Full of Shit 

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It had all the makings of a "drug deal," and President Donald Trump handled it in a manner that would be highly respected by a Mexican cartel. His intimidation of America's legislative branch, during his impeachment, was reminiscent of what happened in Culiacán, Mexico, last October when authorities attempted to arrest Ovidio Guzmán López, a son of convicted drug lord Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzman. Sinaloa Cartel gunmen seized the city, threatened to execute hostages, sprayed the streets with gunfire, blocked the roads with burning automobiles, and demanded his release. That's the way things are done by Mexico's most ruthless crime bosses—and it worked. Nobody wanted to die, and no one wanted to see their city destroyed. The army and national guard abandoned the mission and López went free.

Domestic terrorism is not a Mexican exclusive. It exists right here in the good ol' U.S. of A. Our criminal-in-chief understands the meaning of threats, and, just like his Mexican hermanos, he is in the habit of getting what he wants.

The sham of the Senate's acquittal vote is only days old, but the impeachment of DJT has left us all with a bad taste in our mouths. At least on some subconscious level, those who prostituted themselves in order to ensure their political futures are wishing they hadn't allowed fear to control their actions. Among them are the Lindsay Grahams and Mitch McConnells who, though they have sworn the blood-oath of loyalty to their leader, silently understand that POTUS is nobody's friend and will eventually turn on them.

Such second-thoughts are unavoidable for the Republican scumbags who made a mockery of the impeachment proceedings. They must now find ways to rationalize how such a trial could ever be held as valid—in the absence of living, breathing, first-hand witnesses who could have nailed Trump to the wall. It wasn't like they hadn't had an adequate chance to jump ship; there was plenty of time to consider the matter of doing their sworn-juror duty. Tonight, they must lay their heads on their pillows, with the understanding that they failed the country they supposedly love, and made a treasonous mockery of their sacred duty.

Even those who had the clarity and strength of conscience to vote for the president's removal are wondering how much flack they will now face for standing up to be counted. Sen. Mitt Romney, though it might have been too little too late, shone above his fellow senators. As Utahns, we should all be proud that he followed his conviction. Those who seek to detract from the significance of his act—even through legislative moves to unseat him—are sorely out of line. But their haste to condemn Mitt is understandable. They pick on him, mostly out of their own guilt for not having had the personal integrity and courage to do the right thing.

Although not likely to have their heads lopped-off by the executioner's axe, those who sought to uphold the rule of law can certainly anticipate that the mobster-in-chief will be looking for ways to retaliate. Anyone who valued the integrity of their country over Trumpian loyalty will pay. Patriots Gordon Sondland, Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, and his brother Yevgeny already have, and there will be more. That's something we can bank on. Although he hasn't resorted to violence, Trump's threats are reminiscent of history's worst rogue regimes, all of which maintained power through fear, trampled their own constitutions, and undermined the rule of law by emasculating authority of the courts.

Trump will continue to do what he does best; his you'll-pay-for-this mindset is driven by a pea-sized brain, remarkably ill-informed judgment, abysmally-low morals, and a delusional "righteous" indignation for anyone who calls him on his abominable behavior. He has the substance and character of a sausage casing, stuffed to its capacity with excrement. Sadly, his Republican minions will carefully avoid the moral considerations of their actions, largely because they understand that sausage casings are ruled by their structural limits and thus might rupture at any moment, leaving the stinky slop over all those who chose to cling too close. They all know that their king is just that—crap with a skin—yet it is a mortal fear of retaliation that keeps them in his power.

In the past, we've seen Trump's fundamental flaws. His inability to assign blame to himself, his lack of introspection, his absence of conscience, his incitement of racial hate, and his vengeful vindictiveness—even against the deceased—are all markers of the man's narcissistic personality disorder. His greatest fear is of those who stand up to him. Even those he considers to be his supporters have choked on his attacks of worthy adversaries, like the late Sen. John McCain.

At this point, no one knows for sure if attempts to deal with America's No. 1 mobster will be successful. It is clear, however, that his attacks on our democracy are enabled by a large number of invertebrate minions—wimps who blindly strive to give legitimacy to their leader's monstrous actions. It cannot be allowed to continue; America is at its most precipitous juncture ever, and the Constitution is very literally hanging by a thread.

The author is a former Vietnam-era Army assistant public information officer. He resides in Riverton with his wife, Carol, and one mongrel dog. Send comments to comments@cityweekly.net