Maybe when you were a three-year-old you were fortunate enough to have a mother who sometimes kept an eye on you when you played with others. She might come over and tell you to play fair when she noticed conflicts arising. Be honest and nice with your friends and no cheating she would say.
She had two reasons to intervene when kids were breaking the rules. First, she wanted to teach basic ethics. Second, she wanted to avoid a squabble, crying and misery.
Today America is confronted with many conservative politicians who, like little children refuse to play fair. They won’t be honest, and they insist that they can rewrite the rules of American elections to bend the advantage their way while disrespecting other candidates and the voters themselves.
Then they pretend that rewriting the rules mid-game is somehow virtuous and patriotic if their crowds of supporters seem to agree. If fact they are childish thieves and their opponents are put in position to oppose outrageous, ridiculous, democracy threatening behavior.
I’m talking about republican Kari Lake of Arizona, Mark Finchem of Arizona, Kristina Karamoof of Michigan and others who follow Donald Trump and who parrot his strategic lies about the 2020 election being suspect because Donald lost. These politicians have openly announced that they will only accept the outcome of the 2022 and 2024 elections if they win. Only if they win. If they don’t they plan to foment a constitutional crisis.
It’s time for their mothers to come to them and tell them to play fair. Play by the rules. You can’t change the election rules by shouting and having a temper tantrum. The rules of our democracy elections are sacred. If elections involve cheating, forgone winners selected by a certain crowd, then the credibility of our entire government falls apart. Everything the government does will become suspect, not only at home but abroad. This is called tyranny.
Strangely, we see that republicans can win elections honestly. They don’t need to cheat. While Trump habitually cheats in everything, there is no reason for lower ticket politicians to copy his methods. They can win without it.
It is understandable that Donald Trump refused to accept his defeat in 2020. His failure was verified by multiple courts including the Supreme Court packed with his appointees. Trump is a severe narcissist who insists on being always the center of attention. His entire world view requires him to win, even if winning means cheating. He doesn’t seek victory, he seeks to dominate and stay center stage, even if doing so means permanently damaging our country and going down in history as a thief and a crook.
Look at the charges his company and he personally is facing in New York State where his business has been for decades. He is accused of cheating his creditors and cheating the state and federal tax collectors. He lied about the value of his company, his properties, and his own personal bank account. In other words, his entire business life has been baked in fraud.
Then we have January 6th, where he created a faux revolution among anti-American supporters who used violence to try to steal the presidency from the American people. This was a grand scheme of lies, deceit, violence and ultimately murder. But for Trump it was worth it to stay center stage and continue to dominate. He cares nothing about his country. He cares nothing about anyone other than himself.
This is a man who is so self-absorbed and devious that he has no integrity. He won’t play by the rules, and he insists that his lawyers protect him when he is caught cheating. He has hundreds of lawyers protecting him from his malfeasance on multiple fronts. Some of them are in legal trouble themselves for violating ethical standards on his behalf. And it all comes back to Trump’s narcissism and a rotten upbringing.
But this is no excuse for Kari Lake and the others who now want to cheat the same way Donald does. If they can’t win an election honestly, they should go away. If they imagine a majority of Americans worship Trump and thus his disciples they are in a dark fantasy world. Tens of millions of us don’t worship them or their views. We don’t agree that MAGA views are more important than American democracy. These people are not compelling or attractive. Their ideas are run-of-the-mill right-wing ideas except for their authoritarian obsessions. They must win on the power of their ideas, not by threatening the system with a tantrum and a hoard of Trump followers who could get violent.
Basically, these Trump followers present a law-enforcement problem for America. We need the courts, the police, and maybe the national guard to bring them and their gun toting followers to their senses. We need the voters to send them packing on election night.
Just like when my mother who used to break up our games when we squabbled and cheated, these adolescent politicians need discipline, reprimand, and to be shown the door.
Tom Ribe
