History has recorded that Louis XIV (French monarch 1643-1715) asserted, "L'État, c'est moi". Loosely translated into English, "I am the state". Whether or not Louis XIV made the claim is not very important. What matters is he was stating the principle of absolute rule, which was the authority he wielded at the time. It took the French people a while to prove the king wrong. In 1789, they overthrew the monarchy and began the long and uneven road to democracy.
Seal of the First Republic of France, 1792 (from Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
In 1977 Richard Nixon (U.S.President 1969-1974) asserted, "Well, when the president does it … that means that it is not illegal". Translated into the vernacular: The president is above the law and legally can do no wrong. Nixon's view of a president's unassailable authority was rebuked by the United States Congress when it was poised to impeach him. Faced with this, he offered his resignation.
Nixon's televised resignation speech, Aug 8, 1974. Wikimedia commons. Public domain
These were two momentous instances of 'people power', instances when the authority of the people prevailed over the asserted authority of a government leader. Today, in the United States, we wake up to an analogous moment. There hasn't been a revolution. There hasn't been an adjudicated court case. There hasn't been a resignation. There simply has been an election. The people spoke.
The current president of the United States, Donald J. Trump, has said, in the past, in more than one instance, and in more than one way, "I can do whatever I want, if I want". This is certainly as absolute an assertion of authority as Louis XIV's or Richard Nixon's. It has been disheartening to live in a country where a president can make such assertions and not be challenged by the Congress or the Supreme Court.
A clip, below, of Trump asserting he can do anything he wants
He hasn't merely asserted such power verbally. He has attempted to exercise that power.He has begun a war, without popular or congressional support. He has authorized extra-judicial killings in international waters. He has attacked a neighboring country and kidnapped its leader.
He has ordered the Department of Justice...which previously had maintained at least the appearance of independence... to prosecute his enemies. He has turned the Department of Justice lawyers, the people's lawyers, into his personal law firm. He has turned ICE, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, into an armed force that operates on his whim, and that terrorizes civilians. He has threatened to invade long-standing foreign military and trade allies. He has attempted to emasculate the states' Constitutional authority to conduct elections.
This morning I take heart. I don't know what the future will bring. I don't know how the balance of power will work out in the government. I do know that yesterday the people of the United States rebuked Donald Trump's assertion of absolute power. They threw his party out of office with an overwhelming showing at the polls.
Democracy worked. I truly wondered if it would. I worried that the lack of courage evinced by the Congress and the Supreme Court would frustrate the popular will and disrupt elections. I wondered if the military, stripped down and tailored to ideological compliance by DOD head Hegseth, would interfere with the elections, and would force an outcome favorable to Trump. I have seen that scenario played out many times, across the world. I was concerned that U. S. democracy might be in its final days. Today I learned, this is not the case.
I woke up this morning with hope. I know cynics still govern the country. I know deal-making and profit-taking are sewn into the fabric of government. But that's OK. I can live with those thoughts today. Because the people spoke, and a new day has dawned.
The sun is shining. The president is rambling about his trophy projects. His Congressional lackeys around the country are licking their wounds. Members of his administration are already pointing fingers (it was the Iran war, VP Vance stated). I am wearied as I hear them trying to find a safe place to plan their next moves, but I refuse to be weary today.
A long life has taught me that survival rests partly on being able to see joy and hope at least occasionally. Today is a day for hope. It's time to enjoy victory. Tomorrow is soon enough to resume the battle.
Blessings to my country, and to the world (I'm sure much of it is breathing a sigh of relief).
Thank you for reading my blog. Health and peace to all. Hive on!
