Just a Matter of Time

Chris Cillizza misses one "bucket" but still makes very good points, prompted in part when 

Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski appeared for a discussion earlier this week at the annual leadership summit of The Foraker Group at what the Anchorage Daily News described as "the state's largest gathering of nonprofit and tribal leaders."  

(Note the accuracy: not "Indians" or "native Americans" but "tribal" individuals.)

The ADN emphasized Murkowski's comments regarding  "the tumult of tariffs, executive orders, court battles, and cuts to federal services under the Trump Administration" or as the Senator herself put it, "the fatigue of the chaos." The Alaska Republican noted that the emerging House budget bill includes "devastating" cuts in Medicaid and health care reductions which would be a "nonstarter for me."

Nonetheless and understandably, national pundits emphasized Murkowski's comment

We are all afraid It's quite a statement. But we are in a time and a place where i certainly have not been here before. And I'll tell ya, I'm oftentimes very anxious myself about using my voice because retaliation is real. And that's not right.

This is consistent with the Senator's remarks in March when she stated

I'm going to take- take the criticism that comes and it may be- it may be that Elon Musk has decided he's going to take the next billion dollars that he makes off of Starlink and put it directly against Lisa Murkowski.... 

They're looking at how- how many things have been thrown at me and say "maybe I just better duck and cover." That's why you've got- why you've got everybody just like 'zip lip'- not saying a word because they're afraid they're going to be taken down; they're going to be primaried. They're going to be uh, they're going to be given names in the media.....

That would place Murkowski, whose recent remarks prompted this video by veteran Chris Cillizza, in "bucket" #2 cited by the veteran journalist/pundit.

Cillizza enumerates three buckets of GOP elected officials who do not speak out about Donald Trump . The first of these is comprised of individuals, most of whom rose in politics when or shortly after Trump did, who actually like the President. The second includes persons such as Murkowski who fear political retribution, who would be criticized and attacked by the President who, more importantly, would support a primary candidate against the incumbent.

Democratic professionals, elected officials, ex-officials, strategists, and- to a lesser extent- media figures emphasize the second group. Most of them not being stupid, they realize many GOP officials agree with Donald Trump but choose to believe Republicans are, in their very core, fine people. Given that the Democratic officials must work with those Republicans and that the media cannot offend them lest they refuse to appear before their cameras on their shows, their naivete/and or disingenuousness is nearly as understandable as it is lamentable.

Cillizza fails to recognize one significant group, or "bucket." Thee are many Republicans who disagree with the President and even recognize the harm he is doing to the country and to their own constituents but who realize their political viability is tied in with the credibility of their party Such credibility, unfortunately, is diminished when members of a political party squabble with each other- or even question their leader's direction.

Responsibility for that lies with the mainstream media. Journalists and broadcast personalities emphasize the divisiveness within the Republican or Democratic parties when politicians within that party aren't singing from the same hymnbook. It's portrayed as evidence of both uncertainty and weakness. Whether a sense of "we sink or swim together" or of sunk cost, a lot of Republicans believe that they're just in too deep to get out.

Nonetheless, it's far less consequential that Cillizza doesn't acknowledge this than his awareness of, even emphasis on, his third bucket.

Cillizza notes that some Republicans fear not only political retribution but physical retaliation. Speaking out (or of course, voting against) the President "subjects the member to the real possibility of physical violence." Intimidation obviously is an integral part of this, yet a "threat you don't hear about."

It's more a threat than a physical reality, Cillizza concedes. However, though largely disregarded in the media, the threats are now so clear and widespread that disastrous political violence is nearly inevitable. The hatred, viciousness, and cruelty are now ingrained in the right. So is the belief that the President of the USA, friend to January 6 criminals, who states that he is "retribution" and who asserts the right to violate any law he chooses would approve of virtually any action of theirs.

As recalled by mycentraljersey, the son of  US District Judge Esther Salas was murdered when  

On July 19, 2020, 72-year-old Roy Den Hollander, a self-proclaimed anti-feminist attorney who had a case before Salas, went to the family's home dressed as a delivery person with the intent of attacking the judge....

When both Daniel and his father, attorney Mark Anderl, answered the door, the gunman opened fire. Daniel was killed and his father was seriously injured.

Now, in a story largely ignored outside of the small portion of the small state in which the murder took place

Salas said at least a dozen pizzas have been delivered to judges across the country in her son's name.

The pizzas are being ordered online through chains like Pizza Hut, Papa John's and Domino's that allow cash on delivery, as well as DoorDash.

According to Salas, a colleague received back-to-back pizza deliveries at 10:30 p.m. one evening when family members were already asleep. She said the pizzas were sent in her son's name.

Salas views the deliveries as a strategic, coordinated plan with the goal of intimidating judges.

"Who is doing it, we don't know," said the judge who wants to see the people responsible brought to justice.

The "unprecedented attacks" on judges come as some Republican members of Congress and others with social media platforms have called for some judges to be impeached because they are ruling against the Trump administration.

Salas said the judges are being targeted because they are doing their jobs and are being called "rogue" and "corrupt" without any basis.

The seeds are planted and he signs are all around us for serious political violence. This Good Friday would be an appropriate time to  apparatchiks of the tyrant are not well regarded by future generations.

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                                       HAPPY EASTER         HAPPY PASSOVER 

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