Democrats choke on a dose of their own legitimate — or not legitimate — medicine

By Jeffery A. Rendall

 

“Un-fit, not legit! Un-fit, not legit! Un-fit, not legit!”

 

 

Such were the cries of an unidentified protester standing near us four years ago on Inauguration Day, 2017. Like everyone in attendance that morning, my wife, daughters and I were positioned among a throng of Donald Trump supporters patiently waiting for the moment when the ultimate outsider candidate would place his hand on the Bible and recite his oath of office, thus ending in an instant our eight-year nightmare of government by liberal elites and traditional American culture haters and apologists.

 

Still giddy from the Election Night buzz and the days and weeks that followed, we barely noticed the leftist fools on the perimeter of the festivities that day, many of whom were wearing odd shaped pink head coverings that we later discovered were called “pussy hats”. They allegedly double as both a cat’s skull and a woman’s reproductive system. Class acts, all of them.

 

The ceremonies carried on as planned until the president-elect began reciting his constitutional oath of office. At that moment, a “protester” in a bright yellow hoodie began shouting (the above refrain) to the annoyance of everyone around us, particularly my daughter who was stationed right behind him. He had stood placidly with all of us until the opportune time to engender maximum outrage, ruining the occasion for many who could no longer hear the president’s words during most of his oath.

 

Legitimate protest? Hardly. We were half a mile from the Capitol building down one of the avenues set up for standing overflow crowds. We didn’t have tickets that would allow us seats much closer to the action. This jerk was therefore accomplishing nothing other than letting everyone within earshot know his personal opinion of the election results. Thankfully, after a rather stern looking bearded guy with a “Bikers for Trump” leather jacket got in the man’s face and ordered him to “Shut the (bleep) up!”, he was pushed — literally — to the rear by another Trump backer in a suit and tie.

 

The perpetrator slowly faded from view like a brightly colored fish bobber cast into a deep mountain lake. Since there weren’t any other similarly attired leftist miscreants in our section (we heard there were others in an organized disruption scheme in other areas), we listened to the balance of Trump’s inaugural address and walked away feeling that Trump’s America would be renewed because there was a tangible emphasis on making the country great again. “I will never let you down,” he said. And he didn’t.

 

On the way to Union Station to catch a train back to the suburbs, we heard and then saw Marine One flying overhead chauffeuring Barack Obama for one final flyover of the ellipse and the national capital region. (Of course, Obama and Michelle weren’t gone for long — they settled in a multi-million-dollar Georgetown mansion soon after leaving office where they could loft bombshells within physical proximity of the White House). The jubilant Trump people gave the outgoing two-term president an appropriate but respectful goodbye.

 

The point here? The legitimate transfer of power had been made. All — or most — of the dignitaries were there. Living former presidents (except for George H.W. Bush and Barbara) and former first ladies were at the ceremony, including Trump’s vanquished opponent, “Crooked” Hillary Clinton. How awkward it must’ve been for the recent past’s political enemies to all be seated in the same vicinity. There’s nothing dignified about losing in politics, especially these days. Insults and flat-out distortions are more common than courtesies. The media blames Donald Trump for the rancor, but he didn’t start the fire. As Billy Joel sang back in the day, “It was always burnin’ since the world’s been turnin’”

 

But also recall that a huge contingent of Democrat congressman boycotted Trump’s swearing-in ceremony. And a number of Obama officials were busy actively sabotaging from within the new president’s administration before he’d even officially taken over. Shouldn’t Susan Rice be questioned by the media as to what she meant by her mysterious email? The Obama people were well on their way to planting poisonous seeds of “Russian collusion” that would dog Trump every step of the way.

 

Now, Democrats and their media allies act shocked that Republicans aren’t willing to go quietly in this week’s official count of the Electoral Votes. Oh, the horrors! Niall Stanage reported at The Hill last year (on Thursday), “The effort by the Missouri senator [Josh Hawley] was seen by critics as motivated by presidential politics — specifically, an effort on Hawley’s part to ingratiate himself with Trump voters. Hawley has said he would support Trump if the president runs again in 2024. If he does not, Hawley is regarded as a likely contender.

 

“’This is how you run for President on the Republican side in 2024. You join a coup attempt,’ Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) tweeted in response to Hawley’s announcement.

 

“’Let’s be clear — those contesting the Electoral College are trying to overthrow democracy,’ tweeted Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). ‘They want to turn America into a state akin to Russia or China, where elections are for show and one party rules.’ He added: ‘They won’t succeed but the wound to democracy is severe.’”

 

Oh, hogwash. A coup attempt? Seriously? The dictionary defines “Coup d’état” as, “The sudden overthrow of a government by a usually small group of persons in or previously in positions of authority, or, The sudden overthrow of a government, differing from a revolution by being carried out by a small group of people who replace only the leading figures.” Neither of these definitions comes anything close to what Hawley, Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks and dozens of their Republican fellow congressman and senators are doing this week.

 

On Saturday, eleven more GOP senators did step up to join Hawley. They are: Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas), Ron Johnson (Wis.), James Lankford (Okla.), Steve Daines (Mont.), John Kennedy (La.), Marsha Blackburn (Tenn.) and Mike Braun (Ind.) and Sens.-elect Cynthia Lummis (Wyo.), Roger Marshall (Kan.), Bill Hagerty (Tenn.) and Tommy Tuberville (Ala.) said in a joint statement that they will vote against accepting the election results until there is a 10-day audit.

 

All of these principled people are merely staging would could be considered a last official “protest” of the election results by forcing a couple hours of debate on the subject and an on-the-record vote of the elected representatives of the United States. There won’t be any shooting and everyone knows the motion’s chance of success are next to nothing since a successful effort would require a majority vote in both chambers. Since Democrats still cling to a narrow House majority, there’s no way they’ll favor denying ol’ Grampa Joe Biden his shot at the White House.

 

But how many of them are genuinely wondering about the fraud issue? True, the vast majority of liberals live in denial about practically everything, but there have been too many people saying too many things to ignore completely — even for Democrats.

 

There’s also serious question whether some establishment Republicans would vote for a majority in the senate. Tomorrow’s Georgia U.S. Senate runoff elections will settle the partisan balance for the next two years and even then, a number of GOP senators have either chastised their political brethren for forcing overtime to highlight the fraud issue or announced they’re flat out opposed to the gesture. What a bunch of gutless wonders! Maybe the individuals in question (namely Sen. Ben Sasse and Mitt Romney) will join Amy Klobuchar, “Chucky” Schumer and Chris Murphy for a spot of swamp tea after the matter concludes.

 

Everyone knows heinous former California senator Barbara Boxer (whose seat was subsequently filled by Kamala Harris) and a group of House Democrats challenged George W. Bush’s second term victory in 2005 because they claimed there were “irregularities” in Ohio. Were these liberals staging a coup back then too? Why is it a “takeover” only when conservatives and Republicans do the moving? Why the hypocrisy?

 

The fact is, when Democrats — again, with their willing accomplices in the news reporting class — launched their all-out assaults against Trump prior to and after his inauguration day (that I described above), they were doing the real damage of undermining American “unity,” if such a thing could ever exist anymore. It’s the height of two-face-ism to claim foul now after what they did to Trump. Remember the deep state? James Comey? Robert Mueller? Any of this ringing a bell?

 

Would liberals and leftists feel better about objecting to the electors if Hawley and all similarly-minded patriots stood up and simply shouted “Un-fit, not legit! Un-fit, not legit! Un-fit, not legit!” Should Trump’s 75 million voters lay siege to Washington because they don’t see Biden as legitimately winning the election? What’s wrong with conducting a thorough investigation of the fraud evidence in the states in question?

 

It’s safe to say conservatives would accept the results of such investigations if they were conducted by reputable people. As far as I know, no court has held a full trial with counsel for both sides on the question. The affidavits, videos, eyewitness testimonials and proven malfeasance aren’t just magically going away after January 20. If Democrats were really ready to give doddering dolt Biden a chance to govern, wouldn’t they delve deeper into these claims instead of making stupid accusations of a “coup” and “democracy” being “wounded”?

 

To use another cliché, they made the bed, now let them sleep in it. Their post-2016 behavior and in the years since have guaranteed that every election from here on out (regardless of which side wins) will likely be challenged in January when the electoral votes are counted in Congress. Welcome to the wonderful world of Democrat precedent. This is the new reality. We’re ready for it. Are they?

 

Joe Biden could put a stop to it by agreeing to have the matter probed after he takes office. But he’s too much of a bought-and-paid-for political weenie. So much for “uniting the country” or “restoring the soul of the nation.”

 

Wishy-washy wuss Ben Sasse says elector challenge is all about 2024 politics. Is he right? So what?

 

It’s always odd how actions like challenging electors seems to generate consternation among the establishment’s greatest defenders. The “thought police” on the GOP side are coming out of the woodworks. President Trump isn’t even out of office yet and the champions of the surrender caucus are claiming this “stunt” is all about jockeying for 2024. No joke. Jordain Carney reported at The Hill, “Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) on Thursday ripped an effort by fellow Republicans to challenge the election results in Congress next week, calling it a ‘dangerous ploy.’

 

“’Let’s be clear what is happening here: We have a bunch of ambitious politicians who think there’s a quick way to tap into the president’s populist base without doing any real, long-term damage,’ Sasse wrote in an open letter to constituents.

 

“’But they’re wrong – and this issue is bigger than anyone’s personal ambitions. Adults don’t point a loaded gun at the heart of legitimate self-government,’ he added.”

 

Again, what legitimacy are we talking about here? And, even if true, what’s the problem with trying to show the kind of leadership that Trump supporters appreciate? It may come as a shock to people like Ben Sasse, but there are millions upon millions of us out in the hinterlands who’ve paid attention to the reports of fraud and don’t believe Joe Biden won the election. I think most of us would concede that the Democrat may have won, but probably not. But we really don’t — and won’t — know until the issue is pursued to its fullest extent.

 

If Hawley’s show of courage makes him standout to the 2024 GOP primary voter, so be it. Several other potential hopefuls (that is, if Trump himself doesn’t declare in the coming days that he’s running again) had the opportunity to be the first senator to take the leap, but they didn’t. This includes a few of my favorites — Senators Rand Paul, Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton — and their hesitation might cost them in 2024.

 

Will voters remember them in a bad way? Is it a stretch to say that a lot will happen between now and then that might sway the primary voters’ opinions? To even suggest that Hawley is making a purely political move is nuts. And if political calculations are a factor the young Missourian weighed, again, so what? It’s this is the case, it’s a smart move — in the “new” Republican party, I’d much rather be on the side of Trump’s voters than against them.

 

Maybe the establishment media honks should go ask George W. Bush what he thinks. Or Jeb! Object? To what?

 

It’s only a couple days into year 2021 but already we can tell it’s going to be a hot one in politics. The Georgia runoff elections are tomorrow and Congress will start the slings and arrows flying on Wednesday. Kudos to Senator Josh Hawley for standing up for the side of goodness and truth. Will any Democrats be so similarly inclined? Don’t bet on it.