Commentary
I must admit I’ve been one of the chatterati bashing the House and Senate Republicans about why they haven’t repealed and replaced Obamacare yet, and if they will ever make good on the tax cuts, the border wall, and the immigration reform that President Trump promised the American people.
After all, it’s fun for us outside of the beltway to sit around and talk with like-minded folk about the laziness and greed of those inside Washington D.C. It’s even fun for some of us with thicker skin to go to events or go on-camera with those who disagree with us and debate the Right vs. Left and Conservative vs. Liberal points of view. For us it’s talk. Granted, we all take the use of our tax dollars seriously, but it’s not usually a life or death topic of discussion for most of us.
President Trump and Republicans announce passage of the American Health Care Act. May 4, 2017
But it dawns on me that maybe it is a life or death situation for some of our members of Congress. Maybe we’re being a little too hard on the people many of us have dubbed as “spineless.” Even if we don’t know exactly what goes on behind closed doors in Washington, we can guess. With trillions, yes trillions of dollars at stake, it’s guaranteed that there are people out there who take what’s going on in Washington very seriously and that it’s not just fun debate time for them.
There are some, no doubt, who have made promises of money, work, weapons, equipment, technology and who knows what else to some blood thirsty people who would not hesitate to destroy their lives and those of their families if the deals do not go through. And if the “dignitaries” who made those deals before Trump swept into office find their lives or livelihoods in jeopardy, well guess what, they will do everything in their power to stay alive, keep their families alive, keep their livelihoods going, and keep their reputations in tact. And there are those who maybe don’t care about a great reputation or who may even want a reputation of ruthlessness to make sure everyone knows you don’t mess with them. It may sound like Hollywood movies and TV crime shows, but we all know that there are some truly horrible people at the helm of power in D.C., who are probably guilty of terrible crimes.
I’ve been thinking about writing this article for weeks if not months. I planned to crush those “do-nothing” Republicans in the halls of Congress with my logic and wit, and let them know that they MUST take a stand. That they must get rid of their corrupt ways and their greed and do the job, support the president, and get to work on behalf of the American people. Yes, I planned to tell them that it is now time to take courage! Stand up against the people who may have blackmailed them; tell them it’s time to admit their sins, resign from Congress and leave with maybe a shred of dignity, by taking control of the situation.
But I started thinking today that maybe those Congress “critters” need a little compassion. Maybe they’re trapped. Maybe there are some who would love to walk away, but they can’t, because it’s not just their jobs, or even their lives on the line. Maybe the lives of their loved ones are also at stake. Because of one bad decision they made. Or maybe the decision was made for them the second they walked into Congress.
Scene of the aftermath of the shooting in Alexandria, Virginia on June 14, 2017.
One recent event brings that sobering potential reality to mind and makes me re-think my disdain for the people in Congress who are seemingly making what should be easy tasks taken up by the majority into monumental burdens. The baseball shooting in Alexandria, Virginia. Representative Steve Scalise’s life hangs in the balance after a gunman shot at the team practicing for a charity baseball event. He asked someone if the players were Republicans or Democrats before he opened fire.
I had planned to write that even if they were in danger, each of those Congress folk should be willing to give up their life, because whoever was holding something over them, couldn’t kill them all. The baseball game shooting proved me wrong. These horrible, demonic people can kill them all. And if they’re willing to go after some of the highest, mightiest people in the land, what would keep them from going after their families too? And who would these congress people be to decide the fate of the people they consider to be loved ones, and whether those folks live or die? I don’t know anyone who would willingly make that choice for the people in their lives.
It’s easy for me to sit here in the comfort of my own little world and write for them to just stand up and face the evil head on. I guess ultimately that’s what our Founding Fathers did. They risked their lives and yes, the lives of their families to walk away from the corrupt, demented people that would hold them in bondage. But that seems so far removed from us now. It was so long ago, and we have romanticized their journey, their sacrifice, and their battles. The shooting in Alexandria brings everything to a jarring modern day jolt. Congress is not made up of only people who turn pork laden bills into law. They’re not all just skipping through their town centers throwing our tax dollars around for popularity, for re-election, and to have buildings named after them, which is all bad enough. Some of them may really, truly, actually be in a life and death fight for themselves and for their loved ones.
So maybe this is the front of the new American Revolution. Does anyone doubt that a war is presently under way in our country? There are people waging war against the President of the United States, desperately trying to bring down his administration, declare the 2016 election null and void and award the presidency to his challenger. Blood has already been shed in this war. I believe the baseball shooting and the multiple deaths of people who may have been whistleblowers, prosecutors, and messengers with information that would have damaged the president’s enemies prove that point.
Prayer for USA
The only ray of hope I can find in this bleak situation, the answer to this kind of evil is the intervention of God Himself. So let us all believing, praying people get down on our knees daily and pray for Congress, pray that our president can purge our nation’s capitol of the evil within, and pray that all the enemies of freedom and of this great country fall into their own traps.
And when the congressional prisoners are freed from their chains, we should also pray that they know it and act accordingly.