My guest today is Jonathan Simon, election integrity activist, co-founder of Election Defense Alliance and author of CODE RED: Computerized Election Theft and The New American Century. Welcome back to OpEdNews, Jonathan. We haven't talked much since the election. You recently posted "Donald Trump Warned of a Rigged Election . . . Was He Right?"Where would you like to start?
Joan, I Woke Up This Mornin' With The We're In Deep sh*t Pants On Fire Voter-Fraud Blues. The DNOTD (Depraved News Of The Day) was that Trump plans a "major investigation" into the "voter fraud" that he says cost him a popular-vote victory. . . Now, just about every morning greets us with some new depravity, but this one is particularly rich. He's going to find the millions of illegals that took it upon themselves individually to complete voter registration forms or impersonate their neighbors or dead people (and one can already hear the shoulder joints popping as arms are twisted to find them or else), but at the same time he (and the Republicans in control of the electoral apparatus) blocked every attempt to look into the concealed, computerized counting process that produced the razor-thin swing state victories that overrode the popular vote and put him in office.
And then, to stop all that "voter fraud," we'll tighten voting restrictions even further (with a Supreme Court that will, by its beautiful 5 - 4 majority, strip whatever voting rights protections are left and a Justice Department that will refuse to enforce any that the Court happens to overlook), so that no matter how bigly they f*ck up this country, they can count on their old friends Strip and Flip to keep their hold on power. This is so nightmarish--it's as if Dali and Munch did a painting together and we're in it.
US Supreme Court
(Image by (From Wikimedia) Photo by Mr. Kjetil Ree., Author: Photo by Mr. Kjetil Ree.) Details Source DMCA
Well, that certainly was an upbeat way to start our conversation. Where does that leave us? Other than leaving en masse to Canada, if they'll have us.
Funny you should mention Canada and leaving en masse. In this past Sunday's NY Times Book Review, Yale historian Beverly Gage, reviewing Sinclair Lewis's 1935 novel, "It Can't Happen Here," writes: "If Lewis's post-election vision is what awaits us, there will be little cause for hope, or even civic engagement, in the months ahead. The only viable options will be to get out of the country--or to join an armed underground resistance."
Sinclair Lewis It Can't Happen Here 1936 theater poster
(Image by (From Wikimedia) Works Progress Administration, Author: Works Progress Administration) Details Source DMCA
While noting the as yet contingent nature of Gage's prognostication, it is nonetheless stunning how far we've come how fast on the road to outright fascism. A writer in the TIMES given the green light to talk about armed resistance?! Steve Bannon, Trump's consigliere, today told the media it had better "keep its mouth shut." "Facts" are a quaint historical relic; wishes are horses, in fact amazing horses, winning horses. And an ego every bit as fragile as Hitler's has started a trade war, gagged our scientists, plans literally to obliterate decades of climate data and research, and has made pants-on-fire lies about the head-count at his inauguration and his would-be popular vote victory the centerpieces of his presidency. And we have not yet made it through a week.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
2
2
2
