By Donnie Johnston, ADVANCE COLUMNIST
We are less than a week away from the much-anticipated mid-term elections.
The importance of this election has been well documented, and that importance cannot be understated. This could be the most important mid-term since 1858, an election that brought a Republican majority to power in the United States House of Representatives and led to the Civil War.
Some believe that this election could take us to the same end.
This election is all about Donald Trump, not the economy, as some have suggested. HHis name is not on the ballot, but make no mistake: It is all about the president. If this was only implied at first, Trump made it official during his mid-term convention speech in Texas several weeks ago.
Trump told Republicans and other would-be converts to “vote as if I was on the ballot.” Many Republicans will follow his directive without question.
This election is about Trump’s power. He wants to maintain it; many Americans want to curb it. There is little middle ground.
Trump understands the implications of a Democratic victory. As House Speaker Mike Johnson has warned on numerous occasions, a Democratic takeover of Congress will almost certainly mean that the president—and likely many in his cabinet—will be impeached and face criminal investigations.
That, of course, would be unprecedented, and throw the federal government into turmoil. Where this would end is anyone’s guess, but, given the events of Jan. 6, 2021, there is fear that it will result in violence.
In fact, emotions in this country are running so high that rioting might be expected no matter how the mid-terms turn out and police and other state and federal authorities are preparing accordingly. The insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021 caught too many law enforcement agencies off guard and that won’t happen again.
The first question we must consider is whether Trump will attempt to interfere with next week’s election. Then, will Trump and MAGA Republicans concede defeat should Democrats prevail? They didn’t in 2021 when they stormed the Capitol and they might not again this year. Trump, who has already challenged an election in Alaska, will almost certainly declare any Democratic victories that result in the shift of the balance of power as invalid and fraught with fraud. That is his modus operandi.
Democrats - and a growing number of Republicans—cannot fathom two more years of a Republican Congress rubberstamping everything Trump wants, no matter how crazy or illegal. They can’t wait to gain control of Congress and get their pound of flesh.
For people like me, neither a Democrat nor a Republican (or a liberal or conservative), these are tough elections. It used to be that I voted for the person, but that is not possible anymore. These days the candidate is so party oriented that he or she doesn’t dare think for himself but rather follows the party line rather than his conscience.
Over the years I have voted for both Republicans and Democrats as I sought to choose someone who would represent everyone fairly. Candidates no longer represent the people. They are puppets of a political party.
Donald Trump has openly admitted this, stating on numerous occasions that he hates Democrats, which make up half the voting public. Former presidents, even in the most turbulent political climates, have taken the high road, put politics aside once elected and promised to represent all the people. Trump has taken the low road and will continue to travel there if not stopped.
There are Republicans I would be tempted to vote for, but I won’t because the GOP has shown me that its candidate, if elected, will bow to Trump and do his bidding. Given the current state of foreign and domestic affairs, I cannot take a chance.
On the other hand, there are Democrats which ordinarily would get my vote because they are good people. Still, they, like the Republicans, will sell their souls to the party instead of thinking and acting on their own. So, people like me are left shaking their heads.
But I cannot stand by and watch Trump and his mafia destroy the country I care about. Two more years of uncontrolled Trump will put the United States in a hole from which it may never climb out. We are already a nation in decline. We must do something to stop the acceleration downward.
I said in April that Trump’s attack on Iran was the beginning of World War III. I still see a nation led by Donald Trump headed in that direction
As I said earlier, this may be America’s most important mid-term election since 1858. The outcome may well decide the future of this nation—and the world.
Let’s just hope the outcome, whatever it is, doesn’t end in violence.
OMG, what will we write about when Trump is gone. What will we protest? That phrase "This Is the Most Consequential Midterm Election," has been over used. It has been used as far back as 2000 according to google. Just get out and vote and then live with the results. Get over yourself.