Thoughts of What Could Be By Dr. E. Faye Williams, Esq.

May 14, 2017

Thoughts of What Could Be
By Dr. E. Faye Williams, Esq.

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(TriceEdneyWire.com) As a President of a national women's organization, my continuing challenge is to identify and address/confront issues which broadly impact our membership and those non-members, female and male, who are similarly situated.  Although I am eager to direct this column's focus on a topic other than the Trump Administration, I am literally locked into responding to the never-ending confusion and drama which emanate from Trump-world.  The reason: Under the Trump Administration, all "ordinary" citizens, especially women, occupy a tenuous and contentious place in society.  Without vigilance and resistance, we are all subject to an unpleasant future.

Daily we are inundated with lies and misrepresentations from either Trump or his administration lackeys.  MSNBC's Morning Joe Show offered that Trump averaged five lies daily.  These lies often fly so fast and furiously as to confuse millions.  Sadly, these lies erode confidence in the institutions that form the foundation of our organized society and distort the expectations of those who are involved/engaged with them.

For example, we see a proposal to remove the promise of healthcare from the reach of 24 million Americans.  Supplemental healthcare funding is turned upside-down; reducing amounts received by the most vulnerable while increasing amounts received by the most able.  Recognized as essential for saving life, insurance for pre-existing conditions is poised to be priced out of the reach of those so afflicted.  These outcomes are structured under a deceptive plan touted to be better, cheaper and more available than our current plan.

These lies display a new national profile to our international allies and adversaries.  Throughout my life, the US occupied the pinnacle of international relations.  Although not always deserved, we were the worldwide exemplar for democratic principles.  We were reliable partners with our allies and feared by our adversaries.  The uncertainty of dealing with a government whose leadership is indulgent in lies has diminished us in the eyes of our allies and emboldened our adversaries.  As recently as last week, Angela Merkel and Germany were characterized as the new exemplars of democracy in the world.

Trump proponents have given praise and unwavering loyalty to his executive management.  His explanations of events, or distortions thereof, please and mollify his base.

Alternatively, critics view each utterance as another in a sequence of lies.  Discounting his persuasiveness to large numbers of voters, we critique his statements as being ridiculous and impossible to believe.  Yet, with the support of the Republican Congress, he holds the potential to shape the future of our nation in his own image.

Instead of discounting his possible damage, I urge all to consider his "long game."  I urge you to extrapolate his intent from the signals he sends and look at each of his initiatives not as a singular experience, but as a part of an ultimate plan to accumulate, secure and maintain power for the oligarchy.

Contrary to facts, Trump maintains his election as an overwhelming victory by a majority of Americans.  To prove that, he has established a commission to counter the problem of “millions of illegal voters.” From this, I see an assault on voters who don't embrace Trump-world doctrine.  Blame for irregularities in his administration is never his own, but shifted to the leadership of President Obama.

Trump's admiration for autocrats and dedication to unchallenged leadership are on prominent display.  Surrogate, Steve Bannon, has already professed their desire to disrupt/destroy the institutional foundations upon which our nation stands.  Whether successful achieving campaign promises or not, Trump continues to convince his acolytes that he is the only one who can solve their problems.

This snapshot of bleakness isn’t inevitable, but if we fail to support those principles that have made us strong, little-by-little we’ll relinquish our right to the freedoms we now enjoy.

(Dr. E. Faye Williams, President of the National Congress of Black Women. 202/678-6788 www.nationalcongressbw.org.)