Trump v. The Law

We've heard it all our lives: No one is above the law. Then along comes Trump. He is not above the law, but he chooses to act as if he is, and that suffices? No, it does not. So why is there not a stronger response to his defiance of a federal district judge's order not to deport a group of purported criminal Venezuelans?

1. He has the bully pulpit. Heads of state, for good or ill, have almost unlimited access to their country's media outlets, and they usually have at least one in their pocket--Fox News in this case. He also sits atop a pile of minions, sycophants, toadies, brown nosers and ass kissers. That is to say, the Cabinet and majorities in both houses of Congress, all of whom fan out to parrot his words and pronouncements on TV, radio, podcasts, and town meetings.
2. Those airwaves reach the ears of the MAGA Cult. I've learned some interesting things about cults, and the first one is, throw away the stereotypes. All cults are not full of slow witted knuckle draggers, although many have their share. Rather, it's not uncommon to find well educated middle- to upper-middle class people in them, who have the ability to make reasoned decisions about where to place their allegiance. They, including some members of Congress, choose to follow. Any federal officer who chooses to follow Trump by definition forsakes their oath of office. Among those are even some who purport to be Christians. They have obviously forgotten the admonition about serving two masters in Matthew 6:24. Those are the scary ones.
3. MAGA is a cult of personality, a specific variety of cult usually associated with authoritarian regimes. The term was popularized in our time by Nikita Khrushchev, who was concerned about the godlike treatment being given his late predecessor, Josef Stalin. It may seem odd to have one dictator playing down the fame of another, but that's the thing about tyrants. They don't like to share anything. Here's what the Encyclopædia Britannica says about them: "Since the 20th century, 'cult of personality' has been most often used to refer to charismatic leader cults, a type of personality cult which is based on a political leader and designed to enforce their power, magnify their ideology, and legitimize the rule of the government associated with them. Due to the association of these personality cults with autocratic systems such as fascist Germany and the communist Soviet Union [and North Korea, Belarus, et al.], they have developed a strong negative connotation."
   
4. Congress, which the Founding Framers designed as the strongest unit of the tripartite government, is embarrassing itself by perennially being the weakest. For years the two houses have suffered gridlock, partisan warfare, and plain nastiness. Congress has power, which Trump routinely usurps. When are we going to see those congressional muscles flex? Both parties have grievances about the issue, after all. But now the barely majority Republicans preen and gloat without reason and the Democrats quake and quail, afraid to rock the boat. Shame on them both. Between the party organizations, the long-in-the-tooth senior members, the cravens who grovel at Trump's feet, and the Democrats who spend more time praying for a miracle than acting to bring one about, there is (forgive the sexist language) not a man among them. And perhaps there shouldn't be. Wouldn't a Congress composed entirely of women be a wonderful departure?
   
5. The courts have the power of the law behind them. The question is, how robust is that power? If the Constitution has a weak spot it is its age. Not the physical age of the document nor the strength of the ideas it embodies, but its Age: the so-called Age of Reason that gave it birth. It was a time that celebrated the human intellect and finally turned the corner on medieval superstition; that elevated Everyman and deposed kings; that dreamed and imagined. The English term "gentleman" originally meant a social rank bestowed by land ownership. By the Framers' time the term reflected personal qualities rather than rank: honor, courage, and loyalty. The gentlemen who gave us the Constitution made the reasonable assumption that the offices of government would always be filled with people of equal or better quality than themselves. Then along came Trump.
6. The Law: "This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding." (Article 6. My emphasis.)

What else need be said? 

--- Diogenes, 18 March 2025