Holding Trump Accountable

A PERCEPTIVE JOURNALIST remarked that although he can't soeak for other people, every day when he gets out of bed, the first thing he thinks is...now what? My initial reaction to this was, who doesn't? Curiouser and curioser and the event which especially catches my attention as being wild and strange is the one the other day, in which six Democrat members of Congress made a video with each of them, one at a time, looking at the camera and telling the American people, and especially military service members, that they are morally obligated to disobey all illegal orders. I wonder how man people have seen it. Its quite remarkbale, partly because all six politicinas is a former military service member, several of them having been involved in military intelligence gathering operations. It isn't surprsing that Trump "went off" on them for doing this, it is rather alarming the severity of his rebuke, accusing them all of being traitors who have committed treason, and threatening them with the death penalty. The first question is probably, why did they do this, these Democrats? The apparent answer is that they are reacting to the verifiable fact that Trsump, from the firstday of his second term, has been acting illegally, issuing illegal executive orders, taking all kinds of illegal actions, giving illegal orders. The most glaring example of this is his sending the Ntional Guardinto American cities, for the stated purpose of giving assistance to local law enforcement agencies in enforcing the law, the purpose being to help reduce crime. Obviously, this violates the well known "posse comitatus" law of1877, prohibiting all United States military from acting as police. Technically, and not so techinically, everytime Trump gave such an order - he did so, what, two or three times, before backing off when federal judges ruled it illegal?- those to who it was directed, the National Guard members of both genders and all ranks, should have refused the order, refused to report for duty. Also, this business of Trump dropping bombs on small boats leaving Venezuela and heading out to sea and killing the people onboard, as Trump has done about two dozen times, killing upwards of a hundred people - this too is illegal, according to international law, and according to American military law. The proper response would havebeen to approach and apprehend the various sea craft, board them, and confront those on board, pending investigation into their motive and intent. Marshall Dillon hated bounty hunters who preferred bringing in "wanted dead or alive" outlaws dead. The United States should be better than this. It is illegal for the U.S. military to invade and occupy American cities, and to murder foreigners on the high seas, period. Trump's criminality only grows more widespread. The six Democrats,by reminding all American military personell that they are under no obligation to obey illegal orders, and are in fact required to to disobey them, are standing up to Trump by reminding Americans in unoform that they are loyal to the constitution and to the country, not to any political leader, and that in this democracy,it is up to them, and up to us all, to uphold the rule of law and defend it against attacks by power hungry political demagogues. During the Cold War, Einstein suggested that if all men of military age in the world refused military service, all war would come to an end. A fun idea, if nothing else. It seems even more unlikely that soldiers and sailors will refuse to obey an order from Trump than millions of American will rise up and throw Turmp out of office. What we can all do, however, is hold Trump and his enablers accountable for their illegal actions, and, eventually if not now, make them experience the consequences.