James Williamson guest blog: Imminent Rebellion: Are we there yet?

June 20, 2020 — buckeyerino

Editor’s note: James Williamson is a native and former resident of Ohio who currently lives in Nevada.  He is also one of the brothers of yours truly, Daniel Jack Williamson, the owner of this blog.  He has written many other guest blog articles for Buckeye RINO, including a series of posts with the phrase “Imminent Rebellion” in the title (here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here). –DJW

 

It’s been a long time since I’ve written a political blog post.  You may ask, why so silent while the world seems to be falling apart around us?  Well, in my past posts, I was warning what could happen if we continued our current trajectory.  Now we are so far along, the idea of civil war and revolution are almost considered mainstream.  Why repeat what others are already saying?

So now I suppose my task is to say something that no one else is saying.  Or at least not many people are saying.  Or perhaps what is being said but not heard….

It seems we have plunged the country into chaos.  I say “we” because ultimately the nation’s behavior is an aggregate of the individual decisions of the 300+ million inhabitants of what we call the United States of America. I can’t think of any period in American history where the rule of law has been so threatened since the Civil War. Many critics of the president accuse him of undermining the law intentionally.  While there may be specific instances where this is true, we could also find examples of presidents trying to skirt or even defying the law going all the way back to George Washington. (Remember Andrew Jackson’s response to the Supreme Court regarding the Cherokee decision?) These behaviors are always concerning. Left unchecked, they can certainly lead to tyranny, which is why we oppose them.  On the other hand any elected official is ultimately merely a human being and therefore flawed in their thinking and behavior.  There will always be abuses.  If we can’t accept that, then we will have a hard time accepting self-governance.  Fortunately, our founding fathers anticipated this and included a mechanism to limit the amount of abuse an individual could inflict by separating governmental power into three equal branches.

“Sometimes it is said that man cannot be trusted with the government of himself. Can he, then, be trusted with the government of others? Or have we found angels in the form of kings to govern him? Let history answer this question.” –Thomas Jefferson: 1st Inaugural, 1801.

Thomas Jefferson, in a rhetorical way, points out that we have no choice but to accept imperfect leaders.  It may be this pursuit of the “perfect” president or form of government that has lead us to this point.  Ideology trumps practicality and, it seems, words now trump actions. No one will argue against the observation that our President is flawed.  I can also say that almost no one would say they didn’t know what they were getting into before the election.  We knew Donald Trump was a billionaire real estate magnate who loved to spend time in front of cameras.  We knew he loved salesman’s puffery and engaged in it daily.  We knew  he could be unpredictable and volatile.  We knew he liked to spend money…. You get the idea.  So why did we think any of this would change when he became President?

By now you are probably asking, “what’s your point?” (Maybe I am too…)  We are living in chaotic times with a chaotic President, or so it seems.  Notwithstanding the apparent chaos and the intensity of the rhetoric, we continue as a nation.  As long as we can maintain rule of law we will be able to continue as a nation.  The breakdown of the rule of law leads down two paths: anarchy (think French revolution) or war (US civil war).  Either way the results are usually unpalatable to the general public long term and some form of government emerges. So how do we avoid anarchy and war? The first step is to calm down and think.  Rational thought will lead to more deliberate actions that generally produce better results.  Emotional thought generally leads to actions that bring a lot of unintended consequences.  For example, if you eliminate (abolish, defund) the police how will government respond to violent crime?  The emotional thinker doesn’t have an answer but wants to forge ahead anyway.  A rational thinker may not have an immediate answer and so would be reluctant to move ahead without a solid plan in place.

Slow down.  Think before you act. The main difference between machines and people is the ability to reason and to think critically.  If we act out of emotion without rational, critical thought, we are worse than a robot.  A robot doesn’t have the ability to think critically but it also doesn’t make mistakes. An emotionalized human has set aside what makes them unique in the animal world.  There may be times where that is appropriate (i.e. when our life is in danger) but if emotions like fear, rage, and resentment drive all our decision making the results of our actions will be no better than the negative emotions that drove them.

It is often said that actions speak louder than words.  Anyone listening to media may come to the opposite conclusion.  Perhaps in a business that thrives on rhetoric and argument words are more important than actions to the likes of CNN, Fox, Facebook, and Twitter. Heated rhetoric sells.  Ironically the very same organizations that claim to be against Trump are the very keys to his electoral victory.  Why did Donald Trump beat Hilary Clinton while spending a small fraction of his competitor on the campaign?  Because the news media couldn’t keep their cameras off of him.  They acted out of emotion and didn’t stop to think.  They were so convinced that what he was saying would sink his own ship that they forgot one of the maxims of the marketing industry: all press is good press.  Trump was the political equivalent of the Kardashians.  (Maybe that’s why they get along?) Doesn’t matter if people make fun of you, doesn’t matter if people think you are ridiculous, doesn’t matter if you have substance…. Just keep the cameras pointed at you!!!!  And the media fell for it……

Now to the subject of actions.  I still operate in a world where actions do speak louder than words so here’s a few (just a few) actions by the president that reassure me:

1.       Judicial appointments – The President has taken this responsibility seriously and has appointed more judges than any other president in history.  Yes, there were extra vacancies because Mitch McConnell drug his feet and outright blocked Obama appointments, however, Trump has wasted no time in filling these positions, which indicates that he understands how important the judiciary is in maintaining rule of law.

2.       Criminal justice reform – There are a lot of critics of the bill and I myself have not studied it, however just the fact that it passed indicates that the President recognizes there is a problem and took measures to correct it.

3.       Trade renegotiation – Trump, as a businessman, understands the fundamental cost vs. benefit analysis and has come to the conclusion that we are paying too much for what we are getting.  This includes NATO  and the UN.  People may not like his style (foreign countries sure don’t) but he is advocating for the country, which is what a President is supposed to do.

4.       Firing incompetent or partisan government employees (especially Bolton) – I know this one causes a lot of alarm for some but Trump needs to say, “You’re fired!” about 10,000 more times.  I spent time working at a federal facility and it is way too difficult to get rid of bad employees there.  They know it’s near impossible to get fired and they abuse it.  Bolton was an especially important target.  He’s the equivalent of Conrad Von Hotzendorf, one of the high ranking officials of the Austro-Hungarian empire.  His constant war-hawking nearly plunged the country into a massive conflict many times before WWI.  One of the reasons it didn’t happen sooner was because Franz Ferdinand was the counter-balancing voice of reason that prevented the empire from making rash moves.  Once Franz Ferdinand was killed that voice fell silent.  Trump knows that a war with Russia would not end well for the US.  Agree with him or not, firing a reckless war-hawk demonstrates that there is more to Trump than just rhetoric.

And now for the list of things that concern me:

1.       Rhetoric – this goes without saying.  It is said that our strengths can be exploited and turned against us.  The rhetoric continues because it’s what got him elected.  It may get him elected again this fall.  What it won’t do is help anyone following him.  It provided cover for his actions. Most people can’t even tell you what he has or hasn’t done because they can’t get past what he is saying. That’s a two edged sword and could come back to bite him just as hard as it bit the media that (supposedly) opposed him.

2.       Spending – I just read that our federal budget is now higher than WWII levels relative to GDP.  That is a problem.  Honestly this was probably my biggest concern while he was a candidate and continues to be a concern.  Trump is not alone on this.  Congress, and the federal reserve seem to be very compliant. I don’t think Hilary Clinton with a democratic congress would have spent any more than we are spending now.  Maybe if AOC was president…. Unfortunately this has been a problem for so long we may be past the point of no return.  This probably warrants a separate entry.

In conclusion, while it seems that we are marching inevitably toward separation we continue as a nation.  As long as we continue to uphold our elected leaders and the rule of law we will continue as a nation, even if it seems the sky is falling.  When we, speaking collectively, stop upholding the rule of law and not only seek to overturn, but succeed in overturning election results (think assassination, frivolous impeachment, etc.) our existence as a nation will be in grave danger.

 

Posted in Congress, Donald Trump (R), executive branch, guest blog, judicial branch, law enforcement, legislative branch, National Politics, Politics in the MSM, POTUS, protests. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

May 2018 Ohio primary election results reveal lack of energy among GOP grassroots

May 9, 2018 — buckeyerino

I haven’t written much on this blog in recent years due to bigger concerns in my personal life, but perhaps in the next little while, I’ll post more often.

As I write this, it is the day after the Ohio primary elections held May 8, 2018, and I am worried about the current condition of the GOP as I peruse the election results.  I won’t recap any of the vote totals, as that can be found elsewhere.  The election results, at least in north central Ohio, tell me that money won every single GOP primary race.  This signals that the energy of the grassroots is gone or almost gone.  Where are the political upstarts that rocked the establishment GOP candidates during the Obama era?  Does it take an Obama presidency to energize the grassroots?  Even as recently as the 2016 election cycle, non-establishment candidates enjoyed at least some small measure of success against the status quo.  But looking back at yesterday’s elections, I now declare this trend to be dead.

Whether one agreed with “Tea Party” principles or not, the competitiveness of Tea Party candidates signaled an engagement of the grassroots.  When the grassroots were energized, campaign cash advantages were not guarantees of success in the GOP primaries.  Establishment candidates were more likely to feel the pressure to articulate why they were deserving of voters’ support.  I think that’s healthy.

Why this new complacency?  Yes, the GOP currently holds the reins of power both in Ohio and in the nation’s capital, but I do not necessarily believe we have the best of the GOP holding those positions.  The primaries were the best shot of improving the quality of our representation in government, and I think we blew it. Few debates were held.  The Ohio Republican Party did not remain neutral in these primaries.  They kept their thumb on the scales.  In doing so, their endorsed candidates were relieved of the pressure to articulate why their nominations would be of value to the voters, for they could just go along for the ride knowing that the ORP would fight the nomination battles for them.

Now, with the moneyed candidates, ones that are more loyal to donors than to voters, advancing on to the November 2018 elections, I think the lack of luster among the GOP’s nominees will only make it easier for the Democrats to rebound.  The last time I saw such a poor crop of nominees, or worse, was in 2006, a bloodbath of an election year.  Granted, this group of nominees is not as tainted by scandal as that group of GOP nominees back in 2006, but the lack of excitement is the same.  The weakened influence of the Tea Party evidenced yesterday, I believe, will translate into poor GOP turnout in November.  Brace yourselves for a rough ride this fall.

Posted in Congress, legislative branch, National Politics, Ohio General Assembly, Republican Party, State Politics. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »

The passing of George Voinovich

June 12, 2016 — buckeyerino

A common theme appearing in coming-of-age tales is one of a youth who becomes disenchanted with a hero.  The youth discovers the hero has flaws.  The youth becomes a bit cynical.   The youth feels disillusioned.  The youth doesn’t look at the hero the same way again.  It’s just a part of growing up.

But then one is not all the way grown up at that point.  One has to grow up a little bit more and not only be forgiving of flaws, but giving permission to others to be flawed.  Why?  Because no one is perfect and because no one ought to coerce another to give up their flaws.  We have to respect agency–people making choices about their own lives . . . and if someone doesn’t make any wrong choices, then that somebody isn’t making choices, period.  Furthermore, one only has to look in the mirror to find a person who needs forgiveness for being flawed, for making wrong choices.

So as I reflect on the passing of George Voinovich and what George Voinovich meant to me, I have to own up to making a hero out of him.  By September 2009, I was disenchanted.  Now, I find my criticisms a bit harsh and now I find myself wondering why I didn’t try to muster some forgiveness sooner.  I need to look in my mirror and take a good long look at a flawed person again to cement in my mind the need for forgiveness.

I first remember Voinovich from my boyhood, when he was mayor of Cleveland.  He performed two miracles.  One was getting elected as mayor of Cleveland as a Republican.  That he had been a Cuyahoga County commissioner some time prior to that was amazing enough, but Cleveland mayor?  Republicans just don’t get elected as Cleveland mayors.  It just doesn’t happen.  At least, not anymore.  There have been mayoral elections in Cleveland where Democrat primaries settled the mayoral races.  The other was that he led a Cleveland economic renaissance immediately after his predecessor, Dennis Kucinich, had led the city to financial default.  If only Detroit could have been so lucky as to have a person like Voinovich take over as mayor after Kwame Kilpatrick was ousted.

He went on to be Ohio’s governor, and then U.S. Senator.  He was the rare Republican who could sweep the vote across 88 counties.

One of the issues that I really felt close to Voinovich on was his opposition to casino gambling.  His steadfast stance on the issue was perhaps the main reason I lionized him.  The casino lobbyists had infested Ohio by the swarms, targeting weak and corrupt legislators of both parties.  The lobbyists kept saying that casino legalization would be an easy revenue raiser.  Voinovich had brought Cleveland back from financial default without resorting to gimmicks like gambling.  The lobbyists were doling out campaign contributions left and right, but Voinovich wasn’t having any of it.  It’s refreshing to see politicians who will not be bought by the agents of sleaze.

I really feel like Voinovich’s star shone brightest when he held executive office.  Not so much legislative office.  He was better at on-the-spot and uncompromising executive decisions than the highly deliberative and compromising legislative decisions.

My first taste of government service came as a volunteer intern in the office of Governor George Voinovich.  Though my tasks were menial clerical ones, I felt like I had an excellent aerial view of Ohio’s political landscape from atop the Vern Riffe State Office Tower.  I assisted with the filing of the “Governor’s Clips.”  Each day, staffers combed through the print media to assemble a digest of the day’s political stories.  This digest kept the governor informed about the issues without occupying too much of his time.  This was back in the day before internet killed print media, and back when filing cabinets held paper files rather than computers holding data files.  After the governor read each day’s clips, that wasn’t the end of them.  They had to be filed for possible future retrieval.  They had to be filed according to date, according to source, according to location, according to the names of people in the news clips, according to issues, etc.  I do that on this blog with tags.  With paper files, tags don’t quite cut it.  The date, location, and source filing was easy.  That was done by others before I even arrived at the office.  My task was to skim through the stories, themselves, to pull out the keywords, then make as many photocopies of the clipping as I needed in order to file away each story according to each keyword.

Working with the “Governor’s Clips” gave me a brief glimpse into my political future when I encountered an article outlining a state legislator’s gambling expansion proposals: Some guy named Joe Koziura wanted a casino built on Lorain’s lakefront.  I was incensed.  Years later, in 2002 and 2004, I would run against that same Joe Koziura for the office of state representative, but lose both times.

Until 2009, I had voted for Voinovich every time his name appeared on my ballot.  I had handed out his campaign literature door-to-door.  I had attended some of his fundraisers (which meant that some of his campaign money came from me).  I had also worked phone banks getting out the vote on his behalf.  But the chinks in my hero’s armor had begun to show.  Congress bailed out Wall Street in 2008, something it should not have done.  I didn’t understand Voinovich’s voting patterns.  When I finally paid a visit to the offices of the U.S. Senate in Washington, DC, I figured it out.  Those office buildings, especially the Hart Senate Building, resembled palaces.  Democracy gives way to aristocracy in the rarefied air of these Senate offices.  It was the Beltway Bubble.  Our Senators are too far removed from the real world, and even a man as principled as George Voinovich succumbed to the disengagement with the real world.

In the upcoming Senate race, I have no love for Ted Strickland, who reneged on his pledge against the expansion of gambling on his watch as Ohio governor.  Voinovich and Strickland had touched base on the topic of casinos, and Strickland had told Voinovich that he would hold the line against them.  He lied.  He lied to George Voinovich.  He lied to Ohio.  Strickland doesn’t deserve Ohio’s vote.  I here and now endorse Rob Portman for reelection.  However, I would note that Portman has been around DC for far too long.  Between a stint in the US House, and a stint in the US Senate, Portman served in the George W. Bush administration.  I would urge Portman to (get reelected and) use this upcoming Senate term to groom someone else to succeed him.  Make that two someone elses, for we need someone to oust and succeed Sherrod Brown, too.  And I would say that we need more diverse representation than what we’ve had.  Portman has had “listening” tours around Ohio so that he feels like he hears from folks outside the bubble, but I would say to Portman that, at some point, before he serves any additional terms in DC beyond the next one, that he needs to BE one of the folks from outside the bubble if he’s to remain useful as a representative of Ohioans.  This is what I learned about the bubble on my trip to DC.  Even a hero like Voinovich could not make sound decisions after spending too much time in the DC bubble.

Farewell, George Voinovich.  We didn’t end up with quite the Ohio that we wanted.  Four casinos are legal in Ohio now.  The lobbyists wouldn’t be denied.  But as long as you were in the real world with us, outside of that bubble, no lobbyist could cross your conscience.  We need a government with a conscience.  Badly. And so I should have forgiven you a long time ago. I do forgive you.

 

 

Posted in endorsement, executive branch, gambling, legislative branch, Local Politics, National Politics, State Politics. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment »