How will Trump's lawyers defend his abuse of power? How will they try to prove that Trump acted with fidelity to his oath of office to establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to oursevles and our posterity to form a more perfect union?
Establish justice
Did Trump establish justice when he spread lie after lie about a free and fair election? The word establish means to achieve permanent acceptance or recognition for, so in light of Joe Biden's electoral win, did Donald Trump work to promote permanent acceptance or recognition of a just electoral win for Joe Biden? Justice is defined as what is morally right and fair. Did Donald Trump promote permanent acceptance and recognition of a just election win for Joe Biden? Did Donald Trump promote permanent acceptance or recognition of a right and fair win for Joe Biden, or did he work against his oath of office by spreading lies about the election that discounted Biden's win. Trump's lies worked against establishing justice, and worked in favor of staging and inciting a deadly insurrection with lie after lie. He abused his power here.
Ensure domestic tranquility
To ensure is to make certain, domestic refers to the people of the United States, and tranquility is calm. Did Donald Trump make certain that the transfer of power was calm? He clearly made decision after decision to cause chaos and revolt rather than calm in multiple ways:
- Trump did not assure people of Joe Biden's free and fair win, but instead caused angst and anger by continously spreading lies about the election inferring that the election was fraudulent. He branded his campaign to underminde a free and fair election as Stop-the-Steal, wrongly inferring that the electoral win by Biden was stolen. He used his marketing skill and experience to create angst and anger amongst his loyal followers. This did not ensure domestic tranquility.
- Trump pregamed the Stop-the-Steal Rally planned for the day and time of Joe Biden's electoral college win at the White House where he and his family members and cronies watched his angry, loyal followers gather for the rally. They saw the anger on their faces, the racist clothing they were wearing, the unconventional weapons they wielded, and the angry, racist, violent signs they held. At that point, Trump should have said to himself, "This crowd is not tranquil, and it's my job to ensure domestic tranquility, this rally must be stopped or else we are going to have greater lack of calm." Trump chose not to stop the rally.
- Trump chose to speak to the angry crowd, and rather than work to ensure domestic tranquility or calm, Trump utilized his marketing skills and experience to rile up the angry crowd even more with a series of praise for the crowd, praise for himself, demonizing statements about their opponents, pauses to allow the crowd to cheer loudly, and then the directives to go to the Capitol and fight.
- Trump watched the angry followers leave for the Capitol. He could have ensured domestic tranquility by imploring them to go home, be peaceful, stay away from the Capitol, and let justice prevail with a peaceful confirmation of the electoral win for Joe Biden, but instead he told them he would walk with them to the Capitol.
- Trump did not walk with them, further creating a discalming situation by deceiving his loyal followers. Instead he went to the White House, and further created chaos by tweeting more lies and inciting greater violence and injustice.
Trump did not do as his oath of office calls him to do that day, he did not ensure domestic tranquility, instead he staged and incited chaos, violence, vandalism, injury, terror, and murder.
Provide for the common defense
When Trump watched the angry mob gather before the rally, he did not provide for the common defense by asking for more security. When Trump watched the angry mob leave for the Capitol, he did not provide for the common defense by calling for more security. And, when Trump watched the violence for hours from the safety of the White House, he did not call for greater security. At every point when an angry crowd demonstrated their will to harm and hurt others, and when the crowd actually did act with violence and terror, Trump did not provide for the common defense, instead, he riled the crowd up more with messages that inferred he supported the deadly violence that occurred. Again, he abused his power and did not stay faithful to his oath of office--he did not provide for the common defense to keep American people safe.
Promote the general welfare
Trump took an oath to promote the general welfare of the people. To promote welfare is to work for people's good fortune, happiness, well-being, and prosperity. On January 6th, Trump did nothing to promote the general welfare of the American people, instead he incited deadly violence that injured, terrorized, and murdered Americans. Instead he told his loyal followers to fight repeatedly and then when they fought, he did nothing to stop the vandalism, looting, and carnage that occurred--vandalism, looting, and carnage that did not result in good fortune, well-being, or prosperity. Instead the violence Trump incited resulted in death, injury, terror, obstruction of justice, and very, very expensive clean-up efforts and further security costing as much as $500,000,000--a half billion dollars! Trump did not promote the general welfare, instead he promoted general demise, destruction, danger, and death. Again, we see him acting with infidelity to his oath of office to preserve, protect, and defend the United States Constitution.
Secure the blessings of liberty
To secure the bessings of liberty is to secure the rights of the people. Donald Trump knowingly staged and incited violence that worked in direct oppostion to people's rights.
Trump clearly took advantage of his rights--he spoke freely and utilized his right to free assembly, but did he secure the rights of the American people? I believe that it can be argued that Trump worked against the 9th right by inciting the kind of violence that worked against citizens' right to be safe at their place of work, to speak freely without fear of death, to do their jobs to protect the nation's Capitol without violent obstruction and death, and to protect the safety of their offices, paperwork, and efforts without violent interruption and threats. I believe Trump did not secure the blessings of liberty for any American in the Capitol that day or any American watching the violence on television--as Americans we have a right to enjoy the just process of the electoral college vote confirmation, and Trump obstructed that right by staging and inciting a violent insurrection.
Trump further acted against securing the blessings of liberty, but inciting violence that obstructed the amendments to the Constitution.
- Trump acted against the first amendment by demonizing the press in his rally speech, thus inciting the violence against the media that occurred. Also by instructing his loyal followers to go to the Capitol and fight, he obstructed the peaceful assembly to confirm Joe Biden's electoral win as well as lawmakers' right to speak freely without the violent obstruction of justice.
- I believe it can be argued that he incited injustice by staging and inciting a violent insurrection that worked against the 4th amendment too since Trump's loyal fans seized persons' papers and effects, and made people insecure in their persons.
There is a lot to study with the amendments, but I'm sure that Constitutional lawyers can find other ways that Trump did not secure the blessings of liberty for Americans. Further Trump did not work on behalf of our posterity as children all over the country watched the President of the United States direct his loyal followers to act with violence rather than support a peaceful transfer of power and use peaceful, legal means to express their opinions and work for change they believe in.
Form a more perfect union
Trump clearly did not stay faithful to his Presidential Oath of Office on January 6th. He clearly did not act in the ways outlined by the United States Constitution to form a more perfect union. Instead he put American's in harm's way by inciting violence and obstructing the confirmation of a free and fair election. He should be convicted just as any elected official who works against their oath of office should be impeached and convicted.
As his lawyers suggested, the impeachment is not a complete process--it is a process that works with the facts that an elected official acted with infidelity to oath of office. After Trump is hopefully convicted, he should also be the focus, in part, of a complete investigation of the deadly January 6th insurrection, and he should be held criminally accountable for his role in inciting the 4th deadliest terror incident during his term in office. But for now, the impeachment trial is center stage, and it is clear, Trump is guilty--he abused his power as President of the United States. Convict him.