You want to know what’s frustrating? I’ll tell you what’s frustrating: the inclination of Democrats to want to forgive and forget and move on rather than insist on accountability.
Consider that it was still Tuesday night when House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told CNN, “This is not a partisan moment. This is a patriotic moment. This is not a blue moment or a red moment. It’s a red, white and blue moment because America has won tonight.”
That statement sounded disturbingly like the view of a man who was looking to have everyone join hands and sing “Kumbaya” rather than use the coming Democratic majorities in the House and Senate as a mandate to force Republicans to face legal responsibility for their actions.
When it comes to potentially making the Republicans pay for their catastrophic sins while wielding their power like a sledgehammer over the past nearly two years, I fear that Democrats are destined to take the hands-off approach. Most are empaths at heart, and that inherent decency is used against them and their better judgment by the other side.
You know how it is. After a bitter election, the victorious party is urged to put the past behind it, extend an olive branch and demonstrate that it can govern responsibly. “The country needs to move on,” people will urge, “and that means rising above retribution.”
To that sentiment, I would answer thusly:
Oversight is not revenge.
Accountability is not revenge.
Enforcing the law is not revenge.
The new Democratic Congress has been given a clear mandate to stop the corruption, restore the rule of law and bring the legislative branch back to life. That means investigating abuses of power. And confronting the consistent breaking of the law at, and outrageous cruelty from, ICE. And demanding culpability from officials who have violated the public trust. And putting an end to the culture of impunity that has flourished under Trump.
Speaking of Trump, it could – and perhaps should – also mean putting him up for impeachment for the third time. It would not be undeserved. In fact, to look past the president’s innumerable crimes without considering the option of removing him from office would itself prove irresponsible.
Were I a Democratic leader, I would worry less about appearing vindictive than exercising my constitutional responsibilities.
After the abuses of executive power and open corruption that have been so rampant during the first two years of this lawless administration, the Democrats must seize the moment and move quickly to institute meaningful checks while at the same time launching congressional investigations and pushing through ethics reform.
For the first time in what seems like forever, the Dems are going to have the wind at their backs. This is no time to heed calls for conciliation, reaching across the aisle, finding common ground, exercising bipartisanship. Not now. Not after what the Republicans have done to destroy any sense of limits or regulation and bring the nation to its knees.
If Democrats’ memories are that short, then what was even the urgency of winning the midterms?
The opposite of political revenge isn’t forgiveness. It’s equal justice under the law. If moving forward requires overlooking what the cult of Trump has tried to pull off in destroying democracy and establishing authoritarianism in its place, then we might as well give them back their majority.
I say that there’s no healing or national unity where there’s no punishment for transparent criminality. Simply letting them get away with everything is just plain wrong.
We can’t overlook colossal abuses of power. Responsible oversight requires investigation into credible allegations of misconduct, uncovering what happened behind closed doors and determining whether public officials violated the laws they swore to uphold.
For too long, Washington has treated accountability as something negotiable. A new administration comes in, promises a fresh start and discovers that the easiest way to avoid another ugly confrontation is to leave the last administration’s transgressions unexamined.
This instills the lesson that breaking the law – or ignoring it altogether – comes without consequences. If that happens, it will only inspire the wrongdoers to do it again. A country that repeatedly turns a blind eye to the misuse of power shouldn’t be surprised when those who are accused travel that road again.
Beginning in January, congressional committees will have the opportunity to examine executive actions, compel testimony, demand records and investigate allegations that have been swept under the rug. They must use those powers, thoroughly, transparently and without apology.
What specifically are we talking about? Start here:
The above are a mere handful of what could potentially be dozens of instances where Republican administration members (including the president) have challenged, broken or altogether ignored the rule of law, believing themselves immune from prosecution. If the Democrats sit on their hands and allow them to escape legal scrutiny and/or justice, they will be proven right.
At the very least, investigations will need to be conducted, or our entire system of justice will be dismissed as a joke.
Democrats, are you paying attention?
(Ray Richmond is a longtime journalist/author and an adjunct professor at Chapman University in Orange, CA.)