Own It!
Shifting strategies after Charlottesville
OMG I think my computer has an agenda. It just auto-corrected Charlottesville as Chancellorsville — which I had to consult Google to learn was a site of a significant Civil War Confederate victory in 1863 led by Robert E. Lee, the man whose statue removal the alt-right white supremacists were rallying against last Friday.
This latest battle of the American Civil War — because as Dave Pell points out in his great reaction piece, the Civil War doesn’t appear to be over — was indeed fought in Charlottesville.
I wasn’t planning on adding to the public debate on this latest bloody marker of the Trump presidency, but the auto-correct glitch compelled me to pen this piece.
Airwaves and news feeds are saturated with talking heads — on many sides — calling for the president to condemn in no uncertain terms the instigators of unrest and violence in Charlottesville. To call out white supremacists and neo-Nazis as domestic terrorists and enemies of our nation.
Not likely. And when it happens, it will be for damage control.
Why? Because racist white supremacists and nationalists are Trump’s most loyal constituency, and he needs them now more than ever, to shore up his crashing approval numbers and to provide unwavering support if and when he does attempt a military foray.
Let’s not kid ourselves. If the protests of the past days hadn’t ended in injury and death, he and his alt-right cadre of Miller, Gorka, and Bannon may well be putting out veiled statements supporting the rights of the alt-right protesters to free speech, giving credence to those who marched as having legitimate grievances.
Let me propose a different strategy …
We need a few brave souls with clout and media access to use Trump’s own tactics against him, to pull a Tom Cruise Few Good Men Jedi mind trick on him — to dare him to admit what he is itching to say.
Mister President — be honest, those protesters on the streets of Charlottesville are your people. They are the crusaders, the torchbearers, literally, of your ‘Make America Great Again’ campaign.
Admit it, own up to what you really stand for, so that we can all stop wasting time pretending that your heart is in the right place and that you just need coaching on how to behave and what to say.
Don't beat around the bush. Show your true colors, so that we can have a real debate: your principles versus the nation's.
Don’t be a wuss, Sir.
Own it!
