Patriotism v Nationalism

The post election press conference went as expected. The authoritarian leader declared victory after losing the House of Representatives.

Of course the press was attacked again. There were more whining accusations about “hostile media”, “fake news” and “enemy of the people”.

And this included a personal attack on Jim Acosta. "You are a rude, terrible person. You shouldn't be working for CNN."

So much for toning down the rhetoric.

But the White Nationalist had more rage to vent.

“Such a racist question!” Trump interrupted Yamiche Alcindor, the black female correspondent for PBS. He accused her several times that the question was "racist" and "insulting". She wasn’t allowed to finish her question without being interrupted. All she wanted was clarification on what he meant by calling himself a nationalist. In framing her question, she mentioned people saw it as emboldening white nationalists.

And there it is.

No wonder he didn’t want to answer her question. No wonder he projected “racist” at a black woman. White nationalists like Trump see themselves as “nationalists”, not white nationalists. They think we can’t see the sheet if they don’t hold it up, but we remember it was his birther flag that first rallied his base. 

Here’s the thing. Patriots love their country. They serve their country, the Constitution and above all the people. Most of us are patriots to one degree or another. Most of us are not nationalists.

Nationalists are different. They say the love the country, but hate half the people. They claim to want law and order, but when justice investigates their crimes, they attack justice. They hate democracy. They hate equality.

They want purity and power and superiority over not only other nations, but over domestic opposition as well. They don’t want to govern by fact, reason or compromise. They want to rule. They are very white and very conservative, and often very racist. And they are backed by the gilded elites and duped authoritarian evangelicals.

This is the Nationalist Party of Trump.

Anyone dividing the people, threatening political opponents, obstructing justice, and calling the press the enemy of the people, while bragging about being a nationalist IS evil.

He's doing what every evil tyrant in history has done.

Too many Americans have been asking for it. The sheep are drinking the koolade and following the authoritarians into the darkness of the coming abyss. And they will drag us with them, if we let them.  We American Patriots need to clearly see the threat to our country, to vote and to defend democracy and to stop the Nationalist Party of Trump. 

This election showed just how weak the Patriotic resistance is. The House is all we have for constitutional checks and balances. They are up against the corrupted radical Right White House and Senate. And their efforts will be blunted by a Supreme Court now owned by the forces of the Corporate/puritanical Right.

The Constitutional crisis that has been brewing for two years is about to come to a boil. Carl Bernstein is right. The “Cold Civil War” is here.

The United States might survive. But it will not be the same. A democratic republic cannot survive unless the Party of Trump and its owners are defeated and prevented from ever gaining power again. This express train to fascism is only being slowed temporarily.

For that we can be proud and grateful. But this is no time to rest in false comfort.

Meanwhile their war on justice, equality, decency, democracy, the free press, and the truth continues.

And for that I call them evil. We Patriots must always stand against the evil of anti-democratic corporatist nationalism.