James Comey resorted to the incriminating not normal, not OK denunciation of President Trump on a nationally televised interview for the entire world to hear. It was not the first time this damning label was applied to something the president has said or done. Comey is now a media figure and in the media as well as in politics everything can be spun as normal and OK no matter how off base. That includes threatening the nation with war because you disagree with White House policy. That’s the path Democrats have chosen now that our appeasement deal with Iran is over.
Not normal, not OK: Democrats set the stage
U.S. Department of Energy
Barack Obama got the “not normal” ball rolling when he claimed that we were numb1 to Trump’s derogatory remarks about women:
That is how we are treating this election for the most powerful office on Earth, as if it’s normal. We’ve become numb to it. And it’s not. It’s not. It’s not acceptable. It’s not normal. You can’t make an excuse for it. You can’t pretend it’s not happening.2
Then he blamed Trump supporters for excusing it. It probably never occurred to him or fellow Democrats that it’s not normal or OK to turn Republican voters into enemies of the people.
When Democrats find a good slogan they hate to let it go. Gary Peters (D-MI) threw the “Trump’s not normal” card when he turned up his nose at Jim Bridenstine’s nomination for NASA administrator:
When it comes to prioritizing science in the Executive Branch, President Trump is not normal. You could say this Administration is an outlier or an anomaly.3
That’s clever, harmless phrasing for a congressman.* There are a lot more damaging remarks being tossed around recklessly, including suggestions that the president is stone cold crazy.
Not OK to question a president’s sanity because you disagree
Opposing a presidential appointment is one thing. Publicly suggesting that our president is mentally unstable or worse is very different. Democrat Earl Blumenauer gave it a try when be raised the question of what to do with a president who is mentally unfit:
“All I’ve said is that this is strange behavior. It’s not normal in the circles I run in. And it raises questions. People can make their own diagnosis. I’m not,” Blumenauer told The Hill after specifically expressing concern about Trump repeatedly making demonstrably false statements, such as denying it rained at his inauguration.4
Accusing Trump of being unstable was a favorite trick during the 2016 campaign. Everyone understood that this is how the game is played, but now he’s in office and the game never stopped. Do Democrats who are issuing threats of war understand that not everyone knows this is still just good political fun?
Not normal, not okay to threaten the people with war
The stage was set last fall. Democrats turned to threatening the American people with their partisan political fantasy about “a man with the nuclear codes:”5
The world witnessed a provocative, unstable demagogue threaten to start a conflict that would risk nuclear war and imperil millions of lives.6
No, Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN) wasn’t talking about Hassan Rouhani when she made this remark in September 2017. She was talking about America’s president and his threat to destroy North Korea, a threat that may finally bring a productive conclusion to the problems on the Korean Peninsula.
Trump won’t get any accolades from Democrats no matter what happens with Kim Jong-un. With their beloved Iran deal and another big part of Obama’s legacy erased, party members have moved on to new threats.
From Rep. John Delaney (D-MD):
The President missed a significant opportunity to work with our allies to strengthen the weaknesses in the JCPOA and instead chose a misguided path that with [sic] either isolate the United States from our allies, accelerate Iran’s becoming a nuclear state, or lead to a military conflict with Iran.7
From Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA):
Donald Trump’s decision today moves us closer to war with Iran.8
From Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH):
We should steer our nation down the pathway to a safer and more peaceful world, not the pathway to war.9
From Dick Durbin (D-IL), displaying a complete lack of comprehension as to why threatening North Korea sets the stage for a new agreement with Iran:
Not good timing, I might add, when trying to negotiate a deal to eliminate North Korea’s nuclear weapons. What will President Trump do if Iran restarts its nuclear weapons program? Will he start another war in the Middle East? 10
What’s so irresponsible about the game Democrats are playing is that there are Americans who take these threats seriously despite proof that standing up to our adversaries works a lot better than appeasement. Standing up is why three Americans were just released from North Korea and why we’re going to sit down at the table with Kim Jong-un for the first time. Democrats can’t and won’t understand this. From what we’re hearing neither will EU nations, though they would be wise to remember the harsh historical lesson about how well appeasing a troublemaker works.
Israel understands. Arguably they have the most to lose from a bad deal.
How about the American people? Do we understand that the hyperbole and threats are just another partisan prank?
*Coincidentally, when Obama pushed his Iran Deal though one of the arguments was that “The Iran Deal is based on science and verification.”11
Footnotes
1. “Remarks by the President at a Hillary For America Rally – Jacksonville, Florida.” The White House. President Barack Obama. November 3, 2016. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2016/11/03/remarks-president-hillary-america-rally-jacksonville-florida, retrieved May 8, 2018.
2. Ibid.
3. “Peters Floor Remarks in Opposition to NASA Administrator Nominee Rep. Jim Bridenstine.” Gary Peters. April 19, 2018. https://www.peters.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/peters-floor-remarks-in-opposition-to-nasa-administrator-nominee-rep-jim-bridenstine, retrieved May 9, 2018.
4. “Kentucky Dem questions Trump’s mental health.” Ted Lieu. February 22, 2017. https://lieu.house.gov/media-center/in-the-news/kentucky-dem-questions-trumps-mental-health, retrieved May 7, 2018.
5. “McCollum Statement on Trump Address to United Nations.” Betty McCollum. September 19, 2017. https://mccollum.house.gov/media/press-releases/mccollum-statement-trump-address-united-nations, retrieved May 9, 2018.
6. Ibid.
7. “Delaney Statement on Trump Administration Decision to Withdraw from Iran Deal.” John K. Delaney. May 8, 2018. https://delaney.house.gov/news/press-releases/delaney-statement-on-trump-administration-decision-to-withdraw-from-iran-deal, retrieved May 9, 2018.
8. “Jayapal Statement on Trump Decision to Renege on the Historic Iran Nuclear Deal.” Pramila Jayapal. May 8, 2018. https://jayapal.house.gov/media/press-releases/jayapal-statement-trump-decision-renege-historic-iran-nuclear-deal, retrieved May 9, 2018.
9. “Shea-Porter Statement on US Withdrawal from Iran Deal.” Carol Shea-Porter. May 8, 2018. https://shea-porter.house.gov/media/press-releases/shea-porter-statement-us-withdrawal-iran-deal, retrieved May 9, 2018.
10. “Durbin Rips Trump Decision To Break Iran Deal.” Dick Durbin May 8, 2018. https://www.durbin.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/durbin-rips-trump-decision-to-break-iran-deal, retrieved May 9, 2018.
11. “Learn More About the Historic Iran Deal.” Energy.gov. https://www.energy.gov/iran-deal, retrieved May 10, 2018.
Photo retrieved from https://www.energy.gov/iran-deal, retrieved May 10, 2018.
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