By Al From
President Trump said on Meet the Press that success will be his retribution. That’s the problem.
I never want a president — even Trump — to fail. But I don’t want a president to fail the country, either.
They are not the same — especially with Trump. If Trump does well by the country, that’s one thing. But if he succeeds in much of what he says he wants to do, he’ll fail the country — and that is quite another.
To be absolutely clear, if he succeeds in reducing grocery prices and bringing order to the border, that’s good.
But if he succeeds in seeking retribution against his political enemies or really does try to put Liz Cheney, Bennie Thompson, and the members of the January 6th Committee in jail — where he said they belonged on Meet the Press — he will have failed the country and undermined our democracy.
If he succeeds in putting in place a director of the FBI who has called for prosecution (persecution) of a 60-person enemies list who he calls members of the deep state, Trump will have failed the country and undermined the rule of law.
If he succeeds with his appointment of a grossly unqualified and morally challenged secretary of defense, Trump will have failed our country and undermined our national security.
If he succeeds in putting in place a director of national intelligence who spouts Kremlin talking points and supports deposed Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, a DNI who would likely not get a security clearance, Trump will have failed the country and undermined our ability to gather vital intelligence in cooperation with our allies.
And, if he succeeds with his appointment of an anti-vaxxer, science-denying Secretary of Health and Human Services, Trump will have failed the country and endangered our public health.
Trump has told us what he wants. He has made all of those outrageously unqualified appointments.
Only Senate Republicans can stop him — by exercising the advice and consent power granted them in the Constitution. Democrats will be in the minority in the Senate. Because they unwisely gave up the filibuster on Cabinet officials a decade ago, they cannot block Trump’s appointments without Republican votes.
There’s no doubt a significant number of Senate Republicans are very uneasy about having to vote to confirm candidates they know are unqualified and potentially dangerous for sensitive positions. But they know that Trump and his MAGA allies will make their lives miserable — to the point of running a primary opponent against them in their next election — if they don’t roll over and support his nominees.
So far, despite the discomfort they’re undoubtedly feeling, no Senate Republicans have said publicly that they will vote against even one of the Trump appointments. Not one. So far, no profiles in courage in the GOP Caucus.
With confirmation hearings about to begin and so much at stake, we can only hope that will change.
Al From is the founder of the Democratic Leadership Council and the author of The New Democrats and Return to Power. He does regular commentary in The Spy Newspapers and The Political Whisperers.
