Trump is the tyrant described in the Declaration of Independence

I would love to tell Trump to his face that most of the people in the streets are not thugs and are not Antifa. The people I know who are in the streets are church friends, work colleagues, friends, business leaders, and front-line workers. They’re African American, white, Latinx, Asian, and more. The people in the streets are Americans. We’re struggling to figure out how to build a more just society, and Donald Trump is a major obstacle to that.

(Image by Tibor Janosi Mozes from Pixabay)

Trump can’t lead us through these times because he’s never really been our leader. He’s never enjoyed the support of most Americans. He’s only ever played to his base, and he’s demonized everyone and everything else to an extent never before seen from a President. He’s undermined pillars of our society including the rule of law, the judiciary, the free press, the electoral process, and more. Between the damage he’s done to those institutions and his claims of absolute power, his behavior has been that of a tyrant.

I decided to look at how the writers of the Declaration of Independence described the tyrant of that time, King George III, and I found some striking similarities to Trump. Apparently I’m not the first or second (or third, etc.) to be struck by how he represents a lot of what the Founders of our country fought against.

Following are excerpts from the Declaration of Independence, with links indicating how similar his actions have been to those that the Founders condemned.

The history of the present [President] is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. (US court of appeals ruling, pardoning Arpaio, witness tampering, claiming “absolute power”)

He has refused to [enforce] other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people (worker & environmental protections)

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, (asylum laws, sanctuary cities)

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice (undermining the judiciary, findings of the Mueller probe), by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers (asking Supreme Court justices he doesn’t agree with to “sit it out”).

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices [Trump’s tweets & Barr response]

…sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance. (radicalizing ICE, cell phone monitoring, scanning drivers license photos)

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world: (bilateral trade undermines WTO, undermining the international order, his impact on exports)

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent: (tariffs are a tax on us)

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments: (undermining controls, civil rights, environment, more environment)

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us. (decreasing our security, undermining an effective response to Covid)

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, (Charlottesville, Michigan, white nationalists, being slow to condemn the largest group of domestic terrorists)

Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. (Jefferson’s description of a tyrant, Trump retaliations, Trump unwilling to answer to the people)

…deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity (George Floyd)

Thankfully we live in a democracy and have the opportunity to send Trump packing in November. I share concerns about how he’s undermining another pillar of our society — free and fair elections — so let’s have such an amazing turnout that even Donald’s propensity for alternative facts and Russian interference won’t matter.