WOW, WHAT A DEMAND!

By Edwin Cooney

I must repeat myself. Wow, what a demand! George Washington and John Adams never got over it, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison never got over it either. The “it” acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney wants you and me to "get over" is abhorrence of the practice of using foreign governments to do any president's domestic political dirty work! Wow, what an expectation!

One of the aspects of governing which conservatives are constantly urging liberals to respect is political/socio tradition. One of conservatives' most sacred traditions is separation from entanglements with other countries. Of course, post World War II conservatives recognize the need for alliances such as NATO, SEATO, The Organization of American States and reluctantly, much of the time, The United Nations. However, agreements and understandings between nations have had to do with policy — not politics. President Trump could have a "quid pro quo" with a foreign nation having to do with political alliances and international missions, but a quid pro quo encompassing domestic politics is beyond the political pale! You can be sure that had President Barack Obama asked a western European country or, even worse, a friendly African nation such as Kenya to do him a domestic political favor, the GOP House with its Freedom Caucus and its Federalist Society would have had the president's advisors appear before the House Judiciary Committee before the president could have texted Elijah Cummings to "save my tail.”   

Even more significant and revealing is what Chief Mulvaney's admonition to "get over it" implies. That implication is: "After all, we've used political quid pro quos before and we'll have to do it again and again!” If political quid pro quos are something we ought to "get over," there must be a precedent here somewhere. Might Mr. Mulvaney be revealing that there was really and truly something going on between the Trumps and the Russians during the 2016 campaign? (I'm just asking!)

There is a legitimate aspect to Mr. Mulvaney's admonition. As we progressives constantly remind our conservative cousins (and may they always be our political cousins!), as times change so do circumstances. The capacity of both world “do-gooders" and world "troublemakers" to make their marks is much, much greater than it was in 1807 when Thomas Jefferson, much to his reluctance, issued his embargo against both Britain and France. Many vital decisions, both tactical and strategic, must be made within a dangerously short period of time. The days when Congress had sufficient time to debate and deliberate are long past.

Here's another 21st Century circumstance the significance of which is hard to read. When did we become such pals with the Russians? I can remember days when my conservative friends would chide me for being so "buddy buddy" with Mikhail Gorbachev. Today's Republican Party under President Trump appears to be more comfortable with a former member of the Soviet KGB (the Soviet Committee for State Security) than with the director of either the FBI or the CIA. Is Mr. Putin's dislike for Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton more significant than his Soviet past or his corrupt and suspiciously murderous present? Beyond that, I'm curious as to why Mr. Putin is tolerant of President Trump's coziness with the new Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Of course, no one in their right mind would favor the return of the "cold war," but these changing political motives are invariably hard to swallow!

Millions of Americans are too busy working, raising children, talking and texting on their smartphones, taking that vital fifteen minutes to purchase Geico, eating and watching sports on tv to take much notice of changing international alliances, but it seems to this observer that the leadership of the GOP has some explaining and even educating to do regarding their current tolerance of both Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky!

Yes indeed, there may be a lot to "get over,” but President Trump's willingness to use foreign agencies to advance his political career is absolutely not one of them!  As I see it, the utilization of foreign governments and agencies to advance any president's personal political goals is clearly an impeachable offense!

Such a practice is not only unpatriotic, it's just plain unneighborly. Just ask the late Mr. Rogers!

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,

EDWIN COONEY