The actions of the ‘Law and Order’ candidate

Watching President Trump whipping up violence among his supporters and further dividing and polarizing Americans to gain political advantage under the slogan of “Law and Order,” I cannot help but remember the awful year 1968, when severe political and racial unrest and student protests against the Vietnam War, ultimately resulted in the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, triggering a nationwide eruption of rioting and violence the likes of which this country had or has since, never seen.

This is now the risk of Trump’s rhetoric and actions, a risk he won’t be able to ultimately control. It certainly is not leadership, but utterly irresponsible partisanship. The events of 1968 ultimately gave rise to the deep darkness of the Nixon presidency and its “Law and Order” sloganeering, corruption and resignation in 1974, under certain threat of impeachment and removal from office.

“Law and Order” is the last refuge of scoundrels. The emphasis is clearly on the “Order” part, and the explicit threat of state violence (as well as white supremacist militia violence) against citizens exercising their First Amendment rights to protest economic and social injustice, exclusion and racially targeted police brutality. However, surely Republicans do not believe in the “Law” part, judging from the persistent lawlessness of the Trump administration, attacks against the Constitution and its key institutions, and the presidential pardons of convicted criminals who are part of his sycophantic entourage, in exchange for their loyalty in not testifying against him.

Robert Brauning, Fort Lauderdale