A Glimmer of Hope

 A Glimmer of Hope

The View from the Middle

 

Welcome to the 2021 version of Bizarro world where up is down, wrong is right and division is unity.  We now have a President who spent his entire campaign in his basement bunker and no one knew exactly what he was running on other than the fact that he hated Trump and (supposedly) he wanted to “Unify” the country.  He also suggested that President Trump was acting like a “Dictator” four years ago for signing too many executive orders.  Yet this President has signed more executive orders in one week than any other President in our country’s history.  His 33 executive orders in one week is also more than President Trump signed in his first four months.  It is also more than half of the 55 executive orders Trump signed in his entire first year.

I’m not shocked by any of Biden’s early moves, but then again, I’m kind of a political junkie.  I’m not happy with them, but I’m not shocked.  I was totally surprised, however, by his executive order to shut down the Keystone Pipeline, as was Canada’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau. And I was caught a little off guard by his raise of the minimum wage.  Both moves will hurt our economy at a time when we need a boost.  But my biggest disappointment is that this President who ran on “Unity” has gone out of his way to divide this country even more than it already is.

First, he could have signaled to the Majority Leader in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, to abandon the unconstitutional, extremely divisive and useless impeachment of a President who has already left office.  There were actually no hearings or evidence presented in The House, and Joe could have reached out to the almost 75 million people who voted for Donald Trump and said, “Let’s move forward”, but he chose not to.  Instead he chose to spit in the faces of all of those American citizens whom he says he wants to represent.  This was a real lost opportunity, but there is hope on this front which I will talk about later.

Next, the President could have shut down the move to remove the filibuster in the Senate, where he spent 36 years of his political career.  The filibuster rule requires 60 votes in the Senate to move a bill out of debate and up for a vote.  This is called cloture.  It is a rule that has been in place for over 100 years and is designed to force the Senate to work together to create compromise solutions.  It gives the minority party, whoever that may be, some leverage and allows our country to avoid an “elective despotism” as Thomas Jefferson feared could develop here.  Yes, Joe could have made that unifying gesture, but he didn’t.

But there is a glimmer of hope that we can come together as a people and accomplish great things.  Unfortunately, that glimmer didn’t come from the President who promised unity.  It came from the most unlikely of places – Congress.

First, Rand Paul (R-KY) lead a group of 45 Republican Senators to vote against even having an impeachment trial in the Senate.  This vote failed to pass, of course, but sent a clear signal that the trial of President Trump is Dead on Arrival in the Senate.  Whether these Senators voted to dispose of the trial because it is unconstitutional or because it would be meaningless is irrelevant.  Their vote was in favor of uniting the country and moving us forward.  Kudos to Rand Paul and those Republican Senators.

And hope for unity and sanity was not limited to the Republican side of the aisle. There were two Democrats who stood up and literally called “bullshit” to some of the divisive actions being considered by Chuck Schumer.  When asked about the Democrat Party’s push to eliminate the filibuster, Joe Manchin (D-WV) said, “That’s bullshit”.  He added that, “the whole intention of Congress is…to have a little bit of compromise with the other side.  Our job is to find common and cooling ground…to make something that makes sense.”  Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) joined Senator Manchin in opposition to the elimination of the filibuster, which has put an end to this absolutely divisive action of the authoritarian, socialist left wing of the Democrat Party.

I was heartened by these moves this week and this gives me hope that moderate Democrats and Republicans will also reject the packing of the Supreme Court and statehood for Washington DC.  These proposals are also divisive, partisan ideas that would only be embraced by the “elective despotism” that Jefferson warned of.  Hopefully we are bouncing on the bottom of the partisan, biased, hate-filled barrel and our country can begin its swing back to the unity that has made America the greatest country on earth. 

Judgement Day

The View from the Middle

 

Historians will judge this country’s leaders for years to come.  As George W. Bush often points out, historians are still judging George Washington’s administration as well as his, which actually seems to be viewed more favorably as time goes on.  History will also judge Donald Trump’s Presidency for years to come.  They will consider his accomplishments on the economy, his handling of China and the development of the coronavirus vaccine through Operation Warp Speed.  They will balance that with the stumbles in his rhetoric, his indelicate handling of criticism and his lack of a political countenance.  In 10, 20 or 30 years we will get an idea of where historians will rank this President against his peers outside of the emotional fog of today’s fractured society.

But Donald Trump will not be the only person being judged by history.  Nancy Pelosi will also be analyzed.  Nancy will be remembered as the Impeachment queen for her weaponization and trivialization of that process.  Her abuse of that provision would have James Madison (the Father of our Constitution) rolling over in his grave.  Her members began talking about the impeachment of Donald Trump even before he was inaugurated.  Before she started her first impeachment against the President she boldly stated that she was against impeachment, “unless there’s something so compelling and bipartisan” because it is so divisive to the country.  Yet, that impeachment vote was totally partisan with the exception that two Democrats voted with the Republicans against her articles.

But Nancy wanted the record, so she rammed through another impeachment in just seven days.  She didn’t have time for silly things like witnesses and evidence and investigations or even due process for the President.  What we got instead was one day of emotionally charged and highly partisan rhetoric on both sides of the aisle, which is the perfect environment for irrational thinking and poor decisions.  In fact, since the impeachment vote, evidence has surfaced that suggests that these riots were planned days before the President’s speech, thus were not inspired by it.  There is also evidence that the Capitol Building was ill prepared for this event despite the warnings.  But of course, Nancy didn’t have time and didn’t want actual evidence to be introduced to clear up the fog of anger and hate.  And now she is going to ask the Senate to have a trial to remove a man from office who will already be gone.  Certainly, this all plays well into Joe Biden’s inaugural slogan – America United.  I hope you know when I’m being facetious.

Nancy has also demonstrated that she is absolutely oblivious to the real condition of average Americans and even has disdain for them.  Who can forget her “freezers full of ultra-premium ice cream” as a solution to the problems caused by the economic shutdowns across the country.  When people are struggling to put bread on the table, her solution is “Let them eat ice cream”.  Her disdain for her common man manifested itself in the political games she played with the Coronavirus relief bill.  She delayed that badly needed assistance for over six months because (as she admitted later) she didn’t want to give President Trump a political victory.  Her elitist mindset and contempt for the common person in America will certainly have a negative impact on her legacy.

The media has its own historians who have already labeled our current version the most corrupt and or inept in our history.  I will admit that Donald Trump deserved some criticism during his Presidency, and I have given it to him when appropriate.  Whether you like Donald Trump or not, however, you must admit that he did some very positive things.  His administration delivered a roaring economy growing at levels the previous administration said was impossible without a “magic wand”.  That economy delivered historic low levels of unemployment, especially for minorities and women, and real wage growth for the first time in over ten years.  How could a President delivering those results receive 93% negative reporting from what I have called the lame-stream media.

Also, in 1918, the media under reported and even lied about the severity of the Spanish Flu that lead to about 700,000 deaths in America, the equivalent of over two million deaths today, as historian John Barry points out in his book The Great Influenza.  Today’s media coverage of the coronavirus pandemic errors in the opposite direction but will lead to equally catastrophic results.  A poll done in late July of this year found that Americans believed that 9% of our citizenry had already died of Covid-19.  That would be 30 MILLION deaths, and I lay this misperception at the foot of a bias, incurious and even corrupt media.  The negative long-term effects of our mitigation efforts are becoming clear, and as a result, mayors and governors around the country are now, suddenly, wanting to open up their economies.  At the absolute height of infection rates and deaths in this country Governor Cuomo is now desperate to open up New York’s businesses.  Lori Lightfoot, mayor of Chicago, is following Cuomo’s lead and now wants to open up the bars and restaurants in her city.  She in fact says, “They are going to be one of the safer places” to be.  

There is much evidence now that this pandemic has been poorly covered by the press.  Death rates were exaggerated by Dr. Fauci from the very beginning.  The actual death count has been bloated, according to Dr. Deborah Birx, by a faulty methodology that includes a gunshot to the head as a Covid death if the victim tests positive in the morgue.  But is the Media diving into these stories?  No!  Is it bias or ineptitude?  I guess it really doesn’t matter.  Both answers are an indictment of our lame-stream media.  

I’ve never said that this pandemic is not serious.  I have said, however, that our arrogant belief that we could totally control it was always an illusion.  We should have taken common sense precautions to mitigate its spread (like washing your hands and staying home when you are sick) but we should not have shut down our country since that will have a devastating impact on our nation’s economy and education system for years to come.  The prejudice and or incompetence of our media has aided in this deception.  Their dishonesty or ineptitude has truly made the cure worse than the disease.

Finally, Big Tech will be judged.  The bible says, “The last shall be first”, and so it is with Big Tech.  While they are the last to be mentioned in this article and maybe the last to show their Orwellian faces, they will be the first to be judged.  Their targeted blocking of Conservative voices is a clear violation of our first amendment and their brazen collusion against their competitors is an obvious violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act.  

These tech giants have been using Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to shield themselves from litigation.  What they will find is that Congress cannot create any law that enables them or any of their users to violate the Constitutional rights of any citizen in this country.  I don’t know if it will be Donald Trump or Parler, the new competitor to Twitter, or one of the thousands of conservative voices currently being silenced by Jack Dorsey (Twitter), Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook), and Sundar Pichai (Google), but one of these cases will make its way to the Supreme Court and I see no defense for Big Tech’s actions. 

Celebrating MLK Day the Right Way

 Celebrating MLK Day the Right Way

The View from the Middle

 

I rarely agree with anyone on everything, so when a Black Pastor from our sister church in Memphis said he had 14 recommendations for everyone to deliver racial harmony in our country, I was skeptical.  I was certain there would be at least be one or two that I would not agree with.  In this case, however, I couldn’t disagree with any of them.  That’s a double negative which means that I agreed with them all.  

So, on this day to celebrate the good Doctor’s positive impact on our nation, I thought I would share them with all of my readers.  Here is his list of things to do:

 

1.     Love like the Father.  This is a tall order, in fact impossible, but we should always be striving for that agape love.

2.     Live like Jesus.  John14:6 - He is the way and truth and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through him.

3.     Embrace the long suffering of the Holy Spirit.  It has taken a long time to make the progress we have recognized, and it will take more time to deliver the promise of Dr. King.

4.     Create positive environments. On the airways and the internet we should be the voice of Angles – holy, not of angry.

5.     Listen like Luke.  True listening (from both sides) helps heal.

6.     Never underestimate the spirit of laughter.  Have fun together.  Share life.

7.     Learn from each other.  When you listen and then learn, it shows respect for the other person.

8.     Lead sacrificially as Jesus did.  John 15:13 - “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

9.     Like me as well as love me.  “Love one another” is a command from God.  Liking someone else is a choice.

10.  Be a warrior with me every day, not just a “feel good ministry” at Thanksgiving or Christmas.

11.  Bring people together to leverage relationships and build bridges to each other.  

12.  Change laws that need to be changed, but obey the laws that are in place.  

13.  Recognize that white people are NOT all of the problem, and white people are NOT all of the solution either.

14.  Leap into action.  Be proactive.  Don’t sit back and wait for opportunities to come to you.

 

God bless you all and may God bless and unite this country.

The State of Our Union

 The State of Our Union

The View from the Middle

 

This Sunday I was blessed to hear a great message created by two local religious leaders that I respect greatly; Jim Hall and Mickey Rapier.  Since Jim delivered the message I asked for his permission to share it with you, my audience, and obviously, he approved.  This captures my feelings, but is expressed so eloquently that it made more sense to forward it on to you rather than trying to rewrite it.  Their and my concern has always been for this country and not for any individual, or party or even an ideology.  Here is their message.

 

On Wednesday, a scene unfolded that I never thought I would see in our nation. Citizens of our country stormed the United States Capitol. Episodes like this, I thought, only happen in books or movies… 

But as I reflect, the last year has been filled with significant, embarrassing, self-inflicted wounds. And they were not visited upon us by one specific political party, social movement, hate-group, or person. The wounds and impending scars are the result of a sin-infested, myopic culture with people determined to have things their own way, regardless of what it may cost others.

As a nation, we find ourselves far, far away from the words of Jesus…“Love one another.” His instruction for us is to love. There are no qualifiers such as, “love…if they agree with you,” or “love, if they look like you.” He even said we are to “love our enemies!”.  With few exceptions, God reserves the notion of hate for Himself alone, knowing that we can’t properly handle such an idea. We are to love one another. It occurs to me that possibly every wound inflicted upon our nation this past year could have been avoided or healed had we embraced love, rather than attempted to manage hate. We have been divided and decimated by our hatred.  I, Jim, would add that we have an enemy that loves the hatred and divisiveness that is running rampant right now in our nation especially on social media.  As Lee (Jim’s fellow pastor) stated earlier this week, this hatred and divisiveness is spiritual warfare.

We are in desperate need of unity and peace, which will only be found in the context of love for one another. We need to pray, both individually and corporately, for our nation. Please don’t get caught up in the negative rhetoric that is dividing us. And I, Jim, would add if you are doing it repent and change your behavior. Maintaining your values and beliefs doesn’t require an equal measure of hate or disgust to what you receive on social media or anywhere else. Rise above the angry noise and hear the voice of God speaking to your soul.

 

Let me pray for us now.

 

Lord, as you know our nation is in a deep spiritual crisis.  First and foremost, I pray for a great spiritual awakening in America that only your Spirit can usher in.  Our hope is not in a politician or a political party but in You and our eyes are on you.  Lord, no one person can repent for a whole nation, but your Old Testament prophets lamented to you about the sins of their people.   In as much as it means anything, I repent and I am grieved by our great cultural sins of materialism and greed, pride and arrogance, a consuming love of ourselves and the passing pleasures of sin, our sexual immorality, our violence and lawlessness, the racism and hatred, the thousands of abortions, drug and alcohol abuse and our promotion of an undisciplined and futile way of life stemming from a rejection of Your value system.  Have mercy, God, and please don’t deprive our leaders of at least some degree of common civility and good sense in the days ahead.  I pray that the people called by Your name would love you with all our hearts, souls and minds and live in the way You modeled for us and help us to, as You said in as much as it is possible, to live at peace with everyone even those who hate us.  Grant us, your people, the capacity to be joyful in hope, patient in affliction and faithful in prayer. No matter what this year brings.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

The Tyranny of the Majority

 The Tyranny of the Majority

The View from the Middle

 

Given the recent election results and the plans being announced by the Democrat majority party, we should all pause and reflect on the very underpinnings of our Republic.  The fundamental principle that our nation was founded on was “Freedom”.  Our Founders wanted the freedom to strive for “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” without being crushed by an oppressive, overpowering government.  They really wanted to avoid a king, but there were other dangers they feared.  Thomas Jefferson understood that “an elective despotism” can be just as bad or worse than a king, and James Madison feared “an unjust majority” who would impose their will on the rest of the country.

Because of this desire for liberty for “all”, the Constitutional Convention in 1787 was a lesson in compromise.  The concept of a bicameral Congress was a protection for smaller states, which ironically included New York at the time, so that they wouldn’t be dominated by the bigger states who could then force their will upon them.  They created a balance of powers between the legislative, executive and judicial branches of our government to ensure that no single branch could dominate the others thus subjugate “the people”.

But today, almost 250 years after that Convention, we find ourselves in a position where we have to defend ourselves from “elected despotism” or an “unjust majority” that by all evidence wants to impose their will on the entire country even though their majority is razor thin.  

Let’s look at the facts surrounding this majority party.  First, the Democrats will say that Joe Biden received 80 million votes for President (of course some will say he did not), but what they refuse to admit is the Donald Trump received nearly 75 million votes.  Should they tell those 75 million Americans they will not be heard or even considered?  That certainly was not the intent of our Founders.  In the House, Nancy Pelosi and crew lost over a dozen seats to give her one of the smallest majorities in the House since the two-party system emerged back in 1857.  And of course, the 50-50 split in the Senate could not be closer and has only been this close one other time in our country’s history.  Is this a time for the majority party to force its will on the entire country?  Of course not.

If these results are a mandate for anything, they are a mandate for compromise.  Yet what are the things that the Democrat leadership is talking about.  First, they want to pack the Supreme Court by changing the number of Justices from nine to thirteen.  This would allow Joe Biden to pick four Justices of his preference simultaneously thus shifting the ideological balance in the court from conservative to liberal overnight.  This “court packing” was tried by FDR and rejected and denounced by the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.  It would also most likely be spurned by all of the current Justices on the Supreme Court.

They also have plans to “pack the Senate”.  How, you ask, can they do that?  First, they plan to make Washington DC a state, thus giving them two new Senators which they believe will be reliably Democrat since DC is 95% Democrat.  They would look for other ways to tip the scales in their favor like making Guam a state or carving California into multiple states so that it also could deliver more reliable Democrat Senators to Congress.  This is gerrymandering on a national scale and is an attempt to turn the Senate into another House of Representatives which violates the very principles on which our country was founded.

And as if these two moves aren’t bad enough, Nancy Pelosi has already suspended the Motion to Recommit from the House rules and Chuck Schumer is talking about eliminating the Filibuster rule in the Senate.  Both of these rules are intended to provide some leverage to the minority party and have been in practice for over 100 years in each case.  These are purely partisan moves being taken at a time when the country and our government are nearly evenly split, 50-50. 

One of Joe Biden’s campaign promises was that he was going to unite our country, which I actually believe is necessary.  However, all of these political moves are as divisive as they could possibly be.  These actions will not only NOT unite America, but it will rip it apart.  

But this last election HAS delivered a mandate to our government leaders.  The representation in the House and the Senate could not be any more evenly divided and 75 million Americans voted for the conservative candidate for President.  This is not a time to turn a blind eye to half of this country and pass extreme policies through a series of 51 to 50 votes.  It is a time for working together.  It is a time for compromise.  It is a time for wisdom.

Remember also that nothing lasts forever.  12 years ago, Barack Obama had a 60-40 advantage in the Senate and a 257-178 advantage in the House (59% to 41%) but he didn’t try to implement any of these radical partisan measures.  Just eight years later, Donald Trump controlled both Houses of Congress and the White House.  I have confidence that the people of The United States will not easily surrender their freedom.  Liberty is in our DNA and “We the People” will forever rise up to claim it.