Donald Trump’s authoritarian ways have put the nation’s people on a roller coaster of untruths, illogic, fear, and uncertainty. As soon as Americans pull themselves up from one dark dive, the president plunges them back down. Investigative journalist David Cay Johnston has been writing about Trump for decades, and he has some ideas.
This president feeds on chaos, rage, and crowds of adoring followers. Unfortunately, that has been unhealthy for Americans’ freedoms, ones we take for granted. There is no doubt that Trump will be impeached. The Senate will march in lockstep behind him believing that they are being true to their citizens, but history will find otherwise.
This lawless White House is deeply layered in corruption, so much so that our very democracy has been threatened. Johnston said that people have a choice: allow Trump freedom in return for a dictator and the revival of “firing squads” or “get involved and be vigilant,” according to Salon:
‘More than a million people died for this country, and many more, like my father in World War II, became disabled standing up for this country. All we’re being asked to do as citizens is to pay attention and vote, contribute money and act.’
The journalst said out “democracy and our liberties” are at risk:
‘If the American people want to keep our democracy and our liberties and not go down the path that will inevitably lead to firing squads and a dictator, they must get and stay involved politically. If the American people want to maintain, they have got to be vigilant and they must endure.’
Johnston continued, reminding us that “We own our government” and should “act like owners.” It no longer works for an attitude of let someone else handle it. We must be “civically engaged:”
‘Nov. 3 is coming. We have the power, it’s our country, we own it. We own our government. We should act like owners. What we’re seeing in Donald Trump, who is just the symptom of deeper problems, is the wages of 40 years of people renting out their interest in the government, saying, “Let somebody else take care of it. We’re going to behave like renters.” We can’t do that if we want to be a free people. The American people must be civically engaged.’
He went on to say that Americans must vote, volunteer, mend the great canyon of division. That would be a small price to pay for freedom, especially given the gravesites of so many young men and women who gave their lives fighting for it:
‘Having to go vote and volunteer some time is nothing compared to all of those gravesites in the Philippines, in France and in Germany, of American soldiers who died for this country. All those Americans in the Union who died in the Civil War. To not be a citizen is to disrespect what they gave up their lives for. We need to take the responsibility of being a citizen seriously. Not just talk. Not just griping on the internet. Act like an owner. It’s important.’
The Mueller Report Adventures: In Bite-Sizes on this Facebook page. These quick, two-minute reads interpret the report in normal English for busy people. Mueller Bite-Sizes uncovers what is essentially a compelling spy mystery. Interestingly enough, Mueller Bite-Sizes can be read in any order.
