President Carter lying in State; For a moment I felt like I was back in a dignified America that honors morality and who we were meant to be as Americans.
TAT readers,
This is truly a very short post, but I felt the need to add a thought or two on the ceremonial celebration of President Jimmy Carter’s, “lying in state” event, televised yesterday. My feelings, sometimes diametrically opposed between pain at the loss of an extraordinary American leader that embraced our true values so innately and the absence of morality of the incoming administration. America has always honored our presidents, some more deserving than others. My first experience like yesterday was in first grade when I watched President Kennedy’s riderless horse and the Army caisson drawing his casket to the Capital. This is what we do in America.
The juxtaposition of the Capital yesterday to the Trumpian/ GOP carnage of January 6th, 2021, was startling. The TV coverage within the Capitol Rotunda, showed distinct discomfort on the faces of the senior Republican leaders in attendance. Chief Justice John Robert, Senators John Thune, Ted Cruz and especially Speaker Mike Johnson, knew in their hearts that they are selling out everything that our nation and preeminently, President Carter stood for prior to their control of our government and support of our most immoral POTUS and his extremist GOP colleagues. I saw it on their faces clearly and I am quite sure that I am not the only one.
Then, there was the Trump, Trust Social tweet:
This realization painted in shame and greed across their faces stood in stark contrast to the noble dignity afforded all previous presidents. I could not imagine offering Trump such a dignified parting. The sheer magnificence of our Capital and surrounding buildings, military honors of the most prestigious kind and solemn respect for all honest Americans, swelled my own heart to near bursting with the pride I have always had for our nation of human values, until Trump/ MAGA. Then, reality took hold, and I tearfully pondered the shame and horror of what lies ahead when the nation inaugurates the most immoral man and party to ever walk the floors of the White House and Congress.
Deep down, I believe our constitutional republic will hold but like the civil war, the wounds will leave painful, enduring scars and a wake of destructive horror for us and the rest of the world’s democracies.
We are better than electing a serial sexual predator, felon, insurrectionist and grifter that is now selling out his base in order to enrich himself and his oligarchical buddies, US, Russian and otherwise. President Carter showed us who we are and now, it’s up to us to restore the US dignity that swelled my heart yesterday, even if only for a brief moment. For those few minutes, I felt like I was back in America.
My best for your day,
Paul
