America's Banana Republic

August 26, 2024

Donald Trump believes that if he loses the November election, it will be because the voting was rigged. He made the same preemptive statement in 2020 and, after he lost, started his “stop the steal” crusade, designed to nullify Joe Biden’s victory. Trump, then President, launched an unprecedented effort to overturn the result by pressuring electoral officials, suing, claiming voting machines were rigged, stating that fraud was rampant, and declaring that an international conspiracy was involved. He capped it off by fomenting the country’s first insurrection attempt on January 6. His mob stormed the Capitol Building, and he watched the violence on television for hours, refusing to call in the National Guard. Six were killed, hundreds were wounded, 1,265 were charged, and 460 were jailed. The mayhem soiled America’s reputation as a peaceful democracy. He stated this time that he wouldn’t recognize a Kamala Harris win because her candidacy is illegitimate and unconstitutional. “We had a candidate — I was no fan of Joe Biden — but the way he was taken out was a coup [d’etat]. Her nomination, in the absence of winning a primary, threatens democracy.”