From the Democrats of “I won,” and government by pen and phone come charges that Trump is authoritarian if not dictatorial. Pointing out the irony has become cliché. But what might not be so overdone is some analysis of of the conditions that have lead to such political hyperbole.
I got thinking about this as I listened to the host and Matt Continetti this past Friday. About 14:57 in, the host says, “We’re in late Roman Republic times when it comes to upping the ante.” He runs through a laundry list of actions that shrug off the niceties of our republic for the sake of winning, then continues, “…and so politics is coming down to brass tack and red and blue and we’re self-selecting into different states….” The host then concludes this mini-monologue by noting that the constitution acts a limiting barrier and asking Continetti if he agrees. In other words, the host believes the constitution to be the thing that will prevent us from slipping into a dictatorship, as Rome did when Julius Caesar came along.
This must be balanced with Kurt Schlichter’s latest at Townhall on “The Awesome Power of Doing Things.” The piece is typical Schlichter bombast and as such it is easy to miss some of what he is ranting about. What truly caught my eye was this bit:
He won the power to Just Do Things via an election; not surprisingly, the Ruling Class that demands strict adherence to the alleged norms of Our Democracy for its own benefit utterly ignores them in the case of Trump, doing everything it can to undermine his ability to govern, and thereby silence and disenfranchise the voters who put 47 in office.
The norms are not “the norms.” The norms are simply transitory rules that apply only to limit our ability to act; they never apply to the people purporting to impose them.
It’s Calvinball all the way down. By observing the norms they foist upon us, we give up the ability to Just Do Things. And that is how they keep power.
What terrorizes our elite is that Trump and his supporters see through the okey-doke. We’re hip to the scam. And Trump is acting accordingly, by acting.
“Calvinball” is a cultural reference that many younger readers may miss. It is utterly appropriate; the link explains it all. To actually maintain our Republic the rules have to matter – which is what the host contends about the constitution and which Calvinball lacks entirely. (The essence of the game is that the rules change as Calvin dictates.) I reflect on the cultural changes of my lifetime. Rules about things like marijuana and sexual conduct have not just evolved, they have radically changed. It makes me wonder if we have any respect for rules anymore as a culture?
On paper, and legally, the host is right – the Constitution is our backstop against a dictatorship. But whether it works or not is up to us. We have to value our republic more than winning and we have to hold the rules sacrosanct.
