The Purge Begins …

Posted on by under Law and justice, Political commentary

President Richard Nixon kept an “enemies list”, the purpose of which was to “screw” Nixon’s political enemies, by means of tax audits from the Internal Revenue Service, and by manipulating “grant availability, federal contracts, litigation, prosecution, etc.”  According to then-White House counsel John Dean …

“This memorandum addresses the matter of how we can maximize the fact of our incumbency in dealing with persons known to be active in their opposition to our Administration; stated a bit more bluntly—how we can use the available federal machinery to screw our political enemies.”

At one point, there were as many as 576 names on Nixon’s list.  Some have jokingly referred to Trump’s own ‘enemies list’.  It is no longer a joking matter.  While Nixon sought to punish his ‘enemies’ through such things as tax audits, Trump uses no subterfuge, no circuities.

In a 1992 interview with Charlie Rose, Donald Trump said …

“I love getting even when I get screwed by someone … Always get even. When you are in business you need to get even with people who screw you. You need to screw them back 15 times harder. You do it not only to get the person who messed with you but also to show the others who are watching what will happen to them if they mess with you. If someone attacks you, do not hesitate. Go for the jugular.”

 When he did a television program called The Apprentice, apparently his buzz line was “You’re fired!”  He used that three times yesterday, and unless I miss my guess, he intends to use it a few more times.

First, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman was fired from his role as the top Ukraine policy officer on the National Security Council and was escorted from the White House.  At the same time, his brother Lieutenant Colonel Yevgeny Vindman was also fired from his NSC job.

A few hours later, Trump ordered U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, Gordan Sondland, recalled from his post and fired.

Alexander Vindman and Gordon Sondland’s only ‘crime’ was that they told the truth.  Both testified in the impeachment hearings held by the House last fall … an act Trump claims was ‘disloyal’ to him.  Funny that … I always believed that any government official’s loyalty was to the nation and to We the People, not to the person occupying the Oval Office.  Yevgeny’s only crime, apparently, was being Alexander’s brother.

The day after the Senate voted to acquit Trump of his crimes, White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham, who never holds press briefings, said …

“… how horribly he was treated, and maybe people should pay for that.”

It seems the Trump purge has begun.  Of the twelve people who testified against Trump in the impeachment hearings, only three remain in their positions:  David Holmes, a diplomat at the U.S. embassy in Ukraine; Laura Cooper, a deputy assistant secretary at the Pentagon; and George Kent, a deputy assistant secretary of state.  Will their heads roll next?

Others on his ‘enemies list’ no doubt include various members of Congress, starting with Mitt Romney, the only senator with the courage to vote to convict Trump on one of the articles of impeachment, Jerry Nadler, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Adam Schiff, Joe Manchin and others.  Since Trump cannot fire a member of Congress, one wonders how he plans to extract his ‘revenge’.  Think about this one for a few minutes, folks.  The aforementioned Stephanie Grisham stated earlier this week …

“Adam Schiff lied to Congress and the American people with a totally made up statement about the president’s phone call. Will there be no retribution?”

It should be noted that a threat was made on Adam Schiff’s life earlier this year.  And then there was this statement by Jeff Buckles, a police department assistant chief in the Alabama town of Geraldine …

“Pelosi just ripped up his speach [sic]. Road Side bomb on her way home and any other Dumbocrats.”

Hyperbole?  Probably, but troubling, nonetheless.  Remember Cesar Sayoc, who sent pipe bombs through the mail to Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and other democrats?  Remember Jarrod Ramos who shot and killed five employees at the Capital Gazette in Annapolis Maryland in 2018?  In the divisive atmosphere in this nation today, and with so many avid Trumpeters determined to keep their hero in office, and with more guns in the hands of civilians than there are people in the entire nation … what could possibly go wrong?  Trump has convinced his base, some 40% of adults in the nation, that he is their savior, that he is great and has made their lives somehow better.  He riles the masses at his rallies and in his speeches.  This is a toxic situation.

One report I read claims a “person in the know” said former national security advisor John Bolton is at or near the top of the list.  No doubt there are others, perhaps some in the press, perhaps some who testified but have already left the administration, such as Fiona Hill, the Europe policy chief at the National Security Council, and Kurt D. Volker, the special envoy for Ukraine.

I don’t care if you identify as a Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative, or none of the above … you must be incensed by this purge!  This is not normal and we simply cannot turn a blind eye and allow it to become normal!  Never in my life did I imagine that this country would stoop so low, would become, in essence, a tin pot dictatorship, yet for all intents and purposes, that is what we have become.  It is a dark day for the United States.  Keep your eye on the ball, folks, for this is only the beginning.darkness

56 thoughts on “The Purge Begins …”

  1. Pingback: Some Not-Too-Snarky Snippets | Filosofa's Word

  2. Pingback: The Purge Continues … | Filosofa's Word

  3. Excellent post, Jill. As I read through it, I had a yearning for Nixon… whose vindictiveness paled beside Trump’s. I can’t imagine Trump resigning after being told he would lose the vote in the Senate – as Nixon did. Dark days indeed!

    Liked by 1 person

    • Thanks John!!! I know just what you mean. And, at least Nixon was intelligent and really did some good things during his tenure, especially in the area of foreign relations, plus he started the Environmental Protection Agency. Only things Trump has done have been destructive. Dark days and likely to get darker, I fear.

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  5. Fortunately the majority of the Nation will not see it as being for the sake of the Nation.Those that he’s sacking are being inconvenienced and it won’t be easy for them. His maliciousness will have to go further with some as he can’t sack them. I’d keep an eye on the whereabouts of Jared Kucher and the Trump Children as Trump won’t do his own dirty work.
    Cwtch

    Liked by 1 person

    • That’s true, but anymore it seems that the majority doesn’t count … only those who swear an oath of fealty to King Donnie have a voice. Vindman has an attorney, so I’m hoping he’s planning to give Trump some grief. No, he doesn’t have to do his own dirty work, for he has filled his administration with boot-lickers who will gladly do it for him. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
      Cwtch

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    • Yes, Padre, we seem not to be wearing the rose-coloured glasses that some 40% of the people in this country are wearing. I’m currently re-reading “The Rise and Fall of Adolf Hitler” by William Shirer. Lots of similarities in the way the two think.

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  7. This is much worse that “a toxic situation.” Our country has long past that stage. Based on my experience growing up under a dictatorship government, supported by the American government, the GOP will rig the voting system to stay in power. They have already been busy putting their plan into play.

    Liked by 3 people

    • You’re right … it has passed that point. The GOP is already working to rig the system, to disenfranchise as many poor and minority voters as possible, to remove people from the voter registration roles, to spread disinformation, and the list goes on. My fear, now that Trump has basically been told he is free to do whatever he wishes and none will stop him, is that if he senses he may not win, he may find some ‘reason’ to postpone or cancel November’s election. Someone said to me, “No, that can’t happen … it would be unconstitutional”. I just rolled my eyes. Sigh.

      Liked by 2 people

        • People not only don’t fully grasp it, but … many simply don’t care! I heard a ‘man-on-the-street’ interview a day or so ago, where the interviewer asked a lady if she believed Trump would make himself a dictator, and she said that as long as the economy remained strong, as long as she had a job, she didn’t care. Far too many people have failed to learn the lessons of history from the 1930s and are, rather, so self-focused that they are unable and unwilling to see the larger picture. I very much dread what comes next, and I know that no matter how hard I fight, I cannot stop it … and yet still, I cannot stop fighting to wake the masses, to yell “FIRE”, for our house truly is afire.

          Liked by 1 person

  8. My advice to my fellow Americans who are incensed by all of this is to prepare for the fight of all fights. Republicans have shown their strategy. They are all in 100% on Trump and his methods.

    Democrats need to quit fighting among each other and fight the onslaught to the country and Constitution. Stop bickering over what’s liberal and what’s not. Find one candidate that people can gain up support for and let everyone else work on policy issues.

    Liked by 6 people

    • I fully agree! I didn’t watch last night’s debate, but watched several clips today and I was disgusted with all the bickering among the candidates. If ever there was a time to unify, it’s now. They are shooting themselves in the foot … feet. And, the Iowa caucuses didn’t help one bit.

      Liked by 1 person

  9. The King is hard at work Jill-shredding the Constitution, seeking retribution and revenge. We should all be VERY scared at what’s happening. I’m so glad Susan Collins was ‘concerned.’ UGH

    Liked by 5 people

  10. Trump said he could get away with killing someone on 5th Avenue. Well, seems he will be killing people, possibly right in the White House. Will he get away with that? He will with Barr in the AG seat. And if Barr says something, Trump will kill him too!

    Liked by 3 people

    • Sigh. We have come to the point that I cannot rule that out. Used to be, I would have said, “No, no, can’t happen … we have checks and balances … a Congress, a Supreme Court.” But now, all of the above seem to be just more of Trump’s supporters, his yes-men, his “go-behind-and-clean-up-shit” men/women. Barr won’t say anything … he’s already been bought and paid for.

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  11. I “liked” this post only because I agree with what you’ve written. But I most definitely do not “like” what’s happening — and will continue to happen.

    What, to me, is most disturbing is that his followers are cheering on his actions. They are so totally dedicated to him and his get-even perspective on life, that I fear what could happen if certain of his supporters decide to take matters into their own hands. Some pooh-pooh the idea of an armed rebellion, but I’m not so sure.

    Liked by 4 people

    • That is what I find most disturbing as well. It speaks volumes about a portion of our society that they can so easily shed their values to support a ‘man’ who is ignorant, cruel, malevolent, a racist, a homophobe, a misogynist, an abuser of women, and who has shredded both his oath of office and the U.S. Constitution. I would not be surprised if his supporters take to the streets … with their guns … and he will be cheering them on via Fox ‘News’. But, first things first, let’s throw da bum out!

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  12. I was reminded of this quote on another blog: “There are none so blind as those who will not see.” If the vast majority of voters don’t wake up to this truth and see Trump and his enablers for who they are, you can kiss hope for the America our founders and better angels envisioned goodbye.

    Liked by 5 people

    • You are quite right, my friend. In 2015-2016, when I was working hard to convince people to vote for Hillary, I used that quote more than a few times. Another that seems apropos of the times is the Martin Niemöller quote, “First They Came …” It seems that many today are wearing those rose-coloured glasses and refuse to part with them.

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  14. Your words and your picture says it all. It is very scary! I agree with you! I believe that we are going to see the even nastier side of Trump now and that there will be some people whose eyes will finally be open to the tyrant that he is!!!

    Liked by 4 people

  15. Jill, we are on the same page this morning. There is an “l’m watching you quote” he delivered toward Senator Thom Tillis yesterday while Tillis was sitting there. I think Tillis realized fully at that moment the Pandora Box he helped open.

    Last night, at the end of Shields and Brooks’ comments on PBS Newshour about Trump’s egregious behavior, Jud Woodruff broke in and said Gordon Sondland had just been fired. They simply shook their heads. Keith

    Liked by 4 people

  19. Trump is a madman, a irreverent, vindictive, self absorbed puppet master. His father taught him well – bend the law, admit nothing, buy silence, reward loyalty, make examples of those who dare cross him and manipulate truth for personal gain. Can’t turn a blind eye? It’s too late!

    Liked by 3 people

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