WHO ARE WE - DO WE KNOW?

By Edwin Cooney

Much to the chagrin of  President Donald J. Trump, nine days ago, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden was declared by the national print and broadcast media to be our nation's 46th President due to the majority of votes he gained in the electoral college through the cumulative popular vote he'd received in 21 states at that time. From almost the very outset of his political career, President Trump has insisted that the only way he could lose an election would be if it were "stolen" from him. Such an assertion is obviously both self-serving and arrogant since it clearly asserts that Mr. Trump possesses godlike perfection! Hence, although the possibility is remote, the fate of our nation could depend on the willfulness of our incumbent president to cling to power despite overwhelming evidence that a free people have chosen his political opponent. What does this uncomfortable circumstance say about who we are?    

It's my guess that most of you have read the story written about Benjamin Franklin standing outside the door of the Pennsylvania State House in September 1787 at the conclusion of the Constitutional Convention. A reporter asked him "What have you given us, Dr. Franklin?:" To that inquiry Ben Franklin replied, "A republic, if you can keep it!" (Note: Doctor Franklin doesn't reply "a democracy." Why do you suppose he chose to say "a republic” rather than a democracy? What are some of the differences between a republic and a democracy?)

Of course, one of the major differences is that a democracy provides that the majority must prevail in all cases in the establishment and operation of a free society. The fact of the matter is that many of the Founding Fathers differed on the question of whether America should be a republic or a democracy or whether it could exist as a combination of the two. The very establishment of an electoral college more than demonstrates the ambiguity of the Founding Fathers on the question of popular elections versus the wisdom of elections conducted by our elected representatives. I believe that this particular ambiguity exists today even after 233 years.

Back in the 1920s, New York State Governor Alfred E. Smith, the first Roman Catholic to be nominated by the Democratic Party for the presidency, used to assert, "The only cure for the ills of Democracy is more Democracy!" The national issue back then was prohibition which became constitutional on Thursday,  January 16th 1919. That amendment would be administered via the Volstead Act. To Governor Smith, the 18th Amendment, though clearly constitutional, was anti-democratic. 

Throughout our history, great political leaders have debated issues such as the sovereignty of the states. The question of state sovereignty over national sovereignty is one of the major issues that lies at the center of today's "culture war" between Conservatives and Liberals just as it was during and after the Civil War.

The real issue for President Trump may well be more about his personal fate rather than the fate of "sleepy Joe." After all, once Joe Biden takes the oath of office as President, former President Trump becomes as vulnerable to civil or even criminal suit as everyone else! Has he paid his share of taxes or has he avoided them? Might he be vulnerable to at least one sexual assault charge?

Even more to the point is his old assertion going back at least four years that if America doesn't elect a Republican President now, an aging voter population may be overwhelmed by a much younger and more progressive voting population.

As I see it, the above factors have a much greater long term effect than the fate of the immediate Senate majority which will be decided by the January 5th U.S. Senate elections in Georgia.

Insofar as this student of history is aware, we the people remain unclear about the following questions:

Are we a republic or a democracy?

Are the states sovereign or must they adhere to the sovereignty of the federal government?

Are we a Christian nation or do all religions enjoy equal status? Even more, what are the rights and responsibilities of the practice of religion?

In view of our technical knowledge and advancements, do we have an obligation to effectively regulate our physical environment whether the question is climate control or response to a pandemic?

Is it democratic to equate property and capitol rights with human rights? Must all constitutional rights be democratic? Are we a free people or are we merely political pawns to be manipulated by two powerful and willful political parties?

On Wednesday, January 20th, 2021, Joe Biden will become our 46th President, not because he's all-wise or practical beyond most of us, not because he's a “stable genius" or our savior, but rather because he has adequately demonstrated to us that in the wake of an overwhelming pandemic, our welfare is his primary concern!

RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED,

EDWIN COONEY