Cowards need not apply. Thus, the words in the report, which
President Washington had Secretary of War Henry Knox send to Congress in
support of Universal National Service, are striking: “Therefore, it ought to be a permanent rule,
that those who in youth decline or refuse to subject themselves to the course
of military education, established by the laws, should be considered as unworthy
of public trust or public honors, and be excluded therefrom accordingly.”
The Chief Traitor is a certified sissy, a thug who is a threat to our survival. For all the bravado, the gentleman from New York is a-has-been-who-never-was, doing tough guy schtick, and talking about yesterdays-and-used-to-be
(c)2020 Marvin D. Jones. All rights reserved.
The Chief Traitor is a certified sissy, a thug who is a threat to our survival. For all the bravado, the gentleman from New York is a-has-been-who-never-was, doing tough guy schtick, and talking about yesterdays-and-used-to-be
(c)2020 Marvin D. Jones. All rights reserved.
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