"We
cannot and must not pretend that Donald Trump did not inspire an insurrection.
We should not forget that despite being reelected in 2024, he tried to steal
the 2020 election.
January 6 should be the day we recommit to democracy, every
single year. It must not become the day we forget about it." Joyce
Vance
Americans
sometimes have short memories. That is why this comment is so important. In a
few days, a new president will be sworn into office at the same Capitol his
followers tried to destroy. Those who died that day, as a result, are still
dead; their families still mourn. The police officers and others injured then
still bear the scars and wounds as reminders. Some were unable to return to
duty and have lost their livelihood.. They and their loved ones will have no
problems remembering.
The
Congress is expected to certify the election of 2024 tomorrow, assuming the
expected snowstorm does not shut the city down. There is no insurrection
expected this time; opinions still differ about expectations in 2021. Vice
President Kamala Harris will do the same job that many tried to prevent former
VP Mike Pence from doing. She will certify the results of the election she
tried so hard to win for her opponent. That is the American way, the peaceful
transfer of power.
The
MAGA candidate promised ,while on the campaign trail, that there would be
violence should he lose. So, since he won, this January sixth, we will not be
subjected to marauders armed with bear spray, stun guns, spears, and other
weapons. People will not be stalking the corridors looking for Nancy Pelosi or
shouting Hang Mike Pence. Criminals will not steal from Congressional offices,
while staff in other rooms barricade doors in fear of their lives. Invaders
will not break historic statues, defecate nearby and desecrate our county's
history.
Should
this be our only expectation? That we do not expect our fellow Americans to
behave like Neanderthals?
Let's
build a contrast here from recent news.
Former President Jimmy Carter passed away at the age of 100.
In
a few days, the body of former President Carter will lie in state in the
Capitol Rotunda, that privileged space for honors. People may pay their
respects until his funeral later in the week. His fellow Georgians are taking
time to do that at the Carter Center now. This past week, tales of Carters
presidency and post-presidency are widespread. Though not considered a forceful
president while in office, he has had an eventful post presidency that included
winning a Nobel Prize.
Former
President Barack Obama eulogized him, in part, with these words:
" ... his
accomplishments...the Camp David Accords he brokered that reshaped the Middle
East; the work he did to diversify the federal judiciary, including nominating
a pioneering women’s rights activist and lawyer named Ruth Bader Ginsburg to
the federal bench; the environmental reforms he put in place, becoming one of
the first leaders in the world to recognize the problem of climate change.
Others were likely there because
of what President Carter accomplished in the longest, and most impactful,
post-presidency in American history – monitoring more than 100 elections around
the world; helping virtually eliminate Guinea worm disease, an infection that
had haunted Africa for centuries; becoming the only former president to earn a
Nobel Peace Prize; and building or repairing thousands of homes in more than a
dozen countries with his beloved Rosalynn as part of Habitat for Humanity.
But I’m willing to bet that many
people in that church on Sunday morning were there, at least in part, because
of something more fundamental: President Carter’s decency.
Elected in the shadow of
Watergate, Jimmy Carter promised voters that he would always tell the truth.
And he did – advocating for the public good, consequences be damned. He
believed some things were more important than reelection – things like
integrity, respect, and compassion. Because Jimmy Carter believed, as deeply as
he believed anything, that we are all created in God’s image."
The president-elect
complained that at his inauguration the flags will still fly at half mast
because of the official 30-day period of mourning established in Carters' honor
by President Biden. This is a traditional ceremony for deceased presidents.
He also complained about the
awarding of a Presidential Citizens Award to Liz Cheney for her role on The
January 6th Committee (Chair Bennie Thompson also received a medal.) Cheney
responded by saying:
"Donald, this is not
the Soviet Union," Cheney wrote.: "You can't change the truth and you
cannot silence us. Remember all your lies about the voting machines, the
election workers, your countless allegations of fraud that never happened? Many
of your lawyers have been sanctioned, disciplined or disbarred, the courts
ruled against you, and dozens of your own White House, administration, and
campaign aides testified against you."
Remember
how you sent a mob to our Capitol and then watched the violence on television
and refused for hours to instruct the mob to leave?" she continued.
"Remember how your former Vice President prevented you from overturning
our Republic? We remember."
Cheney then
urged Americans to oppose Trump during his second administration to protect
"our Constitutional Republic."
"And
now, as you take office again, the American people need to reject your latest
malicious falsehoods and stand as the guardrails of our Constitutional Republic
— to protect the America we love from you," she wrote.
Now, as we enter this momentous week and a New Year, I can only
echo the words above. It I up to us to keep memories alive, be vigilant, speak
up and speak out as necessary. Talk back about Republican claims of a landslide or a mandate- there was neither of these in one of the closest presidential
elections in history and one in which neither candidate topped 50% of the total
vote.
So, Til next week-Peace!
