Making sense of the Battle of Lafayette Square

With the St. John’s Church affair, the presidency of Donald Trump might finally have crossed over from serious to comedy were the subject matter not so important and central to Americans.

The president ordering National Guard troops to use chemical spray on protesters to clear the way so that he could have his picture taken waving a Bible in front of the church like a Gospel tent preacher would be rich comic material if he were not president of the United States.

There was a positive element, in my view, to what happened. The American military became so fed up with what he had it doing, or threatened to have it doing, that it has had enough of him.

The fear that, in the event of his defeat, Mr. Trump would declare the November election fraudulent and ask the American military to intervene to keep him in power was almost definitively dispelled in the wake of the churchyard affair. Senior officers — some retired, some active — have expressed quite freely their disgust at ordering the military to intervene in domestic affairs.

I do not detect any preference among military officials for former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee. But what the military really does not want is to become divorced from the American people, whose support is essential during any real international military encounter. The so-called

Battle of Lafayette Square is an embarrassment to all military personnel, from the generals and admirals to the foot soldiers.

But let us look at a few people who emerged as important or heroic figures after this whole debacle.

I count, first of all, George Floyd. His horrible death has proved not to be in vain. It is heartbreaking that Floyd had his life taken, snuffed out in an act of disturbing injustice, but he has still managed to “touch the world,” just as he had hoped.

Second, I’d name Muriel Bowser, the mayor of Washington, D.C. Ms. Bowser did an admirable job defending her city against potential occupiers and outside forces interested in doing more harm than good.

Third, I put Episcopal Archbishop of Washington Mariann Edgar Budde, who objected eloquently to Mr. Trump’s use of one of the churches in her domain as a prop for a shoddy made-for-TV photo-op.

People like Floyd, Ms. Bowser and Bishop Budde — admirable people with just hearts and righteous spirits — have convinced me that the country will survive this turbulent moment. A quick look at history can provide some encouragement, as well.

In 1864, in the middle of the Civil War, the country faced a contentious election between incumbent Abraham Lincoln and Gen. George McClellan. In spite of draft riots, high battlefield casualty rates and a country divided more than we can even imagine now, the elections took place. Lincoln won. The Army didn’t intervene.