Congressman Scott Peters and Threats to Democracy
Time is running out for small d democrats and the Democratic Party. I’m taking to this platform today to sound out the alarm about those are enabling the return of authoritarianism via Donald Trump or his designee in the next Presidential election.
Two things currently in motion threaten the future of Democracy in the US: no achievable plan for a positive future and the insidiousness of the Big Lie.
A lack of urgency in the Congress to move past artificial barriers not created by the founding fathers is at the heart of this crisis. While there is a ton of ‘Dems in disarray’ analysis in the mainstream media, the actual number of obstructionists is very small.
San Diego’s Congressman Scott Peters is among them. He’s willing to tank the single best opportunity to convince voters to keep (or even enhance) a sane Congress in the name of corporate interests. If Democrats can’t deliver the goods, there will be less voter turnout, and we all know who/what that favors.
And, no, this isn’t about the piddling amount of money Big Pharma / MedDevices throw his way. Scott Peters has all the money he needs. He simply does not see the dangers before us. The BioPharma industry’s profitability is not endangered.
It comes down to rank selfishness: Scott Peters district is safe; he and his class coterie face no threat and will actually benefit with an administration willing to rip out the remaining guard rails in our economy. As a Congressman, he’ll stand up and make brave speeches denouncing whatever atrocities are inflicted on the planet and our people. Then he’ll go home for cocktails.
Prince of Darkness Stephen Bannon is already organizing (with funding from an exiled Chinese billionaire) what he calls 20,000 “shock troops” to “deconstruct” the state should the GOP win the White House again. The single biggest failure of the last Trump administration was the lack of a plan to purge the government of non-loyalists.
If Peters gets his way, the funding (via Medicare reforms on drug pricing) for the infrastructure bill collapses. No money = no deal, and alternatives like increasing taxes are already off the table.
San Diego’s Indivisible/Change Begins With Me chapter has been organizing protests outside Peters’ office. I urge you to read Tama Becker-Varano’s email to the Congressman detailing all the ways his current stances are simply wrong for America and the planet.
The money quote:
You won in 2020 61.6% to 38.4% - a 23.2% margin. Who even remembers the name of your Republican challenger?? A solid blue district in a solid blue state - YOU should have been one of those 60! Our neighboring district to the north, district 49 held by Congressman Mike Levin, had a much tighter race (53.1% to 46.9%) and yet Levin has the courage and patriotism to vote in the best interest of our country and he’s part of the Progressive Caucus. Turning to the south, Congresswoman Sarah Jacobs in district 53 is also a member of the Progressive Caucus. What gives? The times they are a changin', but sadly you are not.
Here the Washington Post’s Jenifer Rubin, pointing out the fallacy of the ‘Progressive vs Moderate’ facade Rep. Peters is hiding behind.:
Progressives are aligned with Biden and their party on this plan. Democratic moderates in both the House and Senate are in favor, as well. The two holdouts are advancing positions (anti-green energy, anti-prescription drug controls) that are neither moderate nor representative of the party as a whole. So let’s not pit “moderates” against “progressives.” This is the Democratic Party vs. dark money and the senators it influences.
***
Now, a few words about the Big Lie.
At this point, the GOP could just go ahead and declare victory in the 2022 midterms and the 2024 presidential election, based on their relentless promotion of voter fraud. That is exactly what will happen unless people wake to the threat posed to our system of governance.
https://twitter.com/WesSmith123/status/1447713011574116361?s=20
Rep. Adam Schiff’s soaring rhetoric about moving forward in a meaningful way to undercut the Big Lie by holding the enablers of the January 6 insurrection accountable means nothing unless Team Trump is denied the ability to control the narrative of the 2022 elections.
Really? Former Lakeside resident Ashley Babbitt was all-but-canonized by the former president via video at a “Texas Loves Ashli Babbitt” rally Sunday, where friends and family gathered to pay tribute to the Jan. 6 insurrectionist on what would have been her 36th birthday.
https://twitter.com/brhodes/status/1447623117623361540?s=20
When Trump called for the Department of Justice to reopen the investigation into Babbitt’s death in his birthday video for Babbitt—after Capitol police officer Byrd was officially exonerated in August— he’s opening a wound for the sole purpose of pouring salt and stirring hate.
The time for quiet tolerance in the name of politeness has passed. In the past few days a host of formerly Republican stalwarts have sounded the alarm. We should listen to them on this point.
Here’s Michael Gerson in the Washington Post:
This is a national, not just a Democratic, emergency. Trump has strengthened his identification with the seditious forces he unleashed on Jan. 6. He has embraced ever more absurd and malicious conspiracy theories. He has shown even less stability, humanity, responsibility and restraint. And his support among Republicans has grown. Trump and his strongest supporters are in a feedback loop of radicalization.
If Trump returns to the presidency, many of the past constraints on his power would be purposely loosed. Many of the professionals and patriots who opposed him in his final days would have been weeded out long before. There is no reason Trump would not try to solidify personal power over military and federal law enforcement units to employ as a bully’s club in times of civil disorder. There is no reason he would refrain from using federal resources to harass political opponents, undermine freedom of the press and change the outcome of elections. These are previously stated goals.
What attitudes and actions does this require of us? Any reaction must begin with a sober recognition. Catastrophe is in the front room. The weather forecast includes the apocalypse.
Hey folks! Be sure to like/follow Words & Deeds on Facebook. If you’d like to have each post mailed to you check out the simple subscription form and the right side of the front page.
Email me at WritetoDougPorter@Gmail.com