Agent of Chaos

 The funny thing is, Trump is trampling all over his own feet.  Remember this, from just last night?

Next thing we know, a legal advisor to the Trump campaign tells a reporter that this extremely unlikely event WILL happen because the states will line up and do what Trump wants (overturn the will of the people).

The Trump campaign wants this in the headlines.

3/ pic.twitter.com/pUAAMXpzhj

— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) September 23, 2020

This morning even NPR spent 10 minutes (an eternity on radio!) talking about what Trump said about not respecting the tradition of a peaceful transfer of power (I'm old enough to remember when NPR would spend 30 minutes or an hour on a story.  Now they can't because they have to run entertainment stories or people telling family members charming tales about themselves for the national archives or something.  Don't get me started, I'm a curmodgeon now.).  Why aren't we talking about what the Trump campaign wants in the headlines?  Because Trump stepped all over it so soundly even the GOP has to make noises of support for the Constitution:

As we have done for over two centuries we will have a legitimate & fair election

It may take longer than usual to know the outcome,but it will be a valid one

And at noon on Jan 20,2021 we will peacefully swear in the President

— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) September 24, 2020

“The President says crazy stuff. We've always had a peaceful transition of power. It's not going to change," said Sen. Ben Sasse, per @jeremyherb

— Manu Raju (@mkraju) September 24, 2020

Lindsey Graham: "People wonder about the peaceful transfer of power. I can assure you it will be peaceful. Now we may have litigation about who won the election, but the court will decide, and if Republicans lose, we'll accept that result. But we need a full court." pic.twitter.com/mVBGtMXiBF

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 24, 2020

Yeah, I'm not real impressed, either.  But nobody's talking about Trump's legal challenges, they're talking about Trump's craziness and (implicitly, at least) how unfit for office he is.

I'll take it.

There is a "tactic" here; but it's not working.

Trump's tactic is to keep us spinning and sputtering with rage so we can't remember what happened yesterday or imagine a different tomorrow.

Remember in the spring, when Trump and the GOP tried so hard to steal the election in Wisconsin?

They lost. See⤵️https://t.co/2T3ecKgvoO

— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) September 24, 2020

We would do well to keep that in mind. And also remember that while chaos works well in movies where a writer can script the story around a Joker or a Loki, chaos tends to engulf the agent of chaos as well. Trump's money and relative lack of importance in the world has shielded him from that, by and large (what his ego and narcissism didn't shield him from), but those days are over.

Look. I don't doubt that Trump will do anything he can to steal this election. He'll lie, cheat, and even let 200K people die. He'll make trouble.

But he's not all-powerful.

He doesn't control state elections.

That's why the GOP lost the midterms and elections since.

— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) September 24, 2020

I want to reiterate this, too, because The Atlantic article hinges on a scenario in which Pennsylvania throws out the vote results and appoints GOP electors because a GOP legislature and the Constitution. But then there's the little matter of PA law:

Also, from Harvard-educated lawyer @NastyOldWomyn:

In PA, the GOP controlled legislature can’t appoint its own electors without amending the PA electoral code, which Dem Gov Wolf would veto, & the GOP lacks sufficient votes to overcome his veto. Same in MI & WI.

Facts matter.

— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) September 24, 2020

Basically, these are not the droids you are looking for. And rather than run in circles scream and shout, learn a little history maybe?

Worried about the election? Then get busy⤵️

Before the modern Civil Rights movement, what we now call voter suppression was legal.

Things we've taken for granted are now in danger.

Nobody owes us a democracy. If we want it, we have to work for it.https://t.co/Er6v4syFQS

— Teri Kanefield (@Teri_Kanefield) August 29, 2020

The Voting Rights Act was passed in 1965. I was 10 years old. We've only been at this 55 years, not since the end of the Civil War or something (despite the fact that's when the 15th Amendment was passed). And the Roberts court gutted the VRA, a statute passed to enact the provisions of the 15th amendment. That's grounds enough, IMHO, to increase the size of the court. I know, I know, that's another argument for another day. But I'm far less enamored of institutionalism than I am of justice, and we don't get justice by ignoring reality. That, in fact, is how we protect and enshrine injustice.

Nobody owes us justice, either.  It's popular now to say we have to fight (militarily is always implied) for "freedom."  It's an idea antithetical to the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution (we keep our freedom by controlling our government, not by fighting wars), but what good is freedom without justice?  Freedom we can guarantee; justice is a constant struggle.

Keep struggling.