“Corruption Revisited”

Reviewing this week after the stone walling in the Senate for witnesses in the Trump Impeachment trial, I was surprised that for the first time in the history of the United States Senate, since its beginning, no witnesses were called as part of the process of investigation of the charges filed against the President by the House of Representatives. According to our Constitution, the House of Representatives can impeach a President, but only the Senate has the power to convict.  In order to prevent any witnesses from being called, some type of back dealing occurred to put pressure on all the Republican Senators not to call witnesses.  John Bolton had been suggested as a reasonable witness and acting chief of staff Mike Mulvaney, as both have firsthand knowledge of what actually occurred during the period from May to September, 2019, which is in question.  What did President Trump do and when did he do it?

The unpublished manuscript by John Bolton, former National Security advisor says that President Trump is the principle actor in the scheme to put pressure on Ukraine by withholding military monies designated for their government to help in their fight against the Russians.  President Trump reportedly wanted “dirt on the Bidens,” on Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, who served on the board of Burisma Holdings, a major Ukranian natural gas producer.  This was apparently an effort to help his own presidential campaign, as former Vice President Joe Biden is one of the frontrunners currently in the Democratic candidates who are hoping to run against the President in the November election, 2020.

The move to obtain this information from John Bolton was squashed by Mitch McConnell, Republican majority leader of the Senate.  Only two senators of the five who were expected to ask for witnesses have done so, Senator Susan Collins of Maine and Senator Mitch Romney of Utah.  Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, who could have voted for witnesses did not.  Apparently, from his statement, the senator reached to conclusion during the impeachment trial that Mr. Trump had done what he was accused of, that is pressuring a foreign power to investigate his political rival.  But he did not feel it was wise for the Senate to substitute its own judgment for that of the voters fewer than 10 months before the next election:

“The Senate reflects the country, and the country is as divided as it has been for a long time,” Mr. Alexander said Friday during an interview in his Capitol office.  “For the Senate to tear up the ballots in this election and say President Trump couldn’t be on it, the country probably wouldn’t accept that.  It would just pour gasoline on cultural fires that are burning out there.”  (Internet article by Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Carl Hulse, New York Times 2/2/2020)

Without this Senator’s vote for witnesses the victory in the impeachment trial goes to the Republicans, who will inevitably vote to clear this President of abuse of power.  The stone walling of the President to prevent the House of Representative from obtaining information did not apparently matter to the Republican senators, even though this ultimately was the reason President Nixon resigned in 1974 rather that to be impeached.

The trial of this President, for now is over, and only the election cycle of 2020 can oust him from office.  However, the more important trial of the US Senate and its leadership has just begun.  Eventually, it will be determined that the trial of the President had the fix in from the beginning.  Senator Mitch McConnell never intended to allow the President to be convicted no matter what the crime.  The Senate leadership and all the senators who voted against witnesses being called have effectively refused to allow the truth to be known about this president.  While President Trump will loudly proclaim his innocence to the masses at his campaign rallies, his voice will be tainted with the guilt of his crime.  There is no innocence when there is no trial.  Without a true declaration of innocence, President Trump remains guilty.  If the trial had allowed witnesses to be called his declaration of exoneration would have meant something.  Now it means only that the truth has been subverted by the Senators who have chosen to suppress it.

The President will eventually be determined to be a lawbreaker. The truth will eventually come out. The truth will be clearly known about both Republicans and Democrats.  It is impossible in the current political environment to keep anything hidden.  The end result is the poisoning of this democracy, the weakening of our Republic, the empowering of our enemies of the state and the dividing of our nation into even more smaller parts, who cannot work together for the common good, as we are a divided nation.

President Trump and the Republicans, along with many Democrats of this era, will go down in history as being such polar opposites they destroy the national good.  Whenever it is “us vs them” it is no longer “just us.” As Jesus declared, “a house divided against itself cannot stand!”  And we are a house divided!

Since the Supreme Court Ruling regarding the case of ‘Citizens United’ in 2010, when corporations are allowed to function as individuals, allowing the development of Super PACs, significant amounts of money  have been poured into our political process.  According to research easily found on the Internet, around $4.5 billion dollars of money have been poured into our elections over the past 10 years.  Not only corporations, but wealthy donors, individuals currently running for the office of President of both parties and foreign powers have funneled money for various political causes into our election process.  As a result we have the type of non-functioning, corrupt government processes we are now witnessing.  In order to continue to raise money, these Super PACS will emphasize the differences among the candidates and appeal to those of like minds to donate.  While an individual citizen is limited by law to $1000 donation, a person giving to these entities can give unlimited amounts of money, which do not require identification of the donor or amount.   This has produced a corrupting effect on our national political life.

Since TV and other media are the primary means most politicians now promote themselves, bursting into our private spaces with their political messages, it is almost impossible now to go through a voting cycle and not see and hear these type of messages.  Many choose to ignore everything.  Some only read internet news.  Others get on Facebook and promote their favorite politician.  The long term effect is confusion and a numbing of the electorate to this political noise, which is designed to influence by inflaming the emotions.  President Trump is a master at twisting the news to his advantage and changing any negative news to a positive spin for his Presidency.  Many, knowing he is a pathological liar, no longer listen to anything he says, since he no longer speaks to any of our concerns.  He stirs up his base, and promotes further divisions among us.

This brings me to the point of this long discourse.  Since President Trump is protected from “the truth” about himself and this democracy by those who have the means and the will to protect him, as they protect their own self-interest, they nevertheless damage the Republic, as the loss of trust in the democratic process is so severe as to be almost irreparable.  It is impossible to know which message is untainted by political corruption be it Republican or Democrat based.  Both now use super PACS, as Tom Steyer says, “fighting fire with fire.”  The result is that we are all being burned.

As a Christian, I have prayed and asked our Lord Jesus how He can help us.  Speaking through his Holy Scriptures, Jesus reminds me that “judgment is mine, I will repay says the Lord.”  It is not for the Christian believer to try and change the corrupt political process by becoming like it.  We do not stoop to the level of those who seek power for themselves.  As servants of the Most High God, the weapons of our warfare are spiritual, and these are forgiveness and prayer for our enemies and for those who persecute us and for ourselves, a renewing of our hope in the Good News of Jesus Christ, our Sovereign Lord!   To that end, recommitting myself to the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, let us begin and end with this prayer:

Lord Jesus Christ, we are highly confused when righteousness is covered up by lies, and when truth lies shattered, discarded as refuse by the side of the road.   When nothing changes and evil worsens, prevailing despite our best efforts to contain it, we are profoundly saddened at the state of our souls and the soul of this nation.  There is no uniting voice, there is only division:  brother against sister, sister against brother and we are being torn asunder even while we try to amend:

We pray therefore a pray of forgiveness and healing for our nation:  Lord Jesus Christ, we today forgive those who have destroyed trust in our Republic.  We forgive those who promote divisions, hatred, racism and pride in order to gain for themselves’ power.  We forgive those who pour vast quantities of money into the political arena, when they might have used this same money to help the poor in our midst.   We forgive those who care more about their own reputations than they care about those they represent.  We are profoundly sorry at the state of their souls, corrupted from within by the unrighteous mammon, so their consciences are burned over like a blackened field.  No grass remains, no birds sing, no flowers bloom in this scorched earth.  There is no mercy, as they have no mercy.  With conscience singed with a hot iron, they feel nothing and know nothing and care for nothing.

O God our Savior, in such a state as this, come and save us.  For these so-called enemies who are also our brothers and our sisters, come and save us!  We are in such a state of disarray, confusion, disunion, and sadness we no longer know how to pray or even begin to heal the divisions among us.  For those politicians who exploit us as lost sheep, we are reminded, O Lord Jesus Christ, that there is but one Shepherd, one pasture and one kingdom.  O Lord Jesus, help us to remember how to love those with whom we disagree and even sometimes hate.  Remind us, O Lord, these are our brothers and our sisters; not our enemies!  For those who divide us, using political statements and money from rich donors to exploit us, remember them O Lord for what they have done.  Give us discernment to know the truth of your Gospel, so that we do not become distracted from the joy of serving you!

In these times of confusion, disturbances, inundation of media noise and political wrangling, let us find peace in you and in serving you and your kingdom.  Remind us that good news always conquers evil news, and that love for you and for our neighbor is the greatest commandment for us all!  Whether we are ruled by tyrants or gentle folk, our loyalty is not to politicians who lust for power and govern only for money.  Our loyalty is to you and for you, dear Savior! We therefore dedicate ourselves to sharing the good news of your gospel of peace! No longer will we judge our neighbor, nor even our President and those who support him.  You be the judge, and we will wait for the declaration of your righteousness and the truth of your good news, even if we need to wait until You return at the close of this age, O Lord Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, our Savior and our Friend!

For those who do not know  you as their Savior, and there apparently are many, save them all, O Lord, and give to each one an opportunity to repent, turn to you and find forgiveness and abundance of mercy, through Jesus Christ our Lord!    We make this prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ who loves us, who forgives us, who shows us mercy.  In this same way, give to our enemies and our friends this same grace, which has been given us, freely and without any reservation.  Amen. 

“To God our Savior, to Jesus Christ who Redeems, and to the Holy Spirit who reminds us that only God can judge truly, to our God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be all praise, glory, honor and blessing, both now and forevermore.  Amen.”

Bill Wilson, servant of God by God’s gracious mercies.

“Amen.”