I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL 2020 IS DONE AND OVER, BUT I'M SURE DONALD TRUMP WISHES IT WOULD NEVER END

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     To say that this year has been horrendous would be the understatement of the 21st century.  Below is just a sampling of what has made 2020 so terrifyingly gruesome.     

      1 - The Johns Hopkins University of Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center says America has suffered more than 330,000 deaths and counting from the COVID-19/coronavirus pandemic with nearly 19 million other Americans, so far, who have taken sick from this dreadfully distressing disease.  Doctors, health officials, and other medical professionals say the worst is yet to come as a tremendous amount of Americans, over the Christmas and New Year's season, are expected to ignore guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Meanwhile, let's not ever forget that it was Donald Trump who knew months before the rest of us did that the coronavirus could steal the lives of millions of Americans; not to mention the possibility that millions more people worldwide could die after being infected.  Trump was warned by multiple Cabinet-level advisers as early as January and February of this year, but reportedly Trump was also informed by Pentagon officials in November 2019 of a deadly illness that might be devastating and catastrophic.  There is no excuse for Trump's wilful dereliction of duty.  By his own

words - recorded on tape - Trump admitted the following to celebrated veteran journalist Bob Woodward in a March 19th, 2020 interview for his explosive book, RAGE. "Well, I think, Bob, really to be honest with you, I wanted to, uh, I wanted to always play it down.  I still like playing it down, because I don't want to create a panic."  When Trump was calling COVID-19 a "hoax" that was dreamed up by the "Democrats" to "hurt" him, and that it would "disappear" like a "miracle," or that the coronavirus was no worse than the seasonal flu, Trump was acknowledging to Woodward, "This is more deadly.  This is deadly stuff."  Trump's deliberate negligence is in large part the reason that hundreds of thousands of Americans have died after being diagnosed with COVID-19.  We all know it by now - and if you don't, you should - Donald Trump is wickedly thoughtless.  He cares about nobody but himself.       

     2 - Our country has deteriorated in 2020 with an economy that has caused Americans to be homeless and hungry.  According to Statista - one of the world's leading statistical portals and data intelligence services - the U.S. Department of Labor reports more than 70 million Americans have filed for unemployment benefits from the start of the coronavirus national emergency in mid-March to the present.  About 12 million people are still without jobs to this day.  Furthermore, The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says that data by a Household Pulse Survey - from November 25th through December 7th, 2020 - indicates that "Some 27 million adults - 13 percent of all adults in the country - reported that their households sometimes or often didn't have enough to eat in the last seven days."  But, as this column is published, Republicans in Congress won't give Americans the money they need to survive.  They're too selfish to provide people who are desperate, a way to make ends meet, until we get out of this disastrous health crisis.   

      3 - Donald Trump - a vile, vicious, and vulgar man, and without question the worst president our country has ever seen - has pardoned war criminals, child killers, and others who are clearly not representative of what our Founders designed when they created the presidential pardon power.  Such power is based on Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution, which states, "The President...shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of impeachment."  According to Presidential Studies Quarterly, "The U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted the provision to include the power to grant pardons, conditional pardons, commutations of sentence, conditional commutations of sentence, remissions of fines and forfeitures, respites and amnesties."  But the U.S. Department of Justice says "a presidential pardon is an expression of the president's forgiveness" and ordinarily is granted in recognition of the applicant's acceptance of responsibility for the crime and established good conduct for a significant period of time after conviction or completion of sentence.  It does not signify innocence."  Therefore, none of Trump's recent pardons fit the customary description for presidential pardons, as none of the recipients of Trump's pardons have expressed any forgiveness, nor have they taken responsibility for the crimes they committed.  As

Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff of California wrote on Wednesday, December 23rd, 2020, "The message from Trump is clear.  If you lie for me, if you cover for me, if you're loyal to me, I'll protect you, reward you, and get you out of jail.  But if, on the other hand, you expose corruption or stand up to me, I'll come after you."  For me to call Donald Trump evil would be kind.

     4 - Trump - who supposedly is the commander-in-chief (but certainly he is not deserving of that title, nor the title of president) - has taken money out of the wallets and pocketbooks of our brave military heroes (yes, everyone who serves is a hero) by Trump's recent veto of an armed forces spending bill.  Congress has until January 2nd, 2021 to override the veto.  The National Defense Authorization Act passed both the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives and the Republican-controlled Senate, and it did so by margins big enough to override a presidential veto.  Such congressional action would be the first during Trump's presidency.  Included as part of the 740 billion-dollar measure would provide pay increases for our troops.  Dare I say it again?  For me to call Donald Trump evil would be kind.   

     5 - Although Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is blaming the worst-ever U.S. government cyber-attack on Russia, Donald Trump - as he has done in the past - declines to accuse Moscow and The Kremlin of anythiing sinister.  We all know that  

Trump will defend Russia's President Vladimir Putin

even when U.S. intelligence proves that Russia is responsible for threats or assaults of any kind against the United States.  Every U.S. intelligence agency believes Russia interfered in our 2016 election.  But whether it was then or now, Trump HAS never and WILL never condemn, denounce, or even mildly criticize Russia.  Reportedly, at least six of "Uncle Sam's" departments, including State, Treasury, Commerce and Energy have been breached by the recent cyber-attack.  Dozens of security and technology companies - including Microsoft - have also been affected by the hack, which federal officials have labeled a "grave risk" to every level of the U.S. government.  Despite the seriousness of the electronic invasion, The Associated Press says Trump has ordered White House officials to not issue any statement that would imply an involvement by Russia.  Meanwhile, Trump tweeted on Saturday, December 19th, 2020, "The Cyber Hack is far greater in the Fake News Media than in actuality.  Everything is well under control."  But security and technology experts plus officials within the Trump administration do not agree with Trump at all.  Not pointing the finger at Rusia, Trump included in his aforementioned tweet that "it may be China."  However, there is no proof whatsoever that China is responsible.  It's absolutely disgraceful for Trump to not act aggressively against Russia.  The question remains - as it has for four years - what dirt does Putin have on Trump?  It's so very obvious that Trump has been compromised by Russia and, therefore, once out of office he should not be given any access to national security or other classified information that is often provided, at times, to former presidents.  Whether wittingly or unwittingly, there's plenty of evidence that Trump has performed as an agent of Moscow.

       

      6 - To top it all off - if everything above isn't enough - Trump plus some Republicans on Capitol Hill have launched a coup on our democracy as they betray our country while they travel on the "Trump Treason Trolley" in a futile attempt to overturn this year's presidential election.  Anyone in Congress who tries to invalidate and reverse the election is undermining American democracy and should be branded a traitor.  The 2020 contest between Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden was not only legal, but it's been called by election officials "the most secure election in U.S. history."  Still, Trump refuses to concede to President-elect Biden after Mr. Biden defeated Trump in a landslide that the Electoral College has certified with their votes; 306 for Joe Biden, 232 for Donald Trump.  But Trump is in total denial and cannot seem to accept that he lost the race and President-elect Biden won.  Trump filed dozens of lawsuits and

judges across the country, plus justices of the United States Supreme Court, have rejected Trump's claims of widespread voter fraud.  The jurists have thrown out Trump's unwarranted and unsubstantiated allegations as if it was yesterday's garbage.  Trump's trash has been buried in a "loser's landfill" as it's not worth recycling.  Even Trump's generally loyal attorney general (now former A.G.) finally decided to put country over Trump when William Barr stated there were no election improprieties.

      

      Those are just some of the nauseating highlights of this year of tragedy and sorrow.  It's a time that will forever be remembered as the year when an American president named Donald Trump riddled bullets in to the body of our nation.  Back in January 2016, Trump narcissistically claimed, "I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue (in Manhattan) and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose any voters."  Americans proved him wrong on November 3rd, 2020 when thankfully voters saved the United States from another four years with this lawless loser, vindictive villain, and malicious monster whose detestable and disgusting depravity has strangled our country with his atrocious arrogance and his ruthless and reckless rancor.

    

      Trump can continue to throw his temper tantrums, but January 20th, 2021 can't come soon enough.  Following their inauguration at 12 o'clock noon, President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will walk into The White House, and Donald Trump will have already been evicted.  Trump's future home is likely to be a prison cell as it's inevitable that he will be indicted for the numerous federal and state crimes that I - and tens of millions of other Americans - believe he has committed.  Enjoy your freedom now, Donald.  Our justice system will hold you accountable for your illegal activities.  I can't wait until 2020 is done and over, but I'm sure Trump wishes it would never end.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again." 

 

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

Please express your personal opinions by following the instructions printed at the top of this column.  And thank you for reading The Controversy. 

Photo credits:

1 - Jim Watson/Getty Images (Donald Trump)

2 - Erik S. Lesser/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (Journalist Bob Woodward)

3 - Yves Herman/Reuters (Donald Trump)

4 - CNN Screenshot (Representative Adam Schiff)

5 - Alex Wong/Getty Images (U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo)

6 - Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images (President Vladimir Putin of Russia)

7 - Daily Express (President-elect Joe Biden and Donald Trump)

8 - MSNBC/NBC News Screenshot (Former U.S. Attorney General William Barr)

9 - Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg (Donald Trump)

10 - Maya Harris (President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris) 

Copyright 2020 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved. 

WHAT WILL CNN AND MSNBC DO WITHOUT DONALD TRUMP IN THE WHITE HOUSE? PLENTY!

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      Since November 7th, 2020 - the day Joe Biden was declared President-elect, following a contentious, controversial and consequential presidential election - there have been several newspaper and magazine articles that have asked the question, "Without Donald Trump in The White House, what will CNN and MSNBC do?"

 

      Most recently - on Monday, December 14th - The New York Times noted in a column by John Koblin and Michael M. Grynbaum that

"CNN and MSNBC thrived during the Trump years, reaching new heights in ratings and revenue while devoting countless prime-time hours to criticizing a White House antagonist their viewers just could not quit."

     Over the last four years, MSNBC and CNN, without question, skyrocketed to astronomical altitudes with big bucks and record ratings.  But these two cable television networks have much more to offer, and skeptics need to embody more confidence in the professionalism of journalists who can provide quality programming that will arouse, animate and attract their viewers.

     So what will CNN and MSNBC do after Donald Trump's been evicted from The White House?  In a word...plenty!

     CNN was founded in 1980 by Ted Turner, whose brilliance to create the first

24-hour, all-news TV network, molded this broadcasting giant and business genius in to icon status.  Although many industry executives and financial wizards thought Turner - to put it bluntly - was nuts to invest his dollars and time in to a cable media outlet that would air nothing but news around-the-clock, it was Turner who - to this day - has been laughing all the way to the bank as he counts his money.  The success of CNN made Turner in to a bona fide mogul who, in 1996, sold CNN, as part of Time Warner's acquisition of Turner Broadcasting System, for which - according to the network he created - Turner raked in a nice, tidy sum of 7.34 billion dollars in stock.  But when Time Warner merged with AOL in 2001, the company's stock prices plummeted as the dot.com bubble burst.  The New Yorker magazine says Turner was Time Warner's top individual shareholder and The New York Times says he lost about 7 billion dollars when Time Warner's stock dropped 60 percent.  Before the tumble, the philanthropic Turner gifted 1 billion dollars to establish the United Nations Foundation.  And although I salute Ted Turner for his generosity and admire him as a media guru, I don't see eye to eye with him when he shoots off his mouth and is offensive.  At least with Turner, when he gets in to hot water with people, he has apologized for some of his insulting remarks and provocative comments; something that Donald Trump would never do.  As for Turner's tremendous financial loss from Time Warner's stock, I won't be playing any violins for him.  Business Insider says Turner owns 15 ranches in 10 states totaling just under 2 million acres, which makes him one of the largest individual landowners in North America.  Forbes says Turner's Real Time Net Worth - as of Saturday, December 19th, 2020 - is 2.2 billion dollars. 

     It's been 40 years that CNN's been broadcasting and it will continue to prosper for 40 more years or 400 more years.  CNN, and MSNBC too, along with the people who run these networks, plus the anchors, correspondents, producers and other personnel, do not need Donald Trump.  There will be other news that will keep viewers watching.  Oh I know both CNN and MSNBC have been much more successful these past four years than previously.  In large part, it's because on-air hosts, commentators and analysts have been able to speak their minds.  By doing so, they represent - with charisma (sometimes) and articulation (always) - the thoughts of liberals, progressives and other Democrats, who - from their dens, bedrooms and living rooms - concentrate intently on their every syllable.  Attacking Trump's lack of responsibility, his ineptitude and incompetence, his egotistical, narcissistic and arrogant conduct, and his repulsive and repugnant rhetoric has given the audience tuning in to MSNBC and CNN a feeling of contentment and gratification.  However, if these two networks don't run the Trump bandwagon off the road, but instead allow it - and its pompous pilot - to travel the media highways over the next four years, just so they can make mega millions of dollars, then they can't bitch and moan that "Trumpism" is alive and well and living in the United States.  It will be their fault for helping to give more ammunition to an evil monster whose political and public life need to be buried, not enabled and empowered.

     Come 2021, it will be MSNBC's 25th year of broadcasting, having been launched in 1996, and, as with CNN, MSNBC - which, in reality, is the NBC News Network - can also flourish with voluminous victory and without needing Donald Trump to do so.  Obviously MSNBC and CNN are in operation to amass huge ratings and a boatload of money.  That's a given.  But I emphatically disagree with anyone who thinks that these organizations are in business to get those big ratings through "creating outrage," which is exactly how some people describe the mission of both CNN and MSNBC.  Neither of these networks create outrage.  The people who make the news - such as Trump and his political allies - are the ones "creating" the "outrage."  And as long as there are human beings in a divided, polarized nation, and in a world that is filled with so much vile hatred, there will unfortunately and tragically be "outrage."

     Earlier in this column, I referenced an article from The New York Times.  "The Gray Lady" has been around since 1851 and is recognized as America's "national newspaper of record."  If for no other reason but longevity - although it's been awarded with 133 Pulitizer Prizes in its history; more than any other newspaper - The New York Times has been triumphant as a journalistic powerhouse for nearly two centuries; no matter what's making the news.  What I don't think certain people understand, is that good reporters can always dig up stories - not the so-called "fake news," but actual, truthful stories - that will bring interest to readers and viewers.  And there's no reason that bad news is "All the News That's Fit to Print."  Whether print journalists or broadcast journalists, the same applies.

     The Society of Professional Journalists - of which I am a member - says, "The duty of the journalist is to further those ends by seeking truth and providing a fair and comprehensive account of events and issues.  Ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough.  An ethical journalist acts with integrity.  Journalists should be honest and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information.  Give voice to the voiceless.  Recognize a special obligation to serve as watchdogs over public affairs and government.  Seek to ensure that the public's business is conducted in the open, and that public records are open to all.  Never deliberately distort facts or context, including visual information."  MSNBC and CNN generally live up to the SPJ's Code of Ethics everyday.  But in a rare instance when they make a mistake, they own up to it and they apologize.

     There's never a need for professional journalists to fictionalize or falsify reporting.  In a country of more than 331 million people, there's news happening practically every minute of everyday.  On a much smaller scale - a very long time ago - I created a local news show when I was news director of a small radio station.  I called the program, Good News.  I - and the radio station - made a ton of money (figuratively speaking) from the show.  The sales department and I had waiting lists a mile long (so to speak) with the names of local businesses that wanted to advertise on the program.  The entire broadcast featured nothing but good news.  It was a ratings smash hit.  MSNBC and CNN will find and present captivating and compelling stories, and it won't matter whether they're covering bad news, good news, items of controversy, or feel-good-warm-and-fuzzy events and issues, they will keep their viewers engaged.  

     The SPJ also says, "Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy."  The SPJ says journalists should "support the open and civil exchange of views, even views they find repugnant."  But the operative word in the SPJ sentence is "civil."  Therefore, my hope for CNN and MSNBC is that they will not give Donald Trump free publicity by permitting him to use their "airwaves" (really their cables) as an opportunity to keep his name and face on their networks.  Trump is not at all "civil," thus allowing him to take advantage of their services would be tantamount to sinful.     

      Shortly after The Daily Beast reported in November that three sources confirmed Trump is considering a run for The White House in 2024, I'm on the record for writing that Trump will NEVER really seek the presidency again.  As I wrote then, Trump may SAY that he's running, he may ANNOUNCE his candidacy and even start a campaign, but he won't in actuality be running for president.  Trump's strategy will be that he simply wants everyone to THINK that he's going after the brass ring for a second time so that all the media attention will be focused on him.  And that's exactly what Politico's White House correspondent and associate editor Anita Kumar reported more than two weeks later on December 14th.  "Trump has probably no idea if he will actually run, but because he only cares about himself and his association with the party has only been about his ambitions rather than what it stands for, he will try to freeze the field and keep as many people on the sidelines," a former White House aide told Kumar.  "Just for the sake of keeping his options open and, yes, keeping the attention all for himself."

     Trump - as I wrote in the past - will USE the press so he can make more money and basically manipulate the mainstream media and social media.  Whether one hates Trump or loves him, there's no debating that he is the "Mozart of manipulation;" a virtuoso at deceit, falsehoods and betrayal.  After all, that is what Trump has done for five-and-a-half years since June 16th, 2015 when he rode down the Trump Tower escalator to announce he was pursuing the 2016 Republican nomination.  But no one - or few people, I should say - really took Trump seriously at first in 2015.  However, his insidious skills enticed and enthralled a base of supporters.  To this day, I'm baffled by the tens of millions of people who remain fascinated by Trump.  I'm positively perplexed that he was somehow able - with his treacherous artistry - to win the GOP nomination.  And if I live to be 1,000 years old, I will still be mind-boggled how Trump ever won the presidency.      

      Just think how different our country would be today if former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was president and not Donald Trump.  First and foremost, the coronavirus crisis would not have been mishandled.  As this column is published, the Johns Hopkins Univeristy of Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center says more than 315,000 Americans are dead from COVID-19 and more than 17.6 million others have gotten sick from a disease that Trump at first called a "hoax," and later claimed would "disappear" like a "miracle."  Meanwhile, Statista reports that according to the World Health Organization, there were nearly 236,000 new coronavirus cases in the United Staes on Friday, December 18th.  And The Washington Post says, "our country is losing an American every 33 seconds to COVID-19."  Let me repeat that a different way.  There's "a death every 33 seconds" because of the coronavirus.  So if you're not staying home unless you absolutely have to go out, if you're not social distancing when you do leave your home, if you're not keeping people out of your house or apartment who do not live there and who you cannot trust implicitly that they are following all the guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and if you're not wearing a mask when you do go out, then in plain, simple English, you're stupid.  You're risking your own life and the lives of others.  Have a heart.  If you don't care about yourself, care about your loved ones and friends.  

   

      Getting back to the man who is - for the most part - responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic striking the United States with such deadly force, Donald Trump knew for months - going back to January 2020 (and perhaps even earlier) - that the coronavirus could possibly kill millions of Americans, yet he didn't tell us.  Long after he knew the truth, Trump continued to lie and say that COVID-19 was dreamed up by the Democrats to hurt him.  "The Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus" were Trump's words.  There's no way we'd be in this mess if Hillary Clinton had defeated Trump for the presidency.  So who do we blame for Trump beating Mrs. Clinton in 

2016?  Russia interfering in our election?  Yes.  The 77,744 people in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin who voted for President Barack Obama in 2012, but stayed home four years ago and didn't cast their ballots for the former First Lady?  Of course.  If they had voted for Secretary Clinton, she would have won the Electoral College votes for those three states and, therefore, the presidency.  Mrs. Clinton herself?  Partly, I suppose.  But what about former FBI director James Comey's letter to Congress?  Most definitely.

    

      As I would think you'll remember, Comey issued an inappropriate and unwarranted letter to Congress on October 28th, eleven days before the election, that influenced certain voters to not vote for Hillary Clinton.  But there was no justification for Comey's correspondence, whereby he wrote, "In connection with an unrelated case, the FBI has learned of the existence of emails that appear to be pertinent to the investigation" in to the private email server that Secretary Clinton used while she was in office in the Obama administration.  Comey also communicated to Congress that the FBI could not yet determine "whether or not this material may be significant or not."  Thus, Comey's words caused some voters to question if Mrs. Clinton should occupy The Oval Office.  He then waited - perhaps intentionally or possibly coincidentally - until there were only two days to go before the November 8th, 2016 election.  That's when Comey released a statement reaffirming what he asserted in July 2016 that there was no evidence of illegal wrongdoing by Secretary Clinton and, therefore, since she did not break the law, there was no reason to recommend criminal charges against her.   But by that point, the damage was done.

     One year after the Comey letter, on October 28th, 2017, Hillary Clinton told CNN, "I was on the way to winning until a combination of Jim Comey's letter on October 28th (2016), and Russian WikiLeaks raised doubts in the minds of people who were inclined to vote for me, but got scared off.  If the election had been on October 27th, I'd be your president."  Truer words have never been spoken.  

     Despite all of the above facts, how the hell did Donald Trump do it?  How did he beat Hillary Clinton?  It'll be the mystery of the 21st Century how a man who insulted people, offended people, conned people, threatened people, and, of course, maliciously lied to people, could become president of the United States.    

      As for a 2024 campaign, Trump might hold his rallies (and his base will come...some of it...for awhile).  Trump might make his speeches (and his loyal groupies will listen and cheer him on...some of them...for awhile).  But if Trump continues to spew his venom and his vulgarities, many of his one-time devotees will start to abandon him and knock him off his pedestal of profanity and perversion.  That is

if President-elect Biden does what he says he's going to do...which I strongly believe he will.  A year after being in office, I predict President Biden's approval rating will be in the 65 to 70 percent range; perhaps even higher.  But he has to be given the opportunity to succeed.  It will, of course, be more difficult, and more of a challenge, if Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock don't win the U.S. Senate seats they are seeking in the run-off election in Georgia on January 5th, 2021.  Senator Mitch McConnell would then remain Majority Leader.  President-elect Biden needs the Democrats to have the majority in the Senate as they have in the House.  Without both chambers of Congress being in Democratic control, Mr. Biden is going to have a tough time getting anything done with America's lawmakers on Capitol Hill.  There would be few bill-signing ceremonies, and President Biden's report card for his work with the legislative branch of our government would not be receiving many A+    

grades and gold stars without cooperation by the Senate.  There is, though, a longtime relationship - of sorts - between McConnell and Joe Biden, so the Kentucky Republican may compromise at times and work with the Delaware Democrat.  But unless Democrats are in the driver's seat in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, the kind of championship achievements for President Biden and his administration that I'm confident can be accomplished, won't happen.  America cannot afford to be legislatively stagnate for the next four years.  We must advance with across the board leaders who are on the same page, and who are on

track to help everyone in our country, not just the privileged few.  Furthermore, 

it might be a rocky start for our 46th President, as Senate Republicans are likely to put up obstacles to block the confirmation of some of Mr. Biden's cabinet nominees.  Therefore, it is vital for Democrats and Independents in Georgia to vote their hearts out to elect both Ossoff and Warnock.  That way, there'll be a 50/50 tie in the Senate, which will give Vice President Kamala Harris the tie-breaking vote.

    

      All of the above being said, MSNBC and CNN need to focus on anything and everything that has nothing to do with Donald Trump.  They must ignore him.  They must forget he ever existed.  They must make him a non-entity.  Whether Fox News gets back in to bed with Trump, full force, or if management decides for the future to get behind a more mainstream Republican - one who has a decent demeanor and not a savage and sinister streak - time will tell.  But if the cable networks of CNN and MSNBC - as well as the broadcast networks of ABC, CBS and NBC - are suckered in to being brainwashed - just as Trump's rooters have been since 2015 - then shame on them all.  And that goes for social media too.  Twitter and Facebook need to ban Trump the first time he posts a lie about President Biden or distorts the truth about anything that would create a negative and noxious narrative when the facts prove that Trump is deliberately dishonest.  Of course under normal circumstances, any political candidate should be granted the same airtime or other press coverage that is received by his or her opponents.  But with Trump, these are not normal circumstances.  Obviously the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution gives everyone the right of free speech.  But rewarding Donald Trump with media exposure when he's dictating a diatribe of deceitful and devious claims, under an umbrella of unscrupulous undertakings, should not be tolerated.  Trump's virulent verbiage would be absorbed by those who worship him.  And his reprehensible rants would motivate and energize Trump's fanatical followers, which would certainly electrify a 2024 political campaign.  We, as a nation, cannot withstand the possibility of a Trump resurgence at any time in our future.  That is if he ever really goes away at all.

     We cannot allow Donald Trump to mastermind another poisonous and perilous scheme that could keep him - in certain people's eyes - relevant in the media and on the political scene.  We, the people of the United States, as a whole, must crush Trump like the brutally barbarous, bombastic bug that he is, and metaphorically stomp him to death politically and as a public figure, so he is no longer germane to the conversation.  But I have faith that responsible media outlets will act

appropriately.  They will have countless stories to write and report as I'm encouraged and excited by the character, the credentials, the courage, the compassion, the class, the confidence, and the overall qualifications of the gem of a gentleman who Americans have elected to be our new President.  Joe Biden.  However, if MSNBC and CNN go off in a direction that provides Donald Trump with a means to dispatch his misleading messages, then the cable networks will be the hypocrites of the world.  As journalists, should they perform in such a careless and reckless manner, they should not be in business.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

 

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

Please express your personal opinions by following the instructions printed at the top of this column.  And thank you for reading The Controversy.

Photo credits:

1 - Daily Express (President-elect Joe Biden and Donald Trump)

2 - The New York Times (Journalist John Koblin)

3 - The New York Times (Journalist Michael M. Grynbaum)

4 - The Associated Press (Media Executive Ted Turner)

5 - Anita Kumar via Twitter (Journalist Anita Kumar) 

6 - Justin Sullivan/Getty Images (Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton)

7 - Yves Herman/Reuters (Donald Trump)

8 - NBC News Screenshot (Former President Barack Obama)

9 - Fox News Screenshot (Former FBI Director James Comey)

10 - Jessica McGowan/Getty Images and Megan Varner/Getty Images (Democratic Party Nominee for the U.S. Senate Election in Georgia Jon Ossoff and Democratic Party Nominee for the U.S. Senate Election in Georgia Raphael Warnock) 

11 - Andrew Harnik/The Associated Press (President-elect Joe Biden)

12 - Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call (President-elect Joe Biden and Senator Mitch McConnell)

13 - USA TODAY (Vice President-elect Kamala Harris)

14 - Jim Watson/Getty Images (Donald Trump)

15 - Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle (President-elect Joe Biden)

Copyright 2020 Gary B. Duglin and TheControversy.net.  All Rights Reserved.

JOE BIDEN WINS IN A LANDSLIDE AND WILL SOON BE OUR PRESIDENT. DONALD TRUMP WILL BE GONE SO IT'S TIME FOR AMERICANS TO REUNITE THE UNITED STATES. PRESIDENT BIDEN WILL TRY HARD, BUT WILL EVERYONE ELSE CARE ENOUGH TO DO IT?

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     As long as there are humans in the world, there will be disagreements.  There will be debates.  There will be arguments.  But that doesn't mean there needs to be hatred.  For more than five years - since he first announced he was a Republican candidate for president - Donald Trump has instigated hatred.  He has incited violence by spewing venomous vulgarities.  He has provoked rage by bellowing incendiary rhetoric.  Trump has divided our country unlike any other president in our history.  We need to stitch together our nation so that our patchwork quilt of states represents a united republic.  We can never allow our democracy to be tarnished.  But Trump has tried.  We cannot permit anyone - especially not a sitting president - to trample on our rights and our liberties.  But Trump has tried to do that too.  Although each state has its own governing body, 50 of them together form what should be a seamless union; one with a national government that President Abraham Lincoln described as "of the people, by the people, for the people."      

      Our nation was on pins and needles for four sleepless nights following the Tuesday, November 3rd, 2020 election, but on the morning of Saturday, November 7th, former Vice President Joe Biden was finally declared President-elect.  What a great day for the U.S.A.!  A time for celebration!  The soul of America is alive and well with President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.  America will be saved with President Biden and Vice President Harris.  But for sixteen days after Mr. Biden's victory, Donald Trump had not provided a scintilla of decency toward a traditional effort to launch a smooth and peaceful transition of power.  Instead, Trump sulked in the corner of The Oval Office - or any other room for that matter - as he displayed his childish behavior.

     It wasn't until Monday, November 23rd - with Trump's pseudo and semi-support - the administrator of the General Services Administration gave President-elect Biden the words he had waited more than two weeks to hear.  The official government transition process has been approved.  In a letter to Mr. Biden - to whom she addressed "the apparent president-elect" - Emily Murphy wrote, "As the Administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration, I have the ability under the Presidential Transition Act of 1963, as amended, to make certain post-election resources and services available to assist in the event of a presidential transition.  I take this role seriously and, because of recent developments involving legal challenges and certifications of election results, am transmitting this letter today to make those resources and services available to you."  Murphy went on to write, "As you know, the GSA Administrator does not pick or certify the winner of a presidential election.  The actual winner of the presidential election will be determined by the electoral process detailed in the Constitution."

     But the GSA's announcement still won't stop Donald Trump from demonstrating more of his morally ignoble and sinfully sleazy allegations that the Democrats used unscrupulous trickery and treachery so that Joe Biden receives keys to The White House on January 20th, 2021.  Trump pledges to continue his legal hocus-pocus as he contests President-elect Biden's "blue" ribbon achievement.  Following Murphy informing Mr. Biden, Trump tweeted, "I am recommending that Emily and her team do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols, and have told my team to do the same."  However, Trump later tweeted that he "Will never concede to fake ballots & 'Dominion.'"  Dominion refers to an unfounded conspiracy theory, which Trump claims made voting machines delete millions of votes cast for him.  There is no truth to Trump's inflammatory allegations and Twitter flagged his tweet stating "this claim about election fraud is disputed."  

     Trump escalated his skullduggery on Wednesday, November 25th when he telephoned a Pennsylvania State Senate hearing in Gettysburg as part of his shrinking legal battle against the 2020 election results.  In a 10-minute-long rant, Trump viciously raped American democracy with his malignant, toxic tongue.  "This election was lost by the Democrats.  They cheated.  It was a fraudulent election."  But Trump, nor his lamebrain lawyer, Rudy Giuliani - who was on hand at the hearing to represent Trump - ever provided any evidence to support their misleading, fictitious claims.  But that won't put a stop to Trump as he stabs in the back the bedrock principles of our nation's Constitution.  "We have to turn the election over, because there's no doubt we have all the evidence, we have all the affidavits, we have everything.  All we need is to have some judge listen to it properly without having a political opinion or having another kind of a problem, because we have everything and, by the way, the evidence is pouring in now, as we speak."  And the lies they keep on coming!  About three dozen lawsuits have been filed in courts across America as Trump tries to pull the plug on President-elect Biden's bona fide feat.  Not one case has yet to find a single instance of voter fraud.  So Trump needs to stop being a sore loser.  Listen up, Donald.  Take your ball and go home.  Joe Biden won the game.  And as President-elect Biden wrote on Wednesday, November 4th - the day after the election - "We the people will not be silenced.  We the people will not be bullied.  We the people will not surrender."

     Few Republicans have expressed tough thoughts against Donald Trump.  But Senator Mitt Romney of Utah - who voted to convict Trump at his February 5th, 2020 impeachment trial on the charge of presidential abuse of power - isn't mincing words about Trump's assault on our nation's democratic process.  On Thursday, November 19th, Romney tweeted, "Having failed to make even a plausible case of widespread fraud or conspiracy before any court of law, the President has now resorted to overt pressure on state and local officials to subvert the will of the people and overturn the election.  It is difficult to imagine a worse, more undemocratic action by a sitting American President."  According to research by Snopes on Tuesday, November 24th, only 17 of the 253 Republicans of the current U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives have publicly accepted Joe Biden as President-elect.

     President-elect Biden, on Tuesday, November 10th labeled Trump "an embarrassment" to our country for not conceding the election.  Reliable sources say Trump's wife, Melania Trump, had advised her husband, shortly after Joe Biden surpassed the necessary 270 electoral vote mark, to recognize the loss, toss in the towel, and to pass the baton to President-elect Biden with at least a modicum of dignity.  Sadly, the narcissism in Donald Trump is unable to admit defeat.  Therefore, Trump is likely to continue being a spoiled brat.  Day after day until he's actually evicted and - if necessary - escorted out of The White House, "Big Baby Donald" will throw frequent temper tantrums on Twitter.  

     After the major media organizations named Joe Biden the President-elect, it took Donald Trump nearly eight days until Sunday morning, November 15th to tweet that Mr. Biden "won" the election, but did so by cheating.  "He won because the Election was Rigged."  Trump, of course, has absolutely no proof whatsoever of any widespread voter fraud or election improprieties.

     About 92 minutes after network news outlets were reporting that Trump conceded the race to President-elect Biden, Trump retracted his earlier comment about Joe Biden's win.  "He only won in the eyes of the FAKE NEWS MEDIA.  I concede NOTHING."  On Sunday night, November 15th, shortly before midnight on Monday, November 16th, Trump tweeted, "I WON THE ELECTION!"  But Twitter immediately flagged Trump's post with the words, "Official sources called the election differently," and our Founding Fathers are spinning in their graves with disgust.  Donald Trump is a disgrace to our country.  He has broken laws so many times over the years that we shouldn't be shocked by his unsubstantiated claims.  Trump will do anything to hold on to the presidency...even if it's illegal.

     Trump's obsessive allegations are bogus and boring.  The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued a statement on Thursday, November 12th that "There is no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes, or was in any way compromised."  And the agency says, "The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history."  Trump falsely claims that "27 million Trump votes nationwide" were deleted by a voting machine system.  But we shouldn't be surprised by these falsehoods.  Trump was adamant - even before the voting began - that if he was not pronounced triumphant, he would challenge the voice of the people.  Meanwhile, the self-centered and vain Trump will embody his tirade of tweets as his megaphone and shamefully use "The People's House" as his bully pulpit.

     Labeling the election as "rigged" or stolen is a further display of Trump's autocratic actions and violates the democratic process that Americans have valued and endeared for nearly two-and-a-half centuries.  But Trump is convinced - but with no evidence - that Mr. Biden and the Democrats are "trying to steal an election."  Trump did, however, make reference on Thursday, November 26th to "The Biden administration" when he took a leap to admit that he'll leave The White House if the Electoral College votes for Joe Biden. "Certainly I will.  Certainly I will."  But nobody truly knows what's rattling around in Trump's hedonistic head and what he may or may not do come January 20th, 2021.  But Trump did acknowledge - at least for that moment - that "Time is not on our side."  However, on Friday, November 27th, Trump wasn't so gracious, as he falsely contended on Twitter that Joe "Biden can only enter The White House as President if he can prove that his ridiculous '80,000,000 votes' were not fraudulently or illegally obtained."  Of course Trump has no say in the matter, and President-elect Biden doesn't have to prove anything.  The votes tell the story and are all the proof he needs.

     For his entire life - 74 plus years - Donald Trump has never really been beaten.  And when he has had a setback of sorts, Trump has used his money - or perhaps other people's (or other nation's) finances - along with his influence, or the inflated power he believes he has, to buy his way out of a problem.  Not this time though.  America has spoken, and any voter who did not cast his or her ballot for Joe Biden needs to acknowledge and accept that the now President-elect Biden will be sworn in on January 20th, 2021 as President of the United States.

     It's long overdue for Republicans nationwide to abandon this rabid wretch whose dangerously reckless behavior has trashed our country in to a landfill of economic doom, racial hatred, and pandemic demise.  Every day that goes by, Donald Trump makes a fool of himself with his refusal to concede an electoral shellacking.  Trump can play his corrupt games and try to threaten and undermine American democracy, but although they won't admit it, Republicans on Capitol Hill know the rules, and there's only one game that counts.  The votes from each state will be certified - some already have been - and whether or not Trump wants to personally help President-elect Biden with the transition, there will be a transfer of power, it will be orderly, it will be peaceful, it will be smooth.

     Recounts and frivolous lawsuits by Trump attorneys will not change the outcome of the election.  To date, Trump has failed with all his legal challenges, including when a federal judge on Saturday, November 21st dismissed the case in Pennsylvania as being a "strained legal argument without merit."  U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Brann ruled, "This claim, like Frankenstein's Monster, has been haphazardly stitched together."  Although he was nominated by former Democratic President Barack Obama, Brann's biography identifies him as a Republican and a member of the Federalist Society - an organization of conservative and Libertarian lawyers, law students and scholars.  Brann says he "has no authority to take away the right to vote of even a single person, let alone millions of citizens.  In the United States of America, this cannot justify the disenfranchisement of a single voter, let alone all the voters of its sixth most popular state.  This is not how the Constitution works."  Other judges made similar observations when ruling to dismiss Trump's lawsuits.

     More bad news from Pennsylvania came to Trump on Friday, November 27th when a federal appeals court in Philadelphia unanimously rejected Trump's latest attempt to protest the election results in "The Keystone State."  Each member of the three-judge panel was appointed by Republican presidents.  Speaking for the trio, Judge Stephanos Bibas of the 3rd Circuit - a Trump appointee - wrote, "Free, fair elections are the lifeblood of our democracy.  Charges of unfairness are serious.  But calling an election unfair does not make it so.  Charges require specific allegations and then proof.  We have neither here."

     Rudy Giuliani, is using his boss' playbook to echo voter fraud allegations that are totally untrue. On Thursday, November 19th, the former New York City mayor - perspiring profusely with streams of sweat causing (what appeared to be) black hair dye to streak down his face - was beyond frenzied when during a press conference at the Washington, DC headquarters of the Republican National Committee, Giuliani made up a false narrative in his head that doesn't have an ounce of truth connected to it. Giuliani accuses Democrats who control certain large municipalities of being part of a national conspiracy "particularly if they focused on big cities that have a long history of corruption."

     But Trump and Giuliani are delusional.  Their irrational claim of widespread voter fraud is baseless.  Giuliani - once known by his fans as "America's Mayor" after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan - apparently doesn't give a damn about his own reputation and legacy because he is acting like a babbling, bumbling buffoon.  "I know crimes.  I can smell them.  You don't have to smell this one.  I can prove it to you eighteen different ways.  I can prove to you that he (Donald Trump) won Pennsylvania by 300,000 votes.  I can prove to you that he (Donald Trump) won Michigan, probably by 50,000 votes."  No, you can't, Rudy.  The math does not in any way corroborate the claims of Giuliani and Trump.  But Giuliani blames Democrats in large cities with massive Black populations that voter fraud stems from places such as Atlanta, Detroit, Milwaukee and Philadelphia.  But Republican Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska says, "Wild press conferences erode public trust.  We are a nation of laws, not tweets."   

      Donald Trump's attempt to throw out the votes of the people will not be tolerated by the courts and, therefore, his endeavor is an effort in futility.  After all, President-elect Biden flipped five states that Trump won in 2016; Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.  Therefore, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are the choice of America with 306 electoral votes, while Donald Trump and Mike Pence received 232 electoral votes.  A record number of votes totaling more than 80.2 million and counting - the most of any presidential candidate in U.S. history - were cast for President-elect Biden, while Trump received, to date, just over 73.9 million votes.  So I am sick of people comparing Donald Trump to former Vice President Al Gore - the Democratic nominee for President in 2000.  The Bush v. Gore U.S. Supreme Court case only pertained to one state - Florida - with a difference of merely 537 votes.  As we all know, Justices ruled to award "The Sunshine State's" 25 Electoral College votes to George W. Bush and, therefore, Mr. Bush was elected President by that 5 to 4 decision.  The 2020 election is quite different than the election of 2000.  Of the six battleground states that Donald Trump has filed lawsuits, President-elect Biden is 

ahead by more than 312,000 votes, not 537.  And just for the record, in the popular vote, President-elect Biden has nearly 6.3 million more votes than Trump.  The following numbers are from The Cook Political Report - an independent, non-partisan newsletter - as of 8 P.M. on Saturday, November 28th.  The Associated Press has similar totals reported.  In Michigan, President-elect Biden leads by more than 154,000 votes.  In Pennsylvania, Mr. Biden is ahead by over 81,000 votes.  In Nevada, the Delaware Democrat is on top by more than 33,000 votes.  The Wisconsin race has President-elect Biden with almost 21,000 more votes than Donald Trump.  Georgia's totals have Joe Biden above Trump by nearly 13,000 votes, while Arizona gives Mr. Biden the advantage by more than 10,000 votes.  There's no disputing that Trump is a master manipulator and a consummate conman.  But whether he uses underhanded tactics, brazen bullying, or even the most lawful litigation in the world, nothing is going to adjust these figures.  The bottom line is that Joe Biden won and Donald Trump lost.

   

      Democrats and others who voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016 had hoped the former Secretary of State would have shattered the glass ceiling to become the first woman elected President of the United States.  Unfortunately, it did not happen. But in 2020, although it's not completely broken, Senator Kamala Harris of California cracked that ceiling, as she will become the first female Vice President.

 

     But how much longer is Trump going to persist his carefully engineered plot to further deceive the American people in his attempt to overthrow a constitutionally democratic government?  Trump's rash shenanigans will eventually be squashed when the Electoral College meets on December 14th.  Until then, Trump and his gang of goons will remain in pursuit of making President-elect Biden and the Democrats sweat.  But only a little at this point because any logical person knows there's no way Trump will ever overturn the results of the election.  However, until the GSA administrator's conclusion favored Mr. Biden, Trump's wickedness and depravity had been making the presidential transition unjustifiably complicated and brutally exhausting for the new President-elect, his incoming administration and our country as a whole.  Meanwhile, Trump remains ruthless and relentless while he demands further investigations in to the election.  But all of Trump's efforts will flop as his conspiracy theories about voter fraud is the only element of the 2020 election that is fraudulent.  That being said, Trump administration officials are spreading lies across America like farmers who spread manure to grow their crops.  But cow shit helps proliferate the farmer's fruits, vegetables and grains. Bullshit will not help Donald Trump, even though he spreads it around all over the place.  However, Trump and his Republican cronies undoubtedly believe that the more they resort to chicanery, the more public support there will be and, therefore, the better chance Trump might have to get the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the election.  But for the GOP to give Republican voters any sense of hope, that there could possibly be a second Trump term, is harmful to our nation, as such information is fake.     

      The United States of America cannot trust Donald Trump.  We never can.  We never will.  So we are ridding our nation of a lying, cheating, irresponsible, desperate, destructive, thoughtless president who cares only about himself.  Our country will soon restore civility and decorum to The White House by electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.  Trump is an immoral, unethical, deranged and malicious sociopathic egomaniac who has been terrifyingly unfit to serve as President of the United States for four years.  But nearly 74 million Americans don't care.  They don't care that Trump lacks compassion and empathy.  They don't care that he's not generous.  They don't care - and didn't care in 2016 - when Trump was heard on a 2005 video recording degrading women with his lewd, crude stick of political dynamite that should have exploded in Trump's face and blown up his campaign.  "You know I'm automatically attracted to beautiful...I just start kissing them.  It's like a magnet.  Just kiss.  I don't even wait.  And when you're a star, they let you do it.  You can do anything.  Grab 'em by the pussy.  You can do anything."  They don't care that Trump called African nations "shithole countries."  They don't care that Trump promoted violence at his rallies with remarks such as "I'd like to punch him in the face" and "I'd like to knock the crap out of them."  They don't care that Trump called white supremacists and neo-Nazis "very fine people."  They don't care about any of Trump's insults or that he's a racist, a xenophobe, a homophobe, a misogynist, a sexist, and simply a hater.  And they don't care that Trump never thinks he's wrong and that he never apologizes for anything.  Trump's devotees just don't care that he's repugnant and repulsive.  Or is it that they don't believe that he is - and if that's the case - then what does that say about them?  And although Trump requires loyalty from others, his fanatical followers feel they don't need him to be loyal to them.  I had one Republican recently tell me, "I want a president, not a dog.  If I want loyalty and compassion, I'll get a puppy."  In the minds of Republicans, as long as the country's not at war, not being attacked by foreign terrorists, and the stock markets are accelerating, that's all that's important.  Trump took credit on Tuesday, November 24th when the Dow Jones Industrials broke a record and closed above 30,000.  But Trump doesn't deserve any pat on the back.  Wall Street is enthusiastically thrilled about Joe Biden becoming President as stock brokers and their clients have great confidence that under President Biden there will be an economic recovery.  Traders and investors are also excited that Mr. Biden appointed Janet Yellen - the former chairperson of the Federal Reserve to be his Secretary of the Treasury.  Trump insisted throughout the campaign that the stock markets would crash if Joe Biden was elected.  Once again, Donald...you were wrong.  Since Election Day, Wall Street is on route to being an historic month of November.  What Trump and Republicans don't seem to understand - don't want to understand, or even care to understand - for the average American to prosper on Main Street, we cannot simply focus on a profitable Wall Street.  There's much more to making an economy successful so that the middle-class and poor can fill their bank accounts and wallets with money.  As President-elect Biden told NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt in an exclusive interview that aired on November 24th, "The middle-class and working class people are being crushed.  That's my focus."  According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, more than 11 million American adults are still without jobs, but we need to remember that during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic between March and August 2020, under Donald Trump's watch, more than 58 million Americans filed for unemployment.  As for terrorism, a quiet moment now doesn't mean there aren't heinous villains overseas who want Americans dead, and America needs a competent leader like Joe Biden, not an incompetent, negligent failure like Donald Trump, who is in large part responsible this year for the deaths of more than 265,000 Americans and counting who have died from COVID-19, and another 13.2 million more who have been sick with the coronavirus.  About 200,000 others are infected and testing positive for the disease everyday, with a daily death rate of about 2,000 or more.  And hospitalizations are at record highs.  According to the Coronavirus Resource Center at Johns Hopkins University Medicine, 114 Americans are testing positive for COVID-19 every minute.  It is Donald Trump's fault that families weren't together this year to celebrate Thanksgiving, nor will they be for Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa.  Meanwhile, America is facing a tsunami of coronavirus cases throughout this upcoming winter.  Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri says their predictive pandemic model suggests COVID-19 cases could reach 20 million in the United States by Inauguration Day.  But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says the number of coronavirus cases may already be, in reality, in excess of 100 million.  But there are people - millions of Americans - who are just being stupid.  They're not staying home.  They're not wearing masks when they absolutely have to go out.  They're ignoring the guidelines set forth by the CDC and other health experts nationwide.  Simply put, some people are risking their lives and the lives of their relatives and friends by not having the patience to wait.  Oh I've blamed Donald Trump for not being a leader.  I've blamed Republican governors too.  But people who are Democrats, and left-leaning Independents, are not paying attention either.  The CDC recommended that nobody travel over this Thanksgiving weekend, yet millions of people in our country did.  I know it's been more than eight months since we've been battling COVID-19.  I know it's difficult to not be with others.  But if you want to live longer, and if you want those you care for to live longer, you need to stay away from each other unless you are socially distant or you wear a mask.  I know it sucks.  But dammit...do it!  Or else your future could mean your death, and/or the deaths of people you love.  A vaccine is coming soon - perhaps it will be ready for people to be inoculated in the next few months or so - but personally, I want to be absolutely certain that the vaccine is safe.  The Food and Drug Administration, the CDC, and every health official can confirm its safety, but when I see President Biden get a vaccine then I know it's safe.  If President Biden says "yes" then I'm on board and on line.  I'm optimistic that President Biden will end the coronavirus pandemic.  Obviously COVID fatigue is taking its toll on the American people.  With a staggering and skyrocketing number of new coronavirus cases, and with surges in all 50 states, Donald Trump cannot admit that he was wrong about COVID-19.  It was at a February 27th White House press conference when Trump told our country that the coronavirus is "going to disappear.  One day, it's like a miracle.  It will disappear."  Trump has ignored the magnitude of COVID-19 and the tragic outcome of this deadly disease that has caused illness, death, and financial crisis in America.  As NBC News senior business correspondent Stephanie Ruhle perfectly stated on MSNBC's The 11th Hour with Brian Williams on Monday, November 16th, "We cannot have an economic recovery until we have a health recovery."   

     Donald Trump will probably never concede that he lost the 2020 election.  The voters in all 50 states and the District of Columbia - especially the battleground states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin - will be certified soon (some already have been) and Joe Biden will be President.  And Trump can't do a damn thing about it.  Until then, Trump and his unprincipled underlings - who are intimidated by him, and who fear Trump's dastardly demeanor could come back to haunt them - won't stand up to their crooked kingpin and speak out against him.  However, some White House aides are reportedly embarrassed and frustrated by Trump's atrocious behavior.  But Trump - as has been undeniable for years - is someone who never listens to anyone and doesn't give a hoot what others say.  Now is the time for a mass walkout.  The sickminded Trump would be infuriated by the collective desertion, but perhaps a theatrical exit by his staff and other political allies is what's needed for Trump to get the message that he is poisoning American democracy by his disturbing and distressing exhibition.   

      Now that the GSA has green-lighted the transition, President-elect Biden, Vice President-elect Harris and the incoming Biden administration will be given the opportunity to consult with current White House officials on the coronavirus pandemic, and Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris will be given access to the Presidential Daily Briefing.  But Trump's horrific lack of patriotism is inexcusable and unforgiving.  His obstruction and abuse of power is his way of showing everyone that he's still in charge - at least for now - and Trump wasn't going to allow President-elect Biden or any of his staff to visit The West Wing until he said so.  As always, Trump makes his own rules - and thinks he can get away with it - even when common practice and courtesy would have had a welcome mat laid out at the front door of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue more than three weeks ago, so that President-elect Biden, Vice President-elect Harris, and their staffs would have been free to meet with Trump and his administration.  A process of continuity for a smooth and peaceful transfer of power is traditional, but that doesn't phase Donald Trump.  He just doesn't care.  In his final days in office, Trump creates more and more chaos everyday.  Thus, on Thursday, November 19th, President-elect Biden called Trump "one of the most irresponsible presidents in American history," and questioned whether Trump's actions since Election Day are "even legal." 

     With Trump not conceding the election, more than 150 former national security officials were worried that a delay in the presidential transition posed "a serious risk to national security."  The group urged the General Services Administration to officially recognize Joe Biden as President-elect so that he and Kamala Harris as Vice President-elect can be authorized to review "pressing national security issues."  But prior to the GSA's decision, an increasing number of congressional Republicans felt Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris were entitled to be given access to Intelligence Briefings and other classified information.  However, they still won't take the soon to be President and Vice President to the finish line and agree that they've won the race.  Some high-ranking Republicans such as Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma and Senator John Thune of South Dakota each advocated early on, the notion that President-elect Biden and Vice-President-elect Harris need to be fully aware of such vital information, and I've got to believe there are other Republicans who understand that it's imperative for the President-elect on day one of his presidency to be up to date on our country's national security.  He must know everything backwards and forwards.  But that still doesn't mean that Republicans have come to terms that it will be Joe Biden on January 20th, 2021 who will take the Presidential Oath of Office.  It's time, though, that Republicans need to get their heads out of the sand because Donald Trump - as the old saying goes - has two chances of a second term - slim and none - and slim just got crushed by a bus.

     "Uncle Sam" gives the GSA the task of forging ahead with the transition, which provides millions of dollars in funding and other resources by the federal government to the incoming Biden administration.  However, while the GSA dragged its feet, President-elect Biden and his team weren't allowing Trump's stonewalling to slow-down the transition.  Mr. Biden was going full speed ahead with his White House staff appointments and the necessary preparations for choosing his Cabinet. 

     Donald Trump may not be giving up without a fight, but all he's going to do is cause his already ruined legacy to get a fat lip and a black eye.  So I recommend that Trump do as he suggested at a Georgia rally in October.  "If I lose, maybe I'll have to leave the country."  Well Donald...you lost.  Pack your bags!

     There is reporting, however, that Trump has already shared with some of his advisers that this is not the end of his political career, even after all 2020 election results are certified and Joe Biden is officially and formally proclaimed to be the President-elect.  Apparently, sources say Trump will announce - as early as sometime in December - that he will seek the presidency again in four years.  But Trump knows damn well that he won't really be running for president again.  Oh he might say that he's out to grab the Republican nomination in 2024, but I think that will merely be a publicity stunt and simply a way for his name to remain fresh on the minds of his base and the nearly 74 million Americans who voted for him in 2020.  After all, it will give Trump the exposure he will need in his effort to make a success of the cable television network that he's more likely to create.  Plus, for those who bow down to him, which is a gesture that Trump thrives on to survive, announcing a 2024 campaign would give his worshipers a reason to continue their love affair with him.  So don't expect Trump to walk off in to the sunset.  He's bound to make noise as long as he can breathe.  But the commotion he will be making will be to defend himself in New York State and New York City courts of law; perhaps in federal court.  Once and for all, "The Trump Show" has been canceled by the American people, and this one-hit wonder will soon get the memo from Republicans that they can easily find someone else to be their star.  It won't be long before Republicans and right-leaning Independents nationwide will realize that Trump never gave them the high ratings and an award-winning presidential production that he promised.  It was all smoke and mirrors to benefit himself.  Remember Trump's signature pledge during the 2016 campaign?  Well...the 1,954-mile border wall was never built.  And if you go back to my columns over the last five-and-a-half years, I wrote over and over again - from the first time Trump mentioned it, which was June 16th, 2015 when he began his 2016 campaign - that construction of such a barrier would never happen on our southern border, and certainly Mexico would never pay for it, which Trump vowed he would get them to do.

     Donald Trump is a political washout.  He is a fungus that has infected and defiled the United States political system.  Trump has defied the spirit of America and the institutions that our Founders created.  His presidency will go down in history as one of our nation's biggest busts.  A real dud!  And it's about to go thud!  But Trump's swelled head and the arrogance he echoed with his foul mouth was bound to someday knock him off his feet.  And that's what's happened.  Eventually - and probably soon - Trump will be catapulted from detrimental denial in to mental oblivion.  We have yet to witness Trump completely going off the deep end and travel to an endless roadway of maniacal madness.  But that day is coming, and it will likely be here before January 20th, 2021.  Meanwhile, Trump and his two older sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump - who are equally as vile and vindictive as "Daddy" - will continue to regurgitate their vengeful conspiracy theories as they further cultivate their cult.  However, in a short period of time - with the masterful success of Joe Biden's presidency - Trump's popularity will dwindle, and especially because of the COVID-19 pandemic, he and his presidency will be painted as a catastrophic fiasco.  Twitter will not only flag his false claims, but his tweets will be removed and Trump will be banned from all social media platforms.  At that point, Trump's reprehensibly raunchy rhetoric will not be given any credence whatsoever, and his pedestal of profanity and perversion will wobble and finally collapse.

     More than likely, Donald Trump's facing a future in courtrooms.  But not as a plaintiff in lawsuits, but as a defendant in criminal trials.  So should Trump be prosecuted for the crimes he allegedly has committed?  You bet your ass he should.  Trump should not be allowed to get away with the illegal acts he's performed.  

     It really irks me when people say that Richard Nixon escaped prosecution for his crimes.  That's really not true.  President Nixon resigned the presidency.  That was his penalty.  That was his punishment.  I was never a fan of "Tricky Dick," but I always agreed with President Gerald Ford when he pardoned Mr. Nixon.  With our 37th President's resignation on August 9th, 1974, and with number 38 issuing the pardon on September 8th, 1974, it truly put a close to what President Ford, a month earlier, appropriately called "our long national nightmare."  If on February 5th, 2020, Donald Trump had been convicted and removed from office by the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate after he had been impeached on December 18th, 2019 by the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, my thoughts about Trump being prosecuted after he leaves office might be different.  Might be different.  But since the GOP (except for Senator Mitt Romney) didn't have the courage to put our country above an obnoxious and perfidious president, Trump needs to be held accountable for the criminal activity for which he is accused; obstruction of justice, conspiracy, witness tampering, campaign finance violations, income tax fraud, perjury, The Hatch Act - which "prohibits civil service employees in the executive branch of the federal government, except the president and vice president, from engaging in some forms of political activity," and so much more.  Nobody is above the law, and the rule of law has to be adhered to even with a former president of the United States.

     I'm against the Department of Justice policy (it's a policy not a law) that a sitting president cannot be indicted.  So if there's no prosecution once Trump becomes a private citizen again then we, the people of the United States, are giving him an opportunity and a pathway to skate by without as much as even a slap on the wrist.  And Trump deserves a much stiffer punishment than that.  America cannot give Donald Trump - or any U.S. president - carte blanche to break the law.  As with any other American citizen, a former president needs to go before a judge and jury.  We cannot permit Trump, or any future president, whether Republican or Democrat, to think he, or she, can do anything illegal without suffering the consequences.  There has to be a deterrent and a signal to all presidents, decades from now, that they do not have a special privilege - that no American has - to do whatever they want illegally and still be free from any form of retribution and restitution.  They need to know at the get-go that if they are caught, they will be arrested and they may go to prison.  The United States is not a monarchy, and Donald Trump is not a king.  And although he pretends to be a dictator wannabe (perhaps there's no pretending to it) then Trump has to be taken down.  He has to pay for his crimes.  

     The headline of this column begins with JOE BIDEN WINS IN A LANDSLIDE.  I use the word landslide because for four years Donald Trump has bragged about his "landslide" win against Hillary Clinton when Trump had 306 electoral votes and former First Lady Clinton had 232 electoral votes.  Former counselor to the president, Kellyanne Conway tweeted on November 28th, 2016, "306.  Landslide.  Blowout.  Historic."  So now that the tables are turned and the 2020 electoral vote tally is identical to 2016, but with Joe Biden taking home the trophy, calling President-elect Biden's gold medal accomplishment a landslide is most definitely appropriate.  That said, whether we call it a landslide or not, Joe Biden smothered Donald Trump with a decisive victory. 

     It's puzzling - in fact, downright baffling - why millions of Americans are still so mesmerized by Donald Trump.  It's mind-boggling that they are so fascinated with a man who has proven time and time again that he doesn't have all his marbles.  Oh I know I've used much stronger language over the years - even earlier in this column - to describe Trump's lack of mental fitness, but adjectives are one thing, a documented analysis by someone with MD or PsyD after their names is another.  Therefore, I've decided to leave psychiatry and psychology to the medical professionals.  It will be up to them to offer a clinical diagnosis, and for historians to prognosticate how Trump will be remembered.  But there's no doubt that his legacy has not only been tarnished, it's completely corroded.  I'm not making these statements to be cruel.  But it's difficult - in fact, impossible at this point - to impart any heart, to such a heartless person.  Donald Trump never was, isn't now, and never would have been qualified, with the wisdom necessary, to sit behind The Oval Office desk.

     With a new President elected, it's time now to reunite the United States.  It's time for all of us to be friends again.  President-elect Biden - once he moves in to The West Wing - will try hard and will do his utmost to guide us, as he attempts to bring us together as one people, as Americans.  But will everyone care enough to follow his lead?  I've posted on Facebook and tweeted the following every day since Joe Biden was declared President-elect.  "Keep smiling!  President Biden will unite the United States.  The beautiful Biden sun shines brightly over America and every American."  But the GOP and Republicans all across our nation have got to be open to an amiable, cordial, and harmonious relationship with Democrats.  And all Independents need to do the same.  That doesn't mean we can't disagree.  But it also doesn't mean we have to despise each other because of our political differences.  However, to reconcile half a country with the other half will take some doing.  It will first require spineless Republicans on Capitol Hill to stop tip-toeing around Washington, DC.  GOP Members of the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives need to first have the grit and common sense to tell Donald Trump that he lost the election to Joe Biden.  Republicans, for the most part, are causing more turmoil as they back Trump's efforts to challenge the election's results, despite their lack of any evidence of voter fraud.  If none of this is accomplished then "Trumpers" - who have been like a flock of sheep - will be lost souls in the meadows of America with nowhere to graze and grow.  And that's not what America is about.  In George Orwell's Animal Farm, sheep were portrayed as easily-led and with the lowest intelligence of all farmyard creatures.  And since Donald Trump has proved for four years that he is ignorant and, to be blunt about it, an imbecile, he is the "sheep-in-chief."  Therefore, if his flock continue to follow in Trump's footsteps, they won't have a chance to be productive.  And again, that's not what America is about.  So Republicans - all throughout our land - need to stop being Trump's sheep.  Otherwise, the only value these woolly mammals will have, will be to keep each other warm.

     For purposes of this final section, I am going to dispense with the word "elect" and, instead, address Mr. Biden as President.

     President Biden will respect the rule of law and the democratic principles that the United States was founded on and has followed since commencement of our precious Constitution.  Coming in to force, our most cherished document created our federal government on March 4th, 1789; 231 years ago.  President Biden will pay tribute to each and every American by treating everyone with the dignity they deserve, and it will never matter what color their skin is, who they pray to (if anyone at all), where they or their great-grandparents came from, who they love, what they do for a living, or how much money they earn.  President Biden will usher us out of the deep, dark despair and the pandemonium that we have been buried under through four years of Donald Trump's greed, selfishness and callous insensitivity.  The United States of America needs a President whose character we can admire, who we can respect, and who respects us.  The United States of America needs Joe Biden.  And we've got him.  President Biden would never lock babies in cages.  President Biden would never belittle or sully the name of a military veteran as Trump did with the late Senator John McCain, accusing him of not being a hero when he served our country with valor and distinction as a U.S. Navy officer and a Vietnam prisoner of war.  President Biden would never disparage a Gold Star mother and father, or a disabled reporter, or a federal judge who was born in the United States with a Mexican heritage.  President Biden would never denigrate Latino-Americans and Hispanics, African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Native Americans, Muslims, Jews, the LGBTQ community, women, or anyone else.  And President Biden will always denounce and condemn white supremacists, neo-Nazis and the Ku Klux Klan.  Joe Biden is an honorable statesman who cares for others and who will do whatever is humanly possible to make better the lives of every American, whether they voted for him or not.  As Mr. Biden said many times throughout the campaign, and as he tweeted on October 2nd, "I'm running as a Democrat, but I will be an American President.  Whether you voted for me or against me, I will represent you."  President Biden exudes leadership, courage, humility and integrity.  He can communicate with honesty and dignity, not deception and profanity.  Mr. Biden has an exemplary positive attitude towards Americans - ALL Americans - not just white wealthy men.  President Biden is truthful.  He can be trusted by the people of our country.  Joe Biden is a distinguished Democratic Party icon.  But more than that, Joe Biden is an American treasure.  President Biden will work with Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle.  Oh there'll be times when he'll disagree with Republicans, and he'll fight for what he thinks in his heart and soul, at his core, will be best for the American people.  But it will be a healthy fight.  President Biden will be against Republican policies, not people.  Donald Trump's vengeance has divided our nation.  Trump cradles hate towards anyone who isn't loyal to him.  President Biden would never let Americans go hungry or become homeless because of COVID-19.  He will somehow make sure - with Congress - that economic relief and emergency funds will be provided to the poor and the middle-class.  President Biden would never do anything to stop the flow of mail or to cut the budget of our post offices and money to paid to postal workers as a sinister plot to meddle with an election.  And 

President Biden would never do anything to harm the Affordable Care Act, which Mr. Biden as Vice President was instrumental in helping President Obama so that 20 million Americans could get health insurance, and people with pre-existing conditions could be insured.  President Biden, will, however, improve and make better "Obamacare."  Donald Trump,  however, is trying to kill it during a global pandemic.

As he eloquently articulated in his speech, when formally accepting the Democratic Party's nomination on August 20th (Day 4 of the Democratic National Convention), Joe Biden pledged that as President he "will be an ally of the light, not the darkness.  United, we can and will overcome this season of darkness.  Love is more powerful than hate.  Hope is more powerful than fear.  Light is more powerful than dark.  May history be able to say that the end of this chapter of American darkness began here tonight as love and hope and light joined in the battle for the soul of the nation.  And this is a battle that we, together, will win.  I promise you."  Mr. President...I know that with you...we will.

     And that's The Controversy for today.

     I'm Gary B. Duglin.

     "We'll talk again."

The Controversy is a publication of GBD Productions.  Founder and Editor-In-Chief of The Controversy is Gary B. Duglin.

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Photo credits:

1 - The Associated Press, Getty Images and Daily Express (President-elect Joe Biden and Donald Trump)

2 - Getty Images (President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris)

3 - Andrew Harnick/The Associated Press (President-elect Joe Biden)

4 - Justin Sullivan/Getty Images (Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton)

5 - USA TODAY (Vice President-elect Kamala Harris)

6 - Alex Wong/Getty Images (Donald Trump)

7 - Maya Harris (President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris)

8 - Patrick Smith/GettyImages (Former President Barack Obama and President-elect Joe Biden)

9 - Andrew Harnik/The Associated Press (President-elect Joe Biden)

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