Enough Of Trump’s Macabre Dance

Since Joe Biden was declared victorious in the United  States of America’s presidential election on
November 7, 2020, the country has been entrapped in crisis with no functional president. President Donald Trump appears to be on AWOL, letting America to auto pilot to January 20, when Biden will assume office. His profound loss at the polls is driving the US hard into the precipice which has shaken the foundation of the world’s greatest country.
The American president was perhaps farsighted, though for the wrong objectives. Before the elections, he anticipated a fictitious electoral fraud scheme to set the stage for a prolonged legal battle in event of his loss. He did so mainly to suggest arrogantly that his political defeat could only be attributed to massive electoral fraud. In other words, he believed that he could not lose to anyone, certainly not Biden whom he considered an ignoble opposition.
Put in an irreparable depressive and psychotic state by his loss, Trump’s erroneous sense of political gallantry has moved him to the horizon and taken America to the ridge. The idea has caused a powerful riptide that is threatening America’s democracy. As a political commentator put it, “Trump has become the greatest threat to America’s democracy.”
That depiction is unremarkably earmarked for known incurable enemies like Russia, communist China, Iran and North Korea. It is deeply problematic when the threat is not a nation-state, but the president of the United States who has the means at his disposal with the singular interest of reversing the will of the people. This danger has led to a whack of baseless lawsuits to overturn the votes of Americans.
Trump had proceeded to pursue the illusion of an electoral victory,  as he continued to press the Justice Department to discredit the election. His Attorney General, William Barr, honourably resigned but Trump was not finished. A record 62 legal challenges were instituted in less than 60 days, questioning the integrity of the election. But America’s democracy proved sturdy even as the Supreme Court judges appointed by the president sided with the constitution.
What appears to be a finality of his shockingly repellent dance is the unprecedented violence his supporters (prompted by him) wreaked on the US Capitol on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, spurring a wave of global criticisms. Lovers of democracy and liberty watched in horror as his misguided proponents invaded the US Capitol in a bid to stop the certification of the Electoral College vote affirming the results of the 2020 presidential election.
The US, revered as the bastion of democracy, was twitched to its foundation as rioters danced to the tune of a rabble-rouser notorious for advancing lies, hatred and primordial sentiments. In the aftermath, five persons died, while several others were injured in the entirely avoidable violence. Three improvised explosive devices were reportedly found: one on Capitol grounds, and one each at the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee offices.
Trump is one with controversy. His entire campaign was actuated by racial pronouncements and disharmony reminiscent of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany. He encouraged propaganda and described any information that was not favourable to him as “fake.” Also, he debased the Paris Climate Agreement after naming climate change a farce. The number one American citizen became so desperate for power demonstrated in his vicious posts on the social media that Twitter, Facebook and Instagram blocked him for his excesses.
Basking in his segregative tendencies, he executed a systemic travel ban on Muslims from other nations and adored authoritarian leaders like Vladimir Putin of Russia. Trump went dangerously far to halt the funding of the World Health Organisation (WHO), placed a travel ban on officials of the International Criminal Court (ICC) investigating American troops for possible war crimes and isolated the US from its long-standing allies.
All through his campaigns, the American president de-emphasised the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and encouraged his supporters to attend large gatherings in violation of the COVID-19 guidelines as the death rate continued to soar, killing over 360,000 Americans. No wonder, he suffered an overwhelming defeat in the hands of Democratic Party supporters who exploited the early voting and mail-in ballot system.
In a last round of desperation, Trump publicly nudged his Vice-President, Mike Pence, to repudiate the Electoral College polls. Pence is the ceremonial President of the Senate, who was tasked with the job of ratifying the Electoral College votes at the joint congress. The vice-president had hitherto been loyal to his crooked principal, but finally exhibited bravery when it mattered most by siding with the people.
History has it that empires can grind more easily from internal shortcomings than external forces. That is the case with the US. The inability of the haughty Presidency of Trump to humiliate America is evidence that strong institutions are the assay-mark of stable democracies. Democracies are bolstered by the continuous emergence of statesmen, not powerful men, hence, the significance of electing the right leaders.
Shamefully, the Republican Party exacerbated matters as it clearly supported Trump’s contorted narrative for political survival. It betrayed public trust. The party, known for producing great statesmen like Abraham Lincoln, deviated from its core values to welcome Trump’s unlawful acts in order to retain power. Apart from Senators John McCain (late) and Mitt Romney who candidly differed with the ogre, most continued to condone his malfeasances. This party must be jointly held liable for Trump’s onslaught on democracy.
The US must reinvent its democratic values and ideals and bring to justice Trump and his allies. His recent declaration to be committed to a smooth transition, regardless. Though no US President has ever been tried, including Richard Nixon, indicted for the Watergate Scandal, the country must lead by example by prosecuting presidents who breached their oath of office in the same way Israel and Brazil did. This will deter future American presidents who may choose a similar path. America cannot punish foreign leaders who compromise elections and look the other way when it happens on its soil.