Let’s discuss the term the “loyal opposition.”Webster’s defines it “a minority party, especially in a legislative body, whose opposition to the party in power is constructive, responsible, and bounded by loyalty to fundamental interests and principles.”
After President Trump was elected but yet to be inaugurated, most on the left side of the political aisle declared themselves “The Resistance,” not the loyal opposition. The title of resistance brings to mind the French Maquis in World War Two. They were a group made up mostly of anarchists and communists (although not totally), and they also used the name “The Resistance” and were one of the many groups that fought both the Germans and the French who collaborated with the Germans.
Quite frankly our President has made strange bedfellows; the right who were dedicated to free trade are supporting tariffs, duties and taxes on imports? The Democrats who were for controlled trade and never met a tax they did not like, are carping about taxes on trade? The left who supported President Obama’s expanding the wall on the southern border (and they also supported President Obama’s declaration of an emergency on our Southern border because of illegal immigration) are outraged that President Trump wants to do what President Obama did!
Why? Because it is what The Resistance, not the Loyal Opposition, does.
President Trump sends a plan to Congress, any plan, and the left’s response is, not no, but hell no, strong refusal to follow.
Any (and I do mean any) Democrat who works with the President on any matter, no matter how important to the well being of our nation, will be challenged in a primary and hauled before a court of the most progressive, liberal, socialist Democrats and openly flailed, even if they attempt to work in a bipartisan manner.
House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi preached to the Democrats in the House that impeachment was a folly and it could only hurt them in the 2020 elections; the Republican majority in the United States Senate would never convict our President. Mrs. Pelosi was booed when she said impeachment was not a proper thing to do. She has now seen the light; to protect her job as Speaker of the House of Representatives and even her seat in the House, she now supports a futile and ill-advised effort to conduct an impeachment hearing.
As I have written before, the primary process empowers the most hard core, left and right; it gives veto authority to as few as 5% of the party faithful. Moderates do not stand a snowball’s chance in hell of winning a primary when opposed by the 5%.An interesting thing is that President Trump was not the choice of the far-right wing Republicans, Senator Ted Cruz was their candidate. However, a primary field as crowded as it was allowed Mr. Trump to win.
Perhaps the Democrats need to learn from the last presidential primary and pare down the field of 22 plus. The Democrats should learn from the last impeachment, of President Clinton, that the hearings may delight the 30% of the electorate who are the staunch Democrats, but the 43% who are independent and the 24% who are Republicans may not feel it is a proper thing to do.
The good folks in the Democratic Party need to ask questions; for example, is Senator Bernie Sanders, a man who has said America was never great and we have the worst country in the world, going to attract independent voters? Do we as a nation want to embrace a socialist system, one that always fails over time, with disastrous results? Do we want to discard the Constitution? Do we want a government that controls our everyday lives even more than it does today? I think not.
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