Alexander III (who would later come to be known as the Great) became the King of Macedonia at the tender age of 20. By the time he was 30 he had conquered much of the known world. He somehow knew that he was destined to become a historic figure. His success is attributed largely to his keen intellect. His military approach focused on relentlessly pursuing and attacking his enemies. He is credited with saying, “Always attack. Even in defense, attack.” Alexander also said that he feared an army of sheep led by a lion far more than he feared an army of lions led by a sheep.
Today we see a pivotal conflict being played out on the battlefield known as the District of Columbia. The Democrats are attacking, relentlessly pursuing this president. Starting with the first days after his election, they have single-mindedly advanced toward the objective of overturning the will of the electors. Casting aside any pretense that they had a serious legislative agenda, their actions confirm the vulgar prediction of Congresswoman-elect Tlaib: “We’re going to impeach the M***** F*****!”
Their intentions should not come as a surprise to Republicans in Congress. The Dems spent over two years pushing the Russian collusion ruse. They turned over every rock. They squeezed Trump associates like General Flynn. With help from Ukrainians, they got a conviction of Paul Manafort. They counted on Robert Mueller and his team of partisans to deliver the final knockout punch.
They counted wrong.
That was just a bump in the road, not the end of it.
Too many Republicans seem surprised and befuddled by this nonstop assault. They are unwilling or incapable of launching anything resembling a counterattack. Even as Democrats cling to the slender reed of a second-hand whistleblower account of a fairly innocuous phone call, Republicans seem unable to muster much indignation.
The president clearly and rightly wants to know what exactly started the FBI Russian collaboration investigation. How did they get surveillance warrants from the FISA Court to spy on his campaign? Who is this company called CrowdStrike? What role did they play in this sordid story? Many of us are looking for answers. So apparently is Attorney General Barr.
Don’t we all want to know more about the former Vice President’s public boasting that he threatened withholding a billion dollars in aid unless a Ukrainian corruption investigator was fired…within six hours? Those were his own words. They are on tape. Most Americans clearly hear Mr .Biden bragging about a quid pro quo. Trump’s words on the other hand, required extensive “parity” reconstruction to help the uninformed come to a similar conclusion. Not surprisingly, these facts are somehow lost on the Dems and their cheerleaders in the media.
Republicans have had plenty of time to memorize the Democrats' playbook. Fake right. Run left. And always blitz the president.
The Dems are all-in with their latest coup attempt. Once unleashed, Nancy can’t call the dogs off. Rep. Al Green, the author of the first Articles of Impeachment, admitted that they had to impeach him. Otherwise President Trump would be re-elected. The Speaker said this week that she understands that this gambit is risking her majority and any hopes they may have for next year. She knows that if you go after the king, you have to topple him. As more Americans actually read the whistleblower complaint and the transcript of the phone call, support for their case gets weaker. We now know that Intelligence Committee Chairman Schiff and his staff coached and coordinated much of the whistleblower’s complaint after saying they had no contact. With House Democrats having taken a position so far out on the thin ice, maybe we should consider sending the Congressional Republicans some ice picks.
Once again Republicans look like an army of mostly sheep. They are easily spooked and scattered by the jackals in the media.The bad news for the Dems however, is that the GOP is led by a lion. Donald Trump may not have studied Greek Classics or Macedonian military history. But Trump instinctively understands the Alexander strategy of fearlessly attacking his adversaries. So even in defense, he attacks.
In the era of full contact, take no prisoners, blood-sport politics, that strategy serves him well.
Gil Gutknecht served twelve years in the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota.