Liars, Crooks, and Thieves

 I remember an amusing joke we used to tell every so often. 

It is simply, How do you know that a politician is lying?

Answer: Their lips are moving. 

Our Republic has reached a new level of political thievery and lying and, sadly, it seems that one of the political parties has perfected the means to make grand theft and Constitutional crimes seem common place and acceptable. 

For instance:

The Democrats on the House Oversight Committee today [December 4, 2024] released a 156-page report showing that when he was in the presidency, Trump received at least $7.8 million from 20 different governments, including those of China, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, and Malaysia, through businesses he owned. (Letters from an American)

The first article of the U.S. Constitution reads: “[N]o Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under [the United States], shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument [that is, salary, fee, or profit], Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.” (Letters from an American)

Yet, the Republican-controlled House has both stopped investigation into Trump's wrong-doings and launched an impeachment inquiry into President Biden's alleged wrong-doing of the same nature when there is, so far, zero evidence of any Constitutionally prohibited activity.

There is more behind the attack on Biden than simply trying to even the score between him and Trump—who remains angry at his impeachments and has demanded Republicans retaliate—or to smear Biden through an “investigation,” which has been a standard technique of the Republicans since the mid-1990s.

Claiming that Biden is as corrupt as Trump undermines faith in our democracy. After all, if everyone is a crook, why does it matter which one is in office? And what makes American democracy any different from the authoritarian systems of Russia or Hungary or Venezuela, where leaders grab what they can for themselves and their followers?

Democracies are different from authoritarian governments because they have laws to prevent the corruption in which it appears Trump engaged. The fact that Republicans refuse to hold their own party members accountable to those laws while smearing their opponents says far more about them than it does about the nature of democracy. (Letters from an American)

Dealing with another issue, these same republicans are demanding action on immigration, yet thwarting every attempt by the administration and even the Senate to close a deal and get the government moving again.

Now House speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) says the House conference does not want and will not accept a compromise, such as the one senators are working on; they want a complete change of policy. That is, the Republicans in the House, who have a majority of two, are bowing to their far-right members and insisting that until that faction’s policies are put in place over those of the Senate and the president, they will refuse to fund Ukraine, whose defense from Russian aggression is key to our own national security. (Letters form an American)

The Republicans in the House are disingenuous and are lying to the American people about their true intentions. And what are their true intentions? To ensure that a particular former president is reelected which will seriously test the ability of democracy to survive.

-- Bob Doan, Odenton, MD