Where to start… my, that is a tough one.  Let’s try starting with the fact that there are, at least, two United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) justices who should not even be hearing this presidential immunity argument; they should have recused themselves.  Surely that great new ethics code that the SCOTUS just put together to apply to themselves so that they will be just like all the other courts in the country should have come in handy here.

Meaning, that since these two justices refused to recuse themselves from hearing this argument, Chief Justice John Roberts should have used that brand new shiny ethics code to force them to recuse.  Surely threatening them with that baby would have caused them to recuse!  Oh yeah – I forgot; it doesn’t have any teeth.  It reads more like a surprise grab-bag of suggestions rather than a meaningful ethics code with consequences if any justice should not take their responsibility to recuse seriously.

Yeah, I think that is a good place to start because all the SCOTUS justices heard this presidential immunity argument, which – by the way, they will not decide on until June if they follow their current schedule.  Ethics be damned, right?!  It appears that, under the leadership of Chief Justice John Roberts and with a conservative supermajority, this court feels that the Republican conservative agenda takes precedence over all; including the American democracy.

And, based on the way that things played out during the hearing, it also appears that those justices appointed by Donald J. Trump, the former The Donald J. Trump of the United States of America, along with the two justices that should have recused are all-in for helping Trump in any legal way that they possibly can.  One would think that these justices would have at least some concern about being fair and the appearance of being unfair.  And if not that, they would be concerned about their legacy and how their children and grandchildren will view them and remember them as a result of them taking part in disrespecting and then destroying this great American institution.  Well, they do not.

Lamentation.  Ah, the Supreme Court of the United States; this great institution that is the highest court in the land.  This institution that was once awe-inspiring for all Americans is now looked upon by many Americans in the same way that they look upon any other political institution that is subject to partisan bias.  The only real difference in their minds is that it is occupied by politicians in long black robes.  These feelings are reflected in the polls; the SCOTUS is at nearly its lowest level in its history when measured by how it is viewed by the American public.

This Supreme Court – again, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, seems to be oblivious to the damage that they are doing to it.  Chief Justice Roberts either can’t or is reluctant to correct its course to save it.  Based on the questions that the SCOTUS conservative justices asked during argument and their unrelenting determination to focus on hypotheticals to prevent future occurrences like that which occurred on January 6, 2021 rather than focusing on what actually happened on January 6, 2021, they are continuing to lean toward helping Trump to avoid being held to account.  The statement by Justice Neil Gorsuch that “we are writing a rule for the ages” is not a rule that is being written for the benefit of all presidents; it is being written for the benefit of Donal J. Trump, the former The Donald J. Trump of the United States of America.

It seems that instead of embracing the once awe-inspiring aspect of the SCOTUS, too many SCOTUS justices have chosen to embrace Trump and the conservative Republican agenda instead.  These justices have no qualms about their partisan bias and now, they are no longer pretending that they do.  They are no longer hiding it regardless of what the American people think about the SCOTUS and regularly express when they are polled on their thoughts about this once awe-inspiring institution.  After all, their jobs are secured by a lifetime appointment.  And under these circumstances, coming out must be truly liberating for them and not at all frightening.

The expression that everything that Trump touches turns to s**t must apply to all politicians whether they wear suits or long black robes.  That certainly does appear to be the case for the SCOTUS since it entered Trump’s orbit.  To be fair, the SCOTUS was already doing a slow burn downward spiral; Trump just did what comes naturally to him, he poured fuel on the fire.  And now, all Americans must face the facts and recognize that as James Carville said, nobody is coming to rescue us, we have to do it ourselves.

And there are those; lawyers and political activists, who are already fighting behind the scenes to block or reverse the blockades – whether they are laws, gerrymandering, or intimidation tactics – that Republicans are putting forward in their effort to make it harder for Americans to vote.  But if democracy is to survive this well-organized and well-funded onslaught that Republicans are perpetrating against the American people to establish and entrench minority rule, America needs all boots on the ground.  This means that the American people who value the American democracy must turn out in force and vote in the 2024 election.

Americans must prepare ourselves for all adversity that we will surely face in November 2024 as we head to the polls and remain steadfast in our determination that nothing will stop us from making our collective voice heard via our vote.  All of those who are involved in orchestrating these undemocratic things to take away our power through thwarting our collective voice must be made to realize that they will not succeed; they are already destined to lose.  America can do this!  We are a resilient people who are at our best when we are under pressure and need to pull together as one.

So always remember, whether you are a Democrat, Republican or Independent, your vote is the most important one of all… unless you don’t use it!

Eulus Dennis – author, M2: Street Cop To Top Cop; Operation Rubik’s Cube and Living Between The Line

Finally!  Teflon Don will be held to account!  This does not necessarily mean that he will be found guilty of anything; as a matter of fact, he might be exonerated and the judge will tell him that he is free to go.  But regardless of whether he is found innocent or guilty of the charges that arose out of his alleged sexual relationship with porn star Stormy Daniels, he will have been held to account.  I can’t recall a single time that Donald J. Trump has been held accountable for anything that he has done.  That is the problem!  And that is also why he dared America to even try to hold him to account for any of the 91 counts and four cases that he is currently facing.  Obviously, his challenge has finally been accepted.

You see, it does not matter what you, I, or anyone else might think about Donald Trump or what we believe that he has done but it will matter what the 12 jurors in his Hush Money trial believe.  It matters what these Jurors believe because not only will they have the opportunity to hear testimony from witnesses who are under oath but they will also have access to all the corroborating evidence that supports the testimony of these witnesses.  Corroborating evidence can go either way; it can go toward supporting Trump’s innocence or his guilt.  Most important of all, these 12 jurors’ decision will carry weight.  Once they decide Trump’s innocence or guilt – unlike what you or I or anyone else might think, to no avail, about Trump and what we think that he has done and should be punished for; the presiding judge will use these jurors’ collective belief of Trump’s innocence or guilt to set him free or punish him.

Trump has been under a gag order leading up to and during this trial.  However, just like he has done before, he has boldly said things that either violate this gag order or tread extremely close to violating it.  The judge will soon determine which of these things is true.  If it is the former, it is reasonable to believe that the judge will punish him for it.  It is doubtful that this punishment will involve jail time but that is among the available options to the judge.  After the opening statements of the trial today, Trump continued his antics and did not appear concerned about the gag order or any less inclined to test the judges resolve.  The trial will continue tomorrow beginning with a hearing on the previously mentioned gag order.

Judge Juan Merchan has already admonished Trump’s lawyers to control their client after Trump looked toward the jury and angrily mumbled some things under his breath.  Two jurors that had already been selected later requested to be excused; one because she felt intimidated and the other because he said that he could not be fair.  Judge Merchan has also instructed Trump directly to sit down when he stood up and proceeded to leave before court was formally ended for the day.  Despite all of this, Donald Trump continues to conduct himself as he always has.  He appears to have no respect for the judge or jury and this does not bode well for him with either one.  It remains likely that Trump will continue to be Trump throughout this trial.  But if he is found guilty, maybe things will change.  We just must wait and see.

Eulus Dennis – author, M2: Street Cop To Top Cop, Operation Rubik’s Cube and Living Between The Line

Is the not so Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and other federal courts helping the former The Donald J. Trump of the United States of America to avoid being held to account for the crimes that he allegedly committed?  If they are not, it certainly appears that they are.  The SCOTUS, led by Chief Jus…

Amid writing the first paragraph of this article it struck me that I was once again writing an article that served to vent my personal frustrations about the SCOTUS and complain about those who are aiding want-to-be dictator Trump while, instead, I should be striving to explain to readers why they should not support Trump; why they should not give him their vote.

As I reflected on these thoughts it became clear to me that as dangerous and precarious as the situation with Donald J. Trump is and as close as he is to being elected to another term as president, my focus should be on doing everything that I can to alert others to the blatant, existential threat that he poses to our democracy!  And that I should be working to convince them to fight against his serving again as president.

Therefore, I decided to immediately change course and give it my best effort to explain America’s Trump ignominy to those readers, for lack of a better expression, at their level.  I will quickly add that by “at their level” I simply mean from the perspective of those reading this article.  While I admit that I can only surmise what their perspective is, I am certain that most Americans are not political geeks like me.  Many Americans do not like politics, find it a divisive topic when interacting with family and friends, so eschew it completely.

What I offer in my attempt to explain why Donald J. Trump neither deserves your support nor your vote to those who are not political geeks or do not even follow politics closely is simple.  Do you want democracy or autocracy?  It would be easy for me to simply say that, if you think about it, you should want democracy because, by experience, you know that democracy is wonderful and from what you surely know about autocracy and autocratic countries, autocracy sucks.  But if I do that, it would not explain to you from a kitchen table perspective why a democracy benefits you so much more than would an autocracy.  So, please, take some time to think about this democracy or autocracy question during the time leading up to the November 2024 election and especially before you cast your vote.

My effort to explain things to readers from a kitchen table perspective consists of the following questions followed by rationale as to why you are better off living under a democracy.  Women, do you want to exercise control over your own body?  Men and women, do you want access to reasonable healthcare for yourselves and your children?  Do you like having Medicare and Medicaid benefits available to your elderly loved ones and friends and would like to have these benefits available to you once you become eligible to receive them?  Would you like to have Social Security available to you when the time comes?  Do you like having a minimum wage law?  Do you like having input on all these things that I just mentioned and more, and the ability to have civil discourse and even protests if you disagree with them?

All these things and more are things that you have a right to when living under a democracy.  They are not available to you under an autocracy.  Under a dictator or strongman, you might have faux rights.  In other words, you have a right to them if they are in line with the current dictator’s or strongman’s policies to which you had zero input.  Donald J. Trump has shown all Americans who he really is and it is imperative that we believe him.  He wants to be a dictator and he has said so publicly.

That is why it is extremely important that those who are supporting Trump and intend to vote for him must take a step back, take a deep breath and thoroughly examine why you support him and intend to vote for him.  Is it because you truly believe that he did the right thing when he held office before, rightfully resisted – beyond his legal remedies – leaving office after he lost the election, and then – ever since he left, has tried to destroy many of America’s institutions?  Is it because you truly believe that he is doing the right thing now and deserves another chance to lead America as her Commander-in-Chief?  Or, is it due to some nefarious reason conjured up by Trump, which is fueled by a flaw he has discovered in you and is exploiting for his own political purposes?

I am fully aware that there are many Republicans who may read this article or hear about it who, knowing that I am a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat, will be tempted to reject its content out-of-hand.  I implore you not to do this!  Instead, check to see what many of your well-respected conservative elected leaders are saying about Donald J. Trump and how he is an existential threat to democracy.  A threat to the very democracy that guarantees you all of the previously mentioned rights and more.  Further, do not just listen to what those leaders are saying but do further research of your own and bring yourselves up to speed on Donald Trump and as much of the information as possible about his efforts to become president again.

I know that most Republicans disagree with Democrats, and by association that includes me, on policies and how America should move forward.  But I believe that all of us agree that America should remain a democracy.  And if, together, we have the good fortune of keeping her a democracy when all votes have been counted for the 2024 presidential election, we can celebrate that bipartisan accomplishment together.  After that, we can get back to fighting things out through civil discourse to resolve our differences.  On the other hand, if Trump wins and once again becomes president…

So always remember, whether you are a Democrat, Republican, or Independent, your vote is the most important one of all…unless you don’t use it!

Eulus Dennis – author, M2: Street Cop To Top Cop, Operation Rubik’s Cube, and Living Between The Line