I wasn’t a fan of George W. Bush, describing him in 2000 as “the least distinguished and least respected man to assume the presidency in modern times.”
But I also wasn’t among those who questioned his legitimacy as president after he lost the popular vote to Al Gore and narrowly won the Electoral College on a disputed 537-vote win
in Florida, decided by a Republican-
majority U.S. Supreme Court.
“Bush won as fair and square as we were able to get it,” I wrote. “Let’s give the ‘Dumbya’ jokes a rest, show him a little respect and judge him by the job he does.”
I also accepted the legitimacy of Donald Trump’s election in 2016 and agreed he was due a fair chance.
So Republicans can’t accuse me of hypocrisy now when I suggest party leaders accept the clear election of Joe Biden over Trump and stand up for the peaceful transfer of power that defines our democracy.
Nearly three weeks after the election, GOP claims that Trump deserves time to process his loss and pursue fruitless conspiracy theories wear thin.
He’s not a 5-year-old who lost the biggest egg at an
Easter hunt and needs space to sulk while he tears the house apart. It’s time for Mitch McConnell &Co. to draw a line.
The 2000 dispute was over one state and a difference
of a few hundred votes. For Trump to overturn Biden’s Electoral College lead of 306 to 232, he’d have to flip three states among Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, which Biden won by margins of 10,000
to 156,000 votes.
With final tabulations supporting the accuracy of results and his legal challenges failing, Trump could succeed only by corrupt means, such as pressuring GOP legislators to discard election results and give him electors he didn’t win.
It’s almost certain to fail because of the vast number of legal hurdles that would require a total breakdown of our constitutional integrity to clear.
Is it worth it to Republican leaders to blow up our free elections to salve Trump’s ego?
Republicans are hardly powerless if they lose the presidency. They still control the Senate barring an unexpected double loss in January’s Georgia runoffs, gained seats in the House and have a 6-3 Supreme Court majority. Another shot at the White House is only four years away.
Trump’s cries of American ruin if he goes are just more of the tiresome melodrama that contributed to his defeat at the polls.
He can’t be forced to personally cooperate with the Biden transition, which is fine, but cooler GOP heads owe it to our constitutional traditions to unlock the information and resources Biden needs to smoothly assume office Jan. 20.
We all need to wean ourselves from the Chicken Little mentality that’s becoming baked into our national DNA.
Reach David Shapiro at volcanicash@gmail.com.
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