A Second Civil War?

Trump is not done. It seems obvious that he will do whatever it takes to retain the presidency. I mean there are no limits. There are rumors of another attack on the Capitol on January 17.

Keep your head in the sand and it will all work out

Is the United States of America on the verge of a second Civil War? Was the invasion of the Capitol the first act of that war?

A day before Capitol attack, pro-Trump crowd stormed meeting, threatened officials in rural California as reported in the Los Angeles Times. Dozens of people, unmasked, to vent their fury entered a Shasta County Board of Supervisors meeting.

“When Joe Biden’s long winter sets and the dark night comes in this country, do you think you’re going to get to see the dawn?” Timothy Fairfield, 44, of Shingletown asked the supervisors. “No, you will not. Flee now while you can. Because the days of your tyranny are drawing to a close, and the legitimacy of this government is waning. “When the ballot box is gone,” he added, “there is only the cartridge box. You have made bullets expensive. But luckily for you, ropes are reusable.”

The Washington Post reports “Police departments across the U.S. open probes into whether their own members took part in the Capitol riot.”

Concerns about more violent incidents appear to be well-founded. Calls for widespread protests on the days leading up to the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden have been rampant online for weeks. These demonstrations are scheduled to culminate with what organizers have dubbed a “Million Militia March” on Jan. 20 as Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala D. Harris are to be sworn in on the same Capitol grounds that rioters overran on Wednesday.

Is this the end of the American democracy? It appears millions of Americans are willing to follow the leadership of an autocrat.

A Chilling Attack on American Democracy

Thanks to Donald Trump’s attack on the election system of the United States, that each state operates independently, millions of Americans now believe the entire system is fraudulent.

President Trump speaking on Wednesday at a rally on the Ellipse near the White House. He urged supporters to march to the Capitol

The Republican effort to contest the presidential election results on the Senate floor this week is raising questions about how media outlets should cover the moment, and whether the Trump-supported action should be called an attempted “coup” writes Alexis Benveniste for CNN Business.

Both conservative news media and many conservative members of congress are appalled by what transpired on Capitol Hill on January 6.

Fearing what Trump might do next House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told her House colleagues today that she had spoken to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark A. Milley, about keeping an “unstable president” from accessing the nuclear codes.

The Wall Street Journal editorial board has joined the chorus of those in the media demanding Donald Trump resign as president. “This goes beyond merely refusing to concede defeat. In our view it crosses a constitutional line that Mr. Trump hasn’t previously crossed. It is impeachable,” the Journal wrote. “If Mr. Trump wants to avoid a second impeachment, his best path would be to take personal responsibility and resign.”

Time will tell whether the takeover of Capitol was a riot, a last gasp of a renegade president or an early skirmish in a civil war. But it already is clear that Jan. 6, 2021, will go down as one of the ugliest days in U.S. history.

What more could happen in the remaining days of the Donald Trump presidency? Trump hinted at his preferred answer at the end of his Thursday address, saying, “Our incredible journey is only just beginning.”

All 10 living former defense secretaries oppose military use by Trump to retain his office

This Time magazine cover was meant to be a joke. Donald Trump is serious about retaining power forever.

All 10 living former US defense secretaries — both Republicans and Democrats — wrote a Washington Post op-ed article urging President Donald Trump to refrain from using the military to interfere in the 2020 election.

The signatories stressed that involving the military in election disputes could result in criminal charges.

Trump has repeatedly suggested there may not be a peaceful transfer of power and is said to have entertained suggestions that the military step in to help him dispute the election.

The article, titled “Involving the military in election disputes would cross into dangerous territory,” was signed by all 10 living former US defense secretaries, including two — Mark Esper and James Mattis — who served under President Donald Trump.

The other signees were Leon Panetta, Chuck Hagel, and Ashton Carter, who served under Barack Obama; Robert Gates, who served under Obama and George W. Bush; William Cohen and William Perry, who served under Bill Clinton; Dick Cheney, who served under George H.W. Bush; and Donald Rumsfeld, who served first under Gerald Ford in 1975 and was later tapped for the role under George W. Bush.

“American elections and the peaceful transfers of power that result are hallmarks of our democracy,” they wrote in The Post, adding that the administration should “refrain from any political actions that undermine the results of the election or hinder the success of the new team.”

“The time for questioning the results has passed; the time for the formal counting of the electoral college votes, as prescribed in the Constitution and statute, has arrived,” the letter continued.

General Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was asked by Congress what, if any, role the military should have in the election. “I believe deeply in the principle of an apolitical US military,” Milley said. “In the event of a dispute over some aspect of the elections, by law, US courts and the US Congress are required to resolve any disputes, not the US military. I foresee no role for the US armed forces in this process.”

It appears Donald Trump will not accept that advice. He is more likely to refuse to physically resist leaving the White House. Who will escort him out?

A Sad Ending to the Trump Presidency

Knowing that his presidency will end on January 20, I would have expected Donald Trump to crow about his accomplishments. There are many things that are positive accomplishments that he can point to and they ought to pointed out to historians and others who criticized his administration.

The most important was brining a covid-19 vaccine into use in less than one year. Of course it was the scientists who found the medication but it was Mr. Trump who provided the funding to make it happen. Strangely he was not to be seen as the first vaccination were given at George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C.

Trump has battled the military in his desire to bring our troops home from Afghanistan. That never ending war has resulted in 2,372 U.S. military deaths and 20,320 American servicemembers have also been wounded in action during the war.

Previous administrations have not confronted China’s theft of our technology and they have taken thousands of American jobs. The tariffs Trump imposed on China was good first step in supporting America’s manufacturing sector.

Rocket Man has come to understand that the United States will take military action if necessary to counter North Korea’s nuclear weapons development.

Improved relations between Israel and it Muslim neighbors has reduced the chance of war in the Middle East was all brought about by negotiations prompted by the United States.

If it has not been for the virus the unemployment rate would still be at 3.5%. His adjustment to tax rates has been a boon to business and has raised the Dow Jones and S&P 500 to its highest value in history,

If I was Donald Trump I would be advertising all of his administrations accomplishments. Sadly, instead, he has chosen to try to overturn America’s greatest gift to the world. Democracy. So his effort to destroy America’s democracy will likely be his legacy.

Is Secession a Solution?

Is it time to split the United States apart?

Rush Limbaugh, conservative bigot and Medal of Freedom recipient, dropped a little bomb on his listeners the other day.

Bemoaning the fact that Republicans have not only lost the presidency but the culture wars as well, he said, “I actually think that we’re trending toward secession. I see more and more people asking what in the world do we have in common with the people who live in, say, New York? … There cannot be a peaceful coexistence of two completely different theories of life, theories of government, theories of how we manage our affairs. We can’t be in this dire a conflict without something giving somewhere along the way.”

I have been asking the same question that Limbaugh is asking for years. What in the world do Angelinos have in common with the people who live in places like Kansas or Oklahoma? I live in Los Angeles and have more in common with the people in San Francisco and NYC. Wheat fields and corn fields are important but my concerns are totally different then farmers. Farmers and ranchers aren’t concerned with homelessness and sufficient wages to pay the rent.

From abortion rights, to LGBTQ rights, to use of the death penalty, to gun ownership rights, Blue and Red states hold diametrically opposite views.

As to the Civil War, Lincoln may have kept the country together but at what price? Did the North really win? Southerners still resent the Yankees (Northerners). Jefferson Davis’ birthday is a state holiday in Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. The Confederate battle flag is still flown in Southern states.

California’s relationship with the federal government has been a non-stop battle on issues from immigration to air pollution.

States like Wyoming and the Dakotas with populations less than the San Fernando Valley have an equal voice in the Senate with the 40 million population California. People in Idaho, western Washington state, and parts of California and Oregon have dreams of a new state with laws that would conform with their social values.

So yes, there are so many things dividing us and that this really is the Un-United States of America. Splitting this nation apart doesn’t seem like a bad idea.

Impact of Legal Immigration on the United States

President Donald Trump has slowed immigration to the United States to a trickle.

As reported in Forbes magazine. Legal Immigration Cut in Half, Most Categories Blocked: By 2021, Donald Trump will have reduced legal immigration by 49% since becoming president – without any change in U.S. immigration law, according to a National Foundation for American Policy analysis. An April presidential proclamation blocked the entry of legal immigrants to the United States in almost all categories.

Reducing legal immigration most harms refugees, employers and Americans who want to live with their spouses, parents or children, but it also affects the country’s future labor force and economic growth: “Average annual labor force growth, a key component of the nation’s economic growth, will be approximately 59% lower as a result of the administration’s immigration policies, if the policies continue,” according to the National Foundation for American Policy.

Who are some of the immigrants that have made America a success?

Dr. Ugur Sahin and his company, BioNTech, were little known outside the small world of European biotechnology start-ups. BioNTech, which Dr. Sahin founded with his wife, Dr. Özlem Türeci, was mostly focused on cancer treatments. It had never brought a product to market. Dr. Sahin, 55, was born in Iskenderun, Turkey. They along with Albert Bourla, the Greek chief executive of Pfizer brought America a COVID-19 vaccine.

Hamdi Ulukaya – CEO of the Chobani Greek Yoghurt Empire. He is a Turkish billionaire, philantropist and activist of Kurdish ancestry based in the United States.

Sergey Brin – Founder of Google, Inventor and Engineer. Co-founder of Google with Larry Page was born in Moscow, Soviet Union.

Levi Strauss – Creator of Levis Jeans was a German-born, Jewish American businessman, who founded the first company to manufacture blue jeans. His firm of Levi Strauss & Co. began in 1853 in San Francisco, California.

Arianna Huffington – Co-Founder and Editor in Chief at Huffington Post ) is a Greek-American author, syndicated columnist, and businesswoman. She is a co-founder of The Huffington Post, the founder and CEO of Thrive Global, and the author of fifteen books.

David Ho – AIDS Researcher. Ho’s work caused the introduction of the use of a “cocktail” of drugs, including protease inhibitors, to retard the advance of the virus upon the detection of HIV in the patient. David’s discoveries have raised hope that one day the AIDS virus will be eliminated altogether. He was chosen by Time Magazine as its 1996 “Man of the Year” for his discoveries.

Joseph Pulitzer – Journalist and Publisher. Born in Hungary, Joseph Pulitzer emigrated to America in 1864 where he would become the most powerful journalist of his time. He established the Pulitzer Prizes, which recognize excellence and achievement in journalism, literature and the arts. The Pulitzer Prizes are still highly revered today.

Patrick Soon-Shiong is a South African-American, born in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, transplant surgeon, billionaire businessman, bioscientist, and media proprietor. He is the inventor of the drug Abraxane, which became known for its efficacy against lung, breast, and pancreatic cancer. Los Angeles Times owner.

President Joe Biden can reverse the impact of Trump’s actions. Will he?