What if :
The headlines read: “Trump Loses Re-Election Bid”?
First of all, The Donald thy president would tweet like he’s never tweeted before. Twitterstorms would thunder forth hourly right up to January 20, 2021, Inauguration Day. He would claim, among other things, voter fraud on a colossal basis, no matter what the margin of his loss was; he would claim that millions and millions of illegal immigrants were paid by the Democratic National Committee to cast ballots for his opponent.
Second, he would petition the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to order a re-count. He would take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, if necessary.
Third, he would file a suit against the Federal Election Commission, demanding that it investigate the members of the Electoral College for any sign of collusion.
Fourth, he would rally his loyal followers and incite them to storm the offices of their senators and representatives and demand that they pass a resolution to render the election null and void and call for a new election.
And, fifth, he would not budge from the White House until all these things come to pass. He would order the Secret Service to bar entrance to anyone who comes to remove him.
Sounds scary, doesn’t it, dear reader?
There’s an alternate scenario, and it’s a lot scarier.
The Donald thy president would declare martial law on the grounds that the fake election is a threat to national security unless drastic steps are taken to counter it. He would suspend the U.S. Constitution, adjourn the Congress indefinitely, and dismiss all Federal courts. He would rule by executive order until such time as he deems the “crisis” is over, even if it extends to the end of his life.
Martial law would require the presence of Federal troops patrolling the streets of every major city in America. The National Guard in every state would be nationalized and tasked to patrol the streets of smaller cities and rural areas. These entities would be called upon to suppress the myriad of protests/demonstrations/riots which would take place by hordes of angry citizens demanding a return to civilian rule. The troops would deploy tear gas, water cannons, and rubber bullets; in case of violent actions, they would be authorized to use live ammunition. Think Hong Kong, dear reader.
Arrests by the thousands would be made, and the accused appear before special tribunals set up for the purpose of punishing disloyal individuals. Those convicted of violent crimes would be summarily executed. No appeals of the judgments of the tribunals would be allowed.
The Donald thy president would remain in a heavily guarded White House. If he goes anywhere, he would be surrounded by Federal troops in order to prevent assassination attempts; these troops would have standing orders to shoot to kill if anyone approaches the president in what they deem to be a menacing manner.
Do you think it can’t happen here, dear reader? Think again.
The Vietnam War. The Watts riots in Los Angeles in 1965. The civil rights movement. Various labor strikes, mostly by coal miners. All these have provoked the powers-that-be to suppress the protests/demonstrations/riots by any means possible. And they weren’t too concerned about due process or constitutional rights.
All because our accidental president believes he is entitled, by reason of his greatness, to occupy the Oval Office as long as he likes, elections be damned.
Just a thought.