Donald Trump wrote what can only be called one of those letters which history will long recall.
In denouncing what he called a “partisan impeachment crusade” being waged against him by Democrats, Trump sent a six-page letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi where he stated his efforts were “for the purpose of history and to put my thoughts on a permanent and indelible record.”
Oh, Donald, you need not fear to have your every word, tweet, action, and completely reprehensible character showcased for the history books. That is already a certainty.
With a poison pen quality, Trump wrote that impeachment is an “attempted coup” that clearly demonstrated he had not the ability to reason his way as to why the Founding Fathers placed impeachment into the United States Constitution. After reading Trump’s letter I wonder if his nasty tweet last week to Time magazine’s Person of the Year might not be best suited for him to take to heart. Maybe poor Donald just needs to chill with an old movie on TCM.
But you and I, the American public, can not take the time for such calming moments.
The rule of law is not something that has ever concerned Trump. His own father was embroiled in a long history of racial bias at the family’s properties. The crux of the issue was the company’s practice of turning away potential black tenants. The actions were so egregious that the Justice Department undertook its own investigation which resulted in 1973 with Trump Management being sued for discriminating against blacks. Both Fred Trump, the company’s chairman, and Donald Trump, its president, were named as defendants. It was front-page news, and for Donald, it amounted to his debut in the public eye.
Here is the front page coverage which shows that scorning law and order is not a new way for Trump to view his dealings with the world.
Now it will be the House of Representatives who will vote and in so doing send a powerful message that law and order remain an essential foundation to our republic. Trump made ridiculous claims in his letter, but there is one element that we need to take seriously. Trump stated he does not wish for what is happening to him to ever be experienced by another president. As a nation, we also hope and trust that no other president is ever again so derelict in undertaking his oath of office or as blatantly corrupt as Trump has proven to be.
But his words underscore the larger lesson we need to take from the letter to the Speaker–a powerful woman that Trump can not abide. Trump must not be allowed to walk away from justice by gagging witnesses, limiting access to the evidence, or smarming it up with the Republican senators who are the jury. If our collective sense of right and wrong can be tossed aside for partisan tribalism now we must then ponder the long-term impact of Congress being stripped of its Constitutional right and duty to check presidential power.
That is the fate our nation needs to reflect upon tonight.
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