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Have we learned nothing from 2020?

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Well into the eighth month of a mismanaged pandemic that caused Great Depression-level unemployment, lame duck President Trump and members of his party are posturing toward a coup to remain in office. The general tone surrounding the “soft coup” is the same tone America has had towards climate change and the coronavirus, “if we ignore it, it will go away.”

I believe that the mainstream media and Democratic leadership are downplaying this sloppy and stupid coup because they lack the open-mindedness necessary to imagine a world where Trump refuses to step down. (The same way they lacked the open-mindedness to imagine a Trump presidency.)

Yes, the mere idea of Trump leading a coup is preposterous, but how is it more prosperous than anything else happening in 2020?

The seeds for a coup have been planted gradually over the past four years. Demonizing the media, sowing doubt in the legitimacy of elections, and painting moderate Democrats as radical threats to the nation have been a mainstay of the right.

Despite voter suppression attempts in key states like Georgia, Joe Biden managed to eke out a clear-cut Electoral College victory and win the popular vote by more than 5 million. In a normal world Trump would concede, the election would be over and we’d all have some much-needed peace of mind for the upcoming holiday season. However, we find ourselves a week after the election was called, Trump is replacing top military officials with loyalists, and members of the GOP who are refusing to accept the election results are receiving public praise from Trump.

protesters in front of PA convention center
Photograph by Jason N. Peters.

Trump’s clownishness and incompetence have led to a general dismissal of his various threats. But, have we learned nothing? If you give this man an inch, he will take a mile.

Why wouldn’t Trump attempt to stay in office? As a 74 year-old “billionaire” with control over the world’s largest military, what does he have to lose? He’s a white celebrity, real estate mogul and right-wing political deity; there are no consequences for men cut from that cloth.

“I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody, and I wouldn’t lose any voters, OK?” said Trump in 2016. He will not be arrested, no matter what he does. Trump has been breaking laws and violating social norms his entire life with little to no consequence.

Many of the complaints about Trump’s soft coup are not about the coup attempt itself, but rather how it’s a “disgrace to our traditions and history.” In a press conference at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Mayor Jim Kenney said of Trump: “He needs to congratulate the winner, just as Jimmy Carter did, just as George H.W. Bush did, and frankly just as Al Gore did.”

Trump is not Carter, Bush or Gore. Trump does not care about any criticism of his character or behavior, he does not care about the sanctity of democracy, and he doesn’t think the Democrats are powerful enough to will him out of office. He’s right to think all of those things—more than 47% of the country voted for him, he’s been criticized his whole life and the Democratic Party is fractured and weak.

If the #MillionMAGAMarch in DC this weekend was indicative of this country’s direction, we are building towards a catastrophic event on January 20th.

Consider these hypotheticals for me: Will anyone do anything if Trump refuses to leave? If so, who? The Secret Service, the military, law enforcement? Police Unions endorsed Trump, he’s appointing loyalists at high-ranking military positions and it’s the Secret Services job to protect Trump even beyond his presidency.

What power do the people of America wield to remove the president from office beyond voting? None.

2020 may have shown the largest voter turnout in a century, yet more than 30% of the country still didn’t vote. Confidence in the electoral system is rattled enough as is, through gerrymandering efforts and the near-defunct two-party system; what effect will Trump’s actions of just the past week have on elections moving forward?

It is my personal opinion that Trump will never admit defeat. The Trump brand never accepts failure, whether it’s the United States Football League, his Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, the border wall—or the 2020 election. Positioning himself as someone who has been cheated will allow him to do whatever he wants in the eyes of those who support him. Whether that means a coup d’etat or Trump begrudgingly leaving the office in January, only time will tell.

Trump’s refusal to concede should be the focus of every citizen, politician and news outlet in the country. I’ve seen enough of 2020 to expect the unexpected come January 2021.

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