Trump is in trouble. His poll numbers
even those done by Fox are in the toilet. He is desperate. And like a
cornered rat he is becoming ever more dangerous and vicious. This law
'n order gambit worked for Nixon in '68 and '72. Portland is Trump's
test case. If it works there, it can used on demonstrations all
across the land. Street demonstrations made worse by police overreaction coupled with the criminally mishandled Pandemic could lead to an upward spiral of public anxiety beyond what now exists. BLM inspired
demonstrations are largely composed of peaceful types but mixed in
are some who see
themselves as serious revolutionaries and believe this is some kind
of 'October Revolution' moment and feel encouraged to engage in 'direct action'. Along with them are always opportunists who are out for a
little plunder and mayhem just for the fun of it. So property damage,
vandalism and looting (probably also abetted by pro-Trump agent
provocateurs) will enviably crop up in any large demonstration making
good television as well as alarming the good citizens of the politically centrist
burbs. Add to this the serious effort of BLM and their white
supporters to relieve the South of their statues that are tributes to
the old Confederacy as well as ugly reminders of the Jim Crow era.
Trump hopes this racial discord will
get people's minds off the fact that the Pandemic is totally out of
control. Any and all resulting mayhem can be blamed on the so-called
'Antifa' thus giving Trump a rationale to take another giant step
into 'Amerikan fascism'. So he has assembled without any authority
an armed-to-the-teeth camouflage clad corp of 'American federalies'
to wade in and exacerbate things if the local cops don't. A
feedback loop of violence is thus created. The more Trump's new
Federalies beat, gas and extra-legally arrest people, the more
concerned progressive types feel compelled to come out and
demonstrate. And thus the more possibilities for random property
damage incidents to occur. Trump is hoping for many Portlands across
the land so he can have both an election issue and take another giant
step closer to a full-on police state. The House Democrats must fight
back. But with the Senate still in Trump-enabling GOP hands, the
House's authority over the budget is Nancy Pelosi's only weapon. But,
alas, passing a relief bill ASAP is paramount. The need to provide financial
support for the millions of American who are suffering from the economic carnage of this Pandemic will hold
hostage any important budgetary confrontation to Trump's latest dangerous power
grab. Thus we slowly inexorably descend into a post-democratic state.
