2024 Election, General, Politics

Congress Must Act to Avoid an Ugly Finale to the November Election

The Colorado and Maine decisions to strike former President Trump’s name from the ballot on Fourteenth Amendment grounds have injected a dangerously destabilizing issue in an election already riven with suspicion and rancor.  Trump has now filed an appeal of the Colorado decision with the US Supreme Court, but similar challenges are still pending in 17 other states. The American people deserve a quick and thorough resolution of the issue by not only the Court, but also by the Congress as well

The good news is that the Court has scheduled oral argument on the case for February 8, an extraordinarily expedited process that shows it is well aware of the importance of resolving the case as soon as possible. As a result, it will probably issue a decision by May.

The bad news is that any such decision will only resolve the main legal issues in the case and not the ultimate factual issue of whether Trump “engaged in insurrection” or gave aid and comfort to one on January 6, 2021 and thus should be barred from the presidential ballot. Former Attorney General Bill Barr accurately pointed out the deficiencies in the original trial at the district court, which lasted only five days and was largely based on hearsay evidenceAny real trial that could develop a sufficient record for a final decision would take months. The record in the Colorado case clearly fails that test.

However, there are crucial legal issues that the Colorado case raises on which the Court can rule and help speed the resolution of this litigation: 

  • Is the office of President subject to the prohibition of section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment?
  • Did the Colorado courts have jurisdiction to hear and adjudicate the issue or is the prohibition essentially only enforceable by Congress after the election?
  • Is a conviction for insurrection required before application of the ban?

While not directly raised by the appeal, the Court should take the opportunity to state what the standard of proof should be for a suit under Section 3. Is it the preponderance of the evidence standard usually used in civil cases or the higher “clear and convincing” standard required in fraud and similar cases?   

I believe the Court will likely hold that (1) the president is subject to Section 3; (2) the courts have jurisdiction; but (3) reverse and remand the case to the Colorado courts for a full trial on the merits, hopefully with an instruction on which standard of proof to use. Thus, far from being resolved, this legal controversy will continue to fester through and possibly after the 2024 election.

Here’s where it becomes ugly. While the Supreme Court can eliminate these initial issues, this means the various challenges at the state level will continue through the election.  A final decision may not even be reached before the November election. Thus, in November American voters would have to choose between Joe Biden with all of his physical infirmities and unpopularity, and a candidate who may be disqualified from assuming office at any time during the election. If Trump nevertheless wins, he may then be refused office despite the results.  We would see an unprecedented constitutional crisis that deprives the new president of any legitimacy and cripples the nation during one of the most perilous series of domestic and international crises in American history.

This issue must be settled promptly and before the November election. Moreover, it is too important to be decided in piecemeal fashion at the state court level. Congress has the power to avoid this chaos by providing that Section 3 claims be brought exclusively before a three-judge federal court with any appeal going directly to the Supreme Court. This process already exists for certain civil rights cases under 28 USC Section 2284.  The applicability of Section 3 to a presidential candidate certainly involves a fundamental constitutional right. However, it would still require an amendment to the current statute to implement it.  Congress should immediately pass legislation to apply Section 2284 to Fourteenth Amendment Section 3 claims to save the country from the pain a prolonged, fractious litigation of this issue would inflict on our already fragile political system. 

General, Politics, Uncategorized

Looking Back, Looking Forward

Like the Roman god after it was named, January is a time for looking back and looking forward. This site began because it believed that nationalism was the most important motive force in modern international relations. The best way for the United States to survive in such a world was to seek a realist foreign policy designed to preserve its own national security and, at the same time, strengthen the nation by addressing long-standing domestic problems. It would involve the kind of sacrifice and commitment by America that Theodore Roosevelt lived and advocated, which is why he is invoked on the banner of the site. 

The failures of our government in the last two years result from our political elite to accept this reality.  With a few exceptions, Trump only paid lip service to this reality while feeding  a dangerous American ethnic nationalism that became traitorous in the end. Biden was always going to be a transitional figure, especially after the Democrats lost seats in the congressional elections. Instead of accepting a role as a non-partisan unifier, Biden pursued an agenda designed to preserve the old vision of liberal hegemony while trying to placate the warring wings of the Democratic Party. The mismanaged Afghan withdrawal, the immigration disaster at the border and inflationary pressures all stem from this misguided strategy. Biden was most successful when he pursued policies left over from the Trump Administration such as the COVID relief bill and the bi-partisan infrastructure bill.

Both parties currently suffer from deep divisions that hobble them from developing a clear and successful nationalist strategy for the nation. Those of us who believe in TR’s vision of a progressive (not democratic socialist) nationalism need to begin identifying the policies and then the candidates, regardless of party, to support in those elections. One of our goals for this year is to build on the American Nationalist Voting Index used for the 2020 presidential campaign to develop a similar index you can use to rate candidates in the congressional elections. Eventually, it will serve as the basis of a new nationalist platform for the 2024 presidential election. I also will expand the New Nationalism News feature to keep you up to date on issues ignored by the mainstream media. A new subscription service will also be offered so you can receive posts directly in your e-mail box. 

I am honored and humbled by those of you who have followed and liked the site up to now. I hope to make it a more consistently helpful and inspiring source of information in the upcoming year. 

2020 Election, General, Politics

Whither American Nationalism Now?

As we move on after the wreckage of the Trump administration, this call to courage from Theodore Roosevelt is both sobering and hopeful.  Nationalists made a mistake in putting their hopes in Donald Trump.  He damaged the nationalist brand, but not irreparably. The occasional successes of the last four years point the way to repairing the damage and rebuilding it on a positive policy platform. 

First, we have to accept the reality of the damage. True American nationalism seeks to build a common American identity across cultural and other boundaries. Instead, Donald Trump associated it an ugly white ethnic nationalism that fed identity politics, rather than fighting it.  A movement to create a progressive conservatism that strengthened America and the middle class instead enacted a major tax cut that benefited globalist corporations without requiring any corresponding investment in the nation. (see this previous post). Worse, it ended, not with a celebration of American culture and symbols, but with a sickening attack on the Capitol building, one of the citadels of American freedom itself.

However, there are unmistakable signs of success amidst these failures. The blue wave anticipated by Democrats never really materialized.  As this article illustrates, Trump’s nationalist trade and immigration policies were popular not only with white voters, but also minority voters. The shift towards a realist foreign policy and the withdrawals from Afghanistan and the Middle East caused heartburn among mainstream neocons and liberal hegemonists, but fulfilled Trump’s major foreign policy promises. All of this forced candidate Biden to talk about buying American, creating good jobs and getting tough on China. Thus, while Trump’s rhetoric often failed to meet the reality, there were still solid accomplishments.

American nationalists now need to hold President Biden and Vice-President Harris accountable for results that matches their rhetoric. Biden’s Democratic Party is still led by a Senate majority leader that represents Wall Street and a Vice President and Speaker of the House from the headquarters of Silicon Valley and Big Tech. Their goal of union-wage level jobs is commendable, but will be worthless if companies shift production to China and elsewhere overseas as they did during the Obama Administration. Calls for unity are nice, but are hypocritical if they result in a new woke identity politics that essentially is a left-wing echo of Trump’s ethnic nationalism.

In order to recover from this setback, American nationalists need to highlight our common concerns by building coalitions across party and other boundaries. If Biden pursues policies that really create secure good-paying jobs that strengthen America, we should cheer for and support such policies.  We also should remember the old maxim that all politics is local and start to build grass-roots organizations at the city, county and local level. Finally, we should avoid social issues so long as tolerance is observed on both sides.  

TR’s life was a study in indomitable courage against seemingly insurmountable odds, whether political, intellectual or military.  He experienced numerous failures as well as historic successes. As fellow American nationalists, we are called to pick ourselves up and continue the fight for a strong America and the American Dream for all.