From “The Scratching Post”: 2020: Story of the year

By Ken Marks

[Originally posted on The Scratching Post, December 22. Republished here by permission of the author.]

This year has been a tale of two climaxes: one in the virulence of the Covid virus, the other in the seditious antics of Donald J. Trump. Both have been ruinous — Covid to physical wellbeing, Trump to national wellbeing. The two are, of course, intertwined. Trump’s blustery and idiotic style of governing is music to the ears of his minions, who are charmed by bluster and idiocy. Their gullibility gave the virus its greatest impetus as they became its most pitiful victims.
    As we know, Trump’s catalog is long, through every trespass ranging. Mishandling the pandemic came as an encore to the his impeachment trial in 2019, which sadly offered no more than a highlight reel of his misdeeds. When he was renominated last summer, many, including me, felt sure he was going to top himself in the fall. He has not disappointed.
    He spoke against voting by mail, damning it as a vehicle of voter fraud. He denigrated the Postal Service, while his Postmaster General took steps to hamstring mail processing. His campaign went to court to challenge the right of states to mail ballots to their registered voters. His Senate lackeys blocked a Covid relief bill that would have given the Postal Service cash support to properly handle the influx of mail.
    As Election Day came and went, millions of mailed votes had not yet been counted. As expected, Trump was ahead in most of the battleground states, but it was clear the tide would turn the next day. Yet Trump didn’t wait for the swing to play out. He announced that he had won because his lead was plainly insurmountable. In effect, he set the predicate that only massive acts of voter fraud could stand between him and victory.
    Between that day and the present, Trump’s legal team has filed more than 50 cases that alleged voter fraud. All were denied, dismissed, settled, or withdrawn, without any evidence of fraud. The U.S. Supreme Court twice rejected petitions about the voting in Pennsylvania. One sought to throw out 2.6 million mailed ballots on procedural grounds; the other, to allow the state’s General Assembly to pick new electors. Again, neither petition was accompanied by credible evidence of fraud.

In our nation’s history, has litigation ever been so prolonged and frivolous? Have plaintiffs ever pursued a more humiliating path? No and no. We are left to ask, what could possibly have prompted such a deranged abuse of our legal system? Perhaps it all has to do with an epic case of presidential petulance, but I’m inclined to think otherwise. I believe the thinking in the White House went something like this….

Let’s object to the election results on all the grounds we can imagine and do so in dozens of venues. We might lose every case but in the final analysis, we win. Each court loss will reveal anew the depth of the conspiracy against the president’s re-election and amplify the resentment of our base. Relentless tweeting and some well-timed rallies will ensure it. Our folks will be on the edge of insurrection by the time we get to January. Protesting in the streets against “a radical takeover of America” is a given. Next, there is confrontation and, inevitably, a spark of violence. The confrontation and violence spread. People are frightened. The president then has a plausible pretext for declaring martial law.

    I’m certain this scenario has been put before Trump. I’m certain it appeals to him. What’s unclear is whether he can imagine the catastrophe he would bring down upon himself. Surely a different counselor has mentioned that the rage in Red America can also be used to perpetuate his glory and enhance his wealth. That too would appeal to him. We’ll know his decision in January.

Copyright © 2020 by Ken Marks Ken Marks was a contributing editor with Paul Clark & Tom Lowe when “Moristotle” became “Moristotle & Co.” A brilliant photographer, witty conversationalist, and elegant writer, Ken contributed photographs, essays, and commentaries from mid-2008 through 2012. Late in 2013, Ken birthed the blog The Scratching Post. He also posts albums of his photos on Flickr.