The “final, final, final” Final Battle of Donald Trump.

Posted on | June 24, 2024 | 3 Comments

Mike Magee

We now are two days away from the “final, final, final” Final Battle of Donald Trump.

One year ago, the former President, now convicted felon, promised his supporters in Columbus, Georgia that his recently announced bid for the presidency was “the final battle” against “corrupt forces” and the “Deep State” which was being orchestrated by “globalists”, “warmongers” and “the sick political class that hates our country.”

In the same speech, when the name Hillary Clinton came up, portions of the crowd reflexly responded “Lock her up!” Nowadays that response no longer resonates with the same echo. But that same day, in nearby Greensboro, NC, his “In the end, they’re coming after me, they’re coming after you, and I’m standing in the way,” still feels fresh.

The day after his New York felony conviction, in a “rambling 33-minute news conference inside Trump Tower,” while still under a gag order and clearly non-repentant, he focused on the “devil” judge (as he stated) who “was very unfair.”  And still, he managed to bravely inform his invitation only audience in the lobby of Trump Tower that “It’s my honor to be doing this, but it’s a really unpleasant thing, to be honest.”

By now, even his ardent supporters are privately admitting that “honesty” and the “rule of law” are not Trump’s strong suits. And that might soon become problematic for a “purple state” like North Carolina with its 16 electoral votes. Trump’s current messaging is a bit discordant with North Carolina’s K-12 lesson plan, titled   “The Rule of Law.”

It begins with the Teddy Roosevelt quote, “No man is above the law, and no man is below it” from his 1903 State of the Union address. A bit further on, students are informed that:

“The rule of law is basically an agreement that everyone will play by the rules. This allows us to enjoy a more peaceful and safe existence. The rule of law also ensures the protection of certain rights for each of us. Ideally, the rule of law applies equally to everyone, meaning you are treated fairly and equally, under the same set of rules, regardless of who you are.”

The lesson plan concludes with a homework assignment. Students are provided with a copy of chapter 28 in former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s “The Majesty of the Law,” to read.

In follow-up, the teacher is instructed to ask students: “When Justice O’Connor writes, ‘A nation’s success or failure in achieving democracy is judged in part by how well it responds to those at the bottom and the margins of the social order,’ what message was she conveying and how does it relate to the rule of law?”

In the post-Dobbs era, women and their doctors find themselves increasingly marginalized “in the social order.”  Not surprisingly, reproductive rights have increasingly appeared on statewide ballots. Referendums have carried the day in states like Ohio, Kentucky and Kansas. 6% of voters now say women’s autonomy and reproductive rights is their #1 issue in the upcoming national election. 

It has fast evolved as a multi-generational family issue.  For example, one 55 year old North Carolina swing voter said this week, “I have a daughter, and I have been through that experience myself and am very much an advocate for women. And I think that once they take that away, they’re coming for a whole other set of rights for women next.”

And yet, the former president remains comfortable leaning into the issue as he did this weekend when he addressed the evangelical “Faith&Freedom Forum” in Washington, DC, presenting himself as “a martyr to the Christian Right.”  Headlines read “The former president portrayed himself as having ‘wounds all over’ while suggesting that he was being targeted for his support of religious freedoms.”

Not surprisingly, he offered a full-throated defense of legislative actions in Louisiana this past week to enforce posting of “The Ten Commandments” in all public buildings.  This raised eyebrows even his most ardent supporters. Specifically Commandments #7, #8, and #9 – prohibitions on adultery, lying, and stealing – seemed to demand a careful reread by the beleaguered candidate.

Increasingly, Trump’s “Persecution Complex” is sounding disingenuous and even a bit “whinny.” As Vanity Fair wrote last week, “The king of projection accuses others of ‘unhinged’ behavior and threatening democracy. Democrats need to hold a mirror up to the GOP’s choice.”

His arch nemesis, Liz Cheney, was more direct, saying what her fellow Republican leaders refuse to acknowledge. “It is a real threat to his political success if people recognize that he himself is trying to unravel democracy.” Fellow Republican “Trump critic,” Adam Kinzinger was more edgy. “He reminds me of a child who is angry,” adding, “His mind is a scary place.” And he thinks even less of Trump’s unrepentant followers who he sees as the devil’s handmaids. He insists he sees “scales on their eyes.”

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