Erase and Criminalize
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Welcome to America's Cultural Revolution.
China's Cultural Revolution (1966-76) sought to purge remnants of impure non-Maoist thoughts from Chinese society and economy. It was a radical period of persecution.
We are witnessing and experiencing a perverse and dangerous effort to purge America of all things Trumpian — but more importantly — the conservative, traditional values of millions of Americans. It is not only about erasure, but criminalization. Ordinary Americans who support President Trump — and at least 75 million that voted for him — are being targeted with a barrage of efforts to sensationalize and marginalize their beliefs. The professional political and media classes of America's East and West Coasts are striking hard and fast to eliminate Trump. There is a concerted effort to tar every Trump supporter with the brush of Capitol mob protester. That is a lie. It is deliberate and malicious. It is a plan to intimidate and silence.
Facebook is purging all content referencing "stop the steal" — although there is ample evidence of voting irregularities and cause for election reform. Twitter is suspending and expelling hundreds of thousands of users. President Trump is among them. Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei, who leads public cheers of "Death to America!", is not. There is little or no public criticism of the big social media corporations' censorship.
The protests of January 6, 2020 were gravely marred by the sad and unnecessary deaths of five Americans. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick's death is tragic. So is the death of unarmed Air Force veteran Ashli Babbitt. Other "public" deaths in the last nine months have resulted in huge public protests and cities such as Portland burning for weeks. No such reaction to the Sicknick and Babbitt deaths. One wonders why. Where are Antifa and BLM now? Why so quiet? No justice, no peace! — right? Maybe not.
Meanwhile, many are clamoring for Donald Trump's immediate removal from office. Trump gave a speech stating: "if you don't fight like hell you're not going to have a country anymore." That remark is supposed to qualify as "incitement to insurrection." What a pathetic, transparent lie! Think of the number of times innumerable politicians have invoked "fight" to express encouragement for active public policy engagement. We "fight" for healthcare, justice, human rights, entitlements, civil rights — even peace.
The hypocrisy is breathtaking — and dangerous. Trump supporters are supposed to be rhetorically beaten into silent submission, erased from public discourse, and subject to a new sort of bill of attainder, criminalizing all they believe in and support — because Trump succeeded in disrupting official Washington DC, but was not quite savvy enough to win a second term.
The criminality of Hillary's outlaw email server, the phony Russia Hoax, the fake Ukraine Impeachment, FISA Warrant abuse, the politically contaminated and compromised FBI — that all gets a "pass" — but Trump telling supporters to fight for their country — THAT is impeachable?
For some people, even raising these points for discussion is "scary." They would rather "wait for things to settle down," or "see how the inauguration and the opening days of the new administration go," before raising objections to the bulldozing of Trump supporters' civil rights. Well, that is too little and too late. Many critics are overplaying their hands. They sense weakness and seek to snuff out, permanently, any idea that Trumpism could manifest itself again on the American political landscape. It's time to institute the Uniparty and get consensus. They want to roll the clock back and return to the old rules of the DC game. They are even having an "event" to symbolize it. Ironically, it is a wreath-laying at Arlington Cemetery featuring The Establishment. Everything and everyone Trump fought against. Former presidents of both parties. There are many Americans who want nothing to do with those former presidents and what they represent. Biden did not win in a landslide. Many feel disenfranchised. Erasing and criminalizing those Americans will only exacerbate the deep divisions in America.
Chris Farrell is a former counterintelligence case officer. For the past 20 years, he has served as the Director of Investigations & Research for Judicial Watch. The views expressed are the author's alone, and not necessarily those of Judicial Watch.