It’s simple — President Trump has committed treason
President Donald Trump broke any number of laws and norms during his ruinous fouryear reign. He just added one more on the way out: treason
He lost the House in 2018. He lost the presidency in November. He lost the Senate on Tuesday. And on Wednesday, with nothing left to lose, he rallied a violent mob to attack the U.S. Capitol in hopes of pressuring lawmakers to toss out the election results, ignore the will of the people, and install him as president for another term.
Trump fomented a deadly insurrection against the U.S. Congress to prevent a duly-elected president from taking office. Treason is not a word to be used lightly, but that is its textbook definition.
“We will not take it anymore, and that’s what this is all about,” he told a sea of MAGA fans and Proud Boys on the Ellipse outside the White House at noon. From with CYA instructions to make behind bulletproof glass, he told themselves heard “peacefully and them: “If you don’t fight like hell, patriotically.” you’re not going to have a counWink, wink. try anymore.” “We’re going to the Capitol,” he
Earlier, Trump ally Rudy Gitold the mob. uliani had proposed,. to the same With that, Trump snuck back crowd, a “trial by combat” to reinto the safety of the White solve Trump’s election comHouse fortress. And the riot was plaints. on.“And a political Donald threat Trump to Jr. lawViolence is always unacceptdelivered makers who don’t vote to reject able,” tut-tutted Sen. Ted Cruz of the election results: “We’re comTexas, who along with Josh Hawing for you.” ley of Missouri was leading the
The elder Trump worked the effort in the Senate to nullify the crowd into a frenzy with his election results. Just moments beclaim that victory had been stofore the MAGA mob burst into len from him by “explosions of the chamber, Cruz gave a speech bullshit.” saying “democracy is in crisis” be
“Bullshit! Bullshit!” the mob cause many Americans think the chanted. election was “rigged” — in large
Trump instructed his supportpart because Cruz et al. kept tellers to march to the Capitol — ing them so.
“and I’ll be there with you” — to As Trump’s goons began tak“demand that Congress do the ing over the Capitol, Sen. Mitt right thing” and not count the Romney, R-Utah, who had called electoral votes of swing states he the attempt to set aside the eleclost. “You’ll never take back our toral college tally an “egregious country with weakness, you have ploy,” yelled at Cruz and his coto show strength and you have to conspirators: “This is what you’ve be strong,” he admonished them, gotten, guys.”
Trump’s inept legal challenges amounted to a clownish coup attempt. The Cruz-Hawley scheme amounted to a bloodless coup attempt. And now, Trump has induced his MAGA mob to a violent coup attempt.
As it happens, moments before the barbarians busted into the Senate chamber, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, long among the most faithful Trump enablers, had denounced the effort to overturn the election.
“The voters, the courts and the states have all spoken,” an emotional McConnell said, in perhaps the finest speech of his long career. “If this election were overturned by mere allegations from the losing side, our democracy would enter a death spiral.”
Most Americans never imagined they would see such banana-republic images of violence from the seat of American democracy. But Wednesday’s mayhem and violence form a predictable coda to a presidency that has brought us far too much of both.
Republicans must now decide whether they are going to return to being the party of small government, individual liberties and national strength, or to continue being the Trump and Cruz party of violence, racism and authoritarianism.
Are they small-d democrats or are they fascists? After Wednesday’s terrible scene, they must choose.
Trump fomented a deadly insurrection against the Congress to prevent a dulyelected president from taking office. Treason is not a word to be used lightly, but that is its textbook definition.