A View from ‘Trump Land’, 10 November 2016

A view expressed by Dr. Jonathan Z. Ludwig, (SIA Advisory Board Member), first posted on his Facebook site, 10 November 2016, which he has kindly allowed us to republish…

“[The 2016 US Election] reminds you that, despite the fact that we often treat the President like some form of royalty, hanging on every word and action and obsessively following the First Family around, we are a nation of laws. Everyone who serves the nation swears an oath to “support and defend the Constitution of the United States,” not the President or any other individual. The Founders placed the Legislature in Article 1 before the President because they did not want an imperial Presidency, something that has become more and more common with a plethora of Executive Orders that circumvent the legislative process, while both citizens and Congress shirk their duty, looking the other way when it suits their interests, only complaining when it goes against what they want. The Presidency is, by design, a weak office, with no more than “the power to persuade.” If you’re unhappy today, as many are (for any number of reasons) start badgering your Representatives and Senators, whether they’re of your party or not, not with pointless whining and complaining, but with concrete ideas of what you want and what you believe in. We’re a Republic, not a monarchy, “if we can keep it,” and we’ve all been shirking in our duty to keep it, not just in this election but for many years now”

Dr. Jonathan Z. Ludwig is Visiting Assistant Professor of Russian at Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA and a member of the SIA Advisory Board.

*** Views expressed in this article are not necessarily those of SAGE International Australia ***