Resisting Autocracy: The Boston Globe Sees “A treasure map for an American tyrant”

@ASoulAFire @JaniceOCG To #DefendDemocracy & resist autocracy requires a plan and @BostonGlobe has some ideas to help us on the path of ensuring we never have another president like “the Former Guy.”  Join Thursdays, 8 pm ET, from 1/13/22, “If America Fails?:  The Coming Tyranny.”

“Donald Trump exposed the weaknesses in our system of government that could now be exploited by a corrupt leader with control of the White House.”

WHAT FORMS of resistance do you see in the country today?  What are some things you think we should/could be doing to resist our own March to Gilead?  The Boston Globe has some ideas and the Editors wrote a six-part series to help us on the path of ensuring we never have another president like “the Former Guy.”  Part 1–“A treasure map for an American tyrant” of “Future-Proofing the Presidency,” is linked below.  It offers an overview of recent presidential abuses like the lack of transparency around personal and business financial interests, debts and conflicts of interest; profiting from government service; perverting justice; and fomenting insurrection.  — LMO

“Donald Trump exposed the weaknesses in our system of government that could now be exploited by a corrupt leader with control of the White House. In this series, the Globe editorial board outlines the urgent reforms needed to prevent the rise of an American tyrant — and to protect our democracy for posterity…

“Presidents in a democratic system of government are not meant to be able to extract personal profits from government service — or hand out pardons to imprisoned buddies, pervert justice, or foment an insurrection.  That’s the promise of democracy: that it will be superior to these authoritarian tendencies of tyrants and kings…

“Congress and the current president must act fast and impose more durable legal guardrails on the commander in chief…by making an example of Trump and holding him accountable, the country can protect itself against future —and potentially far more devastating — presidential corruption and misconduct.”

“…while Trump himself has been sitting in Mar-a-Lago brooding over his loss to Joe Biden, all the weaknesses in our legal and constitutional system that he exploited remain, waiting for a future presidential miscreant to take advantage of them — maybe even for Trump himself, if he is reelected in 2024.  That’s why Congress and the current president must act fast and impose more durable legal guardrails on the commander in chief. By passing stronger anti-corruption laws, strengthening existing norms and creating new ones, and deterring future presidents from abusing their power by making an example of Trump and holding him accountable, the country can protect itself against future —and potentially far more devastating — presidential corruption and misconduct. The nation can, and must, prevent the rise of an American tyrant…

“The last four years underscored just how corruptible the presidency is. Whether dealing with issues of foreign policy, the economy, or race, Trump’s self-interest was his administration’s north star. His tax cuts served him. His attorney general acted as if he were the president’s personal attorney. And he failed to protect the nation from an attack led by his sympathizers… there was an expectation of officials to not talk about white nationalism when sending intelligence up the chain to the president…

“. . . impeachment — has turned out to be a blunt and, in modern times, ineffective weapon.”

“…Congress is supposed to be the main check on the presidency and, in theory, it still could be. But its primary instrument for curbing the presidency — impeachment — has turned out to be a blunt and, in modern times, ineffective weapon. The Trump years demonstrated that too: Twice impeached for clear violations of the public trust, Trump was twice acquitted by senators in his own party.

“. . .democracies don’t die suddenly; they’re poisoned by strongmen who systematically chip away at checks on their power. . .Even with Trump out of office, American democracy is becoming weaker as long as his deeds go unpunished and the system is unchanged. . .”

“The failure of the existing accountability system in the Constitution not only enabled Trump to act on his worst impulses. It also may very well have made his presidency a prelude to something much worse. Because democracies don’t die suddenly; they’re poisoned by strongmen who systematically chip away at checks on their power, just as Recep Tayyip Erdogan has done in Turkey, Narendra Modi in India, or Viktor Orbán in Hungary. Even with Trump out of office, American democracy is becoming weaker as long as his deeds go unpunished and the system is unchanged…

“The American Constitution, as designed by the original Framers, proved to be an incredibly powerful document. But the Framers’ vision was not the sole reason the Constitution was able to sustain a democracy for over 200 years. Waves of American visionaries fought and sacrificed their lives to improve the Constitution and expand American democracy, as was done, for example, with the 13th and 14th, and 19th Amendments. As has always been the case in American history, a strong and resilient democracy requires an active and engaged citizenry, one that is willing to constantly work to improve what they already have. The United States is in desperate need of that kind of commitment and work today.”  — The Editorial Board, The Boston Globe

“. . .a strong and resilient democracy requires an active and engaged citizenry. . .”

READ | Part 1 – A treasure map for an American tyrant:  “Future-Proofing the Presidency” | The Editorial Board, The Boston Globe, June, 2021 | 6/1/2021