“Lions, and tigers, and bears! Oh my! And naturally the MAGA Extremists” says The Union.
It’s dangerous, anti-American, and it undermines the very foundation of our country.
You have to hand it to them –– they have a consistent message. The newest email from The Union warns of “the extremists” on the mid-term ballot.
The midterms are just over a month away, and extremists are running, up and down the ballot. Their goal is not just to win this fall, but to gain the power to flip elections they don’t win in the future—beginning with the Presidential election in 2024.
It’s dangerous, anti-American, and it undermines the very foundation of our country. Together, we can shut it down, but we only have the next month to do it.
Here’s the most important action you can take this week in Arizona.
Get out, Get involved, and Get Motivated. Time is running out and we have already lost too much in this state. We can take it all back.
What will you do to help save Arizona and save Democracy? Talking about it is not enough. Voting is key but getting others to vote is a necessity. If we do not win this November, we may not have free and fair elections in the future.…
You are at the front lines of making sure our democracy persists through the next few years and beyond, and we will not succeed without your help.
Together,
Andrew Scheck, State lead in AZ
Andrew is the @UnionArizona (248 followers on Twitter), State lead … whatever that means. In my former home state of Georgia, The Union affiliate has a whopping 48 followers (there are over 7 million active voters in the state of Georgia). So much for the claim on The Union website … 61,195 Members Strong (and growing of course).
Further examination of The Union website reveals their “WHAT’S AT STAKE” claim. Here’s where they throw down the gauntlet…
Threats to our democracy are growing and becoming more dangerous as we approach the 2022 elections. Donald Trump ordered the January 6, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol to overturn a free and fair election…and Republicans are still trying to return him to power, even if they resort to violence. Urgent action is needed at not just the national level, but at state and local levels, to overcome Republican plans to destroy voting rights and civil rights.
What is ironic is this short quote on the “Who We Are” page:
We have to set aside partisan disputes — so that our democracy can survive long enough for us to have those debates again.
Hmmm … I’m supposing that means that within “their side” of the Democracy debate, there are “disputes?” Sounds more like the definition of “Soldier of Fortune.”
A non-commissioned soldier willing to serve any state or person who will hire him. A mercenary; A person willing to work for or ally himself with any person or institution who will take him on.
Like their sponsoring group, The Lincoln Project, they even call in this quote from Abraham Lincoln near the bottom of the page…
When the people rise in masses in behalf of the Union and the liberties of their country, truly may it be said, ‘The gates of hell shall not prevail against them.’
President Abraham Lincoln – February 11, 1861
Very clever. Clever indeed … and so “patriotic.”
Abraham Lincoln also had other thoughts…
When the conduct of men is designed to be influenced, persuasion, kind, unassuming persuasion, should ever be adopted. It is an old and a true maxim, that a "drop of honey catches more flies than a gallon of gall."
--February 22, 1842 Temperance Address
I am thankful to God for this approval of the people. But while deeply grateful for this mark of their confidence in me, if I know my heart, my gratitude is free from any taint of personal triumph. I do not impugn the motives of any one opposed to me. It is no pleasure to me to triumph over any one; but I give thanks to the Almighty for this evidence of the people's resolution to stand by free government and the rights of humanity.
--November 8, 1864 Response to a Serenade
While we must, by all available means, prevent the overthrow of the government, we should avoid planting and cultivating too many thorns in the bosom of society.
--March 18, 1864 Letter to Edwin M. Stanton
But let’s get back to the email message from the Arizona Union folks. Particularly the statement “Time is running out and we have already lost too much in this state. We can take it all back.”
What this actually means is they are unhappy that Arizona leans more Republican in terms of registered voters.
These are not serious people. They are merely disgruntled Americans who can’t accept that there are differing opinions about how “Liberty” should be administered in the United States. There is no pending dystopia … no threats to Democracy … no loss of freedom.
Political fissures have existed since the founding of the country. Politics is all about disagreement. Democrats and Republicans have always been heated in their opinions about taxes, entitlements, national security, health care, immigration, energy, trade … you name it. Disagreement that is based on differing goals should be given public exposure and acceptance based on voting for a candidate one believes can “experiment,” if necessary to prove their way is best.
That’s not good enough for the latest crop of so-called “Democracy Defenders.” They are the political equivalent of the old tale about an acorn that falls upon the befuddled little head of Chicken Little and she jumps to the conclusion that the sky must be falling.
This article from the Library of Congress illustrates the origin of political factions…
Political factions or parties began to form during the struggle over ratification of the federal Constitution of 1787. Friction between them increased as attention shifted from the creation of a new federal government to the question of how powerful that federal government would be. The Federalists, led by Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton, wanted a strong central government, while the Anti-Federalists, led by Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, advocated states’ rights instead of centralized power. Federalists coalesced around the commercial sector of the country while their opponents drew their strength from those favoring an agrarian society.
The conflicts expressed by political parties, social media influencers, and the media are nothing new. As observed by this writer…
Conflict can be an opportunity for increased understanding, a catalyst for change, or the basis for problem-solving. Politics are ultimately the extension of the idea that conflicts and problem-solving can be constructive and systems dictate the basis for those engagements.
Parties to conflict are disappointed when they are denied access and/or feel silenced and satisfied when they have opportunities to make complaints and participate in decision-making.
When conflicts increase the dysfunction in relationships between parties and antagonize or inflame processes making the possibility of reaching a resolution or achieving a settlement, they can be described as destructive. In politics, destructive conflicts can sometimes have a life of their own or may blow up. Exposing one issue may reveal a larger pattern, system, or history of antagonisms, distrust, or failed dispute resolution processes. Rather than becoming informed and cooperative when disagreement surfaces parties in destructive conflicts begin to dig in and commit to adversarial process dynamics. In politics, this can get exaggerated, and questions about morale, motivation, and public image can escalate to existential threats, hyperbole, and generalized prejudice in the name of biases and attribution errors. Political expedience and political conflicts are frequently disengaged from the truth in favor of distorted narratives designed in favor of biased political agendas.
Thus the “Democracy is in Danger” trope. Joe Biden’s “Battle for the Soul of the Nation” speech is a reminder that he falls squarely on the “if you’re not with us, you’re against us” side of the equation.
… as I stand here tonight, equality and democracy are under assault. We do ourselves no favor to pretend otherwise.
But first, we must be honest with each other and with ourselves.
Too much of what’s happening in our country today is not normal.
Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans represent an extremism that threatens the very foundations of our republic
But there is no question that the Republican Party today is dominated, driven, and intimidated by Donald Trump and the MAGA Republicans, and that is a threat to this country.
MAGA forces are determined to take this country backwards — backwards to an America where there is no right to choose, no right to privacy, no right to contraception, no right to marry who you love.
MAGA Republicans have made their choice. They embrace anger. They thrive on chaos. They live not in the light of truth but in the shadow of lies.
…
And I have no doubt — none –– that this is who we will be and that we’ll come together as a nation. That we’ll secure our democracy. That for the next 200 years, we’ll have what we had the past 200 years: the greatest nation on the face of the Earth.
Should we bring up New York’s Democrat former darling governor, Andrew Cuomo at this point in our discussion?
Gov. Andrew Cuomo stunned the audience at a bill-signing ceremony Wednesday by saying America “was never that great” as he mocked President Trump’s 2016 campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again.”
We’re not going to make America great again,” Cuomo said while signing a bill dealing with human trafficking.
It was never that great. We have not reached greatness. We will reach greatness when every American is fully engaged.
Back to those issues that divide us … our American “experiment” in democracy is one that actually thrives on conflict, as discussed in this review of David Moss on his book, “Democracy: A Case Study.”
What struck me in working on these cases is that in nearly every moment of American history, people thought democracy was about to break,” Moss says. “In one instance—the Civil War—they were right.” But most of the time they were wrong, Moss continues, in part because they acted, became more engaged, and worked for reforms. “Their hypochondria, if I can call it that—their repeated fear that democracy was sick—was ultimately good for the political system because it promoted action and engagement.
These cases remind us of how much we can disagree on an issue, but also how much we had, and continue to have, in common,” he says. “Sometimes I think we get so wrapped up in the details of a current debate—whether it concerns health care or taxes or the size of government—that we lose track of what we most have in common, which are the democratic values and principles that make our system of government work. In the end, it’s what we have in common that makes productive conflict possible.
Unfortunately, folks who’ve taken the Anti-Trump Kool-Aid, like The Lincoln Project, The Union, President Biden, Liz Cheney, and a host of others, don’t believe a word of the above comments. For them, it’s “all or nothing.” There is no “common ground.” For them, they are the Righteous Defenders of Democracy and anyone not in their camp are “Enemy Combatants,” no better than the terrorist extremist prisoners detained by the U.S. government in Guantánamo Bay.
This is not how America is supposed to function. Democracy is not a one-size-fits-all model … it is meant to solve problems faced by the people who subscribe to its tenants. Liberty ensures that individuals can speak their minds and take action without fear of retaliation. If the ideas expressed by one person or a group about how best their government should function are not valid, then they can be rejected by arguments in favor of alternate ideas –– or voting for political candidates who favor their ideas.
So … to Mr. Scheck and others who share your ideas –– present your case and stop calling us “extremists,” “dangerous,” and “anti-American.” We are damn tired of it!