This Will Happen If Trump Loses the Election
Published in De Standaard
(Belgium) on 22 April 2020
by Frans Verhagen (link to original)
(Belgium) on 22 April 2020
by Frans Verhagen (link to original)
Translated from
by Dani Ebskamp-Franke.
Edited by Patricia Simoni.
Gun fanatics, far-right groups and Trump supporters took to the streets to protest the lockdowns in the United States. Frans Verhagen fears the rally was just an appetizer.
Last week we saw a preview of the horror movie that awaits America and the world when Donald Trump loses the Nov. 3 election — if we even have an election at all. First, the president claimed power that he does not have under the Constitution. "If someone is president of the United States, the authority is total," he asserted. "And that's the way it’s got to be."
Trump believed he could tell the governors what to do. It was not the first time he believed himself to be all powerful, and certainly not the first time he flouted the Constitution when it suited him. Although the governors forced the president to recognize that they decide when to reopen their economies, the president has not reversed his claim. It is impossible to look into his mind, but I am sure the idea of omnipotence is going to nestle itself in the brain of the self-proclaimed genius. You can bet it will reappear when the election ends in chaos, which is exactly what his administration hopes to achieve.
’Lock Her Up’
After Trump spoke, the pickup trucks arrived full of white men with automatic rifles and Confederate flags, supposedly protesting the restrictions imposed by the lockdowns. In reality, the show of power by Trump supporters and gun owners was simply a great opportunity to violate social distancing laws and to scold governors. Good clean fun. "Lock her up," they yelled at female Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Like all strong women, she is a favorite target of the president. "Heil Whitmer,” was also a nice one. Confederate flags in northern states only have one message: racism.
Just as in 2017, when racists marched in Charlottesville, Trump once again saw many good people.
These martial law types, a few thousand per state, had been incited and financed by various conservative action groups and gun lobbyists. In Michigan, the right-wing DeVos family, which has a close connection to the Trump administration given that Betsy DeVos is the Secretary of Education, fanned the flames of the protest. "Don't take our civil liberties away!" they shouted, with their “Make America Great Again” baseball caps and a finger on the trigger of an M15. "Go to China!" they shouted at health care workers who lined up in front of the pickup trucks, like the Chinese who blocked tanks in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
The Mythical Coup
Trump saw reports about those people on local TV stations and recognized his supporters. ”LIBERATE!” he tweeted. However, the governors the protesters were targeting were simply following the advice of Trump’s own administration. For the record, Trump also lied about the threat to the Second Amendment in Virginia, a provision hich canonizes the right to bear arms.* Just as in 2017, when racist and anti-Semitic torchbearers marched in Charlottesville, Trump again saw many good people. His lap dog, Vice President Pence, had assured governors they would be treated with respect. He didn't even blink.
The protesters claimed the rally was about civil rights; they feel the government cannot infringe upon those rights. But these are the people who, should the mythical coup in the United States ever come to pass (one in six Americans are not opposed to it), would surrender their liberties with ease. But only if they can keep their guns. None of these people would throw themselves in front of a tank to maintain their political freedom.
Losing Is Not an Option
This is what will happen if Trump loses on Nov. 3. Provoked, aggressive men with automatic rifles will take to the streets. Confrontations with anti-fascist protesters will follow from place to place. The unrest will legitimize a state of emergency. The National Guard, activated by the federal government, will intervene. The president un-elect will tweet repeatedly as he questions the election results. Fox News will inform Trump supporters that they have been robbed of their victory. Trump will announce that he is refusing to leave, that he has actually won, and that millions of votes have been cast illegally.
Too dark a scenario? I dare you not to believe it. The past 3 1/2 years have shown that nothing is too crazy for Trump, and that his narcissism leads to policy decisions that revolve only around himself. All policy decisions in the coronavirus crisis were made with an eye toward the election. From denying COVID-19 in order to protect the stock market to undermining governors; from blaming China to the ban on immigration; everything is done with an eye toward Nov. 3. Losing is not an option.
You say the American political system will prevent that scenario? Then you trust the Republican Party, which has sold its soul to the devil and will have to show at that moment whether it backs Trump or not. We can say that if the recent past is any indication, we should not be very hopeful that this party will save American democracy.
*Editor’s note: The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
Last week we saw a preview of the horror movie that awaits America and the world when Donald Trump loses the Nov. 3 election — if we even have an election at all. First, the president claimed power that he does not have under the Constitution. "If someone is president of the United States, the authority is total," he asserted. "And that's the way it’s got to be."
Trump believed he could tell the governors what to do. It was not the first time he believed himself to be all powerful, and certainly not the first time he flouted the Constitution when it suited him. Although the governors forced the president to recognize that they decide when to reopen their economies, the president has not reversed his claim. It is impossible to look into his mind, but I am sure the idea of omnipotence is going to nestle itself in the brain of the self-proclaimed genius. You can bet it will reappear when the election ends in chaos, which is exactly what his administration hopes to achieve.
’Lock Her Up’
After Trump spoke, the pickup trucks arrived full of white men with automatic rifles and Confederate flags, supposedly protesting the restrictions imposed by the lockdowns. In reality, the show of power by Trump supporters and gun owners was simply a great opportunity to violate social distancing laws and to scold governors. Good clean fun. "Lock her up," they yelled at female Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. Like all strong women, she is a favorite target of the president. "Heil Whitmer,” was also a nice one. Confederate flags in northern states only have one message: racism.
Just as in 2017, when racists marched in Charlottesville, Trump once again saw many good people.
These martial law types, a few thousand per state, had been incited and financed by various conservative action groups and gun lobbyists. In Michigan, the right-wing DeVos family, which has a close connection to the Trump administration given that Betsy DeVos is the Secretary of Education, fanned the flames of the protest. "Don't take our civil liberties away!" they shouted, with their “Make America Great Again” baseball caps and a finger on the trigger of an M15. "Go to China!" they shouted at health care workers who lined up in front of the pickup trucks, like the Chinese who blocked tanks in Tiananmen Square in 1989.
The Mythical Coup
Trump saw reports about those people on local TV stations and recognized his supporters. ”LIBERATE!” he tweeted. However, the governors the protesters were targeting were simply following the advice of Trump’s own administration. For the record, Trump also lied about the threat to the Second Amendment in Virginia, a provision hich canonizes the right to bear arms.* Just as in 2017, when racist and anti-Semitic torchbearers marched in Charlottesville, Trump again saw many good people. His lap dog, Vice President Pence, had assured governors they would be treated with respect. He didn't even blink.
The protesters claimed the rally was about civil rights; they feel the government cannot infringe upon those rights. But these are the people who, should the mythical coup in the United States ever come to pass (one in six Americans are not opposed to it), would surrender their liberties with ease. But only if they can keep their guns. None of these people would throw themselves in front of a tank to maintain their political freedom.
Losing Is Not an Option
This is what will happen if Trump loses on Nov. 3. Provoked, aggressive men with automatic rifles will take to the streets. Confrontations with anti-fascist protesters will follow from place to place. The unrest will legitimize a state of emergency. The National Guard, activated by the federal government, will intervene. The president un-elect will tweet repeatedly as he questions the election results. Fox News will inform Trump supporters that they have been robbed of their victory. Trump will announce that he is refusing to leave, that he has actually won, and that millions of votes have been cast illegally.
Too dark a scenario? I dare you not to believe it. The past 3 1/2 years have shown that nothing is too crazy for Trump, and that his narcissism leads to policy decisions that revolve only around himself. All policy decisions in the coronavirus crisis were made with an eye toward the election. From denying COVID-19 in order to protect the stock market to undermining governors; from blaming China to the ban on immigration; everything is done with an eye toward Nov. 3. Losing is not an option.
You say the American political system will prevent that scenario? Then you trust the Republican Party, which has sold its soul to the devil and will have to show at that moment whether it backs Trump or not. We can say that if the recent past is any indication, we should not be very hopeful that this party will save American democracy.
*Editor’s note: The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides: “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
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