The Last Days of the Slow-Coup

Donny rallying his Redcoats.

Donald Trump has reached the Nixon ‘walking the hallways night at night swearing at the paintings’ stage. That hasn’t stopped him stepping up his desperate coup attempt by proposing in a White House meeting making election ‘lawyer’ Sydney Powell as a ‘special counsel in charge of the election, with a high security clearance and access to classified materials. This would put her in charge of ‘investigating’ the election, i.e.: making baseless charges from a high government position with resources like investigators and subpoena power. She could make a lot of election officials miserable, ruining their careers and their lives, dragging democracy through the mud for months.

Fortunately, this was shot down, but not before a lot of arguing and heated words, many from Powell herself, fighting for more power. Advisors pointed out she had yet to prove any of her accusations, prompting Powell to whip out yet more affidavits from the same dubious source she has used in the past. That doesn’t mean she will go away, or that Trump won’t go over his advisors and force an appointment.

Then busy little Donny, (busying doing anything but his job, or protecting America from Russian hacking or covid) in a meeting with Ken Cuccinelli, No. 2 at the Department of Homeland Security, asked that the DHS seize voting machines for an ‘examination’. Cuccinelli gingerly told the president that the DHS had no power over voting machines.

Not caring for that answer, Rudy Giuliani then called personally to ask Cuccinelli about seizing voting machines so they could be ‘examined’ (screwed and tampered with) by Trump partisans. The President’s personal lawyer asking to illegally seize property.

Maggie Haberman of the NYT reported: 

“Rudy Giuliani called Ken Cuccinelli, second in command at the Department of Homeland Security, on Thursday night and asked him whether DHS could seize voting machines," Jonathan Swan reported, citing "a source familiar with the call."

Cuccinelli told Rudy the DHS didn’t have that power.

They really don’t like hearing ‘no’.

In the meeting with senior aides and Powell, was ex-general, and every bit as crazy as Sydney, fervent Trump (and pardon recipient) Michael Flynn. After getting turned down for his voting machine scam, and not being able to appoint Sydney Powell as Witchfinder General, Trump gestured to Flynn and asked about Flynn’s idea of martial law, using the military to overthrow the election and forcing either a national re-vote, or a re-vote of just the states Trump wants.

Yes, we have a President of the United States, asking to seize voting machines, demanding to appoint a persecutor-in-chief to go after his perceived ‘enemies’, proposing martial law, and calling for a violent overthrow of the government to reverse a lost election, with most of the GOP happy to do so.

This is treason.  

This is un-American. 

But he won’t succeed.

There are too many good people standing in his way who honor their oaths to the Constitution, and a few bad ones who know the gig is up, want to get their pardon, and get out. Trump can and will do damage on his way out, it’s the nature of the wounded animal to thrash, snarl and lash out at anything near… as they die.

Trump’s term dies the 20th.

And the marines know how to escort trespassers off the property.