Was it an "attempted coup" ??

[kentuck]

How will history look at this?

Some are saying, "Yes, but it was a 'soft coup'". However, there is little doubt but that Herr Trump would have used the military if he could have.

It does appear that the plan was in place from day One of the Trump reign. Not only did he put General Flynn in charge of the National Security apparatus, he also attempted to install military Generals into every position possible, Homeland Security, Defense, or wherever possible. He wanted a close relationship with the military, it did appear. (As of today, we do note that Vladimir Putin was the last world leader to congratulate Joe Biden on winning the Presidency)

Many people still question whether or not the election of 2016 was legitimate? We know that Russia inteferred in our election, but we do not know the exact degree?

It is important that we understand the reality of this moment.

Their first step was to initiate a long-term propaganda campaign against the institutions of our democracy. The press and the media were the first target. The American people were told that they were "fake". They could not be believed. They were the "enemy of the people".

The Trump regime sought immediately to tear down the "administrative state". Either by dismissal or just attrition, they sought to wreck institutions like our State Department and our Justice Department. They wanted Homeland Security Department to be a personal military unit for the Presidency.

Through their masterful propaganda plan, with the worldwide pandemic, with the economy on the edge of collapse, with the nation woefully divided, they saw an opportunity that they could not pass up. They went all-in, in a political campaign to try and win the election "legitimately". But it did not work to plan. The American people, many with mail-in ballots, voted as they had never voted before. And we see now that they needed every vote.

Was it an attempted coup? Consider this.

Elected officials, mostly state and local, were requested to assist in the attempted overthrow of the newly-elected Biden Presidency. Some of their lives were threatened. They went to the state legislatures, looking for some sort of relief? Finally they went to the Courts. At last report, there were approximately 60 cases before the courts. It was a deadly blow when the Supreme Court unanimously shot them down.

Trump mounted an aggressive propaganda campaign of his own, and adopted by the leaders within the National Republican Party. Almost to a member, they were all complicit.

Trump accused the Democrats and state officials, including Republican Governors and Republican Secretarys of State, of cheating on a massive scale. But, they could never show the evidence required by a court of law.

They challenged Biden's victory immediately. The regime was able to unite his base and most of the Republican Party behind him, as he mounted an attempt to overthrow the duly elected government. (He even tweeted "OVERTHROW" in one of his tweets)

Elected Republican leaders, such as Mitch McConnell, said we should wait until December when the Electoral College would vote. Well, they have voted. Ironically, Joe Biden won by the same number of votes that Herr Trump had called a "landslide" back in 2016, although Trump never won the popular vote.

There are some elected Representatives, and perhaps a Senator or two, ready to disrupt the final declaration of the election results, in Congress on January 6th. They are expected to attempt their final stab at our democracy. They are not expected to succeed.

So, was it an "attempted coup"?

In my opinion, it was an attempted coup and it was not just a "farcical" attempt as some have suggested. It was a very serious attempt at overthrowing our democracy and a legitimate election. We know who was complicit and who was not. That is not a matter for debate.

[onetexan]

1. It was in deed a RIGGED ELECTION and an ATTEMPTED COUP, albeit a dumb & clumsily conducted one

the Con/GOP enablers did all the rigging & coup-supporting but despite all that the people have spoken. Democracy prevails and we survive to fight another day.

"Eternal vigilance is the price of freedom"

[kentuck]

2. Can you imagine what would have happened if the election had come down to one state??

Would they have succeeded?

[exboyfil]

14. Yes

Arizona was the tipping point.

[kentuck]

18. Yes, the regime thought they had Arizona.

In my opinion.

[catrose]

34. Bless the Native vote, over 90% for Biden

[kentuck]

41. Absolutely!

They did what they thought was the right thing to do. History will show that, I am sure.

[onetexan]

74. Hear hear!! We owe so much to our Native American and Black brothers & sisters for saving democracy.

[ananda]

29. Yeah, when Fox called Arizona early..

.. that's when Trump went crazy and just went
downhill from there.

[malaise]

50. And even Fox called it on Election night

Ha

[jaxexpat]

40. They already did, in 2000,........

and News Max was there as well. I expect this to be the "go to" plan for Republicans from this point forward.

[mtnsnake]

3. There is really nothing else you could call it

This was no doubt a master plan from the start, even though many of us didn't realize it until later on in his regime, but it should be obvious just from the mafiosa type individuals Trump appointed that the intentions of Trump and the corrupt Republican Party wanted nothing less than to overturn our democracy and make it an autocracy.

I also think Trump may have intended to start a civil war as well, and he still may have that on his mind, he is so fucking demented.

[kentuck]

6. I still believe it was master-minded from Russia.

Notice how Putin was the last world leader to congratulate Biden?

[mtnsnake]

13. It could be.

Whether it was Putin's idea to begin with or Trump's or even Mitch McConnell's or Lindsay Graham's idea, they were all part of the big plan. That much is obvious. I just hope that some kind of justice is brought to all of them for their parts in the attempted coup, a coup attempt which still could be in progress as we speak. Trump is more evil than anyone can imagine, and he will still continue in his efforts to overthrow this democracy.

[JHB]

36. The Republicans have been in "damn the criticism, grab with both hands" mode...

...for far longer than they have been playing footsie with Putin. Before the 2000 election, the Boston Globe reported on a scheme where -- if Bush won the popular vote but lost the EC -- they'd launch a campaign to bully states into allowing faithless electors vote for Bush "following the Will of the people" instead of Gore. (Sound familiar?)

But the votes went the other way around and "the will of the people" was treated like the disposable rag they consider it to be.

[kentuck]

83. I remember that.

They have been willing to grab with both hands for a long time. They don't have any qualms exercising power whenever they see the opportunity.

[maddiemom]

72. It seemed apparent to me that...

from Day One, Trump was out to undermine all of the institutions most of us had been raised to have reasonable faith in. (Even through the Sixties, it was the overall "System," that was "rebelled against,' not the individuals so personally (starting with "Crooked Hillary," whatever THAT meant). Then, immediatlly, the "Fake News," personified especially, by insinuation, selected individuals. Trump or his "handlers" knew that critical thinking was increasingly missing with much of the population in these hectic times. Throughout the next four years, one or another of the national institutions came under fire from Trump, usually with him playing the VICTIM of their "mechinations." I think the military( which he needed behind him0 became a little dicier for him to handle (thankfully not all the generals were as easy for him as was the hypocritical Flynn). It became increasingly obvious what he appeared to be up to; he just wasn't very skillful. His own massive ego got in the way. Frighteningly, it might have been easier if he (like Hitler) had at least served at a low rank.

[mtnsnake]

79. Great post, maddiemom. nt

[NRaleighLiberal]

4. yes.

[Buns_of_Fire]

5. It was. And still is.

Come January 6, the Rump Warriors in Congress (led by the likes of Ron Johnson, Gym Jordan, Louie the Gomer, and Matt Putz) will attempt to take the final hill.

They will fail. Their efforts will be comical. Their intent isn't.

[jayschool2013]

58. THIS!

As long as Trump's supporters feel as if they're being spoken to from on high to overthrow the government, and until those who are threatening or planning the overthrow are brought to justice, it is an ongoing coup, no matter what Mitch McConnell says.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

63. May they self immolate

But I think they're too cowardly to.

[Texin]

68. With McConnell's congratulatory acknowledgment of Biden's win,

that might be less likely now. I think most of that effort was coming out of house rethugs. I believe they'll try it, but it seems pretty unlikely to succeed, and with more and more commenting on Biden's win, including Putin, the wind seems to be dying down on their sails.

[onetexan]

76. yup Moscow Mitch is trying to save his own skin. He won't go down with the trumptanic.

[beachbumbob]

7. If democrats to not form a select committee to investigate all aspects, then 2022 and 2024 will be

100x worse

[JudyM]

70. This. Stark truth.

[malaise]

8. Great post

and yes it was an attempted coup

It was a very serious attempt at overthrowing our democracy and a legitimate election. We know who was complicit and who was not. That is not a matter for debate.

[kentuck]

11. Somebody has to say it.

[friend of m and j]

75. AMEN MALAISE

iT IS ONE OF THE BEST POSTS SO FAR.

[Meowmee]

9. Yes, good post

[Maeve]

10. Be thankful for trumpean incompetence

And for the 81+MILLION of us who voted him out!

[jmg257]

12. Yes and it ain't over yet. They will contest the EV count on 1/6, and try to get a majority

to see it their way.

https://www.lawfareblog.com/how-resolve-contested-election-part-2-how-congress-counts-electoral-votes

Each time a certification is read out loud by the tellers, the vice president must call for objections. Where one is made, it must be submitted jointly in writing by a member of the House and a member of the Senate alongside an explanation of the relevant grounds, or else the objection may be rejected.

...

Regardless of the outcome, only after the objections to a given state’s electoral votes are resolved can the joint session move on to the next state. Once the certificates for every state and the District of Columbia have been opened and read, the tellers present the vice president with a statement communicating the results of the election, which he or she then reads out loud and submits into the records of both chambers alongside a list of the votes cast.

For a candidate to be elected president or vice president, the 12th Amendment requires that he or she receive votes from “a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed[.]” Historical practice has varied on whether this requires a majority of the whole number of electoral votes allocated among the states and District of Columbia—currently 538—or just those actually counted, which may be lower in the event that some states’ electoral votes are rejected or never received. The bulk of historical practice favors the former approach, but there have been occasional instances in which congressional officials seemed to apply the latter.

[still_one]

15. Yes, and it could have very easily happened

[kentuck]

16. I think it was much, much closer than most of us realize.

And it probably would have succeeded in any other democracy in the world?

[still_one]

17. I agree kentuck, and it is very concerning. Domestic terrorism from the right is very real. Not

only have a number of them have infiltrated police departments, but they are trying to moving into the government

[kentuck]

19. It is a long-term problem for our democracy.

I think it begins with the "anti-government" propaganda from the right.

[still_one]

24. That actually started with Reagan

[kentuck]

25. Yes, those infamous "nine words"..

"I'm from the government ... I'm here to help you."

In my opinion, it was activated when the Fairness Doctrine was repealed and Rush Limbaugh was put on the air in the late '8os.

[still_one]

28. yup, and the sad fact is Bill Clinton contributed that through the telecommunications act of 1996

[Fiendish Thingy]

20. I think the technical term is "autogolpe"

Staying in power without consent of the governed is an “autogolpe”, taking power without the consent of the governed is what is traditionally referred to as a coup.

(I learned that on the internet!)

[kentuck]

21. Thanks!

I have heard that there are a half a dozen or so different types of "coups". None of them are legitimate.

[empedocles]

22. Ok

[Hotler]

27. Thanks, I think I get it.

autogolpe = I'm in and not leaving.
coup = I'm moving in and not leaving.

[Poiuyt]

56. It's also called a self-coup.

[Arne]

61. It's hard for me to say 'golpe' whether it's auto or deliberate.

[Hotler]

26. I agree. They should feel lucky to not suffer the same fate as other fascist.

Lucky the people didn't drag their asses out of the palace and spread them to the wind.

[Harker]

30. "Is", not "was", I think.

It isn't over.

There's still Steiner!

[kentuck]

31. Good point!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

33. Mein Fuhrer, Steiner...

[Harker]

71. One of the many missing pieces in Trumpsky's life

has been people close to him that are willing to gulp hard and blurt out the truth... and face the cruelty and anger.

Of course, brave, truthful people aren't allowed to be near him for very long.

[lillypaddle]

32. You are quite the thinker,

writer, narrator, Have you sent this anywhere for publication besides DU? If not, you ought to. WELL DONE!

[kentuck]

35. Thank you lillypaddle !

Perhaps I will put it on Facebook.

[lillypaddle]

37. Send it to the KY newspapers

at least.

[Aviation Pro]

38. Shitbag didn't count on such a massive turnout

And that's what foiled the coup.

[wnylib]

66. He expected a huge Dem turnout,

but thought he had it covered with the Post Office dismantling and delays, combined with challenging the legitimacy of mail in and drop off ballots.

[badboy67]

39. It ain't over til Biden is sworn in.

The GOP no longer believes in American Constitutional Democracy, if they ever did. And there's lots more dirty tricks they can pull to try to overthrow the election and install Trump for another term or three. Be prepared. The worse may still lie ahead.

[kentuck]

42. Putin has conceded.

That is no small point.

[niyad]

51. Welcome to our DU family.

[Kashkakat v.2.0]

64. And even then its not - listen to RW talk radio lately? This extremist element is not going away

and while a minority its still a significant percentage. I agree totally - lets keep vigilant!!!!

[Kaleva]

43. What did Trump in was that most Repubs didn't support him.

The numbers of Repubs at the pro-Trump protests are relatively tiny compared to the numbers that voted for Trump in the areas where the protests were held.

Very few Repubs in Congress have come out and said Trump won the election.

All Repub controlled state legislatures in battleground states Biden won shot down any effort to name their own slate of electors that would vote for Trump.

Repub judges, some appointed by Trump himself, have dismissed numerous cases Trump and Friends have brought before them.

[kentuck]

46. He received 75 million votes.

Mostly from Republicans.

Although it is true that local and state-elected Republicans did their part to save our democracy. I think that is an important point to make.

[Kaleva]

52. Those votes didn't translate into supporting a post-election "attempted coup"

It appears to me, that given the evidence, the vast majority of those who voted for Trump have moved on with their lives.

[kentuck]

84. I hope you are right about that...

More than half of the Republicans in the House supported Texas in their SC case.

[onetexan]

77. They're all spineless, regardless. The majority haven't spoken out, not even aknowledge Biden as

the president elect. If you're in a position of leadership and don't speak out, you're complicit.

[bucolic_frolic]

44. In my opinion it was a decades long planned shakedown

by radical laissez-faire capitalists, foreign and domestic, small and large, and probably more than a few hiding in government bureaucracies everywhere, including ours. John Birch thinkers. All they worry about is their pensions and portfolios.

Look at the moving pieces and the component parts. Ask, who got what? Deregulation? Check. The right to pollute is worth billions to owners of big capital. Cheap or free federal lands same thing. Squeeze workers? Check. Reduced benefits and bargaining power, higher prices at the store, borrow all you want and work harder to pay for it. Lax enforcement? Check. Tax breaks and cuts? Check. IRS kneecapped? Check. You're more likely to be audited as an hourly worker making $20k than as a $784k business owner. Cow civil rights? Check. Don't want freedom and independent thinking for the masses. Masses need dependence so they can be controlled and exploited.

It was all a push for growth. The equivalent of speeding up the assembly line. Henry Ford had nothing on these guys.

Coup? The coup was a friendly coup, because this is Friendly Fascism, the title of a not-much-read 1980 book by political scientist Bertram Gross. The coup is a scrim, a veneer, to confuse and cover for the plain sight bandits. Because whereever you look, somebody got something. Capital is free, oligarchs own everything, and the people toil. That's the legacy of the coup era.

I might add the idea of the USSR and USA swapping roles, which as I recall was first floated in a foreign policy publication about the time of Nixon's Detente, early 1970s. And America, which is to say democracy, has enemies in the world. We defeated Royal and fascist powers in two world wars. During the Florida recount, December 2000, there was an audio clip played on a news service from some important European legislative member - something to the effect of 'so much for your vaunted American democracy!' So yes, democracy is not popular amongst the control freak crowd.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

45. I think we would be looking at an entirely different scenario if it had come down to Pennsylvania

It think the pressure and temptation would be too great if the target were more concentrated.

If the Pennsylvania legislature stepped in as a body it may have ended up in The Supreme Court with something for the reich wingers on the Court to hang their hats on.


When the Atlantic article came out people scoffed. There was a similar piece written by Loyola Law School in 2019 highlighting the stretched legal arguments Trump and his attorneys would probably try regarding the Pennsylvania gambit.

This thing ain’t over. We all have fantasies of Trump's fat ass getting dragged out by the Secret Service. While that would be thoroughly enjoyable it would still be really bad for our democracy.

One further note: These. People. Aren’t. Going. Away.

[Mme. Defarge]

47. I found this paragraph chilling

in today’s NYT article on the massive Russian systems hack.

“But this much is clear: While President Trump was complaining about the hack that wasn’t — the supposed manipulation of votes in an election he had clearly and fairly lost — he was silent on the fact that Russians were hacking the building next door to him: the United States Treasury.”


https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/14/us/politics/russia-hack-nsa-homeland-security-pentagon.html

[judesedit]

62. Exactly. And sorry to bring this up again, but who knows what software or avenues were installed

In the electronic voting machines. There is no paper trail. Check out Clint Curtis. He's one of the persons who did it in Ohio in 2000 for Bush. In all of the checking that was done this year, they were specifically looking for votes taken from Trump for Biden. Not Biden for Trump. Not the downballot tallies. Give me a break. Hackers can easily get around that stuff. It was shown on national television by a child. And Russia or whoever can get into government, intelligence, fortune 500 companies' computers, but not ES&S, Diebold, Sequoia e-machines that can be altered by a child?....Come on, people.

[WinstonSmith4740]

48. No, it wasn't an "attempted coup".

It was a failed coup. When Russian generals tried this with Gorbachev, they had the decency to commit suicide when it failed. I won't hold my breath waiting for any Republicans who took part in this to be honorable.

[kentuck]

85. That is a very valid point.

It is more of a "failed coup" than just an attempted coup.

[N_E_1 for Tennis]

49. This one may have been quashed...

But maybe the next attempt will succeed. The problems encountered this post election was a learning experience for the Destroyers of Democracy. The stubborn narcissistic buffoon will be replaced by a smarter charismatic cardboard cutout that will listen to and enact what trump failed to do.

Leaders in Washington have to install safeguards in the selection of a presidential candidate and the resulting election. Eliminating the Electoral College would a great start. One Person, One Vote.

There is much work to be done we cannot rest on the election victory inaction now will lead to the same assholelrey we just witnessed. Pick a problem or two that bothered you during this administration be it emoluments, transparency, better vetting and let your representative know where you stand on the issue until it gets attention.

[Laelth]

53. They confined their activities to the courts.

They were still working within the system. So far, that activity does not (to me) constitute an attempted coup, but we have a long way to go, yet, before we affect a full transfer of executive power. This might turn into an attempted coup before all is said and done.



-Laelth

[Kashkakat v.2.0]

54. Yes, AND..... it also furthered the cause of sowing chaos and distrust of democratic process

So in that regard it was, and continues to be a success. They succeeded in getting a significant no. o people jacked up and hatred of "libs" ever more extreme.

Dont make the mistake of thinking it's over or that it's only Trump and it's all going to go away when Trump goes away.

[Escurumbele]

55. Excellent post

[Sneederbunk]

57. Keystone Coup.

[hay rick]

67. Especially in Pennsylvania!

[Demsrule86]

59. It was an attempted coup. At first I thought it was BS grifting but it was a coup...he would have

used the House if he had a majority or the military if they had not held strong.

[housecat]

60. Love to see the film when it comes out

[Algernon Moncrieff]

65. Yes. However...

Nothing they did was new. These are all tactics that had been employed at various stages of the 19th century. The good news is three-fold: Biden won by a comfortable margin; we held the House; and the SCOTUS didn't bite on any of the cases. If any of those three statements were not true, then we'd be looking at a second Trump term.

[hay rick]

69. Yes it was a form of attempted coup.

Two things need to happen. One, the attempt to circumvent democracy has to become more widely recognized. There should be ongoing investigations in multiple jurisdictions exposing "smoking guns" so that it becomes something that "everyone knows." Secondly, enablers need to be held accountable wherever possible. Sanctions should be restored on Russia and additional measures should be taken to impose an additional cost for interfering with our democracy. We need to demonstrate that the risk/reward ratio for such ventures is negative.

[Rabrrrrrr]

73. And now that Trump knows that Russia knows that he's a loser, I wonder if he's terrified

that Russia is now going to demand he pay back his loans, and that he'll be cut off from whatever financial help he has been getting from Putin/Russia.

Is part of why Trump is fighting so hard here because he's terrified knowing that a) he could be facing indictment and legal problems from NY state and others, and b) he knows that Russia will consider him persona non grata shortly, and his whole house of cards will start falling down, and Russia will say "He was never a friend of Russia. We never had dealings with him. He is nothing to us." Without Russia's protection, his financial empire (the fake one) is done.

Without Russia, the Trump family is going to be financially ruined quite soon.

[PRETZEL]

78. If using the word coup is appropriate, then I would say yes

but it was an obvious attempt to subvert the will of the people, particularly the will of the people of Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia, Arizona, Michigan etc.

Just by the mere fact that none of the non-swing states had their elections challenged really showed that.

[malaise]

80. The only thing missing is the absence of the military

but he sure has the support of some paramilitary forces and elements of the security forces (police). I would add that his ignoramus thought he could achieve this through established political institutions. but he also called for violence
https://www.britannica.com/topic/coup-detatalled
Coup d’état, also called coup, the sudden, violent overthrow of an existing government by a small group. The chief prerequisite for a coup is control of all or part of the armed forces, the police, and other military elements

-----------------
The good news is that he never had control of all of the armed forces

[David__77]

81. What's occurring now is the "2020 USA attempted coup d'etat."

I use present tense because I do not think that the danger is passed.

While I don't know that Wikipedia for instance will have an entry "2020 USA attempted coup d'etat," I do think that's what it is.

It is most certainly an attempted coup. That the Supreme Court was asked to take the action requested itself constitutes a coup attempt. And it's not the only component. There are former military officers including Michael Flynn agitating openly for suspension of the constitution. There are pro-coup rallies and pro-coup media. There has been restaffing of positions that would be important to the administration of further efforts in this coup attempt.

There is a danger from Trump most especially until he is deprived of the presidency.

While it could turn out another way, I would not at all be surprised by Trump taking all sorts of actions including those that may require his arrest.

Here is pro-coup messaging from a well-known conservative yesterday: http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/kincaid/201214

[AwakeAtLast]

82. They gave learned valuable information

And will make adjustments for the next try. We must crush them before that can happen, IMO.

[Blue Owl]

86. Three words: Louis. Fucking. DeJoy.

Coup attempted.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

87. It was an attempt to establish permanent Republican rule, beginning with a trump dynasty.